We do not need to waste $65,000 on another abysmal spring concert.
For the second year in a row, the concert put on by the Colorado Mesa University Programming Activities Council (PAC) has a chance of hosting another rap artist. My confidence in PAC is not held in the highest regard when it comes to choosing suitable artists that could entertain the student body at CMU if rap is the chosen genre.
This is why we need country music at CMU.
The recent poll that was released by PAC listed four genres of music students could vote on for the spring concert. The four categories of music were rap, country, EDM and rock.
As of Oct. 5, that poll has changed. Now the only options are country and hip hop/R&B.
For the previous poll, country and rap were neck and neck. Now that the only options are country and, essentially, rap there is a chance for country to win. With all being said, if country does not win it would really be a shame because it could prevent CMU from having an enjoyable concert which students will talk about in a positive way.
Megan Lawson | The Criterion
Country music really would be a great fit for a concert at a college like CMU. Grand Junction is home to one of the biggest country music festivals in the country, Country Jam, therefore it already makes the city an amiable spot for a prominent country artist to perform.
If country were to win, this could get a more positive reaction than negative due to the obvious support shown by students and by the local community.
PAC’s budget ranges from $60,000-$80,000 to book an artist for the concert. Last year, Lil Yachty cost about $65,000 and the concert was criticized because not enough students were fond of the language or the music at the concert.
In order to make the concert a success, the artist needs to be likable with good songs and they have to appeal to a general audience.
Let’s say PAC tried to book a country artist like Kane Brown. Brown is one of the biggest rising country artists in the industry and his price ranges from $40,000-$75,000. One of his most recent singles, “Heaven”, received platinum status and Brown is constantly praised by fans for having a unique and broad sound that applies to a vast audience.
Having an artist like Brown would be perfect because it would complete the goal of satisfying the country music fans and hopefully appealing to the students who wanted music genres other than rap.
One of the biggest things the Lil Yachty concert got criticized for last year was the fact that multiple fights broke out during the concert that resulted in a multitude of injuries, primarily to students.
Even my own friends came out of the concert with black eyes and broken eyeglasses because they got dragged into a fight because the artist encouraged a mosh pit.
When would this happen at a country concert? Some might argue that events like Country Jam have fights break out due to the amount of alcohol consumed during the festival. Yes, drinking at country concerts is not an uncommon trend – but since the spring concert will be held on the dry CMU campus, that problem will be highly reduced.
The overall vibe of the concert would cause significantly more enjoyment than a rap concert could ever. Country music produces a great setting for dancing, relaxing with friends and being able to enjoy the music for what it is.
Rap concerts, in a college setting, can be too intense and doesn’t apply to a large portion of the student population.
Let’s not make another mistake and put on a concert that the majority of the CMU student population will be upset with. We want to create a fun setting filled with dancing and fun. So let’s bring on the country and make it happen!
