Daily Bruin – Page 54

Q&A: Hunter Hayes aims to sing different tune among country genre, releases new single

Heartbreak isn’t a bad thing – it gets people closer to where they’re going, Hunter Hayes said.

Whether it’s his music career or love life, the country music star said “Heartbreak” is more than just the title of his latest single. In his own life, he said both his career and his relationships helped him develop an attitude of persistent optimism, which is embedded in the song’s lyrics. Ahead of his performance at The Fonda Theatre on Saturday, Hayes spoke to Daily Bruin’s Ruthie Glauber about his writing process, the evolution of the country genre and accepting being different.

Daily Bruin: What drives you to create music?

Hunter Hayes: Anything and everything. It’s just how I understand life. Most days it’s a friend, a relief, it’s therapy, it’s an escape or a vacation. It’s my way to communicate with the world – my only way sometimes.

DB: What do you enjoy most about the songwriting process?

HH: Starting with nothing. Having a thought and knowing that there is no wrong answer in music. It’s always a matter of expression, so there’s a million different ways to do things, and there’s also limitations. There’s 12 notes and everybody’s played them all, so you’ve got to rethink and be creative with it, but I love that. I really love the search, whether it’s finding what I want to say – because it’s very seldom that I know already – or the search for something I haven’t heard yet but want to hear.

DB: How is your new single, “Heartbreak,” different from your previous releases?

HH: This whole album has a completely different theme, and when you hear the rest of it, it’ll make sense in context, but the thing I loved about “Heartbreak” was that it was a new kind of love song for me. Normally, I have someone that I’m talking to, whereas for this chapter and album there isn’t. I really wanted to write a song to my future better half that I haven’t met yet. I’ve never really written something like that, and it represents everything that I went through to make the album – looking at it with a positive spin and being grateful for it, because I have to be and I am. I wouldn’t have gotten here if everything went perfect. I love the optimism and the way that it looks at life experiences.

DB: How do you think country music is impacted by the recent releases of more untraditional artists such as Lil Nas X and Kacey Musgraves?

HH: I think people are starting to see there’s a lot more to country than I think a lot of people give country credit for. There’s a lot of different sounds and people with stories to tell, and there are a lot of incredible storytellers. The world is starting to see that there’s a lot of undiscovered talent that love the country genre who have been here working at their craft for a long time.

DB: Where do you feel your place is in that developing country genre?

HH: I feel like I don’t fit in the middle, or in the expected, but I like being the weird one – I am the weird one, I’m the nerd. What I want from my music, and my biggest message on this tour, is being unique and not fitting in but standing out. More people my age need to hear that, or at least I need to hear that more often. There can be a lot of pressure to fit in, and in trying to answer that question I ask myself where I fit in, but the idea is to be different. We all have a fingerprint that make us completely different people, and we’re all meant to tell our story our own ways. So if the good Lord is willing and I get to make music for the rest of my life, I’ll constantly be looking for ways to be me.

DB: “Heartbreak” follows a three-year pause in your music release. What did you do during that break?

HH: I was writing nonstop and touring, but it was all for nothing, unfortunately. That was the era of trying to be something I wasn’t. It was years of writing and trying to find what I needed to say. I was writing for the machine at that point, trying to advance my career. I was writing for the wrong reasons, let’s put it that way. I just needed to return home and ask that big question of, “What do I want to say?” That’s when everything really came together and when the songs started showing up, and it’s how I got this album.

UCLA Centennial Campaign should light the way with community engagement

Old age isn’t stopping UCLA from looking to party. The yearlong celebration of the university turning 100 recognize the school’s advancements, strides and accomplishments. The 100 festivities started Saturday.

These festivities come with four major initiatives, which UCLA hopes will advance knowledge, create opportunity through education and serve Los Angeles communities.

Yet, these are lackluster attempts at commemorating 100 years of UCLA’s commitment to service.

A century of UCLA should be a bit more personal and close to home. Yet the Centennial Celebration initiatives don’t have any direct effect on immediate Los Angeles communities. While the university has a huge involvement in outside communities through different organizations across campus, nothing is unified or large-scale – other than UCLA Volunteer Day, of course.

