Last year, senior Josh Bonney participated in the Student Union Board’s first-ever Rock the Lawn event. He said he enjoyed it so much, he had to do it again.

Bonney got his chance Friday night, when Rock the Lawn returned for another year of performances in the Colonnades Quad.

SUB provided the free concert, during which three student artists performed before headlining act Aer. Bonney, along with the newly formed Undercover Pizza Cops and sophomore Lizzy Bassen, earned coveted spots in the lineup after performing at SUB’s Battle of the Bands earlier this semester.

Sophomore James Davies and freshman Dylan Brock were among the four judges of Battle of the Bands who chose Aer’s opening acts.

Davies said it is important to have student musical performances on campus.

“It creates a community feel with Elon, which obviously we’re big on,” Davies said. “Just everyone can go to a concert for free, get some free food, that’s always important. They can also have an alternative way to have fun instead of going out and drinking, so that’s really important.”

With the addition of sophomore electric guitarist Cody Fox and sophomore drummer Rhett Richards, sophomore Nick Agrawal and senior Ben Rungsrithong created the band Undercover Pizza Cops. Agrawal and Rungsrithong secured a performance slot during Battle of the Bands, which allowed them to play ‘90s songs to a growing crowd in the Colonnades Quad.

Bassen also aimed for a mellow playlist, performing smooth rock songs by Michael Buble and Adele during her time on stage.

The student performers provided a lengthy warm-up for Aer, which fuses reggae, hip-hop and acoustic music. Through a lucky connection, SUB was able to have Aer come to Elon for a discounted price after Davies and Brock spent most of the semester hoping to bring the group to campus.

Aer has toured several colleges in the past. They have earned the No. 1 spot on iTunes’ hip-hop charts, and they have been featured on DirtyMexicanLemonade.com, now DML.fm, a popular music website. Davies said Aer’s musical style is a mixture of various artists.

“They’re almost like Slightly Stoopid meets a Mac Miller-type feel,” Davies said.

Sophomore Kirsten Haugsted said she was happy to attend a concert the entire Elon community could enjoy.

“A lot of the time, they have things in the performing arts center, but I feel like even though they’re open to everyone on campus, a lot of people still don’t go see the performances,” Haugsted said. “So seeing them perform out in a public area, outside even, really helps promote them.”