Tuesday, April 26, 2016

SINCE 1891

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2016

VOLUME CLI, ISSUE 56

Varsity athletes and athletic events Varsity athletes are more likely to have attended athletic events than non-athletes. Non-athletes reported never attending an athletic event at a rate more than 10 times higher than that of varsity athletes.

41.8%

40 percent 33.1%

30 20

20.3%

20.3%

17.8%

NONVARSITY ATHLETES

22.6%

22.1%

WWW.BROWNDAILYHERALD.COM

Clinton, Trump lead R.I. polls by about 10 percent Rhode Islanders to vote in presidential primaries today as greater turnout complicates polling results

By ELENA RENKEN SENIOR STAFF WRITER

10

VARSITY ATHLETES

8.5% 3.6%

1.5%

0

More than once a week

5.1%

Once a week

Once or twice a month

Once or twice a semester

3.4%

Once a year

Never

Source: Spring 2016 Herald Poll KATE TALERICO / HERALD

Low attendance perennial plague for athletics Though men’s lacrosse generates large crowds, overall, students remain apathetic toward teams

By BEN SHUMATE SENIOR STAFF WRITER

This story is the first in a three-part series about Brown athletics.

BRUNO’S WOES In The Herald’s own “Completely Unofficial Guide to Brown,” first-years are

given an A-Z listing of Brown-related terms to know. The only term related to Brown athletics is “stadium,” with the description: “It’s over a mile away.

This would be a huge pain if anyone besides alums and the Brown Band went to football games.”

It is hardly a secret that sports are generally not central to student life at top-tier academic institutions like Ivy League schools, but the lack of student interest in athletics at Brown is a nearly cultural phenomenon.

Student apathy According to The Herald’s spring

poll, 37.1 percent of students have never attended a Brown athletic event in its entirety or close to its entirety. An additional 20.3 percent said they do so only once a year.

Of Brown’s 38 varsity sports, many are not traditionally regarded as spectator sports. But Brown does field teams in sports thought to be most popular nationally: football, baseball and basketball, along with lacrosse and ice hockey — sports with a large following in the New England area. One might expect these sports to garner a crowd, even at an Ivy League school. » See ATHLETICS, page 2

With Rhode Islanders heading to the polls today, the unsettled races in both parties place more importance on voters in the Ocean State than in past years.

A poll conducted by the Taubman Center for American Politics and Policy in February showed former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton topping U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, D-VT, by nine percentage points in the Democratic race and Donald Trump leading the Republicans with an 18-point advantage over U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-FL. Sanders dominates in the cohort of voters under 45, while those above 65 favor Clinton, along with women and black voters. Among men and those above age 65, there is strong support for Trump, but 26 percent of Republican primary voters below age 45 remain undecided.

A more recent Taubman poll released Sunday showed Clinton leading Sanders by about 10 points and Trump leading Gov. John Kasich of Ohio by about 12 points.

“This is a weird election,” said Joshua Dyck, associate professor of political

science and co-director of the Center for Public Opinion at the University of Massachusetts at Lowell. “Every once in a while, things happen where you get some sort of crazy outsider, and that’s exactly what we have with Donald Trump on the Republican side.”

“In some of these later races now, because they’re actually consequential, we’re seeing higher levels of turnout, and we don’t know how to predict these turnout surges,” Dyck said. “In the context of presidential primary elections, they’re unprecedented.”

Though these “turnout surges” make it difficult for pollsters to build a dependable likely voter model, polling has been generally accurate for this election so far, he said.

“This is a pretty good rule of thumb: Polls do a pretty dismal job of predicting caucuses. The record on primaries is better,” said Richard Arenberg, adjunct lecturer in international and public affairs.

“There are a lot of places things could go wrong. That they don’t go wrong more often actually is a testament to why people can generally believe what they’re seeing.”

Many experts doubt the accuracy of online polls, and dropping response rates and increased cell phone use are creating problems for pollsters, as The Herald previously reported. Despite these new issues, “it’s not clear that (poll accuracy is) necessarily any worse this year than it » See POLLS, page 2

BMP’s spring premiere Trump rallies voters ahead of R.I. primaries Speech punctuated by showcases student films chants of protesters Night at Avon features four stories of horror, humor, heartbreak, healing on big screen

By JENNIFER SHOOK SENIOR STAFF WRITER

Thayer’s iconic Avon Theater was packed Sunday night as filmmakers, friends and film-enthusiasts gathered for Brown Motion Picture’s spring premiere of four short student films that the organization produced over the spring semester. The event marked the third consecutive semester that BMP’s biannual premiere showed at the singlescreen cinema.

This spring’s four student films were selected over winter break from a pool of over 70 submitted screenplays. The chosen screenplays were then paired with a director and crew, then casted for production.

ARTS & CULTURE

INSIDE

Two of the four films — “Breakup Diner” and “Luke” — were written by Marcelo Rivera-Figeuroa ’18. The other two films, “The Manor of Murder: A Manor Murder Mystery” and “Somewhere it is Spring,” were written by Ali Murray ’18 and Laura Kenney ’19, respectively.

The four films ran the gamut from tragedy to humor and even included some horror.

Both “Breakup Diner” and “Luke” feature romantic storylines with a hint of comedy. The former, directed by Maria Paz Almenara ’16 and Alif Ibrahim ’16 — the first co-directed BMP film — features three vignettes of differing romantic breakups, all filmed in the familiar scene of Louis diner.

The film centers around the idea of “saying goodbye in college” to relationships, both romantic and not romantic, Ibrahim said.

“It’s about having to make decisions for yourself and not really being able to — at this point in your life — do » See BMP, page 2

about candidate’s ‘racist, xenophobic’ rhetoric

By KATE TALERICO NEWS EDITOR

Rhode Island has continued to ride a wave of attention from presidential candidates in the midst of primary season as the small state was visited Monday by Republican front-runner Donald Trump. The businessman hosted a rally at the Warwick Crowne Plaza that was interrupted by several protesters who condemned his statements about turning away refugees and his rhetoric describing women.

Trump’s arrival in the Ocean State followed an announcement by Ohio Gov. John Kasich and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-TX, that they would coordinate their campaigning in an effort to block Trump from receiving the Republican nomination.

In his 50-minute speech, Trump mocked his opponents for “colluding” » See TRUMP, page 4

KATE TALERICO / HERALD

Republican front-runner Donald Trump was met by protestors in Warwick, Rhode Island where he hosted a rally Monday in advance of today’s primary.