At the same time as making these outside efforts, UCLA also needs to care about its student body. Without community-student engagement, students lose the opportunity to build their own sense of home.

In order to continue its commitment to service, the university needs to lead the way, not stop and pat itself on the back. It needs to revitalize the significance volunteer work holds for the years to come. Efforts like Volunteer Day can be expanded beyond a single day that happens once a year.

And with the centennial being such a publicized year, there’s no better time to do so.

The celebration’s initiatives range from digitizing library resources through an initiative called “OpenUCLA” to another called “UCLA: Our Stories, Our Impact,” a multimedia traveling showcase. These initiatives’ common theme is reflection and discussion of equity and equality.

UCLA spokesperson Ricardo Vazquez said the Centennial Celebration Steering Committee received proposals last summer for collaborative programs that would advance the themes of the celebration.

“Proposals were evaluated for their ability to embrace the pillars of the celebration, address internal and external campus audiences, potential to engage the Los Angeles community, and foster equity and inclusion,” Vazquez said in an email statement.

And yet, these initiatives have no real engagement with the Los Angeles community.

“I believe that the university has a lot of work to do with community engagement,” said Ernesto Arciniega, director of diversity, inclusion and community engagement for the Graduate Students Association. “The administration has an obligation to collaborate and invite students to organize and to plan.”

It’s not as if UCLA is new to the idea of community service. The Volunteer Center, for example, has done tremendous amounts of work for the community. UCLA has the ability to significantly impact communities outside of the student body and Westwood during its centennial celebrations, yet chooses not to.

Despite the lack of meaningful gestures during its 100-year mark, UCLA has previously supported community service through programs like the Westwood Organized Meaningful Project. Although beneficial, UCLA’s involvement ended in 2014 due to its disorganized nature.

David Tracy, a UCLA alumnus, has been part of numerous volunteer programs during his time at UCLA, including WOMP.

“(Community work) doesn’t need to be traditional maintenance and gardening like WOMP,” Tracy said. “(It would) be more impactful to leverage strengths and skills where you can provide a service.”

WOMP, while a bit messy, was a keeper. It beautified the Westwood area and neighboring communities but it also allowed for the community to come together. Students and businesses understood that they all played a role in the improvement of the community. And instead of addressing WOMP’s flaws, it simply ended.

“(WOMP) was an effort by the Westwood Community Council to have a better connection between the students, neighborhood and community that they lived in,” Tracy said.

UCLA’s current volunteering targets the right place – schools. But it’s not going beyond the surface. Creating long-term, in-depth volunteer work can address the larger picture of diversity and equity. The university can engage students and staff to volunteer at under-resourced schools within the community.

Worldwide volunteer projects show the drive and commitment to service UCLA prides itself with. And it inspires the campus to look beyond the pristine brick walls of the communities they are part of.

“The Volunteer Center and the Center for Community Learning are among the most active units at UCLA encouraging community engagement,” said Alison Hewitt, a UCLA spokesperson. “Their work includes encouraging direct involvement in local communities.”

But this isn’t really the case. Encouragement first comes through visibility. The Centennial Campaign could have been used more effectively to create opportunities for volunteer and community work. The campaign had the ability to expand community work beyond beautification through yearlong community service initiatives.

But it didn’t.

“Lighting the way” is the the university’s centennial motto, but by choosing not to significantly involve itself in nearby communities, it’s doing everything but.

UCLA set out 100 years ago to light the way. It can share some of that brightness with the community too.

College Board’s ‘adversity score’ fails to address inequities of SAT

Every year, a new batch of nervous high schoolers sharpen their No. 2 pencils, take a couple of deep breaths and open up the SAT booklet.

But battling for that golden ticket to college has never been easy – and the SAT has never been fair. The exam disfavors those who come from lower socioeconomic backgrounds and don’t have equal access to tutoring, preparation resources or good schools.

The College Board, the not-for-profit organization that administers the SAT, has tried to mitigate this by creating the Environmental Context Dashboard, which offers what the Wall Street Journal dubbed the “adversity score,” to provide critical context to the challenges students have faced in addition to their final test score out of 1600.

Because the score is so new, there isn’t a sufficient amount of research to suggest whether it will be beneficial. The adversity score has been piloted at 50 colleges and universities so far and is calculated using 15 factors such as demographic and census data from a student’s high school and hometown to provide a number from one to 100. A score of less than 50 indicates privilege, while a score greater than 50 indicates adversity. College admission officers will be provided with the score, but for students, the score will remain a mystery.

But this only overemphasizes the importance of the SAT in college admissions.

The University of California attempts to look at students equally and fairly using more than just numbers, such as personal statements, writing supplements, high school grades and extracurricular activities.

Instead, the score will be just another number that attempts to slap a label on a student’s individuality.

UCLA spokesperson Katherine Alvarado said that UCLA has not utilized the Environmental Context Dashboard in its review process and will consider it after seeing how this data will be utilized in the future for reviewing freshman applications.

But if UCLA wants to continue driving down the truly holistic admission path, it needs to steer clear of the adversity score. The holistic approach is integral to the UC’s admission approach because it better explains the entirety of an applicant. The adversity score threatens this by adding an arbitrary number to something that can’t be quantified.

That’s because the implementation of an adversity score acknowledges something many have known already: The SAT does not accurately test aptitude – instead, it tests an individual’s privilege.

The additional score to the SAT does not solve the underlying issues with standardized testing. Privileged students have the advantage of paying for tutoring, prep classes to prepare for the SAT and countless hours of studying. Meanwhile, historically disadvantaged students are left in the dust.

David Coleman, CEO of the College Board, said the adversity score will shine a light on students from low-income, rural and inner-city families who have faced difficulty and otherwise would have been overlooked by the traditional SAT.

“No single test score should ever be examined without paying attention to this critical context,” Coleman said.

This new addition to the SAT highlights how the College Board doesn’t understand how to address issues of inequality in the admission system. The score just adds another problem instead of finding a solution to the inherent privilege in the SAT.

Patricia Gándara, a research professor of education at UCLA, said this phenomenon is not limited to just the SAT but to all standardized tests.

“Any kind of standardized test shows the relationship between socioeconomic background and how well a student does,” Gándara said. “To the extent that you can define those characteristics … (the score) can’t do it perfectly, but can do it somewhat.”

Slapping the adversity score onto the SAT is like slapping a Band-Aid onto a gunshot wound: The wound is visibly covered, but it’s not attended to.

After all, one number cannot solve the issues of inequality in university admissions.

And even if the College Board insists on administering a broken test, the least it could do is show students their adversity score. College admission is already a behind-the-curtain affair, and the secrecy behind the numbers only adds to that phenomenon.

“Students should have a chance to justify what score they think they should get on the category,” said Hovhannes Nazaryan, a second-year pre-psychobiology student. “And that justification should, of course, be corroborated.”

It’s true that the adversity score will bring to mind the game of Texas Hold ’em, in which the cards are stacked against those who are disadvantaged. But it’s misguided to think an extra number will fix a system that is damaged at its core. The adversity score might have been a well-intentioned idea, but it doesn’t address the privilege seeped into the SAT.

When the next batch of students takes the SAT the coming school year, they might be under the impression the test is now an honest evaluation of college readiness.

But they shouldn’t be fooled. Battling for the golden ticket is still by no means a fair game.

Movie review: ‘Aladdin’ remake’s whole new world offers an underwhelming new point of view

One of the ’90s’ biggest animated hits is getting a reboot, and who better to lead the way than the biggest movie star of the ’90s – Will Smith.

In Disney’s sixth live-action remake of the decade – and the second of four set to release in 2019 – director Guy Ritchie takes on the task of adapting the classic 1992 film “Aladdin.” Ritchie seemed like a relatively unorthodox choice considering his lack of experience with musicals, but his trademark overstylization seemed like it would fit right in.

His energetic technique is present, but Ritchie’s “Aladdin” ends up being a lot of the same.

