Two takeaways from 2025 Championships that don't relate to any specific drum corps!

[Box5Opinion]

1. There needs to be a music specific award for finals. If music caption includes brass, (2) music analysis and percussion scores, then we need to acknowledge the culmination of those efforts. There can be a scenario were a corps can win brass (Ott) and another corps wins percussion (Sanford) and a different corps wins the culmination of that caption but never acknowledge for its efforts. You already do that for Visual (guard is sub caption) of that caption. 🤔

2. Can we get someone to help the announcer of the DCI championship week announce the drum major names better. A diction coach or someone who can phonetically pronounce names better without butchering them. The reactions of some of these drum majors as their names were being announced is comical, I felt bad for them. Be better DCI! 

Edited August 10, 2025 by Box5Opinion

[Ashontheinternet]

1 minute ago, Box5Opinion said:

1. There needs to be a music specific award for finals. If music caption includes brass, (2) music analysis and percussion scores, then we need to acknowledge the culmination of those efforts. There can be a scenario were a corp can win brass (Ott) and another corp wins percussion (Sanford) and a different corp wins the culmination of that caption but never acknowledge for its efforts. You already do that for Visual (guard is sub caption) of that caption. 🤔

2. Can we get someone to help the announcer of the DCI championship week announce the drum major names better. A diction coach or someone who can phonetically pronounce names better without butchering them. The reactions of some of these drum majors as their names were being announced is comical, I felt bad for them. Be better DCI! 

to your second point, i think it's just time for us to get a new announcer for finals week. brandt is historic, he's the voice of dci. but he struggled pretty good this weekend. that man deserves a gorgeous retirement and to be revered as the gem that he is. i hate hearing him struggle, forgetting parts of scripts, mispronouncing things, and his energy just isn't there anymore. i don't blame the guy at all, he's been doing this for longer than anyone in these corps has been alive. he has made his mark. i just think that it's time for the torch to be passed to someone new. 

[Liahona]

17 minutes ago, Box5Opinion said:

2. Can we get someone to help the announcer of the DCI championship week announce the drum major names better. A diction coach or someone who can phonetically pronounce names better without butchering them. The reactions of some of these drum majors as their names were being announced is comical, I felt bad for them. Be better DCI! 

I’m all for getting drum major names right; it matters. But let’s leave Brandt Crocker out of the crosshairs. He’s been the voice of DCI since 1972, literally from the very first World Championship. It is nostalgic for me and many others.

If we want better accuracy, ask DCI to support him by having each DM submit phonetic spellings and a five-second audio clip. Honestly, I can’t pronounce half the names either.

Edited August 10, 2025 by Liahona

[Ashontheinternet]

3 minutes ago, Liahona said:

I’m all for getting drum major names right; it matters. But let’s leave Brandt Crocker out of the crosshairs. He’s been the voice of DCI since 1972, literally from the very first World Championship. It is nostalgic for me and many others.

If we want better accuracy, ask DCI to support him by having each DM submit phonetic spellings and a five-second audio clip. Honestly, I can’t pronounce half the names either.

i don't know, it's one thing to mispronounce drum major names (he did this all three nights for the troopers. can't feel good), it's another to forget to ask the troopers if their corps is ready, or announce the blue knights show name. he's been having a hard time for a few years. i absolutely love brandt, i love his voice, i love his delivery, and i love his humorous moments too, like finals 2019, just saying "blue....." 

i don't want brandt to have to retire, if we could, he'd announce every show for the rest of time. i just don't think it's fully fair to these corps for these mistakes to happen nightly, especially on championships weekend. it's one thing for a hired gun radio host to call you the blue colts from iowa. it's another to have brandt forget to ask if your corps is ready, leaving dead air during championship weekend, or have him really mess up your name on finals night. it's not his fault, it's not against him. we all get old. 

i am not against corps giving phonetic spellings for drum major names, however. as a standard i am honestly very surprised that isn't part of the script. especially when the drum majors name is very difficult to pronounce just by reading it. including a pronunciation guide to the announcer should be the standard.

