Juliemar Ortiz – Special to the Southern News –
The fan could hardly contain herself in her first row seat as she waited for the ProCon Madness Music Monday concert to begin this past Monday night.
“They’re awesome, they’re cute, I just want to hug them,” said Alicia Rahim, freshman communication disorders major. She said she could not wait for the featured band, Kingston, to begin playing.
“I hope they sing One Direction,” she said.
Marissa Lavorgna, sophomore elementary education major, is the Acoustic Concert Programmer for the SCSU Programs Council (ProCon). According to Lavorgna, Kingston is a country band from Tennessee. There are two members in the band; twin brothers Josh and Zach Carter. The band was scheduled to perform for Southern students as well as non-students in the Farnham Programming Space.
She said the event was the first of ProCon Madness, a week-and-a-half of events put on by ProCon. Events included Karaoke Night in Conn Hall, What’s on Wednesday; where students make their own Zen garden; a Saint Patrick’s themed Thursday Night Owls, a trip to the Shubert Theater to see the Blue Man Group, a bus trip to New York City to see “Fuerza Bruta,” and a movie screening of “This is 40.” The last event on the list to wrap up the “madness” is an Open Mic Night in the Farnham Programming Space.
As students walked into the concert, they were given a card with all the events listed. Lavorgna said each student who attends the events get a sticker. Anyone who goes to seven or more events and returns their card the ProCon office will get a free exclusive t-shirt.
“We’re still in the process of designing the shirt,” said Lavorgna. “So far we have ‘I Survived ProCon Madness’ as a saying.”
When the band began to play, Rahim and other listeners sang along as Kingston sang their own acoustic renditions of songs like “We Are Never Getting Back Together” by Taylor Swift, “We Found Love” by Rihanna, “Glad You Came” by The Wanted, and more. The 20-year old twins also played their own songs, including a song they wrote and recorded with the country pop music group Lady Antebellum called “Amy Just Stay.”
“We hang out with them, we’re good friends,” said Josh Carter about Lady Antebellum.
Pamela Nicolas, freshman nursing major, said she went to the event to experience country music.
“I like some country music,” Nicolas said. “I never heard of these guys before so I wanted to see what they were about.”
Rahim said she first heard the band play when the two brothers were on the X-Factor as The Carter Twins. According to the Just Jared Website, a website that provides readers with pop culture trends and entertainment news; the band changed their name from The Carter Twins to Kingston in 2011.
Devin Close, freshman nursing major, said she and her friends went to the event simply to get a sticker for the free t-shirt. However, she did say that she is looking forward to the Movie Monday event to see “This Is 40.”
“I really want to see it,” said Close.
She also said she has gone to many ProCon events in the past and plans on having a lot of fun at the Thursday Night Owls “The Luck of The Owl” event where students can get a customized spray painted hat and back pack.
I go to most of the Thursday Night Owls event because there’s free t-shirts,” she said, “and I always have fun.”
