MGMT’s Andrew VanWyngarden Returns to Wesleyan, Restages Viral “Kids” Performance

Last December, footage of MGMT performing an early version of “Kids” at Wesleyan University in 2003 resurfaced online and went viral. This past weekend, lead vocalist Andrew VanWyngarden returned to his alma mater for his 20th reunion and sang the track again at a small campus party. It appears fellow MGMT member Ben Goldwasser was not there.

As confirmed by CT Insider, VanWyngarden performed at “an informal gathering organized by his classmates and current students” at West College on campus last Friday, May 23rd while he was in town for the Class of 2005’s 20th reunion. Watch footage posted to TikTok below.

“Where’s the Class of ’05?” VanWyngarden can be heard yelping mid-song while pointing to the crowd. “That’s what I’m talking about!” Briefly acknowledging that other classes “are cool, too,” he continued, “But this is the Class of ’05!”

In the viral footage that resurfaced late last year, VanWyngarden and Goldwasser performed on campus for Wesleyan’s Zonker Harris Day — an event that celebrates psychedelic music and culture, using the Doonesbury comic character as its mascot. Besides “Kids,” their set included an early version of “Money to Burn” and a cover of Talking Heads’ “This Must Be the Place.”

MGMT’s most recent album, Loss of Life, was released in February 2024.

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♬ original sound – Lucy Howland