HOWDY at the Hurd Student Event Sept. 8 Celebrates Dedication of Mark and Paula Hurd Welcome Center
Students-only celebration, in partnership between Pi Beta Phi and Baylor University, features free street festival, concert by country music star Bailey Zimmerman and more
Contact: Lori Fogleman, Baylor University Media & Public Relations, 254-709-5959
Follow us on Twitter: @BaylorUMedia
WACO, Texas (Aug. 21, 2023) – Baylor University will celebrate the dedication of the Mark and Paula Hurd Welcome Center – the University’s spectacular new “front door” to campus – with HOWDY at the Hurd, presented by Pi Beta Phi and Baylor University, a free students-only event at 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 8, on the south lawn of the Hurd Center.
HOWDY at the Hurd will feature free food trucks, line dancing, a Ferris wheel and more, concluding with a free concert by country music star Bailey Zimmerman and a spectacular drone show over campus.
“We could not be more excited to combine the longstanding student tradition of HOWDY with the grand opening celebration of the Mark and Paula Hurd Welcome Center. For students, this will be one of those events they will remember well into their future as Baylor alumni,” said Jason Cook, vice president for marketing and communications and chief marketing officer. “Bailey Zimmerman is one of the hottest stars in country music, and I know he will bring a lot of energy with his No. 1 hits as we cap a daylong celebration of the Hurd Center opening.”
STUDENT TICKETS NOW AVAILABLE
Entrance to the students-only concert requires a complimentary ticket. Tickets are available online now through the Baylor Student Ticket Account system, the same account where current students access digital tickets to athletic events and other ticketed performances.
HOWDY T-SHIRTS
Howdy T-shirt sales in conjunction with Pi Phi will begin Saturday, Sept. 2, in the Bill Daniel Student Center (SUB) and the Paul L. Foster Campus for Business and Innovation. T-shirt sales benefit Pi Phi’s philanthropy, the childhood literacy program Read > Lead > Achieve through the literacy funds at the Pi Beta Phi Foundation.
HOWDY AT THE HURD SCHEDULE
With Dutton Avenue closed to traffic on Sept. 8, HOWDY at the Hurd will begin at 7 p.m. with a street festival on Dutton Avenue with free food trucks and other activities.
Gates to the concert area will open at 8 p.m. (NOTE: The University’s Clear Bag Policy will be in effect. In addition, no food or drinks will be allowed in the concert area, and no re-entry is permitted.)
Line dancing lessons and festivities will begin in the concert area at 8:30 p.m.
BAILEY ZIMMERMAN CONCERT
At 9:30 p.m., Bailey Zimmerman will take the stage for a students-only concert as he performs hits from his full-length debut LP, “Religiously. The Album.” (Warner Music Nashville/Elektra). Alongside current single and title track “Religiously,” Zimmerman’s album features his multi-Platinum, debut No. 1 single, “Fall In Love,” alongside his most recent multi-Platinum hit, “Rock And A Hard Place,” which spent a six consecutive weeks at the top of Billboard’s Country Airplay Chart. Both tracks were also included on his record-shattering debut EP, “Leave The Light On,” which made history upon release as the biggest streaming country debut of all time and the most-streamed all-genre debut of the year.
Quickly closing in on 2 billion streams and counting, Zimmerman closed out 2022 as the year’s only country artist to receive two Platinum certifications from the RIAA and was named Billboard’s No. 2 Top New Country Artist and No. 4 Top New Artist Overall.
The 2023 ACM Awards New Male Artist of the Year nominee and CMT Music Awards multi-nominee has ignited television audiences with show-stopping performances on Good Morning America, Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve, Jimmy Kimmel LIVE! and the 58th Academy of Country Music Awards, and earned critical applause from Forbes, Rolling Stone, The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Billboard and many more. He’s out on the road now with Morgan Wallen.
ABOUT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY
Baylor University is a private Christian University and a nationally ranked Research 1 institution. The University provides a vibrant campus community for more than 20,000 students by blending interdisciplinary research with an international reputation for educational excellence and a faculty commitment to teaching and scholarship. Chartered in 1845 by the Republic of Texas through the efforts of Baptist pioneers, Baylor is the oldest continually operating University in Texas. Located in Waco, Baylor welcomes students from all 50 states and more than 100 countries to study a broad range of degrees among its 12 nationally recognized academic divisions.