By CHARLENE PAUL
Moapa Valley Progress
American Hip Hop/Rap recording artist, Mitchell Quilleon Brown, better known by his stage name Kid Quill, will be performing in the MVHS auditorium on Friday, May 4. With his first album charting on the Top 40 iTunes Hip Hop/Rap Charts, and his next two albums charting on the Top 10, you might be wondering why a musician of his popularity would be coming to perform in Moapa Valley.
This concert is the brainchild of Moapa Valley High School seniors Gannon Hanevold, Chase LaCroix, and Morgan Aikele. After listening to his music, these three decided to try to reach out to Quill and see what it would take to get him to put on a local concert after his tour.
“How many retweets for you to come to Las Vegas and play for my school after the tour?” Hanevold tweeted. “Gotta get a signature on those white shoes.” (Quill does a song called White Shoes and has people sign a brand-new pair of white shoes at his concerts that he gives to his mom.)
Quill tweeted back, “Zero. Tell your school to book me, get a flight for me and two other musicians, and I’m there for ya.”
Hanevold, LaCroix, and Aikele approached the Moapa Valley Performing Arts Council about sponsoring the concert. At first, the council members were a little nervous about sponsoring a Hip Hop/Rap artist.
But Hanevold assured them that Quill had agreed to do a completely clean concert for the kids of the valley. They explained that Quill has been performing for kids with disabilities through the nonprofit Best Buddies International, and promised a clean, family-friendly concert. LaCroix, Hanevold, and Aikele said they thought it would be a perfect opportunity for the MV Performing Arts Council to attract a broader horizon of people than they are used to. The council members agreed.
Quill is performing at no charge, but tickets are $2.00 per person to fund the fees required for putting on this type of show. “That’s a pretty cheap price for a concert like this,” said Hanevold. “And $4.00 is a cheap date!”
Word of the concert has spread beyond the boundaries of this community to Virgin Valley and even Alamo. “Someone from Alamo texted that they didn’t know if our students are aware of just how lucky we are to have this happen at our school,” Hanevold said. “We have reached out to other schools in other valleys and invited them to come and enjoy this concert with us.”
The auditorium is an ideal venue for students to come and enjoy a concert atmosphere with their friends and peers. Doors open at 9:00 PM with DJs Tyler Hanevold and Brandon Johnson helping to prep the audience and get them excited. Quill is set to perform at 9:30 PM in a two-hour non-stop, completely clean, unique show.
“We would like to thank the MV Performing Arts Council for taking a chance on this project,” said Hanevold. “And for being willing to put their name on it. We hope everyone will get excited and join us for this event.”
