Tomorrow, February 25th, SPEC Jazz & Grooves, SPEC Art Collective, and WQHS Radio are collaborating to bring you the second part of their Student Grooves show. Starting at 1:30PM, there will be live sets from Penn students, along with a variety of products being sold by different vendors. We learned more about a few of the people who will be performing tomorrow, and have an exclusive sneak peek at what you can expect tomorrow.
Kandy Rapper (performing at 2:40PM)
Kayla Bernstein, better known by her stage name Kandy Rapper, has been rapping and singing since her junior year of high school. Originally writing just for fun and as a creative outlet, her raps are meant to be thoughtful, focusing on the meaning behind the words. This is her second time performing at Student Grooves, and she is excited to perform again because she not only loves to perform, but also had a great time at the first show. Tomorrow, she’ll be performing a rap song she wrote as a project for her Bob Dylan creative writing class, interweaving qualities of Dylan’s music into her own. If you catch her set tomorrow, make sure to ask her to do the eyebrow wave – she can do it on command any time someone asks.
Ayo Fagbemi (performing at 2:50PM)
Wharton senior Ayo Fagbemi applies his versatility in music taste into his covers, ranging anywhere from hip-hop to jazz to electronica to neo-soul. He is currently a bass singer in The Inspiration, an a cappella group which is dedicated to performing music written or composed by people of the African diaspora. He tends to be low-key in his performances, performing cocktail music at Penn dinners and networking events, and occasionally performing at Saxby’s. Along with Fagbemi, fellow members of The Inspiration will be performing with him tomorrow.
Phortissimo (performing at 3:45PM)
Hip-hop connoisseur Phortissimo, better known by Akshay Chandrasekhar to Penn students, is known for his beatboxing, freestyle raps, and original songs. Aside from writing and performing his own music, he also produces, mixes, and records everything by himself. What sets Phortissimo apart is his humor, and his unique integration of South Asian contemporary and classical music into rap – often sampling songs within those genres in the background of his raps. Aside from his rap career, he majors in Robotics (he’s currently a super-senior/master’s student), and is an entrepreneur, performing at open mics and giving talks around Philadelphia.
Public Void (performing at 4:25PM)
William Brown, a sophomore studying Computer Science and Philosophy, performs as Public Void, a unique project that crafts electronic-pop songs by way of indie rock and hip-hop. Public Void’s tracks are dark, introspective pop songs with diverse influences that range from psych-pop singer/producer Panda Bear to hip-hop producer Clams Casino, which makes sense, considering Brown’s interest in electronic production came about after playing in a high school garage rock band. Brown performed for last year’s Student Grooves and is excited to be performing some new material for the crowd tomorrow.
Acrillics (performing at 4:40PM)
Rob Atkins and Andro Mathewson make up Acrillics, a DJ/production duo based in the US and New Zealand. The cross-continental duo, founded just six months ago, has already landed features on New Zealand radio and found themselves opening for artists like Josh Pan & Louie Lastic. Last October, Acrillics released their trap-influenced Lost Colors EP, which features six tracks. While each of the songs are strongly influenced by trap, Acrillics aren’t afraid to branch out into different sounds and test the boundaries of the genre.
Be sure RSVP here and check out all of the great acts performing tomorrow! Here are the set times:
1:30 – Mister Monday
1:45 – Cheese If You Please
2:00 – Jon Iwry
2:15 – Glee Club Band
2:30 – Justin Sheen
2:40 – Kandy Rapper
2:50 – Ayo Fagbemi
3:00 – BOON & JUGO
3:30 – Hadji
3:45 – Phortissimo
4:00 – Dania Hallak
4:10 – Josh Marks
4:25 – Public Void
4:40 – Acrillics
4:55 – Pico de Gato
5:10 – LIHY
5:25 – JZMN
