The biggest music event and biggest sporting event of the semester will be happening next door to each other Friday.
UB basketball tips off against Dartmouth University at 7 p.m. in Alumni Arena as the rising hip-hop giant DaBaby joins Gunna to take over the Center for the Arts at 8 p.m. for “Trap Fest,” the final show in the Fall Fest Concert Series.
Some students are conflicted on if they’d rather watch the men’s basketball homecoming after a year of unparalleled success or watch DaBaby perform his Billboard No. 7 hit “Suge” at Fall Fest.
And with the popularity of each event, venue-hopping may not be an option.
In Alumni, the Bulls are coming off a 32-4 season, were ranked a six-seed in the NCAA Tournament and even secured a tournament victory last year.
The CFA’s stars, DaBaby and Gunna, are two of the most successful rappers right now, with DaBaby’s recent record “Kirk” hitting No. 1 on the Billboard 200, as all 18 songs charted in the Hot 100. Gunna’s February release “Drip or Drown 2” peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200, and “Drip Too Hard,” a single from his previous album “Drip Harder,” peaked at No. 4 on the Hot 100. The pair will put on a high-demand show for the sold-out, 1,744-seated venue.
Student Association Entertainment Coordinator Marc Rosenblitt wrote in an email that SA planned the event back in June and didn’t anticipate the conflict.
“We did not know it was the home opener when we started planning,” Rosenblitt wrote. “I wish we could plan around every event on campus, but on a campus this size there is always some other event happening somewhere.”
Rosenblitt wrote that the CFA, where the rest of the shows were also held, only had two viable dates in November for the trap show and only one which both DaBaby and Gunna could make.
The basketball schedule, which was announced in early September, is sometimes planned years in advance, according to Director of Athletic Communications Brian Wolff.
“Scheduling is a fluid process and worked out well in advance of the season,” Wolff wrote in a text. “We are always looking at what is in the best interest of our program and our fans.”
Freshman business major Drew Gordon said he was looking forward to both events, but ultimately chose to see one of his favorite artists, DaBaby.
“I wanted to see the basketball game, but I’ve never seen DaBaby before,” Gordon said. “I’m a big basketball fan and I can’t believe I have to miss the game.”
Freshman business major Nik Aprahamian will be joining his friend at the show.
“It’s not fair,” Aprahamian said. “I love basketball, but I don’t want to give up my ticket to the concert.”
Rosenblitt said while he hopes to see the CFA fill up during fest, he still hopes students enjoy themselves at either event.
The sports desk can be reached at sports@ubspectrum.com.
Brenton J. Blanchet is the 2019-20 editor-in-chief of The Spectrum. His work has appeared in Billboard, Clash Magazine, DJBooth, PopCrush, The Face and more. Ask him about Mariah Carey.
Alex Lenneberg is an assistant sports editor for The Spectrum.
