Show Recap: Hoodie Allen Excites Legion of Fans at Webster Hall

Hoodie Allen spent his Black Friday performing for a sold-out audience in New York City’s Webster Hall (November 23). The 24-year-old, Steven Markowitz, backed by a live band, brought the house down, opening up with “The Chase is On,” and a string of hits including, “No Faith in Brooklyn,” “James Franco,” and “No Interruptions.”

While beach balls were tossed amongst the crowd, the indie star manifested his early proclamation of providing a “feel good” environment. Fans (mostly white teens) were treated to a spectacle of visual graphics, and dance offs. As songs reached their climax, the energy from the crowd was borderline eruptive.

According to Allen, fans often describe his sound as hip "pop." A former employee of Google, Markowitz says he left his job to pursue his dreams of becoming a rapper. Hoodie tells XXL, "I've been making music since I was really young and when I came out of school, I began working at Google in California, and I left to pursue music full-time and it's been amazing ever since."

Following the success of his Billboard-charting release All American, Hoodie plans to drop a free mixtape in early 2013. —Chanel Clark (@ChanellyJelly)