Students at UNC 'Flagstock' cheer 'USA!' as John Rich and Lee Greenwood encourage patriotism.

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – It's OK to be patriotic.

John Rich of Big & Rich aimed to make college students at the University of North Carolina feel at Flagstock 2024, a concert-turned-music festival he organized in honor of the fraternity brothers who prevented the American Flag from touching the ground during anti-Israel protests in May, as stated by Rich's manager, Marc Oswald.

During his performance at the local VFW in Chapel Hill on Monday, Rich posed a question to the students: "Do you still love America?"

The crowd responded by chanting, "USA! USA! USA!"

Oswald explained on Monday that Rich wanted to host a "protest to support patriotism" and named it "Flagstock" to make sure students and people in general feel it's okay to be patriotic.

Despite anticipating 2,000 attendees, only several hundred Chapel Hill students attended the music event featuring Big & Rich, Lee Greenwood, Aaron Lewis, John Ondrasik, and a surprise appearance by Roman Rene Ramirez of Sublime.

Those who attended were proud to show their support for the country with "USA" chants, while others wrapped themselves in American or Israeli flags.

In the lead-up to Flagstock, the "vibes on campus have been very split," as stated by Matthew Broderick, a senior and a journalism major, in an interview with Planet Chronicle Digital.

"According to Broderick, there are two groups of people with opposing views on the matter. One group is in favor of the idea and loves it, while the other thinks it's a bad idea. Broderick explains that some fraternities and sororities have been advising people to either avoid or attend the event, with differing opinions on its impact on their organizations. In his view, there is no clear consensus on the matter."

"It's very split." — Matthew Broderick, Chapel Hill senior

In May, activists on campus attempted to replace the American flag on Chapel Hill's quad with a Palestinian flag. However, when they began taking it down the flagstaff for the second time, a group of students intervened to prevent the flag from touching the ground.

A student photographer's photo of a viral moment on social media became a national headline, as similar protests happened on college campuses across the country.

A GoFundMe page started by John Noonan to buy kegs for a group of friends raised over $500,000, leading to the creation of a 501 C-4 organization called Pints for Patriots to manage the funds and organize a large event.

Rich initially planned a small concert in front of a fraternity house, but the plans changed after they raised half-a-million dollars.

On Monday, Noonan explained how some of the funds used to produce the show came from Technical Arts Group (TAG) Live, which provided a $100,000 stage and a lot of material support for the event.

TAG Live Operations Director Jarrod Choury told Planet Chronicle Digital that the students' actions on campus "spoke to" TAG Live to be a part of the concert, as they had not seen kids do what these kids did in a long time.

"We haven't seen kids do what these kids did in a long time."

The security budget for the event was around $80,000, which covered plainclothes security, 20 Orange County Sheriff's Office staff, and fire and EMS personnel. Pints for Patriots chartered over a dozen 50-passenger buses to transport students to and from campus, as stated by Noonan.

Pints for Patriots received an offer from attorney Dan Craigg for between $15,000 and $20,000 worth of pro-bono general counsel legal work for their event.

"We want to create an incentive system where sticking their neck out like that — defending the flag — there's a there's a bonus for that." — Dan Craigg, attorney, Eckland & Blando

Craig stated to Planet Chronicle Digital that the actions of those kids were commendable and patriotic. He added that they deserve support. Furthermore, he expressed the desire to establish a reward system for individuals who bravely defend the flag.

Many VFW members volunteered to assist with the event, giving up their Labor Day to set up tents, port-o-potties, and other necessities.

As the night progressed, the small and quiet show grew into a lively event with a large crowd of Chapel Hill students joining in the patriotic messages presented by the singers.

'What those kids did was honorable and patriotic. And we want to support that."

Leftover funds from donations will be used for charity, and Noonan will remain transparent about how donor money was used, he told reporters.

On Monday, Noonan informed reporters that we exercise great care and prudence in managing funds appropriately.