SOFI STADIUM Archives - New Hip Hop News

The Honda Battle Of The Bands Will Invite HBCU Marching Bands To Los Angeles For Its First-Ever West Coast Showcase

April 30, 2024 by newhiphopnews

Honda Battle of the Bands 2023, Morgan State University — HONDA

For the last 20 years, the Honda Battle Of The Bands (HBOB), an invitational showcase that spotlight some of the best HBCU marching bands across the country, made its home on the East Coast. Annual showcases from its launch in 2003 to 2020 (except for a one-year hiatus in 2019) were held in Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia. After a three-year break due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the HBOB returned in 2023 and Alabama State University in Montgomery, Alabama was selected as the first HBCU to host the invitational. Another break came in 2024, but now the HBOB is back as they confirmed a showcase will take place in 2025. Here’s the twist: They’re going west for the first time ever.

The HBOB will take over SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California on Saturday, February 1, 2025 for the 19th showcase in its history. Six bands will receive the honor of participating in the invitational for its West Coast debut. The bands for the showcase will be selected through a voting process that includes HBOB fans, HBCU band directors and students, and Honda representatives. Voting begins on July 15 and fans can cast their vote on the HBOB website. Tickets for HBOB 2025 go on sale on May 15 on the HBOB website.

“Honda continues its commitment to powering the dreams and success of HBCU students by providing experiences and opportunities like Honda Battle of the Bands,” said Yvette Hunsicker, vice president of Corporate Social Responsibility and Inclusion & Diversity at American Honda Motor Co., Inc. “Bringing Honda Battle of the Bands to California will provide a platform for these young musicians while expanding awareness of the rich legacy of HBCU schools.”

Ahead of HBOB 2025, Honda showed its commitment to HBCU music education with a $50,000 grant to Thurgood Marshall College Fund. The grant is dedicated to “awarding scholarships that will power the academic ambitions of HBCU student-musicians across the country,” according to a Honda press release. More information about the scholarship program can be found on the Thurgood Marshall College Fund website.

Beyonce Criticized For Not Using Monitors At LA Show, Reportedly Shopping “Renaissance” Film

September 3, 2023 by newhiphopnews

Beyonce recently brought her “Renaissance” tour to LA for the first time, performing at SoFi Stadium on Friday and Saturday night. The show was opened by DJ Khaled, who also brought a slew of his friends who took the stage. Fans were able to see performances from Coi Leray, Lil Wayne, Wiz Khalifa, 2 Chainz, and more. There were also countless celebrity guests in attendance, like Kris Jenner, Keke Palmer, LeBron James, and Gabrielle Union.

For obvious reasons, the show managed to get a lot of attention. Fans were thrilled to see so many familiar faces e mbracing the tour aesthetic with their outfit choices. With that being said, she has gotten some pushback for the show, with some attendees noting how she didn’t use most of the monitors at the stadium. This made it more difficult for those in seats far from the stage to see the show, and has left commenters comparing the tour to another major one that recently stopped at SoFi.

Fans Wonder Why Beyonce Didn’t Make Use Of SoFi Monitors

@ashtabuddha

What a $477 view at Beyonce looks like… #renaissance #renaissanceworldtour #beyonce #sofistadium

♬ original sound – Ashley

In August, Taylor Swift brought her “Eras” tour to LA, and made full use of the monitors. It’s rumored that Bey didn’t use all the monitors because the stadium charges artists to do so, but that’s unconfirmed. In other “Renaissance” news, recent reports suggest that Beyonce is shopping around a visual film for the album. Above The Line revealed that the “artsy” film was directed by Nadia Lee Cohen.

“It’s a visual album movie, but it’s like an art film, and I’ve also heard it’s better than Black Is King,” a source claims. The outlet also says that the source confirmed the Renaissance film was shown to various studios earlier this year, but nothing ever came of it. “I’m guessing the price and lack of replay value for the casual viewer,” the source explained. “Or maybe Beyoncé didn’t like how it turned out? I don’t know…” Keep an eye on HNHH for more updates on Beyonce.

[Via][Via]

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Drake Threw A Dinner Party On The 50 Yard Line At SoFi Stadium After Winning Artist Of The Decade

May 25, 2021 by newhiphopnews

Drake’s well-known for his displays of wealth, which have ranged from ostentatious to borderline ridiculous over the years. However, after receiving a Billboard Artist of the Decade Award at the Billboard Music Awards this weekend, he certainly had a good enough excuse for his latest over-the-top expenditure. According to Variety, Drake rented out the SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California so he could have dinner on the 50-yard line with his OVO crew. The recently opened stadium normally seats 70,000, but for Drake’s dinner party, the attendance was limited to a guest list that included DJ Khaled, Doja Cat, SZA, and The Weeknd.

E! News reported that a source said, “He rented the entire stadium for the night. The stadium has a gigantic banner with his name and ‘Artist of the Decade.’… There are huge champagne towers and several bars set up throughout the stadium. Drake also has cute album books featuring his favorite moments through his career set up around the stadium.”

It’s likely Drake went all-out to make up for prior missed opportunities to do so; as he noted in his acceptance speech, which he gave with his son Adonis by his side, “I’ve spent an incalculable amount of hours trying to analyze all the things I did wrong. I’m really self-conscious about my music, and even if I do a good job, I always wonder how I could have done it better. I rarely celebrate anything. And just for anyone watching this, that’s wondering how this happened, that’s really the answer: being so unsure how you’re getting it done that you just kind of keep going in the hopes of figuring out the formula. But tonight, for once, I’m sure as hell we did something right.”