#2012-2016 was peak instagram use for me

[theabsurdity]

Are you on Instagram?

Yes and no. @absurdlyoverwrought is my personal ish page but I don’t really use it

I used to use instagram as theclawhammer but that one has been laid to rest years ago

I have a new page for my ceramics I’ve been building, I’ll share it soon :)

[tessandscottforever18]

July 7

Camila Cabello on the power of putting yourself first

She’s one of the most successful pop stars on the planet. But what’s life really like when you’re making career moves, figuring out your love life and struggling with mental health, all under the glare of a paparazzi flash bulb? We find out...

'We’re doing a little family trip!' Camila Cabello is Zooming me from her sun lounger in Positano, Italy. I, on the other hand, am sitting in the bedroom of my London flat, while drizzle pathetically slaps against my window. I am not jealous at all.

Shielding her eyes from the ‘golden hour’ sunset, Cabello, 25, has that dazed smile of someone who is in peak relaxation mode right now. That, or someone who is incredibly tired.

The night before we speak, Cabello performed at the chaotic Champions League final at the Stade de France. After four hours of sleep, and with a few days off before heading back to the US, she flew to Italy with her family to make the most of their time in Europe. They spent the day walking around the ancient ruins of Pompeii. ‘It was amazing – so, so cool. But I’m so exhausted, I can’t even tell you,’ she says sleepily.

Cabello has been on the go ever since the release of her third solo studio album, Familia, earlier this year. The record chronicles her ‘relationships’, she says. Not just romantic – though there are several tracks documenting the highs and lows of love – but also with her friends, family (Cabello hugs her younger cousin on the album’s super-cute cover artwork) and herself. The album pays homage to her Mexican-Cuban roots with its Spanish title and several songs sung in the language, while others are set against mariachi bands, reggaeton beats and flamenco-style sounds.

Born in Havana, Cabello spent the first few years of her life between there – where her mother is also from – and Mexico City, where her father is from. The family emigrated to the US and settled in Miami, Florida, when Cabello was around seven years old. Her memories are patchy from that time, but the ones she does have revolve around music and making new friends by bonding over a love of Disney’s The Cheetah Girls. She didn’t speak any English at first, which contributed to her shyness as a child.

‘I would cry if my parents asked me to sing in front of their friends,’ she says. ‘I don’t know if I knew I was a good singer but I really liked to sing and, whenever I did, it didn’t get a terrible response so I just kept doing it.’

As her shyness eased, Cabello began to upload videos of herself singing covers of Alicia Keys, Justin Bieber and Demi Lovato to YouTube, though she often kept her hands up to the camera to obscure her face, or swiftly deleted the videos afterwards.

Then at the age of 15, spurred on by her love for One Direction, Cabello decided to audition for the second season of the American version of The X Factor. (Seriously, she recently told James Corden that she auditioned for The X Factor over The Voice so she could meet Harry Styles.) She was eliminated at bootcamp but, much like 1D and Little Mix, was called back to form an archetypal Simon Cowell ‘soloists-become-supergroup’ band along with fellow contestants Normani, Ally Brooke, Lauren Jauregui and Dinah Jane. They became Fifth Harmony.

From 2012 through to 2016, the group released consecutive multiplatinum singles and performed non-stop tours and festivals. They were a mainstream hit, amassing four MTV VMAs, two People’s Choice Awards and an American Music Award, while also breaking the record for the most viewed music video on YouTube by a girl group with 'Work From Home' (currently at 2.5 billion views and counting).

After months of rumours, Cabello left the group in 2016, in what was – to put it bluntly – a pretty messy departure. The remaining band members (who continued as a foursome until 2018) claimed they were informed of Cabello’s departure via her management, which she denied in an Instagram post.

Six years later, on 'Psychofreak' – perhaps the most vulnerable of all the songs on Familia – Cabello acknowledges the group’s split via her music for the first time. ‘I been on this ride since I was 15, I don’t blame the girls for how it went down, down,’ she sings over an electro-pop beat. For any Harmonisers out there still looking for Easter eggs, 'Down' was the first track Fifth Harmony released sans Cabello.

‘I felt like it was important to keep that [lyric] on there because it was such a big part of my journey as a person. It just explains so much of how I got to where I am now, mentally, emotionally, psychologically, and I’m sure for everyone else in the group, too. I felt like it was important because I don’t really ever talk about that in any of my songs,’ she says.

Has Cabello heard from any of the group since releasing the track? ‘I had such a great time seeing Normani at the Met Gala,’ she gushes. ‘Actually, that was probably one of the highlights of my night. We were just laughing, having fun and hanging out. She said something really sweet about [the song] and in general is really cool and supportive. I try to be super supportive as well. I feel like we’re in a great place. I feel like that about some of the other girls, too, and I feel really good about that.’

The end of pretending

The lyrics on Psychofreak also delve deeper into the mental health issues Cabello has admitted to struggling with during her time in the spotlight, namely anxiety and OCD symptoms. When it comes to the aftermath of laying her inner feelings bare for the world to hear, she references her ‘vulnerability hangover’, a term coined by American author and TED-talker Brené Brown.

‘It’s like if you tell a guy that you like him, the minute he leaves, you’re like, “Oh my god, why did I say that? That was so stupid.” I remember feeling like that when I came out of the booth after [recording] this song. I’d just said all these crazy f**king things like, ‘When we’re making love, I want to be there.’ I said so many other things that didn’t even make it into the song. I thought, “Is everyone going to think I’m a weirdo?” The “vulnerability hangover” is so real, which is why the people you have around you are so important. Because if someone were to say, “Yeah, you shouldn’t have said that, that’s really weird,” it would break my heart and I would probably hide under the covers for a week. But that’s never happened before. Every single time I’ve been vulnerable, someone has said, “That’s not weird, that’s totally normal.”’

Cabello pinpoints the suffocating hold anxiety had over her in her late teens and early twenties. ‘It was something I just lived with. I was used to having functioning anxiety that got really bad every half a year. Then I started opening up to friends, and I realised how much suffering and neuroses are normal, and that we’re all bats**t crazy in our own way, but when it keeps you from having healthy relationships and being more often than not in a relatively stable place, that I needed to seek out some therapy. Talking about it really helped me realise, “Oh, I think this is making my life harder than it is for other people.”’

She still has weekly therapy sessions to manage her anxiety (‘I love therapy!’) and has found being open and honest about her struggles to be helpful, too. ‘I think pretending is a form of psychological torture and brings the most anxiety. We do that so much in our society and culture. We’re constantly hustling and putting on a smile when we don’t feel good.’

The pandemic forced Cabello to slow down, moving back to Miami with her family and finding time to ride her bike and cook. If her mental health were to start deteriorating again, she now knows to take a break. ‘Obviously, this is a huge luxury, but if I felt like that again, I wouldn’t force myself to do anything and I wouldn’t pretend because who is that for? If I’m not being honest, then I don’t know what I’m bringing to people, you know?'

Having risen to fame in tandem with the explosion of social media – where she has more than 90 million combined followers across Instagram, TikTok and Twitter – her relationship with it is constantly evolving. Cabello admits it’s a balancing act; she is vocal about LGBTQ+ equality, gun control and abortion rights but acknowledges the need to protect her mental health from inevitable trolling and mean comments. ‘If I see something that hurts my feelings, I’ll just violently delete my apps. And then I’ll miss Instagram and TikTok and I’ll redownload them again, and then it’s just a vicious cycle that repeats over and over. But yeah, social media is interesting. It’s got good and bad.’

Fame is a strange concept for Cabello – ‘I want to be an artist, not like a “celebrity”.’ She looks to her friend and Bam Bam collaborator Ed Sheeran as a ‘perfect example’ of this. ‘He just strives to be an artist, and then also just lives his life as a normal dude. He has a whole private life that people don’t know about, where he has fun, hangs out with his friends, has a family, has dinner with the people he loves. I think Ed just lives it – he’s just out here trying to have fun with good people and make music he loves. And that’s the same thing I’m trying to do.’

She tries to hang out with Sheeran whenever they’re both in the same place, including the UK and, it turns out, she is a huge fan of British foods. ‘I love roast beef and a Yorkshire pudding, parsnips and potatoes. I love fish and chips. I love beans on toast. ‘Ooh, and I love Fleabag,’ she gushes. ‘I love Crashing by Phoebe Waller-Bridge, too. In fact, I love Phoebe Waller-Bridge, period.’

The paparazzi paradox

It’s no surprise that Cabello has mixed feelings about ‘fame’. In the classic case of a woman who entered the public domain at a young age, Cabello often attracts the attention of intrusive paparazzi, with photos of her body being picked apart in the media afterwards. In fact, just hours after our chat, a day out with her family was papped and packaged into a tabloid news story, displaying unauthorised and unwelcome bikini pictures alongside thinly veiled backhanded compliments, dished out under the (unconvincing) guise of flattery.

To protect her privacy, she has made changes, such as avoiding places where she might be photographed and attempting to control the narrative via social media. But as this trip to Italy has demonstrated, there is still an expectation by some that privacy is a moot point when you’re a celebrity. ‘There are varying degrees of discomfort [with fame]. The beach thing, paparazzi stuff and people filming me, is really uncomfortable,’ she says, referring to a similar experience at a beach in her home town of Miami, where photographers clamoured to get a bikini shot of her. ‘I was in the ocean and there were six [photographers] four feet away from me. It was so wrong and just weird. [But] I adjust. I don’t go to those places any more or put myself in vulnerable situations like that. It’s fine, I don’t feel like people are going to be interested in my body forever.’

After this incident in Miami, Cabello tweeted about her discomfort, explaining how she felt that we, as a culture, have become accustomed to seeing images of women’s bodies that are ‘completely not real for a lot of women’ and are instead the product of ‘Photoshop, restrictive eating, overexercising and choosing angles that make our bodies look different than how they are in the moment and in their natural form’. She admitted to succumbing to the insecurity herself, holding her ‘core so tight my abs hurt’ and not eating anything heavy, feeling self-conscious in front of hidden photographers, only to feel empty and sad about it all.

Reflecting on all of the support she received after this tweet, she says, ‘I think it sparks up an interesting conversation, even among people that know me. I got a lot of texts being like, “Hey, I really relate to that, I’m glad you posted that.”

‘I would have been glad to see someone post something like that. Especially if they looked amazing in a picture, to be like, oh, thank god, you didn’t just eat three bowls of pasta and then look like that, you know? Sometimes, that’s what we think and that’s not actually true,’ she says.

Moving on and messing up

Cabello’s family, friends and romantic life are all areas she wants to keep separate from her professional life now, too. ‘I don’t really want my dating life or that side of my life to be…’ she tails off. ‘I mean, obviously, I know that it has been in the past, but that’s not really what I want. It just so happened that it turned out that way.’

The relationship, which ‘just so happened to turn out that way’, undoubtedly alludes to her high-profile relationship of two and a half years with fellow singer Shawn Mendes. The origins of their relationship coincided with the release of their steamy duet, Señorita, which went on to be the third biggest song in the world in 2019. Adored by their fans as a celebrity power couple, Cabello and Mendes were frequently photographed together during off-duty moments on walks or while out for dinner. They also shared pictures of the puppy, Tarzan, they bought together on their social media accounts and gave an intimate glimpse into their private relationship via the 2020 Netflix documentary Shawn Mendes: In Wonder.

Cabello doesn’t mention her famous ex-boyfriend by name throughout our chat, and she doesn’t really need to. They split up in November 2021, issuing a joint but mutually appreciative statement. But how do you protect yourself when a break-up, as difficult and personal as that is, becomes news and you have to face the added scrutiny that comes with being famous? ‘It’s the same way I protect my emotions with everything else,’ Cabello explains simply. ‘I just stay off [the internet]. I don’t look at what anyone says and wait for time to do its thing.’

Growing older has also adjusted her expectations and priorities when it comes to romantic relationships. ‘I don’t put a lot of focus on it. I just really want to hang out with people, I want to make friends and I’ve made a lot of great friends over the past year. A lot of girlfriends. I’ve got some great group chats going,’ she laughs.

‘If something happens, then that’s really fun, but I don’t put any pressure on it. Before I used to be like, “Yes, love, oh my god, love,” and now I’m just trying to have a good time. I just want to live my life and have great friendships. If something comes out of [them] that’s something more, then that’s great,’ she says.

These days, so much of being a pop star is often in the packaging. In the slick management of their ‘profile’ and polished public image. In the promotion and apparent ‘perfection’ of a person and the life they lead. But not for Cabello. After a decade in the industry, she’s very much here for the messiness and vulnerability of being human, of learning and evolving as she continues her journey and finds out what works for her personally. ‘Everyone experiences those things getting older. There’s a lot of messiness. You mess up, you make a lot of mistakes and that’s just what growing up is.

