Follow along with Brig at American rapper and songwriter, Ashnikko’s Glasgow stop of their Weedkiller tour this past Wednesday.
I’m nervous getting ready.
I’ve never been to a concert before, never mind by myself.
But when faced with an evening at home or the chance to utilise a free ticket, my decision is pretty obvious.
What I know of Ashnikko, who blew up on TikTok in 2019, extends to my getting ready playlist.
When it comes on, my friends and I are normally engaged in the pre-going out rituals of exchanging clothes and waiting for the straightener to heat up.
The songs on this playlist are an amalgamation of the kind of music that put Ashnikko on the map: empowering, unabashed and sometimes sexual.
Their first viral hit Stupid doesn’t shy away from much with lyrics like:
“Fantasise about the pussy power
Think about me with your hand down your trousers
I’m sweet, then I’m sour
I’m big boss Bowser”
Aged 18, Ashnikko moved to London and in an open letter to the LGBTQ+ community they state that it was there “that I started to find my people in the queer community, that I let the roots take hold and my growth began.”
Listening to their music is freeing, it feels like having my own personal hype-person encouraging me to go for what I want.
So, even though my friends aren’t around, I lace up my boots and get going.
At the gig
Sat on the subway it’s not hard to identify my fellow gig-goers.
Brightly coloured hair, devil horns, fairy wings and eyeliner transform an after-work commute into Ashnikko’s fantasy aesthetic made real.
A line winds outside the O2 Academy and discarded cans of Dragon Soup and Monster are precariously stacked on top of bins.
Note to self: ticket conductors will check your ticket multiple times when entering and there is little to no signal inside the O2. So do not – under any circumstance – exit your ticket as you will have to go back outside in the cold and wait an eternity for it to reload.
Opening act: Hemlocke Springs
Slightly frazzled, I make my way up to the balcony and as I sit down the opening act, Hemlocke Springs, takes to the stage in a flurry of twirls and frills.
Her voice is sugary sweet as she introduces herself, and then suddenly she’s screaming into the mic and the drummer on stage with her is grinning from ear to ear.
She moves like she is dancing in her bedroom, twirling and holding the mic as though it were a tube of deodorant. The preciseness and skill she does this with is unmistakable.
The sugary voice is back as she thanks the crowd before bouncing off of the stage.
I’m fiddling with my rings, trying to seem unbothered, as I wait in line for a drink. It’s £3.95 for a pint of draft lemonade.
I end up in a different seat when I return. The two people I’m sat next to also came by themselves; it’s a bit of a relief to no longer be on my own.
We chat and wait and then it all goes black.
Ashnikko on stage
Suddenly Ashnikko appears on the stage, a green cyborg-esque laser strapped to her chest.
Watching them and their dancers move is transfixing. Everyone who was seated out of politeness is now dancing and fairy wings are aflutter as wands are lifted in the air.
She laughs and screams maniacally: it’s pure catharsis.
Her lyrics describe the things she wants to do and what she wants done to her without abandon or censorship and the crowd loves it. This evidenced by the chants of “Here we, here we, here we fucking go” which are a staple of Glaswegian gigs.
The whole gig is fantasy come to life.
From the angry and unrestrained You make me sick to the only slow song in her set Dying Star, that she sings without her dancers, every performance is spellbinding.
They are continuously charming and with every song the crowd continues to fall in love with them.
This is especially true when she compares her own Southern drawl to the Scottish accent saying that both are like marbles in your mouth.
People who hadn’t met before tonight chat to each other on the subway.
As we all go our separate ways the spell of the night is broken, but I think about it all the way home.
Featured Image Credit: Ashnikko via Instagram
South African student journalist in my second year of doing my Bachelor of Arts with Honours in Journalism Studies.
Instagram: @x_.lin_x
