Ja’Mar, Leah Ashton, Dave Elwert
Anderson University
July 16

Orangehaus Records hosted a musically diverse concert July 16 as part of their music business camp at Anderson University. The night featured Orangehaus artists Ja’Mar and Leah Ashton as well as AU alumnus Dave Elwert.

Ja’mar, Orangehaus’ only R&B artist, opened the show with his original music, including “Get Yer Snap On” and “Just Gotta Be Me.” While these songs are crowd-pleasers, the highlights of his set included a John Legend cover and Ja’Mar’s own slam poetry. The John Legend song showed off Ja’Mar’s smooth and effortlessly full voice, underutilized in his rap-based songs, and featured in his work with the Anderson University Chorale. Ja’Mar’s slam poetry showed the thoughtful side of the songwriter.

Leah Ashton kicked off her set with an invigorating cover of Stevie Wonder’s “Higher Ground,” the perfect opener to give the audience a taste of her strong, soulful voice. Leah continued with more soul-inspired original songs accompanied by a band, but really showed off her vocal abilities while playing piano and singing solo. The slower songs silenced the crowd as they took in Leah’s passionate voice, powerful and delicate at the same time. My favorite was Leah’s version of the oft-covered “Hallelujah.” She added a feminine touch that gave the song a new twist.

Dave Elwert finished the night with piano-driven rock that made the crowd bob in unison. He delivered a sound much bigger than the four-piece band on stage, filling the room with tight, danceable music. Dave’s voice resembles Coldplay’s Chris Martin's; it is smooth and sweet with just enough rasp to keep it interesting.

Dave’s set was unfortunately cut short due to a malfunctioning sustain pedal. “Well, that could put a damper on things,” Dave joked. The six songs he did play packed a power punch of engaging music that left the crowd wanting more.