Marching Maroon & White Band to Perform at 2025 Honda Battle of the Bands
The Alabama A&M University Marching Maroon & White Band will take center stage at the 2025 Honda Battle of the Bands (HBOB), marking the first time this prestigious event will be held on the West Coast. The nation’s premier showcase for Historically Black College and University (HBCU) marching bands will be held on Saturday, February 1, 2025, at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.
Honda also announced entertainer and entrepreneur Nick Cannon will serve as the celebrity host. Cannon revealed the six bands selected to take part in this video.
The full HBOB 2025 lineup includes:
- Alabama A&M University – Marching Maroon & White Band
- Alabama State University – Mighty Marching Hornets
- Hampton University – The Marching Force
- North Carolina A&T University – Blue and Gold Marching Machine
- Southern University – Human Jukebox Marching Band
- University of Arkansas Pine Bluff – Marching Musical Machine of the Mid-South
In addition to hosting its first-ever West Coast showcase, Honda also created a new band selection process. In July, the Honda Legacy Council selected North Carolina A&T University and Southern University to perform at HBOB 2025. These two bands then extended challenges to Alabama A&M University and Alabama State University, respectively, bringing them into the competition and ensuring an unforgettable musical showdown.
Honda will provide an institutional grant to each of the schools for their respective music education programs and support the bands’ travel expenses to the Invitational Showcase in Los Angeles. All 52 bands that participated in the voting process will also be awarded an HBOB Legacy Grant from Honda.
