- 16th Annual Honda Battle of the Bands Celebrates HBCU Culture and Marching Band Tradition
- Event featured performances by eight Historically Black College and University marching bands
- Brian “Blue” Smith, founder of the BlueHeart Foundation, was named the 2018 HBCU Power of Dreams Award winner for his service to the community
- HBCU College Fair hosted over 7,000 attendees to discuss admissions and scholarship opportunities
Eight of the nation’s top Historically Black College and University marching bands performed at the 16th annual Honda Battle of the Bands. Brian “Blue” Smith was honored with the Honda HBCU Power of Dreams Award for his work with The BlueHeart Foundation, a nonprofit organization he created to help fulfill basic needs in Montgomery, Ala. Honda Logo.
Eight of the nation’s top Historically Black College and University marching bands performed at the 16th annual Honda Battle of the Bands.Brian “Blue” Smith was honored with the Honda HBCU Power of Dreams Award for his work with The BlueHeart Foundation, a nonprofit organization he created to help fulfill basic needs in Montgomery, Ala.Honda Logo.
A crowd of 62,000 fans, students and alumni took part in the 16th annual Honda Battle of the Bands Invitational Showcase (HBOB) on Saturday, where they enjoyed spectacular performances by eight of the nation’s top Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) marching bands and GRAMMY Award-winning R&B group 112. This year’s HBOB theme, “March On. Dream Together,” highlighted the distinctive culture of HBCU with a musical extravaganza of unparalleled musicianship, pageantry and camaraderie.
The show opened with a captivating musical salute to the U.S. military. All eight bands—more than 2,000 musicians and dancers in total—joined together on the field to honor all those who serve. Additional HBOB highlights included an energetic drum major tribute to the city of Atlanta, new music from 112’s latest album “Q Mike Slim Daron” and a show-stopping routine by the ever-popular Alabama State University Honey Beez.
This year’s Honda Battle of the Bands Invitational Showcase participants included:
- Alabama A&M University, Marching Maroon & White Band (Southwestern Athletic Conference) – fifth appearance
- Alabama State University, Mighty Marching Hornets (Southwestern Athletic Conference) – sixth appearance
- Bethune-Cookman University, Marching Wildcats (Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference) – 13th appearance
- Hampton University, The Marching Force (Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference) – first appearance
- Miles College, Purple Marching Machine (Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference) – first appearance
- North Carolina A&T State University, Blue & Gold Marching Machine (Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference) – sixth appearance
- Prairie View A&M University, Marching Storm (Southwestern Athletic Conference) – eighth appearance
- Tennessee State University, Aristocrat of Bands (Ohio Valley Athletic Conference) – eighth appearance
The Invitational Showcase presented these marching bands with a national platform to display their talent, both live and streamed online. Each of the participating universities received grants to help support their music education programs.
Honda HBCU Power of Dreams Award Recognizes Individual Moving the HBCU Community Forward
For the fourth year, Honda honored an exceptional individual who has positively affected the lives of others in the community. Brian “Blue” Smith was named the 2018 Honda HBCU Power of Dreams Award winner. Smith is the founder of The BlueHeart Foundation, a nonprofit organization created to help fulfill basic needs in Montgomery, Ala. From delivering food to those in need to donating toys to children, Smith keeps the Foundation going using funds from his own pocket. Smith is an Alabama State University and Mighty Marching Hornets alum, who also volunteers his time to teach music at a local high school. Honda presented Smith with a surprise grant to help him continue his mission and positive impact in the community.
“We are pleased to honor Brian Smith with this award,” said Alexandra Warnier, Manager, Corporate Social Responsibility for Honda. “His selflessness and humble approach to helping others is both inspiring and admirable. Brian truly embodies the power of dreams.”
HBCU College Fair Encourages High School Seniors to Think About College
In addition to the marching band performances at the 2018 Invitational Showcase, HBOB also included an HBCU College Fair to connect high school students with representatives from fifty-three HBCU schools. Designed to go beyond just exposing young people to the opportunities offered by HBCUs, the college fair enabled prospective college students to meet with marching band and admissions recruiters to discuss admissions requirements and scholarship opportunities. This year’s college fair hosted over 7,000 attendees, with more than 300 scholarships awarded.
Honda has been committed to supporting the success and dreams of the nation’s HBCUs. Through initiatives like the Honda Battle of the Bands and Honda Campus All-Star Challenge Honda has been able to touch the lives of more than 120,000 students and award $12 million in grants in support of education programs.
