The most formal aspect of Peter Buffett's "Concert and Conversation" was his  maroon velvet jacket.

Buffett kept it casual throughout his performance with cellist Michael Kott in Friday, Sept. 23 in McCrary Theatre.

The performance featured Buffett's original music, as well as a conversation about his upbringing, human rights advocacy and his philosophy on how to live a meaningful life. He emphasized that the performance was a conversation and encouraged the audience to interrupt at any time to ask questions.

Buffett began the performance with a song from one of his early records, titled "(Searching For) A Place Called Home." This led to a discussion of what it was like growing up in Omaha, Neb. with billionaire father Warren Buffett. But having a billionaire father didn't make the younger Buffett complacent.

"We didn't grow up with money," he said. "We grew up with values."

He displayed a slideshow of family photos, poking fun at his dad for pale skin in a beach photo. The photos and stories he shared made it clear that the Buffetts are a normal family, despite the patriarch's successes.

It was evident that even his mom had a sense of humor when Buffett revealed to her that he wanted to grow up and be a musician.

She responded, "Honey, you can't do both."

Despite his mom's comment, Buffett emphasized that his parents genuinely encouraged him to follow his passions, not the family business.

Buffett also talked about his time at Stanford University, however brief. An audience member asked if he finished college.

"No, I didn't," Buffet said. "But I don't recommend that route."

During the conversation, Buffett explained how he acquired $90,000 of Berkshire Hathaway stock at the age of 19. He said the money gave him ample freedom to explore his passions. One of his first music gigs came from a neighbor who was doing 10-second animations and asked if Buffett would score them. These films turned out to be MTV logos. Buffett showed the audience clips of the animations, prefacing them with, "Remember, it was the '80s."

Having his music on MTV granted Buffett fame in the industry. He was asked to record music for many commercials. He thought that was great, but wanted to do more than sell a product.

"I wanted to tell a story,"  Buffett said.

He got the chance in 1990 when "Dances with Wolves" premiered. Kevin Costner asked him to score a scene from the movie and, naturally, Buffett took the job.

"When Kevin Costner asks if you're busy, of course the answer is no," he said.

The scene he scored was the final dance scene and critics called it the pivotal moment in the film. An audience member asked how long it took to score the scene.

"The wonderful thing about the best music is that it comes pretty darn quickly," Buffett said. "Essentially, it took a night."

One of Buffett's last pieces was "Blood Into Gold." The song was a combined effort of Buffet and Akon and its message is to end human trafficking. This is an issue Buffett and his foundation, NoVo, are concerned with.

Buffet said it will take work to solve this problem.

"It's going to mean changing the way we relate to each other," he said.

His view on social equality struck a chord in some Elon students considering the recent incidents of racial discrimination on campus.

"I had no idea what to expect going into the performance," sophomore Mat Goldberg said. "But I really enjoyed it. His passion for others was uplifting."

Buffett ended the performance with the song "Can We Love?" He had the audience sing the last two verses with him and got a standing ovation.

Sophomore Savannah Chaisson said she enjoyed the concert as well.

"I thought the combination of the concert and conversation was unique and powerful," she said.