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Happy Tuesday!

Today’s song is Be My Mistake by The 1975.

If you listen to this song, be prepared to get a tad bit emotional. The 1975 released this album, A Brief Inquiry Into Online Relationships, was released at the end of this past November. This album is packed with amazing songs that capture the listener, while acknowledging relationships- romantic and platonic- life stressors, and societal issues. Be My Mistake stands out on the album because of its lyrical and musical simplicity and honesty. The song is about cheating on a significant other. Lead singer Matt Healy sings, “So don’t wait outside my hotel room / Just wait till I give you a sign / ‘Cause I get lonesome sometimes / Save all the jokes you’re going to make / Whilst I see how much drink I can take / Then be my mistake”. These lines gather the gist of the song, but there are a few lines that stand out even more, “I shouldn’t have called / ‘Cause we shouldn’t speak / You do make me hard / But she makes me weak”. These lines almost hurt every time I hear them. Healy acknowledges that he knows he shouldn’t be doing what he is doing, seeing this girl on the side, and that this side girl does arouse and please him, but the one he is in a relationship is the one that matters at the end of the day. She makes him weak with the love they share.

I chose this song for today because of its beauty and pain. It’s all about a situation that many people have dealt with before, many being on the side of Healy and carrying out the act of cheating, many being the side individual that aids in the act, and many being the person that is hurt the most in the end from the act- the loyal individual. I believe it is important for this song to have been made because it touches on the issue that has been around for years, and seems to have increased in occurrence and probability: we, as humans, cannot seem to have enough. Our thirst for love, attention, material items, success, and whatever else can never seem to be quenched. We get what we finally have been craving for so long, eventually become bored with it, and want to move on to something (or someone) else to ignite that excitement and interest again. I’d like to believe that Healy wrote this song in order to be honest about this situation, and showcase the guilt he felt during this time. 

Happy Wednesday!! 

Today’s song is Smoking Outside by Susto.

This song appears to be a very simple one. The lyrics are quite short, but still pretty damn lovely. The guitar riff that starts this song sets the scene, and I almost imagine two people standing around outside a bar on a chilly night in a windy city. This song seems to be about the singer talking to a girl about rock & roll, and how that music makes them feel. There are the lines, “She says, ‘This is a great song, I love you right now / It feels better outside than it did in there’”. 

I chose this song today, and was frankly stuck between this one and another jam of Susto’s titled La Mia, because of how calm I feel during it, but also the feeling I have in my heart when I listen to it. Its one of those songs where you can feel it in your chest (this is the best way I can describe it), especially because of one line. You know when you’re listening to a song by someone, and the song as a whole is good, but there’s like one or two lines that completely and utterly stand out to you primarily because of how the singer sang those words, and those two lines just make the songs that much more phenomenal to you? Smoking Outside is one of those songs. The line that destroys me (in the best way) every time I listen, is “She’s a hieroglyph on guitar strings”. I wait for the inflection and curve of his voice when it gets to this line, especially since it sounds a little different compared to the rest of the lines. It also is a very visual line. This girl is a hieroglyph, so something that he can see, but not understand at all. She’s foreign and intriguing to him, all while being perched on guitar strings. This makes me think that this girl is some sort of an influence, a foreign influence, to write and make a song, a rock & roll song, on a Tuesday night.

Happy Tuesday!

Today’s jam is Heaven All Around Me by Saba.

Saba is yet another incredibly talented artist that I feel lucky to be experiencing in my life. This man is so dedicated to his art. If you follow him on Instagram, you’ll see him posting on his account and his story videos of him constantly making beats, songs, music. Heaven All Around Me is a track off of Saba’s second studio album CARE FOR ME. This album is an emotional one, basing many of his songs, and one specific song entirely, on the emotions he felt from the loss of his cousin, Walter. In Heaven All Around Me, Saba writes as if he has passed. Heaven surrounds him, he cannot feel any pain, and he is with God. But while he moves through the song, he notices how the people around him are affected by his death. He is witness to the pain and tears present by those that cared for him. Saba sings, “No, I can't feel your pain, but I can see the stars / No, I ain't leave in vain, but I know we with God / There's heaven all around me, there's heaven all around me”. 

