Jack U, the EDM (Electronic Dance Music) super duo composed of Skrillex and Diplo, lit up the stage at Coachella this past weekend with the help of a giant old school computer that intrigued Kanye West so much, he decided to join them onstage and stand in front of it. Although the computer was technically branded with the Jack U logo, tech fans could easily determine its true origins as an Apple Mac.
These days, EDM is sweeping the nation at a rapid pace, and it made its presence more known than ever at the Coachella Festival, where numerous DJs and EDM artists, such as Zedd, Sasha, Calvin Harris, Major Lazer, the Chainsmokers and of course, the duo known as Jack U composed of two huge, individually-successful EDM artists in their own right, Skrillex and Diplo, performed this year.
One of the challenges EDM faces, especially in large concert settings, is the accompanying visual aspect of the performance. What works in a dark club may not hold the attention of thousands of fans in a major arena or festival, so dance music artists have come up with increasingly expensive and elaborate electronic visual presentations, featuring numerous screens, lasers and the like, to accompany their big performances.
Jack U decided to turn things around this year and go old school, and by that, we mean really old school. The duo unveiled a giant monitor, which, despite a Jack U logo instead of a partially-bitten Apple would normally go, could easily be recognized as an old school Mac, complete with a floppy disc drive slot. The monitor flashed appropriately low-tech graphics that accompanied the high-energy, multi-genre productions and mixes played by the duo during their hit set, but the most interesting sight wasn't what was on the screen but what was in front of it. For about a minute or so, Kanye West appeared on the stage, stood in front of the old school Mac while Jack U played his track "Power," and then took off as Jack U continued its performance.
How the surprise appearance came about is still a mystery, but Kanye recently named Justin Bieber's "What Do You Mean" as his favorite song of 2015, and since Skrillex produced that cut, Kanye is obviously a fan. Whether it was the music or the huge Mac-like object that inspired Kanye's brief emergence, it was certainly a treat for fans, especially since West avoided grabbing a microphone and offering one of his famously misguided rants, instead content to remain a bizarre cameo visual within Jack U's trippy, inspired headlining set. Watch the video of the entire spectacle below.
