Joe College Day returns to campus this year with tie-dying stations, bubble tubs, free food and up-and-coming bands-funded, for the first time, entirely by the Duke University Union.
Hip-hop duo Shwayze will headline the festivities, which also feature the band White Rabbits-a far cry from Bob Hope and The Beach Boys, who served as the event's entertainment in the '60s. After a 30-year hiatus, the Main West Quadrangle music festival popular from the 1950s through the 1970s returned last year, and "[Duke students] want it to be here forever," DUU President Chamindra Goonewardene, a senior, said.
This year, the Oct. 4 festivities will take place from 3 to 11 p.m. and will feature arts, crafts and food. Additionally, the Union formed an official committee this year devoted to planning the day and appropriating DUU funding for the event.
"Joe College was the LDOC of the 1950s and '60s, and DUU sponsors all musical events, so [the change] was appropriate," said sophomore Karen Chen, president of DUU's Joe College Day committee.
Last year, the event-which attracted an estimated 2,000 people throughout the day-was funded in part by DUU, Campus Council and the Duke Student Government, with $35,000 in funding from DUU alone. This year, however, Campus Council and DSG declined to fund the event, which received an unchanged amount of funding from DUU. Last year's event received about $50,000 of funding in total.
"We felt that people really saw the event as a DUU event [last year]," said Campus Council President Molly Bierman, a senior, explaining Campus Council's decision not to fund the festival this year. "We thought our money would be better allocated to things that were more directly in line with our mission."
Although DSG and Campus Council have withdrawn their financial support for the event, Chen said the committee was able to book Shwayze, an acoustic-based hip-hop collaboration of Shwayze and Cisco Adler featured in their MTV reality series "Buzzin." Other artists featured in the event are the six-piece indie rock group White Rabbits, jam band The Brew, local hip-hop act Kooley High and Charlotte-based rock 'n' roll band The Sammies.
"This year, we really wanted to diversify the musical groups we bring on campus," Chen said. "This addressed the various tastes students have here at Duke. You've got your indie act, your hip-hop act, your jam band, hip-hop/rock, local acts, medium sized acts and national acts."
But students said they are most anticipating the day's headlining musician.
"I think everyone is most excited for Shwayze," sophomore Ryan Ingram said. "That is no question at all."
Chen, who is also on DUU's Major Attractions committee, said this is an example of the Union's cognizance of the kind of acts it brought before and the kind of acts it hopes to bring in the future. The Union's goal is to appeal to the various tastes of Duke students, she added.
Goonewardene said he hopes the event has the vibe of a music festival.
"With Joe College, it's really not about the name recognition of bands and the recognition on campus," he said. "There's a link to iTunes U in which you can download music from all the artists coming, so students really get a chance to preview the music. The idea is for it to be like the event of the '60s and '70s."
Sophomore Zachary Abzug said he will attend Joe College Day not for the bands-none of which listens to-but for the traditional college experience.
"Joe College Day isn't LDOC.... I don't go to hear famous bands that I can sing-along too from half a quad away," he said. "I go to hear good music in a great, relaxed environment. I just hope for a beautiful day, and then the rest will fall into place."
In addition to music, food vendors will sell funnel cakes, wood-fired pizza and fruit smoothies, and Arab Students' Organization will provide hookah rentals. An eating contest will be sponsored by Tommy's Rubs and Grubs and Midnight Cookie.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.