THE NEWS IN BRIEF: Snoop Dogg To Play at Syracuse Sunday After Harvard Deal Falls Through

Bypassing Harvard after failed negotiations, Snoop Dogg will instead perform at Syracuse University this Sunday.

The agreement for Snoop Dogg’s appearance in concert at Syracuse—part of the university’s 12th annual Block Party—came about after the rapper’s contract at Harvard fell through due to financial and security concerns.

University Union Concerts—Syracuse’s equivalent to the Harvard Concert Commission (HCC)—originally planned to bring rapper Lloyd Banks to their Block Party celebration this year, but determined in February that it was unable to foot the bill.

Despite the replacement act, concert planners at Syracuse have had a positive response from their student body. “They have really embraced him coming to campus,” said Syracuse University Union Concerts Co-chair Sherlen Archibald.

Ticket sales there have reflected students’ enthusiasm about Snoop Dogg’s upcoming appearance. “We’ve sold literally two-thirds of the show within the first 2 to 3 days,” Archibald said. “It was like pandemonium on the first day.”

After the initial rush of ticket sales, Archibald said that the concert details were “under control” and that there were no pressing security concerns or fears of a protest. “Even if there is,” Archibald said, “I feel that it’ll be really minimal.” He attributes the more welcoming atmosphere to Syracuse’s being “a little more liberal” than Harvard, and very accepting of different kinds of musical entertainment, especially during Block Party.

Some student groups at Harvard had opposed the choice of Snoop Dogg to perform, citing his sometimes misogynistic lyrics as offensive to female students.

Here at Harvard, Springfest will go on without Snoop Dogg. Instead, a concert featuring several student bands has been planned for Saturday evening at the Springfest after-party.

The after-party—which will be restricted to Harvard College undergraduates—is the first of its kind to be held during Harvard’s Springfest.

While Undergraduate Council President Matthew J. Glazer ’06 expressed disappointment over the loss of the Snoop Dogg concert, he remained optimistic about the fate of this year’s Springfest as a whole.

“I still think it’s going to be a success, especially with the Springfest after-party,” he said.

He also asserted that the failure to secure Snoop Dogg this Spring would not deter future concert efforts.

“Despite the setback with the Snoop Dogg concert, we’re still planning on following through with concerts next fall and next spring,” Glazer said.