Now that we’re knee deep in finals commotion wouldn’t it be nice to take a break and hear a wildly successful Brown alumnus talk about his eyeglass business? Of course it would! Andy Hunt ’04 will be leading a discussion in Petteruti Lounge tonight at 6:30 p.m.on his various experiences as an entrepreneur. His coolest role is undoubtedly that of co-founder of Warby Parker, an online eyeglass company that emphasizes retro frames (think Don Draper/Truman Capote/Gatsby swag) and affordable prices. If you’re looking for another good study break today, take a minute (or an hour) perusing the company’s many styles. Glasses porn may not be a thing, but this site comes close enough. While the specs surely attract the young adult crowd, they’re also familiar enough to appeal to just about anybody, which is probably why the business recently expanded with its first brick and mortar location. As the talk is sponsored by Brown and RISD entrepreneurship groups, Hunt will surely have plenty of advice for how to get a promising concept off the ground. If you need further proof that your 20-page final research paper on [_insert esoteric topic here_] means nothing, be sure not to miss this cool thing. Once more: Today (Tuesday, May 7) in Petteruti at 6:30.

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But seriously, holy shit. Did you ever want to see Trapped in the Closet, R. Kelly’s cinematic fucking masterpiece, on the big screen? Yes. Yes, you did. You are in luck, friend, because the Cable Car Cinema is so attuned to the quirks of modern pop culture that it has sensed that the perfect time to do a one-time screening of what they call “R. Kelly’s classic hip hopera” is this Saturday at 9 p.m. Go drink warm beer in a crusty Wriston basement/crowded sports team house… OR WATCH TRAPPED IN THE CLOSET IN A FUCKING MOVIE THEATER?!!?!? Is it even a question? I’ll see you there.

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So this kinda came out of nowhere, but apparently Brown’s UCS and RISD’s Student Alliance came together to put on the first ever Brown/RISD Lawn Party this Saturday from 1-5 pm on Benefit St. (between College and Waterman).  Not only will there be an actual lawn, the party will feature a beergarden (Ed.- the beer isn’t free, but still, yay beer!), food trucks, a photobooth, music, volleyball, and, most importantly, plastic flamingos.  This should be a pretty dope opportunity to take some time off from studies, (hopefully) enjoy the sunshine, and get some RISD kids to make you feel inadequate about your own artistic abilities paint your face.

Looking for something fun to do on the Spring Week hump day? Check out the Class Coordinating Board’s Mr. and Ms. Brown Pageant! The event will be held on Wednesday, April 17 at 7 p.m. in Sayles Hall.

The twelve dazzling contestants are all members of the senior class and will go head-to-head to compete for the “Mr. and Mrs. Brown” titles. Trust us: these guys mean business! After all, they’ve already fought off nearly 100 other nominees to get to the Sayles stage. The nominees have a wide array of talents—expect some dancing, singing, poetry-reading, and a large amount of senior shenanigans.

If you don’t go for the talent, go for the judges. The pageant will be judged by campus favorites Barrett Hazeltine, Fiery Cushman, and Barbara Tannenbaum, alongside Senior Class Presidents Brandon Tomasso ’13 and Kelsey Tripp ’13, and Cara Lemire ’13, who currently holds the title of Miss Eastern Massachusetts. Audience votes will also be factored into judging so bring your friends to support some talented and courageous Brown students! In all seriousness, this will be absolutely hilarious. Don’t miss it.

The Ivy Film Festival presents an advanced screening of The Kings of Summer tonight at 8 p.m. This “unforgettable coming-of-age comedy” is a 2013 Sundance Selection, and made a ton of Top-Ten-Must-See Sundance film lists. The film’s official release date is May 31, 2013. It’s projected to be a huge summer hit.

The Kings of Summer is a comedic tale of three teenage boys who try to make a home for themselves in the woods, Jean Craighead George-style. The film features comedy stars Nick Offerman from Parks and Recreation, Alison Brie from Community, and Megan Mullalley from Will and Grace and the equally as important “I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter” commercials. Some of you may also remember Moises Arias, the wily Rico from Hannah Montana, and if you don’t, here’s a video of him doing the “Stanky Leg.”  He plays one of the boys in this film, alongside Gabriel Basso and Nick Robinson.

For those of you who saw The Way, Way Back earlier this week (or heard every person in attendance raving afterwards), you should trust the IFF’s judgment when they say that this movie is going to kill it. Doors open at 7:45 p.m. See ya there!

