By Meghan Greene
The 2021 Spring Event is on… It just looks a little different this year.
The performers for this year’s Spring Event were announced Friday, March 12 during the Spring Event Release Party. Country star Lee Brice is headlining the show. Brice’s most recent hits are “Rumor” and “One of Them Girls.” Opening for Brice is country act Maddie & Tae, who are best known for their song “Die From A Broken Heart.”
This year’s Spring Event is taking place virtually on April 30. Although the concert is virtual, students will still be able to enjoy the Spring Event outside, and with their friends on campus.
Claire Wright, the Assistant Director for Clubs and Organizations, explains, “We are not selling tickets this year because it is a virtual show, but we are opening it up to three locations across campus outdoors to allow more students to enjoy the shows. We are all setting up in locations where students should be able to enjoy from their residence halls on the quad and in Commonwealth.”
She continues, “You will also be able to live-stream the show from computer, phone, tablet, etc. so it will be accessible to everyone. We will stay in accordance with the COVID guidelines put forth by Massachusetts as well as any guidelines altered on campus to keep our students safe.” The three locations the event will be taking place on campus are Commonwealth Lawn, the Quad lawn, and Pine Grove.
The process the Spring Event committee has for finding and picking artists goes through many stages. Kyle Nelson, the Director of Logistics and Operations for Spring Event, explains the decision process. “The process of choosing an artist for Spring Event starts with the genre poll. Once that comes back to us we meet and talk about the outcome.”
He goes on, “This year we focused on the top three genres. We each go our separate way and choose up to 10 artists and have to present facts about them (Spotify monthly listeners, awards won/nominated for, Instagram followers, views on YouTube videos, etc.). We all present our findings and slowly vote down the number of artists meeting by meeting. Once we get to 10 left that’s when we choose, and we vote as a committee who we think would be best for the school based on the poll.”
The decision this year was ultimately Lee Brice. The decision process for the committee also came down to who would be the best option for a virtual performance based on their support for following COVID-19 restrictions and protocols.
Spring Event Chairperson Clarice Berardinelli says, “The Spring Event Committee and I decided while we were picking an artist we wanted to ensure they were someone who would support our goal and mission in providing a safe and memorable experience for our students. Initially, there were some artists who have been ignoring gathering restrictions and hosting mask-optional concerts, and we all quickly eliminated them as, in their lives, would mock all of the strides we as a community are taking to stay safe.”
The restrictions and limitations for outdoor meetings are constantly changing. According to Nelson, “Every time Governor Baker and the school change the number of people that can be in a location, our plans change with it. I think to date our plans have changed two-three times. Everyone will be expected to wear masks and all the COVID-19 protocols that have been put into place, but like I said things change every month based on the numbers of people infected so who knows what the protocols will be at that time.”
The Spring Event committee recognizes the rapid change of protocols, and are continuing to give students updates on the current state of the concert as much as they can.
