[1][2] Robert L. "Biddy" Bidez of Mobile, Alabama founded the Georgia Tech band in 1908 along with 13 other students.

[4][7] Georgia Tech was the first Southern college to have its songs recorded; they were marketed by the Columbia Graphophone Company starting on November 13, 1925.

In 1954, two of the nine women who were enrolled at Tech, Trombonist Teresa Thomas and flutist Paula Stevenson, became the first female members of the band.

The band also found its first permanent home in the Crenshaw Building, which was behind the Varsity Drive-In on 3rd Street.

During this time the band would march through the 3rd street tunnel under the Atlanta Downtown Connector to get to the football games at Grant Field.

Georgia Tech eventually sold the Crenshaw Building and the land to the Varsity, and the band moved into the former Church of God, on the corner of Ferst Drive and Hemphill Avenue.

[5] In 1970, athletic director Bobby Dodd requested that the band no longer play Dixie at basketball games.

Bridges came from an assistant directorship of the band at the University of Georgia (of which he was also an alumnus) and was also retired from the Air Force.

[5][15][16] Durham had been a music educator in Atlanta for many years and had directed the band at Headland High School in the 1960s.

[4][5] In 1977, the Georgia Tech Jazz Ensemble was officially established by several band members with Doug Richards as its director.

Bridges is credited with saving the Jazz Ensemble from an "early extinction" by providing its members with encouragement and suggesting that they submit a petition to the school to establish their practice sessions as a course offering.

[17] Following the departure of Ken Durham, James "Bucky" Johnson was hired as Tech's first full-time director of bands.

[4][5] During halftime of the 1992 rivalry game at the University of Georgia, the band executed a prank that drew media attention and gained a level of notoriety.

As the band took the field for its halftime performance, several band members carried a large tarp with the GT logo painted on it onto the field and used it to cover the logo painted at midfield commemorating UGA's football program's centennial.

The band marched in the parade celebrating Atlanta's selection as the 1996 Olympic host city.

[3] The band was also invited to march in the 2008 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade as part of its centennial celebration.

From 1990 to 1993, RAT Parents were selected by the band's executive board, partly to keep the decision in the hands of the students.

When the executive board was dissolved in 1993, the selection was made by the director of bands following an interview process.

The "GT" is commonly photographed aerially and this photo is one of the most widely used pictures of the band.GT formation vs Miami 2008 It is also in this form that the football team, led by the Ramblin' Wreck, runs onto the field.

This pregame has included a work entitled "Fantasia on Georgia Tech Themes" by current band director Chris Moore.

"Fantasia on Georgia Tech Themes" contains segments of the school's prominent songs (Ramblin' Wreck, White and Gold, and the Alma Mater).

The band exits the field in the GT formation to take its place in the center of the lower north stands for the game.

Prior to 2023, the band joined thousands of fans and the cheerleaders on the stairway at Callaway Plaza outside the north end of the stadium, where it played "O Fortuna", the "Fanfare", "White and Gold", and finished with "Ramblin' Wreck" before entering the stadium for the pregame show detailed above.

In 2023 to make way for construction at Callaway Plaza, this routine was altered to feature the band in the new Helluva Block Party on North Avenue, where the former stairway performance is now done.

In the stands, the band entertains during TV timeouts and revs up the crowd after plays on the football field.

During the game, "White and Gold" is performed after GT touchdowns, while "Ramblin' Wreck" is played after field goals and successful extra point attempts.

A new tradition is that fans—especially The Swarm students in the north and northeast sections of the stadium—stay for "The Horse" to be played and dance along with the band.