HAYLEY LERCH
Staff Writer
You might not need that venti quadruple-shot whipped-cream-topped caramel macchiato — the lineup of performers at Pepperdine’s annual Double Shot Coffeehouse this weekend will amp you up more than any caffeinated drink can. And, no matter how particular you are about your coffee, in the way of music, this coffeehouse holds something for everyone.
The event will feature San Diego-based singer Molly Jenson on Friday and New Jersey native Jessie Baylin on Saturday, while also showcasing Pepperdine students. Senior Carly Escoto will open for Jenson and senior Chantilly Mers and junior Hunter Stanfield will open for Baylin.
“There are so many amazing artists out there who aren’t signed to a major record label or their music isn’t mainstream,” said senior Jacqueline Eaton, the Coffeehouse Chair for the Student Programming Board. “I guess what I’m really passionate about is introducing these artists and their music to other people.”
Molly Jenson, one of Eaton’s favorites, is making a name for herself in and around Southern California. Laced with pop elements, her acoustic songs convey an authenticity to which students can relate.
“It’s just pretty straightforward music and it talks about relationships,” Jenson said. “One of my songs, ‘Give it Time,’ talks about not running away from problems. That’s such a college thing. You have so many things to deal with.”
Jenson also has a lot on her plate. She has toured throughout California, splits her time between performing and working two jobs — somehow, she found time to record her album “Maybe Tomorrow,” released in Aug. 2005.
“I’m a little bit out of college, but I think I connect really well with college students, and I think my music connects well with [them],” Jenson said.
Her performance will kick off the Double Shot event and Jessie Baylin’s performance, which will include a full band, will keep the energy and inspirational lyrics flowing on Saturday. “This is my only dream,” Baylin said of performing. “If you dream big enough, you can have it — as long as you don’t give up.”
Baylin grew up in New Jersey, attended the New York City Professional Children’s School and moved to Los Angeles four years ago to pursue her career. Though it took her about a year-and-a-half to get onstage, Baylin has since toured with James Morrison and most recently with Dolores O’Riordan, lead singer of The Cranberries.
“I was playing to at least a thousand people each night and also playing with a woman who has a lot of wisdom,” Baylin said about the latter tour. “She’s sold 45 million records. She also has a family and kids. She said you can have it all.”
Baylin plans to follow up her debut album, “You!,” which was released in March 2007, with another album, which she said she will likely begin recording in Tennessee.
Baylin’s folksy sound harkens back to some of her classic rock favorites like Fleetwood Mac and Joni Mitchell. She synthesizes this side of her music with jazz elements, as Barbara Streisand and Judy Garland have also inspired her.
While the Double Shot event promises outside talent, some of Pepperdine’s very own will take the stage. Mers and Stanfield have been performing as a guitar-wielding duo since December. The two manage to blend Mers’ reggae background and Stanfield’s blues roots to create their own sound.
Both say they have been inspired by the other.
“Hunter is a talented guitarist who easily caught on to the style of music I write. It was like magic,” Mers said. “Basically, whenever I open my mouth to sing, so does Hunter’s guitar.”
Escoto is another Pepperdine student with a talent for writing music and performing. She was one of 15 selected from around 800 songwriters to be featured on the Starbuck’s album, “Off the Clock.”
“When I got the phone call I literally called Starbucks back to make sure they didn’t make a mistake,” Escoto said. “After I found out that I really had been chosen, I actually ran up and down my street because I couldn’t contain myself.”
It’s a good thing Escoto is no longer containing her music, though. Like Mers and Stanfield, she said she is excited about performing at this year’s Double Shot event with popular artists like Jenson and Baylin. She said she does not think anyone should pass up the Double Shot event.
“Mellow tunes, good people, free entertainment and free coffee — why not, right?,” she said.
Senior Michelle Petty points out the benefits of having coffeehouses on campus.
“It gives students who aren’t music majors or that don’t normally have access to that kind of outlet a chance to perform in a casual environment,” Petty said.
Students can enjoy the live music and free coffee from Starbucks and Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday in the Sandbar.
09-06-2007
