Pitbull, Jonas Brothers highlight free (but sold-out) concerts before college football title game – Orange County Register

College football and music fans are in for a fun-filled weekend.

The College Football Playoff National Championship has come to Inglewood with free live concerts and other attractions for fans when the TSU Horned Frogs take on the Georgia Bulldogs at the posh SoFi Stadium on Monday, January 9th.

“From the concerts to the fan events, there’s something for everyone — families, football fans and non-football fans,” said Ryan Allenhall, senior director of public events and sponsorships at the College Football Playoff on Thursday, January 5. “It’s just a way to bring everyone around college football together.”

The Horned Frogs have a chance to win their first national championship since quarterback Davey O’Brien and the 1938 squad, but will face last year’s champion Georgia and quarterback Stetson Bennett. Both teams had to win epic high-scoring matches to secure their place in the finals.

Before the game begins at the Palace on Prairie, thousands of fans will make their way to Banc of California Stadium in Los Angeles to catch AT&T Playoff Playlist Live! – a free music event featuring well-known and up-and-coming artists.

On Saturday, January 7th, fans will watch as multi-platinum global artists Jonas Brothers and LA-based singer-songwriter Em Beihold take the stage. The music continues on Sunday, January 8th with international star and Grammy Award winner Pitbull and 2023 Grammy nominee GAYLE.

Victoria Sumrall, senior producer at Solomon Group, which produces the live events, said she looks forward to the energy fans bring to the concerts, national championship games and other fan events.

“This is a game everyone is looking forward to and we love creating a fun environment for (fans) to celebrate and communicate before the actual game event on Monday,” she said.

The weekend concerts, Sumrall said, will be bigger and better than any previous championship weekends have seen.

Gates for AT&T Playoff Playlist Live! opens at 6:00 p.m. each day for those who have pre-registered online for event tickets. Capacity for the venue is 22,000 people, but tickets for the two-day event sold out within 24 hours of the announcement, so there will be a full house on both nights, Sumrall said.

Jamie Kerr, director of sponsorships and experiential marketing at AT&T, said he’s excited for fans not only to experience free live music, but also to witness new technologies.

AT&T will share its new AT&T 5G Concert Lens — an interactive livestream experience — with fans at home and at the concerts. According to the Banc of California Stadium website, the feature will broadcast multiple camera angles to allow fans to choose the vantage point from which to watch.

The concerts will also stream on the ESPN app.

“Music fans and sports fans are making the game and you want to be able to bring those people together with a common ground,” Kerr said, leading to a weekend of events for fans.