Hail Mary Mallon takes over The Social

Chloe Lomelli

Photojournalism Article
April 13, 2015

Downtown’s The Social got some fierce DJ cuts and coded metaphorical rhymes last night March 5. Hail Mary Mallon and Dj Abilities’ sold-out hip-hop show went on until about midnight and left fans more than satisfied. Hail Mary Mallon is the duo consisting of rappers Aesop Rock and Rob Sonic. 

They are on tour for the second album, “Bestiary”.

DJ Abilities cutting it up on the tables,
he gave a solid performance
and blew away fans. 

The two, along with Abilities, immediately got to business and opened with “Jonathan” the first song off their latest album. Instantly, the crowd went wild and the hands in the air and head nodding began. This was the perfect show for the longtime, die-hard fans. Even those who are not familiar with either Dj Abilities or HMM would have a good time. HMM’s newest album incorporates abstract raps, heavy bass and energetic deliveries.

Aesop Rock and Rob Sonic come to 

The Social and rocked the venue. 

The duo is on tour as Hail Mary Mallon and 

promoting their newest album “Bestiary.”

The duo did a good job at involving the audience in their performance. They shook hands with fans while on stage and had them shout out lyrics during songs like “Dollywood” and “Kiln”.  Both Rock and Sonic had an immense stage presence and only stopped moving to allow Abilities to show off what he does best. Abilities cut mixed songs, and at one point he had the venue shaking with bass. Along with Rock’s all-over-the-place hand movements and Sonic’s peculiar faces, it was almost impossible to look away.

In the audience was local emcee, BOXicle Jenkins. He grew up listening to Rock and seemed to be having a good time. It was easy to tell Rock really touched his fans when people came up to him just to tell him he is “the greatest rapper”.

Not only did HMM do songs off their latest album, they performed songs from their solo projects. Sonic did songs from his newest album “Alice in Thunderdome” and Rock performed classics like “Coffee” and “None Shall Pass”. 

HMM performing their single “Jonathan”. 

It was hard not to enjoy everyone on stage. Noticeably, HMM has put a lot of energy into this tour. This was the 35th show of the tour, and according to Rock it was “all a blur.” To him the show may have been blurred vision, but for the audience will always be a night to remember.

Hail Mary Mallon Preview

Hip-hop duo to come to Orlando

Chloe Lomelli
Outlet Article
April 13th, 2015

Even if you only dabble in the local hip-hop scene, it’s not hard to see the active role Orlando artist Swamburger plays in the music community. Working with other movers, such as Madd Illz, he has brought events like Stage Wars to the area for all Orlando emcees to show off their rhyming abilities.

Rob Sonic and Aesop Rock on their Bestiary Tour.
The duo is ready to take Orlando by storm.

Swamburger recently teamed with The Social, a downtown club to bring local Orlando hip-hop talent front and center. He recent creation Swamburger Presents, which are showcases that have brought established local emcees like E-Turn and SPS, SKIP and DJ Chono, Acey Wasuto and Qwel to the Social’s stage.

Come March 5, he is set to bring his most anticipated act, Aesop Rock and Rob Sonic as Hail Mary Mallon. (Rumored to be on stage with them is DJ Abilities.) The Rhymesayers artists are on their “Bestiary Tour,” titled after their second album, which dropped Nov. 10 2014.

Both, Rock and Sonic are known for their wordy raps. Together they were able to play off each other’s dense metaphorical rhyming and create witty wordplay and abstract themes throughout the album. The album incorporates skits stringing together a story about saving a bowling alley and beats with heavy kicks and deep bass that compliment  the two lyricists eccentric rhyme patterns.

The atmosphere will be filled with unconventional anecdotes and on-point deliveries that any fan would appreciate. Anyone is guaranteed a fun night out.

Doors open at 8:00 p.m.; tickets may be purchased for $20 online via Ticketfly.com. This is an 18 and over event.

New director brings new opportunities

Cheryl Robinson steps up to be the new Honors College director

Chloe Lomelli
Campus Article
April 13th, 2015

The new Honors Program Director, Cheryl Robinson.
 After all the applications and interviewsRobinson is 
ready to do all she can to improve the Honors College at Valencia.

    program director at Valencia College. Robinson has been with Valencia since 1997 and was dean of students at the Winter Park campus for ten years. She is excited to be a part of the program and cannot wait to work with students and faculty to improve the Honors College.

