Quinn XCII Takes the Stage at Santa Clara

Soulful singer serenades Bronco students on FridayJohn BrussaSports EditorOctober 18, 2018Just after 9 p.m. last Friday night, Quinn XCII—sporting a Santa Clara t-shirt—hopped on stage at Stevens Stadium in front of a crowd whose anticipation to see him had been brewing for hours.Despite slipping and taking a hard fall during the first song, the Detroit-based artist got up, composed himself and maintained an infectious energy throughout the hour-long concert.Santa Clara’s Activities Programming Board (APB), responsible for organizing the concert, began the process of recruiting an artist back in July. Their original list included Loud Luxury, Sigala, Two Friends, The Knocks, Audien and Throttle.Fourth-year Charlie Crawford, the senior music director of APB, played a key role in making the show—which is usually scheduled during spring quarter—possible.“Needless to say, there are a lot of highs and lows when it comes to emotions and booking artists. When we locked Quinn XCII down for Oct. 12, I quickly forgot about the missed opportunity of getting one of the other openers,” Crawford said. “I was very confident that Quinn XCII was going to put on an amazing show and to my delight, he did not disappoint.”Originally going by the name “Mike T” (real name Mikael Temrowski), Quinn has garnered a significant fan base since releasing his first album “Change of Scenery” back in 2015.Many listeners don’t know his newest stage name is actually an acronym for his life motto: “Quit Unless your Instincts are Never Neglected” along with the Roman numerals XCII referencing 1992—the year he was born.This summer, Quinn performed in a series of high-profile music festivals, namely Lollapalooza, Osheaga and Outside Lands.While Santa Clara is a smaller venue than he’s become accustomed to, the quality of last Friday’s performance was in no way short-changed.Quinn sung tracks from his newest album, “The Story of Us,” as well as some of his older hits such as “Another Day in Paradise” and “Full Circle.” After thanking the crowd for helping make his “dreams come true,” he and his band members exited the stage in what appeared to be the show’s conclusion. Moments later, however, they returned for an encore that included “Straightjacket,” the singer’s most played song on Spotify (55,821,656 plays).“His high energy and appreciation for the Santa Clara community was noted,” senior Riley Pendergast said. “I had a great time singing and dancing in the front row.”It was what one might call ‘Another Day in ‘Claradise,’” Pendergast quipped in reference to Quinn’s track.Contact John Brussa at jbrussa@scu.edu or call (408) 554-4852.