If you’re anything like me or the average American, you are most likely to spend half of your day sitting down. Whether it’s from sitting on the CTA, sitting at your desk at work/school, in a car, or even when you get home from a long day at work, you tend to plop down your couch first. We spend a lot of our time sitting down a lot more often than you would think.
So it really is no surprise to me that when I try to go to bed at the end of the day, I start to feel restless and my body aches and I can’t relax to the full extent that I need in order to go to bed. The muscles in our body need activity in order for it to pump blood throughout our whole body. Sitting at our desks, in front of our screens won’t do much for us at the end of the day when we’re trying to get some rest.
Something that I have figured out that helped me during times of high stress and restless nights is getting out of bed and stretching. Like I said before, our body and muscles need to experience some sort of activity to get the blood circulating through our body in a proper manner. I know I have days when I can’t make it to the gym and feel like my body is in pain because I haven’t done any movement for my whole body, through that I have found that stretching before bed is one of the best ways to release any sort of tension you may have built up throughout the day, and it tends to give you the best night’s sleep ever.
Studies indicate that everyone should be stretching before doing anything, especially at the beginning of the day because it loosens up your muscles. But the benefits stretching has before bed is that correlates itself to yoga and everyone knows that yoga is meant for relaxing and meditating. Using this time before bed to focus on those two things can help detach any stresses that could have built up throughout the day.
Whether it’s doing stretches you would do after a soccer practice or your warm up stretches before hitting the gym, do them in your own room before jumping into bed. Slowly take your time with these stretches and don’t forget to take a deep breath in. This is your time when you’re disconnected from your phone and most importantly, the world. So take this advice from a 21 year old that feels like an 80 year old, do some stretching before bed to get the best nights rest that will have you feeling like a five year old again.
Take a closer look at Uncommon Ground’s weekly open mic hosted every Monday at 8 PM. Video Edited by Patsy Newitt, Nikki Ramos, Jessica Rish and Jocelyn Soto.
In a neighborhood littered with Cubs fans stumbling down crowded streets, Uncommon Ground is unexpected. The cozy bar and restaurant tucked away on the corner of Clark and Grace Street, offers a haven from the chaos of Wrigley Field after a game. It sticks out like a sore thumb.
Despite Wrigleyville having a bar on every corner and Uncommon Ground’s lack of cohesion with the rest of the neighborhood, the tiny front still manages to fill the house every Monday night for the venue’s popular open mic event.
Uncommon Ground’s Monday night open mic event is a staple event of Chicago’s art scene. With a sign-up list that regularly fills up several pages of a yellow legal pad, the popular event gives performers of all varieties the opportunity to showcase their work.
Monday June 3, 8 p.m., was just a regular Monday night for Uncommon Ground. But for first-time attendees, the diverse performances were a diversion from the typical open mic, something unique and welcome to all Chicagoans brave enough to sign up.
This personifies the premise of Uncommon Ground Open Mic – fundamental inclusivity. Performers are limited only by a five-minute time constraint. Outside of that, anyone is welcome and encouraged to perform anything. There are no limits.
The show featured a comedy set centered around a wet t-shirt contest, a man singing an acapella rendition of Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper’s “Shallow” from A Star is Born, and an individual who got on stage exclusively to tell a long-winded story about entertainment in 1964.
The event is incredibly popular, hence the extensive legal pad sign-up list. Sign-up begins at 7 p.m. for the 8 p.m. show, but the website encourages performers to show up early to ensure a spot.
For more seasoned artists, 2019 marked their tenth year performing, for others, it was their first time on stage.
“The goal is to encourage upcoming artists to come out and share themselves and their material for the first time in front of their peers,” said Eric Quigley, the host, and producer of the event.
This complete adherence to inclusivity opens the door to potentially cringe-worthy material, but Uncommon Ground and its audience are not deterred. Uncommon Ground is intentionally welcoming. Bring your good, your bad, and your man telling a story.
For the performers, this inclusivity was palpable. “I haven’t been into too many scenes like this, but it was cool, it was open,” Jimmy Gavin, first-time musical performer, said. “It was fun because it was a combination of things and that’s what things like these are about.”