Before campus gets completely overrun by nervous high school seniors for ADOCH, unwind a little at the Brown Folk Festival. Perfectly timed with this bizarrely sudden start of spring, the festival is this Saturday, the 13th from noon until midnight. Assuming that the weather stays as lovely as it has been, the festival will start on Lincoln Field Simmons Quad and move to Sayles at 6 p.m. Beyond the awesome music and the opportunity to show off your folksy dance skills, there will be local food and craft vendors, awesome student designed t-shirts on sale, and jam circles.

Check out what acts from all over New England this FREE concert features after the jump. [Read more →]

Rap Genius founder Ilan with rapper Cam’ron

At 7:30 tomorrow night Rap Genius and Hip Hop 4 are hosting a panel on hip hop, education, and social justice called Language of Hip Hop in MacMillan 117. The panel will feature Africana Studies Prof. Tricia Rose, Brown alum Sam Seidel ’02, AS220’s Medusah Black, and Rap Genius founder Ilan Zechory!!!

For those of you who aren’t familiar with Rap Genius, it is a Wikipedia-like database for annotated song lyrics that has gotten a lot of press recently owing to a $15 Million investment by prominent venture capital fund Andreesesen Horowitz. Additionally the three founders (all Yale alums) made it onto Forbes’ 30 under 30 list this past year in the music category, nested between Kendrick Lamar and Bruno Mars.

If that wasn’t enough to sell you on this event, check out this interview Tricia Rose did with the Rap Genius late last year, and check out the event flyer after the jump. [Read more →]

Mitchell Zuckoff, acclaimed journalist and author, will be speaking at Smith-Buonanno 201 at 5 p.m. today! His talk, entitled Hiding in Plain Sight: Finding and Telling True Stories that Other Writers Overlook, promises to be interesting for creative nonfiction English types- and everybody else too.

Zuckoff, currently a journalism professor at Boston University, is the author of the fascinating Lost in Shangri-La: A True Story of Survival, Adventure, and the Most Incredible Rescue Mission of World War II. The book details the true story of a World War II airplane that crash-landed in the jungle of New Guinea. The survivors, including a female Colonel, encountered natives who had never had contact with the outside world. As much as a survival story, it is also a anthropoligical narrative—an informative look at the warfare, cannabilism, and gender relations of the native Pygmy peoples. If you haven’t read it, you should—it’s an awesome read.

Zuckoff has been a Pulitzer prize finalist for his work in investigative reporting at The Boston Globe, and has also written for The New Yorker and Fortune magazine. Oh, and he’s also written five other books. This guy is boss. Go see him.

You’re not going to want to miss what is going on in Faunce this week.

This Monday through Thursday, from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., New York-based artist Diana Gilon will be on Brown’s campus to help coordinate an amazing collaborative mural project. A blank canvas will be transformed into a beautiful quilt-like mural, exactly like the one you see above, through the use of various materials. Join students from all backgrounds, walks of campus life, and artistic experience in contributing to this art installation that will help to explore how each person’s own cultural identity impacts his/her view of social justice. Stop by for a few minutes any time, any day to contribute to this beautiful project. No art background is necessary!

The kickoff is today at 12 p.m. in the Lower Lobby of Faunce. Don’t miss this opportunity to leave your mark at Brown!

What were you up to on Martin Luther King Jr. Day? Perhaps you were struggling through the cold as you moved back into your room. Or maybe you were just struggling to not leave your couch as vacation came to a close. Fortunately, if you failed to observe or contemplate or even remember the holiday, redemption is here because Brown’s MLK Lecture is happening Wednesday at 4 p.m. in Upper Salomon. Oh, yea, and MLK’s daughter, lawyer and social activist Bernice King, will be the featured speaker.

While last year’s event focused on stereotypes’ impact in education, the 2013 installment will address the ever-important issue of healthcare inequality within the United States. In the fittingly titled “Advancing the Dream” lecture (2013 marks the 50th anniversary of the ‘I Have a Dream’ speech), King will discuss how the struggle for social equality has taken on a new form in the 21st century—primarily that of improving the accessibility, affordability, and quality of healthcare in the United States. Whether you’re interested in making up for a forgotten MLK Day or simply interested in hearing a great speaker before your workload rules out any possibility of attendance, this is a cool thing you shouldn’t miss.

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