Fayetteville State University’s Marching Bronco Xpress is sitting at No. 1 among Division II HBCU bands as it chases a national title at the Red Lobster ESPN Band of the Year competition in Atlanta, as first reported by ABC11.
This isn’t a one-year fluke. The band made the trip to Atlanta last year and came home as national finalists. Now the goal is the whole thing.
How the Bronco Xpress Got Here
The growth is the headline. The band had about 40 members in 2021. This season it’s at 140. Director of Bands Austin Chalmers, an E.E. Smith High School alum, credits support from the university administration, which has helped pay for new equipment, instruments and scholarships.
The Band of the Year format runs on film. Each month, bands submit performances, and a panel of judges scores them in five categories: marching drill and design, music, percussion, auxiliary and drum majors. FSU ranked second in the Division II rankings before climbing to No. 1, and the final top 10 will decide who represents the East Division at nationals.
For freshman trombonist A’Ayden Tyler Hunter, a Douglas Byrd High School product, it’s personal. His father marched for Fayetteville State too. “It feels like one big family in here,” he told ABC11.
The IAHHM Take
HBCU band culture is hip hop culture. The cadences, the drum lines, the way a band can flip a rap hit into a stadium moment: all of that runs straight through the Carolinas. Seeing a Fayetteville program go from 40 kids to 140 and the top of the national rankings is the kind of story that deserves way more shine than it gets.
It also says something about what happens when a school actually invests in its band. “This was a dream of mine,” Chalmers said. Now the city gets to dream with them.
Can the Bronco Xpress bring a national title back to the 910? We’re rooting for it. More from the city on our Fayetteville coverage.
Source: ABC11
