A television audience of 45 million will tune in to the 2019 130th Rose Parade on New Year’s Day where, as presenting sponsor, the Honda float is the first and will showcase the theme, “Celebration of Dreams.” Honda, which is celebrating its 60th anniversary, will have a 25-foot float shaped like a birthday cake, featuring 60 members of HBCU marching bands esenting the 60-year milestone.
Atop the float will be ten students from the Marching Wildcats Drumline: Jose Perez Agosto, Elliot Clarke, Elijah Dyous, Aaron Heron, Joseph Mathis, Pedro Orey, Deonte Rowe, Terrence Spence, Jr., Tevin Stevens, Daniel Thomas and Jerry Williams.
Students participated in the Honda Battle of the Bands earlier this year, an annual showcase of HBCU marching bands created by Honda as part of its ongoing partnership with HBCUs that demonstrate its commitment to the HBCU community and music education.
This is a once-in-a lifetime opportunity for the students who will leave for Pasadena, California, on Saturday, December 29, 2018, and return Wednesday, January 2, 2019.
“At HBCUs, halftime band performances are an essential part of the football game experience. In some instances, they are a bigger draw than the games,” according to the ESPN/The Undefeated HBCU Band Rankings website, which ranks B-CU number one in Division 1. “While fans enjoy the excitement of halftime performances, little do they know about the time, preparation, drilling and sacrifice that go into every performance.”
Earlier this year, the Marching Wildcats Band were introduced to a broader audience, gaining even wider media exposure, when they were featured in an original Netflix documentary, “Marching Orders.”