After long application processes and intensive interviews, Cheryl Robinson was chosen to replace Valeria Burks as the new Honors

     On March 16, Robinson traveled to different campuses and invited faculty and students to come by and say hi. At the meet and greet, faculty and students came by to welcome the new director. Robinson was warm and receptive to all who came to congratulate her. “I’m excited about the new director. Everybody says she is great,” said honors student Lynette Rocha.

    “We’d really like to grow the program,” said Robinson. She wants to draw students who do not typically think of themselves as honors students. When people think of “honors”, they typically think classes are harder or have a heavier workload. People also think they have to be extremely intelligent to a part of an honors program.  The honors program at Valencia strives to break these stereotypes by encouraging students to think creatively and have students grow academically and personally through the different honors tracks offered and outside classroom activities.

      Students apart of the James M. and Dayle L. Seneff Honors College are required to have 15 co-curricular hours a semester and have required courses throughout their time in the program. These co-curricular hours are actives that take place outside the classroom that cover a range of topics. Students have the chance to learn about topics that have a real-world applications such as time and money management and also topics that open the eyes other cultures and are able to help in select local events to gain these hours. 

Faculty and students come to congratulate 

Robinson on her new position.  

     The classes students are able to take both honors and non-honors course. The honors courses offered correlate with the different tracks offered at the East, West and Winter Park campuses. At East campus students are a part of the Undergraduate Research Track, which is designed for students who plan on attending a graduate or professional program.

     The track offered at West campus is the Interdisciplinary Studies Track. It allows students to create an integrative, holistic education experience that empowers a global and diverse perspective. Lastly, the Jeffersonian Track  at Winter Park is designed to provide a well-rounded general education curriculum with an emphasis on creating global citizens.

    Robinson is currently investigating whether 15 co-curricular hours a semester is too much for students, and if it is, she plans to try to change that requirement. She also wants to fix scheduling with the required course within the Honors College. She wants the honors courses to fit and be more flexible with the student's other classes.

    

     The honors program gives students the opportunity to grow in a distinctive environment through its smaller classes and a staff whose primary goal is quality teaching. Scholarship opportunities are available and study abroad trips are incorporated in the program. Now, with an enthusiastic program director whose focus is bettering the program there’s not much stopping students from joining.  Interested students should visit http://valenciacollege.edu/honors and apply online.

Ballroom Dresses and Sneakers

Mytho StVictor

Campus Article

April 3, 2015

The decorated entrance to the event.

Before I first walked in I was expecting to see a bunch of students laced up in their nicest ballroom dresses and tuxedos. And I was right, kind of.. There were those who actually dressed up like this was their second chance at prom and then there were those who dressed like I should have been asking them if they had their hall passes on them. This event was hosted by SGA and funded by Student Development. The setting of this Get Back Your Prom event was the Valencia West Campus Special Events Center, decorated with what seemed like the budget of a middle school dance, but it was still a very nice set up. There was a big sign in the front of the room that read Prom City, a live DJ set up in one corner of the room, a couple of tables on one side of the room, and even a self serve buffet lined up against one wall of the room. Then there was the most important part of the room, the dance floor, which was exactly what anyone would expect; a section of carpet filled with people wanting to dance. The room was filled with about a hundred or so Valencia students from every campus who took the mid-semester opportunity to let loose and they seemed to be really enjoying themselves. There were even giveaways all night to students who simply showed up.

3 friends ready themselves to take a picture in front of the Prom City backdrop.

A day after April Fools, I told my mother that I was going to prom and she thought I was joking, but on that 2nd day of April I really did get a chance to Get Back My Prom. Was this the most prestigious event ever? No, and neither was it the most elegant, aesthetically pleasing, nor many other things. But it was an opportunity for students across campuses to come together, dance moronically, sing obnoxiously, and enjoy each other’s presence and that's exactly what 

your first prom was supposed to be like. Except instead of this being one of the last times you get to have fun with your friends, it is one of the first great times you get to enjoy with your college classmates. In that aspect this was a very successful and entertaining event. I did not get to stay long enough to be able to see the multiple winners of prom King and Queen from each campus, but I think that all of us that got to get back our prom were the true winners of the night.