Oct.15, 1975: 1,071 Southern Miss students attend Jerry Jeff Walker concert at Bennett Auditorium. Walker performs two sets which last from 8 p.m. to early the next morning. Walker and his “Lost Gonzo Band” would return to Reed Green Coliseum on Feb. 27, 1980.

Nov. 9, 1976: Stephen Stills, of Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young, performs an acoustic concert in front of roughly 4,000 at Reed Green Coliseum.

April 28, 1977: Southern Miss alum Jimmy Buffett performs his latest hits in front of a packed Reed Green Coliseum. Buffett would return in 1980 for USM’s Homecoming, and in 2018.

April 25, 1980: Willie Nelson and Family perform before a full-capacity Reed Green Coliseum, setting an attendance record at 8,898. Nelson would return almost one year to the day in 1981.

Jan. 31, 1981: Country superstars Ronnie Milsap, Alabama, and Sylvia, pack out Reed Green Coliseum for a star-studded night of country music. Alabama would return two more times throughout the 1980s

Oct. 9, 1987: George Carlin, often hailed as the greatest comedian in history, entertains a crowd of 2,000 at Reed Green Coliseum with his often-controversial views.

Oct. 26, 1995: Tim McGraw fills Reed Green Coliseum during his “Spontaneous Combustion Tour.”

April 20, 2024: Country superstars Morgan Wallen and Bailey Zimmerman perform in front of 60,000 at Ole Miss’s Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.

Sept. 13, 2024: Country singer HARDY performs for a crowd of around 17,000 at Mississippi State’s Dudy Noble Field.

I understand this list was probably long and boring. But there is a meaning to this. Between 1954 and 1995, the University Activities Council at Southern Miss hosted around 75 concerts between Reed Green Coliseum and Bennett Auditorium. Artists ranged from small bands such as Louisiana-based Brandywine to superstars like James Brown, Waylon Jennings, and Joan Jett & The Blackhearts. I know the student reader today may not be familiar with many of these names, but for the Southern Miss student of the 1950s-1990s, these were all they had. So why aren’t many big-name singers coming to Southern Miss anymore?
Ole Miss and Mississippi State both hosted concerts of headlining country music stars with two crowds totaling nearly 80,000. Southern Miss has hosted its own band and Chapel Hart within the last year. Chapel Hart performed at Spirit Park at a Saturday football game, which is a shame because 75% of the Spirit Park attendees are generally focused on the Greek Life tailgates or their own tailgates. You even see that with the bands which have come for the Southeastern Louisiana, South Florida, and Louisiana games.
I will give this to Spirit Park: when Chapel Hart performed, there was a pretty well-sized crowd there to watch the Mississippi-based female country group. But if we cannot dedicate our football, baseball, or basketball stadiums to concerts anymore, why can the schools up north?
Hattiesburg has two airports that service major hubs in New Orleans, Birmingham, Memphis, Dallas and Houston. The Hub City is also not far from major interstates, making short road travel.
Hattiesburg to Jackson via U.S. Highway 49: 89 Miles, 1 Hour & 30 Minutes
Hattiesburg to New Orleans via Interstate 59: 112 Miles, 1 Hour & 38 Minutes
Hattiesburg to Mobile via U.S. Highway 98: 98 Miles, 1 Hour & 33 Minutes
Hattiesburg to Gulfport via U.S. Highway 49: 68 Miles, 1 Hour
Southern Miss also boasts an almost 9,000-seat basketball stadium, a 5,000-seat baseball stadium, and a 36,000-seat football stadium. We also have a dance theater and a 1,000-seat auditorium.
I know Hattiesburg isn’t the boomtown these other hubs are, but what do we not bring that Oxford and Starkville do? While they are closer to Memphis, that is about it. Oxford and Starkville are not on your way to any major city or hub like Hattiesburg is. I don’t mean to play “little brother,”, but why can we not host big events for students and Hattiesburg like this?
The Southern Miss Activities Council has done a great job with the Drive-In Theater and other events this year. If we’ve had the power to bring big acts in the past, and to put them on a path to other performance places, like the Mississippi Coliseum, the Gulf Coast casinos, and the Caesars Superdome, why hasn’t that happened?
We don’t have to reach out to Willie Nelson or Alabama for a return tour. I suggest we start out small with other artists like Chapel Hart and devote a good venue to them. Then we can move to bigger artists. If comedians and singers are doing a show in Shreveport, Louisiana, and then want to go to Mobile, Alabama, guess what city sits on a major bus, road, air, and train hub…Hattiesburg.
Just something to think about.