Fling misses out on fourth artist

In addition to Ratatat, Flo Rida and Lupe Fiasco, a fourth performer could have been a possibility for this year’s Spring Fling concert lineup.

Pre-existing agreements with Penn Athletics over the use of Franklin Field, however, kept the lineup at three, Wharton senior and Social Planning and Events Committee President Adam Thompson said.

In addition to costs incurred for their involvement with the weekend, SPEC currently pays Penn Athletics $10,500 each year to use Franklin Field during Spring Fling weekend.

“It really is [Penn Athletics’] space that we pay to use,” Thompson said. “The last thing we would want to do would be to jeopardize our relationship with them.”

A women’s lacrosse practice is currently scheduled right before the concert in preparation for the team’s home-game against Dartmouth the following day, according to the Penn Athletics website.

While SPEC was unable to disclose who the performer could have been, it revealed that it was not for lack of effort that Penn did not expand its performance lineup.

The process for selecting each year’s Spring Fling performers is long and involved, requiring cooperation from many different groups and organizations, explained Shana Rusonis, College junior and SPEC Concerts co-director.

Not only does SPEC have to predict and cater to student tastes months in advance, but it also has to maintain amicable working partnerships with talent agencies and administrators while competing with other musical events for the best possible lineup.

In the last few years, the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in California have coincided with Penn’s Spring Fling weekend and “unfortunately, offers to Coachella are more compelling,” Rusonis said.

Artists attending Coachella or touring abroad seldom compromise to come down for just one night at Fling.

However, this year, Ratatat was accommodating enough to perform on Friday and then fly back for their Sunday show at Coachella, Wharton sophomore and SPEC Concerts co-director Julia Sternfeld said.

Lineups for the Spring Fling concert can also change up to 30 days before the date of performance. Industry norm stipulates that artists are free to back out of their contract 30 days before a show.

“It’s such a dynamic and volatile industry,” Rusonis said. “Just as we could have plans fall through, an artist could have things fall through as well.”

Just last year, one performer — whose name SPEC cannot reveal — canceled with just 40 days left before the concert, after news that Kid Cudi was performing had already been released. The cancelation “put a lot of pressure on the selection,” Rusonis said.

This volatility of performance lineups is also why SPEC was so concerned about the potential leaks earlier this semester when Lupe Fiasco’s website prematurely announced that he would be performing at Franklin Field on April 15, the night of the Spring Fling concert.

“It’s a fickle process, but we do the best we can do,” Rusonis said. “If an artist is given a better offer, we’re not really in a position to offer much leverage.”

Thus, when a fourth performer expressed interest this year, SPEC opted to look into the possibility of increasing its lineup as opposed to choosing one act over the other, she added.

However, the offer came too late in the planning process and SPEC could not expand its current agreements with Penn Athletics.

In comparison, four artists and musical groups performed at Yale University and five at Brown University during their spring concerts last year.

However, ticket sales suggest that students are satisfied with the existing lineup. During its first day of sales under inclement weather, SPEC sold 1,400 tickets — 675 for the floor and 725 for general admission — to the concert.

“I’m really pumped about this year’s performers,” College sophomore Amritha Sastry said. “I’m not too disappointed about not having a fourth performer … It would have been exciting but I’m not bummed.”

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.