Flo Milli and Emblem3 will headline and open for FEST on Friday, May 26.

Students gathered for the announcement at noon on May 4 in the Lincoln Park Student Center Atrium. DAB members had students build a puzzle to form a picture of the FEST headliner and opener for the announcement. 

Compared to last year, where the students gathered in Student Center Room 120AB and were revealed on a screen, many students said the puzzle defeated the anticipation aspect of the FEST headliner reveal that excited students last year. 

Despite the lack of anticipation, many students were excited to see Flo Milli would be the headliner for this year. 

Junior Annabelle Mique said that even though FEST is a highly anticipated event each year,, students often feel let down by the university’s choice in artists. Mique said this is because they are often artists students are not familiar with or they’re not even listed on the preference poll that is sent out to students during fall quarter.

Junior Sam Kudra said he is undecided on how he feels about the artists for this year. 

“I’m happy for people who have been following and supporting these artists for a long time, and now they get to see them live,” Kudra said. “On the other hand, I’ve never heard of Emblem3 and have really only heard Flo Milli on TikTok, so I’m not that connected to the headliners.” 

Mique said she wants FEST to have more artists that give students the sense of nostalgia but also would like them to be well known, which is why she wanted Big Time Rush to play. 

“We need more nostalgic artists on the line up instead of [people] that happen to be around once FEST comes up,” Mique said. “I know it must be difficult to find these artists, but at this point, I’d rather have student bands headline the entire thing. That money spent on bringing these artists in could be used elsewhere or at least to support student musicians.”

Kudra said while it’s exciting to see who is going to be playing at FEST, he doesn’t actually go for whoever is playing.

“The headliners were never really a huge reason for me wanting to go to FEST in past years,” Kudra said. “I usually go for the people I’ll be there with and the activities happening in the Quad and Student Center.”

Kudra said that in the future, he would like to see a more streamlined voting process that reflects the majority of the student body. 

“In all honesty, I’ve only seen people excited about the headliners in the comment section of the announcing post,” Kudra said. “Every other DePaul student I’ve talked to either doesn’t know who the headliners are, or voted for someone else. It makes me question the process a little bit.”

Katie Holloway, DAB member and junior, said they chose the FEST headliners to the best of their ability in accordance with what the students want.

“One of the biggest challenges for the selection process is who can we get that is not too expensive and who is willing to come to a college campus,” Holloway said. “I would also say that it’s hard to please everyone but in the end we go based [on] the artist’s availability.”

Kudra said regardless of who is playing FEST, he will continue to attend because of the experience. 

“FEST is a great way to ease pre-exam week tension and anxiety,” Kudra said. “Having this momentous occasion really drives home the importance of enjoying life with the people you care about without the worry of education and career over your shoulder.”

For students who want to attend FEST, they can buy their tickets for $10 on DeHUB. Students are also allowed to bring one non-DePaul guest. Their ticket is $20 on DeHUB and they must provide a government-issued ID.