The Daily Orange
The Daily Orange
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From Apr. 2024 to Dec. 2024, I served as an Assistant Culture Editor at The Daily Orange, an award-winning independent student newspaper in Syracuse, New York. In this role, I reported 18 culture articles for the Daily Orange’s website, which receives over 3 million annual page views. In addition to reporting weekly stories, I worked in-house Sunday-Wednesday to edit culture stories for daily publication online and in print.
Read selections of my work or view my author archive below.
Close to SU’s campus, The Yard provides thrifted treasures to all
Close to SU’s campus, The Yard provides thrifted treasures to all
By Julia Pryor
November 13, 2024 for The Daily Orange
If you walk a few minutes outside of Syracuse University’s campus on a weekend afternoon, you’ll find a big white house on Madison Street with racks of clothes in the front yard. Cars line each side of the street and groups of people thumb through clothes before leaving with a bag of new additions to their closet.
“It’s a really cool feeling to give someone a new option of fashion,” Andrew Rainbow, co-owner of The Yard, said. “Instead of spending $100 on a new denim jacket, people can shop here and express themselves or experiment with their style.”
Syracuse natives Rainbow and Steve Davis opened The Yard, a pop-up vintage business, in August 2022. Almost every weekend since then from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., the duo has set up shop in Rainbow’s front yard. With countless racks of vintage SU gear, sports jerseys, pop culture t-shirts and tables of hats and other accessories, The Yard attracts crowds of Syracuse locals and students alike.
Davis met up with Rainbow when he bought a few items from his table at a flea market near Destiny USA Mall. The two bonded over a shared love of vintage clothing and Rainbow invited him to set up at The Yard.
Jam band Hydrogen stands out with psychedelic rock, improv
Jam band Hydrogen stands out with psychedelic rock, improv
By Julia Pryor
October 21, 2024 for The Daily Orange
In the basement of Crater on Saturday night, a student-run music venue, a crowd of students huddled around a makeshift stage as the first guitar chord of Hydrogen’s set rang out. When the band was still playing their first song 10 minutes later, some audience members looked at each other unexpectedly while others grooved to the music.
“So many times somebody will come to a house show not knowing what bands are playing, and if we happen to be on that bill, they’re just like, ‘what the f*ck am I listening to right now?’” Michael Brodsky, lead vocalist and guitarist, said.
Consisting of Brodsky, drummer Dominic Colucci, bassist Jacob Cotton and keyboardist Ethan Girtz, the jam band plays psychedelic rock music with elements of funk and jazz. Along with covers, the band incorporates long-form improvisation into their sets, inspired by their favorite bands the Grateful Dead and Phish.
When picking a name for the band, Brodsky said he wanted to pay homage to a band they love without overtly sounding like a cover band. They eventually settled on Hydrogen, inspired by a Phish song titled, “I Am Hydrogen.”
OrangeReels Film Festival student works are ‘the future of cinema’
OrangeReels Film Festival student works are ‘the future of cinema’
By Julia Pryor
September 29, 2024 for The Daily Orange
An animated film reel unfurled across a projection screen, reading “OrangeReels Film Festival” before a fully-seated Watson Theatre. In the audience, some filmmakers bounced their legs and bit at their fingernails, while other actors beamed awaiting their screen debut.
“For some filmmakers, this may be their first festival, and for others, it may be one of many,” said Will Delgado, the vice president of OrangeReels. “Whatever stage they are in, there’s one thing for sure: In this very room is the future of cinema.”
OrangeReels returned for its second annual film festival Friday night. Following a selection process by Syracuse University alumni, a dozen short films were chosen for the Watson screen. Films ranged from horror to animation to music videos, playing for an audience of over 200 people. The festival concluded with an award ceremony that recognized each filmmaker’s work.
This year, the festival took place at the beginning of Family Weekend. Many audience members were family of the student filmmakers who were there to support their work.
SENSES Project grows students’ artistry through concept albums
SENSES Project grows students’ artistry through concept albums
By Julia Pryor
September 24, 2024 for The Daily Orange
In 2021, when Syracuse University junior Kiki Charles joined the SENSES Project, a student-focused, multimedia lab, members were confined to a tiny space at 804 University Ave. Three years later, they occupy a large room in Steele Hall, complete with DJ sets, production booths and countless instruments, having hosted over 1,000 students since this summer.
“It’s been cool to see how (the SENSES Project) developed over time, from five freshmen in a basement to an entire music production room,” Charles said.
Every semester, the SENSES Project (Studying an Environment that Nurtures Self-Exploration in Students) creates a full concept album. Students convene in the Sound Lab and work together and independently.
The SENSES Project is partnering with the SU Art Museum for its collaborative album project, which will be released at the end of the semester. While past albums have been more general, such as “A SENSES Holidays, Vol. 1” or “HEART/BREAK,” this album will be based on the “‘Homeward to the Prairie I Come:’ Gordon Parks” exhibit on display at the museum until Dec. 10.
Joan Jett Women’s Day concert inspires multigenerational bonds at Great NYS Fair
Joan Jett Women’s Day concert inspires multigenerational bonds at Great NYS Fair
By Julia Pryor
August 29, 2024 for The Daily Orange
On the left side of the Suburban Park Stage, an interpreter translated Joan Jett and the Blackhearts’ lyrics into American Sign Language as the band rocked the stage. Karen Engel and her daughter, Amara, who is hard of hearing, returned to the Great New York State Fair because of its accessibility, and this time, they also came specifically for Jett.
“Having interpreters is really nice. It makes the experience so much more enjoyable because we can enjoy it together,” Karen said.
The Great New York State Fair hosted rock ‘n’ roll legend Joan Jett and the Blackhearts on Wednesday for an unforgettable live performance. The crowd for the band ranged from adults who grew up listening to the band in the 1970s to toddlers watching the stage in awe from atop their father’s shoulders. The band has become a fairgoer favorite, featured on the stage five times since 2006 and last performing on Labor Day in 2021.
This year, the band’s performance fell on Women’s Day at the Fair, which gives fairgoers the chance to hear inspiring speeches from women leaders and advocacy groups. Jett defeated gender-based stereotypes in the 1970s and was coined the “Queen of Rock ‘n’ Roll.”
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