AU rappers, singers, guitarists, slam poets and bands showcased their talents at WVAU’s first Open Mic Night of the semester on Sept. 27 in the Battelle Atrium.
Roughly 70 students attended the event, filling all the seats in the atrium and forcing a few to watch from the balcony. WVAU Assistant Events Coordinator Kylund Arnold, a junior in the Kogod School of Business, said the radio station expected 60 people to come out for 17-act show.
Performers did not have to audition for the event, as WVAU allowed anyone to perform after signing up.
“We literally had one person come in five minutes ago and sign up,” Arnold said before the event started.
WVAU’s Open Mic Night was different from the others in regards to the kind of talent that signed up to perform, according to Arnold.
“Tonight we have a lot of rap acts, but it’s usually one rapper a night as well as a lot of singer-songwriters,” Arnold said.
Ben Friedel, a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences, told a few jokes and dedicated a song to his girlfriend before the rest of his band “Concerning Hobbits” joined him to perform a cover of Miley Cyrus’ “Wrecking Ball.”
Once the list of performers reached the end, WVAU Events Coordinator Brendan Principato, a junior in the School of Communication, asked if any audience members wanted to perform. Two people raised their hands, including Joe Gallo, a freshman in the College of Arts and Sciences.
Before taking the spotlight, Gallo borrowed a guitar from a previous performer and played slap guitar, “a universal technique that you can use on acoustic and electric [guitars],” he said.
“I had just been thinking about it…when I play guitar, I just do it really spontaneously and just kind of improvise,” Gallo said.
Schaffer added that this Open Mic Night had more first time performers. Ariana Mozafari, a sophomore in the School of Communication, said that she had never performed as a singer and guitarist in front of a crowd before.
“I’ve always wanted to be in the entertainment industry…” Mozafaria said. “I decided to take this opportunity to get exposure to a crowd which is like something I’ve never done before.” She performed an Ingrid Michaelson cover and an original composition.
With a full venue and a range of talents, AU students enjoyed the show.
“You get to see some aspect of someone you didn’t know just by looking at them,” Dan Keesey, a student at the School of International Service, said. “You don’t know who plays guitar, you don’t know who’s a good poet or who’s a good rapper.”
