Though Nicolas Vansteenberghe came to Fiji for love, he came to Fred\u2019s for a good time.<\/p>\n
On Thursday, Oct. 9, the Love Island finalist \u2014 better known as Nic Van to audiences \u2014 partied at Fred\u2019s in Tigerland as one of ten stops on his Greekfest tour.<\/p>\n
As the Thursday daylight faded to moonlight, anxious excitement filled pregames all around Baton Rouge. Though Fred\u2019s was opening its doors at 8 p.m., Vansteenberghe first had to go to Lafeyette\u2019s NiteTown where doors opened at 7 p.m. Tigerland had no clue when they should be expecting the reality TV star.<\/p>\n
Per Vansteenberghe\u2019s Snapchat story earlier on Thursday morning, LSU Basketball had given him a tour of their facilities. Junior Emma Warren shared her frustration about this while waiting for the night to start.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it\u2019s a little silly that he is going to Lafayette and Baton Rouge in the same night because he was at LSU earlier today,\u201d Warren said.<\/p>\n
By 9:30 p.m., the crowd began growing denser toward the stage. DJs ALVY, Stutter and Ramii helped alleviate the crowd\u2019s impatience when it was announced at 9:50 p.m. that Vansteenberghe would be arriving soon.<\/p>\n
With every beat drop and DJ reaction, phones were quickly whipped out, ready to record. By 10:30 p.m., heads had stopped bopping and annoyed sighs could be heard with each new song played.<\/p>\n
As the time went by, guests began discussing what they hoped to get out of the night. Though some were holding out hope for stage appearances by other Love Island cast members, most simply kept their sights set on Vansteenberghe.<\/p>\n
\u201cI kind of hope to get a photo with him,\u201d Warren said.<\/p>\n
By 11 p.m., the person of the hour had certainly arrived, with excited squeals pointing to his location just behind the front stage.<\/p>\n
\u201cY\u2019all, it\u2019s almost time for Nic,\u201d one MC said at 11:07. \u201cThis time, it\u2019s for real.\u201d<\/p>\n
At 11:17, the time had finally come. As all of the lights dimmed and a spotlight shone onto the stage, the crowd was at once reinvigorated. With \u201cSkrilla\u201d by Kodak Black playing, Vansteenberghe made his Tigerland debut. Singing and dancing along to the song, he started connecting with the crowd by grabbing various phones to take selfies and videos.<\/p>\n
As \u201cSkrilla\u201d blended into \u201cTGIF\u201d by GloRilla, the star popped open a champagne bottle, spraying the crowd with the drink. On the screen behind him were several graphics related to his claim to fame, including the Love Island logo, a loop of his viral \u201cmamacita\u201d line, a photo of the villa and a montage of his time in the show.<\/p>\n
Five minutes into his time on stage, Vansteenberghe encouraged the crowd to join him in shouting \u201cbaddie baddie shot o\u2019clock,\u201d soon after jumping off the stage to take pictures with fans standing by the barricade. One lended her pink heart-shaped sunglasses to him, which he wore through the duration of Greekfest.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe funny person you see on screen is the funny person you see in real life,\u201d said sophomore Madden Graffagnini.<\/p>\n
On the contrary, junior Emma Stilley wasn\u2019t as amused by the social media personality. \u201cI think he\u2019s as performative offscreen as he was on screen,\u201d Stilley said.<\/p>\n
Randomly, Vansteenberghe stopped dancing to show party-goers his phone. On FaceTime was Pepe Garcia, another cast member of Love Island season seven who placed fourth in the show with Iris Kendall.<\/p>\n
Various attendees came prepared for the Love Island contestant, some wearing \u201cMommy\u2019s Little Meatball\u201d shirts in reference to the very one he wore during his time in the villa.<\/p>\n
At 11:32 p.m., Vansteenberghe suddenly asked for the music to be cut, reaching for a microphone.<\/p>\n
\u201cDo y\u2019all know my friend?\u201d he said. \u201cHe has a book club and s\u2014. He really wants to read!\u201d<\/p>\n
Prompting the crowd to chant for his fellow islander, Vansteenberghe flipped his phone to show Jeremiah Brown. Brown, who was at the center of an amalgamation of drama in the first half of the season, has since fostered a community of bookworms for followers.<\/p>\n
A moment later, Brown was joined by Austin Shepard, another OG member of season seven. The crowd seemed to feed off of each islander that was shown, getting more and more excited each time Vansteenberghe flipped his phone around.<\/p>\n
It wasn\u2019t long before he shared the spotlight with Olandria Carthen, his girlfriend whom he met on Love Island.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s the most important guest of the damn night,\u201d Vansteenberghe started, before prompting the crowd to chant \u201cOla\u201d and facing his phone to the crowd. \u201cEveryone say, \u2018Thank you mother \u2018landria.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Vansteenberghe first found fame this past summer on season seven of Love Island USA, where he finished in second place with Carthen. The couple, known as Nicolandria, blew up on TikTok, now having over 150k posts under the ship name. Following Casa Amor, the two finally coupled up and have since alluded to becoming official, per a TikTok posted by one of the pair\u2019s sponsors, Agua De Kefir<\/a>.<\/p>\n While shooting content on stage, Vansteenberghe sang along to \u201cSince You Been Gone\u201d by Kelly Clarkson, which has become an LSU classic since being featured in \u201cPitch Perfect,\u201d filmed on campus.<\/p>\n LSU basketball player PJ Carter joined Vansteenberghe on stage shortly after. \u201cWe\u2019re getting that champ this year, we\u2019re getting that championship, baby,\u201d Vansteenberghe said on the men\u2019s basketball season.<\/p>\n After taking a picture with the crowd, Vansteenberghe left the stage to begin the meet and greet section of the night. Compared to other stops during Greekfest, LSU has allegedly been one of the more disorganized VIP experiences, with one guest going back in line after already meeting him.<\/p>\n Just after midnight, American rapper Lil Skies took the stage to perform his own songs well into the night.<\/p>\n With the night coming to a close, many shared that the Greekfest experience was overpriced, especially considering Vasteenberghe\u2019s stage appearance lasting a mere 26 minutes, not including during Lil Skies\u2019 performance.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was okay, I guess, but he was only out there for, like, 15 minutes,\u201d one Greekfest attendee said. \u201cWas it worth it? I don\u2019t really think so, but he was definitely there!\u201d<\/p>\n The tickets went on sale on Sept. 23, when Vansteenberghe was announced as the headlining guest for the tour. There were various tiers, including general admission and VIP. The first tier for general admission started at $25, being the lowest cost for the experience overall. As tiers sold out from demand, people were paying upwards of $75.<\/p>\n Though some attendees questioned whether the experience justified the price, few could deny that Vansteenberghe hyped up the energy of Tigerland on a weeknight. From electronic appearances from fellow islanders to champagne showers, the night was energizing, entertaining and endearing. Though brief, Vansteenberghe\u2019s stop by Baton Rouge is one to remember.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n