Name: Grace Stern
Class year: Senior
Hometown: Los Angeles, CA
Are you involved in any campus clubs? Perhaps an a cappella club? I’m one of the music directors for THEM A Cappella! I also do all of the marketing and graphic design at Hillel am on on the board of Crawfest.
What is your favorite song to perform? I have a few. I’ve been in the group for four years so choosing one is difficult. I’d say my favorite most recent song is The Wire by HAIM. Every time the group performs it, we get super hyped and just jump and dance around. We actually got too hyper singing the song once so we had to stop and sing it super quietly in order to preserve some of our energy during rehearsal!
When you were little, what was your dream job? A doctor!! I had my entire life plan set when I was 14…It has changed quite a bit since then. Now I want to go into music publishing and licensing.
What is your favorite restaurant in New Orleans? Marti’s in the quarter—Their seafood tower is amazing.
Describe your perfect Saturday: Sleep in, drink a leisurely cup of coffee, go to yoga or go for a run, get pho with friends, go to the fly, then go to THEM rehearsal
What album should people be listening to? Alt-J’s first album is amazing. I was less impressed by their second, but it’s still pretty good. Also Jenny Lewis’ album from last summer!
Would you rather eat chocolate or sour gummies for every meal? Chocolate, of course.
Who is your hero? Joni Mitchell—I’m a songwriter, so she has always been a role model of mine, but what I admire most is her authenticity and her ability to convey such universal thoughts and emotions into music that is accessible to everyone. Her music transcends all different walks of life and can really affect people in different and special ways.
What’s one Instagram account everyone should be following? @THEMacappella duh! It’ll keep you informed on all of our upcoming performances, plus introduce you to new music each week (we have this thing called “song Sunday” where a member posts a song they’ve been loving each Sunday)
What is one thing you must cross off your bucket list before you graduate? I actually have a bucket list for my last semester here. I really want to get some friends together with some wine and a picnic basket and take the ferry across the river to Algiers. I don’t know why it hasn’t happened yet
If you could give a piece of advice to a crowd, what would you say? Be yourself! As cheesy and clichéd as that may sound, it is so so important. I definitely struggle with it sometimes, but I always feel better about whatever I do when I’m being true to myself.