This year, Latin offered a new out-of-town project for P-Week targeted at an audience of concert lovers and aspiring musicians. Latin’s first ever travel band was born, and we called ourselves the ROMZ.

Hopping into our tour bus (or minivan), we took off Monday morning to take on Nashville, the city of music. After conquering the eight-hour drive and the rocky hill that led us to our forest cabin, where we would be spending the next five days living together and growing as a band, we got right to business. Each night we would practice for our performances, which were gigs like performing at the Country Music Hall of Fame, and we prepared for our musical showcase back at Latin on Friday for one last memory as a band.

This project gave each student an opportunity to experience what the process of forming a band would include, from practices every night to the feeling of all that hard work we put into perfecting our setlist paying off when our audience grew larger by the second at the Country Music Hall of Fame.

Our setlist for our shows included classics like “Cherry Bomb,” “Smells like Teen Spirit,” “Fast Car,” “Born to Run,” “Whole Lotta Love,” and “Semi-Charmed Life.”

Junior Ellie Pekow described her experience as a “unforgettable opportunity, whether you were in the band or part of the crew.”

In addition to preparing performances as a band, we had other incredible experiences including a tour of the iconic Ryman Theater, stepping into the circle on The Grand Ole Opry stage, and our fascinating meeting with music industry icon Rod Essig, which many students noted as one of the highlights of their trip.

All and all, being able to come together as students of all different grade levels to bond over our shared love of music was truly an experience that the ROMZ will never forget.