'They don’t say older and wiser for no reason,’ Cabello smiles. ‘I’m more relaxed, at ease and sure of what I want. All the hell I experienced – whether it was in my mind, outside my mind, in little waves or big waves – taught me how to find the peace that I’m getting now,’ she says. And if anything makes an attempt to derail her peace, clarity and balance now? ‘F*ck it, I’m leaving,’ she grins, holding two middle fingers up.

[alonzopaula-xiii]

SHE IS RARE.

Selena Marie Gomez also know as Selena Gomez was born on July 22, 1992 (28 years old) in Grand Prairie, Texas. Her father is Ricardo Joel Gomez and Her mother is Amanda Dawn "Mandy" Cornett, a texas-born former stage actress. Selena was named after Tejano singer Selena Quintanilla, who died in 1995. Her father was originally from Mexico while her mother, has some Italian ancestry. Her parents divorced when she was five years old, and she remained with her mother. Selena has two younger half-sisters: Gracie Elliot Teefey, through Amanda and her second husband Brian. And Victoria "Tori" Gomez, through Ricardo and his second wife Sara. She received her high-school diploma through homeschooling in May 2010. Her mother gave birth to Selena when she was sixteen years old. She captured an interest in pursuing a career in the entertainment industry because she always see her mother preparing for stage productions. Selena began auditioning for numerous roles. She meets Demi Lovato during her audition for Barney & Friends in 2002, Selena portrayed the character of Gianna. It was her first acting experience. She appeared in thirteen episodes in 2002 and 2004 of Barney & Friends.

She had a cameo part in the film Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over (2003). She made-for-television film Walker, Texas Ranger: Trial by Fire (2005). She also made a guest appearance in the episode of the Disney series The Suite Life of Zack & Cody (2006). She has starred in the films Another Cinderella Story (2008), Princess Protection Program (2009), Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie (2009), Ramona and Beezus (2010), Monte Carlo (2011), Spring Breakers (2012), Getaway (2013), The Fundamentals of Caring (2016), The Dead Don't Die (2019), and A Rainy Day in New York (2019). She also voiceover the character of Mavis in the Hotel Transylvania film franchise (2012–present). And she is also the executive producer the Netflix television series 13 Reasons Why (2017–2020), and Living Undocumented (2019).

Selena released three albums with her former band, Selena Gomez & the Scene: Kiss & Tell (2009), A Year Without Rain (2010), and When the Sun Goes Down (2011), all of which peaked within the top ten on the US Billboard 200 and attained gold certifications. Selena has also released three albums as a solo artist: Stars Dance (2013), Revival (2015), and Rare (2020), all of which debuted atop the Billboard 200. Selena has earned eight top-ten singles on the Billboard Hot 100. In 2017, Billboard reported that Selena has sold over 7 million albums and 22 million singles worldwide. She received various of appreciation and was honored as the Billboard Woman of the Year in 2017. She has a large number of followers on social media, and was one of the most-followed individual on Instagram. Selena has been described as a pop artist. She possesses a mezzo-soprano vocal range, her songs are influenced by dance-pop and EDM.

Selena released three albums with her former band, Selena Gomez & the Scene: Kiss & Tell (2009), A Year Without Rain (2010), and When the Sun Goes Down (2011), all of which peaked within the top ten on the US Billboard 200 and attained gold certifications. Selena has also released three albums as a solo artist: Stars Dance (2013), Revival (2015), and Rare (2020), all of which debuted atop the Billboard 200. Selena has earned eight top-ten singles on the Billboard Hot 100. In 2017, Billboard reported that Selena has sold over 7 million albums and 22 million singles worldwide. She received various of appreciation and was honored as the Billboard Woman of the Year in 2017. She has a large number of followers on social media, and was one of the most-followed individual on Instagram.

Selena released her own clothing line, Dream Out Loud by Selena Gomez, through retailer Kmart in 2010-2014. In 2012, she released a self-titled fragrance, Selena Gomez by Selena Gomez and in 2013, she released her second fragrance, Vivamore by Selena Gomez. She also created her own nail polish color collection for Nicole by OPI. From 2013-2015, Selena was a spokesperson and partner for Neo by Adidas. In 2015, she signed $3 million endorsement deal with Pantene. In 2016, She appeared in a fashion campaign for luxury brand Louis Vuitton. She also appeared in advertisement for Coca-Cola's "Share a Coke" campaign. In 2017, She confirmed that she was partnering with Coach, Inc. She has a limited-edition collection of handbags called the "Selena Grace" that she designed in collaboration with luxury brand Coach, Inc. She also partnered with the athletic brand, Puma, as brand ambassador appearing in campaigns. Her collection in collaboration with Puma called SG x PUMA, Strong Girl collection was launched on December 12, 2018. In September 2020, Selena launched her own makeup line, "Rare Beauty".

Selena was raised as a Catholic. In 2014, She said that she listened to "Oceans (Where Feet May Fail)" by Hillsong United before performing at the 2014 American Music Awards. In 2016, she appeared at Hillsong Young & Free concert in Los Angeles, leading worship by singing her song titled "Nobody" where the lyrics are referred to God. She also covered Hillsong Worship's song "Transfiguration" during her Revival Tour. As of 2020, she attends a different gatherings in California, the Hillsong Church, and she has stated that she does not consider herself religious but more concerned with her faith and relationship to God.

In 2008, Selena dated Nick Jonas. In December 2010, Selena began dating Justin Bieber. After separating in November 2012, they reconciled a few weeks later before breaking up again in January 2013. They later reconciled for a few months in each of 2013, 2014, and 2015. In 2017, it was reported that the couple were back again together. But, they broke up again in March 2018. In 2015, After recording "I Want You to Know" with DJ Zedd, Selena began a romantic relationship with him; they broke up later that year. In January 2017, Selena reportedly started dating The Weeknd.

Selena was diagnosed with lupus in 2012-2014. On September 2017, she announced that she had received a kidney transplant from actress and best friend Francia Raisa. During the transplant, She broke an artery. They build a new artery using a vein from her leg. Selena has been diagnosed with both anxiety and depression. On April 3, 2020, Selena revealed that she had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder.

Selena has shown her support for the LGBTQ community. She joined with many celebrities to write a "love letter" during pride month, as a part of Billboard's 30 Days of Pride during the month of June 2016. She has also shown her support for the Black Lives Matter movement.

Since I was in grade 2, Selena is my favorite singer. I am her fan for almost 10 years because since 2010 she is my idol. Selena has been a big influence on me especially as I grew up and as I got older I understood things better. Because of Selena, I loved singing more and I started appreciating my voice. She was also my inspiration about my illness because even though she became very ill, her fight continued, she continued to make many people happy and inspired. I also admire her because even though her relastionship was ups and downs, she never stopped or gave up. I love Selena because she has a heart to help others, she have many organizations and advocacies for children, women, for health and mental health, and so on. And she supports the LGBT community and the BLM community. Selena is also one of the reasons why I see my worth as a woman and I learned to appreciate my body. And she taught me that I should know my stand and rights as a woman. She taught me to be Rare. Selena is also one of my inspirations to continue to fulfill my dreams no matter what happens and no matter how difficult it is, because like her, she did not stop and she did not lose hope to fulfill her dreams. I am so proud of her and I will love her forever.

Images by Pinterest

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Selena_Gomez

[v3vanya]

“WHEN I AM SILENT A FALL INTO A PLACE WHERE EVERYTHING IS MUSIC” -Rumi      Living the notes of music...

SABRINA CARPENTER.....

Sabrina Annlynn Carpenter(born May 11, 1999) is an American singer and actress,After making her acting debut with an appearance in the crime series Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, she starred in a recurring role as the young version of Chloe Goodwin in the television series The Goodwin Games. Carpenter was later cast as Maya Hart in the Disney Channel series Girl Meets World, from 2014 to 2017.Carpenter has starred in the feature films Horns (2013), The Hate U Give (2018), and starred as Jenny in the Disney Channel Original Movie Adventures in Babysitting (2016). As a voice actress, she had a recurring role as Princess Vivian in the Disney Channel animated series Sofia the First from 2013 to 2018. In 2016, she began voicing Melissa Chase on the Disney XD animated series Milo Murphy's Law.Carpenter's debut EP, Can't Blame a Girl for Trying, was released in 2014, and in the same year, she released her debut single of the same name. She released her debut album, Eyes Wide Open in 2015, and has since released another three studio albums: Evolution (2016), Singular: Act I (2018), and her most recent studio album, Singular: Act II, was released on July 19, 2019.

DEMI LOVATO

Demetria Devonne Lovato ( born August 20, 1992) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and television judge After appearing on the children's television series Barney & Friends (2002–2004), she rose to prominence for her role as Mitchie Torres in the Disney Channel musical television film Camp Rock (2008) and its sequel Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam (2010).Lovato has released six studio albums: Don't Forget (2008), Here We Go Again (2009), Unbroken (2011), Demi (2013), Confident (2015), and Tell Me You Love Me (2017); all of which debuted in the top five of the US Billboard 200. She has earned nine top-20 singles on the US Billboard Hot 100 with "This Is Me", "Here We Go Again", "Send It On", "Skyscraper", "Give Your Heart a Break", "Heart Attack", "Cool for the Summer", "Sorry Not Sorry", and "I Love Me". In total, she has sold over two million albums and 20 million singles in the United States.[7] On television, Lovato has starred as the titular character on Sonny with a Chance (2009–2011); served as a judge and mentor on The X Factor USA in its second and third seasons; and appeared as a recurring character on Glee. Her struggles with personal issues received significant media attention in the 2010s; in response to which she published a book, Staying Strong: 365 Days a Year (2013), and released a YouTube documentary about her life and career, titled Demi Lovato: Simply Complicated (2017).Lovato is a pop, pop rock, and R&B artist. She has received various accolades, including an MTV Video Music Award, 14 Teen Choice Awards, five People's Choice Awards, and two Latin American Music Awards. She also holds one Guinness World Record, and in 2017 Time magazine named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world. Outside the entertainment industry, Lovato is an activist for several social causes.

LAURA MARANO

Laura Marie Marano (born November 29, 1995)is an American actress and singer. She starred in the Disney Channel series Austin & Ally as Ally Dawson. Marano was one of the five original classmates in Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?. She starred in Without a Trace for three seasons and also Back to You, in both instances playing the daughter of the main characters. Marano starred in the indie film A Sort of Homecoming.[5] Marano also starred in the 2015 Disney Channel Original Movie Bad Hair Day. In 2019 Marano starred in the Netflix original movie The Perfect Date.In 2015, she signed with Big Machine Records and released her debut single "Boombox" on March 11, 2016 and "La La" later that year. On October 5, 2018, Laura Marano released the single "Me" as an independent artist. On January 13, 2016, Marano debuted her own radio talk show on Radio Disney entitled For the Record with Laura Marano. The weekly one-hour show chronicles Marano's journey as she launches her music career, featuring interviews with a guest star in each episode. The show also provides listeners tips on how one can pursue a career in music. The show has featured various guest stars including Nick Jonas, Ariana Grande, Meghan Trainor, OneRepublic, and Troye Sivan. The first episode of the show, which aired January 12, 2016, guest starred her co-stars of Austin & Ally.

SELENA GOMEZ

Selena Marie Gomez (born July 22, 1992) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and television producer.  Born and raised in Texas, Gomez began her career by appearing on the children's television series Barney & Friends (2002–2004). In her teenage years, she received wider recognition for her role as Alex Russo on the Emmy Award-winning Disney Channel television series Wizards of Waverly Place (2007–2012).Alongside her television career, Gomez has starred in the films Another Cinderella Story (2008), Princess Protection Program (2009), Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie (2009), Ramona and Beezus (2010), Monte Carlo (2011), Spring Breakers (2012), Getaway (2013), The Fundamentals of Caring (2016), The Dead Don't Die (2019), and A Rainy Day in New York (2019). She also voices the character of Mavis in the Hotel Transylvania film franchise (2012–present), and has executed produced the Netflix television series 13 Reasons Why (2017–2020) and Living Undocumented (2019).Gomez released three albums with her former band, Selena Gomez & the Scene: Kiss & Tell (2009), A Year Without Rain (2010), and When the Sun Goes Down (2011), all of which attained gold certifications and reached the top ten in the US. Additionally, Gomez has released three albums as a solo artist: Stars Dance (2013), Revival (2015), and Rare (2020), all of which debuted at number one in the US.[2] She has released eight songs which reached the top ten on the Billboard Hot 100: "Come & Get It", "The Heart Wants What It Wants", "Good for You", "Same Old Love", "Hands to Myself", "We Don't Talk Anymore" with Charlie Puth, "It Ain't Me" with Kygo, and "Lose You to Love Me", the latter being her first US number-one single.In 2017, Billboard reported that Gomez has sold over 7 million albums and 22 million singles worldwide. Gomez has received various accolades and was recognized as the Billboard Woman of the Year in 2017. She has a large following on social media, and was at one point the most-followed individual on Instagram. Gomez's other ventures include a makeup line, a clothing line, a handbag line, a fragrance line, and a production company named July Moonhead Productions. She has worked with various charitable organizations and, at age 17, she became a UNICEF ambassador.

