Our 17th Annual Corporate Battle of the Bands raised over $241,000!

Written By Bailey Morrison

Thank You for Rocking With Us!

Because of the generosity from our event sponsors, supporters, and attendees, we raised over $241,000 and counting during the 2026 annual Corporate Battle of the Bands!

The funds raised translates to nearly $1.7 million in healthcare services for the more than 3,300 musicians HAAM serves annually. A special thanks to presenting sponsor Cirrus Logic with stage sponsors, H-E-B and C3 Presents, and to news crews from KEYE, KVUE and KXAN for covering this critical fundraising event!

Did you fall in love with HAAMilton, HAAM’s pig mascot working the crowd at ACL Live? Show HAAMilton some love and the HAAM musician behind the costume, Kelsi Creek—and help us reach our fundraising goal with a post-event donation of $25. Give by Monday, June 15th to be in the running for a Leroy & Lewis gift card and cookbook! Winners will be drawn randomly and contacted by Wednesday, June 17th. Help us sustain the sound by signing up as a $25 a month donor and receive an invite to our next Pearl Society event in August! 

This year’s Corporate Battle of the Bands also drew in a crowd exceeding 1,060 attendees who were entertained by six bands from local businesses who performed during the evening. This year’s “Best Band” was awarded to The Anteaters (ABC Home & Commercial), after an intense deliberation among this year’s judges. Other award winners include “Best Song” to Knuckle Sammich (H-E-B) for their song, “Helena” by My Chemical Romance. This year “Best Stage Presence” was awarded to The Haptics (Cirrus Logic).

This year, the Fan Favorite Award went to the band with the most donations raised. Congratulations and THANK YOU to our 2026 Fan Favorite winners The Haptics (Cirrus Logic). A massive thank you from HAAM to the fundraising superstars, The Haptics fans!

Congrats Winning Bands!

What a Night of Performances!

From classic soul anthems to hard-hitting rock, last night’s Corporate Battle of the Bands truly had it all! The Anteaters (ABC Home & Commercial) brought nearly a decade of live music experience to the Moody Theater stage, exterminating the competition with a set that wowed the judges and had the crowd on their feet all night. Knuckle Sammich (H-E-B) delivered a high-octane thrill ride straight from the H-E-B sales floor, tearing through Iron Maiden’s “The Trooper,” Van Halen’s “Runnin’ With the Devil,” and My Chemical Romance’s “Helena.” If you weren’t raising your fists in the air by the final note, you simply weren’t there!

Now in their ninth year at CBOB, The Mag Stripes (Netspend) proved why they’ve earned crowd-favorite status year after year, delivering a powerhouse set spanning The Cult, Bonnie Raitt, the Randy Rogers Band, and the Human League. C NOTES (PNC Bank) brought their own future star to the stage for the second year this year—Gigi Gonzalez, HAAM’s youngest performer yet and joined by her father Steven —then kept the energy going with crowd favorites from Fleetwood Mac, the Foo Fighters, and the Killers.

Reigning CBOB Champions, The Haptics (Cirrus Logic) made you feel every note, delivering pop anthems with a rock edge—Britney Spears’ “Toxic,” Miley Cyrus’ “Flowers,” and the Killers’ “Mr. Brightside”—and proving once again that they don’t just play the music, they make you feel it. The Defibrillators (Ascension Seton) brought the soul, Motown, and gospel heat that few bands can match, moving through electrifying mashups of the Staple Singers and Wilson Pickett, Sam & Dave’s “Soul Man,” and a showstopping blend of the Temptations and David Allan Coe. In the battle of life, I’m sure glad this community can band together.

Kids Battle of the Bands

This year also marked a historic first for HAAM: the inaugural Kids Battle of the Bands (KBOB)! Student bands competed over eight weeks in a peer-to-peer fundraising competition for the chance to headline ACL Live. Congratulations to The Fables from Bowie High School, the first-ever KBOB champions, who wowed the crowd with a well-earned 15-minute headlining set on the Moody Theater stage while the judges deliberated after all bands performed. Are you interested in inspiring the next generation of HAAM musicians? Let’s connect!

The evening’s emcees were CBS Austin’s Trevor Scott, KVUE-TV’s Quita Culpepper, and singer/songwriter Nakia, who did a fantastic job sharing the importance of our mission with a great crowd. The corporate bands aimed to impress a special panel of judges this year, including Trennis Jones (Austin FC), Taylor Wallace (KUTX), Nakia (Singer/Songwriter), and Kendall Beard (Singer/Songwriter).

DJ Mahealani set the vibe during our VIP Pre-Party before the show started, and we enjoyed a special performance by our KBOB winning band The Fables while the judges deliberated after all bands performed. A big thank you to Nakia for hyping the audience on HAAM to close out the night!

Thank you to our VIP Pre-Party sponsor Schlotzsky’s, Maxwell Locke & Ritter for sponsoring our Best Band award, Tecovas for sponsoring our Best Song award, Austin Subaru for sponsoring our Fan Favorite Award, and finally, thank you to FVF Law for sponsoring our Appreciation Awards given to all six bands who performed!

Photos below by Jake Rabin

2026 Corporate Battle of the Bands Set Lists!

The Mag Stripes (Netspend)

  • “She Sells Sanctuary” - The Cult

  • “Runaway” - Bonnie Raitt

  • “Better Off Wrong” - Randy Rogers Band

  • “Don't You Want Me” - Human League

The Defibrillators (Ascension Seton)

  • “I'll Take You There” (The Staple Singers) / “Everybody Needs Somebody to Love” (​​Wilson Pickett) - mashup

  • “Soul Man” - Sam & Dave

  • “My Girl” (The Temptations) / “Tennessee Whiskey” (David Allan Coe) - mashup

The Anteaters (ABC Home & Commercial)

  • “She Sells Sanctuary” - The Cult

  • “Runaway” - Bonnie Raitt

  • “Better Off Wrong” - Randy Rogers Band

  • “Don't You Want Me” - Human League

The Haptics (Cirrus Logic)

  • “Toxic” - Britney Spears

  • “Flowers” - Miley Cyrus

  • “Mr. Brightside” - The Killers

Knuckle Sammich (H-E-B)

  • “The Trooper” - Iron Maiden

  • “Runnin With the Devil” - Van Halen

  • “Helena” - My Chemical Romance

C NOTES (PNC Bank)

  • “Mr. Brightside” - The Killers

  • “Dreams” - Fleetwood Mac

  • “Everlong”  - Foo Fighters

The Fables (Winners of HAAM’s Inaugural Kids Battle of the Bands)

  • “Rift” - Quarters

  • “Can’t Stop” - RHCP

  • “Kirby Girl” - Backseat Lovers

  • “Valerie” - Amy Winehouse

  • “Senior Year” - The Runarounds

  • “Sofia” - Quarters

Bailey Morrison
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