If you’ve been to the ETSU library in the evening, chances are you have witnessed the school’s “Light Up Guy” as he literally lights up the campus.
Brendon Tiggs, a junior at ETSU, can be found lighting up the night with his dance moves in front of Sherrod Library almost any day of the week.
Although Tiggs, who is from New Orleans, is majoring in psychology, his passion is dancing. He grew up shy but found that dancing is an outlet that allows him to express himself publicly. His choreography is completely self-taught.
It all started when he saw a video of a dance group in light-up costumes when he was a senior in high school. This video inspired him to become the Light Up Guy at ETSU.
During September of his freshman year, he told his roommate at the time that he wanted to perform at the library. His roommate was encouraging but didn’t know how he should go about it. Finally, Tiggs decided to just start dancing one day.
“When I first started, people looked at it as weird,” Tiggs said. “Some people liked it, but everyone started to talk. I always practiced wherever I went.”
Because he had a love of light-up things since he was a kid, he wanted to find a way to incorporate this love of lights into his performance.
“The lights are unique and different,” said Tiggs. “They really pop out.”
During his first couple of performances, he only had light-up shoes, gloves and a hat, and he used an iHome speaker for his music. Today, he still uses the gloves, shoes and hat, but he has added a mask, glasses and suit. His speakers got a nice upgrade, too.
Along with his equipment and props, he says his dancing has really developed within the past two years as well.
ETSU students seem to have nothing but positive things to say about the Light Up Guy.
“It’s nice to see someone step outside of the box and do something like this,” said Kalid Hagood, a junior at the university. “He has almost become like a tradition here.”
Other students have even shared videos of Tiggs dancing.
“I’ve had friends send me videos of him performing,” said Abigail Leonard, another student at the university. “I think it’s cool that he is having fun and giving students some entertainment after a long day of classes.”
Tiggs is really encouraged by the things students have told him.
“I’ve had students come up to me and tell me I brighten their day just doing what I love,” he said.
Even with all the encouragement, he sometimes still gets hate, but he says the hate motivates him to become better.
If you are interested in seeing more content from the Light Up Guy, you can add his snapchat @brendontiggs. He takes song requests through this app and during his performances.
“I chased a vision,” said Tiggs. “This is just something from my imagination that came true. It’s cool seeing it become a reality.”
The Light Up Guy can be found dancing in front of the library from 8:30 – 10:30 p.m., Sunday through Thursday throughout the semester.
