On April 17, the Hopkins Organization for Programming (HOP) hosted a countdown to reveal the headliner of the 2026 Spring Fair Concert. Held on the Beach at 8:30 p.m., the event attracted at least 100 students and featured free food and a VIP Ticket Giveaway.
Sergio Giavanni Kitchens, going by the stage name “Gunna,” is an Atlanta-based American rapper who has millions of streams on platforms like SoundCloud, YouTube and Spotify. Gunna signed to the Young Stoner Life Records in 2017; since then, he has collaborated with stars like Lil Baby, Don Toliver and Travis Scott in numerous mixtapes and albums. His most recent album, the Last Wun, peaked at number three on the Billboard 200.
In an interview with The News-Letter, freshman Adria Terpis, studying Applied Mathematics and Statistics, was inspired by other universities across the country when she offered her first choice for the artist before the announcement.
“Honestly, I really [want] Zara Larsson, because a lot of schools have her right now, and I got really excited.”
Additionally, in expressing her hopes for the concert, Terpis was optimistic that the University would be able put on a good show and said that she would attend the event no matter who was revealed.
“The fall concert [featuring Khalid] was pretty good. I don’t think Hopkins is not able to attain good artists,” Terpis said. “No matter what, it’s a free concert. I’m gonna go.”
Sophomore Dawson Fontenot, studying Public Health, was somewhat more hesitant about attending the event before the reveal when asked if he would go to the then-unrevealed artist’s concert in an interview with The News-Letter.
“It depends,” said Fontenot, “If it’s someone good, I’ll pull up.”
At 8:30 p.m. the artist was announced when a video made by HOP played at the event. After a ten-second countdown, Gunna was revealed to be this year’s Spring Fair artist. Upon Gunna’s announcement, the event’s crowd erupted into cheers.
After the artist was made public, students responded positively. Freshman Emir Bombaci was pleasantly surprised, saying that he didn’t think he would be familiar with the artist who was announced in an interview with The News-Letter.
“I was not expecting someone that I even recognized that much. Gunna is definitely a name that I know, a pretty big name, so I’m very happy that they managed to get an artist like Gunna,” Bombaci stated. “In recent years, Gunna is definitely the biggest name that they’ve had… They had Kehlani, who was the biggest name I could think of, but way back they had Eminem or The Chainsmokers – it’s closer to that level of grandeur,” Bombaci said.
In an interview with The News-Letter, Junior Roseanne Duenas, studying Public Health, is a member of HOP and admits that, while she hasn’t listened to that much of his music in the past, she was happy about the announcement.
“I don’t really listen to his music, but I’m happy we got someone, so [I] can’t be ungrateful there. I’m not really a rap person. I know some of his songs, but they’re mostly features, so hopefully we’ll see that at the concert,” Duenas said.
Duenas was still hopeful about the event and confirmed that she would be in attendance. As a member of HOP, she is also proud of the work the organization has put into securing such a popular artist. Duenas commented that the concert tends to be a fun event, regardless of being a fan of the artist or not.
“I feel like, this year [because I’m part of the HOP], we actually got into planning… and we have a lot of good stuff coming up, so [it’s been] better than other years.” Duenas continued, “[HOP] always gets a good DJ. So I feel like, even if you don’t know the artist, the DJ before the show is always so good.”
This excitement marks a shift from last year’s Spring Fair Concert, where Leadership, Engagement and Experiential Development Office’s selection of The Beaches and Toosii was met with criticism.
Gunna will perform at the annual Spring Fair Concert on Saturday, April 25, at 8 PM in the Recreation Center.