WEATHER

TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2016

NEWS The Herald sits down with Pulitzer Prize winners Kathryn Schultz ’96, Peter Balakian PhD’80

ARTS & CULTURE Dolapo Akinkugbe ’16 to perform final show after successful start in Providence

COMMENTARY Kumar ’17: ‘New York values’ embody country’s best, speak to American tradition of inclusivity

COMMENTARY Savello ’18: U.’s lax enforcement of drug policies prevents potentially more dangerous drug culture

PAGE 3

BACK

PAGE 7

PAGE 7

TODAY

TOMORROW

50 / 39

61 / 37

NEWS

PAGE 2 • TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2016

» ATHLETICS, from page 1 But national popularity does not guarantee interest in Brown teams at all.

Brown Stadium, where the football team plays its home games, has a capacity of 20,000. In five home games during the 2015 season, the average attendance was 4,822, according to the official site of Brown athletics.

Though on average the stadium was filled to less than a quarter of its capacity, Athletics Director Jack Hayes said that attendance this year was the best in his four years at the school.

“We’re a school that has students with a wide range of interests,” he said.

“As a result, there’s going to be students who are far more interested in other things on campus.”

The trend has persisted for a long time, said Digit Murphy, former head coach of the women’s hockey program during its heyday in the late ’90s and early 2000s. Murphy also attended Cornell, playing hockey over the course of her four years.

“In general, Brown was the least interested in sports of the Ivies that I had ever been a part of,” she said. “Athletics was one of the least things on the students’ mind, and of the faculty and community.”

For Jordan Ferguson ’17, playing in front of small crowds and empty seats was something of a shock at first.

The junior defensive back grew up in football-crazed Southern California, routinely playing high school games in front of 8,000 people. But throughout his career on a Brown team that has been fairly successful — relative to other teams here — he grew accustomed to a modest crowd at home games.

“When I first got here as a freshman, it was pretty frustrating,” Ferguson said.

“Ultimately, my teammates are there, and parents come. And that became enough for me.”

Given its location, no student is simply going to stumble upon a game at Brown Stadium. But attendance numbers remain low across the spectrum of sports represented at Brown, even for teams with more home games located closer to campus. The Brown men’s hockey team averaged 1,097 fans over 13 home games in the 2015-2016 season — a little over one-third of the maximum capacity of 3,100 at Meehan Auditorium.

Even then, official attendance numbers could be misleadingly high. Brown athletics often entices students to attend events with gimmicks such as free tshirt giveaways. Students who show up to grab free gear are counted in attendance figures as they walk in, but many less passionate spectators who come out for such giveaways may leave after a small portion of the game, a phenomenon regular attendees have observed.

Athlete, non-athlete divide Trying to narrow down the factors that engender students’ apathy for their

sports teams proves difficult. But many athletes speak about an ever-present rift between athletes and non-athletes on campus that may lie at the heart of modest attendance numbers. The prevalence of the division comes in part from academic-related stigma, said women’s hockey captain Alli Rolandelli ’16.

“I think there’s a big divide in the athlete crew and the non-athlete crew at Brown,” she said. “There’s some perception that athletes aren’t as smart or aren’t as deserving” of admission to Brown.

Sarah Lucenti ’17, who was recently named a co-captain of the volleyball team, said that non-athletes may not relate personally to athletes.

“It’s like a disconnect between everyone else knowing how hard we work and how important these games are to us, and athletes get that,” she said. “I think it’s getting better in a lot of ways, but I think that most support comes from other athletes.”

The proportion of athletes in the stands compared to non-athletes further exemplifies segregation within student culture on campus. Of the 11.4 percent of students who reported attending athletic events once a week or more often, 54 percent are varsity athletes themselves. Varsity athletes make up only 12.6 percent of the poll’s sample population.

“As an athlete, we know the time and commitment that goes into these things, and I think it makes it way more enjoyable to go and watch them put in that work,” Rolandelli said.

A trend of reciprocal attendance also contributes to athlete support at events, Ferguson said. “Other athletes come and support us as football players, so I like to return the favor,” he said.

“I’m also a big believer in ‘You have to be the change you want to see,’ so if I want people to actually show up to the games, I can’t be one of the people not showing up.”

A fan’s impact This year’s men’s lacrosse team is a case study that demonstrates the potential for true fan support at Brown.

The 12-1 Bears have been ranked in the top 10 nationally for the bulk of this season, recently taking down thenNo.1 Yale in front of a record crowd of 3,430 at Stevenson-Pincince Field April 16. Fueled by Spring Weekend adrenaline, students poured out onto the field to celebrate as the game went final; it was the display of school spirit that some — athlete and non-athlete — long to see at Brown.

“That was a University event,” Hayes said, who approved of students rushing the field after the win. “We would all like events to be like that.

Realistically, I think the stars aligned that day.”

Alec Tulett ’17, starting defenseman for men’s lacrosse, said the Yale game was “the best game (he’s) ever played in.”

The crowd “made it a great

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD atmosphere for the fans, the players and the coaches. Everyone had a great time,” he said. “That game felt like a national championship, and your play elevates to that level,” he said.

Any athlete would be quick to tout the positive effect of having fans in the stands — something Brown athletes in certain sports may benefit from more than others.

Women’s rugby, Brown’s newest varsity sport, plays its home games at the Berylson Family Fields, located adjacent to Brown Stadium. The national and school-wide popularity of rugby pales in comparison to a sport like football, but even the small crowd at rugby games makes a huge difference, said co-captain Oksana Goretaya ’17.

“Knowing that someone’s there to support you, it makes all the difference,” she said. “It’s always exciting to have people watch you play. It puts a little bit more pressure on you, but I think that it’s a positive pressure.”

Though she has grown accustomed to the small crowds at volleyball games, Lucenti said the team feeds off fan presence in the stands.

“It’s a huge help,” she said. “Sometimes when you need that extra boost, it’s really nice to have that.”

There is a reason men’s lacrosse is attracting fans this season like no other Brown sport: They win. With the athletes’ admitted cognizance of the crowd and its potential effect on team attitude or energy, a vicious cycle reveals itself for losing teams.

At other schools, “you’ll see a major program where people are interested no matter if the team is winning or losing,” Ferguson said. “But at Brown, the culture is more: If Brown is winning, then the student population is more invested than they otherwise would be.”

Murphy recalled that support for the 2001-2002 women’s hockey team that went 25-8-2 and lost in the national championship game was widespread at Brown, even without the luxury of marketing on social media.

As the 10th winningest coach in NCAA women’s hockey history, Murphy has seen first-hand what drives attendance and overall support for athletic teams.

“This is about winning,” she said.

“Let’s face it: People love winners.”

Since the Murphy years, the women’s hockey program has declined from a perennial winner to a team fighting to avoid last place in the Ivy League standings year in, year out — a trend that current Head Coach Bob Kenneally is trying to reverse.

