Date: Friday, Aug 23rd. 2013
Line Up: SOJA
Venue: Del Mar Fairgrounds. San Diego, CA
With the summer coming to a close, everyone is catching a few final shows, from festivals, to jam-packed concerts inside intimate venues, to something such as a FREE show following a horse race at a race track. The Pier was in attendance for SOJA, performing in Del Mar (San Diego), CA.
A show which was part of the summer concert series at the Del Mar Fairgrounds that takes place 
during the racetrack season. After the last horse race of the day, anyone in attendance was in for a treat with a live show, courtesy of SOJA. Security was expecting to a see a crowd of 3,500 people and to their surprise, 5,800 people turned out! Fans from all age groups waited patiently after the last race of the day, only for the show to begin.
SOJA performed for about 2hours from 7:40pm-9:35pm. Originally slated for a 7:30pm start time, the venue requested that they push back 10minutes to avoid a safety issue for all the people who were still pouring into the concert area. Chants of “SOJA, SOJA, SOJA”, electrified the energy filled night, as excitement resonated throughout the crowd at the chance to see such a great band, for absolutely FREE! Many fans were lucky and won VIP access to the show from SOJA’s Facebook event. Others were able to spin a wheel at the hosting radio stations booth, Radio 91X.
From the very start, SOJA charged the crowd with their conscious lyrics, melodic horn section, thus sending fans into a frenzy. If guitarist/vocalist Jacob Hemphill wasn’t at the front leading, it was Bobby Lee on bass or Rafael on the trumpet. Every single member took to their solos, with the entire band backing. As Bobby Lee was jolting the crowd with his famous leg kicks, fans could be seen crowd surfing through the performance. With everyone singing along to SOJA’s songs , all you could see were smiling faces, dancing with sheer joy as the group played some classic favorites & songs off their latest album Strength To Survive.
After about the third song of the set, Jacob Hemphill addressed the crowd in an apologetic tone, saying if he seemed less energetic on stage, it’s because he was recovering from an undisclosed surgery just 4 days prior. Whatever the surgery, its a tribute to the groups dedication to the fans as they could have easily canceled the show. Instead, Jacob & the rest of the group delivered on their highly anticipated FREE show, playing a reggae soundtrack to a summer night, in San Diego, CA.
Del Mar, CA is where the surf meets the turf, and after a great set, a little reggae to move the crowd. Following SOJA’s performance, the jubilant crowd retreated for the night leaving with the energy transferred from the stage.
The boys will take a bit of time off to work on their new album. Then they will be hitting the road yet again as they’ll be traveling all over the country from coast to coast. The Cali Roots Festival: The Carolina Sessions will bring them to the East Coast and towards the end of the year, they’ll join The Dave Matthews Band in Brazil. Details will be coming soon!
Where-ever SOJA goes, there will be passionate fans waiting for their arrival.
SOJA Links:
SOJA Exclusive Blog
SOJA Website
SOJA facebook
Article By: Edgar Gaytan
Photos By: David Norris
More Photos From The Night:
