Brandeis’ annual music festival, Springest, featured Jessie J and iLoveMakonen this year in performances on Chapel’s Field.

Stolen Jars opened to a mostly empty Chapels’ Field at exactly 2:32 p.m. on Sunday afternoon. There were a few people milling around, but aside from the numerous Student Events personel, the hordes of students had not yet arrived. 

As Stolen Jars continued to play, more people wandered over to the stage. Some went right up, crowding before the stage, while others laid down blankets to sit and watch the show. 

Springfest this year was composed of four acts: Stolen Jars, St. Lucia, iLoveMakonnen and headliner Jessie J. DJ A-Smooth played in between each of the acts. 

There were food trucks along the perimeter and a beer garden on the right side of the field. Stolen Jars were arguably the least known group at the concert, and, according to their Facebook page are unsigned by a record label. 

In an interview with the Justice, Cody Fitzgerald, the band’s founder and leader, explained that the group’s members are actually college students. Fitzgerald went on to say that they have friends who are a part of Student Events at Brandeis and who they contacted asking if it would be possible to play at Springfest.

 When asked what it was like to find out that they were going to perform alongside artists like Jessie J, Molly Grund, the co-leader of the group, said, “It was surreal.” 

St. Lucia played second and many students exclaimed that they had heard of the band before and were excited to see them at Brandeis. As the crowd thickened, students cheered and sang along to the songs they knew. Two of the band members wore brightly colored prints, suiting Springfest’s lively mood. St. Lucia’s best-known song, “Elevate,” was played second to last. The students cheered and sang the lyrics at the top of their lungs when it came on. 

A sizable crowd had grown on the field by the time DJ A-Smooth came back on after St. Lucia, and the concert turned into a dance party. By filling up the gaps between acts, A-Smooth made sure there was never a dull moment and that students were constantly entertained. 

During rapper iLoveMakonnen’s set, the audience’s attention wavered a little, but everyone got into the music when the rapper’s hit song “Tuesday” came on. “Tuesday” brought iLoveMakonnen fame in 2014 when Drake, a prominent rapper, remixed the song. After iLoveMakonnen left the stage, the crowd bided its time dancing again to DJ A-Smooth, but it was obvious that everyone was waiting for Jessie J. 

Jessie J was the concert’s powerhouse headliner, and her arrival was met with a big cheer from the crowd. She entered the stage on a raised platform looking out over the crowd—quite a dramatic entrance. Jessie J opened with her song, “Ain’t Been Done.” 

The crowd nodded along but didn’t really get going until Jessie J began her next song, herhit, “Domino.” She acknowledged this later when she thanked the crowd for trying to pretend to know and like the songs she knew they didn’t know. 

Jessie J wore a variety of Brandeis apparel throughout her performance and talked to the crowd in between songs. The singer filled the space with her rich, deep voice, showing off how her vocals are much stronger than the tracks on her albums reveal. 

The crowd got really ramped up during her hit songs like “Price Tag,” her first hit that made her famous, and “Bang Bang,” which is her current most popular song and which was the last song of the concert. 

Despite the cloudy day and impending finals, students came out in throngs to Chapel’s Field for the ever-popular Springfest. Thanks to the efforts of Student Events, Springfest 2015 was another hit.