“In the last 10 years, quite honestly, our teams haven’t been as successful as many department personnel, studentathletes and alumni would like us to be,” Kenneally said.

It is a pattern that has not been unique to one single sport, but is rather representative of Brown athletics as a whole — which may be why attendance numbers and student interest in athletics continue to underwhelm.

Taubman Center poll results A poll released by the Taubman Center for American Politics and Policy that surveyed 600 Rhode Islanders found that Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump lead in the state. The Rhode Island primaries will be held today.

Other: 6.8%

Other: 5.7%

Undecided: 16.0% Undecided: 17.1%

Trump: 37.5%

Clinton: 43.3% Kasich: 25.3%

Sanders: 33.9%

Cruz: 14.3% Source: Taumban Center for American Politics and Policy EMMA JERZYK / HERALD

» POLLS, from page 1 is historically,” said Courtney Kennedy, director of survey research at Pew Research Center.

But there have been exceptions. The Michigan Democratic primary stands out as an example of poll results differing from primary results, as polls predicted an easy win for Clinton in a race Sanders won instead. “That one’s a big red flag, and I think it needs to be looked at a little more closely,” Arenberg said, adding that an underrepresentation of young voters, who more often favor Sanders, may have contributed to the inaccuracy of the polls.

Poor sampling could have been a factor, or the Michigan polls could have been a result of random error, said David Redlawsk, director of the Eagleton Center for Public Interest Polling and professor of political science at Rutgers University.

But we only hear about polling “when polls get something wrong,” Dyck said. “If that’s happening about one in 20 times, then that’s actually what we would expect through random error.”

Any single poll should not be trusted on its own, Redlawsk said, adding that a group of polls taken over similar time frames and with similar populations provides a more reliable picture.

SAM BERUBE / HERALD

The Avon Cinema lobby was packed with film producers and enthusiasts Sunday night for Brown Motion Pictures’ spring premiere.

» BMP, from page 1 things for other people,” Almenara said.

“I think we agree that college is a little bit of a selfish time for everyone.”

With the goal of capturing the woes of undergraduate relationships, Almenara and Ibrahim interviewed their cast members about their backgrounds and views on relationships prior to shooting.

Despite the film’s more somber notes, the two co-directors said they worked on keeping the piece lighthearted and reflective, rather than allowing it to go down a darker path.

Screenwriter Rivera-Figueroa strikes a similar tone in his second screenplay “Luke,” directed by John Fracasso ’18.

The most fantastical of the four films, “Luke” features a man who loses his boyfriend to the zombie apocalypse and favors to keep him in his life as a zombie rather than have him exterminated.

Fracasso was originally attracted to the film for its quirky, zombie-centric plot, he said. Though originally tempted to give the film a more humorous twist, Fracasso said that, after conversations with Rivera-Figueroa, the two elected to make the piece more serious, allowing much of the comedy to come from the inherent humor of zombies.

The on-screen zombie Luke happens to be played by a student of the same name, Luke Perrotta ’19.

There is “something inherently funny in Luke (Perotta) as a zombie,” Fracasso said. “He does a good job in it, and there are a couple lightly humorous moments.”

While both “Breakup Diner” and “Luke” invoke lighthearted tones, the most overtly humorous film of the evening was “The Manor of Murder: A Manor Murder Mystery.” Directed by Naiyah Ambros ’17, the film is a camp take on a “Clue”-style murder mystery dinner shot at Machado House.

The film centers around the murder of businessman Cad Aver at a dinner party he is hosting for his friends, leaving them to determine who among them is guilty of poisoning their host.

The most somber film of the night was “Somewhere it is Spring,” directed

by Annabelle de Gaudemar ’17. The film tells the story of Eliza, who becomes mute after her father commits suicide. It is only through a burgeoning friendship with Amber, also experiencing trouble at home, that Eliza begins to heal.

The four diverse films premiered to applause and enthusiasm from the audience, as many crew members watched their completed efforts for the first time.

But one of the most rewarding parts of the premiere is being able to show people outside the BMP community the hard work that goes on behind the scenes, said Frida Perez ’17, a managing director for BMP. The event is an opportunity to show “that people at Brown are passionate about filmmaking and about making really great short films,” she said.

“It’s just about exposing other people to all the hard work and all the really, really awesome talent that is here,” added Eddie Mansius ’17, another of BMP’s managing directors.

NEWS

TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2016 • PAGE 3

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

Meet the Pulitzer Prize winners In conversation: Kathryn Schulz ’96

New Yorker feature writer talks earthquakes, women in journalism, her experiences at Brown

By JULIANNE CENTER SENIOR STAFF WRITER

Kathryn Schulz ’96, a staff writer for the New Yorker, won the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for feature writing for “The Really Big One,” a piece that uncovers the geological history — and ultimately the future — of the Pacific Northwest. In the awardwinning story, she pieces together the 2011 Japan earthquake and the shaky history of the Cascadia subduction zone to show the effects a potential powerful earthquake would have in the states of Washington and Oregon.

Schulz also authored “Being Wrong: Adventures in the Margin of Error,” which argues that humans’ tendency to err is not always a negative, but rather an opportunity to revise perspectives.

Upon winning her Pulitzer Prize, Schulz talked to The Herald about a number of ground-breaking topics, including earthquakes, mistakes, women in journalism and her advice for future writers.

The Herald: What do you think the public should know about how to prepare for an earthquake?

Schulz: The best information is local information because earthquake risk — like any kind of risk — is, in fact, extremely local. The crucial thing to know is how safe the buildings that you spend most of your time in are. So that would be your home, your place of work, your children’s schools, where your loved ones might be if they are not with you when an earthquake strikes and how you guys

will reunite. Probably the most important thing of all for those who live on the coast or are planning to visit it, is it’s really crucial to have an evacuation plan, to know what the tsunami route is and how to get out of anywhere you are.

Because everybody who is actually in the inundation zone of the tsunami is not going to survive. So that’s the bad news.

The good news is if you know how to get out, you can protect yourself.

really high, like, “What if I don’t get an A in that class?” or any number of bad things. But in fact, I went to Brown. I feel privileged to have been there. I would just encourage people to remember that it is a laboratory for error. That’s what all education is and should be. There is truly no other way to learn. Ultimately, the mistakes are probably richer, more important and more interesting than getting it right.

In your time at the New Yorker, you’ve written on everything from “Making a Murderer” to Henery David Thoreau’s undeserved reverence.

How was the story you won the prize for particularly special?

It had a place in my heart from the beginning for a couple reasons. First of all, I love science writing in general, and geology in specific. Second of all, I spent some time in the Pacific Northwest. I actually moved to Portland after I graduated from Brown and lived there for a couple of years and still have very good friends and family out there. For me this was kind of a passion project in two different ways: First because of its subject matter, which I just love learning about and writing about, and second because it’s a place so special to me.

Press has been quick to point out that this year, many of the major journalism Pulitzer Prizes were given to women. Do you think women’s voices are becoming more prominent in American writing?

I hope so. What I certainly think is we live in an era of incredibly rich, diverse and interesting voices in journalism with women and people of color. They’re out there on platforms, and they’re getting heard. It’s hard to separate one’s own experience from the world, but it’s important to do so, and I’ve been very lucky. I’ve had editors that are so encouraging and have helped me ensure that my particular voice got heard.

On the other hand, I know the numbers. I know that women still lag behind. I know that people of color are underrepresented to a far more dramatic degree. But do I think it’s getting better? Absolutely.

Do we have a very long way to go? Yes, for sure. But I’m confidently optimistic.

I think that people are starting to figure out what for me has been an important truth all along. The point isn’t to tally numbers or look good in some kind of diversity count. The point is that when you bring in different voices, they tell different stories, know different things. And those stories tend to be — just by virtue of that — more interesting, more unexpected, and make the entire journalistic

You wrote a book called “Being Wrong: Adventures in the Margin of Error” and are a self-titled “wrongologist.” What advice would you give to students about being wrong and making mistakes during their time at college?

I always tell students to forgive themselves. That is literally the point of college.

There is no better time or place to take risks and make guesses, explore things and try things you’re not good at. It can feel in the moment like the stakes are

COURTESY OF WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

Kathryn Schulz ’96 won the Pulitzer Prize in feature writing for her story “The Really Big One.” The story explores the future of the Pacific Northwest.

How did your time at Brown prepare you for your journalism career?

In the best possible way, which is to say indirectly. I did not study journalism at Brown. I was not on The Brown Daily Herald or any other magazines or newspaper entities. But what I did get from Brown was an incredible education in critical thinking. I learned to be curious. I had a sense that it was fine to be ignorant and go tromp into some new field, ask a lot of questions to try to teach yourself about it and ask other people to share their knowledge with you — all of that is really core to journalism.

Anyone can learn to write a lede, or use a digital recorder, or file a photo request, but the kind of instinct to wonder about the world takes longer to nurture.

advice for prospective writers or members of the Brown community?

I’m honored and thrilled and awed by the company I’m in. But I’m not in it for that. And I’m not saying that just because it’s the thing to say. It’s deeply true. It’s for the love of it. I really do believe that you can write well about things you aren’t passionate about, but it’s a hell of a lot harder. And I’m sure you can write well if you’re not passionate about writing, but I’m guessing that’s pretty hard, too. My basic advice to writers is you need to love two things: One is the world — to truly be interested in it and curious about it. And the other is you need to love words. You need to love them so much you will stay up an extra hour at 3:00 in the morning to fix one in a particular sentence because it’s bothering you, and you don’t like it.

That is truly the ultimate secret.

This is a coveted prize that many Brown students dream of. What is your

This interview has been edited for clarity and length.

landscape richer.

In conversation: Peter Balakian PhD’80

Poet discusses poetic form, blending culture, history into literary art, advice for young writers

By LAUREN ARATANI NEWS EDITOR

Peter Balakian PhD’80 was recently awarded the Pulitzer Prize in poetry for “Ozone Journal,” a collection of his poems published in 2015 by the University of Chicago Press. Balakian first received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Bucknell University and a Master of Arts degree from New York University before coming to Brown to earn his doctorate in American civilization, which is now known as American studies. Balakian is currently a professor of humanities and director of creative writing at Colgate University.

Balakian has published several books of poetry and prose, including “A Train-Ziggurat Elegy,” the predecessor of “Ozone Journal,” that was published in 2010.

“Ozone Journal” contains 54 short poems recounting the speaker’s experience and reflections prompted by digging through the bones of victims of the Armenian genocide.

The Pulitzer Prize board praised “Ozone Journal” for including “poems that bear witness to the old losses and tragedies that undergird a global age of danger and uncertainty,” according to the Pulitzer Prize website.

The Herald spoke with Balakian about his time at Brown and the inspiration behind his writing.

The Herald: You got your PhD in American civilization here at Brown.

How has being a student at Brown influenced your writing and teaching?

Balakian: American civilization at Brown was — and still is I’m sure — a very dynamic, interdisciplinary program.

It was a good fit for me as a poet who was also doing a PhD because it allowed me to explore a more open range between literature, culture and history. And my poetry and poetics is very much defined by a lot of intersections between the literary, the historical and the cultural. I think American (civilization) was a very good fit for my artistic sensibility.

And I studied with such great people.

I wish they were here to talk to today.

Hyatt Wagner, David Hirsch and Bill McLoughlin were great mentors, and I’m very grateful for having worked with them.

What was the topic of your thesis when you received your PhD? I wrote a dissertation on the American poet, Theodore Roethke.

What inspired “Ozone Journal”?

“Ozone Journal,” my collection, is anchored by a 55-section long poem. And I’m interested in advancing a multi-sequential long poem form that can absorb history, culture and the internal struggles of the self. This poem is set in Manhattan in the decade of the 1980s, and it’s a sequel to my previous book “Ziggurat,” in which there’s also a 53-section poem that’s also multi-sequential that’s set in Manhattan in the 1960s and ’70s. “Ozone Journal” is the second in what I hope to be a trilogy of three long poems of multi-sections.

What do you think is the importance of writing about historical events that have happened in the past, especially the ones that have affected people the most?

There’s a poem (in “Ozone Journal”) set in Providence and Tehran in 1979. …

It’s a poem in which the persona — in this case, me — is lying on his back in his apartment on Medway Street with a back

COURTESY OF PETER BALAKIAN

Peter Balakian PhD’80 writes poetry in an unconventional, “multisequential” style. He uses his poetry to explore history and culture. injury and watching the TV screen — I only the poem can do. I think this is one engage a lot of screenic culture in my of poetry’s powerful contributions. work. On the TV I am watching Iranian revolutions over the U.S. embassy in TehAny advice for aspiring writers? ran. As this is happening, I’m studying Be totally in love with your medium. for my doctoral exams, and the images of Be immersed in language so that lanthe Brown campus are interwoven with guage leads you to your discoveries. And an early morning hallucinatory moment. be preserving — keep at it. Let it become I think the poetic imagination is capa- a journey that is your life. ble of embodying historical and cultural events in rich and multi-layered ways, in This interview has been edited for clardynamic and compressed language that ity and length.

NEWS

PAGE 4 • TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2016

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

KATE TALERICO / HERALD

Brown students and Rhode Island residents gathered outside Monday’s rally for Donald Trump, protesting the Republican frontrunner’s hateful rhetoric. In a 50-minute speech, Trump claimed that his idea to place a 35 percent tax on imports would alleviate the economic hardships faced by many in the Ocean State by incentivizing domestic job creation.

