The Daily Gamecock

Carolina Productions preps for new school year

Students at USC never know what they might run into on their way to class. Last year, Carolina Productions, the student organization responsible for entertainment at USC, put together escape rooms, petting zoos and Shrek Fest.

According to Raegan Brizek, a third-year broadcast journalism student and president of Carolina Productions, the organization welcomes any and all event requests.

"I always tell people our emails are always open, and we love when students come to us and say, ‘Hey, like, I’d love to see this event on campus,'" Brizek said.

The organization strives to bring students the entertainment they want, and sometimes that means reevaluating their events in order to fine-tune them for following years.

Last year's Cockstock, the annual fall concert that takes place during Homecoming, was criticized by students expecting hip-hop or rap artists. The lineup consisted of Daya and Iyaz.

"This was only the third Cockstock that we’ve had, and so in our minds there wasn’t a preexisting tradition that it had to be hip-hop, and we really wanted to bring a different style artist," Brizek said. "But obviously it had not a great reaction, and it definitely was something that caught us off guard, but at the same time I’m, in a sense, happy that it did happen because, in return, I think this year’s Cockstock is really going to be something that students are looking forward to.”

The negative feedback prompted a series of surveys and focus groups in order to pinpoint exactly what kind of music most students want to see.

“What we found is that students want hip-hop, and that was a hill they were willing to die on, and so there’s no issue in that,” Brizek said. “We want to give students what they want.”

As a result, hip-hop artist Bryce Vine was booked for SpringFest, drawing the highest attendance of any USC concert, and A$AP Ferg was booked as this year's Cockstock headliner.

Due to Ferg's high profile, Carolina Productions was unable to book him within its budget, so ticketing will be different from years past. Instead of free admission, tickets will be available to students for $10, and each student will be able to bring up to four guests at $20 each.

Concerts aside, students can expect to see many returning favorites this year, according to Brizek, such as Battle of the Bands at The Senate, dogs on Davis Field, outdoor movies and maybe even a foam party. Seasonal activities will also return, including the Halloween pumpkin carvings, haunted houses and scary movies. 

However, Brizek said she likes to add twists to old events in order to keep students from losing interest. Instead of rehashing past headphone discos and dance parties, this semester will feature skates and shakes: a night of roller blading, music and milkshakes.

Carolina Productions is also branching out from its typical comedy acts in order to bring influencers and television actors to campus, such as Leslie David Baker.

Known for his role as Stanley Hudson on "The Office," Baker will perform a standup comedy show in Russell House Ballroom on Oct. 16 – National Bosses Day. Office olympics-style games will be held throughout the day in preparation of the comedian's performance.

The organization itself has undergone change, too. After sharing an office for a year, Carolina Productions, Homecoming, Dance Marathon and Thursday After Dark rebranded over the summer as sister organizations under a new group known as Gamecock Entertainment. While the organizations will continue to host individual events, they will also have collaborative events as Gamecock Entertainment.

"If you ever see Gamecock Entertainment stuff on campus, just know that it’s all of us; it’s all of our faces, all of our organizations,” Brizek said. "It’s still called the Carolina Productions office, and maybe in the future I do see that changing to say Gamecock Entertainment, but you can find all of those organizations in our office.”

The season unofficially kicks off on the first night of move-in, Aug. 19, with Let's Glow. Geared especially toward incoming freshmen, free arcade-style and glow-in-the-dark games will be scattered around Greene Street and the Strom Thurmond Wellness and Fitness Center.


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