Swedish pop band Icona Pop will kick off the 11th annual Eaglepalooza in downtown Hattiesburg Saturday at 7 p.m. after the USM football game. Sponsored by Simtex and hosted by Southern Miss Activities Council (SMAC), SGA and Gulf South Productions, special guest Five Knives and Lowell will also perform on the Fall 2014 Campus Consciousness Tour.

Jaycee Padgett, Eaglepalooza assistant director, said this tour is more than just bandmates entertaining a crowd for a few hours.

According to the mxdwn music website, the tour is a music tour as well as an environmental campaign. REVERB, an environmental non profit, spearheaded the tour, and its goal is to inspire musicians and their fans to take action to help save the environment and to also focus on acknowledging female student leaders on college campuses.

“(Also) they want to impact the Southern Miss community by encouraging students to register to vote, so they’ll be out and about during the concert and during tailgating before the football game interacting with students,” Padgett said.

Eaglepalooza Director Gavin Snyder said the event is slightly different than it was in 2013. He said usually Eaglepalooza takes place on a Friday night before a home football game.

“We switched it to Saturday in order to create a whole-day experience for our Southern Miss fan base and community,” Snyder said.

Another new feature includes transportation starting at 6 p.m. Saturday on USM’s campus. Pick-up will be every 30 minutes at Ray Guy Way by Century Park South and the Theatre and Dancing Building parking lot.

Snyder and Padgett agree the 2014 Eaglepalooza will be a success due to advanced planning and preparation since spring semester.

“I believe this year will be a success due to the incredible work of my team and the positive feedback from the Southern Miss and Hattiesburg community,” Snyder said.

For more information, visit the 2014 Eaglepalooza Facebook page.