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Open Mic a Success
By Sandra Castro & Nick Nuzhny
The Women's Center Program Manager, Frances Robinson, and Access Resource Center Coordinator,
Heidi Lopez, hosted the Open Mic event above the cafeteria in room U-220. The Liberal
Arts Council provided this event with free refreshments and delicious food for everyone
to enjoy. This wonderful event was filled with spectacular performances by the student
body. They sang, poetry, danced, played music and recited poetry.
Coordinators Robinson and Lopez did an impeccable job hosting Open Mic Night, and
it showed in a lively crowd. At first, not many people were showing up---however,
students soon started to pile in, holding a larger audience. I was so happy that so
many students came out, we had at least a hundred people in this room, said Robinson,
delighted at the event's success.
Students were socializing, stirring up conversations with each other while they ate
and waited for the performances to commence. It was clear that the people who were
there were excited to see the various talent within Kingsborough Community College.
Lopez opened by warming up the crowd; she led us in a cheer to welcome the performers.
Michael Billings was first to stand in front of the audience to recite his poem Uncontrollable
about a person with suicidal thoughts, who in the end, realized there is a lot to
live for. Plenty of talent followed, much of which had a great deal to do with strong
women, because of Women's History month. Honorable women from the past were represented---Rosa
Parks and Harriet Tubman were mentioned in a poem. Even female icons in entertainment
were displayed; Beyonce's Dangerously in Love was sung gracefully, and Jaimie Elias
Saint gave an outstanding rendition of Whitney Houston's I Have Nothing . Elias Saint
took the grand prize of $100 cash for her stunning vocal talent; the second and third
prizewinners received $50 and $25, respectively.
Among all the mesmerizing pieces, a few stood out: Josh Freeburn's fascinating guitar
playing and singing, Dee Harris prodigious words in his deep, romantic poetry, Lee
Johnson's singing of his original song I Wanna Know What's Up, and many more that
were completely mind-blowing. The courage that these young and talented students had,
to go up in front of the audience to perform, was very admirable.
It took a lot of courage to come onstage; you see the different acts and I'd like
to see a lot more, said Lee Johnson, a.k.a Smooth Lee. I think it was cool. There
are a lot of talented people at Kingsborough and this was the perfect opportunity
to see many different people perform. I hope to see more performances and events like
this."
Lyndiana Ambroise who performed a song at Open Mic said, I thought the event was wonderful;
it was for a good cause and I really liked it because I like to be around talented
people." She couldn t have said it better. There was definitely unforgettable talent
and a great essence of creativity.
There will be more events like this to come, where you can express a piece of yourself
in a judgment free setting with others.
"This will be something I will remember. It was a successful event; a lot of students
were able to come out and be heard and that's what we're here for, said Robinson.
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