Saturday, on a temporary platform constructed at Observatory Hill field, Shaquille O’Neal took the stage as DJ Diesel to perform for University students ahead of Virginia football’s opening home game against North Carolina State University. The event took place at 1 p.m. — directly after the ACC Huddle held in the same location from 10 a.m. to noon — but a line of students was already wrapped around O’Hill dining hall by 12:30 p.m.
Shaquille O’Neal began officially performing as DJ Diesel in 2015, but first entered the music industry back in 1993 with the release of his debut rap album “Shaq Diesel.” O’Neal has performed as DJ Diesel at various festival and event mainstages over the past 11 years, and his “Summer of SHAQ” world tour has been blazing venues since June. His performance at the University was the first show of his in-progress collegiate tour, where O’Neal will perform at various schools like the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Purdue University for similar football kick-off events. At the University, the event was free of charge and open only to current University students.
Not all concertgoers may have known O’Neal for his musical endeavors prior to the event, given his fame as a lauded former basketball player and his comedic online persona. By the end of his set, however, Diesel had certainly cemented his musical identity among the student body. Third-year College student Meredith Stilley said she believed his comedic persona was a large draw for students, as well as O’Neal’s general celebrity status…