It’s rare to see a 43-year-old celebrating their birthday with live rap music and a dance floor outside of Los Angeles, but on March 25, that’s exactly what happened.

Don’t worry, it wasn’t a knock-off of Entourage star Jeremy Piven’s last birthday. WXOU, Oakland University’s student radio station celebrated their 43th year on the air with live musical perfomances and free giveaways.

Oakland Center’s Gold Rooms, normally reserved for lectures and presentations, was turned into a concert stage, with flashing lights and surround sound.

The Birthday Bash was designed to increase student listenership and involvement in the station.

Over 200 students visited the party throughout the night, some of whom left with complimentary WXOU T-shirts and movie posters. One student won a Batman doll from a raffle. 

Several of the musical bands were made up of OU students, including Royalty Entertainment, a newly-formed rap group composed of freshmen Josh Finney (aka J-Fin) and Jayson DeRiso (Trade). Finney also hosts a Saturday-afternoon show on the radio station, playing current hit music.

OU senior Rob Lauzen, also known as Robo-Robb, showcased his rap and dance skills, taking the stage after a last-minute cancellation by another group.

Other performers were Citizen Smile, Tripple Crown and Oscillating Fan Club.

With the live music, strobe lights, and dance floor, the party took on a progressively more club-like atmosphere as time passed, with more students dancing.

“My favorite part of the night was the performances,” said freshman Aiana Scott. “Especially Royalty Entertainment, they just killed it.”

A booth was set up along one wall, with pictures, a show schedule and plenty of excited staff to answer any questions. They encouraged people to get involved with WXOU.

“If you’re interested, come down, put in an application, and hang out,” said WXOU program director junior Erik Anderson. Other staff spoke favorably.

“I love the station,” Scott said. “Students can relate, and it can give the people working there exposure.”

WXOU is located on 60 Oakland Center, and can be tuned in on campus on 88.3 FM, and streams live from anywhere at www.wxou.org for free.