Every year students in the Drury University community are welcome to attend Putting on the Lips (POL), a lip sync competition and philanthropy event by sorority Pi Beta Phi. 100% of the proceeds from this fun-filled night, raised via admission, raffle tickets, and a Kendra Scott Jewelry booth, are donated to Read>Lead>Achieve, Pi Beta Phi’s philanthropic effort. 

According to the Mo Gamma Chapter’s social media, their goal seeks to “inspire a lifelong love of reading” with several local efforts. Darcie Buchman, a junior in Pi Beta Phi, said it was “the one event they look forward to the most each year.”

The event is hosted in memory of Andrea, a member of the chapter lost to a drunk driver in 2001. Springfield Police Officer, Justin Goings, demonstrated the dangers of driving while intoxicated by putting host, John Gray, in drunk goggles and performing field sobriety tests. His speech included statistics of the amount of money Greene County collected on DUI infractions during 2023. These astronomical figures would be enough to buy every Greek woman on Drury’s campus a solid gold iPhone.

 After the demonstration, the night’s hosts, John Gray and Chloe Bates transported the audience back to the early 2000s with playful banter and a well-produced video of their future selves reminiscing on POL 2023. 

This year’s team lineup included BUIC (Black United Independent Collegiate), Zeta Tau Alpha, Delta Delta Delta and Kappa Alpha. Pi Beta Phi opened the performance with catchy early 2000s jams and glamorous outfits setting the stage for their theme “Pi-2K”. 

After this, there was a slew of brave student groups that each worked hard for the judges’ votes. Mattie King, a Zeta Tau Alpha, who has graced the POL stage twice in her time at Drury said her group “practiced every night for about three weeks”. 

Her favorite part of cultivating the performance was giving each of their members a place to shine. “We had theatre people, dancers, and cheerleaders doing the choreography and a sister dedicated to learning how to cut music together for our soundtrack,” King says. Overall, she is happy with her opportunity to participate in the Drury community and place higher than her team did last year. 

While all of the performances were a spectacle and highly entertaining, three special teams stood out to the judges enough to place. Third place went to Zeta Tau Alpha with a routine debuting a colorful quick change and choreography from Rihanna’s Umbrella. 

First time performers, BUIC, graced the stage with a triad decked out in matching purple outfits stealing the judges’ hearts and second place. 

Delta Delta Delta won over the audience with an almost 10-minute routine including intricate choreography from a plethora of movies and songs from the 2000s completed with chant that secured their spot as the winner. 

This was no shock to the audience as the Delta Kappa chapter has a three-year long tradition of fighting hard for their spot as Putting on the Lips champions. 

Featured image by Tori Harding