Editor's Note: Diversions Editor Jordan Lawrence helped craft no part of this interview other than his own responses. The rest was left entirely up to interviewer Linnie Greene.
Photo courtesy of Aaron Pate
Ahh, parting is such sweet sorrow. Just ask UNC senior Jordan Lawrence, current Diversions Editor, curator of this semester’s epic Dive Party and subject of this week's 5 Questions. On the eve of the Dive Party, featuring local heavyweights Jason Kutchma, The Dirty Little Heaters, The Beast, and Luego, Assistant Diversions Editor Linnie Greene fired away at the boss of this year's section.
Linnie Greene: So, first off: how did you choose the lineup, and what makes this semester's show different from shows past?
Jordan Lawrence: Well, I made a list of about eight or ten bands I could see playing last or second to last, and then I pretty much e-mailed them one at a time. With the line-up for the two Dive Parties I've curated I've tried to balance my own personal opinion about what makes music good with what is accessible. I think this line-up strikes that balance better than most any show before. There's genuinely something for almost anyone.
LG: What are you most excited about regarding this semester's show?
JL: I'm always excited to get people out. Particularly students. I go out to shows all tie time where I'm the only college kid in attendance, and it really bums me out. We've got one of the most awesome music scenes in the entire country sitting right across that Franklin Street border, and a lot of kids at UNC never go check it out. So I guess that's a long-winded way of saying that I'm most excited to see the people who are experiencing local music for the first time.
LG: What will you miss most about working at Diversions when you head out into the "real world" after graduation?
JL: I've been asked that a lot lately, and I think I have to say the creative freedom. Music writing is my passion, and it's what I want to continue doing after I graduate. But it's very unlikely I'll get the opportunity to manage my own section the way I've had Dive. The DTH trusts me with almost complete editorial freedom. I've gotten to throw every goofball idea I can come up with at our sheets and see if it would work out. That probably won't happen for me anywhere else. It's a rare gift to be able to frame a publication in the image you set out for it.
LG: What legacy do you hope to leave with Dive after you abdicate your editorial throne?
JL: I hope that I've helped Dive keep going. There's a big disconnect between the students at UNC and the community at large. And that gap is bigger than perhaps anywhere else when it comes to the arts and local music. And as frustrating as it's been to try to convince people to get out there and check it out, I feel like we've made head way. I'll hear someone around campus talking about Lost In The Trees or The Love Language or Hammer No More The Fingers, and I'll think, "Maybe this is worth all the effort we're putting into it." So I hope I've left Dive in the place where it can keep fulfilling that mission. Because I think it's a more important one than it gets credit for being.
LG: Most importantly, if you had a dance-off with DTH Editor Andrew Dunn, who would win?
JL: We've had that dance-off many a time. I think I've got more of the natural skill and good looks, but Dunn usually comes out on top. He's more willing to throw it all out on the line than I am. He'll start backing it up or doing some ridiculous move, and I'm just not going there.
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