Chum’s was packed with performance groups on Thursday, Sept. 24 for the Relay for Life kickoff event.
Preceded by Relay organizers describing the cause and how to help raise money, Voicemale, the first act, energized the crowd with their beautiful voices. Their voices were full of soul, love and beautiful harmony. For those students who didn’t have the chance to go to this event or have not heard Voicemale sing before, check out their Spotify page (Brandeis Voicemale), which includes a list of all the songs they cover: “Live Like We’re Dying,” “Already Over,” “Where’s the Love,” “Let me Entertain You,” “Phoenix,” “Girlfriend” and more.
Brandeis Starving Artists is another a cappella group that does an incredible job of harmonizing their voices. All of the singers had powerful voices full of rhythm, beat and intensity. Also on Spotify, check out the songs they covered: “My Life Would Suck Without You,” “I’ll Be Waiting,” “Misery Business,” “Geek in the Pink,” “Proud” and more.
Crowd Control started their improv performance by asking the audience to think of a word. “I make love like I…” was the starter for the line game. All of the members of the group came to center stage in front of a chair to take their turns coming up with a line: “I make love like I swim; I always get out of salty water.”
Bad Grammer also created very entertaining sketches. They started off by having the audience come up with an excuse for why troupe member Matt Guerra ’18 was late for work. The audience came up with a story that involved Matt’s dog getting sick with diarrhea and helping an old woman cross the road. Two of the improv members acted out the scene behind the boss’ back, while Matt had to guess the reason using the cues that the other two members provided to him.
Later on, Donald Trump joined the stage, suggesting that instead of providing housing for the homeless character, he was going to create buildings all over the street instead. The audience then voted for which member they wanted to see off stage. Each round, there were fewer and fewer people on stage and the last person up had to recreate the scene by quickly acting out everyone else’s part.
Rap artists Makalani Mack ’16 and Joel Burt-Miller ’16 performed during the night. They are incredibly gifted artists who created unique rhythm through outstanding sound and lyrics. Burt-Miller wrote a rap about society and ableism, which was inspired by his time abroad in South Africa.
After some of the performances, there were breaks in the action where Relay for Life coordinators came up to the mic to introduce themselves and give more background information about the cause. In the back was a place where students could sign up for Relay for Life and donate $5.
Overall, the event was a great success. Many people came to the event, crowding the small but comfortable space at Chum’s. The kickoff event most certainly moved people to contribute to Relay for Life, as the performances revved up a vibrant energy.
