Every year, SA is in charge of about $4 million, much of which goes toward Fall and Spring Fests. For this year's Spring Fest, SA is bringing Wiz Khalifa, Nas and Damian Marley, Tinie Tempah, and Big Sean to UB.
Wiz Khalifa is best known for his number-one hit single "Black and Yellow." Since first breaking on to the radio, Wiz has garnered a lot of attention from fans and fellow rappers alike.
Wiz Khalifa is on a climb to the top of the rap game, which he hopes will be finalized with his first studio release, Rolling Papers, due out March 29.
Alongside Wiz are Nas and Damian Marley. Their combination of rap and reggae is sure to draw more than a few herbal fanatics; plus, add Wiz and that is more smoke than when the roof is on fire.
British sensation Tinie Tempah has won numerous awards for his mix of bro-magnet dubstep with hip hop. This is one of the biggest risks that SA has ever taken on an artist; either the crowd will love him, or he will be booed off stage.
Big Sean is best known for being part of Kanye West's G.O.O.D. Music, which is obvious in his music as he sounds eerily similar to Kid Cudi, who was brought to UB in September for the Backyard Bash.
SA brought Jason Mraz, Bruno Mars, B.o.B., and Robert Francis for Fall Fest and Three Days Grace and N.E.R.D. for last year's Spring Fest. This year's Spring Fest has one of the more stacked lineups since SA was able to bring Rise Against and Brand New for Spring Fest '09.
SA decided to spice things up by bringing Spring Fest to UB Stadium instead of containing it in Alumni Arena.
The organization continues its tradition of bringing top-notch comedians. This year SA was able to book B.J Novak. Novak is the main writer for The Office and plays the character Ryan.
After Novak graduated from Harvard, he started doing stand-up and took his career to new heights. From being a writer for one of the biggest shows on television or acting for one of the world's best directors when he was in Inglorious Basterds, Novak has done it all
Novak is a great choice, and shows that the SA is capable of bringing big-name comedians year after year. Over the past few years, SA has brought comedic gems such as Daniel Tosh and Patton Oswalt.
B.J Novak will be performing at Alumni Arena April 2, and Spring Fest will be at UB Stadium April 30.
Email: arts@ubspectrum.com
