From a smooth nostalgia perspective Bruno Mars’ fourth studio album, “The Romantic,” is a clear, straight to the point 32 minutes, nine-track project that marks a deliberate return to his soulful, retro-inspired sound. Known for blending modern pop with vintage influences, Mars leans even further into his nostalgic aesthetic here, drawing heavily from 1970s and 1980s soul, pop and slow-dance ballads. The result is an album that is polished, emotionally warm and sonically cohe

The mention of a cheerleader probably invokes visuals of the all-American, happy-go-lucky, girl-next-door type who is always happy to support the team under those Friday night lights. Jo Spencer, however, is not quite a picture-perfect part of the cheer squad in Jill McCorkle’s 1984 novel “The Cheer Leader.” This story is about so much more than football games. Rather, this novel is about the maddening nature of what it means to live up to the standards of womanhood in the So

Troy’s popular music band, POPulus, will be releasing a new single this month in a genre the members haven’t previously explored: bluegrass. The band will be releasing a cover of the song “Blue Moon of Kentucky,” this Friday, May 1. Bluegrass is a genre that has inspired students in the band. “I’m a fiddle player, and I’ve grown up on bluegrass and classic country music,” said Chase Dawson, a senior interdisciplinary studies major from Phoenix, Arizona who is playing the fidd

Troy K-EDU Center introduced students to the Korean alphabets through bracelet making at the K-Wave Day last Wednesday. Students focused on greetings and introductions as those are the most basic parts of any language and some of the most useful phrases to someone who isn’t fluent. According to Minsol Kim, the assistant director of the K-Center, the organization’s goal for the event was to give students the tools they needed to communicate with international students and othe

An array of beads was scattered across the lab table in the Math and Science room 212 last Thursday for a bracelet making night. Students from the Troy Beta Beta Beta (Tri Beta) chapter, a biological honor society, made colorful and creative bracelets to sell for a future fundraiser. There was a mix of lettered and colored bead with the students being able to decide how they wanted the bracelets to look. Some were Earth Day themed, some had words and others were just colors.

From live animals to edible insects in a variety of flavors, the annual Earth Day festival brought a fun and unique approach to environmental awareness. Troy’s Naturalist Club, Marine Biology Club and College of Science and Engineering held the event on the quad last Friday afternoon. Those who attended were able to learn about the environment with cyanotype art, live animals, educational zines and artistic activities. While some students explored the exotic, others focused o

The semester has come to an end for Troy’s Symphony Band, after the band’s last concert took place on Tuesday. Conducted mostly by Director of Bands Dr. Mark Walker, the concert also featured three graduate assistant guest conductors, who each got to choose any piece they wanted to conduct. One of the guest conductors said he appreciated the opportunity to create a special moment for both him and the students. “It's incredibly moving to share that opportunity with them,” sa

While we can all agree that the days of the wild west are long gone, this reviewer truly believes that deep down, everyone would like to be a cowboy, at least for a day. Recent media has encouraged this reception of the idealized West primarily through television, film and music. John Grady, the main character of Cormac McCarthy’s “All the Pretty Horses” (1992), follows that yearning for the great frontier, even when circumstances change the landscape he must work with. Yo

Coachella 2026 returned to the desert with a lineup and energy that reinforced its status as one of the most influential music festivals in the world. Held the weekends of Apr. 10 through 12 and Apr. 17 through 19 at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, the 25th edition of Coachella sold out within a week of its announcement, showing just how much anticipation surrounded the event. Even for those who could not attend, widespread media coverage, social media clips and a