The rattling snares of a drum kit brought the 2025 Homecoming Juke Joint to a start in Stamp Student Union Wednesday evening.
The Nyumburu Jazz Club gradually crept into Juan Tizol and Duke Ellington’s “Caravan.” Cymbals snaked in and bass guitar punctuated the pauses. With a baritone saxophone, trumpet and piano, the band fully assembled with exotica flair.
The jazz club began a night of music, dance and poetry, exalting various cultures and fostering community.
Hosted by the Nyumburu Cultural Center, Juke Joint is a monthly open mic event for students and community members to showcase their multidisciplinary talents. While a typical session lasts about 90 minutes, this month’s spanned three hours to celebrate the University of Maryland’s homecoming week.
Jason Christopher, a junior information systems major, said Wednesday’s event was his third time at Juke Joint. He finds the event to be a reminder of the community this university offers outside of academics.
“It’s a place where a lot of people who [have] similar backgrounds get to express themselves, whether it be poetry, dance or song,” Christopher said. “Seeing that expressed onstage is beautiful, and it kind of brings people together.”
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Junior information science and information systems major, Dorian Mkam similarly said Juke Joint offers a respite from classwork.
“UMD is an academic-heavy school, but us being able to showcase what we can do outside of school is always cool,” Mkam said.
Various dance groups took the stage throughout the night.
Decked out in camouflage pants, all-women African dance group Afrochique performed its boot camp-inspired routine, claiming only the top cadet dancers would be able to survive.
The group launched into precise, energetic movements to deliver this promise. With each meticulously choreographed step, the dancers moved together. Parts of the audience stood up to watch and even used chairs as vantage points.
Afrochique closed out Juke Joint more than three hours into the night and 30 minutes past its scheduled end. The crowd still came alive.
Natalie Gilmore, a freshman biological sciences major, said one of her favorite parts of the night was the audience’s infectious energy, as they would often break out into dance parties in between acts.
“I didn’t expect to get so hype out of nowhere,” Gilmore said. “I thought it was really cool.”
Diazporić, a co-ed African dance team at this university, featured similar maximalist movements as zombified Eagle Scouts to celebrate Halloween. UMD S.T.E.P.P., a step dance team, paid homage to slasher films and horror icons Ghostface and Jason Voorhees during its set.
“I’m African, so seeing African dance onstage and people celebrate that is something beautiful to see,” Christopher said.
Juke Joint did not limit itself to dance acts. Chavannah Green, a freshman business administration and management major, brought a violin onstage. Green’s act began serenely, as intimate strings filled the space.
Suddenly, Green launched into Jeremih’s “Birthday Sex.” The crowd erupted.
Gerald Tabe, a sophomore neuroscience major and a Juke Joint regular, sang his act entirely in French. A blend of pop and R&B, he defined his vocals with an impossibly high falsetto.
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Mkam said Tabe’s vocals were particularly impressive.
“The high notes that he was able to hit and the performance he was able to give to the crowd was honestly outstanding,” Mkam said. “He deserves a lot of praise for that performance, and I’d love to see him continue singing.”
Spoken-word artist and senior public health science major Mohammed Salih recited a poem about the Trump administration’s efforts to intimidate people of color, rebutting that communities carry more power than the administration realizes.
“We shouldn’t live in fear, we’ve got nothing to be afraid of, we’ve got our community,” Salih reminded the audience before the set.
It’s this community, Gilmore said, that gives her a deep sense of pride. “I was sitting down the whole time thinking, ‘Oh my gosh, I love being Black,’ because it was just fun,” Gilmore said. “It gives you a sense of pride, you know what I’m saying?”
