By Lindsey Reynolds | Contributor On April 13, 2016, with a mic drop performance and a salutary fist in the air, Kobe Bryant, a 20-season Laker veteran, punctuated a legendary NBA career. A graceful exit from the NBA signaled his entrance into a dutiful second act. Filled with purpose and the “Mamba Mentality,” Bryant focused his energy on inspiring the next generation of basketball greats, including his young daughters. On Sunday, over three years later, a devastating Sikorsky S-76B helicopter crash left Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna Bryant, along with seven others, dead. The helicopter was headed to Mamba…
Author: Lindsey Reynolds
When life gives you lemons, listen to Beyoncé’s Lemonade As the music industry becomes more streaming-based, more artists are conforming to the new demands of this business model. Beyoncé’s 9-time Grammy nominated album ‘Lemonade’ was released into Spotify and Apple Music on Tuesday, appeasing fans three years after its initial release. The album was originally released on Tidal, a music streaming platform that was founded by Beyoncé’s husband, famed rapper Jay-Z. Due to the prices being higher than those of subscriptions to other platforms and the unfamiliarity with the platform, many fans resorted to Youtube and piracy to listen. The…
Lindsey Reynolds | ReporterRhythm and blues rookie and 2018 alumnus Ejay Mallard released his new single “High Hopes” on Good Friday, foreshadowing the release of his upcoming album, “Traumatized.” His release date reached the ears of underground music lovers not only around campus, but around the country as well. The single, publicized heavily on Mallard’s Twitter page, received praise from listeners. Many tweeted the song’s chorus lyrics, and praise such as “the man has done it again,” “if you’re not listening to this then what are you doing?,” and “No hype, everyone on the timeline needs to listen to this…
Lindsey Reynolds | ReporterGrammy nominated rapper Ermias Asghedom, better known as Nipsey Hussle, died Sunday at 3:20 p.m. outside his Marathon Clothing store in Los Angeles. Asghedom was killed by shots to his head and torso. Los Angeles Police Department is in search of Eric Holder, 29, who is suspected for homicide.Surveillance footage shows brief exchange between Asghedom and the shooter which turned deadly when a gun was pulled on Asghedom, and he was shot multiple times. The shooter then ran into a nearby alley and was driven away in a white, four-door, Chevy Cruze driven by an unidentified female.…
Lindsey Reynolds | ReporterOn the morning of March 31, 1995, Yolanda Saldívar, a close friend and confidant of musical icon Selena Quintanilla, shot and killed the star in a Corpus Christi hotel room. 24 years later, Quintanilla’s legacy is a living and vibrant testament to her impact on Latino-American culture and music. The late singer, also known as the queen of Tejano music, was a living irony. She was a third-generation Texan who spoke very little Spanish. She learned to sing her Spanish songs phonetically, under the constant correction of her musician father, Abraham Quintanilla. Although she was the third-highest-earning…
Lindsey Reynolds | ReporterArt lovers around Waco and Baylor united on Monday in celebration of art through music and spoken word. This ‘For the Culture’ event, hosted by 2018 Baylor graduate Reggie Singletary and Waco art gallery Cultivate 7Twelve, included poets from Waco Poetry Society and Baylor alike. The set list was a mix of musical and poetic artists from the Waco area and current Baylor students and alumni.When asked about the inspiration behind the event, Singletary explained he gained many ideas for the event from NPR’s Tiny Desk series. This video series, hosted by Bob Boilen, features musicians and…
Lindsey Reynolds | ReporterThe power of social media is one of the foremost hot button issues of the 21st century, and Cultivate 7twelve’s latest exhibit addresses the topic head on, featuring pieces that explore branding and advertising through the medium. “The Art of Celebrity and Modern Brand Making: POP” is a mixed media exhibit that features photographs of presently famous personas, portraits of influencers from the past and even an artistic take on a recent Twitter argument between Hillary Clinton and President Trump. Each piece highlights the power that creating a persona has upon society and how it has transformed…
By Lindsey Reynolds | ReporterThe ever-growing lineage of the hip-hop/rap genre has evolved abundantly since the underground sounds of Coke La Rock circa 1973. These changes can be credited to the passing of time, progression in politics and, among others, advances in technology.Over a century before the rap genre exploded in America, West African musicians and Caribbean folk artists told rhythmic stories to entertain and to spread messages. These sounds were often chants and rhymes made spontaneously to the beat of a drum.Fast forward a hundred years: During the late ’70s in the heart of the Bronx, rap was born.…
