From the archives: Hopscotch talent got its start at UNC

One of the Triangle’s biggest music festivals took hold of area music lovers this weekend — and at least two of the big names at the festival got their start at UNC.

With an eclectic lineup covering rock, hip-hop, metal, folk, electronic, experimental and more and talent from both local and national spheres, the Hopscotch music festival has become one of the foremost music festivals in the Southeast.

And with a huge music festival based in the Triangle comes local talent becoming national.

The Daily Tar Heel has been covering them along the way.

From the archives, here are some facts about some of the big names who were at Hopscotch this weekend.

UNC grad behind the Hopscotch festival

With more than 120 unique bands over three days, the behind-the-scenes of the show are not talked about — with good reason. Director, founder and UNC graduate Greg Lowenhagen works extremely hard to make sure everything runs smoothly so that the festival goes off without a hitch.

“It all comes in waves,” he said in 2015. “Some nights I might work five to six hours.”

Last year, he said he worked 80 hours in the week leading up to Hopscotch.

The origin of Hopscotch has roots in another publication — the Independent Weekly.

Lowenhagen sent an email in June 2009 to Steve Schewel, the owner and co-founder of the Indy Week. The email detailed Lowenhagen’s plan to create a music festival in Raleigh and led to an invitation to lunch from Schewel, who eventually agreed to the festival.

Six years later, Hopscotch has been called “one of the best and most eclectic music festivals in America” by Spin magazine.

Lowenhagen explained that besides liking the word “hopscotch,” the festival’s name is based off the premise of Julio Cortazar’s choose-your-own-adventure book with the same name.

“The prologue says, ‘There are many books contained within this book.’ The idea is that Hopscotch, the festival, is a lot like the novel,” he said.

Well$ tries to inspire with upstart career

Raised by Congolese immigrants fleeing political conflict, Leroy Shingu — known by his stage name Well$ — was never short on motivation to succeed.

His career is based on his family. Knowing they’re in the Democratic Republic of Congo and can’t leave unless someone helps them get out has kept him driven.

“It’s definitely given me the drive to be greater,” Well$ said. “It drives me to be the best artist I can be.”

Based in Charlotte, Well$ visited UNC when he opened for Rae Sremmurd for the Carolina Union Activities Board Jubilee in April 2015, but he’s been around Chapel Hill for years — his cousin is Alec Lomami, producer and co-founder of the Chapel Hill record label Immaculate Taste.

Since he opened for Rae Sremmurd at UNC, Well$ has released new music, including a single, “Heaven’s Door,” produced by Metro Boomin.

But his ambition doesn’t undermine his passion.

“I’m just another 20-year-old kid, just like most of the students that are in the crowd that got the notion to chase their dream,” Well$ said.

“I just hope that after seeing me perform, not necessarily even listening to my words, but just being inspired in the sense of — don’t listen to what everyone else has to tell you or what everyone else wants you to do. If you have a dream, and you have the means to chase that dream, chase that dream.”

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