Candace Benson: The Fire Within

By Marvin Marcellus

Montgazette Staff Writer

“Sunday Best” is a gospel singing competition series which airs on Black Entertainment Television, best known as BET. Each year for the past seven years, the show and its judges have set out to find the best undiscovered gospel talent in America.

The show’s finalists compete each week with votes coming in from all over America until a winner is crowned. Current judges of the competition are gospel greats Yolanda Adams, Kierra Sheard and Donnie McClurkin. Gospel singer Kim Burrell serves as the contestants’ mentor, and the program is hosted by another gospel legend Kirk Franklin.

In the spring, at Reid Temple A.M.E. Church, hundreds of young hopefuls prepared to try and impress the first round judges. In the audition room, the judges made their decision within 15 seconds of hearing a contestant sing. Among those hopefuls waiting to be called into the audition room was Montco’s own Candace Benson, who had just recently celebrated her 22nd birthday. She entered the audition room surrounded by about a dozen other contestants and sang “Take Me To The King” by Tamela Mann. The once shy girl from Pottstown let her spirit shine through and won over the judges.

Over the summer, Candace had a successful run on the show moving on each week until the finale where she finished as runner-up in a hard fought, but friendly contest between herself and finalist Geoffrey Golden.

Candace is continuing her studies here at Montco majoring in music. I got a chance to catch up with Candace for a brief interview about her experience on a nationally televised show.

MM: What are some of the biggest challenges you’ve had to face this year with the show or in your life? I know your schedule has probably gotten a lot busier since the show.

CB: Yes it has! One challenge I had was just having the confidence to believe in myself and stay focused on my goals. My parents always say “Okay Candace, do you want that or do you want this music career that you’ve pretty much worked all your whole life towards?” So I just had to believe in myself in the midst of all of that. Second, I had to believe that I actually had what it takes. Like is my music good?

MM: Nice.

CB: People are inspired through my music and you know you have to believe in that, too. Also I can’t really depend on people’s accolades, I just have to go forth and do what I need to do. Third my shyness; I don’t have too much of a shyness now.

MM: It’s kind of been broken out of you now, right?

CB: Yea, when it comes to music, I’m like “okay, this is it, bam!” I’m learning how to control the shyness. The show “Sunday Best” definitely helped me to grow stronger. I’m definitely stronger. 2014 has definitely been a pivotal year for me. Everything that’s happened has helped me to focus on my musical path.

MM: Anything else you’d like to share with our readers?

CB: Montco definitely prepared me for the show because not only am I taking classes in music, but I’m taking classes in audio production. So when I got on the show, I wasn’t shocked by the lights and the production. My professors really prepared me, and I felt right at home on the set. I encourage students and really anyone to get educated in whatever field you’re in because it really opens up another world to you that you might not get if you don’t do it.

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Candace Benson: Sunday’s Best

By Thomas Kraft

Montgazette Staff Writer

Candace Benson is a regular 22-year-old music student here at Montgomery County Community College, but one thing makes her stand out: her voice.

Candace has become a local and national celebrity in recent months due to her performances on the BET program, “Sunday Best.” “Sunday Best” is a performance-based competition in which young, talented singers battle it out each week singing Gospel songs.

I got a chance to sit down with Candace, and she discussed her music and what she thinks the future holds for her.

Recently, Candace was interviewed for “MCCC on the Air” by Michelle Cuomo, Dean of the Arts and Humanities Division of Montgomery County Community College, and Candace spoke about her lifelong love of music. Candace said, “I have been singing all of my life. My musical career actually started at the age of four, and my mom would probably say before that because she said she knew, for some reason, that I was going to be a singer.”

Candace went on to explain that she started playing the piano at age four or five. So, Candace isn’t new to the music industry and the support of her parents gave her confidence.

Candace recalled a conversation that she had with her mom about singing, “…and I’m like mom, I don’t really want to sing, I don’t want to be a singer and then she was like no, I think you want to be a singer, so this is what you need to do and this is how you’re going to do it.”

Candace appreciates her parents’ guidance and says without her parents’ motivation toward her singing career she may have not embraced the God-given talent for singing.

Candace explained that God is the first source of inspiration that she looks to before she goes on stage, “I just really couldn’t do it without Him.” Candace prays every time before she sings to get strength to perform to her best ability. Gospel music is her favorite type of music.

So, when Candace went to “Sunday Best,” it was nerve-wracking for her to sing in front of a group of highly esteemed judges in the gospel music industry, including Kierra Sheard, Donnie McClurkin, and Kim Burrell. She was, however, able to succeed in the competition and moved through the stages to the season finale of the show. Candace made it all the way to the Top 2 on “Sunday Best.”

