The homecoming concert with T-Pain was canceled due to scheduling conflicts.
Photo Courtesy of Will Folsom via Flickr
On a Red Hawk News email distributed to the campus community, the Student Government Association (SGA) and Student Life at Montclair State (SLAM) announced that their fall homecoming concert, featuring T-Pain, has been canceled for this Friday night.
“It is unfortunate to say that due to scheduling conflicts with T-Pain, we [the SGA] decided to cancel this year’s concert all together,” said SGA President Yousef Al-Khudairi shortly after the email was sent.
“We had available artists as back-up, but they were not [the] best fit within our budget,” Al-Khudairi said. Al-Khudairi also said that they will begin planning a better concert for the Spring semester.
Freshman psychology major Nicole Ferry was heartbroken when she heard the Friday concert was canceled.
Babee Garcia | The Montclarion
Nicole Ferry, a freshman majoring in psychology, was knocking on SLAM’s office door to ask a question not relating to the concert when The Montclarion delivered her the news. She was in complete disbelief.
”I’m so surprised it’s canceled,” Ferry said. “I was really looking forward to going with my five friends.”
Hailey Ryder, a junior English major, supported T-Pain as the opening act for the upcoming SLAM fall concert.
Mackenzie Robertson | The Montclarion
Some students had an on-the-fence opinion about T-Pain coming to Montclair State University.
“It’s not my genre [of music],” said Hailey Ryder, a junior English major, in regards to T-Pain. “But I think it’s pretty cool that we [Montclair State] got him to come here. He’s popular.”
The American rapper was most popular in the mid-2000s with hits such as “Buy U A Drank,” “I’m ‘N Luv (Wit a Stripper)” and “Bartender,” featuring Akon. T-Pain is known for using auto-tune in his music, which has become a popular trend in the hip-hop industry.
Though Ryder might not be a fan of his music genre, other students were anticipating T-Pain to perform for the upcoming concert.
Hoch is pictured outside of the Student Recreation Center giving a thumbs-up about T-Pain.
Mackenzie Robertson | The Montclarion
“He is very culturally relevant and people remember him. He was never just a one-hit wonder,” said Jonathon Hoch, a sophomore communication and media arts major.
Not all feedback has been positive, because most of T-Pain’s followers enjoy hip-hop music. Many students were hoping for an artist more popular in today’s music industry.
“Personally, I’m not really into his music. I would prefer a more contemporary pop artist,” said Brandon Prokopiak, an undeclared freshman.
“I saw the email because I constantly check it. I didn’t really like T-Pain so I didn’t purchase a ticket,” said Tammy Andrade, junior and child advocacy and policy major with a minor in social work and communication disorders. “I would have preferred someone like Ed Sheeran because his music is very meaningful.”
SLAM is an organization that is part of the SGA and selects the performing artists each year for the homecoming concert. SLAM has to fit the selected artist’s cost within the SGA’s budget.
This year, T-Pain was the best fit for both the budget and the students’ interests. The rapper was scheduled to be joined by Kap Slap and Montclair State’s own Gio the DJ.
During an SGA meeting held yesterday, SLAM apologized to the Montclair State community for not commenting on the concert situation.
The event was supposed to take place in Lot 60 from 7 p.m. – 10 p.m. Tickets were $12 each for Montclair State students, but will be refunded within five to seven business days.
