By Amanda Meade

Scene/Mix Editor

MTV’s college network, mtvU, is set to air this year’s edition of the Woodies, the award show that honors music voted on by college students.

Catch the award show when it premieres Nov. 19 at 8 p.m. on mtvU, mtvU.com and Palladia. Palladia is a high defintion music related network associated with MTV.

Four of the nominated Woodie artists and award show performers talked to The Oakland Post in a college conference call Nov. 6.

Ezra Koenig, lead vocalist and guitarist of 

Vampire Weekend

Nominated for Best Video Woodie for “Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa”

Indie-rock band Vampire Weekend is from New York and have been together since 2006. They have a full length album and an EP under their belt.

“I’ve always been in a band since I was about 12. I always wanted [music] to be a part of my life in some way,” Koenig said.

Koenig has been part of a rap group, played the saxophone in a jazz band and was in a ska-punk band prior to Vampire Weekend.

“We grew up listening to these styles of music, it makes sense to put it together. At the same time I think sometimes you get an idea that sounds good together but really it just doesn’t work,” Koenig said.

“We would only go ahead with the ideas that made natural sense,” he said.

The guys of Vampire Weekend just finished touring overseas and are now making their way through the East Coast.

“We’ve kind of been on tour nonstop. We spend a lot of time traveling and performing,” Koenig said.

Santogold

Nominated for Woodie of the Year

Her real name is Santi White, and she is a songwriter, vocalist and producer.

We’d tell you what genre of music she was but even she had difficulty explaining it.

“I’m not that good at describing [my music]. There’s a little bit of punk, indie rock, electronic and nu wave. It’s just a match up of all those styles in one,” she said.

 “There’s no one word I’d use to describe it, pretty much it defies classification. If there is one word you could say it’s genreless,” White said.

White has worked with many artists, from Ashlee Simpson to N.E.R.D.

“I’ve always wanted to play with Devo because growing up they were my favorite band,” she said.

Similar to the other artists, White was flattered to be nominated for Woodie of the year.

“I think it’s great because unfortunately a lot of the award shows are so far removed from actual music listeners,” White said.

White is on tour througout the next few months in the U.K. and Australia.

Alex Gaskarth, lead vocalist and guitarist of

All Time Low

Nominated for Breaking Woodie

All Time Low might just be another pop-punk band, but Gaskarth has reason to believe otherwise.

“I think what’s really unique about this band is, one, our amount of energy and, two, we’ve tried to maintain our fan base,” he said.

All Time Low is now headlining “The Compromising of Integrity, Morality and Principles in Exchange for Money Tour,” which will be hitting The Fillmore on Nov. 21.

“For the most part [touring is] actually just a really good time. We have an amazing time on the road,” Gaskarth said. “Towards the end of a tour we get a little bit homesick. If that’s the worst part of the job I’m not too worried about it.”

Gaskarth expressed his happiness over his band being nominated for a Woodie.

“It’s kind of mind-blowing really. It says a lot about how much progress the band has made over the past few years. It’s very cool to be nominated and I’m very excited about it,” he said.

Zooey Deschanel, vocalist, pianist and banjo player of

She & Him

Nominated for Left Field Woodie

You might recognize her name from the silver screen — Deschanel, also an actress, has been in films like “Elf,” “Bridge to Terabithia” and “The Happening.”

But, her indie-rock band’s nomination isn’t for her acting, it’s for her singing, piano and banjo playing instead.

“I’ve been doing a lot of music, I love doing music. It’s very satisfying to see a project, putting out a record,” Deschanel said.

“I still like doing movies too. It’s so rewarding to have two amazing jobs, I couldn’t complain,” she said.

 Deschanel said she also felt honored to be nominated for a Woodie award.

“I think it’s great because college is an important time and I think people are finding their own unique voices,” Deschanel said.

 “I think it’s exciting. I’m happy to be recognized by a group of people who are more educated but not necessarily in the profession. I think it’s a big compliment,” she said.