UNC and NC A&T marching bands team up for Katy Perry

The Marching Tar Heels welcomed the N.C. Agricultural and Technical State University marching band for a Katy Perry-themed half-time show collaboration at the UNC vs. N.C. A&T football game on Saturday.

Jeffrey Fuchs, director of UNC’s university bands, said it was a no-brainer to collaborate with the Blue and Gold Marching Machine.

“It is something I’ve always wanted to do,” Fuchs said. “When we saw that A&T was on the schedule, we started the process in motion to make sure that we could collaborate.”

UNC color guard member Akilah Williams shared in the excitement.

“A&T has a pretty well-respected band, especially in the black community,” Williams said. “So it was really cool to be able to see them in person.”

The two bands combined their differing styles of marching for the performance. The Marching Tar Heels practice a corps style, which is based on military marching with the use of a color guard, Williams said.

“We focus more on precision with the formations and making sure that the music is right and sounds good,” Williams said.

The Marching Machine is a show style band, often seen in bands from historically black colleges and universities, said Lamon Lawhorn, assistant director of bands at A&T.

“Typically HBCU bands play popular or radio tunes and HBCU performances incorporate some type of dance routine towards the middle or end of their show,” Lawhorn said.

The bands did most of the preparation for the performance separately. After less than two hours of combined practice, Fuchs and Lawhorn both felt that the performance was well received by the audience.

“I think it went exceptionally well,” Lawhorn said. “Most students here are still talking about it; people that I know from other universities are still talking about it.”

Lawhorn was not only pleased with the performance, but also the unity between an HBCU and predominantly white institution. He said that during such a racially charged time, it was great to see everyone come together for something fun. This union did not go unnoticed by students.

“I think it was wonderful,” said Jeremy Mckellar, president of the Black Student Movement. “It was great. I wish you could’ve gotten my response right after.”

Mckellar grew up in Greensboro and has been a fan of the Marching Machine since he was young. He said he was pleased to see the unification of HBCU and PWI bands.

“It gave me a good feeling seeing everybody just accepting the history of A&T and their awesomeness, and putting that together with our own Carolina band,” Mckellar said.

This was not the first time the Marching Tar Heels have collaborated with other bands to perform. In the past, they have paired with bands from the University of Virginia, East Carolina University, and N.C. State University.

“I think it is important for the students to experience,” Fuchs said. “The teams are very competitive but the bands are there for the same reasons, and that’s just to support their teams and music and fun.”

university@dailytarheel.com