Seton Hall's ONE Campaign will host an awareness concert, free to Seton Hall students, headlined by Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin (SSLYBY) on May 2 at 7:30 p.m. in the Theatre-in-the-Round.
According to Kathryn Leininger, the event's organizer, the extra money raised as a result of the concert and ONE campaign event on April 28 called SHU vs. Thirst, will be donated to Nuru International, a social venture dedicated to fighting extreme poverty with a focus on access to clean drinking water.
"I am hoping that students take advantage of the opportunity to see a great band perform on campus for free and that everyone comes away from the event with a greater understanding of the severity of water issues in the developing world," Leininger said.
The concert will also feature opening acts from the band Koo Koo Kanga Roo and two Seton Hall-based bands.
Leininger said she believes it is important to provide the Seton Hall community with more free entertainment options on campus.
"Many ONE Campaign members, myself included, are huge fans of SSLYBY, and we thought that a performance from them would be a great way to bring people together and raise awareness about an important issue," Leinginger said.
The ONE Campaign is a grassroots advocacy organization committed to the fight against preventable disease and extreme poverty, according to the campus life website summary.
Leininger said Seton Hall joined ONE's efforts as a student organization in 2007 and has been committed to raising awareness on campus since.
One of the club's e-board members and a SSLYBY fan since high school, Alyssa Alfano, first contacted the band about performing on campus.
"I began following them on Facebook and noticed they had put out an announcement that they were doing a college tour," Alfano said. "I emailed the band about a show at SHU and heard back from them within the day."
Leininger was in contact with the band's booking agent as well as SGA on-campus to meet all of the necessary requirements to have the concert.
Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin is an indie- pop band from Springfield, Miss. that met at a Superbowl party in 1999 for the Broncos vs. Falcons game, according to the band's website.
Alfano said many Seton Hall ONE Campaign members, including herself, have seen the band perform live a few times in different cities. They all agree that they play a really fun, upbeat show.
"I had seen them play live in pretty small venues, but the Theatre-in-the-Round will definitely be the smallest, which is great," Alfano said.
Alfano said she thinks the band will appeal to a variety of students at Seton Hall because their music is very danceable and pop-like.
The band was featured on the College Music Journal's 2010 cover and has opened for bands like Tokyo Police Club and Two Door Cinema Club. They are currently signed with Polyvinyl Record Co., Leininger said.
The ONE Campaign will host SHU vs. Thirst on Thursday, April 28, to raise money for Nuru International.
The same awareness walk, then called "Be Hope to Her," was held last year. The event was held to bring awareness to women having to walk up to 10 miles in third world countries to get water for their families.
Leininger said last year's event was very successful. Nearly 100 students participated in the on-campus walk.
For more information on Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin and their music, go to myspace.com/boris.
Joanna Toole can be reached at joanna.toole@student.shu.edu.
