Run the Jewels was the first act I saw at Governors Ball, and they walked out to “We Are The Champions.” Coming off the low-key, no-nonsense triumph of their collaborative debut last year, it’s hard to fault Killer Mike and El-P for that, especially when their set so effortlessly switched between the occasional smirking self-deprecation, earnest gratitude to their fans, and the much more vicious tone of their verses. The songs were as ferocious and raw as expected, but they also didn’t mind stopping to joke around with each other or the audience. They mostly stuck to material from their debut, though El-P dropped a promise that its sequel was coming “very fucking soon.” Eventually, they wound their way up to closer “A Christmas Fucking Miracle,” which El-P explained was in tribute to a friend of his who died six years ago as of the other day. The following performance was amongst the most intense moments of the weekend. Run the Jewels set a high standard, maybe too high for a lot of the other artists to live up to during the festival, but I couldn’t have asked for a better way to kick off Governors Ball.