Songfest returns after seven-year hiatus
Trojan Pride triumphantly hosted Songfest for the first time since 2015 Saturday at Bovard Auditorium. One of the USC’s oldest traditions, Songfest started in 1954 as a judged fundraiser where student artists showcased their various talents and competed against each other while raising profits for Troy Camp, a student-run philanthropy organization that provides mentorship for students in South Los Angeles.
Trojan Pride, USC’s official spirit organization, has worked to bring back Songfest, last attempting in 2018. Logan Barth, the organization’s co-executive director, said he believes Songfest is important for Trojan morale.
“A big part of Trojan Pride is, obviously, increasing Trojan spirit across campus … we’re doing this to increase spirit on campus because USC’s traditions are a big part of student life here,” said Barth, a freshman majoring in law, history, and culture. “It is important to maintain them to keep that classic Trojan experience that students come here for.”
The night started out with Trojan Marching Band performing classics such as the “USC Fight Song,” and popular songs like “Bad Romance” by Lady Gaga.
Following the Marching Band was all-male a cappella group the Trojan Men, who performed Sean Kingston’s “Beautiful Girls.” The crooning voice of their soloist Daniel Marable and the meshing of the song with the low tones of fellow soloist Sid Bajaj singing “Stand by Me” by Ben E. King were met with cheers from the audience from the opening note.
“I really just wanted to do something related to singing that was more low pressure, just wanted some way, some kind of outlet to do some singing,” Trojan Men president Timothy Reilly said. “[Songfest] is an opportunity for guys to get together, sing music they like and have a fun time. It’s exciting to see all these groups on campus.”
Next on stage were two student performers from USComedians, Jonathan Krone, a senior majoring in narrative studies and Angelina Stroud, a senior majoring in journalism. Krone, a self-titled “alpha male,” made jokes about his experiences at USC.
The third act was Spade A Dance, an energetic K-pop dance cover group performing “Feel My Rhythm” by Red Velvet and “JIKJIN” by TREASURE.
The first song included a beautiful performance complete with fairy-like costumes to match the light-hearted track, while the second reflected a more intense and darker song. Carol Li, co-director of Spade A Dance, said the dance group enjoyed themselves while performing on stage.
“We always love performing at an opportunity like this,” Li said. “It’s not about showing off, but we have a chance to do what we want to do and then we can share the joy with everyone, not just the members of our team but also the people who love K-pop and who just love dancing in general.”
The USC Magic Association then mesmerized the audience as they performed a slew of impressive magic tricks.
It was hard to tell what was more surprising to the crowd: new member John Hemmer catching a card chosen by Songfest judge Patrick Corbin in the air with chopsticks while blindfolded or the group correctly predicting an audience member would chose “Avatar: The Last Airbender” as their favorite show.
“I love the way that people react to magic,” said Tyler Gibgot. “I’ve just realized that it’s a great way to bring people together. You know, no matter your age, race, gender or background, I feel like magic is like a universal language, and that’s why I love it.”
The harmonies of the next performance, Mariachi SC, filled the audience’s soul and elevated their spirits as they saw the musicians engulfed in the music.
The show then proceeded to bring up the Sirens, an a cappella group, who sang “Killing Me Softly With His Song” by Fugees and “Bang Bang” by Jessie J, Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj. During their performance of “Bang Bang,” three soloists matched the original singers, even performing the rap portions of the songs.
The only Doo-wop group on campus, the Trousdales, made their debut performance, bringing the audience back to the ‘50s when Songfest first originated. Concluding the show was the Belly Dance Club, which captivated the audience with their vivacious moves.
At the end of the show, Corbin, who judged the show, deemed Mariachi SC had the best performance. Spade A Dance was also voted as the Trojan Choice winner by audience members.
“We were extraordinarily happy with the way Songfest turned out,” Barth said. “It really set us up to bring back this event, keep it a tradition at USC and make sure it doesn’t go away. We thought the performers did an incredible job and that the audience had fun.”
Correction: In a previous version of this article, we incorrectly attributed the photograph to Tara Mojtahedzadeh. The photo is now correctly attributed to Brianna Tang. It was also incorrectly stated that Tyler Gibgot was the president of the USC Magic Association. The Daily Trojan regrets these errors.