The plot is fairly truthful to the original, following Aladdin (Mena Massoud) and his monkey Abu live on the streets of the fictional Middle Eastern city of Agrabah, stealing to survive and dreaming for more. After saving the kingdom’s princess Jasmine (Naomi Scott) and developing a bit of a crush on her, Aladdin finds himself wrapped up in the scheming Jafar’s (Marwan Kenzari) evil plan that eventually leads him to the iconic gold genie lamp.

The film clearly acts under the impression that the audience doesn’t want to retread the first act of the animated version. The result is a rushed, choppy first 30 minutes, with certain songs – most notably “One Jump Ahead” – feeling like afterthoughts and certain character introductions completely ignored.

The film does manage to close up plot holes and weave finer details into Jafar’s and Jasmine’s character arcs. But while Jasmine’s new focuses on independence and personal political power fit in seamlessly, Jafar now comes off as a discount Littlefinger from “Game of Thrones” – a slimy self-made man using chaos as a ladder – rather than the intimidating super villain from the original.

The film finally finds its footing when the Genie (Smith) bursts on screen in all of his charismatic glory. Smith avoids a Robin Williams impression and instead makes the role his own – every scene he is in is a delight to watch.

His ad-libs are down-to-earth and funny, his songs are unique and his new subplot with Jasmine’s handmaiden Dalia (Nasim Pedrad) is a pleasant surprise. But Smith’s chemistry with Massoud shines brightest, and the dialogue scenes between the two are genuine and the emotional center of the film. Their banter is organic, their relationship is believable and their back-and-forths boast the film’s best writing by far.

Aladdin and Jasmine’s relationship is more fleshed out this time around as well, and they are a sweet on-sceen couple. But the film’s lone new song, “Speechless,” seems sorely out of place. The song is about Jasmine’s refusal to be quiet and smile, which is empowering in isolation, but its contemporary style does not mesh with that of the iconic songs from the original.

The musical adaptations from the animated film are hit-or-miss as well – “Arabian Nights” and “One Jump Ahead” are rushed and not particularly memorable, while “Prince Ali” and “Friend Like Me” are bombastic, glorious and plenty of fun.

And much like Disney’s last live-action musical “Mary Poppins Returns,” “Aladdin” has colorful and intricate production design. Whether it’s the wild streets of Agrabah, the mysterious Cave of Wonders or the extravagant palace, every set, prop and costume is nearly perfect.

But outside the fancy sets, costumes and a slight twist to otherwise iconic songs, “Aladdin” does not have too much going for it. Massoud’s and Kenzari’s forgettable performances and a rushed first act don’t do the film any favors, and Ritchie’s efforts to differentiate his film from the original mostly fall flat.

However, what does work really works. Smith puts the film on his back as Genie and flips a choppy movie into a delightful ride.

So while it may not be the complete package fans of the original were wishing for, “Aladdin” is still able to make its mark.

USAC recap – May 21

The Undergraduate Students Association Council is the official student government representing the undergraduate student body at UCLA. Council meetings take place every Tuesday at 7 p.m. in the Bruin Viewpoint Room and are open to all students. Watch a livestream of the meetings on the USAC Live! channel on YouTube.

Public Comment:

The California Public Interest Research Group at UCLA presented updates on its campaign to ban Styrofoam. The California State Legislature passed two bills the group pushed for regarding the initiative recently. CALPIRG is also working to develop infographics for how and when to register to vote, and creating a voter registration portal on MyUCLA.
Students from Jewish Voices for Peace at UCLA expressed their endorsement for the resolution regarding Students for Justice in Palestine.

Agenda:

The council approved a resolution that condemned misinformation surrounding Students for Justice in Palestine at UCLA, specifically regarding a mock newspaper, distributed by the David Horowitz Freedom Center, found on campus that the council said was defamatory to students in SJP.
The council approved a resolution in support of anti-deportation awareness events held on campus.
The council approved a bylaw change to increase the number of undergraduate representatives with disabilities on the UCLA Committee on Disability from three to five members.
The council appointed Nadiya Komzyuk, a third-year business economics student, as Finance Committee chair and Kristy Vang, a third-year sociology student, as budget review director.

