2019 Macy’s Parade Marching Band Guiden

Let’s have a parade!

It’s that time of year again when the whole country stops to come together and give thanks with family, turkey, giant balloons, football and of course MARCHING BANDS!

This year the Macy’s lineup of bands is quite impressive and will feature a band that we were able to visit last season as well as a band with members that range in age from 20-80 years old.

The Pride of the Mountains at Western Carolina University. 

Now if you have never seen or heard WCU before you are missing out on one of the best college bands in the country. In fact they are quite literally the BADDEST Band in the Land. At 500+ members they are also the second largest band in the college ranks behind Jacksonville State’s Marching Southerners.

Western Carolina will be making their return to the Macy’s Parade for the second time in five years, a feat that only a few college bands can claim. Their last performance blew away the nationwide audience and Macy’s had to have them back.

We’ve been following WCU for many years and last fall we went out to Cullowhee, NC to see them in action. They were incredible. You can go look back at our trip their on our pinned instagram stories (@collegemarching) 

Missed their show this year? We’ve got you covered. Here’s their 2019 halftime show, “Believe”.



Morgan State University

The other college band marching this year is the Morgan State University, Magnificent Marching Machine from Baltimore Maryland. Known for their high energy and high stepping show style, this will be the band’s first ever appearance in the parade. 

“Morgan State University is home to one of the finest and most exciting marching bands in the northeast, delivering high-energy, crowd-pleasing performances every fall season,” said Wesley Whatley, Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade Creative Producer. 

The Magnificent Machine marches 150 members and will be on the smaller side of the bands marching in the parade this year, but make no mistake they will be one of your favorites.

Rounding out the college band connections in the parade is a truly unique group. 

The Awesome Original Second Time Arounders Marching Band 

They’re back for well, a second time!

The band, comprised of high school, college and military band alumni, lives the dream each year performing across the state of Florida and country in major events like the Macy’s parade. The band is 450 strong with members ranging in age from 20-80 years old. With this being their second time marching in the parade they will be better prepared for the insanely long day that comes with marching in the Macy’s parade.

Bands typically practice between 6-9 p.m. Wednesday night, they grab a little bit of sleep and are then back out by 3 a.m. to prep for camera work. Breakfast is served around 5 a.m. and by 6:30 a.m. you head back to line up and get ready for the parade which steps off at 9am EST. Then all that’s left between you and a nap is the 2.25 mile parade. 

The high school bands in the parade this year are: 

Blue Springs High School Golden Regiment Marching Band, Blue Springs, Missouri
Catalina Foothills High School Falcon Band, Tucson, Arizona
Franklin Regional High School Panther Band, Murrysville, Pennsylvania
Madison Central High School Band, Richmond, Kentucky
Martin Luther King, Jr. High School “Kings of Halftime,” Lithonia, Georgia
Ronald Reagan High School Marching Band, San Antonio, Texas

And as is tradition the NYPD Marching Band and Macy’s Great American Marching Band will also participate as they do every year.

We hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving and enjoy all the bands marching this year in the parade!

Follow @CollegeMarching on instragram, twitter and facebook and subscribe to our YouTube Channel to check out our documentary series, Take The Field each year.