Many from the Montgomery County Community College community rooted for Candace. She says, “I couldn’t go in with the mentality that I was going to win, but as the numbers got smaller your hunger really grew, your passion really grew, and it really dawned on you why you were there.” The contestants grew closer to one another.

After “Sunday Best,” Candace sees herself in the years to come, “making hit albums, touring, singing to sold-out shows and sharing the message that I carry, which is the love of Jesus Christ. You know, Jesus is really cool.”

“Through my music and the way that I approach things, people will see that Jesus really loves people.”

After meeting Candace and listening to her sing, it is safe to say the sky is the limit for this talented, young, beautiful woman. So, next time you see her around campus, stop and say hello. She will certainly talk back and share her love of music.

If you are interested in booking Candace, you can e-mail her at candacebensonbookings@ gmail.com or you can go to her official website at www. candacebensonmusic.com. For Instagram or Twitter users, you can follow Candace at @candacesb7.

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To the Editor . . .

By Dave Aston

Montgazette Editor

To the Editor:

Oh, wait. That’s me.

Hi. I’m Dave Aston. Editor of Montgomery County Community College’s The Montgazette and Mass Media Industries Blog. I just started my third year here at Montco, and I am elated and honored to hold these prestigious and important positions.

I’ve been a writer for years. Mostly short stories and novels. Right after starting my journey at this amazing institution, I had one of my COM100 articles printed in The Montgazette. The first thought that went through my head was, “What? Me?” Yes. Me. Like some of you, I felt journalism was either not worth my time or was outright political propaganda. At Montco, that’s not the case.

I took a critical look at past The Montgazette articles and the original articles posted on our young Mass Media Industries Blog and found many common threads. The articles were concise, well organized, sourced properly, ethical and, above all, personal. Finding this out spurred me on to be an editor.

The main thrust of The Montgazette is that it focuses on our connections to Montco, its students and its community. The Mass Media Industries Blog takes this idea one step further by zeroing in on the media industries. Movies, TV, Radio, etc.

The most important part of what I have to say is that The Montgazette and the Mass Media Industries Blog are for YOU. They are both here to broadcast YOUR voice. So let it be heard.

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The Latest and Greatest iPhone

By Matt Hawkins

Montgazette Staff Writer

The saying goes “bigger is better” or at least that’s the case for the new iPhone 6. This new phone unlike the other iPhone models come in a much bigger size. Its dimensions are 4.7 inches diagonally, about .7 inches larger than the previous iPhone5, and if that’s not enough, Apple has come out with an even bigger iPhone called the iPhone 6 plus. This iPhone model measures 5.5 inches diagonally; both are very thin and have round edges which makes them kind of slippery.

Some new integrations that the iPhone 6 has is the dual domain pixels which provides wider viewing angles when looking at the screen. With the latest iPhone 6 models, they worked on one of the most popular features the camera. They added a new exposure control that lets you adjust pictures before you take them.

Another new camera feature they added is the optical image stabilization, which is suppose to help you when you move your hand. With so many people relying on the iPhone to take video they added a new cinematic video stabilization, which auto focuses nonstop while the video is recording.

One of the new features that both the iPhone 6 models have is the new Apple Pay. This is a faster, easier, more secure system to paying for things using just your iPhone. You will be able to pay for all sorts of things, perhaps, even tuition if you are a college student, without even waking up your iPhone or having to type in your shipping information. The Internet speed and multi-tasking capability is a lot faster.

Due to the massive size of the new models, Apple has introduced a new feature called “reachability,” which is basically a one-handed remote. This feature makes the display slide down to the bottom to make it easier to reach; however when in that mode, you cannot access the keyboard which makes it kind of useless.

Not so appealing might be when using in landscape both models of the iPhone 6 are nearly impossible to text on because the screen is so big. Compared to the other leading brands of smart phones, the iPhone 6 could have had more to do with the size of the screen, like give it a better zoom feature or stylist pen, but instead, they just made it a bigger screen.

Along with the release of the iPhone 6 and the six plus, comes an even newer device that will support the phone—it’s called the Apple watch. You can use this just like the iPhone 6.

The iPhone 6 plus can still fit into an average-sized pocket, even though it’s almost twice its size from the iPhone 5. Due to the style and thinness of the newly designed IPhone 6 models, it makes them more fragile and, quite frankly, a bit slippery.

