T-Pain wants to buy Auburn a drank.
The University Program Council has announced the hip-hop superstar will send the Plains into an Auto-Tune frenzy Thursday, Sept. 23.
The event, officially called "Tiger Nights: Tiger Mania Tailgate, featuring T-Pain," will be held on the green space in front of the Student Center from 5 to 10 p.m.
T-Pain is expected to perform at approximately 8:30 p.m.
"We're expecting a large variety of the Auburn community to come out and celebrate tailgating," said Anne Smead, a junior in public administration and director of UPC's Tiger Nights.
The concert will take place two days before the Auburn vs. South Carolina football game, and UPC is hoping to energize the student body for the crucial home game.
The concert and surrounding festivities will be open only to Auburn students with a valid student ID.
"It's going to be a really exciting time," said Meredith Walkup, graduate adviser to UPC, "especially before the South Carolina game. Hopefully he'll get a lot of students excited before the game."
Brittany D'Angelo, senior in biomedical sciences and director of UPC Major Entertainment, is in charge of the event planning.
"We wanted someone from the rap or R&B genre," said D'Angelo.
Both D'Angelo and Mead said they felt that with previous concerts from artists like Sister Hazel, The Goo Goo Dolls and Kelly Pickler, a change of pace was needed.
"Our main goal was to bring an artist that we think would satisfy the majority of the student body," Smead said.
Smead worked throughout the summer on securing the contract for T-Pain, and D'Angelo took on the role of event planner with the start of fall semester.
"With anything we plan, we have to be able to justify it," Smead said.
UPC feels being able to land an artist as popular and unique as T-Pain was justification enough.
Smead said T-Pain and company were very excited to get to perform specifically for a group of college students.
The event will feature all of the usual festivities associated with UPC's Tiger Nights, but the presence of such a well-known act is sure to drive up audience numbers.
"It's going to add more to the event in general," said Mike Smith, also a graduate advisor to UPC. "I think attendance is going to be up and they're going to experience more than they would in a normal Tiger Mania."
Prior to the show, there will be food, games, moon bounces and Auburn-themed give-aways.
The evening is intended to celebrate the fall tradition of tailgating.
"We feel his music is so new and fresh that we think a lot of people will come out for it," D'Angelo said. "Akon was such a huge hit when he came to Auburn, so hopefully he (T-Pain) can bring out a crowd like that."
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