Monday, April 7, 2014
Volume LVII, Issue 23
Brookfest 2014: Childish Gambino and Diplo
sbstatesman.com
By Nicole Bansen Arts & Entertainment Editor
When spring hits Stony Brook, one question starts circulating around the campus: “who is performing for the spring concert?” So far this year, rumors have been bouncing around on social media sites, but it was not until today that the announcement was made official. Diplo and Childish Gambino will be coming to Stony Brook. "They weren’t our first or second choice,” Garry Lachhar, the Vice President of Student Life. "But they were in our list of options that we narrowed it down to.” Lachhar sat down with The Statesman to break down the process of how the artist is picked. It is a procedure that involves the Student Activity Board, with the four voting members, the SAB director and the VP of Student Life and can start as early as November. The first thing that is needed is to secure the venue and the date. Since the concert will take place in Kenneth P. LaValle Stadium, the SAB has to ask Athletics for their schedule and the dates that would work best for them. From there, Athletics gave them the dates of April 17, a Thursday and April 23, a Wednesday. Once the venue and dates are secured, they can start worrying about the artist. The process starts by members of SAB researching any relevant artists and compiling the names onto a list. This year, the original list contained over 300 names of artists from all genres and prices. Once the list is compiled, they send all 300 names to their agent and he gives back a filtered list. That list is filtered by performers’ availabilities during the week of the approved dates. From there, the SAB can get pricing estimates on artists still on the list. This year, those two steps narrowed down the list from 300 to 100-150 possible artists. And when you have that information, you can start the next step which is eliminating names. One thing Lachhar said the board takes into account is, “Will this person be a good headline for our show?” Keeping that in
STATESMAN STOCK PHOTO
Top: Ludacris and Grouplove perform at Brookfest 2013. Bottom: Bruno Mars and Janelle Monae take the stage in 2011. mind, the list got narrowed down even more until they were left with just 20 names. They then try to figure out the price and if the name “pops out to you.” Now, for those who are unfamiliar with these artists here’s a little background information. Diplo, Thomas Wesley Pentz, is a DJ/rapper and is popularly known for his guise, Major Lazer. Although he doesn’t have one particular genre, Major Lazer’s music can be described as Jamaican inspired dancehall. Diplo has worked and collaborated with big names like M.I.A., Beyonce, Steve Aoki, Kid Cudi, Bruno Mars and numerous others. Childish Gambino, the headliner, is a multifaceted performer like Diplo. Other than performing as a rapper, he is also a singer, writer, actor, comedian and producer. Gambino, whose real name is Donald Glover, has released many mix-tapes through his website, but his most recent album under a label is "Because the Internet," which came out in December, 2013. Gambino’s style is a mix of R&B and hip hop and he has collaborated with Danny Brown, Chance the Rapper and Jhene Aiko. So there you have it. Now you are well equipped to dispel any false rumor you run across on Facebook or Twitter. The spring concert will be held at Kenneth P. LaValle Stadium on April 23.
News
USG Breakdown A look at how SBU’s student government operates. MORE ON PAGE 4
Tobacco-buying age limit increases in Suffolk County
By Robby Cimino Staff Writer
Suffolk County legislators voted 10 to 8 to raise the legal tobacco-purchasing age from 19 to 21. This change will begin on Jan. 1 next year. This follows New York City’s decision in November to change its tobacco-purchasing law from 18 to 21, which will take effect in May. In 2005, Suffolk County legislators passed a bill to raise the tobacco-purchasing age from 18 to 19, a decision that also took hold in neighboring Nassau County. Suffolk’s recent decision has not influenced Nassau this
time. Nassau County legislators promptly blocked the vote to raise the county’s tobaccopurchasing age. “There are times when both Suffolk and Nassau counties work together on legislation,” Suffolk County Legislator DuWayne Gregory (D-District 15) said. “But it is not always necessary.” At Stony Brook University, which is in Suffolk County and therefore within the range of the new law, students will be affected by the recent shift in legislation. “I myself will not be affected by it because of my age,” Joshua Kim, a junior political science major, said. “But I think it’s completely unnecessary.” Stony Brook students have also
brought the economic implications of raising the legal tobaccopurchasing age into question. “If anything I think it will do more harm than good,” Kim said. “It will definitely decrease tax revenue.” Other students have voiced more vehement opposition to the recent change. “They expect us to come to college and be adults but now they’re going to tell me I’m too much of a child to buy cigarettes,” Max Eckes, a sophomore geology major, said. “It’s condescending and honestly insulting.” Gregory argues that cigarettes Continued on page 3
Men's Lacrosse comes away with 10-7 victory Saturday By Andrew Eichenholz Staff Writer
It is often said that a picture is worth a thousand words, but senior George Benitez only needed two to describe his picture-perfect first collegiate goal in a Stony Brook men’s lacrosse 10-7 win over Vermont. “It’s unbelievable.” Just 38 seconds into the second half, the defenseman scored what would end up being the winning goal for the Seawolves, at the time putting the team ahead 8-2. “Time almost stopped, it was crazy,” Benitez, a native of Darien,
Arts & Entertainment
Conn., said. In lacrosse, it is pretty rare to see a defenseman in the offensive third, let alone taking shots, but Benitez had one and he took it. “I saw the down-low defenseman were pressing out on the attackmen, so it was just pretty much me and the cage, and I had the ball, I got up to about 12 yards and I knew, this was my shot. I’ve got to shoot it right now, now or never.” Shoot it he did, putting the ball in the back of the net for the first time since he did a couple of times in high school. Freshman midfielder Mark Ellis Opinions
also contributed the first goal of his career for the Seawolves on an assist from sophomore Brody Eastwood at 12:51 of the 2nd quarter. It is hard to ignore the total defensive effort that Stony Brook put together, from the energy displayed by the defensemen to the 19 saves made by freshman goalkeeper Hayden Johnstone. The Seawolves did a great job keeping the Catamounts as far away from the goal crease as they could, allowing Johnstone the opportunity to make Continued on page 16 Sports
Holi exposes students to Indian culture
Higher tobacco age limit worsens problem
Women’s Lax blows out Jacksonville
MORE ON PAGE 8
MORE ON PAGE 11
MORE ON PAGE 16
Holi celebrations brings color and culture to SBU-
New law will not address tobacco problem
Seawolves take down the Dolphins