Kaylee Rex

Managing Editor

As finals approach and stress levels climb higher by the minute, some dancing and loud music may be the perfect catharsis for students. FestiVille, the completely student run two-day concert, takes place this weekend. Nineties rock band, Third Eye Blind, will headline the first day of the festival, opened by pop-punk band, The Wonder Years which features Millersville University alumni, Josh Martin.

For the second night of Festiville, Millersville student bands will perform sets of 1# Billboard hits, which is the theme of the weekend. The student performers have been practicing these hits from the 1950s to 2010s throughout the semester in a Commercial Music class. Millersville President, Dr. John Anderson will take the stage with the student groups on Saturday night. Anderson will be playing guitar alongside the interim vice president for finance & administration, Guilbert Brown who will be on keyboard. Headlining day two is Dennis DeYoung, the former lead singer and songwriter of STYX. Opening for DeYoung is the funk group “Dazz Band” known for their 1982 hit “Let it Whip.”

To create this weekend of music, two student organizations are working together behind the scenes. Festiville is hosted by Marauder Music Productions (MMP) and Millersville’s Concert Committee. Dr. Barry Atticks, the coordinator of the Music Business Technology major and advisor of MMP, was in a severe car accident earlier this semester, so the students in MMP stepped up to the plate and took on Atticks responsibilities.

“We almost gave up the idea of the show, but we decided as leaders of the club to push through and take on the extra responsibilities in his place,” says MMP treasurer Zach Johnson, “It’s been a journey.” Although Atticks is recovering for the semester, he has still been involved in the process of planning FestiVille.

Jackie Hynes, the president of MMP, is also the bassist for one of the student bands called The Scoobies. According to Hynes they will be performing #1 Hits from Stevie Wonder, Beyonce, and Bruno Mars.

As president, she has been coordinating with the Concert Committee to plan FestiVille through booking tech for the show. Hynes and the rest of the MMP team have been in contact with music industry leaders such as Rock Lititz, Clair Global, Atomic, Pyramid Booking, and various others. This communication has bridged the gap between being a student and an industry professional, according to Hynes.

“[B]y bringing in a historic and well-known artist such as Dennis DeYoung from Styx, our marketing team worked with a realistic budget, planned every post, graphic, video, poster outing, and worked to get sponsors for the entire weekend,” says Hynes.

According to MMP Vice President, Andrew Black, he thinks students should be excited about the show because it is completely run by students. There’s a good chance that students will recognize their fellow classmates performing on stage. As vice president, Black handles all the technology for the show. He communicates with Clair Global and Stray Lighting while also maintaining contact with the bands’ managers.

“I am looking forward to seeing that twinkle in everyone’s eyes that they get when they see a concert,” says Black. “That’s why I do what I do after all.”

As treasurer, Johnson leads the sponsor committee, which secures sponsorships for the concerts. Johnson and his team contacted local business for sponsorships through countless emails, calls, and trips to their business sites. They eventually landed Royal Farms and Primitive Threads and got the opportunity to work directly with the marketing heads of both companies. Evan Aitken, who is also on the sponsorship team, says that this experience has given him a lot of perspective into what he wants to do and opened doors to future opportunities.

Johnson is most looking forward to Saturday night of FestiVille.

“Honestly, it hasn’t been easy. There’s been times where we didn’t know if it would work. But it’s been amazing to see the hard work and dedication of the club to pull this off,” says Johnson. “I know the night-of, when we’re all rocking-out at the show we’re gonna look at each other and say, “Guys we did this!” And it’s going to feel so worth it.”

John Schoenewald is the secretary of MMP and will also be apart of one of the four student bands opening the Saturday show. As secretary, Schoenewald has been behind the scenes making sure everything will run smoothly for Saturday’s show and getting the word out about the concerts. He was tasked with creating a radio advertisement, which he successfully made and got aired on WARM 103.3.

Schoenewald believes that there is something for everyone to enjoy from FestiVille. Even for people who aren’t necessarily into the genres featured during FestiVille, “nothing beats the live energy of a show from musicians like these,” according to Schoenewald.

“This organization is filled with some of the most creative, talented, hardworking people I’ve ever known. My hope for this show is that all of that is rewarded,” says Schoenewald.

For students, the organizations are offering a Buy One, Get One Free offer that can be redeemed with the code “DDYBOGO”. Tickets can be purchased or redeemed at the ticket office or online at MUticketsonline.com. For the Third Eye Blind concert on Friday night, student tickets cost $5, while tickets for the public cost $30. For Saturday night, student tickets cost $10, while tickets for the general public cost $45.