The 2023 SPARK Experience
Can you believe SPARK is over? UIC’s annual fall music festival has done it once again, providing a free, fun, and unique experience for all members of the Flames community. The decorations, food vendors, and activities created a rave-like atmosphere for the hundreds of Flames who attended, like a true outdoor music festival. Don’t worry if you were unable to attend SPARK this year! Living vicariously through your friends’ photos, watching videos, and reading this blog will help you keep updated on the student experience and help you prepare for the next SPARK.
One student described SPARK as the school event to get hyped for the school year. Since attending SPARK last year, they looked forward to the new school year in anticipation of events like this. Similarly, another student attended SPARK for the second time and said it was, “an even more enjoyable experience than the previous year.” Walking towards Harrison Field, hearing fun music, and smelling the food by the entrance of the venue provided attendees with a frisson of excitement and curiosity of what awaits past its doors. The student commented, “My initial impression upon walking in SPARK was that there were more people than last year, which made me excited. The SPARK sign where you can take pictures always catches my eye as the first thing, as well as the food trucks.”
This year, Da Pizza Dude and Ka-Bao! were the featured food trucks. Da Pizza Dude offered hot and fresh Italian pizza with each order made right on the spot. Their specialty, “The Pros” pizza, was topped with imported prosciutto, crispy arugula, and shaved parmesan on top of a crispy and puffy crust. Ka-Bao! offered South-east Asian finger foods with specialty items like Spam musu-bao and chicken adobo strips. Their signature “Ka-Bao!” is a warm, fluffy bun filled with crispy garlic-caramel fried chicken, miso ranch, and topped with garlic sesame. Additionally, free Red Bulls were handed for the entirety of the event. The VIP section included an abundance of catered dishes including salads, diverse entrées, sides, and various desserts. The tasty food options were certainly a treat for those who attended.
Many students’ favorite activity at the concert were the airbrush tattoos. A student mentioned, “It was so cool and looked so pretty that I got two of them!” Despite the long lines of curious individuals and eager groups of friends waiting to get matching tattoos, the artists moved quickly so everyone could return to the concert festivities. They loved the designs as well saying, “This year’s temporary tattoo booth was fun and unique.” Both tattoo artists had a collection of trendy and appealing design stencils, including multiple designs saying “SPARK 2023”. Participants were able to get any placement and design with multiple color choices available. Walking around Harrison park, one could see the various tattoo designs on people’s arms, legs, hands, and even lower backs!
The main attraction, of course, were the performers. DJ Flipper opened for SPARK and played multiple sets of music before each of the other acts, ranging from club hit remixes, EDM music, and well-known throwbacks. Lavender Point, winners of UIC’s Battle of the Bands, showcased their own songs like “Saturday”. The UIC student band also performed covers of other popular groups such as boygenuis and IconaPop, a great way of exciting the crowd for what’s next. As the night progressed the crowd grew bigger in anticipation for their favorite artists.
Middle act pop-artist Remi Wolf opened her set with “wyd”, creating an energetic buzz in the crowd. Before each song, she would interact with the crowd instructing them to do some groovy dance moves or by telling amusing short stories about the song! The playful and exuberant hits such as “Monte Carlo”, “Sexy Villain”, and of course “Photo ID”, had the crowd dancing to her infectious funky tunes, ensuring a memorable performance. The crowd grew the biggest as the sun set into the Chicago skyline waiting for the greatly anticipated headliner, Aminé. Aminé opened his set dancing onto the stage to the beat of his song “Mad Funny Freestyle”, making the crowd go wild. The famous rapper entertained the crowd with his upbeat style, fun lyricism, and dance moves while performing a variety of songs from his discography like “Sossaup” and “Woodlawn”. The crowd remained hyped throughout his set while singing along, synchronizing their dance moves with the beat, and waving around their complimentary SPARK lightsticks. Finally, Aminé concluded this year’s unforgettable SPARK experience by performing his two most famous songs, “Caroline” and “REEL IT IN”.
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SPARK is one of the most unique and lively events UIC offers to catch up with friends and adjust to the changing seasons. SPARK is what you make of it, and going in with no expectations, simply being there to have fun, makes the experience worthwhile. Take advantage of everything UIC has to offer by attending events with a friend, dancing to music, and participating in activities to make exciting memories that can last beyond the school year.