New American Welcome Center hosts Chinese Cultural Exhibition
By Rohit Jammu, Assistant Features Editor
September 21, 2020
The New American Welcome Center at the University YMCA hosted a welcome week in an effort to bring together organizations, communities, immigrants, refugees and long-time residents to build strong connections, strengthen communities and establish the importance of welcoming and inclusive places. The welc...
Champaign’s rap wizard releases ‘Hold This L’ EP
By Karena Tse, Staff Writer
September 10, 2020
Deangelo Brown wears many hats — most notably, his wizard hat. As Voldrega the Black Mage, the 32-year-old has emerged as a unique voice in Champaign-Urbana hip-hop. His latest offering, “Hold this L,” features beats by Lamont “The Letter L Beats” Holden, collaborations with a few local fav...
PBS Short Film Festival highlights independent filmmakers
By Elizabeth Sayasane, Features Editor
July 21, 2020
The Ninth Annual PBS Short Film Festival drew thousands of submissions from creators all across the country. Illinois Public Media presents two of the 25 short films featured: “Paddle Together” by filmmakers Katie Prentiss Onsager from Small Forces and “You Know the Drill” by McKinleigh Lair fr...
Kevin Bacon reflects on his role in summer blockbuster
By Jared Ebanks, Assistant Features Editor
June 26, 2020
As the world adapts to a global pandemic, content creators such as filmmakers had to quickly decide whether their movies would premiere months behind schedule in a theater, or offer on-demand viewing. Over the past month, Universal Studios has offered two of its projected summer blockbusters for on-demand ...
Virtual rap tournament reinvigorates local hip hop
By Karena Tse, Staff Writer
May 31, 2020
Throughout the month of May, 16 Illinois emcees competed in the single-elimination Verse4Verse Quarantine Tournament for a $500 cash prize. Seven different cities were represented in the bracket, including Champaign. Now, two local powerhouses remain standing in the final match: Chase Baby and Black Mag...
Canopy Club open mic night moves online
By Rohit Jammu, Assistant Features Editor
April 16, 2020
The Canopy Club opened its doors to the public in 1998 and has been home to some of the most entertaining nightlife and live performances ever since. Hosting a wide variety of performers including up-and-coming artists to well-established rockstars to local budding musicians, The Canopy Club has had...
COVID-19 impacts arts community
By Bridget Boisvert Curtis, Contributing Writer
March 24, 2020
Only a couple weeks ago, the stages and galleries at the Krannert Center for the Performing Arts were filled with music playing through the large halls and crowds of people teeming to see performances. As the end of March nears, the performing arts center is eerily empty, echoing with the uncertain, str...
Tony-award winning ‘Cabaret’ dazzles Krannert
By Bridget Boisvert Curtis, Contributing writer
March 2, 2020
Suddenly, from the dark, the red-lipped, stiletto-clad Masters of Ceremonies at the eccentric Kit Kat Klub steals the spotlight and begins singing “Wilkommen,” welcoming the audience into the whirlwind world of the 1930s, set in a decadent cabaret in a pre-Nazi Berlin. In celebration of its 50th anniversary, Kran...
Improv groups on campus find life lessons in comedy
By Jared Ebanks, Staff Writer
March 2, 2020
At 8 years old, Elizabeth Wilson, junior in LAS, waited patiently throughout the week for her favorite night, Saturday night. Most kids that age are getting ready for bed or finishing up a cartoon but not Wilson. She sat, eyes glued to the television, in anticipation of her favorite show, “Saturday N...
University students steal TikTok show, go viral
By Jared Ebanks, Staff Writer
February 17, 2020
When the now-viral video sharing app TikTok launched in 2017, social media users gravitated to the new platform because it was relatively untouched and had unique content and features. TikTok burst onto the scene in late 2018 when the company merged with startup Musical.ly. The apps shared similar featu...
Emerging La Estación Gallery explores objects in new exhibition
By Zulema Herrera, Staff Writer
February 10, 2020
The copy room at the Department of Latino/a Studies building has TVs on the left and right walls. The one to the right shows an unapologetic Paulina Camacho Valencia eating cow tongue like it's her last meal. Valencia, graduate student in FAA, titled her piece “Lengua Madre” because she says art is ma...
‘Harry Potter’ class asks students to analyze western perspective
By Jared Ebanks, Staff Writer
February 6, 2020
As time goes on, generations watch as beloved childhood books and movies evolve, and their meanings are interpreted differently. They hold a diverse amount of knowledge and learning material about that era. Here at the University, faculty have developed courses around pop culture. GER 199/ CWN 199: Ha...
