In a sharp turn away from hip-hop headliners of the last two years, piano, pop and alt-rock will reign at this year’s Art Attack. Weezer and Ben Folds will play at Byrd Stadium, in what SEE officials are predicting could draw an unprecedented crowd.

“We have not had an artist of this size during my time at the university,” said Student Entertainment Events president Melissa Kallas, who made the announcement at last night’s Student Government Association meeting to gasps, squeals and general excitement.

April 30 will mark the 27th annual Art Attack, an all-day event featuring crafts, games and music on McKeldin Mall, with the evening concert closing out the day and typically drawing thousands of students and local fans. And this year, SEE is planning on having a bigger stage and more seating available to students in Byrd Stadium.

Kallas said the decision to try for Weezer and Folds was driven by student input through e-mail surveys of who they’d like to see perform.

“We do a lot of research before we even get to who we have come,” she said.

SEE Concerts Director Matt Adler said Facebook groups began appearing months ago demanding the likes of Lady Gaga and Kid Cudi for the annual show, with a couple thousand student members each. But it was a group asking students to vote to bring Weezer through a T-Mobile-sponsored contest that caught his attention: over 5,000 people joined.

“I was like, ‘We need to go for Weezer,” he said.

The process began when Adler teamed up last fall with local promoter It’s My Party to recruit big names for Art Attack — a partnership he said SEE has been trying to initiate for years.

“We committed a good deal of our budget and they committed a certain co-sponsor amount to get Weezer and Folds, who … are much bigger than the university is accustomed to getting for the show budget-wise,” Adler said.

Although SEE would not disclose the amount spent on booking the artists, Adler said in previous years the budget had to be split between paying the artists and covering set-up costs for the show. Last year, two-thirds of the Art Attack budget went to booking costs, leaving a small amount left over for production expenses. This year, with IMP’s partnership, SEE’s budget will be devoted entirely to production, while IMP covered the talent fee.

The expanded production budget will allow for a bigger stage, better setup, and more room on the Byrd Stadium field for students, he said. Adler said there were a thousand people on the field and 6,000 in the stands last year; this year there will be room for 5,000 in the field.

But some questioned whether excluding hip-hop acts from the show would actually lead to a bigger audience.

“I feel like hip hop shows draw bigger crowds,” junior American studies major Seth Finkelstein said. “I love Ben Folds, I’m excited. But I feel like other people — it’s not necessarily College Park music.”

Others, like sophomore economics major Daniel Makover, look forward to the change of pace.

“I think relative to Ludacris, [Weezer and Folds] are the beacon of western civilization,” he joked. “No, I actually really like Ben Folds and Weezer,” he said. “I will be going.”

Sophomore civil engineering major Seth Greenberg agreed.

“Is he the one who’s got ‘hos in different area codes?'” he said of Ludacris. “He’s alright. But I really love Weezer, I have all their albums… I’m really looking forward to it.”

Folds last came to the campus in 2006 for a show at Cole Field House, while Weezer’s most recent area show at the Patriot Center in Fairfax, Va. — in December — was canceled after lead singer Rivers Cuomo was injured in a tour bus crash. Adler said he expects a lot of those disappointed fans to attend this show instead.

Tickets will go on sale today at 10 a.m. online at www.umdtickets.com. There are 10,000 available for students at a cost of $5 and 10,000 available for non-students at $40 each.

“We’re really expecting quite a large crowd,” Adler said. “I wouldn’t be surprised if we got 15,000 [attending],” he said. “I’m thrilled that the university is hosting an artist that they deserve … We’ve got an unbelievable undergraduate student body with an unbelievable appreciation for live music.”

aisaacs@umdbk.com