No Little 500 concert

This year's Little 500 revelers will have one less entertainment option than in years past. The trike race was canceled in February, and now Union Board will not be holding its traditional Little 500 concert. \nUnion Board is instead holding The Little 5 Step-Down on Saturday, April 26 and Hoosier Idol on Monday, April 21. The two events are taking place during the week of the Little 500 and are being considered by some as replacements for the concert, although Jeremy Morris, director of the Bridging the Gap committee, which planned the Step-Down, said "The step show was going to happen regardless."\nThe concert's absence will no doubt disappoint some students. Musical entertainment preceding the Little 500 has become a tradition. In recent years, concerts included Guster, Nelly, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Foo Fighters and John Mellencamp. \nClaire Tramm, Union Board marketing director, said the board is taking its Little 500 entertainment in a new direction. This year, that means no concert. \n"Our mission this year was to diversify programming and still entertain a large community," Tramm said. "One of our goals as an organization is to showcase and bring into the limelight things that you wouldn't normally see. It was a great opportunity to highlight some different student talents."\nTramm said there was a good turnout at Monday's Ani DiFranco concert and said the board is not ruling out the possibility of having concerts in the future. \nHoosier Idol, modeled after the popular talent search show "American Idol," aims to find the best vocalist at IU. The 10 contestants will be judged by a celebrity panel, including '80s pop star Tiffany, IU professor of music Glenn Gass and local musician Rich Hardesty. The Little 5 Step-Down will feature both greek and non-greek step teams, and the evening's festivities will be held by BET Comic View personality Rickey Smiley. \nThere will be concerts during Little 500 week, albeit from different sources. Kappa Sigma will be host to Rusted Root on Tuesday, April 22. The fraternity considered the Union Board for co-sponsorship, but the arrangement didn't work out.\n"I actually approached them asking them if they wanted to, but they declined," Kappa Sigma concert planner Trey Smith said. \nSmith also said he believed the Union Board declined because he only approached them about co-sponsorship a week ago and because the concert would not be in one of the Union Board venues. \nThe Residence Halls Association will also be hosting "Doin' It in the Dorms", a concert festival featuring local bands Epic, Blue Moon Revue, Run of the Mill and Three Minute Mile. The free event will be at 8 p.m. Friday, April 25, in the Willkie Auditorium. \nUnion Board's change in focus toward Little 500 programming is one of many new twists to what has been called "the greatest college weekend." A new event, Little 50, debuted this year. The Little 50, a relay foot race, is sponsored by IU Student Foundation and will benefit charity. The bike race will also be broadcast for the first time in a new format. The race will be shown worldwide on HDNet, a high-definition network.