MEGHAN TRAINOR 

Meghan Elizabeth Trainor (born December 22, 1993) is an American singer-songwriter "All About That Bass", and for being the recipient of the Grammy Award for Best New Artist at the 58th Annual Grammy Awards. Trainor became interested in music from a young age; she wrote, recorded, and produced three independently released albums between 2009 and 2011. After signing a publishing deal with Big Yellow Dog Music, Trainor wrote and helped produce country and pop music for other artists in 2013. She met producer Kevin Kadish in June that year, with whom she wrote "All About That Bass".Trainor rose to fame after signing a contract with Epic Records in 2014 and releasing "All About That Bass", which topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart for eight consecutive weeks and received a diamond certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) but drew criticism for its lyrical content. The song was included on Trainor's major-label debut studio album Title (2015), which also includes the top-10 singles "Lips Are Movin" and "Like I'm Gonna Lose You". The album debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 and was awarded a triple-platinum certification from the RIAA. The lead single of Trainor's follow-up album Thank You (2016) was "No", which reached number three on the Billboard Hot 100. The album debuted at the same position on the US Billboard 200 and was certified platinum by the RIAA. Her third album with Epic, Treat Myself, was released in January 2020.

DUA LIPA 

Dua Lipa; born 22 August 1995)  is an English singer and songwriter. After working as a model, she signed with Warner Music Group in 2015 and released her self-titled debut album in 2017. The album peaked at number three on the UK Albums Chart, and yielded nine singles, including "Be the One" and "IDGAF", and the UK number-one single "New Rules", which also peaked at number six in the US. In 2018, Lipa won the Brit Awards for British Female Solo Artist and British Breakthrough Act.Released in April 2018, the single "One Kiss", with Calvin Harris, peaked at number one in the UK, and became the longest-running number-one single for a female artist in 2018. It won her the 2019 Brit Award for Song of the Year. In 2019, she was also awarded the Grammy Award for Best New Artist, and "Electricity", a collaboration with Silk City, won her the Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording. The success of the singles helped her self-titled album become one of the most-streamed albums on Spotify and achieve platinum certifications. Her second studio album, Future Nostalgia, was released in March 2020 to critical acclaim. It is her first UK number-one album; its lead single "Don't Start Now" peaked at number two on both the UK Singles Chart and the US Billboard Hot 100.Lipa has received various accolades, including two Grammy Awards, three Brit Awards and two MTV Europe Music Awards. She has also been nominated for three Billboard Music Awards, an American Music Award, and four MTV Video Music Awards.

BILLIE EILISH 

Billie Eilish Pirate Baird O'Connell (born December 18, 2001) is an American singer, songwriter, and musician.She first gained attention in 2015 when she uploaded the song "Ocean Eyes" to SoundCloud, which was subsequently released by the Interscope Records subsidiary Darkroom. The song was written and produced by her brother Finneas, with whom she collaborates on music and live shows. Her debut EP, Don't Smile at Me (2017), reached the top 15 in the US, UK, Canada, and Australia.Eilish's debut studio album, When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? (2019), debuted atop the Billboard 200 and became the best-performing album of 2019 in the US.[2] It also reached No. 1 in the UK. The album contains six Billboard Hot 100 top 40 singles: "When the Party's Over", "Bury a Friend", "Wish You Were Gay", "Xanny", "Everything I Wanted",[a] and "Bad Guy", the last of which became her first No. 1 single in the US. In 2020, she performed the theme song "No Time to Die" for the James Bond film of the same name, which became her first to peak at No. 1 in the UK.Her accolades include five Grammy Awards, two American Music Awards, two Guinness World Records, three MTV Video Music Awards, and one Brit Award. She is the youngest person and second person ever to win the four main Grammy categories – Best New Artist, Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Album of the Year – in the same year. In 2019, Time placed her on their inaugural "Time 100 Next" list. Additionally, Eilish is the 23rd biggest artist of the digital singles era, according to RIAA, selling 37.5 million singles in the US alone.

HAILEE STEINFELD 

Hailee Steinfeld (born December 11, 1996) is an American actress, singer, and songwriter. . Her breakthrough role was as Mattie Ross in the drama western film True Grit (2010), for which she was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Thereafter, Steinfeld gained further prominence for roles in Ender's Game (2013), Romeo & Juliet (2013), Begin Again (2013), and 3 Days to Kill (2014). She appeared as Emily Junk in the Pitch Perfect film series (2015–2017), and received a Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Actress – Motion Picture Comedy or Musical for her role as Nadine Franklin in The Edge of Seventeen (2016). In 2018, she voiced Gwen Stacy / Spider-Woman in the animated film Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse and starred in the action film Bumblebee, contributing to the latter's soundtrack. Steinfeld currently stars as Emily Dickinson in the Apple TV+ series Dickinson.Steinfeld made her breakthrough in music after performing "Flashlight" in Pitch Perfect 2 (2015), signing with Republic Records soon after and releasing her debut single, "Love Myself", followed by her debut extended play Haiz (2015). She has since released a series of singles, including "Starving", a collaboration with both Grey and Zedd, which peaked at number 12 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the United States, and "Let Me Go", a collaboration with Alesso, Florida Georgia Line and Watt, which peaked at number 14 on the

CAMILLA CABELLO

Karla Camila Cabello Estrabao ( born March 3, 1997)  is a Cuban-American singer and songwriter. She rose to prominence as a member of the girl group Fifth Harmony, formed on The X Factor USA in 2012, signing a joint record deal with Syco Music and Epic Records. While in Fifth Harmony, Cabello began to establish herself as a solo artist with the release of the collaborations "I Know What You Did Last Summer" with Shawn Mendes, and "Bad Things" with Machine Gun Kelly, the latter reaching number four on the US Billboard Hot 100. After leaving the group in late 2016, Cabello released several other collaborations, including "Hey Ma" by Pitbull and J Balvin for The Fate of the Furious soundtrack, and her debut solo single "Crying in the Club".Cabello's debut studio album, Camila (2018), reached number one on the Billboard 200 chart. The Latin music-influenced pop album was well received by critics, and received a Platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Its lead single "Havana" topped the charts in several countries including the US and UK, and follow-up single "Never Be the Same" reached the top 10 in multiple countries. Cabello's 2019 duet with Mendes, "Señorita", became her second single to top the Billboard Hot 100. Her second studio album, Romance (2019), peaked at number three on the Billboard 200 chart and number one in Canada.

ASHLEY TISDALE 

Ashley Michelle Tisdale (born July 2, 1985) is an American actress, singer, and producer. During her childhood, Tisdale was featured in over 100 advertisements and had minor roles in television and theatre. She achieved mainstream success as Maddie Fitzpatrick in the Disney Channel series The Suite Life of Zack & Cody (2005-2008). This success was heightened when she starred as Sharpay Evans in the High School Musical film series (2006-2008). The success of the films led to Tisdale signing with Warner Bros. Records and subsequently releasing her debut studio album Headstrong (2007). The album was a commercial success, earning a gold certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Tisdale played the voice of Candace Flynn in the Disney Channel animated series Phineas & Ferb (2007-2015).Tisdale's second studio album, Guilty Pleasure (2009), was released to less commercial success than its predecessor. Tisdale would part ways with Warner Bros. Records following the release of the album. During this time, she began appearing in more films and returned to television with shows such as Hellcats (2010). Tisdale's production company Blondie Girl Productions, first formed in 2008, signed a multi-year production deal with Relativity Media in 2010; Tisdale would produce shows such as Miss Advised (2012) as part of the deal. Tisdale starred in the High School Musical spin-off film Sharpay's Fabulous Adventure (2011), releasing a soundtrack to promote the film. This marked her final portrayal of the character to date.

TAYLOR SWIFT

Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter.She is best known for her narrative songwriting that often centers around her personal life, which has received widespread critical praise and media coverage. At age 14, Swift became the youngest artist signed by the Sony/ATV Music publishing house and, at age 15, she signed her first record deal. Her 2006 eponymous debut album was the longest-charting album of the 2000s on the Billboard 200. Its third single, "Our Song", made her the youngest person to single-handedly write and perform a number-one song on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. Swift's second studio album, Fearless (2008), propelled her to international fame and produced the successful pop crossover singles "Love Story" and "You Belong with Me". It became the best-selling album of 2009 in the U.S., won four Grammy Awards—including Album of the Year—and was certified Diamond by the RIAA.Swift's self-written third album Speak Now (2010) and genre-bending fourth album Red (2012) each sold over one million copies in their first week in the U.S.; the latter yielded her first Billboard Hot 100 number-one single, "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together". Her fifth album and first all-pop project, 1989 (2014), produced the back-to-back number-one singles "Shake It Off" and "Blank Space" and won three Grammy Awards—including Album of the Year—making Swift the first woman to succeed herself at the top spot on the Hot 100 and the first woman to win Album of the Year twice as lead artist.  

ZARA LARSSON 

Zara Maria Larsson  born 16 December 1997) is a Swedish singer and songwriter. At the age of 10, she achieved national fame in Sweden for winning the 2008 season of the talent show Talang, the Swedish version of British TV's Got Talent.  Four years later, in 2012, Larsson signed with the record label TEN Music Group and subsequently released her debut compilation recording, the extended play Introducing, in January 2013. The single "Uncover" topped the music charts in Scandinavia: Sweden, Denmark, and Norway. In February 2013, "Uncover" was certified Platinum by Universal Music Sweden.In July 2013, Introducing was certified 3× Platinum in the country.France. Larsson's debut international album So Good was released on 17 March 2017 and entered at number seven on the UK Albums Chart. It produced eight singles: "Lush Life", "Never Forget You", "Ain't My Fault", "I Would Like", "So Good", "Don't Let Me Be Yours", "Only You", and "Symphony", a collaboration with Clean Bandit. Almost all the album's singles reached the top 15 in the UK.

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2019 Year in Review

Previous Posts: (2018) (2017) (2016) (2015) (2014) (2013) (2012) (2011) 

It’s actually kind of interesting how... less interesting these year-in-reviews get as I get older. Depending on how you look at it, 2019 was somewhat of an unremarkable year. I spent much of it tragically broke, I didn’t get the opportunity to do much traveling. But at the same time, not having these flashy, colourful experiences to write about all the time makes me value the easy, simple things more. It forces me to be a bit more reflective about how the day-to-day life I am carving out for myself teaches me things and about the person I am becoming. 

Far and away, the most positive thing to come out of 2019 has been that I am real deals social worker now. I have the best job in the entire world. I have “RSW” in my email signature and on my business cards. I do work that is meaningful to me every single day. There is so much to learn but I’m in the right place to be learning it. And I am really proud of myself for getting here ❤️

January 

Unlike the last few years, 2019 began on a high note. The millisecond that student loan hit my direct deposit, I took a little trip to Jasper to visit my friend Oliver who was teaching snowboarding at Marmot Basin for the season. I braved some very treacherous roads to make it to Jasper. It took me nearly eight hours. Highway 93 was closed so I had to take the long route and basically white-knuckled it the whole way. But it was so worth it. I found myself later that evening in a dorm room full of young Scandinavian people, downing American Vintage iced teas and feeling like I was at a frat party. We went to this club called Four Peaks and they played Rasputin by Boney M and everyone went crazy. I hooked up with this gorgeous Danish ski instructor named Rasmus. He was so beautiful. I am proud of that one, honestly. Oliver and I went skiing and hiking and we went to Earl’s and he tried a Caeser. By the end of the weekend, I think we maybe ran out of things to talk about. But it was really cool to see him and to hear about the last few years of his life and how excited he was to move to New Zealand to be with his girlfriend (whom he met on the same trip where he and I met, in Hawaii!)

On January 14, I started my second practicum. It was a sad transition. My time at CommunityWise had been so great that anything new was going to pale in comparison but my new placement was especially bad. It was so slow there. My computer hadn’t been updated in years and I didn’t have access to anything for weeks. My supervisor was barely around (not her fault, though. She was finishing her MSW, had two young children, was the team lead for both family centres in the city and had two practicum students to supervise. Girl was busy). I remember one morning while I was helping one of the caseworkers with some menial task like organizing the food pantry, and I was just so frustrated, I kind of asked her point-blank, “Is this practicum meant to be more self-directed?” and I just started crying as I asked it. I kind of… whimpered it. It was awkward but from that point on, they made way more of an effort to give me tasks and engage me in the work that was being done there. Lesson learned: you get what you ask for.

