Choir Ball 2001 jumped off Homecoming week and definitely gave the crowd its moneys worth.

B.N. Duke was almost full for the much-anticipated 9 pm show. The audience of mostly students tends to be more critical than that of the the 6 p.m. show, which normally draws a smaller crowd.

“We worked the kinks out of the six o’clock show and we just let it all hang out at the nine o’clock show,” said Maurice Glenn.

These year’s theme was an awards show that gave awards like “biggest lips” and “crackhead of the year.” Whitney Houston won, no contest.

Although this year’s format was different from that of past years, it was a good move on the part of the organizers. It gave the choir a chance to continue with humorous interludes that feed off the energy of the hilarious intro known as “The Choir Scene.”

The backup band wasn’t as large as it has been in past years, yet the quintet definitely “held it down.” Their sound definitely let everyone know “numbers ain’t got nothing to do with soul.”

Destiny’s Child, Jill Scott, Fabulous and 112 were some of the acts impersonated.

Choir members worked diligently in preparation for the opening event of homecoming week. Many members both old and new felt the strain.

Having to work around so many schedules was a problem, according to Ike Chapmen, one of the organizers. Getting full cooperation from performers was hard too, but everything came together at the end, Chapmen added.

One noticeable change was the inclusion of more neo-soul music. The latest R&B and hip- hop songs generally are the staples of the show. But this year more soul was delivered than “bump and grind.”

“The Way” by Jill Scott and “Brown Skin” by india.aire were fan favorites. Freshman Imani Wilson, who impersonated india.aire, stole the show. Her soulful performance forced even the hardest hip-hop head to listen.

Sophomore music major Tavares Gaither choreographed a dance tribute to late pop star Aaliyah.

Gaither also lent his voice earlier in the night impersonating Maxwell performing his single “Lifetime.”

The dance moves were crisp, sharp, and they duplicated those in many of Aaliyah’s videos.

“We really wanted to pay homage to her as being a great performer,” said senior Mandy Parham, one of the performers.

“Our goal was to specifically look at her videos and move and try to be as perfect as we possibly could be.” “As a superstar she was absolutely perfect,” Parham, added.

The choir, who had just finished performing chart-topping singles, then they took the audience to church. The closing scene was a soul stirring set of Gospel that pulled people from their seats and sent a blessed energy throughout B.N Duke.

“I’m on cloud nine right now, it was a wonderful show and I am very proud of my students,” said NCCU Choir director Frank Williams. “These talented students have put in the time and work.They have been blessed and it shows.”

The University Choir of NCCU was the only event of Homecoming week that allowed the audience to catch the Holy Ghost and the Crip Walk within a half an hour of each other.

The audience was into the performances and much of the material was clever.