Unlike other open mic venues around the city, Uncommon Ground offers a tangible and immediate reward – the winner not only gets half of the donation earnings from the empty beer pitcher passed around throughout the show like an offering plate but also access to Chicago’s music scene.
Every Monday, Quigley chooses the best of the performances to move on to the next level. The weekly winners are invited to compete at a final competition where the ultimate winner receives a cash prize, Shure microphones, Greenstar Brewing, and Uncommon Ground Merchandise, a 30-minute artist photo shoot, an opportunity to perform an original piece on the radio, an on-air interview, an independent show at Uncommon Ground, and Opening Slots at Chicago Venues.
These final competitions are hosted twice a year, in January and July, and are open to the public.
The winner is chosen by Quigley, based on performance, song, musicianship, crowd reaction, and participation. The performers rarely question this subjectivity because winning is not really what the performance is about. It’s about embracing the opportunity for performance and the venue that supports it.
The goal of the competition is to create a network for emerging artists, providing an avenue for new performers to get their foot in the door.
“A lot of the times that is their first show, and then from there they are kind of set and have a network and know who they are booking through,” said Quigley. “I often see those same people playing Elbo Room and other places throughout the city. So it provides kind of a launching pad.”
Uncommon Ground itself is a perfect spot for the action. Wrigleyville, despite all its chaos, gives the venue extensive foot traffic. From the outside, Uncommon Ground is unassuming, but once inside, the venue is spacious, warm and bright.
The venue’s commitment to social awareness and inclusivity isn’t exclusive to its open mics. During the day, Uncommon Ground is a healthy and sustainable restaurant, home of the first certified organic brewery in Illinois and the first certified organic rooftop farm in the US. Vegetables are homegrown, and they have a solar panel on the roof.
Though they didn’t serve their full dinner menu in the space where the mic took place – dubbed “Music Room” by a colorful sign before the entrance – the event had a specials and snacks menu, an extensive drink selection, and table service for audience members.
These aspects make Uncommon Ground uniquely suited for audience engagement, producing a community supportive of every act regardless of the quality.
June 3 proved no different, with some audience members even providing back up vocals from their seats to a performer who forgot his words. The audience isn’t sitting silently watching with an air of judgment, but instead, are actively making Uncommon Ground a place where performers feel at ease before going up on stage.
“It is a listening room,” Quigley said, “A lot of open mics are placed in bars where it’s noisy, and there is a lot going on. This room is designed around people bringing in their material and everyone paying close attention to it.”
It’s easy to dismiss open mics on the premise of inexperience, but Monday nights at Uncommon Ground prove that throwing standards out the window doesn’t have to diminish the validity of the art itself.
Uncommon Ground provides a perfect venue for deinstitutionalized art explicitly.
“Something like an open mic is a great creative outlet to come out and interact with people,” Gavin said, “You never know who you are going to meet, and just show what you are doing.”
BY: Patsy Newit, Nikki Ramos, Jessica Rish and Jocelyn Soto
Open-mic events seem to have a cringe-worthy connotation – an assumption that the work performed will be rough, unprofessional, or often-times offensive.
Regardless of the validity in that connotation, the goal of open-mic events remains objectively honest – provide an outlet for those who lack access to higher standards of art performance.
The Comedy Bar, located in Gino’s East in the River North District, is one of the many open-mic opportunities in the Chicago area. Comedians of all skill levels are invited to sign up on Thursdays at 8:30.
Art can often feel exclusive to those who fit a certain status quo, making events like these necessary for the continuation of grassroots creativity.
Check out our video highlighting how the Comedy Bar plays a pivotal role in making comedy accessible and their entertaining wheel-shaped take on the typical open-mic.
While Summer is right around the corner, that means tourism in Chicago will be at it’s peak. And what better way to know how to spend your day then getting the best recommendations from a true Chicago native.
Sofie Karnowski, a junior at DePaul University. Mentioned in the podcast, she is a Public Relations and Advertising Major, Minoring in Event Planning and Photography. Because of that fun introduction, Sofie is our go-to girl for a fun and exciting filled day in Chicago.
