Tickets for the J. Cole concert, the first major musical event the University has had since 2006, went on sale on April 4 for $5 and are limited only to students.
According to Mariel Pagan, assistant dean of students for student activities, the event is not open to members of the general public or guests of students because with security and other safety concerns around such a large-scale event on campus, guests greatly increase the cost.
She said if others were allowed to attend, the fee for students would also possibly need to be raised in order to compensate for increased security.
"At all of our events student pricing is lower because students pay the student activities fee," Pagan said. "The only reason we can have a concert is because of that fee so we just have to determine depending on the event if it is worth it to allow for guests."
Tickets went on sale online at the ticket buying website Eventbrite during Easter Break at a special, temporary rate.
"We are doing a special $5 early bird special because students have a tendency to wait until the last minute which makes things for planning for security and all of that difficult," Pagan said. "By providing an incentive early on hopefully we get the majority of people who are looking to get tickets to do so."
Almost 1,000 tickets have been sold so far at the special early bird price, according to Pagan. She also stressed that interested students should act fast, because on April 14, ticket prices will increase to $10 per ticket.
If a student does not wish to purchase tickets on Eventbrite, tickets will also be at the ticket office during operating hours or at the Battle of the Bands, to be held today on the Green.
The event will be in the Field House on Friday May 5 at 8 p.m. Opening for J.Cole will be Big K.R.I.T.
The concert is being held as part of the Campus Consciousness tour, an organization that can be contracted by universities to bring performers to campuses nationwide to educate students about environmental initiatives.
Alyana Alfaro can be reached at alyana.alfaro@student.shu.edu.
