Otis Julius and The Pizza Party Tour!

Story and Photos: Spencer Fleming

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The Waiting Room in Omaha was transformed into a pizza palooza Saturday night (6.13.26) for the Pizza Party tour! Featuring Otis Julius, Forest, Space to Play, and a host of local rappers, this was one of the best parties of the summer!

If you've followed Stories From The Crowd for a while you know Otis Julius has become one of my favorite artists on the scene today. His positivity and creative songs bring joy to everyone he comes into contact with. Once again Otis teamed up with Justin Strawstone of Nice Enough Entertainment and Decent Dogs fame. If you know Straw, you know he's one of the hardest working dudes out there! He's not only Otis's DJ aka "DJ Strawstone", but he has a hot dog business, books local and national shows, has a clothing brand, and a newly started card collecting business, all while taking care of a family. Does this guy ever sleep?

Straw and Otis did 11 dates across the U.S. in just 12 days and brought the final show back home to Omaha. Otis told the crowd this show was special because it was the last show of the tour and he was celebrating his new album Julius! The new album will be available on all platforms on June 23, but for those who pre-ordered online Otis had some copies available in-person.

The night kicked off with sets from local rappers Mahona Maki, James Gracyn, and B Positive. Each one kept the party rockin while giving high fives to all the kids in the front row who were patiently waiting for Otis so they could shake their mullets!

Local newcomers Under Icon put in a great set of pop punk tunes. I had never heard the band before but they're on my radar now. They had a lot of great melodies and showed potential.

Dread and Strange hit the stage to much fanfare. They took the room straight to the moon on a cloud of dust!

Whew! I will say Straw does his best to give the crowd so much for their entertainment dollar. For only $20 at the door we got three solo rappers, a rap duo, two bands, and two headliners?? Sheeesh.

Before the direct support act Forest was Omaha band Space To Play. These guys are fairly new on the scene but their singer Matt Banta was a founding member of Omaha legends Blue Moon Ghetto. Knowing this going in my curiosity was piqued. Space To Play sounded awesome! You can tell these guys are seasoned pros who really know their way around their instruments. Their blues-rock and soulful tunes had the crowd swaying in the best way possible. Space To Play released a full album on vinyl last year and they have several more shows coming up in the Omaha area. Give them a look on social media so you can catch the next one!

Up next was the ever-captivating Forest! I've been a huge fan of Forest for many years now. I always joke with my photo buddy Jason Bob, collectively we probably have 20,000 photos of Forest by now. But that's a testament to Forest's talent! I've never seen Forest on a line-up and said "Oh I've already seen that guy, I'll skip this one". Every show he brings his best and this time was no different. Before he even hit the stage the crowd was going wild chanting his name! It was such an awesome show of love and support, especially after being on the road with Otis and Straw. What a homecoming! Seriously, if you get the chance catch a Forest show, he's so much fun. Make sure to pick up one of his 90s inspired "Pink Ford Fiesta" shirts, I hear it has one of my photos on it!

Quick shout out to Zach "Surreal" for manning the 1s and 2s!

Last but not least was the man with all the juice, Otis Julius!! Blasting "Party In The U.S.A" the crowd was already fired up and ready to party. All that pizza had everyone carb-ed up and ready to throw down.

Otis kicked off the set by shaking his mullet to his hit "Mulletgang" before playing my personal favorite "Look Mom, I'm a Rapper!" I love the chorus "We're all rappers, and we're not famous, but we're doing what we love, and it's the greatest!", because it rings so true! Some of your favorite artists have started in basements, garages, and backyard parties. No one's going home rich from these smaller shows, but they always have so much heart.

Otis gave the Omaha crowd a proper pizza-whoopin before busting out his famous closer, the Ed, Edd n Eddy-inspired tune "Jawbreakers". The crowd was singing along with hands in the air as everyone pushed forward for pictures and maybe a few of drops of mullet sweat! Otis thanked the crowd for all their support and hung around to take pictures and sign shirts for every last fan. I look forward to Otis shows so much. I try my best to make it every one. If you haven't been to an Otis show, seriously, make it your mission to catch one soon!

A huge thanks to Otis and especially Justin Strawstone. The live music business is tough and without dudes like Straw we might only have big arena shows and state fairs. Let's keep supporting the scene so that doesn't happen!

Thanks for reading and we'll see you at the next one!