February  The first weekend of February is what we would call a “power weekend.” Looking back on these actions now, I cringe. However, at the time, I was pretty stoked. I slept with a friend from podcast club after a house party. For ease, I will refer to him as W. W had asked me out twice prior to this happening. I actually said yes, and we had plans to get drinks, but his best friend ended up going through a breakup the night before and he cancelled last minute. So then we slept together. Drunkenly. And it wasn’t… good. I chalked it up to the drunkenness. We went out on a real date, I made sure to have like one glass of wine maximum. He was lovely and great company and he taught me how to play crib but… you know that feeling when you’re like god, I wish I was enjoying this but I am just not enjoying this. It was like that all night. And it felt heavy. If I am being completely honest, there was also this strange moment that night where I had the thought, “he kind of looks like my grandfather if he were younger” and there is truly no recovering from that kind of realization.

February was also a terrible month because I had no days off. I will go to my grave angry about being required to work for free in my practicums. I was doing 32+ unpaid hours at this boring practicum and then working evenings and weekends at Famoso whenever I could. And Famoso was dead, so I wasn’t even making good money. This was also where I began to start witnessing things in my practicum that started to fuck with me. At first, I thought I was just having trouble sleeping. But over time in seminar and debriefs with my social work friends who were going through the same thing I realized that it was the oh-so-pleasant combination of vicarious trauma and compassion fatigue. 

Over the reading week, I went to Fernie with Maddy and her friends for a ski/party weekend and that was truly awesome. One of those weekends where your ribs ache for days once you’re back because you laughed so hard. Some highlights: 

It snowed 60cm the night before we skied. It was powder up to your waist. 

• Maddy’s friend Melissa liked our bartender at the hostel. She took his phone and texted herself from it so he would have her number and vice versa. Then she got so drunk that later the same evening, she was looking at the text and forgot that she had sent it to herself so she texted back, “Who is this?” Also LOL #Bryna. 

• I took nudes of Maddy in the hostel shower to send to the guy she was seeing at the time. LOL. What are friends for? 

• Maddy and I met this set of twins who are the definition of gym bros. Identical twins. We ended up hooking up with them. At the same time. In our bunk bed at the hostel. We high fived. I later fell off the top bunk. We gave them a beer for the road when they left. All year long, we send one another their Instagram posts and stories whenever it’s them flexing in the gym mirror and just laugh about, “we really slept with those guys.” 

March 

In March, I got the flu. It was very annoying. I had to miss practicum (meaning I’d have to make up the hours somehow later). I stated binge watching Grey’s Anatomy. 

I ended things with W. It was kind of harsh but it needed to be done. I need to stop breaking up with people in the weeks prior to my birthday because we had a total Dave-Simard-2.0 situation where W told me he had purchased a birthday present for me and he still wanted to give it to me.

I also ran the St. Patrick’s Day Road Race again!!! Good times as always. 

Practicum got much better in March. I had many things to do. I got to design the curriculum for and facilitate a six-week girl’s group. I assisted with the planning and running of a series of community tax clinics which was cool. Except the guy from the agency whose project it was is a creep. He kept telling me all of these stories that were incredibly inappropriate given the fact that we knew each other only in a professional sense. He made many comments about women’s bodies and appearances that were gross. And I got left in some pretty unsafe situations all by myself. AND he made me pay out of pocket for snacks for one of the tax clinics and never reimbursed me for that. I kind of forgot about that until just now. Wow. 

April 

April was a big month! 

I went to Portland for my birthday weekend with Matt and Connor. When I think back to this trip, it was lovely, but mostly what I remember is a lot of beer, a lot of rain, and being hungover. Portland is a really cool city. I wasn’t totally expecting to be confronted with as much homelessness and substance use as I was but, that’s my privilege talking. Some highlights from the trip include: 

• The “Flower in the Kettle” IPA I had. 

• The mascarpone, corn and lobster agnolotti I had for my birthday dinner at A Cena. Recommended to me by a trusted friend I worked with at Famoso. So rich. SO FUCKING GOOD. 

• Meeting this really drunk real estate agent at a dive bar and convincing her that Matt and Connor were both my boyfriends. I still have her business card in my wallet. I am unsure why. 

• The Weezer concert was honestly awesome. 

• Matt actually trying out the guyliner. 

• Meeting some random guy when I went to get gum at a corner store. His name was Dan. He was old. His girlfriend had kicked him out and he was just walking around. He’d been in prison for a lot of his life. We had a good chat. I got his phone number and now we have each other on Facebook. 

• In the airport on the way home, Matt and I were so overtired that absolutely everything was hilarious. The gif game (the gif of Kevin from The Office dropping the bucket of chili. “Me in Thailand”), and the beginning of when I got let in to the “KEVIN!!!!” joke. I had tears in my eyes. 

• Connor yelled at me in a pizza restauraunt LOL (sorry Connor. I know you Ctrl+F your name. But this was memorable to me.) 

In the middle of April, I FINISHED MY PRACTICUM HOURS AND EFFECTIVELY GOT MY DEGREE. I cannot describe to you how good it felt to be driving home from one of those tax clinics after my third twelve-hour day (making up practicum hours is fun) knowing I never had to go back. Knowing that soon enough, I’d get to work on all the same cool projects but actually get paid for my time.

We visited Saskatoon for Easter, which would turn out to be the last time I got to see my Baba. She was very ill, and both of us knew that it would likely be the last time, so I did get to say my goodbyes. It was very difficult and I sobbed for a lot of the ride home. It’s a weird feeling, when someone you love has been so ill for so long, and you begin to see their condition really deteriorate. When the idea of life without that person starts to become a reality. There was almost an… acceptance? It sounds so callous to say and it’s way more complex than this but also somewhat of a relief in the finality of it. I don’t know. It was a lot. 

April was also when I started interviewing for social work jobs. I had two interviews. The first one was at CCASA, essentially for what I thought was my dream job. I have never psyched myself out so hard for anything in my life. I thought about that interview and that interview alone for weeks. I studied harder than I have for any test ever. When the time came for the interview, I was so nervous. I became this meek and mild version of myself. It was honestly devastating. But of course, had I gotten that job, I would never have interviewed at the University of Calgary. My boss-to-be called me for a pre-interview while I was on shift at Famoso. It was busy, too. But I just said fuck it and ducked into the back and talked to her on the phone for twenty minutes. She invited me for an interview a week later where I had to give a five-minute presentation on managing stress as a student. Rock on. 

May 

On May 1, I got offered THE JOB AT THE UNIVERSITY OF CALGARY! It was truly one of the happiest moments of my life. There is nothing more satisfying and exciting than actually attaining something you’ve been dreaming of for so long. It was for a one year contract on a maternity leave coverage, facilitating community trainings around suicide prevention, helping skills, all that good stuff. I was going to be on salary. I was going to have benefits. I WAS GOING TO BE ABLE TO WALK TO WORK AND HAVE A REAL CAREER THAT I WOULD BE PROUD OF AND EXCITED ABOUT.

I hung up the phone after accepting the job, texted all the requisite people about the good news, and then immediately drove to Famoso to quit. My boss at Famoso was angry with me because I did not give two weeks notice. I said I would work out the rest of my scheduled shifts. He was a jerk, he yelled at me in frustration saying, “You work here for five fucking years, we accommodate every trip, every vacation, every practicum and you don’t even have the courtesy to give me two weeks notice?!” It wasn’t a big deal though. He was just being an asshole. And hey, Steve, you’re still an asshole!

So my last day serving tables at Famoso Westhills was May 3, 2019. I’m usually not good with goodbyes but it was the easiest thing in the world to just walk out of there at the end of the night knowing I would never be back. I had ten days until I started my actual job at the University (a bit of an oversight on my part because I had ~no money~ so what the fuck was I going to do with ten days).

My grandmother passed away on May 19, 2019. Back to Saskatoon on May 28 for the funeral. It was really fucking sad and really fucking weird to see all of my cousins crying. My grandma also had a big Catholic funeral and none of us are particularly religious and as the direct relatives of the deceased we were at the front of the church and it was really obvious none of us had any idea when to kneel vs. stand and didn’t know any of the words or tunes to the songs.

On a happier note, my brother was accepted into medical school in May. Not that I ever doubted my brother would be a successful person, but this just really solidified it. Dr. MacKay.

June 

June was rather uneventful. I was honestly so cripplingly broke at this point, and it was so long before I actually saw a full salaried paycheck. I had to borrow money from my parents just to like, function. And pay my bills. It was embarrassing. But I was working full time and learning so many cool things about the job that it made it alright.

I walked the stage on the first week of June and accepted my BSW degree. I didn’t want to go but it was actually a pretty awesome and happy occasion.

The other big thing that happened in June is that Maddy moved to Australia. It sucks that I only met Maddy in the summer of 2018. She is so awesome and we became so close so quickly. I genuinely love her so much and spending time with her is so easy and fun, it was really sad when she left knowing that it was highly possible she may never return or at least not for several YEARS.

July 

By July, my new job was in full swing. I was facilitating trainings every other day (so much public speaking experience!), I was sitting on a committee, every day was new and challenging and exciting. 

My dad had a giant party for his 60th birthday, with some friends even coming from Saskatoon. They rented a limousine that took us to the Black Diamond hotel because apparently my parents have some kind of significance there. I did a shot with my grandfather? We played pool and Big Buck hunter? None of my friends came but all of my brother’s friends came and I honestly think that it turned the tables in terms of who my parents’ favourites are in terms of friends. 

I also had an awesome weekend at Folk Festival mostly with Kendal and Lachlan but also featuring guest appearances from Chad and Gillian. Podcast club pals. There is just nothing better than folk festival, honestly. Food trucks and music in the sun and drinking sangria from a flask and admiring everyone’s cool outfits and getting a tan and listening to concerts all day. I had a nap in the middle of the afternoon on Sunday and it was like the most glorious 45 minutes of my entire year. 

August 

Oh, no. August. I was still cripplingly broke (it takes a long time to catch up to a point where your entire paycheck is not just going to paying back things you’ve borrowed) and I made the utterly stupid decision to go to a music festival. 

Big Valley Jamboree, baby. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: the best weekend that I am never ever doing again. Some highlights: 

• Mere minutes after arriving, I watched a man vomit. 

• The “Tony Keith” joke really took off. Lucas and I were so #inone on the Friday night we kept yelling and trying to start chants (“old man graphics!” is my personal favourite in response to Toby Keith’s random, pro-military Americana concert graphics).

• I gave my phone to somebody and then wandered off in search of this stupid boy’s campsite. I got very, very lost. The BVJ campground is a large place. I had no idea where I was going and was literally just stumbling through the dark and the mud. I ended up in the middle of some middle-aged Newfoundlanders’ campsite. They welcomed me. They offered me and sandwich and several beers. We chatted for like an hour. It was the best. I walked for SO LONG and finally found my own campsite. But we’re talking literally hours of walking around blind and disoriented. There were a few moments when I genuinely thought I was going to have to wait until the sun came up. 

• A few less-than-classy moments in porta potties. 

• The HANGOVERS. Jesus lord. I couldn’t survive. 

• Airwaves guy was great and I also had a really good buffalo chicken poutine thing that I remember fondly. 

In happier and much more professional news, I facilitated my first Community Helpers training in August. I was very nervous. Like, stay up all night the night before nervous. And we had some technical difficulties with setting up. But my coworker / work BFF Jeannie was there and she was a great support to me. She ran and got me a coffee and a banana bread because I hadn’t eaten and was so so stressed. And she encouraged me through the whole thing. It went really really well. I almost choked up at the end while thanking the participants for coming and explaining how it was my first training and they were such a great group to do it with. 

The squad was all super broke so we turned to free activities. It was very wholesome. We spent many afternoons and evenings reading in Prince’s Island Park with snacks. We went to Shakespeare in the park. We went hiking. 

A lot of my friends moved away in August. Such is life when your friends are all academics or have bright futures that are not confined to the Calgary city limits. Sydney moved to Victoria to start her PhD and we had a nice day at Elbow Falls eating berries and then having dinner with my family. Adam and Kendal both moved to Ottawa to start a fancy new government job and an MSW degree, respectively. I am really really proud of all of my friends but I miss them, too. Calgary is not the same without these people. 

On the flip side – a new roommate moved in! Maddie left to move to Red Deer to be with Joel and so our new roommate was a French exchange student named Aurore. She arrived and was shocked to see that none of the advertised furniture was in her room except for one limp mattress. Karla and I hadn’t even known she was coming because my landlord sucks, but we helped her get her things together and then ordered her some Skip the Dishes. She was exhausted. And sweet. And was starting a block week MBA class the next day in her second language. I felt for her. 

September 

In September, the inklings of me moving into a different role at the university were planted. My boss called me in to her office one afternoon and shut the door. I was terrified but she said to me, “you’re not in trouble. Actually, just the opposite.” She brought up the recent vacancies in the job I now hold (lol: spoilers) and said, “Just think about it. I just want you to know that there would be no hard feelings if you chose to apply for the role.” I was flattered but also caught off guard. I did not think I was qualified for the job. I had virtually no client experience in either of my practicums. I wasn’t even registered with the ACSW at this point. And I loved my old job and my health promotion coworkers so so much. But also… I was on a twelve month contract. And the person away on leave was definitely coming back. I was “strongly encouraged” to get registered with the college. 

