By Kennington Smith

Let the music be your escape.

Simply put, music is a form of art but it’s also an expression. An expression that allows those who listen escape their current reality and enter into a place where the artist is expressing exactly what the listener is feeling. A new organization on campus is set to bring this experience to University of Georgia students: MusicOnly.

“When I developed the idea of MusicOnly, I saw a void of a music presence on campus” President Justin Griffin said. “It’s an outlet for people who want to discuss music, find new music and share their musical talents to their school.”

The first opportunity for students to discuss their musical opinions will be the first “discussion” held sometime in September with the topic of “Who is the greatest hip hop artist of all time?” Griffin and his fellow E-board members came up with the idea after seeing heated debates on social media throughout the summer.

At the end of each discussion, there will be an open mic segment where students can display any musical talent. All events will be DJ’d by UGA student Daryl Singleton also known as “DJ Starwind”.

“All discussions will be broken into two parts: one where everyone talks amongst themselves about the topic and then a separate segment where we have a group talk where students speak their minds to everyone” Griffin said.

“I also want to show various clips of artist interviews about the topic at hand, this will give a new perspective and expertise to the topic” he added.

As for MusicOnly’s first music event, they plan on having a schoolwide cypher. First seen at Georgia Southern University, MusicOnly is calling for all rappers for the event that will come with special guest performances and a split judge-fan vote. Auditions are expected to be held sometime in late September with the actual event to be held in October.

The executive board is also discussing ideas of a talent show and poetry slams as future events.

As MusicOnly is entering its first year as an organization, they plan on collaborating with other organizations on a regular basis. There will be occasional music based columns featured on UGA ELITE and they have partnered with a music-business program in the Terry College of Business. The program aims to help students refine their skills and educate them on the in’s and out’s of the music industry.

“I feel like that’s the next step after identifying your skill set, taking it to the next level and pursuing it,” Griffin said. “This program is heavily involved with the Athens music scene, so getting real world experience and refining your skills at the same time is a great deal.”

As MusicOnly continues to develop and lay a foundation for future years, Griffin has a vision for how he wants the organization to look in the future.

“I can honestly see it becoming a national thing spread across all campuses,” Griffin said. “I feel like there are so many talented students who were waiting for the right outlet to express themselves, and this is it.”

For more information about the first general body meeting and further events, follow @MusicOnlyUGA on twitter.