NASHVILLE — A lineup of seven World Class corps brought the marching arts to a first-time DCI Tour venue in the Music City on Friday night, with Bluecoats topping the scoresheets at DCI Nashville presented by DeMoulin Bros. & Co.
Nissan Stadium, home of the NFL’s Tennessee Titans, provided a stellar new stage for inspiring performances and exciting competition.
For Bluecoats, who held the top score of 94.400 and won all captions, the Nashville performance served as the next step toward the DCI World Championships, as the Canton, Ohio corps made improvements to the ending of its production, “The Observer Effect,” and continues its gold medal defense into Indianapolis.
“The drum corps is really coming together, and I think there are a lot of things that need to be polished,” said Bluecoats drum major Tony Gamez. “There’s always some good moments, though, and I thought that was a really great show that we just performed.”
1. Bluecoats » 94.400
2. Blue Devils » 92.250
3. Carolina Crown » 90.750
4. Mandarins » 89.150
Bluecoats’ victory was fueled by top scores across all captions on the scoresheet. Blue Devils took second place, finishing just over two points from the Ohio corps and earning second in nearly all captions.
Carolina Crown took third place outscoring Blue Devils by half a point in Music Analysis while holding Mandarins at bay thanks to a nearly one-point advantage in overall Music.
Color Guard was a highlight for the Mandarins, finishing in third place in the caption, a slim tenth of a point ahead of Crown, which helped the California corps close in on the corps’ first 90-point tally of the season.
“The crowd was really loud, and I wasn’t expecting it,” said Mandarins trumpet player Isabella Kourosmehr. “But I’d say tonight was one of our best performances to date.”
5. Blue Stars » 86.700
6. Troopers » 85.950
7. Music City » 77.850
Blue Stars and Troopers have been neck-in-neck throughout the 2025 season, finishing as close as 0.15 points in five meetings to date on the DCI Tour. The Wisconsin corps has held the upper hand in all of those meetings, and Nashville proved to be no different.
While Blue Stars fended off Troopers with a seven tenths advantage in General Effect and just over a half a point lead in overall Visual, Troopers managed to finish ahead of Blue Stars in Music Analysis, Percussion, and overall Music to stay less than a point (0.75) behind the Wisconsin corps. Music Analysis, in particular, was a standout area on Friday night for the Troopers, finishing fourth in the caption ahead of the Blue Stars and Mandarins.
As for Music City, the hometown corps rounded out the lineup with a final tally of 77.850, and enjoyed its annual late-July “home show” in a new venue.
The yearly event held in the Nashville area — regardless of venue — is known for a high-energy audience and, according to Music City drum major Hailey Westfall, that audience delivered Friday night.
“We just debuted DCI at Nissan Stadium for the first time, so that’s a really great feeling.” Westfall said. “It means everything. This crowd is amazing. We have so many family and friends here from the corps. It’s just a family reunion at this point.”
With the DCI World Championships less than two weeks away, slated for August 7-9 in Indianapolis, all seven of Friday’s performing corps will make their way toward late-season East Coast events, before their tour schedules make their final swing to the Hoosier State.
