It was wild. The air smelled of marijuana smoke, inexpensive beer and Papa John’s pizza. The temperature was crisp; the light was scarce, and the energy was intoxicating.

Students and alumni flocked to Brookings Quadrangle Saturday to take part in the semi-annual festivities that are Walk In Lay Down.

The concert lineup included three professional acts: Amanda Blank, Major Lazer and Wale.

The pizza line was mass chaos, couples were seen having what looked like sex, women lifted their shirts, a naked sex doll floated around, and the path to the quad was dotted with vomit. But this W.I.L.D. wasn’t just business as usual.

“This couldn’t have been more epic,” junior Genna Morton said.

Major Lazer invited students backstage to dance alongside him during his set, and they poured onto the stage.

“It was really cool to look out at the crowd and the sea of faces that is Washington University. It was really crazy,” said Lorraine Kim, a junior, who got a backstage pass from a friend.

The concert was closed by Wale, a rapper from Washington, D.C., who rose to prominence in 2006 and released the critically acclaimed album “Attention Deficit” in 2009.

Students’ reactions to the concert were positive.

“This is the best W.I.L.D., hands down, that I’ve ever had at Wash. U.,” Kim said.

Team 31 was pleased with the day.

“We thought it went really well,” said Laura April, co-chair of Team 31. “We had great weather, the acts were great, we had the biggest attendance I’ve ever seen at W.I.L.D., and I think the students really enjoyed it.”

Many attendees were happy with the lineup and the weather on the day of the event.

“The artist choices are solid,” sophomore Corey Cantor said. “It’s nice that it’s not storming like last time. The weather is perfect.”

When it was over, DJ Diplo and Amanda Blank threw an afterparty at an off-campus apartment on Waterman Boulevard.

“The afterparty was even more ridiculous than W.I.L.D. was,” Kim said. “It was just amazing. The energy was high the entire time. People were going crazier than they were on stage.”

For Kim, the highlight of the evening was when Diplo brushed passed her.

“He squeezed my arm, and I thought I was going to faint. I told him he was…awesome. He was so cool. He squeezed my arm and said that I’m awesome,” Kim said. “He is just a symbol of sex.”

At the main event, Blank, a songwriter and rapper from Philadelphia, performed first.

“Amanda Blank was really good,” sophomore Mamatha Challa said. “I actually didn’t know who she was until now.”

Major Lazer, a musical project based on the collaboration of DJs Diplo and Switch, followed Blank. According to Major Lazer’s website, Major Lazer is a fictional character who fought as a commando in the Jamaican military and lost his arm in a zombie war in 1984.

Switch was unexpectedly absent from Major Lazer’s performance at W.I.L.D., but a female dancer accompanied DJ Diplo.

Students unfamiliar with the artists saw the concert as an opportunity to be exposed to new types of music.

“I’m broadening my musical horizons,” freshman David Dunlay said.

For many students, W.I.L.D. is perceived as an opportunity to relax and take time off from schoolwork.

“It’s a relaxation time from the stressful environment of Wash. U. academics,” senior Mike Kranz said. “I take school too seriously, and this is a day when I can relax and let go.”

Some students took the Law School Admissions Test on the morning of the concert. For these students, W.I.L.D. was a happy ending to a stressful preparation period.

“It was less than ideal because everyone was having fun [in the morning],” senior Alyssa Anzalone-Newman said. “I’m relieved to be done and excited to be here.”

Other attendees enjoyed the event but were not impressed by the artists present.

“This is all good,” freshman Aaron Fleischauer said. “I like it, but I don’t think too much of [the artists].”

Alumni present at the concert enjoyed themselves as well, despite knowing few people present.

“You’re definitely sentient of the fact that your class is not there, despite the fact that when you’re there you don’t really know all of your class,” 2010 graduate Eddy Lazzarin said. “Of course Wash. U. has the same feel.”

Kate Levitov-Baxter, who also graduated in May, agreed: “It’s good to be back on a college campus because I don’t want to be old anymore,” she said.

Team 31, an organization formed in 1973, puts on W.I.L.D. twice each year. According to Student Life archives, the concept grew out of an argumentative paper written by then-freshman Andy Friedenberg.

Friedenberg was concerned that the Quad was underused for events and that the campus did not have enough free events.

Friedenberg, along with his suitemates at the time, who resided in Rutledge 31, decided to organize the first ever W.I.L.D.

With additional reporting by Kate Gaertner.