The University of Arizona will be hosting its 44th annual Spring Fling festival starting Friday, April 13 and running through Sunday, April 15. The event will feature artists such as Austin Kelly, Sophia Rankin and Quinn XCII.
Marketing director for the event, Josler Tudisco, said that the concert will showcase student performers, as well as other musicians. The combination of student and professional performances is essential in the talent selection process, Tudisco said.
“We have a budget for the event, so we look at the amount of money we have allotted for a performer and we try to find a performer who is going to excite the UA community as well as the Tucson community,” Tudisco said.
Some of the student performers that will be featured this year include, Black N Blue Crew and Amplified A Cappella. Another group that will be at the event will be the Saguaro Stompers, a local dance group.
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In years past, Tudisco said that many of the performers were artists who became popular years before the event, including one of last year’s performers, We the Kings. However, this year’s performer, Quinn XCII, gained his popularity much more recently, and is well-known in the UA community.
“This year, we decided to turn over a new leaf, and we got pretty lucky with Quinn XCII because he was just starting to get popular at that time,” Tudisco said. “I think it’s going to be a really good concert because a lot of people know who he is, especially around the UA.”
Quinn XCII began his musical career as a rapper while attending school at Michigan State University. However, he is best known for his collaboration with Ayokay in “Kings of Summer,” which hit number one on the Global Viral Chart, according to an article by The KnockTurnal.
“For all the performances we have, I think Quinn XCII is probably the one that everyone is most excited to see,” Tudisco said.
The event is aimed at not only UA students, but Tucson families as well. As a Tucson native, Tudisco said that he had attended Spring Fling before he decided to attend UA.
“I’m a Tucson local, so I remember going to these concerts when I was a kid in high school. It’s always been a lot of fun,” Tudisco said. “It really is just a part of growing up in the Old Pueblo.”
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Something that Tudisco believes makes the event special is that the carnival is a student-run event. The money raised at the event is also put back into activities and organizations that are beneficial to students.
“All the money that we make goes back into the students,” Tudisco said. “Last year we raised $78,000 for clubs on campus through Spring Fling, which means a lot to our students and means a lot to our community as well.”
The first day of the festival will kick off with performances from Austin Kelly at 5 p.m., followed by Blacklidge 17 at 5:30 p.m. and Quinn XCII at 7 p.m.
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