Friday, August 26, marked the first major performance held at the Green Music Center (GMC) for the Fall semester. In celebration of the final weeks of summer and the 10 year anniversary of the Green Music Center being open, GMC put on a concert performance. “It was a kickoff event like no other,” said Jack Kelly, a third year transfer, who is new to Sonoma State campus. 

Friday’s event signified a new era at the University. With Covid-19 protocols loosening and masks no longer being required, the GMC received the green light on hosting events at its venue again. Andy Grammer and co-headliner, Fitz & the Tantrums, performed at Weill Hall, bringing together both SSU students and the Sonoma county community. The pop-star sensation is familiar with performing at Sonoma State. In 2019, Andy Grammer made his SSU debut, headlining at the Green Music Center. 

Graduate student, Brian Peppard, said he looks forward to musical performances held by the GMC “The [Green Music Center] concerts that happen in August are my favorite way to kick off the school year.” Peppard attended the Andy Grammer performance in 2019, during his freshman year at Sonoma State, “I’ve seen Andy Grammer there before, so I thought it was kind of cool to see a returning face perform again.” 

The artist performed hits such as “Keep Your Head Up”, “Honey I’m Good”, “Good To Be Alive”, and “Don’t Give Up On Me”. All throughout the show, Seawolf Students got together and danced at the front of the lawn seating. Peppard commented on the dancing

section of the lawn seating, “There’s always a whole lot of energy and you meet so many Students from around Sonoma State.” 

The co-headliner performance of Fitz & The Tantrums got students to attentively tune into the performance. Students were consistently running to the front of the lawn seating to get a better glimpse of the performers. The two artists are on tour, promoting their latest release, “The Wrong Party” The night of the event, their song launched on all streaming platforms. 

Also that night, Aijia Grammer, Andy Grammer’s wife, made a surprise visit to Sonoma to see her husband after a long month of him touring across the United States. The concert had a special segment where they sang a collaborative song titled “Tough Love”. 

There is an immense amount of planning and promoting that goes into an event at the Green Music Center. The GMC works to reach as many students as possible. GMC Senior Manager of Marketing and Communications, Andy Shepherd, explained the process of booking a performer, “I’m part of a programming team. With our executive director, we work together to figure out who we could have for summer, who’s touring in the area, what’s in our budget, and what are people going to want to see.” 

With discounted tickets for Green Music Center events, SSU students are able to get seats for as cheap as $10. Shepherd explained how, “It was important to work with campus entities to get the word out to students. Strategic communication includes talking with Seawolf Living and Associative Student productions.” 

The Green Music Center will continue to host events all throughout the school year, including concerts, performances, and music screenings held on the lawn of the GMC. Performers that have recently played at the Green Music center are the world-renowned latin band, Los Tigres Del Norte as well as the Santa Rosa Symphony.

Upcoming GMC events include: The Indigo Girls concert, Spider Man- No Way Home movie screening, and Jazz performances by Wynton Marsalis. Check out the full schedule of Green Music Center events held on campus at https://gmc.sonoma.edu/all-events/.