Bringing Students Together Through the Power of Music

Music is for everyone, no matter your level of experience. On Thursday, March 17, 2022, students, faculty and staff wrote a song together with the Same Thing Project. A songwriting workshop for people from all walks of life, the Same Thing Project provides a place for individuals to be part of a creative community that is open, nonjudgmental and encouraging.

Hosted by the Morton Family Learning Center, the event brought students together from across campus. While a few students brought their instruments to play, this workshop was open to musicians and non-musicians alike, with the goal of showing you don’t have to know how to play a musical instrument in order to be musical. Some came with their classes, others came with their friends and together they composed a song around the theme of “What’s Gonna Happen?” They bounced ideas off each other for lyrics and notes, then rehearsed and practiced until they had a finished song. 

The workshop was led by Rhode Island Music Hall of Fame member and former Atlantic Records recording artist Mark Cutler. Not only is Cutler an accomplished singer/songwriter who has toured nationally with Bob Dylan, Tom Petty and Don Henley, but he is also the director of the Same Thing Project and collaborates on songwriting workshops with people of all different levels of abilities, developmental challenges and musical talents.

Watch the video below for a behind-the-scenes look at the event: