Trojans take the stage

Marcello Carelli

Marcello Carelli is a drummer creating contemporary jazz tunes with his quintet consisting of saxophones, trombone, piano, bass and his drums. 

Carelli, a graduate student majoring in jazz studies, found his musical footing living in New York City listening to Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett and Nat King Cole. After sitting in with his dad’s band at seven years old, Carelli “knew [he] wanted to be playing music for the rest of [his] life.”

“Music is obviously a unifying art form, jazz, especially. It’s all about interaction, communication,” Carelli said. “Regardless of any language barriers, music is just a way of bringing people together.” 

MATEO

Mateo Gonzales, who creates music under the name MATEO, combines indie-rock beats and lush harmonies. Gonzales, a junior majoring in popular music performance, takes inspiration from a wide range of artists, including Journey, Sia and the Eagles.

When performing, he focuses on audience work, believing that music is created to form relationships and connections with listeners. 

“I take the audience on a journey,” Gonzales said. “My objective in general is to make people feel something that they haven’t felt that day, or alter their state walking into the room, they should walk out a different person than they walked in.”

Maddi Lasker

Maddi Lasker began her musical career in theater before discovering the world of pop, R&B and rock. A junior majoring in popular music performance, she promises a high-energy performance, bringing the vivacity of famous rockers such as Bono and Hayley Williams. With a band composed solely of her close friends, her performance is not only fun for the audience but also for herself. 

“It’s a very rewarding feeling, getting to share your music with people and getting to watch people connect to it,” Lasker said. “Getting to watch people absorb your music and actually connect and feel it and enjoy it is such a valuable and amazing thing.” 

Lynn Starr

A recent Fall 2022 graduate, Lyn Starr combines hip hop, R&B and neo soul. Citing Childish Gambino and Tierra Whack, Starr admires any artist with an eclectic style and tries to emulate that himself. 

When performing, Starr isn’t afraid of getting out of breath, in fact, he welcomes it, seeing it as a sign of a great performance. Starr often finds himself getting swept up in the energy of the crowd and other musicians. 

“It’s so great to be able to lock all of our artistic minds together, our creativity together and feel each other’s freestyles and improvisation that happened on the stage that only happened right then and there,” Starr said. 

Hailey Wild

Hailey Wild started writing music as a way to cope with her emotions. 

With the bands Nirvana and The Smashing Pumpkins serving as inspirations, she approaches live performances with a classic rock band setup. A guitar, bass and drum kit by her side, Wild creates an upbeat, energetic performance. 

“I’m just giving people an excuse to kind of let loose a little bit. Whether it’s moving around, or emotionally feeling able to be heard,” Wild said. “I don’t feel like in the day-to-day, we have like a lot of outlets where we’re allowed to kind of take a breath and just let ourselves be.”

Ellie Williams

Ellie Williams is a rising indie pop star, with music reminiscent of the stylings of Maggie Rogers and Julia Michaels. 

The senior majoring in popular music performance first dipped her toes into music as a toddler, playing “Guitar Hero” and “American Idol” on her PlayStation 2. 

Inspired by love, old-school jazz and classic rom-coms, Williams promises to bring high energy and good vibes. 

“I love to create this experience and environment for anyone watching, that makes them feel good, makes them want to dance,” Williams said.