The Special Events Committee (SEC) partnered with the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) to bring back the Lip Sync Battle on Tuesday, April 18 from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. The battle featured both student groups and athletic teams. 

The lip sync battle was a live event that students could register to attend on The Hub. Eight teams, made up of seven athletic teams and one student organization faced off in a musical competition, each group selected a song and practiced a routine ahead of the battle. Teams could perform anywhere between 30 seconds to two minutes of the song they chose. The event featured a guest DJ from Double Trouble Entertainment. 

The women’s soccer team, women’s lacrosse team, men’s wrestling team, swim and dive team, women’s volleyball team and men’s hockey team all represented the athletic department with their participation in the battle. The Catholic Campus Ministry also participated in the event and won the battle. 

Last year’s event was entertaining and fun because of the performances that groups put on, Special Events Coordinator Ali Deutsch said. 

“This event is definitely uplifting and an exciting atmosphere,” Deutsch said. “It’s really nice to watch groups just get on the stage, be creative and have fun.” 

The lip sync battle has been held by SAAC in the past, however, this is the second year that the event has been put on in collaboration with the SEC. By partnering with the SEC, the competition was opened up to more than just athletic teams. 

The event helps to bring together many different groups on campus, Deutsch said. 

“It helps to integrate our athletic teams and student groups with the rest of NMU,” Deutsch said. “This is also just a very fun event to view, so I think that it adds an element of fun to the campus, especially with exams coming up.” 

In order to organize and set up the event, SAAC and SEC had a number of in-person meetings to figure out and delegate various tasks that had to do with the event. SEC reached out to athletic teams and student groups to get their songs and performances in order to give them time to practice. SEC members passed around prizes with their prize wheel throughout the event. Scripts were written ahead of time for the MCs who would be running the show. 

Athletic teams and student organizations were able to register their teams to compete on Monday, March 20. Details such as prizes, the room that the event would be held in, audio-visual handlers and promotion were also planned for within the meetings. 

New to this year’s Lip Sync Battle was a panel of judges made up of faculty members. The judges scored the performances and decided the winners. Judges were reached out to weeks prior to the event in order to confirm their place.

The Lip Sync Battle brings people together and grows connection across the community, SEC member Izzy Brusilow said. 

“It’s a goofy and lighthearted competition,” Brusilow said. “It’s something that everyone can enjoy and the nature of the lip sync battle where you can pick any song and have creative freedom [that allows you] to have fun with it.”