Concert headliners announced

Chance the Rapper and Krewella will co-headline the 2014 Welcome Week concert Aug. 23, presented by Union Board, Residential Programs and Services and the IU Residence Halls Association.

“I think they both hit separate demographics, and they’ll really work great together,” Union Board Director of Live Entertainment Brett Bassock said. “They both really compliment each other’s music.”

The concert will also include SoMo, the supporting act, with special guests Misterwives and Skizzy Mars.

When Bassock and former RHA President Clair Houterman began collaborating on the concert in February, one of their main goals was to target five different demographics, Bassock said.

Chance the Rapper is a hip-hop artist from Chicago. His first full-length mixtape, “10 Day,” was released in February 2012. He released his second mixtape, “Acid Rap,” last April.

Since then, Chance the Rapper has collaborated with artists such as Justin Bieber and Childish Gambino, and he has played at some of the country’s largest music festivals like Coachella and Lollapalooza.

“Chance was at the top of our list,” Brett said. “I think his music speaks for itself. He’s an up-and-coming rapper. Chance is really making a name for himself right now.”

Joining Chance is Krewella, who released its debut album “Get Wet” in September 2013. The album debuted at number eight on the Billboard Top 200.

“They have become world-renowned for their infectious live energy, which has led them to headline some of the biggest festivals this summer, including Tomorrowland and Lollapalooza,” Bassock said in a release.

Rather than just a concert, this year the Welcome Week event will become a festival.

“This year, we are shifting toward the festival atmosphere with the IU Block Party 2014,” RHA President Stephanie Corona said.

Instead of just music, it will include a bounce house, carnival games, a rock climbing wall, food trucks and more.

The event will go from 5 to 8 p.m. with re-entry, while the concert portion will last tentatively from 6 to 10 p.m. on the corner of 13th and Fee Lane.

“I wanted to make it an experience where students can come and in-between sets, they’re not just standing around waiting for the next artist,” Brett said. “I’m really just trying to encompass what Indiana University represents with a safe environment but providing a fun experience.”

Last year, tickets to the concert were free. Because of the expansion of the event, tickets will cost between $10 and $15 this year.

Union Board worked to book the talent, collaborate with the auditorium, produce the concert and plan the carnival.

RHA will work to market the event throughout the summer, specifically to students at freshman orientation.

The concert is open to all IU-Bloomington students.

Bassock said Union Board is aiming for a crowd of 4,000 students, which would double last year’s attendance.

“It’s more of a memorable experience that their senior year these freshmen can look back and they can say, ‘That’s what introduced me to Indiana University,’” he said.
“That’s how I really became immersed.”