I decided to spend my birthday at Ice Cream Factory on a warm Sunday night, where the atmosphere was buzzing, drinks were spilling and I saw way too many people I know. The night was filled with some of Perth’s best rappers and DJ’s — namely, Hoodzy, who gave us an energetic act, Shadow, who demonstrated the gritty side of the 6k, local DJ Mowgli spinning the hottest hip hop, and Th0tspyc and Sara T bringing rounds of house, rap and RnB.

To top off the night was Hooligan Hefs who showed us the trill realities of the Sydney rap scene. I also noticed an air of confidence when Jess B performed ‘Mood’, which is one of my favourite tracks of hers.

Going into the night, I enjoyed seeing the variety of people that having local and international rappers in attendance brought. Everyone was dressed up in bright colours which made for a really good atmosphere.

I loved that the organisers had a zipline going across the entire venue, making the person riding able to see the various nooks and crannies it has to offer. It was a really good turnout for the recently renovated venue, I would suspect nearly 1000 ticketholders in attendance. The main stage DJ desk was authoritarian, while the electronic screen at the ‘Warehouse’ made for an optical masterpiece, synchronising with artists while they perform.

I did feel like they could’ve done more to hype up the ‘Tune Tunnel’ — it was quite a neutral setting despite the great artists like DJ Sara T and DJ Half Queen who performed there. I was far more impressed with the set-up of the main stage, especially when DJ Klasik’s ‘STRICTLY FOR THE LADIES’ was executed, making for a banging set that pulled the whole crowd together. All up, it was a lovely way to spend my birthday.