It was honestly such a mess. They gently nudged me towards applying for the role, I was torn. Then they told me it probably wouldn’t work because I wasn’t yet registered with the ACSW, and even if I did register would still only be provisional. I felt an odd sense of relief at that, and had totally psyched myself out of being able to do the job at that point. At the last minute, I was told “just submit an application to keep our options open.” I did so. I got an interview. I interviewed (and it was SO fucking stressful…. Interviewing with people you already work with is 10x worse than interviewing with strangers. I tell ya.). And… I got the job!!! Not only did I get the job, I got a full-time, permanent contract (there were two positions, one full-time and one on a longer contract. I was told from the beginning I would just be applying for the longer contract but I ended up getting the FULL TIME ONE.) It was a HUGE boost to my confidence and again, one of the happiest days of the year.  

September was also just absolutely insane for work. So many orientation presentations, students reaching out wanting to get involved, starting all of the volunteer programs, planning. I was so, so, so SO FREAKING TIRED. But we did lots of fun things. Like we took Aurore and her friend Cecile to Banff, had them try Caesers and Beaver Tails and all kinds of Canadian things. 

October 

On my last day in my old role, my coworkers decorated my desk with a homemade banner and got me desserts. We went to McDonald’s for a feast and sat in the Hub and made jokes. It felt really special and I was really touched. 

On October 7, I started my new-but-also-kind-of-the-same job. I was very nervous and there was a lot to learn right from the get go. And it was so… strange. I HAD MY OWN OFFICE. WITH MY NAME ON THE DOOR AND EVERYTHING. The imposter syndrome hit me like a tsunami. I was extremely stressed, extremely overwhelmed. But my teammates and my boss are great. They understand I’m new not just to the role but to the field. They were (and are) so kind and patient with me and answer all of my questions. 

For Thanksgiving, we went to Banff. We had beers and did a little bowling at High Rollers and then went to the Rimrock for dinner. It was very nice. A few weeks later, I hosted my own friendsgiving dinner and roasted a turkey! And spent all day decorating my parents’ house and the table to look fancy. Everything turned out really really well. I was super stoked. Note to self: throw more dinner parties. 

November: 

What I recall from November is just… stress. The case management / social worker life came at me real hard, real fast. I had to call CFS for the first time. My client did not want me to. It was hard. I did not cope well. My coping strategy was to fuck off to Lake Louise (?) for a weekend in a hostel and drink two bottles of wine with some random sorority girls from Chicago. And tears.

The cooking phase was in full swing at this point. Eggs benedict, soft pretzels, curry, French onion soup, gnocchi, prosciutto apple blue cheese chicken, apple and chai galettes.

The third week of November was also when I decided to start training for the half marathon. I found a plan online and set out to follow it and honestly, it’s been great. I usually don’t stick to exercise routines for longer than a month because I tend to go too hard, too fast and I overdo it and I let one hungover day derail me. But this plan wasn’t focused on distance but rather time spent running. So rather than, “I have to run 5km” today it’s, “I have to run for 45 minutes today.” I thought I’d hate that but I actually really like it. It encourages me to go a little slower and just run out the clock, at whatever pace. And the speed is building gradually, and naturally.

December: 

Aaaand December!

December has been so much marathon training. Today, I am entering my seventh week of consistent running and exercise. That is a badass accomplishment for me. I am very pleased. I even managed to do my runs in Saskatoon on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

Aurore left back to Paris. She had a birthday party at the house with all of her international friends and we went for sushi and looked at Christmas lights in the rich people neighborhoods before she returned home. She ended up being so wonderful. I will miss her.

I went to Radium for a weekend with Kennedy, Matt, Amanda, and their friend Katie. The takeaways from this experience are: I am excited to get to spend more time with Kennedy and Amanda and to become better friends with them, I think I like smoking weed now, and skiing is the best.

2020: 

To be completely honest, my life is pretty good. I sometimes wish I had somebody to share it with, and that’s something I hope to be a little better about in 2020 is putting myself out there in more of a meaningful way. 

I also am super excited to continue down this path with my career and to develop personally and professionally as a social worker. There is truly so much to learn and I’m really motivated and excited right now to do well at this which is an awesome feeling. I do need to work on not taking my work home with me so much, about separating the social work life from the personal life. Setting boundaries and all that good stuff. 

I’m hopefully going to run my first half marathon in 2020. May 31. The countdown is on. Excited to cross that item off the bucket list and experience the rush of crossing the finish line! That endorphin high is going to be insane. 

And I want to keep developing my cooking skills. Though they may be small, they are mighty. I want to try and learn how to make fresh pasta dough. LOL. Simple goals. 

Anyways... thank you 2019 for all you have brought me and taught me. I am grateful for the life I get to the live and the experiences I get to have. And I’m super stoked to see where 2020 takes me. 

<3 

[sorrowschengmei]

okay, i think i made my decision.

i am leaving tumblr.

why? i could give THOUSANDS of reasons. i could show a screencapture of my blocklist/blacklist and their HUNDREDS of people/tags. i could talk about my experiences within the rlo and klux fandoms since 2016. i could talk about my general fandom experience since 2012. but there are three main reasons.

1. Tumblr isn’t benefitting me professionally as a social media anymore. 

Apart from the whole emotional/personal/social issue with tumblr, now there’s a professional issue as well. After the NSFWpocalypse the kind of people that both run and use this website became VERY clear for me. These are people that operate on a ‘holier-than-thou’ morality code and won’t hesitate in ruining an artist’s career just because they dislike their style/their ships/their shipping tropes. Others just don’t care about artists and their well being in general, and if they can sell an entire community for one corn chip they WILL. 

I can’t play around with this. I’m an aspiring illustrator dealing with transphobia, joblessness, nazism, mental health issues, my own disability. I can’t risk building a fanbase in a place i can be expelled from all of a sudden, and i can’t risk getting my personal info doxxed because someone decided in 2015 I made a drawing of Hux where he looked under 21 or wrote a fic where Rey suffers physical violence from Finn. Tumblr is a platform that permits fandom issues to grow QUICKLY into real-life issues and frankly, i have enough issues to care about in real life. 

2. I just found out my Stylish extension is hacking me.

As a result of my years-long stress peaking on downright suicidal competitiveness, I installed an extension that blocks my follower count from my own eyes, so I can post whatever I want without freaking out about losing followers. Turns out the only extension that does it is also a huge information tracker. It’s been basically doxxing me to their servers since i installed it in March. Once again, I have no interest at all on being doxxed, but my mental health will be UTTERLY harmed if i start being aware of my follower fluctuations. No mental health = no art = no work. 

3. I have a Pillowfort now.

:D i did it. A very kind person gifted me a key. It’s Kylo-of-Sorrows as well.

I’m not giving up on my interests or my art, you can find me around in several social media. 

Instagram? I have one.

Twitter? Two, one for ranting/sketching/arting and other for NSFW. [Thanks the internet gods twitter still is a safe place for the porn artist!].

I still have an account on good old dA [it’s quite recent actually].

Facebook also has a constant stream of my art [only fully rendered work, tho]

For anyone interested on hiring me or professionally networking, I opened an Artstation recently. I sell trinkets at RedBubble and if you want a cute custom SW icon, you can tip me at Ko-Fi! 

I want to follow you as well!! Send me your alternate social media, let’s build new mutualships.

[be aware all my social media is multi-shipping but my SFW twitter, that is kylx-only. pillowfort comes with a native blacklist system so you can avoid triggering ships easily]

I’m ALWAYS on at discord as well. If we have common interests, it’s likely you’ll find me around there.

I’ll still be around for a while, until i make sure all my friends and followers followed me into my new social media. I may use this blog as a reference archive as well.

Hopefully 2019 will be a safer/healthier year for all of us.

[nivks]

top 5 nick holidays <3

decided to get emo over nicks previous historic holidays for the amazing @grimmyappreciation​ fest ❤️ BIG BIG thank you to Writ for organising this all, its fucking amazing 💞

5. coachella 2013. 

its the ny/ldn crew all together which is a rare gift these days

special place in my heart cos rj. soaking wet after running into the pool holding hands? thats hot.

also cos was got some amazing looks

look how short his shorts look here

look how short his DEMIN shorts look here

also that one vine on nick and alexa in the bathroom

OH the vine of alexa unbuttoning her shirt and its nicks rug

with the sister video of henry unbuttoning his shirt and it being aimees boobs <3

also nick DJin for henry with JBeibz

the pink sweater really!!!!!!

also aimee looked fucking amazing which she always does but!!

and alexa <3

this pic that aimee posted years later as a #tbt

4. puerto rico 2012-2013

okay i barely understood how to use tumblr/social media for like fandom purposes and shit so i was barely keeping up with this but! the puerto rico new years trip! the first holiday i was around for! <3<3

theres a high chance why i love this one so much is cos guy took such amazing photos and it looks dreamy and makes me want like 7 best friends that i can go chill with and do this with

oh wait this was the nicks ‘well #LADDY’ trip

just one of the guys <3

alexa this pic of aimee and this pic of nick are beautiful

this pic of all three? <3

3. miami/ny 2017

WE DIDNT EVEN KNOW what was to come we just thought there was gonna be a prerecorded nick/harry interview while they were both busy but instead we got THIS holiday

this is me @ me living with what happened now

aka the holiday where nick flew his mama to miami

and they hung out at the beach

so much beach time

so happy too <3

eileen put up with nick being extra on insta

nick rly is a mamas boy <3

eileen everyday probably: this is rly my son ayye

nick documenting their target experience

his work experience or whatever at a dentist office must have made a real big lasting impression :/

but hten they FLEW TO NEW YORK 

ykno got some bargins and shit

then

‘lovely boy showing lots of love to his mama. have fun you two xxx’

<3<3<3 when we realised they were at the snl taping <3<3<3

then nick and eileen partying till the early hours with jimmy fallon???

‘not hungover at all. feeling fresh. wish it was hotter.’

cosy home time flyin look <3

technically not the holiday but the first thing he does when hes home is hangout with sunday and instagram his husband holding her so

sidenote did harry have all his gucci shit organised all the w ay back then and was already makin sure all his pals were wearing gucci on his big debut day like nick continued to wear it the first day he was home

 2. miami 2015-2016

i know that we were all disappointed for 0.03 seconds about this trip but like

nick was on the BALCONY in nothing but his PANTS and SHIRT

looking TIRED and HAPPY

looking like hes about to give a shout-out to someone deep swimming

it was just a REALLY nice day

he could star in his own romantic indie seaside drama

that lil peak of hip!

we also got nick and ian <3

oh this jorts masterpeice was a fucking hot look

his cosy airport look

i always rly liked this pic of nick and rita

aimee and iannnnn

NICK and aimee and iannnn

nick and his husband george

oh when nick looked like a pimp wearing tom ford to a new years eve party wHERE HE WAS GIGGLING INTO LEWIS HAMILTONS neck and we never saved the video :( im STILL mad

back to him on the balcony <3

he looks like hes PAST drunk and jus tlike......... wrecked fully completely singing beiber

the artsy dramatic paddling

fake tattoos that i still actually want to be real

OH SHIT THIS IS THE HOLIDAY WHERE THEY NICK AND HIS HUSBAND GEORGE WERE TOO DRUNK FOR THE HAMMOCK

nick eyelashes in the first part but also the part where hes like Mrs Doubtfire is the greatest piece of cinematography ive ever een YEH

oh i giffed his eyes thanks @ past me

FUCKING lol

#natureboy

oh his RUG

oh wow the david attenborough thing aka ‘this man is the alpha. he will smash you up. he will kill you. hes very aggressive. very large. thats the alex.

1. mallorca/barcelona 2018

aka the holiday that started as the #nsfw holiday but really was just a REALLY nice holiday.

a mix between a farewell to breakfast and his dream job while celebrating his birthday and relaxing for the longest amount of time hes ever had off since the breakfast show started <3

a well deserved break that literally felt like lasted a lifetime and had a new rotation of friends every week

everyone from kim jones to liv tyler to helena christensen making an appearance 

nick gettin his ass out for the internet in picture form.

nick getting his ass out for the internet in video form.

and there were the dick pics.

gettin ready for his bday partyyyy

honestly this trip was? the HAPPIEST and LIGHTEST hes ever looked ill stand by that till i die

glad that he and his husband take 97% of their vacations together and im glad they do some really  dumb shit

SMILIN.

like u thought it was over but no. they went to barcelona.

still a hun in the sun.

still drunk and still happy <3

hes a freak tho like i know we were all like yeh hes literelly been drunk for 3 weeks straight now but like. HE exercised.

i love him and i hope he always holidays and is always happy <3

love a self aware holidaying instagram bitch.

