The Mitchell Center at the University of South Alabama is set to host a major stop on the Crocs Campus Tour, a national concert series that will bring OneRepublic and Fabolous to Mobile, along with a homegrown act sharing the stage: Mobile’s own The Ugli Stick.
The Ugli Stick earned its place on the bill the hard way, by winning the Crocs Campus Tour Battle of the Bands competition, a nationwide contest that pitted the group against other acts vying for a coveted opening slot on the tour. The band’s win came courtesy of a strong showing of local support and organizing help from manager Kathy Kemp, whose backing helped push the band’s fan turnout past the competition.
For frontman Eric Erdman, known to fans as “The Birdman,” the booking carries personal significance beyond just a good gig. Erdman is a University of South Alabama alumnus, and playing the Mitchell Center will mark the first time he takes the stage in the same arena where he once sat in the crowd.
“Playing the Mitchell Center will be special for me because I am a University of South Alabama Alumnus and this will be the first time I’ve had the opportunity to play there,” Erdman said. “It will be somewhat of a homecoming for me in that sense. I have watched many shows and events in that building, so I’m sure being on that stage for the first time will be surreal. And I’m going to love it. And lastly, I’m glad we won because we get to play with One Republic. And that means we can ask them if they can get us a discount on Timbaland producing the next Ugli Stick album.”
The Crocs Campus Tour has built a reputation for pairing major national acts with rising college-market talent, giving campus audiences a lineup that blends familiar radio names with regional bands trying to break through. For The Ugli Stick, sharing a stage with OneRepublic and Fabolous offers a rare shot at exposure well beyond Mobile’s local club circuit, in front of the kind of crowd a university arena can draw.
The show underscores the role the Mitchell Center plays as one of the region’s largest indoor venues, capable of hosting touring acts that smaller clubs simply cannot accommodate, and gives South Alabama students and area music fans a chance to see a local band earn a spot on a national stage.