It’s 7:00 p.m. on December 9, and the cobalt blue glow from Capitol Hill’s Neumos stage gently cushions the tapping feet and swaying shoulders of expectant guests. Tonight, the stage hosts a star-studded quartet of the PNW’s finest in r&b and rap.

The artists — Bocha, Donte Thomas, Yohiness, Liv†, Campana, and Esepax on the DJ stand — mill around the venue chatting with their teams of peers, collaborators, fans, and each other. Esepax offers to DJ for Bocha and Thomas at the last minute, and they take up his offer. Liv† joins the crowd and urges them forward in anticipation of the opening act.

Bocha and Donte Thomas start the evening by announcing they arrived from Portland with every intention to keep it weird with us. The pair proceeds to deliver an impressively energetic set that has the crowd dancing in minutes. Thomas finds his home in the crowd during “Do Si Do” as Bocha asks the crowd if they’ve ever heard of Soul-Train, as it was the inspiration for the song they’re to perform next. Thomas urges the crowd to separate in true Soul Train fashion:  two halves with a large aisle down the center of the venue. He dances down the aisle. As they transition into their last song, “Tuesday,” Thomas remains on the floor, and the crowd remains dancing.

Yohiness matches the high-energy of the previous pair. Galavanting across the stage in black skull-patched jeans and a smirk, his booming voice drops lyrics like bombs. He prefaces “Ross,” a bass-heavy trap number, with stories of his life growing up in Federal Way, describing how the support of his mother (who happens to be beaming up from behind me in the crowd) is responsible for his spot on the stage. As he performs, the crowd shouts his own lyrics back to him: “I used to shop at Ross / Now I floss.”

A white neon sign broadcasts Seattle r&b artist Liv†’s title as she takes the stage next. She invites her first special guest, Nobi, to perform their atmospheric and funky collaboration “Euphoria.” Nobi hoots from his place in the crowd. His transition from attendee to performer includes an impressive leap onto the stage from the GA floor. Closing her set, Liv† abandons the stage to claim a spotlight amongst the crowd. Similar to a drop of dish soap in oily water, the crowd parts to let the floor carry her presence to new heights.

Preceding Seattle rapper Campana’s presence on the stage is a vintage grandfather clock. The crowd’s hush of anticipation rapidly transforms into a euphoric cheer as he opens with “Holy Water,” a groovy number with thought provoking lyrics: “Got pretty skin, teeth flawless / Mom gone kill me if I drop out of college / Outside school attain more knowledge / So, to get cake, might break that promise.”

Campana invites a special guest up to perform, and  — just like Nobi — p. kruise steps onto the stage directly from the crowd to perform their house/trap collaboration “Partnas.” While we wait eagerly for the next number, Campana takes a moment to discuss his experience creating Matter of Time, his most recent record, and the inspiration for a short film of the same title. He thanks his collaborators (like p. kruise) for creating the record with him. He asks if we would be alright if the rest of his set consisted only of songs from Matter of Time. After unanimous crowd approval, Campana proceeds to do so. 

At the end of the show, I take one last look at the crowd. They surge forward in unison to congratulate their headliner on another successful evening. From event to afterparty they move as a unit. I drive home comforted by the community spirit I had just witnessed firsthand in this current episode of Seattle hip hop.