Reports:

President Robert Watson said his office is having a meeting with Suzanne Seplow, who oversees UCLA Residential Life, regarding queer inclusivity on the Hill, such as rewording of specific signs used in restrooms and the ability to opt out of single-sex rooms.
Campus Events Commissioner Tara Steinmetz said her office is organizing Ultrabloom, an outdoor concert, on May 31, and will release the performance line-up Monday.
Cultural Affairs Commissioner Kelechi Iheanacho said her office is working on the upcoming JazzReggae Fest, to be held Monday.
Facilities Commissioner Lily Shaw said her office is publicizing reduced fares for students who want to take a Big Blue Bus to First Friday, an event with food trucks and live music in Venice.
International Student Representative Shahamah Tariq said her office is working to make New Student Orientation more accessible and welcoming for international students by setting up a specific booth to meet international students and show them there is an existing community on campus.

Throwback Thursday: How UC logo represents schools’ images, negative response to 2012 proposed change

The University of California logo is recognized and revered worldwide – but seven years ago, it almost fell by the wayside.

In December 2012, the UC released a new logo, which was soon met with criticism from students and alumni. The UC aimed to modernize its emblem to accompany its systemwide outreach in California, said UC spokeswoman Dianne Klein.

According to Klein, the UC still planned to use the old logo on official documents and graduation diplomas. The new logo, which featured a shield-shaped “U” and a smaller “C” within it, would be used for systemwide news and communication.

“(The new logo) is part of a larger effort to communicate the multifaceted aspect of the UC system as a whole, … it doesn’t replace individual campus identities,” Klein said. “What this does is allow for better systemwide marketing campaigns, for one.”

However, many other members of the UC community did not feel the same enthusiasm for the new logo. Within months of the announcement of the new logo, a petition called “University of California: Stop the new UC logo” was created on Change.org and was rapidly circulated through several social media platforms. Two days after its creation, the petition had received 35,756 signatures.

The petition urged signers to ask the UC Board of Regents to consider an alternative and stated the attempt to modernize the logo took away its prestige and elegance.

Klein explained that the idea behind the logo was to present the UC as a system, but some students suggested that the new logo might be counterproductive.

“We’re an internationally recognized university … I don’t see any other top-25 schools updating their logos,” said Jonathan Acosta, a first-year biochemistry student at the time.

Sarah Wagstaff, a first-year psychobiology student at the time, shared the sentiment that the logo did not need to be updated.

“Even though the original logo wasn’t exactly the greatest looking, it had a quiet dignity to it,” Wagstaff said.

Klein said she appreciated the feedback from students and alumni. The UC Board of Regents did take these opinions into account and the logo remains unchanged to this day.

The logo is a major part of the way our school is perceived by outsiders, representing UCLA’s legacy and reputation.

As the university celebrates 100 years, UCLA recognizes the history and traditions that have made our campus unique for the past century. The celebration – which was kicked off Saturday with an alumni day, a TEDx event and a light show – involves recognizing the accomplishments of the past 100 years, and looking forward to what the university will do in the next 100.

The UCLA Centennial Campaign fund was created July 2012, the same year as the proposed logo change. Part of the importance of UCLA’s 100th birthday comes from the brand the school has been building through the last 100 years, and the logo change may have erased some of UCLA’s history.

As UCLA gains more prestige as a university, the UC system looks to the future but this doesn’t have to mean revamping the school’s image. In the next 100 years, we will maintain some traditions and discard others. A look into the past shows us that students and faculty can have a lasting impact on decisions that can affect our legacy and tradition – and ultimately, how the UC system represents itself for the next 100 years.

The Quad: An examination of firearm policy in the state of California

There’s nothing like a massive weapons bust to further inflame the hot-button issue of gun control.

Over 1,000 guns were seized May 8 from a home in Holmby Hills – a neighborhood not far from UCLA’s campus. The Los Angeles Police Department told CBS News that Girard Damien Saenz was arrested on the suspicion that he possessed assault weapons that he was both selling and creating.