» TRUMP, from page 1 against him and mentioned the way Kasich masticates his meals — “I never saw a guy eat like this!” he said to a laughing crowd.

After throwing a few more swings at his opponents, Trump went on to describe the loss of industrial jobs in places like New England in light of other country’s entrances into the global market. Trump argued that he would place a 35 percent tax on imports from countries like Mexico and China to incentivize employers to reintroduce jobs on domestic soil.

“The jobs have been ripped out of our country, folks,” he said. He listed several statistics describing the Rhode Island economy to a wave of groans from the crowd. “I didn’t even want to read it because it’s too depressing,” he added.

Trump’s rhetoric has appealed to mostly white, lower-class voters who have experienced economic hardship since the 2008 recession. Outside of the tent, which housed a crowd of nearly 800, about 200 people stood, many of them arguing that illegal immigrants had taken jobs away from them and their family members.

“I feel as though (illegal immigrants) are ruining our country and taking all of our jobs,” said Terry Hannagan, a Rhode Islander. He said that he has seen some of his jobs as a construction worker go to illegal immigrants who could be paid less than himself.

Trump supporters “have anger, and that’s justified. But they’re going about it the wrong way, targeting immigrants and other minority groups,” said Namdi Jogwe ’19, who was protesting outside of the rally.

Trump criticized Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton for her “open borders” policy and claimed that her interests aligned with those who would like to see industrial jobs move overseas.

His visit coincides with the former secretary of state’s, who visited Central Falls, Rhode Island Saturday. Kasich, too, visited Rhode Island Saturday, and U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, D-VT,

KATE TALERICO / HERALD

An hour before the event, several Trump supporters were told that the event had been filled to capacity. But when the businessman-turned-candidate appeared in his motorcade, security forces could not hold back the crowd that swarmed to greet him as he entered the venue. held a rally at Roger Williams Park in Providence Sunday.

But among Republican voters in Rhode Island, Trump prevails. According to a poll released Sunday by the University, Trump leads the Republican nominees — of the 164 Republican voters who were surveyed, 38 percent responded that they would back Trump, with only 25 percent backing Kasich and 14 percent backing Cruz. Many voters — 17 percent — were undecided as of Sunday.

Some voters outside the rally still expressed indecision but gave into the fired-up spirit of the rally.

“I just came because it’s lit,” said Zach Eldridge, a Warwick, Rhode Island resident. Though he was undecided before attending the rally, he felt

that the “community” behind Trump had strongly convinced him to vote for the businessman.

“I just get a really positive vibe out here,” he said, as crowds behind him yelled “Go back to Brown” at a group of students hoisting a “Feel the Bern” sign.

“Bernie’s a pervert!” yelled one man wearing a “Make America Great Again” shirt.

“People yelling at each other, that’s natural,” Eldridge said. “People never really get along. This obviously isn’t the proper way to (have dialogue), but that’s just the way our country is now.”

“We need the United States back to normal — strength, jobs, less welfare, honesty, the wall,” said Kathleen Decubellis, a resident of Kingstown, Rhode Island.

Brandon Robinson, an Army veteran who served in Afghanistan, agreed.

“This country needs to be run a little bit more like a business.”

The rally was punctuated by groups of protesters and rally attendees making impassioned arguments against one another. When a group of Brown students held signs and chanted, “black lives matter,” Trump supporters overpowered them with chants of “all lives matter.”

As a group of student protesters wearing bright colors and holding a “Tranniez 4 Trump” sign walked by, several Trump supporters called out, “Which bathroom do you use?”

“I came here because frankly Donald Trump is terrifying,” said Noraa Kaplan, a Providence resident and one

of the protesters. “The fact that this could be the reality of our country is really scary to me.”

But Cole Dotter, a Rhode Island voter, said that Trump’s message is one of “love and peace.”

Still, Ellen Quaadgras, a Unitarian minister, attended the event to send a message of love to counteract “messages of hate” that Trump encouraged, she said. “There’s been a lot of rhetoric against people of different faiths, … and I’m concerned that encourages violence against people of different groups.”

“I think a lot of the candidates are pretty similar to Trump,” said Lily Zwaan, a protester. “But he’s the most overtly homophobic, sexist and racist.”

— With additional reporting by Kyle Borowski

TODAY

TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2016 • PAGE 5

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

menu

f lo w e r s a n d t e x t b o o k s o p e n u p

SATELLITE DINING ANDREWS COMMONS

Bacon Chicken Ranch Pizza, Italian Puff Pocket, Chipotle BBQ Taco, Mac and Cheese JOSIAH’S

BLUE ROOM

Quesadillas

Three Bean Chili, Butternut Squash Soup

DINING HALLS SHARPE REFECTORY LUNCH

DINNER

Black Bean and Spinach Soft Tacos, Vegetables in Agave Ginger Sauce, Macaroons

Seafood Jambalaya, Zesty Lemon Chicken Thigh, Lemony Orzo Salad, Red Velvet Cake

VERNEY-WOOLLEY LUNCH

DINNER

Broccoli Quiche, Sticky Rice with Edamame, Chinese Chicken Wings, Macaroon Cookies

Zucchini Burger, Rotisserie Chicken, Linguine, Red Velvet Cake

sudoku

SAM BERUBE / HERALD

RELEASE DATE– Tuesday, April 26, 2016

Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle c rNorris o s sandwJoyce o rNichols d Lewis Edited by Rich ACROSS 1 Doorbell sound 5 Radio switch 9 Pop out of the CD player 14 “Young Frankenstein” helper 15 “Deck the Halls” syllables 16 Use crayons 17 “The West Wing” actor Alan 18 Fed. agent 19 Best way to sing 20 Keep in suspense 23 Maker of Fiesta Flats taco shells 24 Gorilla who learned sign language 25 “__ you for real?”

28 Half a Mork-toOrson farewell 30 Symbol 32 Suffers from 35 Department store fixture 38 Tunnel effect 40 Actor’s prompt 41 “We gotta move!”

42 Shingle securer 47 Roulette bet 48 Like a spoiled child 49 Didn’t need to guess 51 Weekly NBC offering since 1975, briefly 52 Takes notice of 55 Like some country songs 59 It may be affixed to an email ... and, literally, what the last word of 20-, 35and 42-Across can have 61 Drummer Ringo 64 Sheepish smile 65 First name in bike stunts 66 Japanese verse 67 Tupperware tops 68 Harvest 69 Kentucky Derby racer 70 Sporting weapon 71 Lacking, in Lorraine

DOWN 1 Old way to place a collect call 2 Creepy admirer 3 Signal silently to 4 Sculptured, as an image 5 Kabul native 6 Wee one’s word 7 __ steak 8 Tropical fruit 9 Political debate topic 10 “Fear of Flying” author Erica 11 Antlered animal 12 Two-time 1500meter gold medalist Sebastian 13 Give it a whirl 21 “My stars!”

