The time-honored tradition of the Tournament of the Roses, also known as the Rose Bowl, takes place every New Year's Day as it has for 129 years—the first parade and games took place in 1890.
The parade happens every year before the football game played later in the day, both in Pasadena, California. The parade travels five and a half miles down Colorado Boulevard, beginning at 8 a.m. PT, or 11 a.m ET.
There are four types of parade entries, including "floral-decorated floats entered by a participating corporation, nonprofit organization or municipality, equestrian units, bands and Tournament Entries," according to the Pasadena Tournament of the Roses website.
Rose Bowl Parade Live Stream
There are 935 volunteers from the Tournament of Roses Association that help make the parade a success every year and it takes 80,000 hours of service to make the parade go off without a hitch.
Each year the parade has a theme, and for 2019 the theme is "The Melody of Life" in celebration of music and the unity it can bring. "Music has the power to not only bring us together but take us back to memories and moments as nothing else can. From the sweep of a conductor's baton to a simply whistled tune, music is woven into the fabric of our lives, community, family, friendship, and love," said the description of the 2019 theme.
The grand marshal of the parade this year is Chaka Khan, a singer and songwriter who will also perform in the "Opening Spectacular" of the parade.
KTLA will have coverage before the parade starting at 6 a.m. PT with backstage at the parade coverage as well as the countdown to the parade. The backstage coverage includes interviews with the queen of the parade and her court and close-up views of the floats. The court is made up of students from 24 schools in Pasadena, and they're chosen "based on a number of criteria, including public speaking ability, academic achievement, youth leadership and community and school involvement," according to the Pasadena Tournament of the Roses website.
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