photo by: Amy Harris/Invision/AP

Nelly performs during BottleRock Napa Valley, Friday, May 24, 2024, in Napa, Calif.

This year’s edition of Late Night in the Phog will have a decidedly Midwestern feel, as St. Louis hip-hop and R&B artist Nelly will serve as the event’s featured performer.

Kansas Athletics announced on Thursday morning that the musician known for such hits as “Dilemma,” “Just a Dream” and, perhaps most of all, “Hot in Herre” will headline the season-opening festivities on Friday, Oct. 18, at Allen Fieldhouse.

This will be the 40th edition of Late Night in the Phog, the event created under former coach Larry Brown at which the KU men’s and women’s basketball teams play intrasquad scrimmages and celebrate the start of a new year of basketball.

More information on Late Night, including how to purchase tickets, will be released at a later date, according to KU’s press release, which also touts Nelly’s “distinctive vocals and larger-than-life personality.” Last year’s performer was Flo Rida.

The event, which has hosted capacity crowds since 1991, has grown since its inception to include an increased presence from the women’s team and now takes place earlier in the evening.

As for the more literal start of basketball season, the full women’s basketball schedule is still pending, but the KU men’s basketball team is slated to host Washburn for an exhibition not long after Late Night, on Oct. 29, and then play its first game at home against Howard on Nov. 4.