This Saturday, Spring Fling brought on the hype with openers The Groovy Boys, Overcoats and Flipp Dinero, as well as headliner Playboi Carti. Students swarmed the Events Center at 7:30 p.m. to take part in one of Binghamton University’s most anticipated events of the year.

During the day, student organizations lined the Spine and Peace Quad with tables as attendees partook in the usual rides, games, food and live music on campus during the day. Others lined up in the University Union basement, waiting to secure their tickets to the evening concert.

Student band The Groovy Boys opened the concert, having won a performance slot in this semester’s Battle of the Bands. Band member Ryan Lupia, a senior majoring in integrative neuroscience, said the band had spent many hours curating its Spring Fling set list, expanding the variety in their song choices to appeal to a wider audience.

“[W]e tried to pick a mix of songs that will appeal to many different types of people … We have built a very [focused] energy and [an] exciting mix of music,” he said.

The performers’ set list built up the energy with a mix of music; they were greeted by cheers when performing songs like “Burnin’ Up” by the Jonas Brothers, “American Girl” by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and “Killing In the Name” by Rage Against the Machine.

Following the student act was a more relaxed performance by Overcoats, a New York-based electronic-pop duo comprised of singer-songwriters Hana Elion and JJ Mitchell. They featured songs from their debut album “YOUNG,” dancing in a synchronized manner to the beats of “Leave The Light On” and “Hold Me Close.”

Kojo Senoo/Pipe Dream Photographer
Flipp Dinero opens Spring Fling and pumps up the crowd with hits including “Leave Me Alone.”
Rapper Flipp Dinero followed the duo, bringing some of his family onstage to help him perform. Dinero’s brother opened the act, mixing and playing some of his favorite songs. Later on in the set, Dinero gave a shoutout to his other “brother,” a friend who has managed him and helped write many of his songs. Between songs such as “I Do” and “Running Up Bands,” Dinero entertained students with jokes and personal stories. Before performing his hit single, “Leave Me Alone,” Dinero lamented about a girl who would not stop calling him after a night out, prompting him to pick up and ask her to “let him be.”

Headliner Playboi Carti finally took the stage in a colorful blue, orange and white jacket and trendy glasses, better known as “clout goggles.” Carti engaged the audience by running to the ends of the stage and jumping down, dancing among the crowd and giving animated expressions during songs like “Shoota” and “Love Hurts.” Unlike Dinero, Carti was a man of few words, stopping between songs only to introduce his next song throughout the night. Right before rapping his popular single, “Magnolia,” Carti paused, staring out into the student body as the anticipation increased. He broke the silence with two words: “Let’s go!”

Meagan Fenster, an undeclared freshman, said she was a fan of the concert.

“I knew a lot of [Playboi Carti’s] music and it was really exciting to see him live,” she said.

Lupia reflected on this year’s event as both a performer and attendee.

“Spring Fling is such a widespread event and includes all students no matter their background or major,” he said. “Anyone who just wants to have a good time and to listen to music maybe they aren’t aware of yet is welcomed. I think that is really awesome … [T]he music, rides and events are all free and I believe that it brings a sense of community that all students at one level or another, want to be a part of.”