Juice Jam 2025
Photo By Maddie Ritter
By Boone Goss
Amid campus-wide budget cuts casting a cloud over all student orgs, Juice Jam marked the first significant test of how the University Union would adapt. On Saturday the 20th, the sun, literally and figuratively, came out to shine over the relatively toned-down concert and the hundreds of students who turned out to watch Jordan Ward and Ashe. Despite Quavo in the dome being a tough act to follow for the smaller show on the quad, students and organizers were resolutely pleased with the final product. “It doesn’t look like our Juice Jams from past years,” said UU co-PR director Charlotte Wall, “but it’s just as much of a commitment to all of us and just as much hard work went into it.”
Co-PR director Lachlan Sartson added, “I think in terms of student experience, it’s almost better because it’s on the quad and it’s free for students.” There was never any hiding that UU was not working on the same scale as previous. Instead of food trucks, there were carnival snacks; instead of a large sound stage with lights and effects, there was a simple stage in front of Carnegie; instead of the rocking dome, there was the picturesque quad. Students sat on blankets with their friends; it had the vibes of a beautiful show in the park, and newcomers seemed to love it. Freshman Aurora Arias said, “I think it’s a great venue, it’s very accessible.”Freshman Ryan Lawrence added, “It feels perfect because everybody’s here. It’s such a fun vibe, especially with the DJ here.” But the event was still a far cry from the scale of Juice Jam’s past, and for some returners, it was hard to ignore. Junior, Evie Salvaggio, who was at last year’s concert, compared the two, “I think the energy was a lot better [last year] because it felt more like a concert rather than just like an outdoor get-together kind of thing.”
A security guard with over 40 years of experience working concerts on campus, who asked Z89 not to print his name, put it more bluntly, “If I was a student, I wouldn’t be real happy with this outcome.” he continued, “But the kids are outside having fun. That’s all that matters.” The UU undertook an impossible task: put on a high-level pop concert on a shoestring budget. They pivoted and put on a fabulous student event on the quad to end the summer. They followed their mandate and navigated an impossible situation with the same hard work and dedication they have always shown.