22 Maker of NORDLI furniture 25 Texas tourist spot 26 Fix a green 27 Revise 29 Shoreline protection gp.

31 Discreetly send a dupe email to 32 Chef’s flavorings

33 Oak-to-be 34 Sandbar 36 Lewis Carroll specialty 37 Security issue 39 Time and again, to a bard 43 “Honest!”

44 Kremlin rejection 45 Passionate 46 R-rated, perhaps 50 Thin cookies

53 Sharp-eyed flier 54 Rx, for short 56 Skin lotion brand 57 Collect incrementally 58 Sounds from a kennel 59 Sacred chests 60 Hole up 61 Librarian’s warning 62 Confucian “path” 63 Go public with

As students begin their final days of classes, warm weather sweeps across campus. With flowers in full bloom, students will have to make the difficult choice between studying in the library or lounging on the Main Green.

Q U O T E O F T H E D AY

“I just came because it’s lit.”

— Zach Eldridge, a Warwick resident attending a rally for Donald Trump

See trump on page 1.

ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE:

CORRECTION An article in Monday’s Herald (“PW’s ‘Carousel’ will take you for a ride,” April 25) stated that the show was a Production Workshop production. In fact, it was a Musical Forum production. The Herald regrets the error.

xwordeditor@aol.com

calendar

04/26/16

TODAY

APRIL

S

By Gail Grabowski and Bruce Venzke ©2016 Tribune Content Agency, LLC

04/26/16

M

T

W

Th

F

S

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

29

30

Public Safety Focus Groups 12:00 P.M. Sharpe Refectory

Reading: Poet Mary Ruefle 2:30 P.M. McCormack Family Theater

PASS Introduction to Photoshop 6:00 P.M. CIT, Room 269

The Human Person Today 7:00 P.M. Smith-Buonanno, Room 106

TOMORROW Heavy Petting 11:45 A.M. Main Green

Visual Art BBQ 4:00 P.M. List Art Building, 2nd Floor

Argentine Tango Classes 5 P.M. Graduate Center, Graduate Lounge

Tasteberries!

6:00 P.M. Science Center

COMMENTARY PAGE 6 • TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2016

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

K I M B E R LY S A LT Z

comic ENGNS Life | Nathn Amin

Find us online! facebook.com/browndailyherald

browndailyherald.com

@the_herald

Location: 195 Angell St., Providence, R.I. www.browndailyherald.com

@browndailyherald

youtube.com/browndailyherald

Editorial contact: 401-351-3372 herald@browndailyherald.com

Business contact: 401-351-3260 gm@browndailyherald.com

Submissions: The Brown Daily Herald publishes submissions in the form of op-eds and letters to the editor. Op-eds are typically between 750 and 1000 words, though we will consider submissions between 500 and 1200 words.

Letters to the editor should be around 250 words. While letters to the editor respond to an article or column that has appeared in The Herald, op-eds usually prompt new discussions on campus or frame new arguments about current discourse.

All submissions to The Herald cannot have been previously published elsewhere (in print or online — including personal blogs and social media), and they must be exclusive to The Herald.

Submissions must include no more than two individual authors. If there are more than two original authors, The Herald can acknowledge the authors in a statement at the end of the letter or op-ed, but the byline can only include up to two names. The Herald will not publish submissions authored by groups. The Herald does not publish anonymous submissions. If you feel your circumstances prevent you from submitting an op-ed or letter with your name, please email herald@browndailyherald.com to explain your situation.

Editorial Leadership

Sections

Visuals & Production

Business

Editor-in-Chief Emma Jerzyk

Arts & Culture Editor Jaclyn Torres

Managing Editor Joseph Zappa

News Editors Lauren Aratani Agnes Chan Sandra Lifshits Kate Talerico

Design Editors Meryl Charleston Sonia Geba Andrew Linder Assistants: Nicola Ho, Jessica Yu

General Managers Moniyka Sachar Joshua Tartell

Senior Editors Andrew Flax Caroline Kelly POST- MAGAZINE Editor-in-Chief Yidi Wu

Sports Editors Matt Brownsword Taneil Ruffin Multimedia Features Editor Baylor Knobloch COMMENTARY Opinions Editors Margaret Hu Lainie Rowland Editorial Page Editors Emma Axelrod Emma Jerzyk

Photo Editors Head: Eli White Sam Berube Marianna McMurdock Matteo Mobilio Web Producer Harsha Yeddanapudy Copy Desk Chief Bonnie Henry Illustrations Editor Roland High

Directors Sales: Henry Ritter Finance: Neil Wathore Finance: Benjamin Wesner Business Dev.: Abraham Galindo Sales Managers Antonia Alvarez Erin Lueck Matthew Meyer William Welland Finance Managers Collections: Reena Zhan Collections: Varun Narayan DIGITAL Director of Audience Development Marcy Huang

You can submit op-eds to opinions@browndailyherald.com and letters to letters@browndailyherald.com. When you email your submission, please include (1) your full name, (2) an evening or mobile phone number in case your submission is chosen for publication and (3) any affiliation with Brown University or any institution or organization relevant to the content of your submission.

Please send in submissions at least 24 hours in advance of your desired publication date. The Herald only publishes submissions while it is in print. The Herald reserves the right to edit all submissions. If your piece is considered for publication, an editor will contact you to discuss potential changes to your submission.

Commentary: The editorial is the majority opinion of the editorial page board of The Brown Daily Herald. The editorial viewpoint does not necessarily reflect the views of The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. Columns, letters and comics reflect the opinions of their authors only.

Corrections: The Brown Daily Herald is committed to providing the Brown University community with the most accurate information possible. Corrections may be submitted up to seven calendar days after publication.

Advertising: The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. reserves the right to accept or decline any advertisement at its discretion.

The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. is a financially independent, nonprofit media organization bringing you The Brown Daily Herald, BlogDailyHerald and Post- Magazine. The Brown Daily Herald has served the Brown University community daily since 1891. It is published Monday through Friday during the academic year, excluding vacations, once during Commencement and once during Orientation by The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. Single copy free for each member of the community. Subscription prices: $280 one year daily, $140 one semester daily.

Copyright 2016 by The Brown Daily Herald, Inc. All rights reserved.

Periodicals postage paid at Providence, R.I. Postmaster: Please send corrections to P.O. Box 2538, Providence, RI 02906.

