Written by Bailey Ridenour
Men’s social club Titans hosted its 19th annual Toga concert function Saturday, March 18, at the Judsonia Box Factory in Judsonia, Arkansas.
The concert is one of Harding’s longest standing club concerts to date, starting back in 2004.
“I’m looking forward to the Titans’ guys showing their talents,” senior Braden Bass, Titans’ president, said before the concert. “They have been practicing for months on end.”
Known as the Steelbirds, the Titans band formed in the winter of 2021. The group consists of about 10 members but also contains members that live in areas such as Northwest Arkansas and Louisiana, which makes their practice schedule more difficult. The group had been working on their set for Toga 2023 since December 2022, practicing primarily on the weekends and doing their best to capitalize on any other time they could meet.
“Personally, I was excited to finally have the opportunity to show off the band’s skill and hard work,” senior Grant Wade, a member of the Steelbirds, said. “It’s easy to have fun when your bandmates are all best friends, and we hope to do this music thing — Lord willing — for a long time together. I was excited by the opportunity to prove to someone other than ourselves that we’ve got what it takes. Hopefully, now more people can agree on that.”
The Steelbird’s setlist contained a wide variety of genres including rock, country, R&B and rap covers. Some of the songs they performed were “Back in Black” by AC/DC, “Careless Whisper” by George Michael and “Losin’ Control” by Russ. The band also surprised one of its members, senior Nash Buckner, by singing happy birthday to him in front of the crowd.
“Titans singing happy birthday to me meant more than they know,” Buckner said. “My brothers in that club mean the world to me. For the Steelbirds to include that during a concert that has been in planning for several months was very thoughtful and brought a smile to my face. Much love to my brothers in Titans.”
Titans anticipated around 315 people to attend the concert based on tickets, which were sold for $10, in the Hammon Student Center and the number of club members who were going to the function with dates.
“My favorite part was seeing so many people from all different clubs and ages coming together,” senior Bailey King said. “Since this is the main way Titans raise funds for the year, it means a lot for them to have so many people come and support. … You could tell they had spent a lot of time rehearsing, and I think it paid off.”
