Millions will soon line the streets of New York City, and tens of millions will turn their televisions on to tune in to the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, featuring high-flying balloons, creative floats, and a myriad of entertainment performances. Among those who will be on display during the festivities will be a university band from a small Mississippi town.
Alcorn State University announced in August 2024 that its marching band will be heading to the Big Apple to perform in the annual parade. The band, known as the Sounds-O-Dynamite, is one of 11 marching bands slated to bring good vibes to the live and TV crowd.
Each year, the Macy’s Parade Band Committee looks for bands with stage presence, along with musical and marching abilities, to captivate millions of live spectators and viewers nationwide. Alcorn State’s Sounds of Dyn-O-Mite was selected from more than 100 applicants to march in the 99th edition of the annual holiday spectacle.
The application process leading to selection, according band director Dr. Everson Martin, was lengthy. But Martin was confident that if given the chance to boast about university and all it offers, he would be able to sell the committee on Alcorn State – and that’s precisely what he did.
“We got past that first stage, and I had a call with them, and I just sold them on the story of Alcorn. I sold them on my story,” Martin said on Good Things with Rebecca Turner. “I got a call back a month later and they said, ‘Dr. Martin, are you sitting down? Alcorn State University’s band has been selected to be in the Macy’s parade.'”
Not long after that phone call, parents and family members of band members were called to gather at the university’s campus in Lorman for a “big reveal.” That’s when all parties were told that the Sounds-O-Dynamite was New York City-bound.
“When they finally broke the news and said that we were going to Macy’s, I really couldn’t believe it because I always enjoyed watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade on Thanksgiving with my great grandma. Just to kind of step back and feel like I’m actually going to be on that screen is very exciting, especially to finally be seen because we’re Alcorn, finally seen as ‘the band,’ like that’s the band to be in,” piccolo section leader Austin Swan said.
With primary fundraising goals being reached, Alcorn State’s marching band is gearing up to be on Thanksgiving’s biggest stage in just over one week. Martin, assuring that his group will bring a flavor of Mississippi, teased one song that the band will be playing – “Cherokee,” the university’s fight song.
“We’re a small HBCU in rural, southwest Mississippi. Most of my students have never been out of the state of Mississippi. For most of my students, this would be a once-in-a-lifetime type of opportunity,” Martin said. “This is a chance for me to look good, the university to look good, and the state of Mississippi to look good. At the same time, I’m helping kids with a once-in-a-lifetime experience.”
The Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade will begin at 7:30 a.m. CT and will air nationally on NBC. Martin estimates that the Sounds-O-Dynamite will be somewhere around the middle of the performers. Other notable musicians taking stages across the parade route include Busta Rhymes, Kool and the Gang, Colbie Callait, and Foreigner, among other stars. A full entertainment lineup can be found here.