Though the quantity of the weapons amassed in one home is undeniably large, the number is as striking for the average citizen as it is legal. However, despite Saenz’s collection being quantitatively legal, the inclusion of assault weapons in this collection makes it qualitatively illegal.

In California, certain weapons including shotguns with revolving cylinders, AK series and Colt AR-15 firearms, semiautomatic shotguns with the capacity for a detachable magazine and other such instruments are designated as assault weapons.

Currently, there is no law in California that limits the quantity of guns that a person can possess. The only restriction in this area, pursuant to Penal Code 27535, is that individuals cannot apply to purchase more than one handgun per 30-day period. There are no restrictions on the quantity of rifles and shotguns an individual can purchase nor on the timeframe with which they can purchase them.

Mark Peterson, a professor of political science focuses on the presidency, congress, interest groups and healthcare reform in his research. He highlights the diversity in attitudes regarding gun control – even in California.

“(The) center of gravity of California is very different from the center of gravity of Arkansas or South Dakota,” Peterson said. “But within California, there is a vast difference between people’s attitudes in Los Angeles from the Central Valley or the most northern regions of the state in the rural mountains.”

In spite of these differing opinions, California is reputed to have the strictest gun laws in the United States.

Federal law differs from California law in several key areas. First, California restricts the number of handguns an individual can purchase at one time in contrast with federal law within which there is no such restriction. Also, assault weapons are prohibited in California, whereas they are legal at the federal level.

California earned its tough-on-guns reputation through various means. The reputation is upheld in part through California’s regulation of the gun purchasing process.

Citizens must adhere to a number of certain requirements in order to complete the buying, selling and transferring of firearms in California. One such requirement is that a licensed dealer, who adheres to the Dealer’s Record of Sale process, must orchestrate nearly all purchases and transfers of firearms. There is then a 10-day waiting period before the firearm is given to the recipient.

Potential purchasers must provide proof of California residency and, unless exempt, must have a Handgun Safety Certificate and complete a safety demonstration. Purchasers of firearms must also be at least 21 years of age. This was initiated by Senate Bill 1100, passed in September 2018, which raised the age of firearm ownership from 18 to 21.

In addition, there are certain categorical restrictions regulating who can possess a firearm. For example, individuals that have been convicted of a felony, who are addicted to narcotics or who have given up their U.S. citizenship, are prohibited from owning a firearm in California.

In addition to established laws, California continues to implement legislation to tighten gun control and promote gun safety. In fact, there are several pieces of gun-related legislation that became effective just in 2019.

AB 1968 puts a lifetime ban on firearm ownership for individuals that have been in a mental health facility one or more times in a year. Individuals affected by this law are allowed to petition the court for a hearing to attempt to get the ban lifted.

AB 2103 specifies the requirements for obtaining a license to carry a concealed weapon. Among other things, the bill requires training to be at least eight hours and to include lessons on firearm safety and the laws pertaining to legal use of firearms.

Finally, SB 1235 amends the Safety for All Act of 2016 to require ammunition to be sold only to individuals who are deemed eligible to purchase ammunition by the Automated Firearms System, individuals with a department-issued certificate of eligibility or those who purchase ammunition in an approved single transaction.

These bills turned laws represent only a sample of the gun legislation passed recently. Therefore, in tandem with other pieces of recent gun legislation, it is clear that California is making progress toward implementing a comprehensive set of laws to attempt to ensure gun safety.

Despite these efforts, the fact remains that at present a man was able to amass a collection of over 1,000 weapons – a quantity that is inherently dangerous yet theoretically legal. However, it must be noted that this collection in particular is illegal due to its violation of California’s ban on possessing, manufacturing and selling assault weapons.

The lack of California law in this area is echoed by the larger lack of gun control legislation at the national level. However, Peterson said that differing attitudes currently have not been given the proper platform for reconciliation.

“The whole politics of guns has been wrapped up in making sure that those conversations don’t happen that allow for a more understanding approach to how can we solve or how can we at least make some advances in gun safety while not seeming to infringe on someone’s understanding of how guns play a role in their life and a role in America,” Peterson said.