ALSO i cant not give a shoutout to nicks mallorca 2015 birthday trip in with

the tin foil hats? tin foil SKINNY JEANS? daisys tin foil bra?

the rug looks when he was really feelin himself (bonus) holy shit his eyes

douglas booth showinhg up and giving us the ultimate dad nick

his drunkass birthday night where he wore his topman shirt and his hands were weirdly massive and i cant rememerb who this guy was but these two pics really......ended me

also the zefron tweets which he probably flipped about to everyone for the rest of the trip

nick and george are actually married in mallorca

also it mustve been announced just like that week that nick was gonna be xf judge cos <3 which STILL makes me ?? but also !!!

also painted nails <3 which seems like a standard holiday thing that he does tbh

wouldnt be a nick holiday unless he wore something on his head randomly either

[blognime444]

Autobiography

Hi my name is Lhiane Ramos and I was born in Imus City, December 4 2002. I am the eldest and my brother is 1 year old. The two towns where I have resided most of my life are Imus City and Taguig City. Different events in my life have directed this path depending on the circumstances I found myself in.

I grew up in a filipino family where the provider, my mother, was susceptible to layoffs every year. I quickly learned about the powers of an employer and a union’s visions. Unemployment insurance, as it was called back then, was a subject of discussion over many dinners. This way of life caused a great deal of stress for the family.

Fast Forward to now, I'm 18 years of age and I'm doing great. As a matter of fact, i'm graduating senior high school this coming week and i'm very grateful and happy because i've come this far.

Biography

Ariana Grande Biography (1993–)

Ariana Grande is a sitcom-star-turned-pop music sensation, known for such hit songs as "Problem," "Bang Bang," "Dangerous Woman" and "Thank U, Next."

Who Is Ariana Grande?

Ariana Grande began performing onstage when she was a child. Her involvement in a Broadway play at age 15, followed by some small TV parts, helped her land the role of Cat on TV's Victorious. She followed that with the spinoff Sam & Cat and then dove headfirst into a chart-topping musical career, releasing five albums: Yours Truly (2013), My Everything (2014), Dangerous Woman (2016), Sweetener (2018) and Thank U, Next (2019).

Early Years

Grande was born on June 26, 1993, in Boca Raton, Florida, to Edward Butera, a graphic designer, and Joan Grande, a businesswoman. She took to singing and acting at a young age and made her way onto the local theater scene before she was a teenager. Her first big break came in 2008 when the 15-year-old landed the role of Charlotte in the Broadway production of 13, a play focusing on life growing up in New York City. The early role led to accolades, and Grande won a National Youth Theatre Association Award.

Two years later, she appeared in the musical Cuba Libre and had a small role on a TV show called The Battery’s Down.

Television Roles

Grande landed her breakout role in the Nickelodeon series Victorious. Victorious was set at a performing arts high school, and Grande was cast as a goofy aspiring singer-actress named Cat Valentine. While busy with the show, Grande nevertheless pursued a musical career, making her first appearance on a record with the Victorious soundtrack. And in 2011, Grande released the single "Put Your Hearts Up," a pop song aimed at the hearts of her young Victorious audience. The show's devoted fan base voted Victorious Favorite TV Show at the 2012 Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards.

When Victorious went off the air in 2012, Grande's character Cat Valentine survived. She went to star in the Nick spin-off Sam & Cat, co-starring iCarly’s Jennette McCurdy. Sam &

Cat wasn’t on long when rumors began to swirl that Grande wasn’t particularly enjoying the experience, and the show came to an abrupt end after 35 episodes (2013-14).

Albums and Songs

'Yours Truly' & 'My Everything'

“The Way” was the first single from Grande’s debut album, Yours Truly, a record that also featured the hits "Baby I" and "Right There." The album, produced by super-producer Babyface, showed a maturing Grande, and 1990s soul influences from pop diva Mariah Carey. The 2014 release My Everything sold 169,000 copies in its first week, debuting at No. 1. The single “Problem,” featuring Australian rapper Iggy Azalea, preceded the album release and debuted at No. 3 on Billboard’s Hot 100, selling more than 400,000 copies upon its release. “Break Free” with Zedd and “Love Me Harder” with The Weeknd followed, each climbing toward the top of the charts.

"Bang Bang," "One Last Time"

During the summer of 2014, Grande teamed up with Jessie J and Nicki Minaj on the single “Bang Bang,” a track that debuted at No. 6 and peaked at No. 3 in the United States. The album spawned another hit single “One Last Time,” which reached number 13 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Grande had three hit singles from My Everything on the Billboard chart at the same time.

Dangerous Woman'

In 2015 Grande released Christmas & Chill, a holiday album, and the single "Focus," which debuted at number seven on the Billboard's Hot 100. In February 2016, she released her third album Dangerous Woman, and the title track debuted at number 10 on the Hot 100 that March. She made music history with the track's success, becoming the first artist to have the lead singles from her first three albums debut in the Top 10. Dangerous Woman, which debuted at number two on the Billboard 200, also features collaborations with Nicki Minaj, Lil Wayne, Macy Gray and Future.

'Sweetener'

Grande returned to the charts in April 2018 with "No Tears Left to Cry," the catchy, upbeat response to the previous year's Manchester concert bombing. She followed in June with the dance track "The Light Is Coming," featuring Minaj; dropped the sultry "God Is a Woman" in mid-July; and delivered "Breathin" in September. The four releases were included in her highly anticipated album Sweetener, which debuted in mid-August, as was a track about her whirlwind romance with Saturday Night Live star Pete Davidson. The overall success of Sweetener led to her first Grammy win, for Best Pop Vocal Album, in February 2019.

'Thank U, Next'

Grande quickly returned to the studio to produce her fifth album, Thank U, Next. The title track hit airwaves in early November 2018, and another chart-topper, "7 Rings," arrived in

January 2019. The album debuted in February to strong praise, alongside a new single, "Break Up with Your Girlfriend, I'm Bored."

In April 2019 the 25-year-old songstress demonstrated her drawing power by becoming the youngest performer ever to headline Coachella, as well as just the fourth woman to earn the honor. Her collaborations from around this time include "Rule the World," with 2 Chainz, "Monopoly," with Victoria Monét, and "Boyfriend," with Social House. Later that year Grande joined Miley Cyrus and Lana Del Rey for the single "Don't Call Me Angel," from the Charlie's Angels soundtrack.

Grande continued with the collaborations into 2020, her joint effort with Justin Bieber on "Stuck With U" hitting the Billboard top spot in May before she joined Lady Gaga for "Rain on Me" later in the month.

'Positions'

Her third album in just two years, Grande released positions in October 2020 to generally positive reviews.

Bombing at Dangerous Woman Tour

In 2017 Grande performed the title track for the soundtrack of the live action movie Beauty and the Beast. In February of that year, she began her Dangerous Woman tour across North America and then Europe. On May 22, 2017, tragedy struck after Grande finished a concert in Manchester, England and a suicide bomber detonated a bomb at the exit of the concert hall, killing 22 people and wounding 116, including many young adults and children. "All acts of terrorism are cowardly... but this attack stands out for its appalling sickening cowardice, deliberately targeting innocent, defenseless children and young people who should have been enjoying one of the most memorable nights of their lives," British Prime Minister Theresa May

said after the attack.

The pop star responded to the horrific act on Twitter.

Less than a day after the attack, Grande suspended her Dangerous Woman tour. She returned to Manchester 13 days after the attack to perform a benefit concert on June 4 for the bombing victims, enlisting friends and fellow superstars to perform including Bieber, Cyrus, Katy Perry, Liam Gallagher, Chris Martin, and Pharrell Williams. Before the concert, Grande visited fans who had been injured in the attack, and she also offered 14,000 free tickets to people who had been at the May 22 concert.

Grande resumed her tour on June 7th in Paris, posting in Instagram: "First show back tonight. Thinking of our angels every step of the way. I love you with all my heart. Grateful for and incredibly proud of my band, dancers and entire crew. I love you. I love you."

The following year, the singer revealed that she was still feeling the effects of post-traumatic stress disorder from the event. "It's hard to talk about because so many people have

suffered such severe, tremendous loss," she told British Vogue. "I don't think I'll ever know how to talk about it and not cry."

Awards

Among her many accolades, Grande has won six iHeartRadio Music Awards, five MTV Video Music Awards and three American Music Awards. She has also earned 12 Grammy nominations and one win.

Acting

The pop diva returned to television with a guest appearance on Scream Queens in 2015, and she hit the big screen in a cameo appearance in Zoolander 2 in 2016. She also starred as Penny Pingleton, Tracy Turnblad's best friend, in NBC's Hairspray Live! in December 2016.

Grande has also become a popular host of Saturday Night Live, bringing her musical and acting talents to the show, including uncanny impersonations of fellow pop divas Britney Spears, Shakira, Rihanna, Celine Dion and Whitney Houston in a skit spoofing the streaming service Tidal.

In February 2020 Grande made a guest appearance on season 2 of Jim Carrey's Showtime series Kidding.

Fragrances, Charities and Social Media

In addition to her musical and acting projects, Grande has launched two fragrances "Ari by Ariana Grande" and "Frankie by Ariana Grande" with her brother Frankie Grande.

When she is not performing, the pop superstar supports various charitable causes including Kids Who Care, a group she co-founded that raises money for charities in the South Florida region. She also has cultivated a massive social media presence on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat, and landed on Time magazine's list of "The 100 Most Influential People" in 2016.

Personal Life

Grande went public with her romance with her "The Way" collaborator Mac Miller in August 2016. The pair split in May 2018 after almost two years of dating. "I respect and adore him endlessly and am grateful to have him in my life in any form, at all times regardless of how our relationship changes or what the universe holds for each of us!" Grande posted on Instagram.

On June 11, 2018, People magazine confirmed that the singer was engaged to SNL's Davidson, her boyfriend of several weeks. Subsequent attention focused on their affectionate social media posts directed at one another, though the couple found themselves in an awkward position when footage surfaced of Davidson making a joke about the Manchester concert bombing months earlier.

Grande was devastated by Miller's death from an accidental drug overdose in September 2018, a development that seemingly impacted her relationship with Davidson. By October 2018, the singer and comedian had split.

Grande went on to date Social House's Mikey Foster, before sparking a relationship with real estate agent Dalton Gomez. The pair got engaged in December 2020 and wed in May 2021.

Reflection Essay

As I lay down to reflect, I can say that my life's getting better, unlike the past few months that I'm suffering from depression. I thought I couldn't make it to graduation but here I am realizing and writing down here my reflection in life. I may not be the best student, but I'm trying my best to do my work and to be alive. I could say that all of our suffering right now has an end. Whether it's big or small.

Memoir

One gloomy day, my friends and I decided to go to a cafe to unwind. We got our own wheels and drove to the nearest cafe. Once we got there, we ordered a lot of ice coffees and some food. After that, we decided to go for a road trip. Those were some of my unforgettable moments in my life because my mom usually didn't allow me to go to far places and had a curfew. After our road trip, we went to the nearest McDonalds and got some snacks.

Facial Recognition

In a world of chaos, pain and suffering. As I look forward to seeing you again, It makes my trials and tribulations less hectic knowing that there’s a light at the end of the tunnel. At the end of the day I’ll see you again. You make me happy. Tall boy with dark hair and shy smiles and who smells good. I was in love. He was my type, manly and he had a smile that could save humanity. He’s supportive and encouraging. He always pushes me to do better . He has a unique voice and I realized, his voice is my favorite sound. He is wonderful in everything he does. He never really spends much time caring about he dresses. He keeps it simple all the time with his simple white round neck shirt and black sweat short. I love how he’s open minded and just vibe whatever I talk about. He have great strength and he always have a goal in his mind. His arm is

well-shaped. His eye are everything. Thick eyebrows are my favorite and also his long eyelashes he doesn’t deserve. He looks so perfect for me. His body was fit. He mean everything to me that’s why I like him so much. He wears strength and darkness equally well.

The man has always been half goddess, half hell. He is benevolent and easy to be with. Not only of his physical appearance, that made me fall in love, but the loving personality he has. He has one of those charismatic personalities that are hard to find as of now. He is a kind man, a gentleman one.

Travelogue

Hidden Beauty of Siniloan

October 30 year 2016, our family decided to go to a place where we can unwind. My mom is working at the Schools Division Office and guess what? They will be having a hiking at October 30 also, so we decided to come with them. Hiking with the higher officials of DepEd, it’s kinda awkward but it’s okay. I thought that I will be having a hard time socialize with them but I was wrong, they are amazing and very friendly that made our adventure more memorable.

The experience we’ve had before during and after our hiking was irreplaceable. I remember when were on our way to Siniloan, I vomited because the roadgoing to Siniloan was very curved and I feel so dizzy that time. That was an epic experience for me. When we finally reached our destination, we’ve had our orientation about the do’s and don’ts during hiking. The tour guide told us that the hiking will last for hours. I was so shocked that time, “Will I survive this?” I said to my cousins and we started ranting about it. During our hiking, I and my cousins kept on asking our tour guide, “Kuya we’ve been walking for almost five hours, when we will reach our destination? We are so damn tired”. Our tour guide was a liar, because he kept on saying that were near but the truth is were not yet near. After walking for almost six hours, finally we’ve reached our real destination, I thought it would be a normal hiking experience but I was wrong, the perfect flow of the water from the peak of the mountain turned my poker face into a very amazed one like a kid. A very beautiful twin waterfalls. I was so amazed and overwhelmed. We didn’t care how tired we were because the crystal clear water of the falls encouraged us to swim.

