This year the Associated Students of the University of Nevada, Reno, have big plans for the Welcome Week Concert. The Director of Programming of ASUN, Tazia Statucki, answered all the questions students need to know about the upcoming concert.

Q: Who are the performers?

A: Waka Flocka Flame and Sage The Gemini. We are currently working on a contract for a possible opener but that will have to be announced at a later date.

Q: Where is the concert venue?

A: The Quad! The entrance is going to be the west side of the Quad, in the small parking lot in between the Honor Court and the Jones Center, and a line will snake around that parking lot and around the Jot Travis lawn.

Q: How much are tickets this year, and how is the price different from past ASUN hosted concerts?

A: Tickets are $15, in the past both Diplo and Big Sean were in the $10-$20 range. G-Eazy didn’t cost as much where those tickets were only $5, but it was because he wasn’t as big of an artist as he is now, and the venue was much smaller.  Venue plays a big part in the ticket pricing process.

Q: Since this is a “students only” concert how do you plan on enforcing that, and stopping the general public from attending?

A: So when students go to buy tickets they’ll have to scan their Wolf Card at the Wolf Shop in order to purchase the tickets. Student’s can buy up to two tickets, but everyone will have to show their wolf card with their ticket at the entrance. We aren’t marketing off campus at all, so everything about the event is happening on campus only. We have a good amount of security at all of our events, and this concert is no different.

Q: How does ASUN go about choosing performers for Welcome Week?

A: This year we put out a survey for students, asking them what music genre they enjoyed listening to the most. We found out the two highest-ranked genres were hip-hop and country. With that said, because Welcome Week is more of a hyped event, these artists go well with that feel. Spring has more of a country feel.

In May we wrote down a couple of artists that we heard students take a liking to and also members of the ASUN Executive Board do as well. We contact those artists, see who’s available and who is economically a right pick too. We’ll send out initial offer letters and if they accept, we draw up contracts and book the artist.

The last process that makes it official is the university’s purchasing department has to sign the contract and then the artist. It is a long and lengthy process that involves a lot of time and people, but it ensures for a smooth concert.

Q: How much is this event going to cost?

A: $108,000 is budgeted, but the expected cost is a little lower than $104,000. We wanted to make sure we had some wiggle room in case we need more security, barricades or any other miscellaneous expenses.

Q: In the past some concerts have not gone so well when it came to student turnout, could this concert be seen as a form of redemption?

A: Of course, it’s an opportunity for us to do better. This is the first concert of its kind. Welcome Week events are successful, unsuccessful events in the past didn’t happen during Welcome Week. The events in the beginning of the year have much easier marketing techniques. There are so may variables to consider when planning events; climate, timing, venue, who’s the artist, etc. that it’s always a challenge to plan something that the student population will enjoy.

Welcome Week will take place the first week of school, closing out with the Welcome Week concert, Saturday, Aug. 29. The Nevada Sagebrush will have full coverage of the concert, and will be keeping everyone updated via social media.

Terrance Bynum studies Journalism and can be reached at tbynum@sagebrush.unr.edu and on twitter @TerranceJBynum.