isual Au d We profile V Brad Cox explores the io two unique secret motive behind C Atlanta the Devo and artists and Disney partnership preview to create a new 6the hottest 2music exprience o summer events targeted at 5 to 8 in the city. year olds. n re tu u o t C 19 e 06 R Grady’s third annual fashion a n show, Urban Couture, was c 1a great success of whirling e silks and satins. We provide R the definitive photo archive t i of this epic event. o t 6 s s rum st o R As10 part of a city- wide initiative to remember some of the darkest days in Atlanta history, Senior Russell Owens Nexus takes an in-depth look discusses racial issues that 1have affected his life over the erie at the causes, the events and years. Sophomore Taylor Kelly ag explains machismo’s role in n the aftermath of the race riot e Grady’s supposed race fights. that plagued Atlanta 100 years M 8 ago this September. Cramer discusses how the physics of 2pressure can save your life. ‘06 graduates leave some pearls for the 0underclassmen. C o v e r Design by nexus Micah Weiss and Robinson Volume 2 Issue 4 Levin May-June 2006 Contributing Writers Brad Cox - Rising Junior From Brad is king of the Grady High School Knights of Sound. He serves as drum major for the school’s The band and marched them all the way to the Georgia Dome last November. He was the only APS student chosen for Georgia’s All-State Band Staff because of his mad oboe skills. His first break as a journalist came when covering Coach Millen’s As we close the school year and the first full publica- departure from and return to Grady last spring. tion year of Nexus, we feel it’s a perfect time to celebrate Ramika Gourdine- Rising Senior with pride the many ways in which our campus has come Ramika means business and will take out anyone together culturally, be they art shows, music festivals, po- who gets in her way. Even though she’s a great etry readings or sports victories, Grady has pulled together, student, her day pretty much starts at 3:15 making this campus a true nexus for our community. p.m. Ramika writes quality commentaries for In this issue we look even further into the past, back 100 Youth Radio, is an incoming Comment and Copy years when Atlanta came together in a much more unfortu- Editor for The Southerner and is the most versatile nate and tragic way. Nexus presents the story of the Atlanta member of the Grady’s forensics team, serving as Race Riot. In addressing this topic, we are pleased to join policy debater and individual-events competitor. a citywide initiative to revisit this dark and significant mo- Taylor Kelley - Rising Junior ment in our city’s history. Most of us know too little about Taylor is one of the most talented musicians to ever it, in part because remembering it forces us to question the walk the halls of Grady. He frequently shows off positive image that our city’s business and political lead- his abilities to those gathered for annual talent ers have promoted throughout Atlanta’s history. While we shows or other musical performances on campus. want to believe that this image reflects a larger truth about Taylor is often rewarded for showing off his skills, earning big bucks to play for neighborhood our openness to other cultures, Grady’s own moment of parties. A violent month of May prompted Taylor to unfortunate violence in the courtyard on May 5 reminds strike back by writing about, well, violence. us that we must be willing to test our assumptions about Sarah Beth McKay - Rising Senior the sincerity and depth of our sense of community. We Sarah Beth McKay is perfect. She’s an exceptional are fortunate to live in a society that is mostly accepting student with a GPA and SAT score in the of different cultures and ethnicities, even if it isn’t perfect. stratosphere. Sarah Beth is an award-winning It is in part because of the horrors of the past that humans policy debater, incoming co-managing editor of are slowly able to learn from their mistakes and correct the The Southerner, has revolutionized the timekeeper atrocities of their forefathers. role in Georgia Mock Trial and will be the top seed The 1906 riots are one of those pivotal moments in time on the girls tennis team next season. Look for her at that showcase the demons that live within mankind, which Harvard or UPenn in the fall of ‘07. cause moral individuals to initiate change. In the examina- Russell Owens - Rising Seminole tion of those times we find the universal truths which make Russell Owens is literally Mr. Grady. He embodies history such an important discipline. Grady’s character and spirit in ways that no one This year history students at Grady had the opportunity else can. He values the school’s diversity and to research the riots and come away with a better under- calls us out when we don’t live up to it. He’s a member of Florida State’s class of 2010, but his standing. It is their pleasure—and ours—to raise aware- contributions to Grady, especially in the drama ness within and beyond the Grady community of the exact department, will live on well into the future. events that occurred in a fateful September 100 years ago. Nexus: a publication of The Southerner Volume 2 Issue 4 Staff: Jessica Baer, Lena Brodsky, Emma Advertising: Nexus is a non-profit Submissions: Nexus is a submission- Din, Ramika Gourdine, Stone Irvin, Sam organization that relies on advertising based publication that relies on your Johnson, Robinson Levin, Madeleine to generate revenue to cover printing submissions for its content. Nexus Webb, Matt Westmoreland. and maintenance costs. Nexus is read accepts submissions for all of its sections Managing Editor: Micah Weiss by approximately 1,500 people and is and features (submissions may be edited Design Editor: Sarah Beth McKay a great way to publicize your business. for length or content). Submission forms Print Staff: Alvin Hambick, Harlon To advertise with Nexus, contact Dave are located in the Southerner room, or can Heard, Michael Jackson, Adlai McClure, Winter at [email protected]. be obtained from Mr. Winter. For more Charlotte Napper, Benjamin Shaw Nexus is a bimonthly publication of: information, or to turn a submission in, Founding Editors: Harrison Martin and Henry W. Grady High School please contact Mr. Winter or any member Micah Weiss 929 Charles Allen Drive NE of the staff at [email protected]. Adviser: Dave Winter Atlanta, GA 30309 audio ‘80s hits meet Disney vision Disney and Devo combine to whip out a child-targeted 2nd-edition gimmick In order to fully appreciate show Rugrats. At any rate, the emergence of something (or justly not appreciate) like DEV2.0 should in no way be a surprise to anyone. this music, one must first Now with the important background knowledge in understand exactly what DEV2.0 hand, it is much easier for us to examine the album is. According to clubdevo.com, itself. The band follows the typical Disney band format, “DEV2.0 is a strange, Corporate- in that it is composed of five kids between the ages Feudal experiment that attempts of 10 and 12. All they pretty much did was take 12 to bring the original DEVO music of Devo’s greatest hits and cover them. Given these sensibility to children in the 5 to kids’ age, the music is extremely impressive. The 8 year old demographic range.” backgrounds and synthesizer especially are excellent This is an extremely important piece of information to keep imitations musically. The lead singer’s impersonation of in mind when critically listening to this album: this music Mothersbaugh’s odd singing style is generally very good. is most likely not going appeal to older teens and adults All of this praise is made with the knowledge that these because it’s not supposed to be. Mark Mothersbaugh are just a bunch of kids. The music itself has a much more and Gerry Casale, the original founders of Devo, in “poppy” feel to it, and especially with the singing, the music league with Disney, produced this album in an effort to has been clearly shifted to appeal to the much younger allow their music to speak to the younger generation audience. Their version of “Whip It” provides a perfect and not die with the breakup of their group in 1991. example. There are obvious times where the singer falls Genius really, and certainly not beyond Devo. As if their out of her Mothersbaugh style and begins to just sound foundation wasn’t odd enough, being essentially a satirical like an excited 12-year-old girl, and the backup singing act criticizing American society’s regression away from on the chorus of “you must whip it” sounds nothing like individuality by forming a band with mechanized futuristic the original song; however, it need not be a facsimile of music that marched around mechanically dressed alike the original. The kids aren’t going to know the difference, with overprocessed hair. The whole thing was based off and if it sounds more like fun to them, then they are much of the idea of “De-evolution” (which is where the name more likely to listen, right? Maybe.