“We want to give folks the opportunity to come enjoy the planetarium while enjoying live music from artists and just getting a chance to unplug and get away from their work,” program consultant TJ Hall said. “It’s a super cool event, and the venue makes it all the more better.”

This is the eighth annual Rest with Music series at MSU. Throughout the years, the events have aimed to provide the community with a wide variety of diverse and dedicated artists. 

On Nov. 20, local and Indigenous singer-songwriter Jessica Dominic will serve as the selected talent. With this being Native American Heritage month, Hall and MSU Health4U partnered with the Native American Institute to bring Dominic to MSU to tell her story through song. 

This will be the third Rest with Music concert this semester. The first concert featured professional guitarist Hiroya Tsukamoto on Oct. 6, and the second concert featured local artist Phoebe Holmes on Oct. 16. Hall called both of these events “a success.” 

“The first two shows were great,” Hall said. “In shows like this, we try to bring in a diverse array of talent that bring a nice representation of the different music styles from around the world. It’s a unique show for the artist as well, because they're playing in a totally dark and silent room. Tsukamoto and Holmes both did a fantastic job.” 

This event will be the last of the semester, but it’ll pick back up on Jan. 22 with Michigan born singer-songwriter Monte Pride being the main talent.

Multi-genre guitarist Justin Hatt will perform on Feb. 19, followed by jazz pianist performer Ricky Nalett on March 18. To end the spring semester, a diverse, Lansing-based band called the Dangling Participles will perform on April 15.

Rest with Music also continues into the summer season: singer-songwriter Taylor Taylor on May 20, folk musician Samuel Nalangira on June 17 and music duo Denning & Johnson on July 15. 

“The goal of the program is to give folks the opportunity to take a break and rest,” Hall said. “Though, we also want to let the campus community know there’s resources available through university health and wellbeing. We do programs like this all the time and all over campus, and they’re usually free.”  

Other programs that MSU Health4U hosts are courses and events like food and nutrition counseling, emotional wellness courses, yoga and more. More information about these can be found at MSU Health4U website. 

Rest with Music’s third and final show of the fall semester takes place on Monday, Nov. 20, from 12 p.m. to 12:50 p.m. in the Abrams Planetarium, with Jessica Dominic as the singer. While in-person admission is free, spots are limited. Community members can register online at the MSU Health4U website. There will also be a Facebook live of the event, which does not require registration, and can also be found on the website.