After that very tiring day, I realized that it’s okay to be tired because it’ll be worth it, and I realized that God’s creation is really a blast.

Self-Obituary

“If I could just turn back the time, I will correct all of my mistakes and wrong decisions in life.” As a teenager, we are known to be vulnerable, we are soft and weak that’s why we tend to do things that were not good for us and others.

I overthink, and overthinking kills my happiness. I usually think negative thoughts, which hinders my productivity because all that I think was everything that I do is a failure. I distanced myself to others and even to my parents and friends. I always feel that I’m such a disappointment to everyone. I always sleep late, staring at the ceiling and thinking of some random thoughts.

Everything’s a mess. Everything in me was a mess. I let other people come and go, I let them hurt me and leave me hanging on air. I made some quick decisions in life that brings a huge impact on what I am as of now. I am slowly dying.

Everything we do has an equivalent consequence. I nearly died not physically but emotionally. “If I could just turn back the time, I will correct all of my mistakes and wrong decisions in life.” We can’t deny the fact that the past are still ghosting us. Some will say that if they will be given a chance to change everything from the past, they will change some decisions they did; but I do believe that I will not be here today if I changed some events from the past.

Every little thing that I did before has been a great part as who I am today. Life is short and we should not be regretting about everything we did before. We make mistakes and I think it

is the stepping stone for us to achieve our goals. We grow from different aspects and I think it’s normal.

We can no longer go back to what we once were, but we can make the best of a bad situation and appreciate everything instead of regretting from the past and everything

[kadobeclothing]

McFly’s Tom Fletcher creates a rock band with his sons Buzz, 6, and Buddy, 4, during coronavirus lockdown – The Sun

MCFLY’S Tom Fletcher has created a rock band with his sons during coronavirus lockdown. The dad-of-three has been keeping himself busy at home and putting his talent to great use with Buzz, six, Buddy, four, and one-year-old Max.

Read our coronavirus live blog for the latest news & updates 7 Tom Fletcher creates a rock band with his sons Buzz and Buddy during coronavirus lockdownCredit: YouTubeTom took to Instagram to show off the four minute video to his 1.8m followers. The 34-year-old captioned the post: “Making a Band – Our Lockdown Project (You Might Think – cover). “Thought I’d share one of our “lockdown projects” that we’ve been working on with the kids while we’re all staying home during these tough times. We had a blast making it (or watching the kids make it) and hope it puts a smile on your face.”The song was picked by Buzz as its one of his favourites from Cars 2 called You Might Think. 7 Buzz and Buddy took the mics to show off their singing skillsCredit: YouTube7 Even baby Max got involved on the drumsCredit: YouTube”Hope you’re all safe and finding your own ways to keep yourself and the kids happy and busy at home.” The adorable video starts with Buzz explaining that they’ve been working hard over the last two weeks to record their new song. “Hello, I’ve been recording music for the last two weeks,” he says. The camera then pans out on the Fletcher’s family home, which has a range of musical instruments dotted around the pad, including loads of guitars, maracas and a piano. Buzz takes centre stage during their performance and rocks out in style – who obviously gets it from his pop star dad. 7 Tom also featured in the music video with his sonsCredit: YouTubeThe video also displays an insight into what it was like behind the scenes – with clips of the boys messing around, cuddling and having their lunch after working up an appetite. Buzz adds: “My band’s name is called Buxsy and that’s all of my brothers names! “Bu, that’s me. X is for Max and Buddy is the Y. Woohoo, I love it!” The youngsters have clearly inherited their musical talent from their dad, who is one member of popular boyband McFly. 7 Tom and wife Giovanna tied the knot in 2012 and now have three kids togetherCredit: InstagramThe McFly boys fame in 2004 when fellow boy band Busted helped launch them by inviting them to tour in 2004. They band have gone on to win numerous awards, create chart topping music and even appear in Hollywood blockbusters. In 2013 they announced that they would join forces with Busted to create a “supergroup” McBusted, alongside a 34-date tour performing their most popular songs. In 2018 the band went their separate ways to focus on their solo careers, but last year drummer Harry confirmed to The Sun Online that the much-loved band would reunite for a new album. 7 Tom, Dougie Poynter, Danny Jones and Harry Judd first rose to fame in 2004 when they toured with popular boyband BustedCredit: Getty Images – GettyHowever, when Tom isn’t in the studio he also films vloggs for his popular YouTube channel, which has over 600,000 subscribers. Among his videos, pregnancy announcements and clips with his kids have drawn most interest to the channel. Like his best-selling wife Giovanna, Tom is also a popular children’s author and released The Christmasaurus in late 2016, and There’s a Monster In Your Book in 2017. Despite all of this, Tom and his family have been keeping safe and found the best was to keep themselves occupied during lockdown. 7 How the virus has affected the UKIt comes after NHS figures suggest more than 1.7million Brits may already have been infected by coronavirus. Since March 18, 1,496,651 people registered only symptoms in line with Covid-19, while another 243,543 assessments were made through NHS 111 and 999 calls. The current death toll in the UK is at 2, 352 and is expected to peak over Easter. McFly’s Tom Fletcher reveals clever way to get kids to wash their hands

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[vgkmusicvideos]

Ed Sheeran - Shape of you (Fomichev Remix)

http://www.edsheeran.com/

Edward Christopher Sheeran, MBE (born 17 February 1991) is an English singer, songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. Sheeran was born in Halifax, West Yorkshire, and raised in Framlingham, Suffolk. He attended the Academy of Contemporary Music in Guildford as an undergraduate from the age of 18 in 2009. In early 2011, Sheeran independently released the extended play, No. 5 Collaborations Project. After signing with Asylum Records, his debut album, + (read as "plus"), was released on 9 September 2011 and has since been certified seven-times platinum in the UK. The album contains the single "The A Team", which earned him the Ivor Novello Award for Best Song Musically and Lyrically. In 2012, Sheeran won the Brit Awards for Best British Male Solo Artist and British Breakthrough Act.

Sheeran's popularity abroad began in 2012. He made a guest appearance on Taylor Swift's fourth studio album, Red. "The A Team" was nominated for Song of the Year at the 2013 Grammy Awards, where he performed the song with Elton John. He spent much of 2013 opening for Swift's The Red Tour in North America dates. His second studio album, x (read as "multiply"), was released on 23 June 2014. It peaked at number one in the UK and the US. In 2015, x won the Brit Award for Album of the Year, and he received the Ivor Novello Award for Songwriter of the Year. His single from x, "Thinking Out Loud", earned him two Grammy Awards at the 2016 ceremony: Song of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance.

Sheeran's third album, ÷ (read as "divide"), was released in March 2017. The album debuted at number one in the UK, the US and other major markets. The first two singles from the album, "Shape of You" and "Castle on the Hill", were released in January 2017 and broke records in a number of countries, including the UK, Australia and Germany, by debuting in the top two positions of the charts. He also became the first artist to have two songs debut in the US top 10 in the same week. By March 2017 Sheeran had accumulated ten top 10 singles from ÷ on the UK Singles Chart, breaking Scottish DJ Calvin Harris's record of most top 10 UK singles from one album. His fourth single from ÷, "Perfect", reached number one in the UK and Australia, while "Perfect Duet", an acoustic version featuring Beyoncé, reached number one in the US. Sheeran appeared on Debrett's 2017 list of the most influential people in the UK.

As an actor, Sheeran has portrayed recurring roles on The Bastard Executioner and Home and Away. He also appeared as a Lannister soldier on Game of Thrones.

https://soundcloud.com/fomichev https://soundcloud.com/fomichev/ed-sheeran-shape-of-you-remix-extended-remix

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Lyrics: The club isn't the best place to find a lover So the bar is where I go Me and my friends at the table doing shots Drinking fast and then we talk slow Come over and start up a conversation with just me And trust me I'll give it a chance now Take my hand, stop, put Van the Man on the jukebox And then we start to dance, and now I'm singing like

Girl, you know I want your love Your love was handmade for somebody like me Come on now, follow my lead I may be crazy, don't mind me Say, boy, let's not talk too much Grab on my waist and put that body on me Come on now, follow my lead Come, come on now, follow my lead

I'm in love with the shape of you We push and pull like a magnet do Although my heart is falling too I'm in love with your body And last night you were in my room And now my bedsheets smell like you Every day discovering something brand new I'm in love with your body Oh—I—oh—I—oh—I—oh—I I'm in love with your body Oh—I—oh—I—oh—I—oh—I I'm in love with your body Oh—I—oh—I—oh—I—oh—I I'm in love with your body Every day discovering something brand new I'm in love with the shape of you

One week in we let the story begin We're going out on our first date You and me are thrifty, so go all you can eat Fill up your bag and I fill up a plate We talk for hours and hours about the sweet and the sour And how your family is doing okay Leave and get in a taxi, then kiss in the backseat Tell the driver make the radio play, and I'm singing like

Girl, you know I want your love Your love was handmade for somebody like me Come on now, follow my lead I may be crazy, don't mind me Say, boy, let's not talk too much Grab on my waist and put that body on me Come on now, follow my lead Come, come on now, follow my lead

Full Lyrics here: https://play.google.com/music/preview/Txdhnid72v3wtvll7aqhlsgyeui?lyrics=1&utm_source=google&utm_medium=search&utm_campaign=lyrics&pcampaignid=kp-lyrics&u=0#

[xai-irie]

AFROPUNK - CHOPPA RISING: A HISTORY OF JAMAICAN TRAP DANCEHALL (*side note: I was of the impression that Rap is being derived from Reggae. Article says the opposite).

The era of the Bro god is upon us and the harbingers of its grimy culture come from an unexpected place on Jamaica’s musical map: Montego Bay. The fraternal order of Jamaican musical genres, forever dictated from Kingston, has had to purposely turn a blind eye to allow the young firebrands to self govern. The new generation has come armed with trap music, their own ideals and their own lifestyle to now create a sound that honestly represents a true island culture, with an intimacy not seen in Jamaica in recent years. Where reggae in Jamaica continues to have the edge in performance, branding and experience, the young trap dancehall patriots come with a personal truth, community representation, and a message that does not portray Jamaica in the best light. This is not the music of “darling, I will swim the deepest sea and climb the highest mountain,” but depictions of the scamming underbelly of rural townships, and of the tenets and effects of Choppa culture. Operating on the fringes of tradition, both musically and geographically, trap dancehall is the sound of now, carving its own place in history.

Though, of course, there are musical, historical and cultural antecedents of how the Jamaican trap dancehall sound and this chop lifestyle came about. It’s in the cyclical way that the island’s great music industry and criminal elements deal with American culture — taking what they need and remaking for self — and in the alternative economies, literal and cultural, that have always flourished in JA. Though maybe not where they are flourishing now.

Back in the 1980’s and ‘90’s, the illegal trade of choice in the Jamaican underworld was drug smuggling. It was a very lucrative business, with marijuana and cocaine the choice products, and multiple jobs needing to be filled, allowing those with access to, as Jamaicans put it, “eat a food.” Financiers of the operations made the most money, but rural farmers and packers of the product, warehousers, drivers, shippers, ‘mules’, and a whole host of bribed officials in organisation’s supply chain also profited. In its heyday, Jamaican reggae music engaged with the smuggling culture, highlighting this ‘hustling’ in both the lyrics of songs and sometimes even the demeanour of the artists. Marijuana, already synonymous with Jamaica since the earliest days of Rastafarians in music, was represented more broadly, eclipsing the prominence of cocaine smuggling, whose use was — and still is — publicly frowned upon in Jamaica. Reggae music legends such as Eek-A-Mouse, John Holt and Sugar Minott all had ganja smuggling anthems. Notably, the narrative of these songs seldom, if ever, represented the position of the financier, almost always focusing on a protagonist in abject poverty forced to traffic marijuana. The hustler represented a ‘noble profession,’ the lyrics often depicting his transporting and delivering the ganja to lawyers, doctors and police officers, playing the role of a hero of sorts. It would be extremely naive to say none of the musicians at the time were not personally involved in this business in some capacity or that the lyrics were just the work of clever imagination.

