Governors Ball 2018 - Sunday
photo by Gretchen Robinette

Governors Ball 2018 Sunday pics (Eminem + 50 Cent, Sylvan Esso, N.E.R.D., more)

Governors Ball wrapped up its 2018 edition on Randall’s Island on Sunday (6/3) with sets from Eminem, Sylvan Esso, N.E.R.D., Margo Price, Vic Mensa, and more. Headliner Eminem has been making the festival circuit all season, and we recently caught him at Boston Calling, where we said:

Eminem’s new albums aren’t so hot, but the songs from the Slim Shady LP/Marshall Mathers LP/Eminem Show era are some of the best rap songs ever recorded, and Em reminded the Boston crowd that he can still rap those songs like he did in the old days. His songwriting may have taken a hit over the years, but his technical skills as a rapper and a performer remain as sharp as ever. Joined on stage by his hypeman Mr. Porter, his DJ Alchemist, a live band, and an orchestra (and singer Skylar Grey on a few songs and Royce Da 5’9″ for one), Em was still running around the stage with the energy of a kid half his age, and each syllable came out of his mouth with the speed, fury, and precision that he had at the turn of the millennium. Even when he played the newer songs that are eh on his albums, he sounded at the top of his game.

Rolling Stone, who caught Em at GovBall, agreed, naming him “The Best Headliner” of the festival. They write:

His Sunday night set highlighted the struggle between that risk-taking genius of the Nineties and the polished pop hitmaker he’s become in the last decade. The best moments channeled the former – for an audience teeming with kids born well after he released 1999’s Slim Shady LP, the rapper led huge singalongs of classics like “Kill You” and “Stan” for an enthusiastic Sunday night crowd. A special highlight was “The Way I Am,” during which Eminem bounced around as a live band with strings elevated the song to new peaks. After that Eminem gave the floor to surprise guest 50 Cent, who flashed his huge grin through a fun throwback set that included his 2003 anthem, “In Da Club.”

As the RS review also points out, Em brought 50 Cent on stage again like he did at Coachella, and they did their collaborative “Patiently Waiting” and “Crack A Bottle” together, with 50 doing his own “In Da Club” and “I Get Money” in between. Check out pictures from Sunday in the gallery above, and videos of 50 Cent joining Eminem below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pk8R-KSHeEA

photos by P Squared and Gretchen Robinette