104.5 Birthday Celebration (Day 2) – BB&T Pavilion – Camden, NJ – June 30, 2018 (A PopEntertainm

Updated: Jun 27, 2022

104.5 Birthday Celebration (Day 2) – BB&T Pavilion – Camden, NJ – June 30, 2018

This past Saturday was the second of two Radio 104.5 11th Birthday Celebration concerts at BB&T Pavilion. Featuring 11 artists, the rock and roll of the day overcame the scorching temperatures. The following are my favorite moments of the day.

*Imagine Dragons blasted the senses with the day’s headlining set. A shirtless Dan Reynolds sang with power and purpose, delivering strong rock anthems and a call to acceptance of the LGBTQ community. The crowd that had waited through a sweltering day to taste the band’s “radioactive” sounds were certainly satisfied with the outcome.

*As a solo act, Mike Shinoda provided the most emotional set of the day. The Linkin Park member wore his heart on his sleeve while connecting with the crowd with his strong vocals and sense of purpose in the wake of Chester Bennington’s death.

*Judah and The Lion unleashed pure folk-rock fun. Lead singer Judah Akers played to the Philly-heavy crowd with his Eagles jersey and bringing out Jammin’ Jessie of Radio 104.5 to sing a cover of The Killers’ “Mr. Brightside.”

*The Missio duo of Matthew Brue and David Butler brought their engaging pop to the masses with a lot of joyous jumping around on stage. Their earworms were some of the best of the day.

*While the aforementioned acts were under the cover of the pavilion, some bands played outside in the hot summer air. The best of the outdoor stages was The Glorious Sons and The Wrecks. The former is a Canadian outfit. Full of raw rock energy, they are a band to get excited about. The L.A.-based The Wrecks were full of rock and pop pep. Lead singer Nick Anderson knew how to play to the crowd.

*The rest of the day featured wonderful sets from AJR, Sir Sly, DREAMERS, The Shelters and The Great Enough.

Chris Sikich