Bottom line, there are some neat new features, which are great ideas and neat innovations, but it also creates a few glitches as well. You can have the latest and greatest device out there, but is it really that great? You decide.

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MCCC Mustangs ties HACC in Slugfest

By Kevin LaTorre

Montgazette Staff Writer

It was a great day for a soccer game as the Montgomery County Community College (MCCC) Mustangs tied the Harrisburg Area Community College (HACC) Eagles 1-1 on Sept. 9 at Central Campus in Blue Bell, Pa. The weather was comfortable, cloudy, and windy at times, which turned out to be perfect weather for a soccer game.

MCCC looked to have their third conference win as they finished their fifth game in seven days. Coaching for MCCC in his second year, was Obed Arango. Key starters for MCCC were Sophomore Jeremiah Garcia, Sophomore Austin Messner, Sophomore Sebastian DeRosa, Freshmen and leading goal scorer for MCCC, David Massanga. In net for MCCC was Freshman Andrew Toro.

MCCC took the first tap of the game as they had a great start by getting the first shot on net in the first minute. The pressure continued for the as they earned two corner kicks fifteen minutes later. HACC made the first substitution in the 20th minute. MCCC continued to dominate possession, however; the HACC took advantage to have fresh legs most of the first half and substituted whenever needed, which proved to be a positive as HACC capitalized on a penalty kick in the 36th minute. Sebastian DeRosa committed the foul in the box and gave the Eagles a 1-0 lead going into the half. Freshman Goalkeeper Andrew Toro made stellar saves to keep the game at 1-0.

“I wasn’t happy with the team’s effort with sloppy passing and communication,” Arango said, “We need to do a better job of passing the ball on the ground to open more space on the wings.”

A more dominate second half for MCCC offense as they continued to pressure the ball against HACC defense. A corner kick was earned by MCCC in the 83rd minute, as Freshman Felipe Silva took the corner kick placing a perfect ball and Freshman David Massangna scored on the header to equal the score 1-1. The defense for MCCC let up only three shots during the second half. MCCC almost found a game winner but Massanga missed on a wide open net and Freshman Wilson Gonzalas missed on back to back shots with minutes remaining. The game was forced into overtime.

Overtime consisted of two ten-minute half’s.

In the second overtime, it was HACC who had the best chance to win the game as a shot from inside the eighteen ringed off the crossbar with minutes remaining. The game ended in a 1-1 tie in double overtime.

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Changing the Game of Violence

By Alexandria Somers

Montgazette Staff Writer

Ray Rice, a professional football running back, is no longer with the Baltimore Ravens and is suspended indefinitely by the NFL.

On March 27, 2014, Rice was arrested and indicted for third-degree aggravated assault. The Ravens were forced to do the right thing, after a video was released by TMZ revealing what happened in February inside a casino elevator in Atlantic City, according to USA Today.

Rice punched his then fiancée, now his wife, rendering her unconscious and then dragged her by the hair out of the elevator. A few months after the incident, Rice and his wife Janay Palmer sat in a news conference, where his wife apologized for her “role” in the incident. After reviewing the videotape, her role looked to be as if she was the victim.

Victims of domestic abuse often are in difficult situations. There is help if you are in an abusive relationship. “If people are not willing or able to leave a situation, I would encourage them to get therapy to begin to figure out what their best course of action would be,” said Dr. Stephanie Yoder, Director of Clinical Services at Brooke Glen Behavioral Hospital in Fort Washington, Pennsylvania.

“It starts young,” says Kristin Fulmer, a counselor at Montgomery County Community College. Rice could have underlying psychological problems that led to this incident. While this is not an excuse for his actions, there are other assessments that need to be conducted to effectively evaluate and treat a volatile situation.

“There are many underlying causes for abusive behavior,” states, Dr. Yoder. “No matter if you are a celebrity or not, domestic violence is not to be tolerated, no matter what the circumstance.”

There are outreach groups that you can contact if you are going through abuse in a relationship. Montgomery County Community College, for instance, has counselors in the student success center like Kristin Fulmer, who students can talk to about any problems. If you are a victim of domestic abuse, you can visit http://www.mc3.edu, select Campus Life and under the drop down list, select sexual misconduct, for more information.

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Could Apple Pay Revolutionize Payment Convenience for the Students?

By Molly Hennessy

Montgazette Staff Writer

Smart phones are used all over the world in incredible ways.

