WUSA’s lack of an orientation concert this year was due to negotiations with several artists that fell through, though WUSA is “currently exploring the possibility” of hosting a concert in future.

Last year saw the first campus concert in 13 years, featuring DJ Dillon Francis. However, despite initial plans for an orientation concert this year, for which WUSA reached out to six artists and were in “promising negotiations” with three, all were either previously engaged or did not respond in time.

Rhegan Whelpley, VP of orientation and programming at the University of Western Ontario, said that the University Students’ Council (USC) has been “really lucky” to have had consistent concerts, with this year’s concert featuring Flo Rida and the year before that featuring Ava Max. Whelpley, who began her role several months ago, attributed USC’s ability to attain artists to early planning as well as existing relationships with talent agencies to help “make that process easier and get those big-name talents to campus every year.”

Whelpley also pointed out the uniqueness of her role as one dedicated to orientation week. “O-Week is kind of a tradition here, so we always take pride in making sure to have that concert, but also prioritize that experience,” she said.