COMMENTARY TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2016 • PAGE 7

THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

New York values are American values NIKHIL KUMAR staff columnist Last weekend I traveled to New York City, staying with my aunt in Brooklyn and spending much of Saturday exploring Manhattan. One of the highlights of my brief trip was a visit to the Whitney Museum of American Art, which generated much interest when it moved to a new building in May 2015.

After experiencing “Laura Poitras: Astro Noise” — an immersive exhibition about the war on terror — and attending a lecture about jazz pianist Cecil Taylor, my aunt and I went downstairs to relax in the lobby. Unsurprisingly for a sunny April afternoon, people of all ages and speaking an array of languages were streaming in and out of the museum, leading my aunt to pose an unexpected question: How many of these visitors are Donald Trump supporters?

My initial guess was that very few, if any, of our fellow museum-goers would fall into that category. In general, I don’t envision those who subscribe to Trump’s message and candidacy as very eager to frequent a place like the Whitney (aren’t museums part of the liberal agenda?), especially in a city as solidly Democratic as New York. In fact, Manhattan was the only county in the entire state of New York not to vote for Trump in Tuesday’s Republican primary, choosing instead the supposedly moderate John Ka-

sich. The raw numbers reveal just how sickly Republican support is in the Big Apple: The three Republican candidates received fewer than 25,000 votes combined in Manhattan, while Hillary Clinton and U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, D-VT, won more than 10 times as much support in the borough.

The primaries that took place in New York last week were remarkable in that three of the five candidates could claim home advantage: Trump was born in Queens and lives in Man-

Cruz’s comment implies a certain definition of “New York values” that places them in sharp contrast with “American values.” While the former might include brusqueness, a fondness for big government and a penchant for bagels, the latter must encompass strict adherence to the Second Amendment, religious liberty for Christians and a desire to “carpet bomb” enemies of the United States. (A darker interpretation is that “New York values” is an example of thinly veiled anti-Semitism.) Of

er and a Cuban father, has an American story deeply colored by immigration.) Thanks in part to its history of immigration, New York is incredibly diverse in racial, ethnic and linguistic terms — its residents speak 800 different languages. That vibrancy makes the city, in my eyes, the epitome of an American value system that embraces all races and cultures and celebrates differences while working to create a tighter social fabric.

This prioritization of diversity as a

In a country as complex as the United States, the recognition and appreciation of difference is a necessary first step in the process of unification.

hattan, Sanders was born in Brooklyn and Clinton lives in Westchester County and served as U.S. Senator from New York for eight years. Each of these candidates used the opportunity to frame the city as a prism through which to view the country and their unique visions for it. On the other hand, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-TX, barely showed his face in New York, hosting an astoundingly lackluster event in the Bronx and suffering the consequences of a comment he made earlier in the campaign critical of “New York values” in comparison to those of the American heartland.

course, these categories are arbitrary and devoid of any fixed meaning — they are myths that the candidates can deploy to advance their campaigns according to the direction of the political winds in any given week.

Rather than abandoning these concepts, though, I would argue that New York values and American values are far more similar than they are different. From the time of Ellis Island, New York City has represented the gateway to the United States for millions of immigrants who have irreversibly shaped the face of the country. (Cruz himself, born in Canada to an American moth-

vehicle to a stronger society is far from original and may be perceived as naive: New York, like the rest of the country, is troubled by a laundry list of very serious problems rooted in intense income inequality and segregation along racial and socioeconomic lines. What good is diversity if it only lifts up the privileged few? In my opinion, though, in a country as complex as the United States (unlike the relatively homogeneous “utopia” of Scandinavia), the recognition and appreciation of difference is a necessary first step in the process of unification. In the subway from Brooklyn to Manhattan and

while walking on the High Line, I was repeatedly struck by the thought that millions of people of all backgrounds and identities are literally living on top of one another in this most dense and populous of American cities. Rather than isolating themselves in gated communities and secluded towns, New Yorkers have chosen to reside among people who don’t look or live like them to (hopefully) learn something from their neighbors.

In reflecting further upon my aunt’s question at the Whitney, I feel more strongly convinced of the incompatibility between the worldview of division, deportation and isolation espoused by Trump and Cruz and the very existence of a multicultural city like New York. This is not to say that New York is perfect, though I often believe it is after visiting: The politicians who hold it up as a model of diversity must put their money where their mouths are in responding to the needs of marginalized communities affected by inequality, racism and segregation. Ultimately, though, my weekend in New York gave me a dose of optimism for the future of the country beyond this tragically divisive election.

By leaning on — not denying, not fleeing — the diversity that sits at the core of a certain definition of American values, we can move forward rather than tumble backward.

Nikhil Kumar ’17 can be reached at nikhil_kumar@brown.edu.

Drug use realities and campus enforcement SAMANTHA SAVELLO staff columnist Recent events — namely April 20 (4/20) and Spring Weekend — inevitably brought up the topic of substance use among students, which, given the politics of most Brown students, leads to a conversation about the legal and regulatory state of said substances. It’s no secret that at 4:20 p.m. April 20 every year, the Main Green is “greener” than usual, as students grab their lighters and create a collective cloud of smoke big enough to be seen from rooftops. And there’s an unspoken policy, whether it’s condoned by the University or not, that “if you can get it into the venue, you can use it” during Spring Weekend. It’s basically a given that you’ll see concert-goers indulging in a variety of substances — most obviously lighting and passing blunts, but also openly consuming edibles — on the Main Green during the school-funded concert. But an environment where drug use is relatively unregulated by campus authority is actually preferable to one of paranoia and rebellious consumption, despite the common practice of using policy crackdowns to increase safety.

The visibility of substance use is explicit — even Brown administrators can’t feasibly ignore such painfully obvious activity. But

in terms of their reactions, they turn a blind eye to it year after year, opting not to crack down and rigorously enforce policies. Perhaps it’s the sheer volume of students partaking in these activities that makes enforcement a difficult feat. Or maybe it’s because there are more pressing issues at hand, where physical harm is more imminent. At Spring Weekend, for example, security stays on the fringes of the crowd, more concerned about physical

across the country, but under different sets of circumstances. Generally these activities take place behind closed doors, carefully concealed from administrators and authority figures. While the perception of potential backlash can be very harsh at other schools, many Brown students don’t expect much retribution for substance-related rule-breaking.

In most cases, heightened levels of paranoia about being caught and dealt record-tar-

Underage drinking, marijuana smoking and cocaine snorting happen at college campuses across the country, but under different sets of circumstances. fights breaking out or people passing out than preventing illicit drug consumption. Emergency Medical Services are also on hand, attending to those whose health needs are urgent. This did more for the safety of everyone in attendance than attempting mass confiscation of illicit substances.