Now Apple has developed a way for the iPhone 6 users to pay for anything just by swiping their phones. This means that countrywide stores will have to implement reading devices for the Apple Pay. But before you say this is too big of a task to complete, remember that most of Europe and Japan have implemented payment systems like this. Where you can pay for anything with the use of your phone? You want to ride the bus to work? Swipe! You want to get that morning coffee? Swipe! You want to buy that dress you’ve been eyeing all week? Quick swipe! All without reaching for your wallet or purse.

Apple Pay makes buying anything easer with just the swipe of your phone. Apple Pay is a program that runs from the iOS6, which takes your credit cards and stores them on the phone for the purposes of paying. So, it’s just like swiping my card, right? Wrong!

According to Rich Mogull at Macworld, the system will utilize “tokenization,” which makes your secure information safe from hackers. Current card swipe systems need the credit card number to establish that the account is legitimate, which it exposes on a network. With tokenization, not even Apple sees the account numbers. Unique connection numbers, which are used in place of your account information, will be issued to each card for every single iPhone in existence. These “token” numbers are exposed to check the account legitimacy instead of your numbers. This makes the system incredibly secure to use.

But, what if I lose my phone, or someone steals it? The Apple Pay program will and can require up to two passcodes in order to pay, and you can even make it ask for your fingerprint to verify the payment, in addition to a phone password.

Well, it’s probably impossible to set up and use, right? Wrong again! You will be able to use a credit card you already have linked to your Apple account, or even simply take a picture of your credit card to upload the information to the phone directly. According to Kenneth Downie, “The system is too easy to use, and just about anyone can pick it up… the user interface is very forgiving, and multiple confirmations will be used to make sure that you don’t accidently do anything.”

If I fork up the money for the new phone and try to use the Apple Pay, will I be able to and where?

Well, according to The New York Times, “Tens of thousands of retailers in the United States, including Whole Foods and Macy’s, are already planning to accept the Apple Pay in their stores.”

So, you will be able to use the Apple Pay in most of the larger brand name stores countrywide. Once the payment system is completely implemented, the use of plastic cards will be obsolete. Colleges and universities will benefit from this system too, because it will make purchases on campus easier.

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Movie Review: ‘The Drop’

By Michael Flagler

Montgazette Staff Writer

Brooklyn bartender Bob Saginowski is a kind-hearted man who enjoys his work at the local bar with his cousin Marv. The only problem is that the bar is owned by the Mob, this in turn puts Bob and Marv in the dangerous position of handling the Mob’s money. So, when the bar is robbed by two armed gunmen, Bob and Marv are held responsible for getting the money back. As events unfold, the question arises whether this is a simple armed robbery.

With the summer movie season over, we have entered what I like to call a transitionary period in the cinema. During two separate months of the year, there is a noticeable drop in the quality of movies during these transitionary periods, both of which come at the end of the two major seasons for moviegoers. One is January, which comes at the end of “award” movie season, and the other is September, which comes at the end of the “blockbuster” movie season. However, occasionally, you are fortunate to find a diamond in the rough and “The Drop” is a shiny one.

The story for “The Drop” is a Mob-based American crime drama that shows a different setting and perspective than a standard Mob-based film. Rather than showing the inner workings of the Mob or just Mob life in general, it focuses on facades of the Mob, the money drop points, aka the facilities gangsters use to funnel their money covertly. In the case of the film, it is a local bar in Brooklyn. The interesting aspect of the film is that while our two main characters may work for the Mob, they are not actually a part of the Mob. On a side note, the film was adapted from a story written by Dennis Lehane, who also doubled as the screenwriter for the film, “Animal Rescue.” Several other stories written by Lehane have also been adapted to the big screen, such as “Mystic River,” “Gone Baby Gone,” and “Shutter Island.”

While there are several characters in the story, the film mainly focuses on two of them, Bob Saginowski, played by Tom Hardy, and his cousin Marv, played by the late James Gandolfini. Bob is our protagonist for the film; he is a bartender that does what he is told and tries to avoid trouble as much as possible. That being said, he is not entirely ignorant of what is going on around him; in fact, he seems to have a better understanding of things than most of the cast. As a result, the audience comes to view Bob as a gentle giant type of character. He is a genuinely understanding and caring man, but as the film progresses, you get the feeling he may have a bit of a dark side to him and he will use it if he has to. This is cemented with Tom Hardy’s stellar performance. Playing his character as soft-spoken guy was a major prospect to nailing the part, but what was really amazing was how much he was able to emote with his subtle looks and facial expressions, as well as the way he carried himself. It is performances like these that remind me why Hardy is one of my favorite modern actors.

