By Olivia Turner | Arts & Life Editor
Ty Myers, a rising sensation in the modern country music genre, will headline this year’s Howdy at the Hurd. Pi Beta Phi will put on this student-only celebration will happen Sept. 19 at 7:00 p.m.
Howdy will take place outside the Mark and Paula Hurd Welcome Center, like in 2023. The event will feature several familiar attractions from previous years, including line dancing, food trucks and live music, as well as some new elements, like a drone show.
With Pi Beta Phi’s announcement of Myers’s performance on Aug. 1, anticipation for the event has grown among students, especially Oak Hills, Calif., senior Jaclyn Ebeling.
“I will be first in line,” Ebeling said, mentioning that she was also first in line for Bailey Zimmerman’s show in 2023. “Almost every [Ty Myers] concert I’ve been to, I’ve been first in line … if anyone beats me to the concert, I’d be surprised.”
Ebeling said she has been a Ty Myers fan for two years, not long after the singer-songwriter released “Tie That Binds,” his debut single. Since then, she has been to eight of his shows, but after September, she’ll be up to 11. Stephenville, Fort Worth, Greenville, Salado and Waco (twice) are just a few of the show locations she attended to see Myers, her now favorite artist.
“He’s just very authentic and he doesn’t sound like anybody else,” Ebeling said. “His songs are inspired by other people, but they don’t sound like anybody else’s that are out there.”
According to Ebeling, her fan experience sets her apart from the typical Ty Myers-lover. She said she met her best friend at a Ty Myers concert and has even met the singer-songwriter himself, and even his sister.
“Every time I go to a concert, she’s like, ‘Oh my gosh, hi, Jaclyn!’” she said.
Boise, Idaho, junior Joseph Simeri, another student fan of Myers, said he first heard about the singer-songwriter through his sisters and attended a show in Stevenville, the same one Ebeling attended.
“A lot of [Myers’s songs] are happy and good, easy listening music,” Simeri said. “I think he definitely is a good Texas country artist, and it’s nice that Baylor is going to put on this event, especially for freshmen [who] have never really experienced a lot of that Texas culture before.”
Ebeling echoed similar sentiments.
“I think he’s a great choice for Howdy,” Ebeling said. “I think he’s the best choice Baylor has ever had. I think there wouldn’t have been a better artist in my unbiased opinion.”
Ebeling said she is most looking forward to hearing “Firefly,” due to the trend of audiences shining and waving their phone flashlights, as well as “Drinkin’ Alone,” since the song tends to bring audiences together lyrically.
“That’s the song that most people know, so it’s like, everyone just screaming their heads off,” Ebeling said.
As in years past, Howdy will fund Pi Beta Phi’s Read>Lead>Achieve philanthropy, an initiative that supports children’s literacy. The national foundation has raised $1 million as of July.
“It’s so special to be able to work with Baylor to create such a unique event that not only welcomes our students back to Texas and campus but also raises funds for a higher cause,” Pi Beta Phi Howdy chair and Salem, Ore., senior Kiera White said. “We are so grateful to Baylor and our partners for helping make this year’s Howdy an unforgettable experience for students with music, games, food and the goal of changing the lives of children through literacy and the love of reading. We can’t wait to see all y’all out at Howdy on Sept. 19!”