All colleges are different when it comes to drug and alcohol policy, which can have various effects on student behavior. Underage drinking, marijuana smoking and cocaine snorting happen at college campuses

nishing infractions don’t prevent consumption, but instead drive it into darker corners.

Brown’s relatively lax approach deviates from this norm and has the opposite effect — reinforcing the importance of personal choice and comfort while discouraging drug use for the sake of being rebellious. There’s certainly some truth to the idea that making something an act of rebellion has the perverse effect of incentivizing its use among risk-loving individuals. When students have to take relatively extreme measures to obtain drugs and hide

their usage, a culture of intensity around drug use begins to manifest. In contrast, within a culture where drugs are more normalized, personal comfort can play more of a factor in influencing consumption.

That’s not to say that I commend drug use or breaking the law. I do not. But given today’s society, it’s important to consider how the pressure to use drugs manifests itself. This is not a new phenomenon — colleges have struggled with this issue for decades. And the drug issue is not invisible to administrators.

Certainly the Department of Public Safety, the Office of Residential Life and other groups are incredibly invested in student safety in this area. But their approach is nothing short of lenient in comparison to some of their more stringent peer departments at other schools.

Perhaps this very concept has earned Brown its informal label of “stoner Ivy,” the hippie home of the naked parties and freeflowing drugs. Whether or not this name is a misnomer is up to interpretation, but it’s important to consider the type of potentially dangerous drug culture that stringent policy enforcement can perpetuate. Maybe there’s something to be learned from Brown’s approach.

Samantha Savello ’18 can be reached at samantha_savello@brown.edu.

Got something to say? Leave a comment online!

Visit www.browndailyherald.com to comment on opinion and editorial content.

ARTS & CULTURE THE BROWN DAILY HERALD

TUESDAY, APRIL 26, 2016

DAP takes on Colosseum for final show as undergrad Dolapo Akinkugbe ’16 says goodbye to University in farewell show, looks forward to new mixtape

By JENNIFER SHOOK SENIOR STAFF WRITER

Dolapo Akinkugbe ’16, whose musical career took off at Brown and has brought him as far as Abbey Road Studios, is ready to reflect on his undergraduate years as he looks toward the final performance of his collegiate days.

Akinkugbe first started playing piano when he was four years old, inspired by his pianist mother and musical family.

From there, Akinkugbe started producing at age 14 and rapping at age 17.

But it wasn’t until he had performed his first show at AS220 in downtown Providence as a freshman that Akinkugbe started pursuing music seriously under the name DAP — originally an initialization pronounced D-A-P that stood for Akinkugbe’s initials with the “p” for producer tacked on the end, it has since come to be pronounced as a one-word acronym.

Akinkugbe said his first official performance at AS220 changed the way he thought about his music, from something that he knew he wanted to keep in his life — either as a career or a hobby — to something he would pursue actively.

“I always loved music. … After my first show, I realized it was actually worth pursuing,” Akinkugbe said. “People

actually really connected to something that I was doing.”

Despite his initial nerves taking the stage at AS220, Akinkugbe said he was surprised to watch as the crowd quickly warmed up to him and responded to his performance. Since that first show, Akinkugbe has gone on to perform across Providence. He has released four mixtapes and a collaboration mixtape with his friend, Shane Chubbz, as The Contract.

Now a senior, Akinkugbe is preparing for his last performance as an undergraduate — an April 29 event at the Colosseum in downtown Providence.

Tickets for “The Last Class” are being sold online for $3 each, and the show is based on one of Akinkugbe’s earlier tracks of the same name. Ironically, the track, “The Last Class,” is the first song that Akinkugbe performed as an undergraduate at the University’s annual freshman talent show.

The April 29 show will also feature a performance from Impulse Dance Company and Akinkugbe’s guests, including Sebastián Otero ’18, Tone and Stella Mensah ’17, among others.

As Akinkugbe readies for the show, he is also preparing to release a new mixtape, a follow-up to his 2014 release, “GoodBye For Never.”

He said his last mixtape was his first to feel like a full, cohesive album.

“It really came together exactly how I wanted it,” Akinkugbe said. “I felt completely prepared lyrically, musically.”

It was this mixtape combined with

another track, “Blue,” that helped Akinkugbe win a place among 84 other artists as a part of Converse Rubber Tracks, a competition that connects selected artists with mentors and then places them in one of 12 iconic professional recording studios. As a selected artist, Akinkugbe traveled to London to record at Abbey Road, paired with producer Mark Ronson and in-house Abbey Road producer Ken Scott.

Akinkugbe credits Ronson with making his recording experience at the legendary studio as comfortable and unintimidating as possible. “The main takeaway I had from the experience was that it wasn’t too soon,” Akinkugbe said.

“I was worried before I got there that I wasn’t all-the-way prepared, but all my instincts kicked in as soon as I was in there.”

As part of Converse Rubber Tracks, Akinkugbe was also one of four artists featured in a documentary series airing on Noisey. The finished documentary, “The Undergraduate,” follows Akinkugbe’s life — from attending boarding school in London to living at Brown.

The documentary also shows Akinkugbe recording at Abbey Road and performing at The Spot in Providence.

While Akinkugbe said it took a while to get used to having cameras follow him around campus — the film crew visited the University twice — he said that filming “The Undergraduate” was a “great first experience” working with film.

Akinkugbe plans to include two of the three tracks from his Converse

COURTESY OF DOLAPO AKINKUGBE

Dolapo Akinkugbe’s ’16 final show as a Brown student will take place April 29. After Brown, he may pursue music or a spot at Columbia Law School.

Rubber Tracks-sponsored Abbey Road session in his currently untitled upcoming mixtape. This mixtape, still in progress, will mark a continuation of many of the themes and stories from “GoodBye For Never,” though with a more sonically “Nigerian influence,” he said.

Akinkugbe thinks of himself as a producer first and a rapper second. He often creates tracks by producing the instrumentals first, usually starting with a piano chord or a melody and then layering other instruments and beats around it with his keyboard. The lyrics often come after the initial instrumentation has been created, Akinkugbe said. The writing, then, is often “woven into how the instruments sound.”

Inspiration for his tracks is drawn from diverse sources. Akinkugbe said his primary source of inspiration is other artists and music — including Ab-Soul, Kendrick Lamar, Kanye West and Nick Hakim. But often inspiration can come from somewhere as unexpected as a conversation with a friend or the Ancient Greek and Latin authors he reads for his concentration in classics.

As Akinkugbe wraps up his last year at Brown, he is also trying to map out what his music career will look like postgraduation. Torn between his love of music and academics, Akinkugbe has elected to defer admission to Columbia Law School for a year to focus on his music.