Rock the Bells

This past Saturday was Rock The Bells, a hip hop concert out in San Bernardino, at the Glen Helen Amphitheater (read: outside in stifling heat and direct sunlight for almost 12 hours). The concert is a California-based annual festival that only recently when national. The festival unites Hip Hop and R&B singers, and basically is a pretty big deal. This year, the lineup had A Tribe Called Quest headlining, with Nas, Mos Def, Redman and Method Man, The Pharcyde, De La Soul, Immortal Technique, and many others as well. The secondary stage also had acts, including The Cool Kids and Spank Rock. Oh, and the special guests were The Black Eyed Peas. So... it was pretty awesome.
In addition to the music, the whole scene was very diverse. There were people of all ages and races. There were certainly lots of younger people who looked very into hip hop, but there were also a good number of nerds, hipsters, and of course plenty of white trash (it is the valley, after all).
I went with Lauren and some friends of hers from work, and we brought a blanket to sit on in the grassy area above the amphitheater. Between sets I decided to take pictures of the fashion choices people had made, because there were some really crazy ones surrounding us. Enjoy!

This first picture is pretty typical of the "white trash" contingent there. I really think that if she just got shorts a size or two bigger, there wouldn't be an issue here. But as it stands now, and with her belly shirt, it's really not so good.



This next guy was spotted at The Cool Kids, which was basically hipster central. His shirt is by Johnny Cupcakes which is not really the brand you'd expect to see someone wearing at a hip hop concert. But then again he was also wearing teal Nike hightops, so he obviously wasn't your average concert-goer.



Also in this area, we spotted some intensely dressed indie kids, such as this girl in her shorts-with-suspenders, scarf tube top, yellow crocheted beret, gold high tops, and purple backpack. And then there was her friend, who was basically an ad for Urban Outfitters.





There were also some girls who looked like they were getting a little more dressed up, still in shorts, but with vests, expensive purses, and lots of hairspray. This girl added cowboy boots to her ensemble (and keep in mind that it was over 95 degrees). The second girl chose flip flops, but added a fedora. Six of one, half dozen of the other?





Back to the main area, the style was a little more laid back. There were still girls a little dressed up, like these 3 girls (who seem to be posing for my camera!), but there were also girls more laid back, like this one in classic concert attire: racerback tank, cut offs, and Nikes.





Finally, it just wouldn't be right if I didn't share these last two with you. There were a lot of displays of body art at the festival, including quite the number of tramp stamps, but there were also some cooler tattoos, like this man with the full back Obey tattoo (picture coming soon). Bringing it back full circle to the first picture showcasing back fat, however, is this woman. In her defense, she didn't stop dancing the whole time; she certainly had spirit. I just wish she'd thought to put a shirt on.



And as long as I'm making you look at that picture of the woman without her shirt, it's only fair that I give you some guys without their shirts. They might be a little easier on the eyes though.