Lindsey Reynolds | ReporterFashion month concludes Tuesday in Paris. Thousands of looks designed by the most prestigious fashion minds across the globe graced the runways in New York, London, Milan and Paris. Some of the looks appeased the industry’s elite, while others highlighted social taboos that left the masses with their jaws on the floor. Burberry retracted designs that generated social outcry amid the industry and the public. Among this season’s designs, the label released a sweater with a drawstring resembling a noose. The sweater was interpreted as a sinister reminder of past lynchings and present suicide numbers. Liz Kennedy,…
Famed hip-hop artist and rapper Robert Kelly (R. Kelly) was arrested and charged with 10 counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse after turning himself in to a Chicago police district on Feb. 22. Over a decade following a child pornography indictment, a contentious sex-tape trial in 2008 and the indictments of four women’s cases against the rapper, Kelly posted $100,000 bail on Monday. The rapper appeared in court later that day and pleaded not guilty on all accounts. Lifetime’s “Surviving R. Kelly” docuseries, released in January, brought prominence to the victims’ experiences with the rapper through individual interviews. The common…
Lindsey Reynolds | ReporterSeason 38 of “Survivor: Edge of Extinction” premiered Wednesday night, and with it came a few surprises and a very familiar face. Baylor alumna Lauren O’Connell is competing as one of the 18 contestants. The competition took place on the hot beaches and in the humid rainforests of Fiji. O’Connell grew up watching “Survivor” and even named her toys after well-known players of the show. “When I was little, I used to have Barbies that I named Tina and Colby because I had watched the show since I was so little,” O’Connell said. O’Connell, former Baylor soccer…
Lindsey Reynolds | ReporterPoetry: a nuisance to some and an outlet for others. Many students on campus use poetry to heal, to overcome and to be heard. Poetry is a prominent element of the underground artist community on campus. Many of these artists write lyrics for musicians and excerpts for promotional videos, but some write for their own health. Austin senior Jade Moffett said she believes poetry initiates personal discovery. During her freshman year, Moffett recalls having trouble handling her emotions in a healthy way. Prompted by her mother, Moffett began to transcribe her thoughts in the form of poetry.…
Lindsey Reynolds | ReporterTucked in the heart of downtown, Cultivate 7Twelve’s exhibit ‘Touch of Red’ is helping Waco’s beginning art collectors launch their own collections. It includes small works from several artists, and each unique work has only one thing in common: the color red. The artists in the exhibit are a part of the Professional Artists of Central Texas (PACT). The mission of this organization is “to strengthen, improve and promote the artistic, professional and economic success of fine artists.” The ‘Touch of Red’ exhibit remains true to this statement by cultivating interest in Waco’s artists. Assistant retail manager…
Jan. 24 marked 30 years since serial killer Ted Bundy was executed by electric chair at Florida State Prison. This date also marked the release of Netflix’s new true-crime docuseries “Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes.” Before Bundy’s execution, journalist Stephen Michaud took advantage of Bundy’s degree in psychology and prompted the mass murderer to speak about these crimes in third person as an “expert witness.” Thus, the Ted Bundy Tapes were created. “Well it’s not an easy question, but I think we can speculate,” Bundy responded when asked who he thought could have committed these atrocities. “We…
By Lindsey Reynolds | Reporter1985 he arrived. In light of North Carolina-based rapper Jermaine Lamarr Cole’s (J. Cole) 34th birthday on Tuesday, many have taken time to reflect on his influence upon the music industry and on the rap genre specifically. J. Cole is a Grammy nominated rapper, songwriter and producer out of Fayetteville, N.C. His mixtape “The Come Up” gained him initial recognition when he released it in 2007. After signing to New York rapper Jay-Z’s Roc Nation imprint in 2009, Cole released back-to-back mixtapes “The Warm Up” and “Friday Night Lights.” The two tapes attracted the attention of…
In the summer of 2018, former University of Mary Hardin-Baylor linebacker De’Oryen Thornton and longtime sneakerhead Brady Gilstrap joined forces to introduce Waco to the high-end vintage and streetwear scenes. But it was not without tenacity and a major defeat that made the young entrepreneurs’ dreams a reality. In the middle of his football career at UMHB, Thornton endured a career-ending injury. “I tore my hip labrum, and I needed something else to do besides football,” Thornton said. “After 2016, I came home after surgery and didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life. I started customizing shoes……
Lindsey Reynolds | ReporterHe sat there bobbing his head up and down and strumming his fingers on the table next to a giant pad of paper. It was adorned with hieroglyphic-looking scribbles that, to an onlooker, seemed to have no order or purpose. However, far from meaningless, these scribbles were the highly poetic thoughts of an artist with a purpose. Temple junior Jhefferson Blunt, who’s stage name is “Judah,” is not only a corporate communications major on the pre-law track, but also an audio engineer and rapper in Baylor’s underground music scene—a community of artists that unite in efforts to…