By Ciara Hooks and Adam Tulloch
Cassidy, a well-known rapper in the hip-hop society, made a surprise appearance at All the Way Turnt Up, a school party thrown by CCSU’s Pep Squad, on Friday night.
Every year the pep squad throws its annual party in which they also perform at. This year one song that was included in the line-up was “Drumma Base” by Cassidy.
“You guys danced to Drumma drumma drumma base, right?” sang DJ Joey Franchize to the crowd.
“Yea,” said the crowd in unison.
DJ Joey Franchize is a well-known DJ in the area, performing at many clubs and events in the state, and is a member of the radio station 93.7. He informed some that Cassidy heard we had performed his song in our routine the night before and wanted to make an appearance at the party. Cassidy’s fourth album, C.A.S.H. (Cass A Straight Hustla), is dropping on Nov. 16, 2010, and he was excited that students at CCSU liked his song. It was the crowd he wanted to reach out to.
Excited and skeptical, the members of pep squad cautiously made everyone aware that Cassidy was supposed to be making a special appearance at the party. When he showed up around 12:30 a.m. with his green winter hat, green sweater, white t shirt, blue jeans and wheat Timberlands on, it was quiet and subtle. After him and his entourage checked in and went through the metal detectors, he quickly and efficiently made his way toward the dance floor. Heads turned, eyes popped out and screams were released as he passed through the crowd. He made his way onto the stage as he was introduced by the DJ and soon after grabbed the microphone.
Cassidy, also known as Barry Adrian Reese, is a 28-year-old rapper from Philadelphia. He signed with the Ruff Ryders label in 2002 and released his first album Split Personality in 2004.
Before he began to perform “Drumma Base” he preceded to let us know that he had lost his voice and wasn’t 100%, but nobody seemed to be bothered or mind.
“I was doing a few shows before I came here so I would do more for you guys, but I don’t have the voice to do it,” said Cassidy.
The beat dropped and he started to do the dance called “The Jig,” rocking side to side to the beat. Cameras and phones went hysterical as everyone tried to capture a moment that rarely happens on CCSU’s campus.
When he finished performing, the DJ put on “Hotel” and another song by Cassidy and the crowd began to dance and cheer. But all good things had to come to an end as Cassidy gave a quick thank you, took a picture or two and exited with his entourage.
“We wanted to bring some excitement to CCSU with this event, Cassidy and our dancing. We are looking to make a big impact at CCSU,” said Jose Cadiz, pep squad treasurer. “I’m hoping to have more events like this everybody had a good time, events like this can be a positive thing for CCSU to have more of. We plan on doing a lot more thing on campus,” said Cadiz.
