With cooperation from our friends at Oakland University Student Programming Board, we at The Pit are pleased to be the first to inform you that Jason Derulo will be performing at Oakland University (Meadow Brook Music Festival) on April 11, 2014.
The annual Oakland University SPB spring concert this year will feature Jason Derulo with co-headliner Jhene Aiko, along with special guests Hyper Crush and OCD Moosh & Twist.
(If you are looking for ticket prices, where to get tickets, how to get tickets or more information about the show, head for the last few paragraphs)
Gym Class Heroes at Grizzpalooza 2012 – Photo by Dylan Dulberg
The OU SPB spring concert has been an annual tradition for nearly a decade, only recently renamed from “Grizzpalooza.” The last three years have featured artists such as Big Sean, Wale, [highlight color=” blue”] Gym Class Heroes, Steve Aoki [/highlight] and [highlight color=” blue”]Kendrick Lamar.[/highlight]
The lineup was revealed publicly to Oakland University students on Wednesday, February 5. The artists were chosen by a survey ballot filled out by Oakland University students, but Derulo was a decisive winner, according to SPB chair Kalik Jones.
Steve Aoki at the 2013 spring concert. – Photo by Dylan Dulberg
“There were a lot of submissions and a lot of selections,” Jones said. “But (Jason Derulo’s) lead was pretty significant.”
Jones added that some of the other artists that were considered ended up being unavailable for April 11, as they will be performing at Coachella, among other places.
Jason Derulo will be headlining the 2014 Oakland University Student Programming Board Spring Concert. Pictured: album cover for “Tattoos” EP. – Photo courtesy of Warner Bros Records
Headliner Jason Derulo (12.6 million Facebook fans, 2.6 million Twitter followers) has been a household name in pop/hip-hop since early 2009, after his debut release single, “Whatcha Say,” which has since become triple platinum.
Derulo, an artist on Warner Bros.’ record label, hails from Miami, is self-described as a multi-platinum international pop star. He is most well-known for “In My Head” and “Ridin’ Solo.”
Recent releases include EP album “Tattoos” in 2013. Derulo will be touring internationally on this album in 2014 from late February to late June, with supporting act Connor Maynard.
Co-headliner Jhene Aiko (158k Facebook fans, 448k Twitter followers) has a fairly regular sound, but an extremely irregular backstory. Recruited to a Hollywood talent agency as a child, Aiko “escaped the made-up world of Hollywood” to finish high school at age 16.
When Aiko returned to the entertainment industry, she was told to “sell herself” to the agents in the meetings. “I decided to sail myself instead of sell myself,” Aiko wrote in her Facebook description.
Aiko’s last release was her November 2013 EP based on that “sell yourself” story, called “Sail Out,” which is available on iTunes. Recent commendations include Sound Tracking’s Song of the Day for her track “The Worst” on January 25.
Kendrick Lamar at the 2013 OU spring concert, a nice transition between 2012’s Gym Class Heroes and 2014’s Jason Derulo. – Photo by Dylan Dulberg
Special guest OCD Moosh & Twist (51k Facebook fans, 57.1k Twitter followers*) is a hip hop/rap duo from Philadelphia, most commonly known for their mixtape “Back to the Basement.” The two 20-year-olds known as Moosh and Twist started the musical duo in 2009.
*Cumulative sum. The two members of Moosh & Twist have individual verified Twitter accounts, with 20.1k and 27.3k followers, as well as a conjoined Twitter account with 9.7k followers respectively.
The group’s Facebook description is brief, reading:
“Philadelphia born and raised hip-hop duo. 20 years old. Moosh and Twist are brothers.” The final sentence of their description reads: “OCD is a family.”
The other special guest, Hyper Crush (104k Facebook fans, 27.2k Twitter followers**), are self-described as electro/hip-hop/pop. The group hails from Los Angeles, and is known for their October 2013 record, “Vertigo.”
**Cumulative sum. The three members of Hyper Crush (Holly, Donny and Preston) all have individual verified Twitter accounts, and there is also a Hyper Crush Twitter account, with respective follower numbers of 7.7k, 3.6k, 3k and 13.5k.
“A couple of real gentlemen and one broad,” the group’s Facebook self-description reads. “With a steady diet of cotton candy and flat soda pop to calm the nerves.”
2013 OU SPB Spring Concert. Pictured: Steve Aoki – Photo by Dylan Dulberg
Hyper Crush is composed of (per the band’s extensive and comical self-description) Donny “Ponyboy” Fontaine (“Vocals/Beats/Perscription glasses”), Preston Moronie (“Turntables/Beats/Keytar/Mustache”) and Holly “Baby” Valentine (“Vocals/Legs/Acrylics,”) who all officially united as Hyper Crush in 2007.
The group is by no means “new” to the game, but they are still just as silly as ever. Hyper Crush, signed to Night Wave Records, just released a new single the other day, entitled “Illegalities,” which is available on iTunes.
Jones thinks that the combination of these four artists will be a nice twist on the general hip hop show, and a nice transition from past OU SPB spring concerts.
Last year’s show brought a sold-out house to Meadow Brook – Photo by Dylan Dulberg
“(The combination of the musicians) are different sounds,” Jones explained. “… pop/r&b and more of a melodic sound.”
When asked whether this concert will be bigger than [highlight color=” blue”] last year’s lineup featuring Kendrick Lamar and Steve Aoki, [/highlight] Jones replied, “Only time will tell.”
The Oakland University Student Programming Board Spring Concert is April 11 at Meadow Brook Music Festival. Doors open at 5pm. Tickets go on sale Feb. 6, and can be purchased on campus in the basement of the Oakland Center at the CSA window or on Ticketmaster.
OU Students rap battle at Grizzpalooza 2012 – Photo by Dylan Dulberg
Oakland University student prices are $25 for pit, $15 for pavilion and $10 for lawn/general admission. All other public prices $60 for pit, $40 for pavilion and $25 for lawn/general admission. Some tickets will also be available through promotions and contest by campus radio station WXOU 88.3FM.
Other participating promotional/contest ticket sources are yet to be confirmed, although SPB has regularly done ticket giveaways for past shows.
The Oakland University Student Programming Board can be contacted by phone at (248) 370-4295 or by email at spb@oakland.edu. More information can be found on OU SPB’s [highlight color=” blue”] Facebook / Twitter [/highlight] accounts, as well as Ticketmaster.