The character Marv is very different than Bob’s character. Marv is upfront with how he feels, especially with his distain and frustration, which in turn leads him to trouble that could be avoided but he is too prideful to just let it go. This makes him a very relatable character, because at least at one point in our lives we have felt the same way Marv has and did not think rationally because of it. James Gandolfini plays off this character very well and gives a well-done performance. It is good to know Gandolfini ended his career on a high note, because with his death last year, this is most likely his final performance.

In conclusion, “The Drop” is a well-paced, well-told story that is both enthralling and intense. This is the film to lift audiences out of the doldrums of September and prepare moviegoers for the upcoming “award” movie season.

4 out of 5 Mustangs !

 

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Video Gamers May Want to Know: Sm4sh Leak

By Noah Snyder

Montgazette Staff Writer

As many video game enthusiasts may remember, on August 19 a picture and video of Smash 4 for the 3ds were leaked. The post was originally on 4chan posted by an anonymous user.

Originally the photos were just considered another fake leak and pushed off to the side, but that quickly changed.

A video on YouTube revealed some new characters that hadn’t been shown by Nintendo before. The leak was said to be the full roster and it included some interesting characters. Some characters were expected to me on the list and a few characters were missing that make a few players sad. According to Jason Schreier, a writer for Kotaku, some of the missing characters like Ice Climbers and Snake will be DLC.

A few hours after videos were posted it was taken down by Nintendo, but it wasn’t fast enough. The information had already been spread around.

The revealed characters were Ness from EarthBound, Duck Hunt Dog from Duck Hunt, ROB, Falco from Starfox, Shulk from Xenoblade, Dr. Mario, Dark Pit from Kid Icarus, Jigglypuff from Pokemon, and Bowser Jr. Actual game play footage of some of the characters was shown which is what separated the authenticity of the leak from the other photo-shopped pictures.

What really make the smash community think that the leak was real was the involvement of Nintendo. The very next day Nintendo released a video on their channel titled “Super Smash Bros. for 3DS/Wii U Looks like we don’t have a choice!” and announced that Shulk, a character in the leak, would be in the game.

Japan, getting the game on the 3DS before the rest of the world, finally revealed if the roster from the leak was true or not: It was. Everything in the leak has been confirmed except for the DLC character list.

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Ska-ska-ska revival! Thanks to Social Media?

By Brett Levin

Montgazette Staff Writer

Ska is a genre of music that has been around since the late 1950s. It originated in Jamaica, and a few decades later, ska made its way to the United States. It was incorporated with other genres, such as punk rock and pop music. In the mid-1990s, a ska scene known as the “Third Wave” shot ska into limelight and brought many ska influenced bands, Like Reel Big Fish and No Doubt, into the forefront of the music industry. However, the diversity of the genre killed its fame. Too many ska bands were doing too many different things with their sound, and ska faded into the shadows.

The Ska Revival Tour has been the first attempt in decades to create a bill and organize a big tour by utilizing social media and the biggest local ska bands across North America. Henry Menzel, headliner of the tour and lead singer of Surveyays, said, “The idea is to get us all together and shout and just let everyone know that we’re here.”

The turnout for these shows was unknown since a tour like this had never been organized, and this was the first time a tour of this magnitude had ever been done. Chris Roob, a Denver local and writer for fortheloveofpunk.com said, “The Denver Ska community, for instance, had been waiting for this show all summer, and it was truly a special night. About 200 people were skanking, moshing, and singing along. There were only good vibes and good laughs shared between everyone who attended. A packed house, fantastic music, and the best night anyone could ask for.”

Success hit in other places, too, like Philadelphia, where it’s difficult to pull large crowds. Tim Hildebrand, guitar player and vocalist for The Snails said, “The Philly show was probably our most exciting local show we’ve ever played as a band, because people came out and everyone was trying to have a fun time.”

Promoting through social media and using hashtags like, “#skarevival,” truly helped the cause. “This tour is exactly what all these bands are missing, they need hype behind them, and the promotion and the brand ‘ska revival’ is doing just that,” said Hildebrand.

The tour has even caught the attention of more renowned bands. Frank Casillas, lead singer of the Voodoo Glow Skulls said, “I have heard about the Ska Revival Tour and give props to any young and up and coming bands that are still carrying that torch in the name of ska. It’s not easy being a ska-influenced band, or any band right now for that matter. Kids today do not seem to be the least interested in live music anymore.”

With a Ska Revival 2 on the loom, success may rise even greater. For Ska and music fans alike, it is definitely something exciting to watch.

Where can you learn about clubs you can join?

Of course. The Student Leadership Office.

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