[Box5Opinion]

4 minutes ago, Liahona said:

I’m all for getting drum major names right; it matters. But let’s leave Brandt Crocker out of the crosshairs. He’s been the voice of DCI since 1972, literally from the very first World Championship. It is nostalgic for me and many others.

If we want better accuracy, ask DCI to support him by having each DM submit phonetic spellings and a five-second audio clip. Honestly, I can’t pronounce half the names either.

Can we get someone to help him out, key words "get someone to help him out", maybe that person can compile the names and feed him, how to announce them correctly. Not once did I say, "replace". This is the Olympics of the pageantry, so I would assume that he is getting help with the correct information so to relay that to everyone. I know he's a treasure, but those announcements are forever be repeated when we watch those performances in the future. 

[Box5Opinion]

1 minute ago, Ashontheinternet said:

i don't know, it's one thing to mispronounce drum major names (he did this all three nights for the troopers. can't feel good), it's another to forget to ask the troopers if their corps is ready, or announce the blue knights show name. he's been having a hard time for a few years. i absolutely love brandt, i love his voice, i love his delivery, and i love his humorous moments too, like finals 2019, just saying "blue....." 

i don't want brandt to have to retire, if we could, he'd announce every show for the rest of time. i just don't think it's fully fair to these corps for these mistakes to happen nightly, especially on championships weekend. it's one thing for a hired gun radio host to call you the blue colts from iowa. it's another to have brandt forget to ask if your corps is ready, leaving dead air during championship weekend, or have him really mess up your name on finals night. it's not his fault, it's not against him. we all get old. 

i am not against corps giving phonetic spellings for drum major names, however. as a standard i am honestly very surprised that isn't part of the script. especially when the drum majors name is very difficult to pronounce just by reading it. including a pronunciation guide to the announcer should be the standard.

I highlighted it, so everyone in the back can see it better! 

[Liahona]

5 minutes ago, Box5Opinion said:

Can we get someone to help him out, key words "get someone to help him out", maybe that person can compile the names and feed him, how to announce them correctly. Not once did I say, "replace". This is the Olympics of the pageantry, so I would assume that he is getting help with the correct information so to relay that to everyone. I know he's a treasure, but those announcements are forever be repeated when we watch those performances in the future. 

Totally fair. I read you as “help him,” not “replace him,” and I’m with you. In other news, BAC’s opener uses a recorded Dan Potter intro for timing; last season we used Brandt. And on the “history” point, DCI has edited Finals products for years, fixing fracks and sometimes swapping in takes from other nights, so the members look their best. Different topic, I know, but if we’re worried about what lives on the recordings, that matters too. Just sayin'

[skevinp]

1 hour ago, Ashontheinternet said:

i don't know, it's one thing to mispronounce drum major names (he did this all three nights for the troopers. can't feel good)

If you are talking about Ritika Deivasigamani, I’d be surprised if anyone has ever pronounced it correctly.

But is it really that important to say their name at that particular “is your corps ready” time as opposed to just showing it in printed form along with the corps information on the screen?  

What about pre-filming each drum major introducing themselves and then show it on the screen when the corps is coming in?  It would be a nice personal touch and a good way to honor them.

[Zeke]

3 hours ago, Box5Opinion said:

2. Can we get someone to help the announcer of the DCI championship week announce the drum major names better. 

RYAN H. TURNER. He's done it before I want to say 2002. I don't know if he is available  to do so or wants to though.

 

[Tailgate88]

This is an easy fix. 
 

1) Ask the corps to film a video of their drum majors pronouncing their names the way they want them to sound and post it set to private to YouTube and submit a link to DCI. 
 

2) Have someone listen to the videos right before they go on and then coach Brandt through the announcement. He’ll get it after the first couple times. 

I had to do announcements for Senior night at our high school one night. It’s harder than you think with some of these names!