GALLOWAY — After much speculation, the Stockton Entertainment Team (SET) announced that The Driver Era is the artist for Woodstockton XVI, performing at Stockton on Tuesday, March 31, at Big Blue.

The announcement came after nearly a week of teasing on SET’s social pages. SET announced the event with a banner drop in the Campus Center Game Room and Coffee House, simultaneously streaming the drop on Instagram Live. Much like previous years, the announcement was met with both excitement and mild derision from the student body.

The Driver Era is an American rock duo consisting of Rocky and Ross Lynch, formerly of R5. The band formed in 2018 and has released four albums since their debut. Ross Lynch is also an accomplished actor, having starred in Disney Channel’s “Austin & Ally,” as well as earning acclaim for his performance as Jeffrey Dahmer in the film “My Friend Dahmer.” In 2025, the band released their fourth studio album, “Obsession.”

Junior environmental science major Jess Birtwistle has been a fan of the group since their time as R5 — the name the group used from 2009 to 2018. Recently, she caught The Driver Era at the Stone Pony in Asbury Park during summer break.

“I was watching the banner drop from the balcony of the coffeehouse, and I screamed and jumped up and down. I was so excited,” Birtwistle said. She is hoping the band plays “Nobody Knows,” “Touch” and “Get Off My Phone.”

Not all reactions were as enthusiastic. Negative responses surfaced in the comments section of the announcement on Instagram and on Yik Yak. One user on Instagram wrote, “so, can we see the results of the survey, because I know the majority ain’t vote for bro.”

Woodstockton XVI is the 16th iteration of Stockton’s spring concert series, which has also hosted artists like Waka Flocka Flame, Omar Apollo, The All-American Rejects and more. The event has taken place each year since its inaugural concert in 2010; the only cancellation came in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

To select artists, SET surveys the student body each year via mass email, asking about preferred genres and specific artists. This year’s survey was sent in October.

Tickets are $15 and can be purchased at the Information Desk in the Campus Center lobby.