I chose this song for today because I wanted to give Saba some love. He’s been on tour all over Europe these past few weeks, selling out shows, and I’m so happy for him and his opportunities to spread his art and creativity to the world. This man is a genius when it comes to creating sounds that no one has attempted before, and I wanted to be able to recognize that with this post today.

Happy Monday!

Today’s song is Normal Girl by SZA.

I’ve already posted a song from this album and gushed about it, so I won’t make this post too too lengthy. Once again, if you’ve never listened to this album, Ctrl, please do. Normal Girl is one of the last couple tracks on the album, and SZA croons about how she wishes she was a normal girl, one that a man’s fellas would be proud of, one that her mom and dad would be proud of, one that a man’s mama would be proud of. These wishes of SZA are present most likely because many people feel this way- thinking they aren’t “normal” and wanting to be- but also because of the path she has walked in life so far. SZA used to attend college, and when she did, she hardly attended classes, and was more focused on hanging out with her friends and smoking weed, which concerned and frustrated her parents for sure. She  Some of my favorite lines of the song are right at the end, “ This time next year I'll be livin' so good / Won't remember your name, I swear / Livin' so good, livin' so good, livin' so good / This time next year I'll be livin' so good / Won't remember no pain, I swear / Before that you figured out, that I was just a normal girl”. 

I think this song really pulls at the heart strings, like a lot of the songs off of this album. We all have days where we feel like we’re not enough, and can never be enough (which let me just say, fuck that feeling because its an awful one). Today isn’t one of those days for me but its still a relevant feeling. The cool thing about this song is that SZA reminds her audience that we are all normal. With that last line that I love, “Before that you figured out, that I was just a normal girl”; she was normal all along. We all are. We just have our own quirks, passions, behaviors, etc. I think that’s a healthy reminder for people.

Happy Sunday y’all.

Today’s song is Amphetamine by Smino.

This is such a good song. When I first listened to it I thought it was three different songs in one. In reality, there’s two parts/sounds in the song, but still beautiful. Smino is a rapper from St. Louis, Missouri, that comes onto the music scene with such a unique style and energy. In Amphetamine, Smino is accompanied by artists Bari, Jean Deaux, and Noname. Smino opens up the track with a gorgeous chorus, “ Moonlight disrupt the day / Been like this every night / Walking in stumbling / Fucked up some bread today / Though I said no no this time / Cycles on cycles / It's like an amphetamine / How it marinate on my mind / Stuck on me, yah / Got no doubt I'll be alright / If I just make it through the night”. He sings about his experiences with an addiction to amphetamines, such as Adderall, and how it has affected his life. Smino understands that if he can survive the night without giving into his demons, then he’ll be okay. This is another song where I’m afraid to attempt an analysis because Smino’s lyrics are very different and metaphorical, so I’ll leave it here.

I chose this song for today because It is my favorite song off of his blkswn album, and I’ll be attending a concert of his the week after Spring Break, so I need to remind myself of how dank this concert is going to be. I’m too excited!! I’ll be sure to make a post about the concert with some pictures after I go. I’m extra excited for that show because the rap duo, Earthgang, will be opening up for Smino. I’ve loved those guys for a bit now as well and I can’t wait have them set the scene for an amazing night. I also picked the song for its originality and versatility. It has such an interesting feeling, along with the rest of Smino’s work. Really, its something to completely admire.

Happy Friday everyone!!

Today’s jam is While We’re Young by Jhené Aiko.

Jhené Aiko is a very talented artist, with a voice that can soothe you to sleep or get you hyped. She’s super awesome. While We’re Young is a fairly self-explanatory song. Its all about doing things with a person while they’re still young, not caring about what other’s perceive, and just living, all while being with your life partner. Aiko opens the track with, “Baby, while we’re young / I think we should do something crazy / Like say “Fuck everyone” / and just run away from the daily routine / Yeah, you know what I mean”. 

