SU Band participating in 2010 Honda Battle of the Bands

Southern University's world famous marching band will be one of eight historically black colleges and universities bands participating in the 2010 Honda Battle of the Bands "Invitational Showcase."

The event, expected to attract 60,000 people, is set for January 30, 2010 in the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. This is the first time that Southern's famed "Human Jukebox" will be participating in the annual event.

Southern was chosen from bands representing 45 HBCUs. Each band will have the opportunity to perform for 12 minutes and showcase their musical skills, dancing talents, and creativity during the Invitational Showcase.

"It is truly an honor as well as a privilege to be one of the eight bands chosen to participate in the Honda Battle of the Bands Showcase," said SU Director of Bands Lawrence Jackson. "We will use this event as a recruiting tool and the $20,000 award will help tremendously."

Other schools participating will include Albany State University, Clark Atlanta University, Florida A&M University from Tallahassee, North Carolina Central University from Durham, Prairie View A&M University, Tuskegee University, and Virginia State University.

The bands were chosen through a competition of on-line fan voting, along with band directors' and school presidents' votes. Band directors and school presidents were not allowed to vote for their own institutions.

Each band will be awarded $20,000 by American Honda for their music programs in addition to a $1,000 grant they received for participation in the pre-qualifying fall campus event tour. Through this program Honda is awarding a total of $205,000 in scholarships to HBCU music programs for the 2009-2010 academic year. Since the beginning of the program Honda has awarded grants in excess of $1 million.

Another segment of the event is the "Fox Music Experience." The program offers an Invitational Showcase student musician the opportunity to spend a few weeks in the summer working at the Twentieth Century Fox studio in Los Angeles learning film and television music production.

Students are selected by popular online vote. Band fan can go to www.hondabattleofthebands.com through Jan. 8, 2010 to vote for their favorite prospective intern.