Lucky Frederick, a sophomore international relations and political science major, stood behind the curtain as hip-hop music blared from the stage. Shaking with anticipation and nerves, she was too distracted to notice her cue to start walking down the catwalk. Earlier in the day, the weight of her appearance made her lightheaded and faint.

A hand from behind her almost pushed her on stage; it was lights, camera, action.

Fortunately, when Frederick hit the runway, her nervousness wasn’t noticed by those who were sitting on the other end of the curtain. A small smile and a lot of model attitude graced the stage, making her one of the many models who made fashion come alive during the fourth annual Fashionably Aware fashion show last Saturday.

Hosted by Fashion Conscience, the fashion show at Goldstein Auditorium blended trendy music, clothing and professional-looking student models. The event also featured live music from five-time Grammy-nominated R&B artist Jazmine Sullivan, as well as tunes from DJ Staifly, who kept the beats going while the models were walking and in between sets.

‘The music was great,’ said Christen Westbury, a freshman social work major. ‘The music matched well with the collections, and the mood correlated. It was great.’

Music commanded the show. Before the show started – as well as during the show, in between designers and after the show – DJ Staifly played familiar songs, making audience members dance out of their seats.

Student models donned dramatic eye makeup and strutted their stuff on the runway, sporting a wide variety of designer clothing. The clothing ranged from brands available in Macy’s department stores to Syracuse University student originals. The styles of the clothing also varied: In one scene, a model would come out wearing an evening gown, and in the next, she would wear a more casual outfit of a long shirt and leggings.

Both male and female students modeled, bringing a little something for everyone.

‘People find their own way to walk and model the clothing,’ said Peter Elliott, a sophomore economics major and a model in the show.

Each model had his or her own signature moves on the catwalk, whether it was taking off glasses, wearing a small smile or holding out a piece of the clothing.

Frederick’s debut on the runway marked the fulfillment of a lifelong modeling dream. After previously trying out for ‘America’s Next Top Model,’ this was her chance.

‘I used to walk up and down and pretend I was on a runway when I was younger,’ Frederick said.

After the fashion portion of the event and an intermission that felt more like a dance party than a break between sets, Jazmin Sullivan was ready to take the stage. Although Sullivan wasn’t as popular as past Fashionably Aware artists, such as Trey Songz and Ne-Yo, her performance was still a strong one.

‘Trey Songz and Ne-Yo have more under their belt, but Jazmin is making her way up there,’ Westbury said.

Sullivan, a 21-year-old artist, opened her performance with her hit, ‘Bust Your Windows.’ During the song, she pulled out a crowbar to simulate the act of breaking the windows of an ex-boyfriend’s car. The rest of her performance seemed to focus on the idea that dreams can come true as long as you are willing to put in the work, with Sullivan bringing students on stage to compete to sing one of her songs with her.

Her big voice filled the auditorium when she belted out her current single, the ballad ‘Lions, Tigers and Bears,’ which is a song about not fearing falling in love.

With Sullivan being an up-and-coming artist, many students were pleasantly surprised by her performance. ‘She was good. I didn’t know it beforehand, but she really knows how to perform,’ said J’lisa Derweer, a sophomore exercise science major who attended the show. ‘Her voice was really good and strong.’

But Frederick, by that time exhausted, didn’t stay around for Sullivan’s bluesy but energetic performance. She had to get something to eat.

‘I only ate a few pieces of fruit all day,’ she said. ‘I had to fit into this little one-piece bathing suit thing I had to wear.’

kaoutram@syr.edu

Published on March 21, 2009 at 12:00 pm