Enter College Kid No. 1 wearing a Blink 182 tee shirt. His hair is dyed an “Eminem” shade of blonde. College Kid No. 2 trails not too far behind. He always threatens to transfer from Eastern.

Kid No. 1: There’s nothing to do in Charleston.

Kid No. 2: Wait. Isn’t there an O.A.R. concert this weekend?

Yeah, but they suck. O.A.R, umm, you mean L.A.M.E.? I thought O.A.R. was something you paddle a boat with.

Yeah, dude, that’s true. I mean, U of I totally is rocking John Mayer and Mizzou has Jason Mraz. And all we can muster up is O.A.R.? I wish I had an oar to beat those guys up.

(Laughs from all)

I heard we could have had Ludacris or ENTER BANDS HERE. I’m paying $5 for a concert fee, and I want quality.

What’s next? The Vanilla Ice return tour? Wait, could it be Sir Mix-A-Lot?

Or, Dave Matthews Band?

Ouch. Bad example.

Let’s complain. Until I get some Snoop Dogg up in this mug, I won’t be content.

I agree.

(Exit College Kid No. 1 and No. 2).

We’ve all probably heard this conversation in some capacity. O.A.R. isn’t the most fashionable band that appeals to the massive MTV crowd, but I think the University Board made a good decision.

That said, I won’t be attending.

And that should be OK.

No musician would appeal to the entire campus. For every fan of the Dave Matthews Band, there’s a fan that doesn’t like him or his band. That’s obvious. So, in some ways, the UB is in a lose-lose situation.

As popular as Dave Chappelle’s show was last spring, there still were critics on whether he should have been chosen.

“You’re not going to be able to make everyone happy with one show,” the UB Concerts Coordinator Joe Atamian said. “Our goal is to make as many students happy as possible.”

That’s why they let the students dictate who is chosen. From the studies the UB conducted, O.A.R. was one of the most popular bands on the survey. Atamian said two or three surveys were conducted and O.A.R. was in the top three each time.

A list of five finalists was taken from the surveys. Atamian said O.A.R. was tops on that list, but he would not reveal the remaining four because they might be booked for next semester.

If 2,000 die-hard fans show up Sunday with a few hundred seats left, as opposed to a packed house with fans of lukewarm interest, I’d take the first choice.

Atamian said the UB only had two or three weekend dates to work with because of sporting events and other activities.

“Still, all things equal, finding any band to come to Lantz Arena isn’t an easy task,” Atamian said. “I think the fact that the money and the route of their tour, the hardest thing is getting acts to Charleston, Illinois, for a show. We don’t have a venue set up for music … some acts don’t feel it would be beneficial to come play a show in the middle of Illinois.”