Post Malone Takes Center Court in Omaha

Post Malone Takes Center Court in Omaha

By Andy Roberts

He was born Austin Richard Post in Syracuse, New York, but you probably know him better as Post Malone.

You also probably know he will be headlining on Tuesday, February 4, at the CHI Health Center.

Born on the Fourth of July, about a quartercentury ago, Post Malone (the stories abound about the origins of his stage name) has spent the past half dozen years developing his art and a reputation as a genre-bending artist. Three albums into a career that looks to have legs, he remains nearly impossible to categorize.

In various interviews, Post Malone has cited references ranging from Bob Dylan to Kanye West. Clash Magazine in 2017 referred to him as a “melting pot of the country, grunge, hip-hop, and R&B.” He has claimed to have made his musical debut in heavy metal.

In GQ magazine, he was quoted as saying, “It’s a struggle to be a white rapper.”

Not that he seems to be struggling, much, living in Los Angeles with a second home in Utah, things seem to very much be going Post Malone’s way.

Heavily tattooed, I won’t even try to count, he has “Stay Away” inked above his right eye. If that was intended as a warning to his potential audience, it has been ignored.

cord, according to “Body Art Guru,” Post Malone has more than 50 tattoos on various parts of his body. That includes one of a medieval gauntlet featured in a New Year’s Eve Instagram post. With three albums released to date, 2020 is shaping up to be another great year!

Malone’s march to the top of our pop-cultural landscape.

What can the Omaha audience expect? Well, here is some of what Jessica Shalvoy had to say in Variety about a November show in Los Angeles.

Post Malone, she reported, writes killer hooks that talk about doing well and falling apart.

“He’s a complex artist that can succeed in both of these aspects of being authentically human,” she continued, before adding. “That dichotomy speaks to his music as well, with the emo and ��������������������������������������������� like ‘Allergic’ and “Take What You Want,’ accompanied by a video of Ozzy Osbourne’s feature on the track.”

Closer to home, writing for Music in Minnesota. com, Justin Bailey had this to say.

“I really wanted to dislike Post Malone. And I did ��������������

“Much like the articles of my peers from all over the Twin Cities who also attended this run of back-to-back sold-out shows this week at the ������������������������������������������ popped onto the scene a few years ago, my exact reaction was ‘meh.’ continued on page 14

12 Focus | January 22 - January 28 | Volume 4 Issue 3

Focus | January 22 - January 28 | Volume 4 Issue 3 13

Bailey went on to say he kept up with the artist’s every move – not hard to do given the way the music press works – and while his harsh stance softened, the writer would not have called himself a fan.

“However, all that changed earlier this year when I saw him perform at Bonnaroo,” he wrote.

This is setting up to be one of the year’s most intriguing shows, and a likely candidate for one of the ten best.

If you think you know Post Malone, you probably don’t. It’s easily worth a trip to CHI Health Center to learn more.

For more on the show: chihealthcenteromaha.com › event › post-malone-runaway-tour

WHAT’S YOUR FOCUS?

14 Focus | January 22 - January 28 | Volume 4 Issue 3