Hip-hop artist J. Cole and electro pop duo The Knocks will perform for this year’s final Dooley’s Week events, the Student Programming Committee (SPC) announced.
At the last Wonderful Wednesday, SPC named Jermaine Lamarr Cole, known by his stage name, J. Cole, as the performer for Dooley’s Frolics on McDonough Field on March 27 at 7 p.m.
On Thursday night at 6:36 p.m. — a reference to the University’s founding in 1836 —SPC announced on their facbook page that Ben “B-Roc” Ruttner and James “JPatt” Patterson of The Knocks will perform on Saturday, March 28 for Dooley’s Ball.
Cole was nominated for the Best New Artist award at the 54th Grammy Awards in 2012 and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration for “Power Trip,” featuring R&B artist Miguel, at the 56th Grammy Awards in 2014. His most recent album 2014 Forest Hills Drive was his third to debut at number one on the Billboard 200 chart, according to Billboard’s site.
“Early on, J. Cole was on the shortlist we came up with,” said SPC Band Party Chair and Business School senior Jonathan Goldman, who added that SPC had been in touch with Cole’s representatives since late December.
According to Goldman, SPC had weighed several alternatives to Cole, but he declined to name them.
“Ultimately we wanted to go towards this route, because with J. Cole, there’s no question he is one of the best performers live,” Goldman said.
As for The Knocks, Goldman said the SPC selected the dance music duo from “a couple of options,” which he also declined to name.
“The Knocks are a great group because they do their performances live, as opposed to the other artists [like them] who do all their work electronically,” Goldman said.
Business School senior Hirsh Gaikwad said he’s excited to see J. Cole, who he called “one of the hottest in the game.”
“He’s a good pick for the Friday night concert because he’s an energizing act that sets the tone for a great weekend,” Gaikwad said.
DJ and production duo The Knocks gained fame for their singles “Classic” (2014) and “Modern Hearts” (2013), as well as for popular remixes of songs Gotye’s “Little Talks,” Grouplove’s “Ways To Go” and Foster the People’s “Pumped Up Kicks.”
For last year’s Dooley’s Ball, Chance The Rapper performed on McDonough Field on April 5. Australian electronic musician Chet Faker, the opener for Chance, was unable to perform due to immigration issues, while 5 & A Dime, the mash-up musician set to perform the Friday before the Chance show, was forced to cancel his own show due to severe weather conditions.
In 2013, rapper Kendrick Lamar and house DJ 3lau (pronounced “blau”) drew crowds to McDonough Field for the Spring Band Party and Dooley’s Ball events, respectively.
A College senior studying economics and French, Lydia O’Neal has written for The Morning Call, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Consumer Reports Magazine and USA Today College. She began writing for the News section during her freshman year and began illustrating for the Wheel in the spring of her junior year. Lydia is studying in Paris for the fall 2015 semester.
