FEATURES
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Students see talent at Greenleaf fer Ne Mere Deaths
BY BRITTANY MURDOCK
Staff WwrreR
As I frantically scampered into the
Greenleaf to escape the chilly night, I was
overwhelmed with the mouthwatering
aroma of coffee and the peaceful sound of
fingers strumming an acoustic guitar.
On Feb. 28, students showed off a
wide range of talent during an open mike
session at the Greenleaf. Students not only
showcased their abilities but were also able
to donate and support No Mas Muertes,
also known as No More Deaths, a nonprofit
organization.
Students sang songs, read poems and
played instruments such as the saxophone,
acoustic and bass guitar, a bongo drum and
a ukulele.
Sophomore Isabel Ramirez and senior
Heather Scott sang a cover song and an
original piece during the event. They wrote
their original song in just two weeks.
"Lately, Heather and I have been falling
Sophomore Justyn Melrose strums his guitar in order to raise money for No Mas Muertes.
in love with playing music together, and we
wanted to work on performing in front of
others," said Ramirez. "We had a lot of fun."
Junior C.J. Green showed off his writing
skills by writing several emotional and
personal poems.
First-year Ben Evans played the acoustic
guitar and sang "Better Together" by Jack
Johnson.
"I've been playing since the sixth grade,
so it was a lot of fun," said Evans.
But talent wasn't the only thing on
student minds.
"I thought it went great," said senior
Hallie Dowling-Huppert. "It was really
impressive. I attended No More Deaths two
years ago, and it's important I came out to
support the cause."
Several students will be traveling to the
Arizona-Mexico border to volunteer for
the organization No More Deaths for the
duration of their spring break. This program
aids migrants who are making the journey
to cross the Mexican-American border in
search of a better life and a promising future.
"The Greenleaf's core mission involves
social justice and being involved in work
that we think is necessary," said junior and
Greenleaf member Lyes Benarbane. "Open
mike was a great way to get the community
together as well as raise money for No Mas
Muertes."
Volunteers will provide water aid.
humanitarian aid and basic medical
care to immigrants walking through the
desert. Senior Allison Semmler traveled to
Arizona last spring break and went back
as a volunteer during the summer for two
months. She is now organizing the trip this
year.
"No More Deaths has a really good
support system as far as making sure
everyone was in a good place to do the work
that was needed," said Semmler. "If things
were too tiring or overwhelming, they let
you take the time that you needed before
you went back to work."
Students raised funds by reaching out
to the local community and academic
departments as well as clubs on campus
such as Bonner and Study Abroad.
"The money we raise will go towards the
$200 volunteer fee, flight tickets and gas for
the car we need when we get down there,"
said Semmler. "Being that this is a nonprofit
organization, the volunteer fee will also
go towards the daily cost of running the
program as well as the volunteer's food."
Nearly $7,000 was collected from various
sources. The open mike raised $40 but raised
an ever greater sense of campus community.
"The turnout of people was better than
what I expected," said sophomore and
Greenleaf member Sam Metzner. "It wasn't
all about the money but really bringing the
community together."
KevoBeats: wrapping by day, making beats by night
BY JOHN KLUEPFEL
Staff Writer
"In my free time. I'm at The Grill," said Kevin Otutuloro,
better Imown as Kevin from The Grill, in an email
interview. "My real job starts as soon as I leave campus."
Kevin is more than just your ordinary wrap maker.
Students usually see Grill workers as robots whose lives
revolve around making sandwiches and smoothies, but
there's more to them and Kevin than meets the eye.
Kevin has worked at The Grill since September 2011
and credits his friend KP for his introduction to Guilford.
"I only knew about Guilford because my friend KP told
me that there were job openings," said Kevin.
"Kevin is great at making wraps," said first-year
Liliana Bernhardt. "He's really social, and I always have
conversations with him when I order my food."
Kevin attributes his wrap-making skills to the
competitive nature of The Grill's staff.
"If it wasn't for my co-workers. The Dutch and Mecah,
I wouldn't be as good as I am," said Kevin. "It was a
constant competition to be wrap-master last year. This
year I'm just clearly unstoppable. Stop by The Grill for a
box. They're great."
However, Kevin is not only known for making wraps.
Kevin often refers to himself by his stage name,
KevoBeats, and has been making beats since 2002 when he
was a freshman in high school.
"Kevo got the name KevoBeats because it is his music
persona," said junior C.J. Green in an email interview.
Green met Kevin at the Grill and has worked with him
on tracks.
"I remember he always talked about video games and
tried to challenge me in 'Marvel vs. Capcom,"' said Green.
"I usually go over to Grill Boy's house and play him or
help with the beats."
"I've listened to his music occasionally after he told me
that he was a music producer," said first-year Dina Rasul.
"I follow him on Twitter, and I check out his new music
whenever he tweets about it."
Kevin puts a lot of energy into his music career.
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"I usually give Kevo a sample or a song and he chops
it up, then we engineer some dopeness," said Green. "The
song 'Warrior' we did was just a beat he made for me to
use for myself.
"Linking up with Kevo really adds some creativity to
my work. He provides some unique beats and forces me
to think outside of the box in order to produce a song."
When Kevin is not making beats or wraps, he
skateboards.
"Kevin is an outstanding skater," said first-year Sherod
Johnson. "He's pretty much my idol when it comes to
skating. I see him skating behind the Alumni Gym on the
basketball court. He could be sponsored. He's that good."
We may seldom see him outside of The Grill, but it is
clear that Kevin is talented beyond the world of wrap
making.
"My plans for the future include making more dope
beats," said Kevin. "Peep my sounds at www.soundcloud.
com/kevobeats. Thanks for listening."
Check out Kevin’s page
on SoundCloud to hear
some great original
SOUNDCLOUD beats!
www.soundcloud.com/kevobeats