By Lili Martinez

After years of low student turnout at the Summer Sendoff concert, Social Board directed energy, funds and resources toward booking a band with a big name for this year’s event. Big Boi, or Antwan Andr Patton, a rapper, songwriter, record producer and actor, will headline Sendoff this year, performing on Friday, April 27 at 10:00 p.m. on Ransom Lawn. Kenyon students might remember Big Boi as a former member of OutKast, a hip-hop duo with Andr 3000 which found success in the early 2000s.

Social Board further confirmed on Feb. 14 that the opening act for Big Boi will be STRFKR, an electronica band from Portland, Ore. Formed in 2000, the band reached commercial success partially through the release of its song “Rawnald Gregory Erickson the Second” in a Target commercial in 2009. The group is known for wearing women’s clothing onstage.

As part of its emphasis on choosing a more popular band this year, Social Board teamed up with the Horn Gallery to book the bands. They used a survey conducted after last year’s Sendoff to guide their decision, according to Social Board Co-Chair Sarah Schiller ’14. In 2011, “it was clear the highest votes were for an alternative band and someone in the rap/hip-hop genre … so luckily we were able to get both genres for Sendoff this year,” Schiller said.

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