Honda Battle of the Bands brings best college bands, dancers to Dome

Participating bands this year were the Triple Threat Marching Band from Edward Waters College, the Marching Rams of Albany State University, the Aristocrat of Bands from Tennessee State University, the The Sounds of Dyn-O-Mite from Alcorn State University,  the Sonic Boom of the South from Jackson State University, The Red Sea of Sound from Winston-Salem State University, the Marching Wildcats of Bethune-Cookman University and the Blue and Gold Marching Machine from North Carolina A&T University.

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The theme of this year's event was house party. As part of that, there was a dance-off between participating Historically Black College and Universities' dance teams, whose songs were selected by fans via social media. Here's a sample.

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And the dancing carried into the stands as there were two dance competitions featuring fans. One featured individuals, the other featured seven couples dancing in a “Soul Train” line-style contest.

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The Honda Battle of the Bands was created in 2002 to celebrate, support and recognize the excellence of black college marching bands and the unique academic experience of historically black colleges and universities. Honda annually awards more than $205,000 in grants to participating marching bands.

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Grammy-winning singer Brandy was a special guest performer, performing for the crowd after the bands had all played.