Student Government will welcome students on the first day of Fall classes with a BROCKHAMPTON concert — allowing for a break from syllabi reading and future assignment stress.
Student Government Productions, an SG-funded agency that pays entertainers to perform at UF, will host the free event at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center Aug. 23. To attend the event, students can request a maximum of two tickets per student ID at Gate 1 of the O’Connell Center beginning Aug. 16 at 12 p.m. or during regular box office hours until tickets sell out. Gates will open at 6 p.m. on the day of the concert and tickets are required for entry.
The agency runs with a fiscal year budget of $800,000, which comes from student fees,to host entertainment events and enhance the student experience. This year, however, SGP plans to go bigger and better with their lineups, Student Body President Cooper Brown, said.
“SGP is going to have a big year this year,” he wrote in an email. “Students deserve it.”
Following a reserve fund transfer of $1.55 million proposed by the executive branch to enhance the student experience, SGP was awarded an additional $750,000 to host events for students.
SGP will pay $250,000 for BROCKHAMPTON and $15,000 for Deb Never, according to their contract.
BROCKHAMPTON, a hip-hop boy band, started in 2010 as AliveSinceForever. The group met on a Kanye West fan forum and has since gained over 7 million monthly listeners on Spotify. The band previously faced backlash in 2018 after former member, Ameer Vann, faced multiple allegations of sexual misconduct. The band has since removed him and apologized for “not speaking up sooner.”
Deb Never, a lo-fi pop/rock singer, previously featured on their song, “NO HALO” in 2019 and has amassed almost 500,000 monthly listeners on Spotify.
"Brockhampton is super popular with the student body, and Deb Never is an up-and-coming artist that we believe students will enjoy," Brown wrote.
SGP has hosted a variety of musicians, comedians and other entertainers, including Quinn XCII, Tory Lanez and “The Office” actor and writer, B.J. Novak. The agency’s last event was a socially distanced pod concert in Spring, featuring the indie bands Mt. Joy and flipturn, which were paid $62,000 and $10,000 respectively.
Chase Rice, a country music artist who performed at Gator Growl 2019, received $65,000 for his performance at UF’s last concert before the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to a campus-wide email sent Aug. 7, vaccinated and unvaccinated students are expected, but not required, to wear masks indoors.
SGP Chair Jake Siegel wrote in an email that the event will follow UF protocols including checking students’ “cleared for campus” status upon entry and expecting masks. As COVID-19 cases rise in Florida, Siegel said, “If the University feels comfortable holding in-person events, we will continue to do so as well.”
Brown encouraged the student body to get vaccinated and wear masks at the event due to the high number of cases in Florida recently.
“The vaccine is free, readily available, safe, and effective,” he wrote.
Janae Green, an 18-year-old UF health studies freshman, is one of the 108 people to comment on the Instagram post announcing the event. She appreciates SG’s plan to get more students on campus with activities. After hearing the band’s song “SUGAR,” which went viral on TikTok, she became a fan and plans on attending the concert with her friends.
“When I first saw the post I screenshotted it and sent it to our UF group chat, and everyone was just so excited,” she said.
Students with disabilities in need of accommodations can email sgaccomodationservices@ufsa.ufl.edu or call 711 at least 72 hours before the event.
This article has been updated with new information regarding the cost of the performers.
Contact Allessandra Inzinna at ainzinna@alligator.org. Follow her on Twitter @ainzinna.
Allessandra is a third-year journalism major with a minor in English. In the past, she has covered local musicians and the cannabis industry. She is now the Student Government reporter for The Alligator. Allessandra paints and plays guitar in her free time.
