'Ballad queen' leading GSU into Battle of the Bands
Bonnie BoldenNikole Roebuck remembers what it was like performing in the Bayou Classic Battle of the Bands in 1995, when she was a freshman in Grambling State University Tiger Marching Band.
It's dark in the tunnel, then the spotlight is on you, and the crowd goes wild.
This year, Roebuck is leading the charge.
In May, she was named the first woman director of bands in its 93-year history.
Friday, she'll face off against Southern University Marching Band, led by Kedric D. Taylor. The Southern alum has worked with the Human Jukebox since 2014.
The event Friday night will start with the Greek Show, followed by the Battle for the Bands.
The intensity starts with the march in. This year, Grambling State is the home team and will come out last. The bands will take their seats on risers and perform one or two song sets back and forth along with Grambling State's Orchesis dance company and Southern's Dancing Dolls.
Preparation started a few weeks ago. The Tigers kept the best parts of the season, then added a lot of new content and tested formations on the field to see what works.
"It really boils down to song selection, how the crowd reacts to what you play. Even when I was a student... they never declared a winner. Southern would say 'We won.' Grambling would say 'Oh, our band won.' So they never declare a winner, but we go off crowd participation," she said with a laugh.
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Roebuck was tight-lipped about the pieces they're working on.
"Each band director has their own style that they love. I have one band director, they like the power tunes. The kids call me a ballad queen, so I like the slow, laid-back — you know, still a little power in the song. That's my element. That's my sprinkle," she said.
Roebuck will be the first female director of bands in the event's history. Music leadership among Historically Black Colleges and Universities and the Southwestern Athletic Conference is very much a man's world.
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She's the third woman band director in the history of HBCUs, joining Tomisha Brock of Clark Atlanta University and Kerry Anne Simon of Mississippi Valley State University, who were appointed in 2017 and on May 16, 2019, respectively.
She's only the second woman band director in the history of the SWAC. Simon was the first.
Roebuck, a Minden native, has taught at Grambling State for the last 12 years of her 18-year career. She's also served as an assistant band director. She graduated from GSU in 2001 and earned her Master of Music from the University of Louisiana-Monroe in 2005 and her Doctor of Philosophy in Music Education from the University of Memphis in 2009.
"I'm very excited. Very, very, very excited about my first battle of the bands. With that, even as an assistant, you always have the nerve factor, but as a director of bands, it kind of intensifies," she said. "But, I'm excited and nervous all at the same time."
She said the whole element of the Bayou Classic is excitement within itself, and the kids always give a stellar performance.
"This is our grand finale of the season," she said of the battle and the halftime show on Saturday. "It's one of our biggest recruitment tools. Every show we want the best, but especially with Bayou Classic because this is how we end the season."
Information from a Grambling State University news release contributed to this report.
May:GSU names first woman to lead bands, music department
More:Dr. Nikole Roebuck stands on the shoulders of giants, charts her own path
Want to go?
- What: Bayou Classic Battle of the Bands and Greek Show
- When: 7 p.m. Friday
- Where: Mercedez-Benz Superdome, New Orleans
- Cost: $20 admission