If one were to view the congested streets of Deep Ellum on a festive Saturday night from a rooftop vantage point, one can conclude that the movement of the civilians that occupy the streets below was in comparison to the similar speed of hysterical ants. Neon lights that outlined majority of the establishments illuminated as many shadows as it could but obviously not at all of them. Dallas natives were spilling out of bars and onto the sidewalk. Irritation took its place as the face mask of many club goers as they impatiently waited in extremely long lines for the bouncers to glance at each ID successfully. The over powering aroma of a backwood stuffed with ganja tickled the inside of my nose. As I approached Elm Street from Crowdus St, I noticed that there was a five to one, female to male ratio from my point of view. Large groups of women were seen occupying more space than males and couples combined. It was a bit different as I headed towards Main Street. Main Street consisted of a higher number of couples and coed groups. Dallas police took their positions on scattered corners, patrolling sections of the entire area. The multitude of different ethnicities, fashion styles, and personalities, all compact into three streets looked uncomfortable and disorderly, but fun nonetheless. At first and last glance, the chaotic spectacle in Deep Ellum on weekend night is temptation to those who are not only curious but energetic as well.

My camera was hanging from my left shoulder as I edged closer to Ruins, nestled on the corner of Pryor and Commerce St. I have my camera strap adjusted so my camera isn’t swinging around my torso with every step I take. It was five minutes before 9pm when I approach the older black gentleman, who I perceived to be the bouncer, standing on the right side of the three steps that lead into the entrance the outside patio. As I reached for my ID, I asked the bouncer if the show started yet, and he shook his head from side to side, ignoring eye contact. It took approximately four long steps through the maze of occupied chairs to reach the door that lead inside the cool, air conditioned establishment. The bar was filled with a beautiful crowd of young adults exchanging pearly white smiles and forced laughter from the result of corny dad jokes. I am familiar enough with Ruins to able to walk towards the back of the restaurant into the venue space without trouble while simultaneously in deep thought about something else. Immediately, I took a seat at the bar and ordered a shot of TX Whiskey and chased it with a cup of water. After chugging the water, observation mode was turned on. I began to scale the room and its occupants, sharing awkward glances with total strangers. Ruins seemed more of a huge practice space with a mini bar than a venue in my opinion; the perfect size for a live intimate set. The vibrancy from the assortment of colors that came from the stage lights exposed the crevices in the facial features of the young adult occupants. My attention was directed to the various red devil paintings and the saddened St Mary artwork that decorated the walls; each painting almost looked as if they were strategically placed in its designated location for spectators and on- lookers. A sly smirk followed by a minute chuckle slipped through the crack of my lips, it was the aesthetic that my younger self would’ve appreciated and enjoyed. In the same moment, the lone cowboy was no longer alone. Multi- talented artist Yellow Jones suddenly appeared in my peripheral vision. Elation began to settle as his smile captured the moment. In my most humble opinion, Yellow Jones is a super star in the making. There is a level of eccentricity Jones possesses that is attractive to individuals like myself, individual who not only appreciate true artistry but also appreciate the soul of the artist. A conversation filled with substance and musical foresight ensued, and I thoroughly enjoyed the conversation in it’s entirety.

The night was still young and more young adults began to fill the space, body to body, elbow to elbow. Sure enough, it was packed before my awareness detected the murmur and the consistent shuffling of feet gliding across the floor. A variety of aromas began to reach my nose; masculine, leather scented cologne, a number of feminine scented perfume, more backwoods filled with mid-grade ganja and body odor that lacked deodorant. There was young woman that was standing two steps behind me to my right as I turned around to head towards the bathroom. She wore exaggerated, dark denim bellbottoms that I have never seen in real life. After I gave her a compliment, I was curious to know who she was there to see. “ I’m here to see Devy.” she responded, “ Don’t get me wrong, Tev can rap his ass off, but I just like Devy better, I think he is sexy!” A quick restroom break became a thing of the past as I scurried to get to the sweet left spot of the stage front; it was time for the show to begin. For a reason beyond my knowledge, I was struggling a bit to adjust the proper settings on my DSLR, it took my attention away from observation mode and focused on the camera settings. There was sudden change in wavelengths, a disturbance in vibrations that indicated a particular presence has entered into the occupied space. A slight moment passed after solving my camera issue as Coach Tev and Devy Stonez made their grand entrance, barreling through the crowd like mad men that lacked courtesy. Slight confusion brushed my awareness; Tev and Dev entered the stage with full face masks and Dickies jumpsuits. In my lifetime, the Dickies jumpsuit symbolized a few things for me; 80’s slasher films, criminals, or hard manual labor workers. In this case, it was used the portray the “America’s Most Wanted” aesthetic, (while I was setting up my camera, I was unaware that there was a video that appeared on the screen behind the DJ that properly introduced the criminal theme, hence the jumpsuits).

There was a large amount of energy that filled the small space at a rapid rate as Tev and Dev appeared. The sight of the crowd breaking into a frenzy as both performers stepped foot on stage was truly magical. Although the duo has their own individualistic styles, their stage presences worked well together. Dev and Tev’s innate ability to work the crowd is an example of their experience on stage, almost as if I was watching seasoned veterans grace the stage after a decade of non-stop live performances. In certain moments I let my imagination go and although I am present in the current time and space, I envisioned something else similar but on a greater scale. The stage grew much bigger than from what it was, the numbers of participants increased three times is original size and walls pushed back to accommodate the size. In that moment, I was able to envision the artists performing in front an extremely large crowd and the participants screaming back their lyrics, with stage lights dancing inside entranced eyes.

Shortly after my imaginative episode, it jumped back into reality, and it wasn’t much different. Dev took an exit from the stage to let Tev executed his solo performance. Periodically, I used my cowboy hat as personal fan to cool the exposure of my pores. Tev is the kind of artist that caresses his audience with his suave persona and smooth, impeccable style. There is an attractive level of maturity that is exposed when Tev gets on the mic. It seems as if Tev either has an old soul, grew up around older people and adopted their ways or is simply at the age where maturity is necessary. It makes sense as to why I gravitate towards his cadence. It wasn’t long before it was Dev’s turn to dominate the stage. The contrast between the artist was perfect example of night and day. When Dev takes the stage, it’s similar to viewing a young bull surrounded in a sea of cattle. His energy and his showmanship is supported by his brand of confidence and charisma, a young playboy showcasing his craft. The way he moves across the stage adds a bit of stylistic flare to his performances, there was no wonder as to why he had to come out of the top half of his jump suit. I imagined if he would’ve continued his performance with the suit on, he would’ve end up severely dehydrated. What I found impressive was the consistent level of energy and crowd participation that Dev and Tev were able to maintain throughout the night. The stage wasn’t only for the two main artists that night, there were special guests that graced the stage that night: Yellow Jones exercising his star power, Cush with a C spitting bar for bar, Trap Mama bringing the “femme fatale” energy and Blake Cris blessing that stage his sheer talent and presence. As the show started to reach the end, I felt the night grow a bit older for me. By the time I made an exit, I wasn’t sure if the show was totally over but judging by the surrounding the body language, there seemed to be something similar to an afterparty taking place. Either way, that was my cue to head back home to the countryside. What a spectacular performance from two talented artists that deserve nothing but the best in their musical endeavors.