Ole Miss Ends Playing of “Dixie”

Big news out of Ole Miss as the Pride of the South marching band will no longer perform the song “Dixie” during games.

The song was one of the unofficial “anthems” of the Confederacy during the Civil War. They will remove it from both pre-game and post-game performances on game day.

“The newly expanded and renovated Vaught-Hemingway Stadium will further highlight our best traditions and create new ones that give the Ole Miss Rebels the best home field advantage in college football,” Ole Miss athletic director Ross Bjork said in a statement to the Oxford Eagle. “Because the Pride of the South is such a large part of our overall experience and tradition, the Athletics Department asked them to create a new and modern pregame show that does not include Dixie and is more inclusive for all fans.”

The decision to remove the song is meant to make the band’s performances “more inclusive” for fans. 

Here’s the band playing “Dixie”



“We felt that it’s the right thing to do. It’s time to move forward,” Ole Miss athletic director Ross Bjork said, according to Mississippi Today. “It fits in with where the university has gone in terms of making sure we follow our creed, core values of the athletic department, and that all people feel welcome.

In 2009, Ole Miss altered it’s fight song to discourage the chant “the South will rise again.” 

Universities across the country continue to distance themselves from Civil War ties especially throughout the south.