Following their impressive 62-3 win over Lamar, Texas A&M looks to keep the Aggie Spirit alive for the highly anticipated upcoming football game against Auburn this Saturday by hosting the first ever Hooey Yell Fest.
Hooey Yell Fest is a free concert and entertainment event taking place on Friday, Sept. 20, the night before the Aggie football team takes on Auburn. The event will take place at the Pepsi Fan Zone at Kyle Field from 8 p.m until 11:30 p.m., ending in time for fans to attend Midnight Yell. Headlining the event is Texas musician Cory Morrow, preceded by country musician and former student Ross Cooper, Class of 2011.
The festival is a collaboration between Texas A&M Ventures and Hooey. As the official multimedia rights partner at A&M, Texas A&M Ventures manages all the Athletic Department’s sponsorships and corporate partnerships. Collaborating with western clothing brand Hooey was essential to General Manager of Texas A&M Ventures Clay Harris, due to the company’s investment in A&M athletics and the country music scene.
“I think it’s going to be an incredible experience,” Harris said. “It’s something new and innovative that’s the night before the game. I think it’s going to get everybody fired up for the big weekend ahead.”
Harris said the festival will be right at home with a school well-known for its spirit and traditions, especially when it comes to football.
“With Yell Practice and a large football game the next day, and adding something in, a concert like this, [it] embodies the passion and spirit of the Texas A&M student and fan,” Harris said.
In addition to the live music, the festival will host various local food trucks and Friday night fun for guests of all ages in the Pepsi Fan Zone.
“The passion you’ll see during that event, that’ll spill into the next two days, and it’ll be a win for everyone,” Harris said.
Lubbock-native Cooper will open Hooey Yell Fest Friday evening. Cooper graduated from A&M in 2011 with a degree in communication, but said he always knew writing and performing music was his true passion.
“I always played. I started writing songs in my early teens,” Cooper said. “But honestly, music was always the plan so it’s the only thing I wanted to do.”
Cooper said Hooey Yell Fest, and performing at his alma mater, is important to the community because it provides students and Aggie football fans another opportunity to come together.
“It means the world,” Cooper said. “It’ll feel like coming home.”