Bullstock remixed as students face off in DJ competition

This year’s Bullstock will feature the playlists of 10 students as they go head-to-head in a DJ competition Thursday evening. UNSPLASH/Krys Amon

With crowds discouraged from gathering for the time being, the staple event of USF Week — Bullstock — has been subject to some revisions so students can still enjoy music in a socially distant manner.

Otherwise known for bringing a series of artists for an on-campus concert, Bullstock has been altered this year to “Bullstock: The Remix.” The event will be hosted by Aux Cord Wars, a DJ event program for college students, and consists of a live competition where students will compete head to head to see who has the best playlist for their designated genre of music. The $9,500 event will be hosted through Zoom on Thursday at 8 p.m.

A maximum of 10 pre-registered students will be accepted to participate in the competition to show off their skills with the aux. The chosen students will be paired off so there will be five 15-minute rounds of competition, each with specific categories of music their playlist should cater to — but participants will only be notified of their category two hours in advance.

“For example … one of the themes is best dance songs. Those students, before the event, are required to create their own playlist of songs that they feel like fit into that theme the best,” said Student Programs Coordinator at the Center for Student Involvement Isabelle Arroyo-Acevedo.

Those who do manage to defeat their counterpart in their choices of beats and mash-ups will be determined by votes from the audience that Aux Cord Wars will gather through a virtual poll. Attendees will also have a turn to give each DJ their own feedback.

“For the sake of getting students’ feedback and interaction, we’ll also have students share verbally who they think the winner is,” said Arroyo-Acevedo.

A bonus sixth round will be included at the end of the event for any two students in attendance feeling invigorated by the spirit of virtual competition who want to participate on impulse.

The winner for each round will be rewarded with a prize, whether it’s a T-shirt or an e-gift card.

There will be questions and trivia in between the rounds so attendees can participate for a chance to win some of the prizes offered as well.

There’s no limit to the number of people who can listen in on the battle between the playlists, but the first 150 students who join will have a Bullstock T-shirt and tie-dye kit shipped directly to their home.

Whether students show up to Bullstock as a listener or a DJ, many of them will leave the experience with a package at their doorstep or at least a new song to add to a playlist.

“At the end of the week we’re going to collectively come together, pre-package the items on that Friday [and send them] to the students’ addresses that they shared with us,” said Arroyo-Acevedo.