By 
all photos by author.
As I walked down the sidewalk in front of the 9:30 Club towards the box office on Thursday afternoon, I thought I spotted a familiar face lingering amongst the crowd of fans lined up outside.
S…Slug?
Yep, it was the Minnesota rapper and leader of Atmosphere decked out in a Ben’s Chili Bowl t-shirt casually talking to fans. I picked up my ticket and headed to the back of the line and patiently waited as Slug granted every autograph request and photo op with his fans.
As the line got shorter, one of the two guys standing in front of me fumbled for something for Slug to sign.
“Uhh…can you sign my pack of Kool’s?”
“Aw, come on…gross, Kool’s?,” Slug replied with a smile as he scribbled his name down on the carton.
I’ve occasionally listened to Atmosphere over the years and knew of the rabid fan base that Slug had gained since dropping their initial album “Overcast!” in 1997. I was also aware of the kind and humble nature of Slug and I was happy to see that all the good things that I’ve read about him appeared to be true. I’ve been to my fair share of concerts and I’ve never seen anyone stand outside and talk to fans the way he did. No VIP special meet and greets here, every fan got a little face time with Slug.