One act falls through, no others booked due to time, venue constraints
Carolina Productions will not host its traditional fall concert after failing to book an act within time constraints for artists’ tour scheduling and campus venue availability.
The organization, which provides free entertainment for students throughout the year, was in discussion with multiple acts over the summer, according to Adam Mayer, CP’s concerts committee coordinator.
One act had been chosen but dropped out around late August or early September, Mayer said. Mayer said the organization is not able to reveal the artists it has been in contact with, though he said the artist who dropped out is a major name who was picked up by another booking company in South Carolina.
At that point, the concerts committee began looking into alternative acts. But time ran too short to book a concert by the Carolina Coliseum’s last available date this semester, Oct. 11, Mayer said. Even an outdoor concert was not an option, as the coliseum had to be available in case of rain on the date of the concert.
Mayer said he and the concerts committee felt it would be an unwise use of resources to hastily throw together a concert without proper planning just for the sake of having a concert.
“I think being able to offer more diverse and big name artists to the student body will be a lot more beneficial and a lot more wise for CP to use our money instead of trying to rush together to say, ‘Hey, lets have a CP concert,’” he said. “I want this to happen, but is it smart to plan a concert with such little time? And obviously the answer was ‘no.’”
CP is instead turning its focus toward planning next semester’s concert and exploring new musical options, including a possible music festival, Russell House patio concerts and performances on Greene Street.
Next semester’s concert budget could be bigger, though probably not double, according to Mayer and Renee Brooks, CP’s vice president for public relations. In the past, CP has spent between $25,000 and $60,000 to bring artists to campus.
CP President Erik Telford said only hosting one concert this year could be a benefit to CP and students.
“Saving on costs this semester can allow us to choose a bigger, more expensive artist for the spring, which may prove to be the better option than the usual method of bi-annual concerts,” Telford said.
Last semester, country artists Chris Young and the Chris Lane Band performed at the Carolina Coliseum at a cost of around $40,000.
CP’s student surveys from the end of last semester indicated a preference for more country acts, with 20 percent of the 1,870 respondents saying they would like to see country artists on campus. Pop was the next most popular genre, with 16 percent of students’ preference, followed by rock and hip-hop/rap.