Students flooded the yard with fun and excitement on Nov. 13, as the 2009 BET Black College Tour made its last stop in Prairie View, Texas.
This year’s tour was hosted by BET’s Herkules, a disc jockey from Washington D.C.’s hit radio station WPGC 95.5 and Sirius XM radio channel “Heat,” and Alesha Renee, who is the former host of “BET NOW” and “The Student Center.” Participating in the tour for the fifth consecutive year, Renee’s level of excitement appeared to be parallel to the students.’
Renee said, “Hosting the black college tour is what I consider to be one of the better perks of being with BET. I went to University of Houston, so I always enjoy coming home and I also enjoy working with HBCUs, because I can look out into the crowd and see the excitement on the students’ faces. It’s a great experience to be involved in something so positive.”
Michelle Garner, vice president of consumer engagement for BET Networks, said, “The support that we extend to the black colleges is a reciprocal for the viewership that we receive from the students attending black colleges. The purpose of the tour is to expose students to different opportunities through the activities that we have available.”
Students spent the afternoon parlaying around the yard, while interacting and participating in the scheduled events. Several booths were set up, including Def Jam, Microsoft, U.S. Air Force, Sierra Mist, and Verizon Wireless. When visiting the booths, students were enlightened about internships and other job opportunities. As part of the “Wrap-It-Up” Tour, BET also set up a booth where students could be tested and educated on the importance of practicing safe sex.
In addition to the many booths that were assembled, students also had the opportunity to sign up and participate in the major events that BET brings along every year, which included a singing competition, freestyle competition, 3 point shootout, and two-on-two basketball tournament. The usual spoken word poetry contest was replaced by the “Drop That Beat Competition,” in which samples from different songs were played for a few seconds, and participants had to name the artist and the song’s title.
Freshman vocal performance major Desiree Washington from Houston, Texas was the winner of the singer’s spotlight competition. The Drop That Beat Competition was won by freshman nursing major Deanna Lee. By displaying his creativity and lyrical presence on the microphone, junior history major Bradford Traywick won the freestyle competition and the Best Buy gift card prize that was included as the reward.
Traywick said, “It was fun. Many people don’t know this, but freestyling is actually one of my hobbies. My fellow participants were very fun to compete against.”
After Traywick’s victory, the audience was treated to a performance by Kelci and Taylah P. from the up-and-coming duet Vistoso Bosses, who performed their hit single “Delerious.” Slip-N-Slide’s Triple C’s also dropped in to perform a couple of their newest singles.
The last events of the afternoon took place on the court. After showcasing his jump shot, Darnell Dixon, a freshman accounting major from building 48, won the 3-pt shootout contest. After Dixon won the shootout, Terrell Cowherd and senior civil engineering major Lanton Mario teamed up and won the 2-on-2 tournament.
Junior mass communications major Dejuan Kenney said, “I appreciate BET coming out to break the normal class cycle and offering us a chance to enjoy the numerous activities that they delivered to us today.”