Most college students would say that their busiest weekend of the fall semester is Halloweekend; defined as the three day extravaganza of having fun with friends while looking rediculous. For Connor Sullivan, the Student Committee on Popular Entertainment’s (SCOPE) manager, the weekend before Halloween will be his busiest yet. SCOPE has booked EDM artist Kygo to perform Saturday, October 24th at the UNH Whittemore Center. Her Campus was able to catch up with Connor about all things SCOPE and the upcoming concert right before his whirlwind weekend. Read on to learn about the organization and our latest Campus Celebrity!
What made you interested in joining SCOPE?
Well, I heard about it first from my sister and I thought it sounded pretty cool. I love music and really wanted to see the other end of show production.
What did you think of the first trial run of selling concert tickets online?
I left to go to class before the tickets went on sale and everything was set up and seemed to be running smoothly. Then at about 8:15 a.m. I got a text from other SCOPE members saying there was somethinig wrong with the website. It actually turns out that the company we chose to work with to sell our tickets online underestimated how popular Kygo would be at UNH so they did not plan for such a high volume of webiste traffic. We look at this in a positive way because it shows how many people know about us on campus and like the shows that we put on. We have spoken with the company who helps us with online sales and we are planning to prepare for a lot of people to use the website for the next time we have a show.
The SCOPE team at the Whittemore Center.
Describe the process of booking a major artist here at UNH.
First we all have a meeting as a team and brainstorm artist names based on genres that we haven’t really featured before, UNH student’s requests and social media responses. Then, we widdle down the list after speaking with artists’ agents if they exceed our budget or cannot add UNH into their performing schedule.
Describe your roles and duties during a concert.
My role as a manager is to oversee each department during a show to make sure everything is running smoothly. There are usually six different departments, such as the security deparment, working during a show. I also communicate with the artists’ agent to make sure the artist is happy and doesn’t need anything. The day before the acutal concert, we go into the Whitt and set the stage up along with any other equipment needed for the show. After the concert, we have to break the stage down and take everything out of the Whitt. Last year, we were running back and forth between taking the equipment from the Whitt and putting it in the field house until 4am.
Connor with artist Nelly backstage.
How did the SCOPE team choose Kygo for the Fall concert?
Kygo falls under the EDM music genre and we haven’t had that type of music featured at a UNH show in a while so we thought it was a good fit. Having Kygo perform at UNH is also beneficial for him as an artist because he has never performed at a college before. He is hoping for good things to come out of the new experience. We are also excited for Kygo because this is one of our biggest sold out shows. This year we sold 5,500 tickets while last year, at Lee Brice, we sold out at a cap of 5,000 tickets.
How can students interested in SCOPE get involved with this organization?
There is an application and interview process every year in the Fall for open SCOPE member positions. If students want to get involved right away, we are always open to volunteers helping out during shows! Come by the SCOPE office in the MUB any time; we are always happy to talk with people about what we do!
What has been your favorite part about working for SCOPE?
Just working with a team who is so passionate, dedicated and smart makes it really fun and interesting. Everyone at SCOPE is really into what we do and that makes everything worthwhile.
In your opinion, who would be the ultimate band or artist to work with?
It would be between Dave Matthews Band and O.A.R. for sure. Dave Matthews band would be the dream.
What do you like to do in your free time?
When I have time to myself I really like to split my time between two very different things. I like to hangout with my group of friends, SCOPE people and non-SCOPE people and just enjoy each others’ company and have a good time. At other times I love to be alone. I’ll just play my guitar or go for a long walk around campus while listening to music. So although I do love to be really busy and around a lot of people, I like time to myself as well.
All photos courtesy of Connor Sullivan.