WEDNESDAY | 4.19.2017 | MACEANDCROWN.COM | Vol. 60, Issue 24
Runaway From Rome
Lindsey Lanham Assistant A&E Editor
South Carolina native Antny Rome has brought his new wave music and art to ODU. Having just dropped a new music video for “Runaway/ Beautiful Death,” the artist is ready to prove to Norfolk what he can do. “Runaway” is a painfully open and personal track. It starts off with a haunting series of keys. Then it
quickly delves into a heavy beat. Rome sings, “I cannot lie, I got a taint on my pride / And my heart is bleeding / I’m tired of dreaming,” which he said was one of his favorite parts of the song. Rome just released the video for the songs on April 12. Inspired by the movie “Enter the Void,” the video flip-flops between Rome smoking and performing and clips from various
movies like “The Nightmare Before Christmas” and “Mad Max.” After “Runaway” finishes, the video pushes into a psychedelic sequence, complete with bright colors and funky shapes as it goes into more scenes from the movies. “Beautiful Mind” is a gorgeous, heavy beat that features dark whispers and intense feedback. The song ends with heavy breathing in the listener’s ear;
a unique, unforgettable way to end a song. Not just inspired by “Enter the Void,” Rome said the project was also personal. “I really wanted people to get a glimpse inside my head with ‘Beautiful Death’ and maybe a understanding of my life and why I think or act the way I do with ‘Runaway.’ see ROME, page B1
EXPOse Yourself
Courtesy Eventbrite.com
Ross Reelachart Technology Editor
The Strome Entrepreneurial Center recently held its “ODU Company Expo,” an event where more than 35 businesses started by students and alumni were showcased alongside a few community businesses. Established in 2013 thanks to a $10 million gift from the Strome Family Foundation, the center empowers young entrepreneurs to live their dreams and change the world, offering educational resources and advice from ex-
perienced professionals. Any student can approach the center looking for aid and direction. All they need is an idea and the drive to see it become reality. The following is just a sampling of the many student startups the SEC has fostered. Mobile app development is a hot tech trend right now, and the team behind Gymmie hopes to apply Tinder-style matching in helping people make the most of their workout. From an idea hatched by founders Max Hall and Jack Chanon, Gymmie is a way
for people to enhance their workout routines by matching them with other people who seek similar workouts or schedules. Right now, Gymmie is only available on iOS, but developers Michael Freeman, Avinash Gosavi and Blake Rodgers are working to put Gymmie on Android soon. In the future, the team hopes to implement integration with gyms other than the SRC and branch out into the Hampton Roads area. A prime example of ambition, Blake Rogers is also one-half of the team at
another student startup, kiNNectUS. Together with Akosua Acheamponmaa, kiNNectUS is a mobile and web developer that prides itself on being a local business. The app helps clients build their ideas beyond “getting the job done.” The startup began after the two met at a Dominion Enterprises "hackathon," which Acheamponmaa won, and has already served many clients including Gymmie and Pogo, another student company. see STROME, page D1
We're United and It Feels So Good Jade Dixon Contributing Writer The President’s Task Force held a discussion April 12 about unity and faith focusing on how it impacts campus life, how it is seen being practiced and personal experiences with religion and faith. Denisse Thillet and Bethane Dickie, members of the President’s Task Force, led a discussion on how to bring students and faculty of different backgrounds together. In addition to uncovering religious experiences on campus, they also wanted to know how religion and faith play out on campus and how it relates to unity from a student’s perspective. Rather than lecture, Thillet allowed the students to interact in engaging conversation while she facilitated discussion questions. “When you hear the word faith and religion, what are some things that come to mind and are there any differences or similarities between religion and faith?” “When I think of religion, I think of going to church then going home but when it comes to faith, and I think I realized this through college, it was really a personal connection to God. I always felt church was a chore,” senior Carla Medrano said. Everyone has a choice on whether they want to practice a certain religion and how they want to practice it. There are student organizations that actively promote bible studies, prayer events and other gatherings for students who do not feel or think the same way about religion as others do. see UNITE, page A4
HELTPED WAN
see page A2