Special Projects

Review: ‘TYLA’ is a refreshing, self-assured debut

At 22 years old, singer Tyla has already seen a level of success most musicians can only dream of. In the past year, she’s had her viral, platinum-certified hit “Water” top the Billboard U.S. Afrobeats Songs chart, collaborated with Travis Scott and Summer Walker and won the first-ever Grammy for Best African Music Performance. 

Review: ‘Deeper Well’ is a melodic journey of self-reflection

Kacey Musgraves is one of the most innovative singer-songwriters within the country genre, a quality that’s been evident since she released her debut album, “Same Trailer, Different Park,” 11 years ago. Musgraves’s latest record, “Deeper Well,” melds the star’s signature country stylings with folk, resulting in a stellar collection of 14 tracks that are packed with thoughtfulness and nostalgia.

Review: On ‘Bright Future,’ Big Thief’s Adrianne Lenker remains powerfully optimistic

While indie folk-indie rock group Big Thief has consistently dropped passionately bittersweet and critically acclaimed work since their 2016 debut “Masterpiece,” the band reached their career high in 2022 with “Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe In You,” which stands as one of the most celebrated albums of the decade so far. Adrianne Lenker, Big Thief’s lead vocalist, has had no shortage of success herself, with her previous album “Songs” appearing in the year-end top 10 albums list of many major publications. While Big Thief tracks like “Not” and “Little Things” can be noisy and dense, Lenker’s solo work is reliably soothing yet simultaneously heartbreaking. 

Female-directed films to look out for in 2024

Female filmmakers have been innovating since the era of silent film in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. However, the 1934 establishment of the Hays Code — a set of guidelines for Hollywood films from the 1930s to 1960s that censored content deemed offensive — played a major role in stifling women’s creative say in the film industry. With Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” becoming the highest-grossing film in the states and worldwide, 2023 was a landmark year for female directors in Hollywood and signifies an ever-changing landscape of female film direction. In honor of Women’s History Month, here are some new or upcoming female-directed films that represent the variety, innovation and artistic verve that women have imbued into the film canon.

Now is the time to understand religious diversity and discrimination at Rice

In the midst of a nationwide increase in religious discrimination and hostility, particularly following the events of Oct. 7 in Israel and ensuing humanitarian crisis in Gaza, there is a need to examine how Rice University students have been impacted, how they are responding and the degree to which religious tolerance, religious accommodations, and perceptions of religious discrimination at Rice have changed. 

We need to diversify Rice’s foodscape

Rice students have lots to say about access to food while on and around campus.  Rice’s unique foodscape lives and breathes the school’s motto of unconventional wisdom by helping accommodate a diverse group of students.  But to a certain extent, it could benefit from a taste of conventional wisdom.  Implementing other universities’ foodscape features at Rice would benefit our students.

Practice safe drinking post-Prohibition

Dean of Undergraduates Bridget Gorman finally released the long-awaited Alcohol Policy Advisory Committee’s recommendations regarding the alcohol policy on March 22. We have to be honest — it could have been much worse.  

The road less taken: travel scholarships at Hanszen, Wiess

Touring a tobacco farm in Cuba, eating at a Michelin-starred bistro in Paris or visiting urban gardens in Spain: unique experiences abound when venturing beyond the hedges. Though the Rice Office of Study Abroad offers a variety of scholarships for students interested in academic travel, lesser-known are Hanszen and Wiess Colleges’ travel scholarships. 

Magisterial matters: a look back at renaming

From wearing jackets that advertise their colleges to disciplining students when their checks bounced, magisters have had a myriad of responsibilities throughout the years. The 2017 change of their title from masters to magisters reflected a debate about whether their once-title, reminiscent of slavery’s use of the term master, correctly captured the essence of those responsibilities. 

Colette Nicolaou on love, learning and lecture

In 2011, Colette Nicolaou left her home in Los Angeles — along with her family, her friends and a job she loved — and followed a boy to Houston. She knew no one and her psychologist license wasn’t valid in Texas. She did it for love, Nicolaou said. Soon after her arrival in Texas, she married her now-husband.  

Rice sailing club sets sails for competitions

The Rice Sailing Team placed third in the St. Francis Invitational Regatta in San Francisco March 10. The race lasted two days, from March 9 to 10. According to Rice Sailing Club President Manning Unger, Rice represented one of the nine teams present, which also included University of California, Davis, University of California, Berkeley and California Polytechnic Institute.

Inaugural health science journal launches

The inaugural issue of the Rice Remedy journal, the first student-run health sciences journal covering topics ranging from LGBTQ+ healthcare to the history of cancer, was released online Jan 7. 

Three years after rocky rollout, information technology office launches iO EvolutiOn

When payment system ImagineOne was introduced in 2021, students said they were paid late, left without guidance and never consulted. Then-president David Leebron described the implementation as “terrible.” Paul Padley, the then-interim chief information officer, apologized.

Jeremy Zucker announced as X-Fest headliner

Singer-songwriter Jeremy Zucker will headline the second annual Moody X-Fest on April 19, according to Jeremy Miller, Rice’s communications director for Development and Alumni Relations.

Preview: #14 WBB travels to #3 LSU for first round of WBB National Championship

Rice women’s basketball head coach Lindsay Edmonds’ jaw dropped as her players, family and fans cheered and danced around her. The 14th-seeded Owls saw their name pop up on the big screen as the first-round opponent to No. 3 Louisiana State University in the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament.

Pera dismissed as men’s basketball coach

Rice men’s basketball head coach Scott Pera has been dismissed, athletic director Tommy McClelland announced March 14.

Rice issues policy for poster takedown, display spaces and content

Posters are now required to be taken down 10 days after they’re first put up or two days after the event they advertise, according to a new Rice policy. Administrators are working on additional guidelines for putting up and taking down posters in shared building spaces, Kelly Fox, the executive vice president of operations, finance and support, said.

Kim holds first senate of term

Student Association president Jae Kim led his first senate for the 2024-25 session March 18. He outlined his expectations for the year, highlighting transparency, communication and uplifting and amplifying the voices of all students. 

MFAH’s ‘Vertigo of Color’ explores a summer of artistic experimentation

Four galleries of art tell the story of previously-unestablished Henri Matisse and André Derain and their shared 1905 summer spent in Collioure, a fishing town in the South of France. Titled “Vertigo of Color: Matisse, Derain, and the Origins of Fauvism,” the exhibit opened Feb. 25 at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston. 

03-20-24 Crossword Solutions