Hood Baby & the Barnacles performed at Bulldog Bash this Friday on the main stage, as an opener for DNCE. 
At last year’s Bulldog Bash, lead singer Ronnie Bollock and bass player Garrett Caver performed on the day stage as a part of Hood Baby & the Barnacles.
Meanwhile, current drummer Chase Carlton and guitar player Wes Toner were performing together in the band Chimney.
When both groups lost members earlier this year, the four friends decided to start performing together using the Hood Baby & the Barnacles name.
“We were all friends and had jammed together before,” Carlton said. “So, when we came together everything meshed pretty well.”
The group hopes exposure at Bulldog Bash will propel the band to even greater success.
“We are still in shock, but we are absolutely ready for the opportunity,” Bollock said before the performance. “This means a lot of exposure for us. We hope people will see how hard we have been working and that this will result in more gigs in the future.”
Each year, Music Maker Productions produces the Battle of the Bands, the winners of which earn the opportunity to open Bulldog Bash, which Mississippi State University Student Association puts on each fall.
Allie Nichols was this year’s director of SA’s Bulldog Bash, and is also a member of Music Maker Productions.
“The Battle of the Bands is one of my favorite events Music Maker Productions does because I love seeing so many amazing local bands,” Nichols said.
Nichols said Music Maker Productions’ main goals in putting on the Battle of the Bands each year are to involve the community in Bulldog Bash and to give local bands the opportunity to play on big stages.
The members of Hood Baby & the Barnacles said they have never played in front of such a large crowd.
“I have been playing drums for close to 15 years, but I have never had the opportunity to play in front of this many people,” Carlton said.
Rick Welch, the owner of Rick’s Cafe, said playing an event as big as Bulldog Bash could have a big impact on the careers of young musicians.
“If I’m not already familiar with them, it certainly does raise my awareness. It hopefully will help them build a fanbase that will translate into people coming to see them if they do perform at Rick’s,” Welch said.
Dave Hood, the owner of Dave’s Dark Horse Tavern, said he agreed opening for a major act can have a big impact on a band’s career, but he stressed how a band cannot wait for success to come to them without constant hard work.
“When it comes to success, from what I have seen, it takes way more than any one-time thing,” Hood said. “It takes a lot of work.”
Bollock said he hopes Hood Baby & the Barnacles will have the success of last year’s winners, Jake Slinkard & Co.
“They are a good band that is constantly doing gigs and putting in the effort,” Bollock said. “I would constantly see that Jake Slinkard & Co. is playing at this venue or that venue, and I would always wish we were playing that often.”
Welch said he believed Hood Baby & the Barnacles were well prepared to take advantage of the opportunity they have earned.
“I’ve been impressed with their performances and I wasn’t surprised that they won,” Welch said. “They are very talented.”
“We want to be a band people can count on to always put on a good show,” Bollock said.