Color Me Music: student organization focused on community, music, advocacy

Color Me Music is a student organization that was first founded in 2018 by Michigan State University College of Music students Jadrian Traver and Jordyn Davis, both of whom have graduated. The organization is an alliance for students of color studying music or the fine arts. Members come together, host events and concerts and have conversations with each other and faculty. 

The organization was founded to make a place for students of color within the College of Music. Current president and voice performance masters student Phoenix Miranda joined in 2019 when she was in her undergrad. 

Miranda said that through the years the goals of Color Me Music have ebbed and flowed, adapting to the needs of the students and the college. 

“We try to honor founders, while also making it ours,” Miranda said. 

After COVID-19, for example, the organization’s goal was to become more known on campus because they weren’t able to host events and build community during the pandemic.

While the year following the pandemic was spent more on building back community, other years have been focused on advocacy and important conversations within the College of Music and MSU.

This advocacy often comes in the form of conversations with administration and faculty about how the College of Music can improve and make more space for people of color. Treasurer and vocal performance masters student Paula Duva-Rodriguez said this is an important tenet of Color Me Music.

“It can be tough to advocate for yourself, and doubly so if you are a person of color, because of having had experiences in my life where me or other people have felt like their voices have been silenced or otherwise disregarded,” Duva-Rodriguez said. “So the chance to be able to speak with the faculty and enact different changes on campus is really cool.”

Color Me Music hosts student forums where administrators and faculty are invited to listen to students’ ideas and concerns. Miranda also said that students have been invited to contribute to faculty hiring searches. This advocacy is also coupled with social events and celebrations.  

Advocacy and working towards change can often be hard. Miranda said especially after the shooting on Feb. 13, 2023, there was another shift in the needs of the student body. Instead of focusing so much energy on heavy advocacy work, the organization saw a new need to come together in community and they planned more social events.

“Our joy matters too, just as much as our justice,” Miranda said. 

Putting different genres of music into the spotlight is also an important goal of Color Me Music. In the past, curriculum within the College of Music has focused on primarily White composers while also putting an emphasis on European classical music. 

Miranda said showing genres that come from communities of color, like jazz music, have the same value as classical music and is really important to her and the organization. 

“Putting it all on the same playing field and seeing how they can even relate, how they can benefit from one another,” Miranda said. “Because so many voices are silenced, and so all that we do has been to keep those voices at the forefront.”

While conversations with administration have led to a more inclusive curriculum and closer relationships between faculty and students, another way that Color Me Music is putting voices of color at the forefront is through concerts and celebration. Every year, the organization hosts a Black History Month concert, and this year they hosted their first annual Hispanic Heritage Month concert as well, called La Vida es Un Carnaval.

Musical arts and vocal performance doctoral student Jose Maldonado said these celebrations are an important part of learning and connecting with one another. The events are open to everybody. 

“I think the more we can celebrate each other and just start seeing each other as something to celebrate,” Maldonado said. “It’s gonna create more connection and unite people more. I think celebrating is the best way for people to discover what’s unknown.”

The concerts each highlight different art forms and music genres from the event’s respective community. Duva-Rodriquez was heavily involved in the planning for La Vida es un Carnival and said they wanted to get as many different performers as possible.  

“Our goal was really to display just the wide diversity of Latin American music,” Duva-Rodriguez said. “Our program ended up running long because we, at first, weren’t finding people, but then all of a sudden, more and more people were wanting to join. So it was lovely that way.”

The concert showcased many different instrumentalists and groups performing pieces from classical and modern composers of the Latin American diaspora.

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The diversity of sound and culture is not only present within their events, Color Me Music as an organization is made up of MSU students of many different ages, majors, backgrounds and identities.

Global and international studies sophomore Auynha Smith is the only person involved in Color Me Music who is not studying in the College of Music. She joined after going to a Color Me Music open mic night, which is a regularly hosted event. 

“I used to play instruments, and I grew up doing choir, but I didn’t know that the org was associated with the College of Music until I joined it,” Smith said. “I just kind of saw someone post the event, and I was like ‘this is really cool,’ and I’ve just kind of stuck with that org every time.”

Smith’s favorite part about the organization is the close knit community within it. 

“Music is a common interest and it brings people together,” Smith said. “I just hope (Color Me Music) expands more outside of the College of Music … I just want more people to be a part of that.”

Duva-Rodriguez said that even within the College of Music, there are a lot of different departments and a sense of separation from other students. 

“I think Color Me Music is a place where friendships happen that may not happen otherwise, because often we’re very separate within our own departments,” Duva-Rodriguez said. 

The advocacy that the organization is involved in is another thing that Duva-Rodriquez hopes that newcomers and members of Color Me Music take away. 

“Because our big focus is advocacy, our hope is that students from across campus can take the values we hold as an organization, and then they can even spread it on either the MSU campus or just beyond, in their own day to day lives,” Duva-Rodriguez said. 

There is also a rare collaboration between graduate and undergraduate students in Color Me Music. Miranda noted that most on-campus organizations are centered around undergraduate students, but there is significant overlap in Color Me Music as well. 

Miranda credits the fact that many students, like herself, did their undergraduate degrees at MSU and were familiar with the organization coming into their postgrad programs. 

Maldonado said that the range of ages offers a variety of perspectives, and even opportunities for mentorship.  

“Everyone’s experience is different, but it also makes you realize things that you can relate to for one but also things to be grateful for, and how that can be a tool,” Maldonado said. “If it’s something positive, it could be a tool you share with people, because I think the community is stronger with that.”

Right now, the organization is focused on planning more events for the coming year and also looking to the future. Miranda is transitioning out of her role as president, as she graduates this year, and is now preparing younger students to take on leadership positions. She is very optimistic about the future of Color Me Music. 

“I hope it grows beyond what I can imagine,” Miranda said. “For me, I hope I am able to effectively prepare those that are still going to be here.”

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