By the time doors opened at 7 p.m., hundreds of students had been waiting outside ATEC for hours, forming a line that stretched far past the venue for Springapalooza headliner Grentperez.

“I was here at like 3 or 4,” Mary Tran, mechanical engineering freshman, said.

With over 150 million streams and opening for artists like Laufey and Rex Orange County, Grentperez’s appearance at UTD was more than a little surprising to many students.

Vania Rios, computer engineering freshman, said that she had been a fan of Grentperez for years and described her reaction when she found out he was performing.

“I was really shocked that we had him,” Rios said. “We don’t really have that much pull, unlike UT.”

As lines grew, organizers feared frustration would follow, but instead of moans and groans, laughter echoed throughout the line. Students huddled together, playing games and catching up. Even before the event started, it provided many students with much-needed relief during finals season.

As soon as Grentperez stepped on stage, cheers erupted. He sang fan-favorite songs like Clementine and Silver Lining. Students sang along as some jumped while others swayed with their phone flashlights raised. 

Between songs, he directly engaged with the audience. He chanted, he jumped and he even sang “Happy Birthday” to one of the students. 

As the set neared the end, he surprised the audience by performing two unreleased, never-before-heard songs, “Boy That’s Loving You” and “After All.”

He closed the night with the song that launched his career, Cherry Wine, a nostalgic finish that left students singing along, forming tears and holding onto each other as the final notes faded.

“I never really listened to him before, but I cried,” Nico Torres, marketing graduate student and SUAAB events chair, said. “I had a really tough semester, and I needed that.”

The event served a deeper purpose on a campus that is frequently described as socially dead.

“I’ve actually had trouble in the past feeling like the campus is lively, or that there’s culture around UTD, but I think just having these kinds of events brings everyone together. It makes me really proud to be here on this campus,” Tran said.

Nico Torres, along with other SUAAB organizers, said creating these moments was the goal of

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Kezia Sunil

Students gather and chat inside before the concert begins. Students socialize before the concert starts.

Springapalooza. With one of the largest turnouts all semester, they said the response showed a clear demand for more large-scale events — like this one and promised to exceed expectations for upcoming events. 

“As an RA, I struggle with telling my residents what events are going on. But I finally was able to tell them about this event. This is a really big one that’s very inclusive,” said Mayowa Akinyede, a computer science sophomore. 

After the concert, Akinyede said he had a great time and hopes to attend events like this in the future, as well as encourage his residents to do the same.