Gerald Earl Gillum, a.k.a. G-Eazy, acquired his self-claimed nom de plume at a young age. G-Eazy was originally G-E, which he has said he finds kind of silly, but we wouldn’t have it any other way. G-Eazy, Young Gerald – that’s his essence. The same essence he brought to the Tucson Convention Center last night.

G-Eazy is a self-proclaimed outsider and strange guy in general. He was working on his dream long before he went to New Orleans to study music, and, in a way, he and everyone around him always knew he’d get to this place of greatness.

The night began with stacked openers, including DJ Daghe, G-Eazy’s best friend and fellow rapper Marty Grimes, and Nef the Pharoah. He gave a birthday shoutout to his brother and the show was much more Gerald-centric than past shows. His drummer and disc jockey were up on platforms and out of the light that he kept for himself all night.

The first time I saw G-Eazy at the Pima County Fair last year, he was dancing awkwardly and still figuring out how to work the stage. At that show, he said we were the biggest audience he’d had yet. His DJ was doing most of the crowd working as G-Eazy took everything in. At that point in his career, “G” stood for giddy.

I saw him again at Summer Ends Music Festival in Tempe. The best word to describe that experience would be overwhelming. He watched with an expression I’ll never forget, stunned as fights were broken up and over-heated girls were pulled over barricades.

Last night, the TCC arena didn’t even sell out. G-Eazy, his drummer Blizzy and his DJ had just come off their second weekend at Coachella. This stop in Tucson was not originally on the When It’s Dark Out tour.

When It’s Dark Out is G-Eazy’s sophomore album, but those considered original fans know it goes back three more tapes with G-Eazy. His first album, These Things Happen, comes across as less genuine than everything else he’s done since.

The show opened with the intro and first song, “Random,” from the album. Four more songs from When It’s Dark Out followed. Then G-Eazy brought it back to These Things Happen with one of its singles, “Far Alone.”

G-Eazy took a break, during which his DJ played a wide range of songs, from “Fried Rice” and “Endless Summer,” to “Monica Lewinsky” and “F— With You.” G-Eazy finished off his set with more from the new album and some singles including his verse in the “I Like Tuh” remix and “I Might.”

The most powerful part of the show — definitely not by accident — was “Me, Myself & I,” toward the end. He encored with “You Got Me,” followed by older hit “I Mean It.” G-Eazy never forgets to let his crowd know he means it when he says how thankful he is for their help and support.

Now, he’s drifting on to perform in Louisiana, the state where he studied music, before heading overseas in May. As usual, G-Eazy gave an “A+” performance in one of the more tame environments this past crazy year.

A+

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