February 21, 2019

In the past, recreation centers and gyms have, typically, been marketed with a focus to be a place for a person to become bigger, faster, and stronger. Further research made us aware that students visit the Drexel Recreation Center, not just to get more physically fit, but for the social atmosphere that we create within the walls. We found that some students were coming to the Recreation Center in pairs and groups, and the other students that came alone often would wear headphones and not speak to anyone. We wanted to learn the different motivations that influenced these students to work out and find successful ways to communicate with students on campus about how recreational activity can enhance their college experience.

To effectively communicate to a diverse student body, our marketing team creates immersive video content. As many of the videos are produced by Drexel students, we felt it was important to feature student-produced music in the videos. Therefore, a collaboration with the Mad Dragon Music Group was born, creating a complete student-enhancing experience giving students a platform to showcase their talents outside of the classroom. We had student artists excited to hear their songs in our videos and had others watching the videos and emailing to find out where they can learn more about the partnership. Soon after, I was approached by Matt Kopyt, a student in the Music Industry Program, with an idea to film a music video at the Drexel Recreation Center.

Through the creation of this project, we were able to work with three different artists, enabling us to connect more than one audience. The first artist to confirm their interest was a rapper, Timmy Brabston, followed by rock band, Broken Rib, and lastly, a soulful singer/songwriter, Mazie, to complete our lineup. Through the power of music, the video uses a universally accepted language to demonstrate students in moments of ambition, heartache, and friendship, all within the walls of the Recreation Center.

In conclusion, we want students to know that, whatever they are going through outside of the walls of the Drexel Recreation Center, once they enter our building, they are, and always will be, a Dragon. As a department, we hope that this music video inspires students to explore their own physical and mental wellness in a community committed to inclusion within Drexel University.

• Written and Directed by Andrew Case
• Writing contributions by Matt Kopyt, Kevin Louie, Nathan Footman, Connor Levesque.
• Filming by Courtney Dauer and Axxel David.
• Video editing by Axxel David, Courtney Dauer, Connor Levesque.
• Musical Acts Timmy Brabston, Mazie, Broken Rib.
• Appearances by
• Matt Kopyt: Ambitious Dudev
• Timmy Brabston: Himself
• Karim Chen: Yoga Guy 1
• Shashvat Himatsingka: Yoga Guy 2
• Ruben Wynn: Yoga Guy 3
• Nik Rajagopal (Broken Rib): Himself
• Zach Williams (Broken Rib): Himself
• Sam Robinson (Broken Rib): Himself
• Paul Meggitt (Broken Rib): Himself
• Erin Hession: Heart-broken Girl
• Grace Christian (Mazie): Herself
• Yagouba Diallo: Man on Basketball Court
• Allie Cohen: Woman on Basketball Court