The nostalgia-inducing lyrics, “I’m going home,” and “If I go crazy, then will you still call me Superman?” will echo at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 4 in the Bryce Jordan Center, bringing back bittersweet grade school memories for many.
The BJC just announced that Daughtry –– the popular band that American Idol finalist Chris Daughtry joined in 2006 –– and 3 Doors Down will perform their rock hits, some of which have dominated U.S. radio stations since the 90s. After the band finishes up its Europe tour, the BJC concert will allow Daughtry to show off its new single, “Start of Something Good.”
3 Doors Down's performance at the BJC will happen shortly after the group releases its first greatest hits package, which will include nine of its No. 1 songs -- think "Kryptonite" and "When I'm Gone" -- remixed and remastered.
The concert will also feature San Diego-based P.O.D.
“We do think some students will be interested in this concert simply because it is not a country, hip-hop, classic rock or EDM show–– it’s rock!” Bernie Punt, sales and marketing director at the BJC, wrote in an email.
Though some aren't even familiar with Daughtry or 3 Doors Down (some students interviewed at the HUB-Robeson Center were only vaguely aware the bands exist, let alone are still making music), others are looking forward to Daughtry coming back for another performance. The five-man band performed at the BJC in 2010.
"He was really good when I saw him two years ago," Jen Ronayne said, adding that she and her mother are fans of Daughtry's music.
Ronayne (senior-kinesiology) said she's anticipating the December concert will bring a different group of people, especially with artists like Wiz Khalifa and Pretty Lights catering to the college crowd. She’s guessing the concert's audience might be a little bit older.
"It's probably going to be the people who watched American Idol," she said of the potential crowd.
If the BJC successfully targets the demographic it's going after for this concert, then Ronayne is exactly right; Punt wrote that the BJC is mainly targeting men and women ages 25 to 39.
For other students, 3 Doors Down's performance is going to bring back memories of grade school. Some of 3 Doors Down's most popular songs, like "Kryptonite" and "Be Like That" debuted in 2001 and became international hits.
"[Listening to 3 Doors Down] takes me back to my childhood –– sixth grade," John Bush (junior-civil engineering) said.
Not all students are optimistic about the rock concert, though, fearing that the bands' success is just a few years too many in the past.
"I feel like they're not as popular as some of the other people coming to the BJC," Emily Southmayd (junior-kinesiology) said, adding that she doesn't expect a large audience for the concert. "Fans from the past might go."
The student ticket pre-sale from noon to 6 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 18, will offer limited UPAC discounted tickets for $19.50. Students can purchase those tickets at the BJC, Eisenhower building or the Penn State Downtown Theatre.
Regular admission tickets –– priced at $39.50 and $49.50 –– will go on sale at 10 a.m. on Friday, Oct. 19, at the same locations, in addition to the Altoona Campus Outlet or online at www.bjc.psu.edu or ticketmaster.com. Tickets can also be purchased by phone at 814-865-5555.
To email reporter: els5204@psu.edu
