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Clairo’s “4EVER” filled the halls of The Underground in Schine Student Center, as students in eccentric outfits of leather, sequins and graphic tees flooded in, illuminated by fluorescent lights. People at the WERW Fall Launch Party swayed to music and held up their phones to the music of both student and headliner artists.

“I feel like I’m at prom,” Brandon Hudson, singer of the alternative indie group, Between Friends, said to the crowd.

WERW, or “what everyone really wants,” hosted its Fall Launch Party, celebrating the new year of the campus’ only student-run, independent radio station. This semester’s party featured Syracuse University student Nancy Dunkle and headliner band Between Friends. The Underground was filled with students from all colleges and even some parents.

Several student vendors, like Awkward Fish, Lilac Sun, East Coast Bandits and Rat Girl Vintage, sold vintage clothes, jewelry, records and vinyls. Other organizations tabled throughout the night, including University Girl, University Union, Jerk Magazine, Fashion and Design Society and Crossroads Collective.

The WERW staff meandered around the set, taking in the music and selling items to students. The set featured blown-up silver balloons spelling out WERW and festive black, white and silver decorations.

SU students Anna Jack and Alexandra Geyer rushed to the front of the stage to get a perfect spot for the night.

“We don’t hit up Cage or the (Schine) Underground on the regular, but we saw people’s (Instagram) stories and honestly we wanted to hear good music,” Geyer said.

They even skipped their date night for sorority Phi Sigma Sigma to come to the show.

“We’ve been fans of Between Friends for a while and for $5, I’ll wait in line forever,” Jack added.

Nancy Dunkle, the student spotlight artist, was first to perform. She said she wanted to hone her sound by taking this opportunity.

Solange Jain | Asst. Photo Editor

Syracuse University student Nancy Dunkle performs alongside her band at WERW’s Fall Launch Party.

While Dunkle is not involved with WERW, she said the launch was a great way for everyone to connect with each other and the performers through live music. Dunkle said she was thankful for the opportunity to be a part of something students love.

The traditional R&B music Dunkle grew up with inspired her to write her own music. Though the singer/songwriter scene is full right now, she said it’s still a cool road to go down that feels true to her.

Despite also being a Between Friends fan herself, Dunkle said she wanted to take her set time to show the audience who she is as an artist. She hoped the audience would still see elements of her sound without losing the overall vibe Between Friends brings.

Bria Lewis and Romy VanAlmen, who are music and talent booking coordinators, oversee the WERW launch parties. Both students in SU’s Bandier Program, they book artists for WERW events, including its new WERW Tiny Desk series.

Lewis and VanAlmen, along with junior coordinators at the station, work directly with major music agencies like United Talent Agency and Creative Artists Agency to source artists, meeting with them months in advance. The student artists go through an intense application process but are eventually chosen based on their match with the headliner’s vibe and musical prose.

“I just think it’s so special that (VanAlmen) and I are even given the opportunity to book talent and have them come here…and just bring music to Syracuse,” Lewis said.

Solange Jain | Asst. Photo Editor

Vendors and student organizations tabled at WERW’s Fall Launch Party. Students gathered to shop clothes made by Holly Anderson, owner of sustainable apparel brand Awkward Fish.

VanAlmen said WERW has a little bit of everything, and that’s what VanAlmen and Lewis wanted to show at the launch party.

WERW has hosted its launch party every year since 2012, with a brief COVID-19 hiatus. When it returned in the fall semester of 2023, the opportunity to bring the launch back up to speed and make it the best it could be was the only thing on Lewis and VanAlmen’s minds.

The radio station’s small staff is what makes its launch parties so special, as the larger community comes in and sees just how hard a small group of people worked to make it all happen.

The night ended on a high as Between Friends performed its hit song “Affection,” as students swayed in the audience, with heads on friends’ shoulders and arms in the air. The hustle and bustle of the night slowed as everyone enjoyed the band’s live music.

“When we book these up-and-coming artists, they usually have some sort of fan base, but there’s always new people who come to the events, and then afterwards they’re like, ‘Wow, I just found a new artist that I really love,’” VanAlmen said.

Published on November 17, 2024 at 10:20 pm