Halfway through his lip sync of “Love Yourself” by Justin Bieber, Braden Barlow ’21 took off his jacket and threw it upwards. The jacket got caught in the rafters of Susie’s, and the audience let loose in cheers.
Derrick Brown ’20, an audience member, said, “While [Barlow] wasn’t solid on the words [and] his lips weren’t moving in perfect unison, I felt that when he took off his jacket and swung it up and it just stuck to the rafters… was quite enjoyable and probably made my night as a single moment. It was… something special because he showed off his beefy arms.”
Tristan Latham ’19 took the title of Lip Sync Champion for Friday’s Lip Sync Battle in Susie’s. The event was organized by Student Activities and judged by Christopher Capano, Director of Student Activities. In the first act of the night, Latham performed “Brandy (You’re a Fine Girl)” by Looking Glass while swinging his hips.
Jackson Emus ’19, a friend of Latham’s and an audience member, said, “My favorite act had to be… Tristan Latham’s wonderful performance. He just has a true gift for the stage… He really vibes into the whole performance. I just want to congratulate the champion, Tristan Latham, really, just a great performer. He really deserved it.”
“She said, ‘Do you love me?’ I told her only partly. I only love my bed and my momma, I’m sorry,” lip-synced Sekou Cisse ’21, causing the audience to erupt in cheers and applause. When the beat came back, Cisse hit the folks, a popular hip hop dance move. Cisse could not help but smile in response to the cheers.
“I chose ‘God’s Plan’ by Drake because I wanted to choose a song that was new and exciting. I wanted to show people this new song, and I wanted them to have an idea of the music I like so they can know a little more about me. This song also talks about how he continues to do what he does despite people wishing for his downfall, which is a good message for [Andover] students. We should continue to grind, as people could wish for us to do poorly,” wrote Cisse in an email to The Phillipian.
Holt Bilter ’21 and Larson Tolo ’18 lip synced and danced to “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” by The Tokens. The two worked off each other’s energy. According to Tolo, the night allowed him to be courageous.
“I loved how into the event everybody was. As a four-year Senior, events in the past have been intimidating to me because it seems like a competition for who has the best performance, hence the event’s title, but this year was different. Regardless of who you were, the whole audience applauded your courage for going up to the stage, and that, to me, was so special,” wrote Tolo in an email to The Phillipian.
