"Mary Lambert is good at two things: crying and singing," senior Annelise Delcambre said in her introduction to Lambert's performance in Thompson Recital Hall Tuesday night.
True to Delcambre's word, Lambert teared up twice during her performance.
She performed many of her songs while playing the piano, as well as her own spoken word songs. Lambert's songs discuss sexual abuse and body image, sending messages related to DePauw University's Code T.E.A.L.
"[Lambert] was very inspiring," said first-year Leah Williams. "She said a lot of really meaningful things. I thought the timing [of her performance] was really awesome because she really did address a lot of issues that are being talked about on campus this week, and it just really fit well with the climate of the campus this week."
Lambert fearlessly spoke her mind against issues that are very prevalent in our society and that she feels need to be discussed.
"I like to talk about things that are uncomfortable for everybody," Lambert said during her concert, "and one of those things is sexual abuse."
Lambert followed this statement with a spoken word song about a girl she knew who had been sexually abused.
"How is it that three quarters of the women I know have been raped or molested?" Lambert asks in one of her spoken word songs. "What does that say about the men that I know?"
Many members of the audience related to Lambert's strong and unapologetic personality, especially Delcambre.
"I am also a femme lesbian-identified musician (getting my BM in vocal performance)," Delcambre said. "Mary Lambert is a personal hero of mine. Having her come to DePauw will go down in queer history at DePauw, a history that is small and often ignored by the administration, faculty, and students at DePauw," Delcambre said in an email.
Delcambre believes Lambert's music serves an important role because it brings sexual assault issues to the forefront.
In the past, DePauw has traditionally brought mainstream artists, but most of those have been male and heterosexual.
Vivien Nguyen, director of the Cultural Resource Center and coordinator of the LGBT Services office, thought that bringing Lambert would be a chance to represent marginalized groups on campus.
"Whenever it comes to issues related to sexual assault and sexual awareness, of course you always want more representation of both members," Nguyen said. "I knew that I was tapping into a specific niche with this artist."
During the concert, Lambert mentioned that her record label asked her not to perform "Welcome to the Age of my Body" during a national radio interview. "Welcome to the Age of my Body" is one of Lambert's original spoken word songs, and it talks about her experience with sexual assault. At the last minute, Lambert chose to perform the song, despite her record label's request. For Delcambre and Nguyen, bringing an artist to campus who fearlessly shares her message was essential.
"I thought that it was important for me to bring an artist that talks about the issues that our campus is facing, that all campuses are facing," Ngueyn said. "Issues such as sexual assault, self confidence, and body love."