Before their football game on October 5, 2024, the marching bands of NC State and Wake Forest joined to play “Amazing Grace” at Carter-Finley Stadium. The universities described the performance as a tribute to people affected by Hurricane Helene, with particular attention to communities in western North Carolina.
What happened before the game
The joint performance took place ahead of kickoff during the NC State–Wake Forest football weekend. Wake Forest’s band, the Spirit of the Old Gold & Black, performed with NC State’s Power Sound of the South. ABC11 reported that the bands played at Carter-Finley Stadium.
The universities presented the hymn as a moment of remembrance and solidarity amid the early recovery from Helene. It was a musical tribute, not a relief operation, and the accounts do not suggest that it represented every person affected by the storm.
Why the performance was dedicated to Helene-affected people
Hurricane Helene had caused widespread loss and damage across the region. In an article published October 10, 2024, NC State News reported nearly 250 deaths across six states at that point in the disaster. That is a contemporaneous figure from the university’s 2024 account, not a current toll.
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NC State described the performance in the context of the state’s early recovery and relief efforts, while both universities framed it as honoring people affected by the storm, especially in western North Carolina.
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The performance brought together bands representing institutions that were facing each other on the football field that day. Their collaboration offered a shared public gesture during a difficult period for communities across the state. The available accounts do not identify a named speaker or provide an attributable quotation from a band member.
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