On Oct. 4 at 8:00 p.m., Barefoots hosted their semi-annual Open Mic Night.
At 7:30, Barefoots opened its doors for students to come in, sit down, talk and get coffee before the Open Mic Night started. Once the event began, the students who attended got to hear their peers play and sing covers, original songs, an instrumental piece and a song in Spanish.
Karis Murila, the director of Barefoots and Modero Coffee, has hosted multiple open mic nights in the past.
“We get to sit, and people get to share whatever they’ve brought,” Murila said. “We know we have so many talented musicians and instrumentalists, and so it’s an opportunity for them to share their talent with their friends and peers.”
When Barefoots holds Open Mic Night, Murila and her crew work hard to transform the familiar study area into a venue with seating for many to sit and watch.
Molly Vogt, a freshman digital media communications major, enjoys watching Open Mic Night participants express themselves through the music they have chosen to perform.
“I love seeing everybody getting to be a community while doing something or listening to stuff that everybody loves,” Vogt said. “Barefoots feels different, but it’s a cool different. It has the same cozy vibe to it that it normally does.”
Matthew Harris, a freshman commercial music major, had never attended an Open Mic Night before, and he enjoyed the low-pressure and welcoming environment.
“There wasn’t a ton of pressure on stage, and when someone messed up, everybody smiled and cheered them on,” Harris said. “Barefoots felt almost like a completely different place. It felt like it was made for concerts…I think it works really well as a venue — as well as a coffee place.”
Caleb Coleman, a junior worship leadership major, performed an Irish folk song called “Red Is the Rose.” During Coleman’s performance, he invited the audience to participate with him.
“I still get nervous,” Coleman said. “I was thinking about what song to do for this Open Mic Night, and I was like, what if I took some of the pressure off myself and tried to make it a little bit more memorable by teaching people a song.”
Caitlyn Ward, a senior sociology major, has performed in almost every open mic night since her freshman year. She sang and played guitar in a cover of the song “black & white” by Jeremy Zucker and Chelsea Cutler.
“I’ve been doing music for so long and doing it in front of people — even though my mind is calm, my body still has a reaction,” Ward said. “I just kind of have to breathe and also remind myself that it doesn’t need to be perfect because live music is different from studio recording. That is what makes live music special, the humanness of it.”