Written by Lauren Pierce. Photos by Lauren Rease.
Thousands of UCF students gathered outside of the CFE Area on Thursday evening to partake in a once in a lifetime opportunity; UCF’s very own PINK Party hosted by Victoria’s Secret PINK.
Back in April UCF students, alumni, and other fans beat out other schools in a social media contest in order to win this party, which included a concert to be hosted by VSPINK models Sara Sampaio and Elsa Hosk. Victoria’s Secret announced that the performers of the concert night would be none other than The White Panda and Flo Rida.
Before the concert began, we got a chance to do a quick interview of the two VSPINK models about their experience here at UCF.
How excite
d are you guys to be here at UCF and how are you enjoying the campus?
Sara: We are both super excited to be here and we are dying to see the concert! We’re having so much fun already.
Elsa: Yeah we are both happy to be here! This school is so awesome and full of energy too, it’s great.
What would you guys say is your favorite VSPINK product?
Sara: Right now I am obsessed with the latest day bras because they’re so comfy and give you cleavage. The lacey ones are girly and perfect for any wear.
Elsa: The lace bandeaus are great as well and I love the sweaters too! I should just have a full closet full of their stuff.
How long have you two been modeling?
Sara: I’ve been modeling since I was 14 but I only started professionally about 3-4 years ago.
Elsa: I started when I was 16 and like Sara, I just started professionally around 4 years ago. I love it!
How excited are you guys for Flo Rida and The White Panda?
Sara: We didn’t really know who The White Panda are but we listened to them a few days ago and we liked what we heard but we are super excited for Flo Rida. He always has such awesome hits and we love to dance!
Elsa: Yeah we heard The White Panda perform a mash up of Radioactive by Imagine Dragons The Funeral by Band of Horses and we loved the beat. Flo Rida will be great though. We can’t wait!
Were you guys expecting this huge turnout?
Sara: Well when we heard we were going to one of the biggest schools in the US we knew we were in for a huge party. We really want to be here and we’re happy that so many people came to party with us.
Elsa: UCF is awesome! We love you guys and we can’t wait for the PINK party to start.
After interviewing Sara and Elsa, we took a look around at the festivities that were already going on outside before the concert began. Thousands of students had already lined up outside of the area in the hot Florida weather two hours before showtime in order to ensure that they received the perfect seats. While outside, students were able to partake in a PINK bounce house, Silent Disco, and a photo booth while they waited for the doors to open.
Once they finally let all the students enter the area, there were people passing out PINK slap bracelets, glow in the dark necklaces, and light up foam sticks to further pump up the party.
The show began when DJ Irie stepped on stage to get the crowd excited for the show by playing music, inviting the VSPINK models to the stage, and throwing out freebies into the awaiting hands of the crowd.
I have to say that this was a surprisingly fantastic concert considering it was free and the UCF students had earned it, making the experience all that more exciting.
I had never heard of The White Panda before it was announced that they would be performing, so when the crowd immediately cheered and rose to their feet I knew that I was in for a treat. The White Panda, a duo formed by DJ Griffi and Procrast, have been around since 2009 dropping multiple hits after the next. Their performance was really had the crowd out of their seats.
The White Panda’s set list included mash ups of different genres of music such as Best of You by Foo Fighters, I Love It by Icona Pop, All Gold Everything by Trinidad James, and B****, Don’t Kill My Vibe by Kendrick Lamar.
Once The White Panda finished their set, DJ Irie came back on stage to give away more freebies, while Flo Rida was prepping backstage, and he even got the crowd going when he got all the students to do the wave.
Finally it was time for headliner, Flo Rida, to take the stage. The rapper, known for his numerous hit singles like “Low” and “Club Can’t Handle Me”, kicked off his performance with one of his #1 hit singles, “Right Round.” The energy from the crowd was incredible and unexpected to say the least. The whole area was ecstatic and it was a cool experience to watch the crowd sing along and wave their light up foam sticks to the beat of his songs. His set list also included Whistle, Wild Ones, I Cry, and Good Feeling.
Flo Rida even had other artists perform in between his breaks like Marco, Flo Rida’s artist and touring lead guitarist, who performed one of his singles. Gorilla Zoe also played one of his hits. What really blew my mind was the voice of Natalie La Rose who performed a couple duos with Flo Rida and even performed a brand new song called “Rollercoaster.” La Rose is an upcoming new artist and I expect she will make a name for herself.
Towards the end of the concert Flo Rida handed out roses to a few lucky ladies standing in the floor section and even gave out his necklace to one extremely lucky gal. Fortunately, Flo Rida didn’t forget about his other fans who were further away from the stage. He had one of his buddies let him sit on his shoulders and they walked off stage and into the crowd. The crowd went wild when he walked all over the stage in order to party with the rest of the students who weren’t able to be as close to the stage as the other students on the floor.
Overall The White Panda and Flo Rida’s performance was an incredible experience and an awesome way to kick off the new school year for UCF. Our students worked hard to win this PINK party and we definitely earned it for our school. A special thanks goes out to Victoria Secret PINK for giving UCF a chance for this amazing opportunity. GO Knights!
