With a last-minute cancellation in Portland the night prior, Don Toliver left Vancouver ablaze, kicking off his “PSYCHO Tour”. From motorcycles on stage to the energy brought by the pyrotechnic artists, the American rapper set himself up to deliver an impressive two-hour set, bringing energy, stage presence and gratuity, not to mention the bass that could be felt from the back of the arena.

Full gallery and review by Kianna Sumitani.

Although concertgoers experienced quite a delay entering the arena with the venue only beginning to scan tickets at 7 pm, the 30-minute delay was barely noticeable, with set times only running 10 minutes late. Kicking off the night, American rappers Molly Santana and Monaleo opened the show one after the other, leaving fans buzzing for Ski Mask The Slump God to grace the stage next. With the industry veteran’s last show in Vancouver being almost 5 years ago, this set was highly anticipated. In classic fashion, DJ Scheme set the stage for the rapper, introducing his long-time collaborator who played many of his hits including, “Faucet Failure”, “Nuketown” and “H20”. Paying his respects to XXXTentacion and Juice WRLD who have passed away in recent years, Ski Mask The Slump God continues honouring the late rappers, even playing XXXTentacion’s hit “SAD!”. With fans rapping bar-for-bar, it’s clear that while XXXTentacion passed away over 6 years ago, his legacy in the rap industry lives on.

After a mini-festival lineup-style of opening acts, Don Toliver took the stage at 9:30 pm, kicking off his headlining set with “KRYPTONITE”, paired with a dramatic walk down the cat-walk leading to the hexagon-shaped stage-head. On-theme to the edgy-biker-esc graphics and stage design for this tour, Toliver was dressed in his Hardstone biker jacket, with a large motorcycle “globe of death” behind him. Immediately leaning into C02 and pyro, fans were in for an intense night.

Immediately transitioning to his next track, “TORE IT UP”, the rapper’s energy remained prominent as he played out his other tracks including “BROTHER STONE” AND “CARDIGAN”. Throughout this lengthy set, Don Toliver kept fans on their toes, playing a few of his featured tracks, notably with Travis Scott’s “FE!N” receiving the loudest reaction. Additionally playing “GANG GANG” and Travis Scott’s “CAN’T SAY”, this show was unique to experience as many headliners do not usually play their collaborations during their tours these days.

With his energy continuing to be unmatched, attendees were on their feet all night, security even had to hold the general admission barricades for extra stability for the extremely excited fans. From his guitarist having his own moment to shred at the front of the stage while fireworks erupted behind him, saying this show was exciting is a huge understatement. The stage design continued to show the thought that went behind the tour, the rapper introducing two live motorcyclists performing in the “globe of death” later in the set.

Slowing the set down for certain breathers and talking moments, it was admirable to see Toliver take a moment to reflect on his journey as an artist from Houston, Texas, shouting out his day-one fans and showing his appreciation for the support he has received over the years. We are stoked about this tour and cannot wait to see where he goes after the impressive 25-stop, high budget North American tour

Don Toliver has been in the industry for years but has gained more traction with Hardstone Psycho, receiving over 88M streams in the first week of release on Spotify alone, earlier this year. From outfits to visuals to pyrotechnics, this tour is one you need to check out.

Tickets can be purchased at https://www.dontolivermusic.com/