Free Larry Hoover Benefit Concert (Ye x Drake)

Rarely can an event be labeled as a historical milestone before it even begins. The Free Larry Hoover Benefit Concert marked such a moment, with Ye & Drake reuniting at Los Angeles’ Memorial Coliseum for one of the biggest cultural moments in recent history. Ye’s grandest undertaking yet — two of the most iconic artists in the world set aside their differences to partner on a stadium show whose mission went far beyond spectacle. As an artist with unparalleled vision, Ye has a reputation for knowing exactly what he wants. Understanding this vision and its scale, the PHNTM team set out to realize Ye’s boundary-pushing concept. Dubbed “The Mound,” inspiration came from the only force bigger than Ye or Drake themselves — nature. Renowned creative director Niklas Bildstein Zaar and his team at Sub Global delivered high fidelity renders of the show design to PHNTM, which were then translated into comprehensive engineering blueprints, technical documentation, and build plans. To achieve this feat, the 1-million-square-foot plus Memorial Coliseum was transformed to accommodate a larger-than-life stage design. 300,000 lbs of concrete was poured on the field to set the foundation for a 200-foot-wide mound, painted white to provide a neutral setting for projections. 5,000 lbs of dry ice, 700 lights, and 72 projectors were used to develop an atmospheric environment rich with smoke and color. Full-scale arena shows can take up to a year to produce. In this case, PHNTM realized the entire event in just 18 days. Taking place on December 9, 2021, the production consisted of 598 production staff and hosted a live audience of 69,000 attendees.