WS Chronicle

In above photo: The first No Stress Fest drew a packed house on Saturday, July 25. The event was held at Ziggy’s Music Park, 170 W. 9th St. in downtown Winston-Salem. (Photo by Tevin Stinson)

By Nikki Baldwin

For the Chronicle

On Saturday, July 25 at 2 p.m. the North Carolina No Stress Fest event was held at Ziggy’s Music Park in downtown Winston-Salem.

The event contained a platform for artists to perform their music, games as well as vendors who were selling food, makeup and jewelry.

The event featured performances by Grammy nominated recording artist 2 Chainz, DJ E. Sudd, Gilles, Armani Caesar, local artists, the MTV Wild ‘N Out members Darren Brand, Chico Bean and Osama Bin Drankin and artists sponsored by the management and marketing firm Street Execs.

The MTV comedian Chico Bean, who is a D.C. native, performed during the event.

He said he heard about the event when DJ E. Sudd, who is a very good friend of his and was one of the first people he met when he moved to North Carolina, told him about it.

Bean said his upcoming events include traveling to Greensboro for a show, then he will be in New York the next week to shoot.

He said his advice for people wanting to achieve their goals would be to “work hard and go after your dreams, don’t procrastinate, for God does not make mistakes. We all have gifts we been blessed with that is worthy.”

Female rap artist Armani Caesar performed “2nite” and “Bad Attitude” at the No Stress Fest.

She considers her home to be in New York and North Carolina and currently has “Caesar Mondays” on 102 Jamz, where her music is played in Winston-Salem.

She said she considers her style to be versatile for it’s “very over the top.”

Caesar is currently working on her mix-tape called “Caesar’s Palace” and will be heading to the studio in Atlanta to work on her music with artists such as Mase.

She said she will be going on tour in the future.

Another artist that performed was Gilles Walters from Atlanta, Georgia, who is a rap artist as well as a lawyer.

He said he first heard about the event through advertisements and made a phone call afterward to his manager, who was able to secure him a spot in the event.

He was set to perform his song “Super” and said he normally relaxes before going on a set to perform.

One of the vendors was ReveLips founder Teria Hall, who is located in the Winston-Salem area.

She said her inspiration for the lipstick and gloss in one started when it was her birthday and she was searching for a black lipstick and decided to create her own, which led to her ReveLips product.

She said she had been at the event since 10 a.m. and has had a few of the people at the event stop by her booth.

Hall said the booth was expensive, but she would definitely come back again if the event is held next year.

Candace Payne a Winston-Salem resident who said she was looking forward to seeing Migo Money perform.

“I am enjoying seeing all the artists at the event and would definitely come again next year with my friends if the event is held again,” she said.

Another Winston-Salem resident, Alduse Lettsome, said he was looking forward to seeing 2 Chainz at the event.

When asked if he is enjoying himself, he said, “It’s nice to come outside to hear music and see a lot of people.”

Lettsome said he would definitely come again and tell people about it if the event was held next year.

2 Chainz performed later in the night, about 11 p.m., to an eager crowd.

The Street Execs producer Chill Go Hard, who is from South Carolina, said the firm was started when he signed a deal that plugged him into the industry and the rest is history.

When asked about his artists, Go Hard said, “If the local artists lose the streets, then they lose the heart of the music, and we can’t forget that.”

He said Street Execs promotes events like No Stress Fest in Atlanta, Ga. and South Carolina as well as in North Carolina.

He said the idea was started when the Street Execs team and DJ E. Sudd wanted to captivate every artist from the area while still being in tune with the people in the community.

To find more information about Chill Go Hard, go to Instagram or Twitter @_ChillGoHard.

To find more information about Armani Caesar, go to Instagram or Twitter @armanicaesar.

To find more information about Gilles Walters music, go to SuperGilles.com.

To find out more information about Revelips, visit www.shopreve23.com.