Karnowski mentions visiting the staples of Chicago. Places such as Magnificent Mile for shopping and walking around the city. Millennium Park and the Art Institute for Instagram worthy pictures. And finally giving food recommedations after a long day of exploring.
Take a second to listen to what a Chicago native would recommend to someone visiting our city for the first time.
After stepping back and taking sometime reflecting on all the sounds we hear in our environment, music isn’t what we’re always listening to. While music is one of the many entertaining ways to spend summer days, there is a more important factor we’re missing…and that’s food and the perfect back drop for those quick snapshots.
Up above, there are two separate maps that show off the different outdoor seating cafe’s and murals that are scattered all along the Chicago-land area. The purple markers are the murals and the pink are the outdoor seating cafe’s.
Anywhere Downtown is known for go to rooftops and patio seating throughout the summer. With this map, I hope to reach out to all kinds of spenders. Whether you’re going big or want a cute, cheap spot to hang out, this map is calling your name.
While clicking around the maps, there is a various options of places and foods that can accommodate whoever, wherever they want. There is a various range of locations, making it perfect for all you spontaneous adventurers.
When asking the students and locals of Chicago what their favorite summer pass time is, listening to music was by far the most popular response. Chicago has become the home of many different music venues and parks that hold important historical and sentimental moments.
Grant Park, Millennium Park, Union Park, Oak wood 41st Street Beach and many more places are some of the biggest and well known places for those sunny days when all your cares in the world revolve around good food, drinks and music.
While line-ups and dates releases are in season, it’s the place and location that makes the memories a lot more exciting. What else can possibly be better than seeing the sunset fall over the skyline while you’re listening to your favorite artists in Grant Park? Nothing can top that.
But for those of us who enjoy not spending as much money on tickets, over at DePaul University, an event called ‘Fest’ is held every year at the end of the Spring Quarter. With musical artists such as A$AP Ferg, Jesse McCartney, and Logic have taken over the stage and to some, they did not disappoint.
Kelly Roscoe, a junior at DePaul University has been an attendee to ‘Fest’ for the past two years now and she cannot wait to see what great options the crew working for ‘Fest’ will bring to the table this quarter. “I’ve gone to musical festivals before, but there’s something about seeing a favorite performer of yours at your school” says Roscoe.
Whether it’s being at an outdoor festival or a laid back venue, music should be enjoyed everywhere. Sunny summer days is the beginning to some of the best memories. And what better than to have music being in those great memories, from the nights you don’t want to forget.
When Chicago experiences all the seasons in one day, we start to question, “Where is Spring?” or “I need summer to happen NOW.” And what better way to start a summer countdown than having it be for a summer festival! Lollapalooza will be coming to Chicago, Illinois at Grant Park this summer for the 29th year.
During the 4 days that stages, food trucks, and millions of people flood Grant Park, the music and performances is what everyone looks forward to most. With headliners such as Ariana Grande, Childish Gambino, J Balvin and Twenty-One Pilots, people from all around the world come together to unwind the last few days of summer with some of the biggest musicians and artists from the year.
Music Festivals have gone through their fair share of good and bad disasters. With the mass shootings that have happened, the most recent location being Las Vegas, Nevada, moments like those stay heavy in our hearts. Music serves as a place of happiness and freedom for some people. DePaul University student, Maggie Jones recalls that “Lollpalooza was the best 4 days of my summer, there is nothing better than listening to your favorite songs and performers live with your best friends by your side.”
Lollapalooza is one of many events that occur in the summer and in the Chicago-land area that gets everyone excited. Although this is a festival that travels world wide, it holds a special place in the hear of Chicago. While having Millennium Park and Grant Park, these are two of many places to enjoy the some of best of live music that Chicago has to offer.
If you have yet to experience Lollapalooza, or if you are returner to those stomping grounds, enjoy a line-up with some oldies but goodies and the most popular names, faces and music from the past year.
Hi all! My name is Jocelyn Soto and I am a sophomore over at DePaul University. I have been exploring all different kind’s of journalism in my two years at DePaul. I have always been interested in Life Style journalism but this time, I will be focusing on something that I love…music.
Welcome to my blog where I will be discussing some of the sounds that influence our city of Chicago.
Mamby On The Beach IG
Jocelyn Soto 