We Speak Events

The 16th Annual Honda Battle of the Bands Returns to Rock Atlanta

Published

7 years ago

December 28, 2017

Honda Battle of the Bands (HBOB) will make its highly-anticipated return to Atlanta on January 27, 2018, when eight marching bands from the nation’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) take the field to dazzle fans with their music, choreography and pageantry. The polls are now open for the public to vote for their favorite marching bands to perform in the 16th annual HBOB Invitational Showcase.

Beginning today, fans can visit http://www.hondabattleofthebands.com/the-bands and vote daily to help select the eight bands that will perform at the 2018 Invitational Showcase. Voting will close on Friday, October 20 at midnight Eastern.

“For more than 15 years, Honda Battle of the Bands has provided a stage for exceptional marching bands—a hallmark of HBCU culture,” said Stephan Morikawa, Vice President, Corporate Relations & Social Responsibility for Honda. “Honda is honored to celebrate these student musicians and their teamwork, and we look forward to their dynamic performances come January.”

This year’s theme, March On: Dream Together, highlights the distinctive culture of HBCUs—both on and off the field. It is a culture that impacts and inspires far beyond its community. In addition to music education, HBOB celebrates everything from the rich history and traditions of HBCUs to the life-long connections that fuel future leaders.

In the last two years, the HBOB Invitational Showcase has attracted a combined audience of nearly 120,000 fans via the live show and online livestream. Tickets for the anticipated event start at $10 and will be available for purchase on October 16 at HondaBattleoftheBands.com.

In addition to the marching bands, the 2018 Invitational Showcase will also feature the fourth-annual HBCU Power of Dreams Award. Honda established the award to honor extraordinary individuals who are positively affecting the lives of others and moving the HBCU community forward. Members of the HBCU community will have the opportunity to nominate an exceptional individual who is making a difference in the community. Honda will recognize the winner in a ceremony during the event.

For more information on Honda Battle of the Bands and to buy tickets, visit www.HondaBattleoftheBands.com. To join the social media conversation, use #HBOB and visit the following social media handles for official updates:

Facebook – Facebook.com/HondaBattleoftheBands
Twitter – @The_Honda / Twitter.com/The_Honda
Instagram – @the_honda / Instagram.com/the_honda

About Honda
Honda seeks to be a company that society wants to exist, creating products and technologies that improve the lives of people while minimizing the environmental impacts of its products and business operations to ensure a sustainable future for society. Honda is also committed to making positive contributions to the communities where we do business, to socially responsible business practices and to the promotion of diversity in our workforce. From our involvement in STEM education and Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) to our support of pediatric brain tumor research, and volunteer efforts by Honda associates, including environmental clean-up activities, Honda believes in giving back to the communities where we live and work.

Honda supports a variety of initiatives aimed at advancing education and creating experiences of discovery that help young people see and achieve their own dreams. Honda’s partnership with the Hispanic Scholarship Fund is one of many programs demonstrating Honda’s commitment to the Latino community and to helping young people access The Power of Dreams.

Voting now open to help decide which HBCU marching bands will perform
“March On: Dream Together” theme for 2018 invitational showcase celebrates HBCU culture and community
Tickets on sale Oct. 16 at HondaBattleoftheBands.com

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We Speak Comedy

Caitlin Cook’s Musical Bathroom Odyssey Hits the UK

Published

3 days ago

May 9, 2025

Joni Jones

What do cowboy dicks, milk pistols, and public toilet walls have in common? They all find a strange kind of poetry in The Writing on the Stall, the wildly inventive musical comedy from US performer Caitlin Cook, landing in the UK this summer. After sold-out runs Off-Broadway, at Edinburgh Fringe, and in London, the New York Times Critic’s Pick returns for a short UK tour—playing Brighton’s Komedia (31 May & 1 June) and Soho Theatre, London (4–7 June).

Set entirely in a public bathroom, The Writing on the Stall is anything but private. In this whip-smart and wickedly funny one-woman musical, Cook dives into the scrawled messages and mysterious wisdom etched on cubicle walls and turns them into something bold, bizarre, and unexpectedly moving. The songs are catchy, the jokes are razor-sharp, and the show isn’t afraid to get its hands dirty—literally.

Armed with a guitar and a knack for digging gold out of the obscene, Cook crafts a genre-defying hour that’s part stand-up, part cabaret, and all catharsis. This is confessional comedy with clever hooks, pitch-perfect melodies, and enough surprises to keep your eyebrows permanently raised. Expect satire, sincerity, and some surreal props—rumour has it a pair of slingshotted knickers makes a cameo.

Caitlin Cook isn’t your average musical comic. She’s Oxford-educated, New York-hardened, and streaming in the tens of millions. She’s also collaborated with some of comedy’s finest, directed offbeat hits, and performs as one-half of the musical duo 2/3rds of a Threesome. With this new UK run, she’s not just touring a show—she’s building a movement that blurs the lines between comedy, theatre, and performance art.

If you missed her during her Edinburgh frenzy, this is your chance to catch the musical everyone’s been whispering about in pub toilets and shouting about in five-star reviews. You might come for the laughs, but you’ll stay for the songs that (fair warning) may live rent-free in your head for months.