What happeneed to the Little 500 concerts?

For years, it was a Little 500 tradition for the Union Board Concert Committee to bring in various artists to play at the IU Auditorium, adding to the excitement of the world's greatest college weekend. Past performers have included Nelly, Bob Dylan, John Mellencamp and the Red Hot Chili Peppers.\nBut for the second year in a row, despite initiating the contracting procedure with five different bands, none of the bands have committed to Union Board to provide a Little 500 concert.\nJunior Jeffrey Hasson, co-director of the concert committee, is in charge of booking all music events. Hasson, who described the situation as a "let down," said the failure to schedule a Little 500 concert is not a reflection of his staff's labors.\n"It was definitely not due to a lack of effort," Hasson said. "The committee worked nonstop -- day and night -- looking through directories of artists and contacting their agents. It has become very tough for colleges to get access to artists."\nHasson said the concert industry is constantly changing, and it has become tougher in recent years to get access to artists.\n"Big-name artists don't want to take the time to come to college campuses," he said. "They really need incentive to come to a college campus when they can sell out an amphitheater. It's unfortunate because a lot of their fan base lies in college students." \nBut Purdue University held a John Mayer and Guster concert March 24, a Lonestar concert March 6 and a Toby Keith concert Oct. 9. Butler hosted Chris Rock Feb. 29.\nSophomore and concert committee member Lana Kleyman said the group is working hard and ahead of schedule for fall concert preparations.\n"Right now, we are still in the process of compiling ideas of who students would like to see perform," Kleyman said. "We made a huge list last week and in the coming weeks we will begin to contact bands and set dates."\nHasson said he is optimistic about the fall concert lineup, as his committee is currently exploring options from REM and The Darkness to Jack Johnson and Gavin DeGraw.\n"The beauty about the fall is that we have more time to plan and aren't constricted to only two show dates," Hasson said. "We are 100 percent more hopeful this time around."\nThe concert committee meets from 6 to 7 p.m. every Tuesday in the Union Board office located in the second floor activities tower in the Indiana Memorial Union. Hasson said he encourages students to stop in and pitch ideas or suggestions to the committee. \n"I want to see quality music in a variety of genres and I want to ensure that students are happy with the music coming to campus," Hasson said.\nThough disappointed the concert committee was unable to book an artist, senior Jon Harari said he is still looking forward to the fraternity-presented Little 500 concerts.\n"There were rumors flying around that John Mayer and Jason Mraz were going to come this year," Harari said. "It would have been awesome if they played here, but I will definitely see the other acts perform during the week."\nFraternities Phi Kappa Sigma, Phi Delta Theta, Kappa Sigma and Zeta Beta Tau will kick off the Little 500 festivities with concert performances. Guster will play at 5 p.m. April 21 at Phi Delt, 1215 Jordan Ave. Tickets are $15 in advance or $20 at the door. Bone Thugs 'N' Harmony will take the stage at 7:30 p.m. at ZBT, 1640 North Jordan Ave. Tickets will be sold in advance for $15.\nHasson said it is important students remember Little 500 is not only about concerts -- during the week, the UB concert committee is to present a sold-out Dave Chappelle show and the second annual Little 5 Step Down, both at the IU Auditorium.\n"We hope students will enjoy these events," Hasson said. "(These concerts) are a guaranteed great time."\n-- Contact general assignments editor Lori Geller at lfgeller@indiana.edu.