“font-family: ‘Times New Roman’; line-height: 14px;”>Two separate

but equal aspects can define “The Greatest Homecoming on Earth:”

the events that go on during the day and the events that go on at

night

Two separate but equal aspects can define “The Greatest Homecoming on Earth:” the events that go on during the day and the events that go on at night.

Every homecoming has routine day events such as a pep rally, football game, and coronation. Some even have a comedy show and concerts. However, some would argue that one of the main things that sets A&T’s homecoming apart from the rest is its nightlife — the numerous amounts of parties and club events that take place throughout the week.

“The two are really interconnected,” explained Lawrence Wiggins, Nxlevel Entertainment’s director of media marketing. “You go to a show but then you don’t want the night to end when it is over so you look for your next move. They fuse into each other.”

“It’s [nightlife] just an essential part of the entire homecoming experience because while we’re in these classes all day we still want to keep the tradition of GHOE and have a good time at the end of it all. So it is very important. We’re AGGIES and we’re going to find a good time,” said Gloria Smith, a junior sports science/fitness management major.

“As an alum its very important because it gives us a chance to fellowship and celebrate each others accomplishments. It’s a huge communion and we love it every year,” said A&T alumni Darren Brand.

A lot of the credit for the premiere nightlife experience during homecoming can go to the numerous entertainment groups in Greensboro, most of which were started by Aggies.

Nxlevel Entertainment, Join Me Entertainment, and Entourage are all throwing parties/events during homecoming and it’s safe to say they are making a lot of money doing it.

Nxlevel Lifestyle & Entertainment Group is an event planning, production and promotions company. Launched in 2005, it has been around the longest out of the three and their reputation is well known, evidenced in their yearly massive ticket sales.

When the company launched their “GHOE” site for this year, it contained seven events that would be taking place between Thursday and Saturday of that week. The events are separated by different age groups: 18 and up, 21 and up, and 25 and up.

“Most of the planning for homecoming starts the week after the last homecoming.  With these things the earlier you start planning the better,” said Wiggins.

One of their events sold out month before homecoming and two more this past weekend. As a result, Nxlevel created three more parties to accommodate those who missed out on the first set.

“We feel a level of responsibility. We wanted to give as many people as possible a chance to be part of the experience. We know people look to us to provide them with events,” said Wiggins.

Ten events with ticket prices ranging from $15-$40, and over thousands of tickets already sold: it’s clear that Nxlevel is making out well this homecoming.

“We’re very proud of the where we are and we understand that we have a lot of work to do this week,” said Wiggins.

Although Join Me Entertainment is only two years old, it has quickly become a well-known name around campus when it comes to events.  What sets Join Me apart is its community involvement sector. 

Join Me’s mission is to utilize and develop the natural talent of individuals to create a bridge between minorities and the upper working class. They aim to promote social equality and uplift through a variety of gatherings and other events. 

Last year during homecoming, their Cold War event sold 1,000 tickets. Their tickets range from $10-$15 and with VIP booths in the hundreds of dollars. That being said, one can see that Join Me also does well in profits during homecoming.

This year they aim to do even better by adding five more events to their homecoming line-up, including a dinner party.

CEO Gregory Hill plans to make sure Join Me is pushing more than just parties this homecoming.

“My main focus is not to throw parties,” said the senior economics major from Durham, N.C.

One of his main focuses is to push students to vote in the upcoming local election. Hill’s calling it “Join Me at the Polls.”

“We’re not going to be on the mics at the party continuously announcing it or anything but it will be incorporated during homecoming in some ways such as the pep rally,” said Hill.

So why have any club events at all?

“The whole buzz of GHOE provides no better platform to show your brand,” said Hill.

Entourage Entertainment will also be hosting a few club events this homecoming week. One on that Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday.

“This is the biggest week for us profit wise. The only other week that comes close is CIAA,” said President Alexis Riddick, a senior speech communications major.

Riddick believes homecoming is a big deal for entertainment groups because, “it brings out a different crowd with all the out-of-towners.”

 Entourage Entertainment has been involved with homecoming since 2007.

“We’re smaller than a lot of the other entertainment groups. We’re more like a family. We have fun together and do other things like go to movies and dinner,” said Riddick.

With all of the entertainment groups and even more parties, one might wonder how a company can set its events apart from the others.

“It’s all about being unique. A lot of promoters get by just providing music and a venue. We try to keep our audience engaged throughout. We have events where there’s catered food, spoken word artists, live bands, special guests, and more,” said Hill.

“Our parties tend to have themes. For example we have 90s Reggae Go-Go, stuff that brings out a different crowd,” said Riddick.

According to Wiggins, it’s Nxlevel’s atmosphere that sets its events apart.

“Our events are more upscale. It’s not just a look, but also an attitude. We try to provide drama free parties where you can have an enhanced nightlife experience. People know the atmosphere we provide. They know our parties are where the majority of their friends will be,” said Wiggins.

Nxlevel has had the most consistent success with homecoming. However, with new groups emerging up, the obvious question is if they are worried about maintaining the top spot.

“Brand awareness is very strong,” said Wiggins. “If you’re able to provide a quality product time after time people trust your brand. For example, there are a lot of shoes out there, but there’s only one Nike.”

One thing all three groups agree on is how big “GHOE” has become.

“GHOE is larger than life. I’ve seen it develop to something really big. Alumni love coming back and seeing how everyone’s doing, how they’ve evolved, and more. We’re just hoping to be able to continue to trend along with it,” said Wiggins.

“GHOE really can’t be quantified. It’s a celebration of our school, its legacy, and its students,” said Hill.

— [email protected] and follow her on Twitter @YngBlkandFancy

• Sylvia Obell, Managing Editor