Finley's Lively Colonial Rap-off
This year's Colonial Rap-Off at J. Taylor Finley Middle School was just as popular as its predecessors have been over the past five years. The event combines modern day sounding songs with early American history and proved to be an enjoyable learning experience for both performers and the audience.
"The colonial rap was a great success," Mr. Reminick said. "This year students had to pick their topic from a hat. In previous years they could pick whatever they wanted as long as it related to the American Revolution. We normally had 10 raps on the Boston Tea Party. I wanted to change that."
Students received the assignment a couple of weeks before the big event. Early rounds helped whittled down the number of acts for the final show, which was held in Finley large group instruction room before a crowd of students and teachers.
An American Idol-type format was utilized with Mr. Reminick as the master of ceremonies. Team teachers formed the panel of judges. The stage crew consisted of numerous students, who also handled the sound and lighting.
Joel Aparicio-Parada won this year's competition. "He wrote a song about Thomas Paine and how he encouraged the colonists to fight," Mr. Reminick said. "His act was great and he had the entire crowd laughing. His lyrics were well thought-out and I was very proud of his performance."
"It was awesome," said Mr. Aparacio-Parada about the event. "I learned that Thomas Paine wrote 'Common Sense' to inform the colonists that they owed nothing to the king. I had a great time!"
Sophia Suarez captured top honors in the "best song" category. "She wrote a song about the Proclamation of 1763, which angered the colonists because it tried to stop them from moving west of the Appalachian Mountains. The whole crowd gave her a standing ovation. She has a beautiful voice and it took a lot of courage for her to go up there on perform it on her own."
"Break the Ice" was named "best band." The group consists of students Max Andrew Polster, Dylan Delguidice and Jackson Spector. "Between the guitar riff and drums, backed by strong vocals, they kept the crowd rocking," Mr. Reminick said. "They also served as the house band for the entire show. They were fantastic." The group's rap focused on legendary American patriot Samuel Adams.
The event had many twists and turns to it, along with a variety of surprises. For example, there was even a teacher rap-off. It pitted faculty members Christopher Helmke, Vincent Tannazzo and Erica Parris.
"The entire day is really turning into a great experience for the kids," Reminick said. The rap-off has become an annual tradition on the last day of school before the winter recess.