Story by Brooke Hill | News Editor, Video by Emma Whitaker | Broadcast Reporter
Pop singer Rebecca Black took the stage Friday night as part of Alpha Chi Omega’s Block Party, which closed their Domestic Violence Awareness week.
Following opening act No Coast out of Nashville, the crowd was anxious to hear Black perform.
Black opened with “Wasted Youth” off of her new EP, “RE / BL.”
She shortly switched over to what she called a “throwback” portion, singing hits like NSYNC’s “Bye Bye Bye” and “Hit Me Baby One More Time” by Britney Spears.
All the while, the crowd was screaming for her most famous song, “Friday.”
When she did finally sing it, it was not the version the crowd was expecting. It was a slowed-down, acoustic version of the upbeat pop song.
Once she finished, the crowd began to thin out. Black sang three more hits from her EP to close out the night.
“Her new songs were really good — they were hip, they were original. Her rendition of Friday was a little bit slower and different than what the crowd was expecting,” said Weatherford junior Emilie Herron.
The two acts were chosen to perform through personal connections through Alpha Chi Omega members from Tennessee and Los Angeles.
Alpha Chi Omega president and Anaheim, Calif. senior Lili Gonzalez went to middle school with Rebecca and they were all friends in middle school, according to San Jose, Calif. junior Aliison Lee. Gonzalez even makes an appearance in the Friday video.
“She was the one with the dolphin hand,” Lee said.
Alpha Chi Omega’s Block Party was put on to spread aware of what healthy relationships should look like. In addition to the live music, there were booths spread out across Burleson Quad where students could buy tickets to exchange for cotton candy and s’mores and food trucks like Pokey-O’s and Chick-Fil-A joined the party, too.
