![\"\"](\"http:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/files\/2011\/03\/Impalas.jpg\")
<\/a>Ashanti Alexander<\/strong> The Jackson State University community was treated to a performance by a group of young men in the Legacy Dining Hall on Valentine\u2019s Day.\u00a0 Their name, the College Impalas, is as interesting as the \u201cvintage\u201d way they sang songs such as \u201cLift Every Voice and Sing\u201d and \u201cIn the Still of the Night.\u201d<\/p>\n The singing group was formed by long-time Jackson State Professor Marshall Longmire, who has taught physical science for 35 years at JSU.<\/p>\n \u201cThe College Impalas started off as a high school group who named themselves the Impalas. It was originally a quartet.<\/p>\n \u201cI started singing in a quartet at an early age and that inspired me to start a singing group of my own,\u201d said Longmire. \u201cI started the College Impalas at Jackson State in 1996.\u201d<\/p>\n Justin Spencer, a senior music education major from St. Louis, Mo.,\u00a0 has been a part of the College Impalas for a year.<\/p>\n \u201cEvery moment I spend with the group is a memorable one. From us joking around to us getting yelled at, we always have fun.\u201d<\/p>\n The group does not charge for performances.<\/p>\n \u201cI raise money for the College Impalas,\u201d said Longmire. \u201cI don\u2019t charge for performances because I love what I do and that is why I do it for no profit.\u201d<\/p>\n The College Impalas perform in many churches and local venues. According to Longmire, the group sings mostly hymns, spirituals, popular \u201cdoo wop\u201d songs, and patriotic songs.<\/p>\n \u201cWe try to sing what is appropriate for the occasion,\u201d said Longmire.<\/p>\n Spencer said, \u201cI love the song choices because you won\u2019t hear the selections anywhere else unless you have an old vintage record.\u201d<\/p>\n Longmire said he has only recruited one person out of the group he has now.<\/p>\n \u201cI allow the guys to recruit other guys,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Christopher Cathey, a junior biology\/pre-dentistry major from Senatobia, Miss., is the one person recruited by Longmire.<\/p>\n \u201cI have always had a passion for singing. I sing with a similar group at home and when Dr. Longmire recruited me I was excited to get started.\u201d<\/p>\n Christopher Funches, a junior civil engineering major from Jackson, Miss., has been a part of the College Impalas for one year.<\/p>\n \u201cI became a part of this group because I felt like they were a group of young men who were doing something they love to do and coming together for a common interest. I wanted to be a part of that,\u201d said Funches.<\/p>\n Spencer, Cathey, and Funches all agree that they love the positive and welcoming feedback that they receive from the audience when they perform.<\/p>\n \u201cHow could these young men not get positive feedback being so fine-tuned and well-groomed,\u201d asked Longmire,\u00a0 as he describes his expectations of the College Impalas.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Ashanti Alexander Staff Writer The Jackson State University community was treated to a performance by a group of young men in the Legacy Dining Hall…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"editor_plus_post_options":"{}","editor_plus_copied_stylings":"{}","_mi_skip_tracking":false},"categories":[12],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/203"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=203"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/203\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=203"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=203"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.jsums.edu\/jsuflash\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=203"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n Staff Writer<\/strong><\/p>\n