“707! 707! 707!”
Sage the Gemini referenced the Fairfield area code where he grew up during his performance at SLO Brew Feb. 3. Dominic Woods, known by his stage name Sage the Gemini, has returned to San Luis Obispo for his West for the Winter Tour. Woods first performed at Cal Poly for the first annual Spring Stampede concert in 2015.
Mustang News sat down with Sage the Gemini before the show to find out what it’s like to be a performer at 24.
Mustang News: Most Cal Poly students were born and raised in the [San Francisco] Bay. What’s it like to perform for a bunch of people that grew up in your area?
Sage the Gemini: It’s like a deep connection. They just understand where I’m coming from. I move, they move. I can connect to them. It just feels so good to perform at home because like everyone knows the music, it’s just like a big blessing.
MN: Which song are you most excited to play?
S: “Now or Later.”
MN: Do you feel different playing in California? Different energy?
S: It’s hyphy, everyone just lives it. They’re really just into it.
MN: Was it cool playing “College Drop” for a bunch of college students? People went crazy when you shouted out fraternities and sororities.
S: That’s kinda why I’m here. A lot of college people show me love.
MN: Do you switch up your set everywhere you go?
S: Sometimes; not everyone gets the same show, skip a few songs.
MN: If you could collaborate with any artist, living or dead, who would it be?
S: Most definitely Chris Brown, Andre 3000, Young Thug, etc.
MN: You’ve already done so much, yet you’re so young. What’s next for you?
S: I don’t feel like I’ve done a lot … I’ve only done 25 percent.
MN: So what’s left with the other 75 percent?
S: I don’t know, we gotta see when we come to it.
MN: What’s it like performing for people your own age?
S: Um, I’m 34 years old. [Joking.] But, definitely I’m really grateful for it because I didn’t get to finish school, and I wasn’t in the cool crowd either. When I see the cool crowd, I have crushes. It’s kinda cool.
MN: What’s it like when you go back to Fairfield?
S: The younger people [are excited to see me], but the people my age, they got — what’s the word I’m looking for — too much pride. Like, ‘Oh yeah I know him, I’m not excited.'”
Fun fact: We find out that Sage the Gemini is in fact a gemini.