While We’re Young is a feel good song. It reminds you that you are still young, and there are so many things you can do while you’re young, and they can be done with someone that absolutely loves you, and with that person, you can learn how beautiful life can really be. This song makes me happy. 

I want to add too, that if there’s any interest in this song, you should listen to the whole album. Its a complete story being told by Jhené, with high highs and low lows. I think its a remarkable album and deserves a lot of recognition. 

Hi everyone.

Today’s song is BLEACH by BROCKHAMPTON.

If you’ve never heard of BROCKHAMPTON, you should definitely check them out. BROCKHAMPTON consists of a group of guys that have all become friends over years of knowing each other, each of them working their way through the music industry and following their passions. They define themselves as a boy band, all with their own styles and specialties, coming together to create music that is different than anything I’ve ever listened to. Each BROCKHAMPTON song is different than the last, and within each song there are many varying emotions, styles, and vibes. If you want me to be super specific, there are around 12 members of the band, with a couple of them only being a part of management, photography, and production (which are still very important roles). Out of the 12, the voices that you hear when listening to their tracks belong to Kevin Abstract, who's recognized as the face of the group and has released solo projects, Matt Champion, who also has solo projects, Merlyn Wood, Dom McLennon, Joba, Bearface, Romil Hemnani, Q3, Ameer Vann, and Robert “Roberto” Ontenient. As of a couple months ago back in 2018, Ameer Vann has been dismissed from the group for extremely unfortunate reasons. BLEACH is a track off of their album SATURATION II, with there also being a SATURATION and SATURATION III. It is a track that is a little more low-key compared to their other more up-beat songs. Some of my favorite lines from the song are, from Ameer, “Don't let God see me, I got a lot of demons / And I've been sleeping with 'em / And now I'm tangled in the sheets and sinking deeper with 'em / I'm going deeper in it, find me drownin' in it”, from Dom McLennon, “They said “Do you make mistakes or do you make a change / Or do you draw the line for when it's better days?” / You taste the wind for when it's cold enough to kill our flame / I wonder who's to blame”, and from Matt Champion, “Phone ringing, never outgoing, homebody / Never outgoing, put my doubts on when these walls up / Tearing at the black tie, finish adding notches to my belt loop / They say help you, I can't help you”. 

This group was introduced to me about two years ago now by a couple friends of mine and I never knew what to expect when listening to them. I chose this song for today because I needed a little reminder of how much I love these guys. They put in so much work to talk about a lot of topics not many rap/hip-hop artists acknowledge, such as rape, domestic abuse, racial inequalities, racism in general, and homosexual elements, such as discrimination and acceptance of the LGBQT community. All of the members of BROCKHAMPTON bring their own trials, emotions, and experiences to their music, making each song have even more depth than it would with a solo artist. I think that with this the members of the group have an advantage over other artists; they have an ability to reach a larger audience and relate to that many more people, like ones who have experienced similar situations that they have. BLEACH is a beautiful song because each member that’s featured in it is able to talk about their own struggles that they’ve dealt with. With the track title in mind, its as if the members of BROCKHAMPTON are attempting to cleanse their lives of these struggles by using bleach. I dig that. 

Happy Wednesday friends.

Today’s song is Lost in the World by Kanye West.

This is definitely my favorite song off of West’s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, arguably one of his best albums. This song also features the very talented Bon Iver, which seemed like an odd mix at first, but ended up being a great partnership. Lost in the World opens with Bon Iver’s singing, “I’m up in the woods, I’m down on my mind / I’m building a still to slow down the time”. These two lines are heard many times throughout the song, and are some of my favorites. Kanye West comes in and adds to these two lines with, “I’m new in the city, and I’m down for the night”. This powerful song moves forward with just Kanye rapping then, one of my favorite parts being “If we die in each other’s arms / Still get laid in the afterlife”. 

This is the song choice for today because I nearly forgot about how much of a phenomenal song it is. I’m super happy it popped up on my radar. I love the pairing of Iver & West; its almost like the best of both worlds. Bon Iver is a significant individual within the scene of indie music, and Kanye West is even more significant within the rap game, how great of a pair. This song is also just a part of an amazing album, and I think makes for a great ending to the album as well.