Pittsburgh’s Girl Talk rocks Stage AE’s outdoor venue

For an artist of such fame, it would be easy to sit back, press play and watch the rave unfold… For an artist of such fame, it would be easy to sit back, press play and watch the rave unfold in the crowd. Luckily, Girl Talk had other plans.

Taking the floor at Stage AE on Saturday night below a looming net of multicolored balloons hanging from the top of the outdoor stage, the native Pittsburgh mashup artist wasted no time turning the sold-out show into a huge, outdoor dance party.

He pressed one button after another on his computer, following a few short tweaks on the soundboard in front of him, and without giving the crowd a moments notice, the large twin columns of speakers erupted with a collection of pop hits from both past and present. Girl Talk mixed artists from Tyga to Nicki Minaj to Rick Springfield, creating a new experience for his fans in the crowd.

In a well-orchestrated display of stage presence, the blaring music triggered the release of the balloons, sending them floating into the crowd below that responded with a collective roar of approval and began its nearly two-hour-long dance marathon.

Known for his ability to blend tracks from across all genres into a massive musical conglomerate, Gregg Gillis — more commonly known as Girl Talk — is best defined as a mashup artist. While each of his many works are original, they are all solely made up of others’ tracks, creating a seamless string of sound that makes each individual track almost indistinguishable.

While Girl Talk’s mashup albums have received critical acclaim from The New York Times and Rolling Stone, they have also been called a lawsuit waiting to happen. After all, isn’t making money off others work illegal? Girl Talk, however, continues to argue otherwise.

Releasing his work under the record label Illegal Art, Girl Talk believes that sampling music is a fair practice used across virtually all genres of music. The record label has a slew of other mashup artists under its belt, many of which have also come under fire for their music-making techniques.

All controversy and copyright laws aside, the thousands of Girl Talk fans dressed in neon clothes that flooded the outdoor venue couldn’t have cared less about the drama that often circulates around the DJ. Welcoming a large group from the audience onto the stage, Girl Talk was quickly surrounded by a mob of partying fans that soon included the DJ himself as he joined in with those around him on the stage.

Unlike many DJs, Girl Talk refused to stand behind his MacBook and leave the excitement to the fans. Instead, the white-T-shirt-and-headband-clad Pittsburgh-native 30-year-old could be seen jumping around on stage, both hands in the air as he weaved in and out of those dancing on stage next to him.

He didn’t act like a revered superstar, exempt from joining in on the fun of those below him in the crowd. This DJ was a pivotal part of the event, keeping the energy level high as he mounted an on-stage speaker to show his loyalty to those who paid to see their hometown DJ perform. At the end of the show, he thanked the crowd of Pittsburghers for its support.

Even for those who had never heard any of Girl Talk’s work prior to the show, the concert featured artists from Busta Rhymes to Herbie Hancock, providing something for every concertgoer.

Starting with a string of tracks from his popular album Night Ripper, the concert saw the DJ change gears and play bits and pieces of the 2008 Feed the Animals, as well as the 2010 release All Day — an album so popular that its release slowed down numerous servers across the web from eager downloaders, and prompted MTV to run the headline “Girl Talk Apologizes for Breaking the Internet.”

The success of All Day even prompted the Pittsburgh City Council to declare December 7th “Gregg Gillis Day.” Success has many definitions, but a holiday named in your honor has got to be at the top of the list. He has his own holiday, and he still knows how to show his fans a good time.

Let’s face it: Girl Talk is a household name in this city. From the first show ever performed in Pittsburgh’s newest concert hall when he christened Stage AE ­— two back-to-back shows on Dec. 3 and 4, 2010 — to his most recent performance this past Saturday, Stage AE is the house that Girl Talk built.

DJs take note — this is how it’s done.