Prior to such current-event narratives and outlets for the microcosms of Jamaican culture, the island’s music had an intimate relationship with American soul and rhythm and blues. In the mid-1960’s, American music began to gain traction in Jamaica, eclipsing music from England, which Jamaica had recently gained independence from. In 1965, Britain restricted immigration from its former Black colonies, while America opened its doors. A close geographic and new immigration relationship allowed for a faster, easier exchange of music than with the U.K. Jamaicans were also present at the source of this music in Philadelphia, represented by Thom Bell, an instrumental figure in the Philadelphia Soul powerhouse of Gamble and Huff, who was born in Kingston. Inducted in the Songwriters Hall of Fame, Bell produced music for The Delfonics, The Spinners, Elton John, and a plethora of other artists and bands who were familiar voices on Jamaican sound systems and radio waves.

With soul and R&B invading the keen ears of talented Jamaican musicians, R&B engaged reggae at the forefront of the island’s pop music. Beres Hammond’s 1976 album “Soul, Reggae and More”, helped to showcase soul, R&B and reggae in Jamaica at the time in an audible mirror of styles. However, the amalgamation of the three genres became its own subculture. Jamaican producers and record collectors adopted the fetish of making and collecting rare reggae covers of popular RnB songs. This was serious business in the sound system arena and those who are serious collectors will still pay top dollar if they heard a cover of The Stylistics’ “You Make Me Feel Brand New” was done by The Heptones and limited to 10 vinyl copies. This new culture ran concurrently and even mixed with the reggae of culture/protest/current events.

In contemporary Kingston, metropolitan adults are encouraged to own stocks in the Jamaican and world markets, are pounced upon by banks to adopt credit cards, and drive Porsches and Ferraris, albeit at short distances on the few good strips of roads. Jagged shards of the first world haphazardly pierce the surface, while the criminal underworld has also updated itself. In an era where self-styled entrepreneurs become one-minute public speakers via instagram, it has turned to so-called lottery scamming, as it’s “grab ‘n’ go” parallel. The practice has hit its peak and is flourishing, with mostly U.S. senior citizens bank accounts and young Jamaican lives, on the losing end. Lottery scamming — scamming for short — is quite simple in theory: call a contact, dupe them into thinking they’ve won large sums of money or valuable prizes through a lottery they think they’ve entered years ago, and have them pay clearance fees to receive the cash/gift.

First made popular locally in Montego Bay and surrounding western Jamaica parishes often spoken of only as farming locations, scamming has forced itself into the criminal spotlight. It gained national notoriety around 2011-12, by which time an Anti Lottery Scam Task Force had already been formed by the Jamaica Constabulary Force, and the U.S. government opened an F.B.I. office in Jamaica to help tackle a scourge that was causing American citizens to lose their retirement funds. Scamming does not require producing/acquiring a physical product beforehand and the gatekeeping and hierarchy can be levelled by cash, so to the uninitiated the barrier to entry is almost an open gate. It can be done fairly independently, essentially with just a mobile phone, lead-sheets (contact/client background information) and phone credit.

The open arms of Jamaican music initially received a taste of scammer culture around 2012, via an honourable mention on “Reparation,” by then-recently incarcerated dancehall MVP, Vybz Kartel with Gaza Slim on hook duties. Thus, what was once considered a rural, illicit lifestyle, got its first national co-sign with a basic explanation of stakeholders, rationale, and caveats that give it a semblance of a moral code. Noticed and acclaimed by a minority, this milestone was silently placed on the back burner, because, at the time, Jamaicans en masse were consuming top of the pop artists like Drake and Lil Wayne, Kanye West, and Major Lazer. Almost every new Jamiacan hip-hop mix circa 2012 contained a pop song like Psy’s “Gangnam Style” followed by a Jamaican interpretation (Elephant Man’s “Badman Style”). Every quick-thinking producer in Jamaica was copying this style of EDM, while young adults and teenagers throughout the island were into anything touched by Lex Luger, Mike Will, Zaytoven, Clams Casino; Young Thug, Nicki Minaj, Rihanna, Juicy J, A$AP Mob and Joey Badass.

Jamaica has always consumed hip-hop/rap culture, a borderline-uncomfortable influence as evidenced by early-2000s artists in a tropical climate donning white tees and basketball jerseys. Around 2015 those consumers started to become notable creators, at the same time that Major Lazer & DJ Snake’s “Lean On” put the pop spotlight on the music of the Global South, a favorable opportunity for Jamaica that local producers jumped on. Repeating the 1970’s, Jamaicans were again present at the studio controls, represented this time by Supa Dups and Stephen McGregor who produced and co-wrote Drake’s “Controlla” and Drake/Rihanna’s “Too Good,” songs that charted in the U.S. Top 20 in 2016. There was also no shortage of Jamaican vocal remixes of dancehall-infused smashes like Justin Bieber’s “Sorry” or Rihanna’s “Work.” Young Jamaican producers who’d been ardently listening to trap music for the past four years were put back on the path to create an amalgamation of styles native to the island with EDM characteristics for hip-hop audiences.

The music scene in Kingston had become increasingly divided for younger producers, with separate spaces for traditional reggae, neo-reggae, dancehall and soca, and an emphasis on neo-reggae/dub events. Innovation happened when younger producers put the trap elements and aesthetic into a blender with dancehall and reggae and shared their creations within their own circles — or on Soundcloud. Two of the earliest proponents of this trap dancehall in Kingston were promoters Stamma and Laty Kim. In mid-2015, they began an event called ”The Listening Party,” geared towards new projects by young producers and artists where each would present their riddims, edits, remixes and songs. This offered community for producers who needed support for their untested creative output. Recommendations for producers started coming at Stamma and Laty from attendees impressed with the first staging.

I attended the second “Listening Party” in September 2015, with Gavsborg and Shanique Marie who were asked to play a part in the show. My main takeaway was that all the young producers were making trap music, but with local flavors. They made edits with Beenie Man and Bob Marley cushioned by instruments familiar to jazz, with soft sounds, teasing playful synths on top of hard snares, punchy drums and 808s that they understood to be the sound of trap in recent years. Producers who stood out — Tessellated, JLL and KRS — have all now made their own mark, using those elements and aesthetics to develop the “ChillTrap-JazzHall” sound favoured by Kranium (produced by JLL) and by Apple for their AirPod ads (in the case of Tessellated). Others like KINGBNJMN shared in this aesthetic, sometimes including more trap elements like triplet hi-hats, which eventually landed him production credits on Future’s HNDRXX. And while all of these producers were eventually endorsed by Soulection in some way, almost none of this music made a drastic tear in the fabric of what’s known to Jamaicans as dancehall.

Around the same time, scamming, also called dialing, was in a hyperactive phase in Montego Bay and rural western communities, attracting all the collateral damage that comes with criminal territory. Murders of alleged major players, popular Jamaican DJs and producers being implicated and American Feds trying to extradite suspects by the tens. The soundtrack to this chaos was provided by Young Thug, Rick Ross, Lil Wayne, Juicy J, etc; but also by local artists, such as Ryme Minista, Shane E and TeeJay. Alongside StarzPlus Music, they did a lot of the musical groundwork to put Montego Bay in the spotlight, administering a litmus test for independent music in parishes outside Kingston. Support was abundant in Montego Bay, as rural areas in Jamaica provide more tight-knit, intimate communities, which also draw on the encouragement of surrounding parishes. What Montego Bay lacked was outlets for exposure to enable artists to grow and sustain careers: national radio stations, well-known events and dances, or access to other popular artists and producers, who are almost exclusively concentrated in Kingston, the hub of the nation’s music industry.

But with the rise of the scammer, a creative career could be helped within a single parish by 17- and 18-year old kids with millions of dollars in disposable income. In keeping up with their favorite music, one song in particular appeared to connect with the entire region, Lil Wayne and Drake’s “Grindin.” This was the riddim on which in 2015 TeeJay recorded the grim “Buss Head,” which shot him to notoriety beyond Montego Bay and western Jamaica. (“Buss Head” was the term then that you would address someone by when you saw them on the street.) Shortly after TeeJay’s release, another popped up out of the woodwork, with even more cultural impact. “Big Money Poppin’,” by Xklusive from St. Ann, another rural parish, had the telling chorus ‘Scamma dem deh yah!’ The controversial song instigated so much discourse, Xklusive was given a profile and interview on Entertainment Report, one of the prime shows on the national Television Jamaica network. In all interviews Xklusive cleverly and vehemently denied the song was in support of lottery scammers. Despite his denial, “Big Money Poppin’” was the first true scammer anthem.

I grew up in Savanna-La-Mar, Westmoreland, one of the rural western parishes. Around 2008 I started to witness firsthand the embodiment of a phrase popular among some of the less progressive, under-exposed Jamaicans. “Ghetto yute fi have tings,” literally means, “youths from the ghetto should have things.” In the towns of these rural parishes, you could find young men, clad in colourful Polo Ralph Lauren gear (not dissimilar to the Lo Lifes) popping in and out of a Western Union or MoneyGram offices. They drove squeaky clean, modified Toyota 110’s, most times with custom car sound systems, BMWs, and other high-end vehicles. They always showed overabundant patronage to locals, purchase multiple tickets to events, buying up all the top-shelf liquor at bars, or beers by the crate, and turning grandiose money pull-ups into an attraction. It’s not unlikely that you could turn up to an event an hour after it had begun, and the bar would have been a victim of their braff. This fast, boastful lifestyle has historically been marred by setbacks of the same scale. In a once-quiet region of Jamaica, guns were now in the hands of the young and the reckless, and murder was commonplace. The inner machinations, faculties and vernacular of this new Jamaican underworld could be best explained by a scammer — the methods of the practice mutating as quickly as investigators can keep up.

Over the years, it has become its own culture, with its own vocabulary, dresscode, vehicle choices and lifestyle. While the Grammy eyeing music industry in Jamaica was busy trying to create the next “Lean On” or “Work,” the highly impressionable youth of western Jamaica were listening to absolutely anything from Vybz Kartel or Alkaline, and hip-hop that reflected and reinforced the lifestyles around them, artists like O.T. Genasis, Bobby Shmurda and Young Thug delivering illusions of grandeur and danger, on a trap platter. This wasn’t a new phenomenon, but now those influenced by it had the means to easily act on the inspiration. While other Jamaican artists were steadily releasing songs on trap riddims with no intent to embody trap, youngsters in the western parishes were about to make it the hallmark of their sound. Tanto Blacks, and later Aidonia was evidence that, like with the jerseys in the early 2000s, this trap culture was being adopted.

With Xklusive having created a viral hit on the topic of scamming, TeeJay now a name hot on the Kingston circuit, and Vybz Kartel’s never-forgotten co-sign, artists in Montego Bay and western Jamaica were energised. Backed by unwavering support and the ability to operate locally, they gave themselves creative license to represent a culture almost exclusive to them. Since it was unfeasible to keep using instrumentals from hip-hop/trap favorites, producers staffing the Mo-Bay machine tried to reflect the American trap, and eventually even the same artwork style was adopted. Montego Bay continued to do its own thing and less than two years after Xklusive’s song went viral, Rygin King and Squash rose to prominence to defy parish boundaries. Their music was a window into their lives and the lives of members of their communities, dialers, representing their aspirations, the lavishness of their carefree lifestyle, and its bloody collateral damage. The trap-packaged songs were gaining traction in western Jamaica and one song, Rygin King’s “Learn” became familiar island-wide. It’s a tale of struggle, canonical to the Jamaican ghetto experience, broken into an ode of betrayal by friends and a dismissal of anyone standing in King’s way. Squash’s “Life Story” used the same riddim, serving as an autobiography, chronicling how the youth in volatile communities, void of opportunity, adopt scamming and the deadly consequences. By the time these singles were hitting eager listeners, Squash had already released multiple singles that were apparently loved in Trinidad.

Things started to make sense in 2017 when the fast-rising Montego Bay proponents of trap organized, defined their allegiances, and titled their movements and crews. They now represented more than themselves. In January 2017, Justin Blake Productions and A Wah Suhh TV premiered an independent ‘documentary’/profile on Squash made in his community of Salt Spring, Montego Bay, otherwise known as G City. In standard Jamaican fashion, Squash gave next-to no concrete information to the interviewer, but where his transparency failed, the documentary revealed his community, the crucial local support of family and friends, and established the identity of the now infamous 6ix. This was his proof of address and last three payslips.

Squash now represented The Six (6ix), while Rygin King claimed the Dunce Thugs, leading two different mind-states united by music and community, later revealing their personalities and lifestyles in their songs. Squash’s single of later that year, “Shooting Mood,” reflected his more dangerous persona, and was again a big deal on Trinidad’s dancehall scene; but in Jamaica the song making waves was “Lavish.” It was again recognised by the dialers, who had now upgraded from the humble Toyota 110s, with Squash opening the song by acknowledging the line of new Toyotas (Axio, Voxy, Crown, and Mark X), the literal fleet of cars now branded as work-horses of the dialers. Maturity is evident in the heavily trap-influenced riddim, a homemade hybrid of previous heaters. Shane E, now also a major Jamaican artist in Trinidad, went on to reinforce the push to use this trap packaging with “R.A.G.E,” refining the trap riddim production.

At this time, Rygin King was putting out a steady stream of singles, when he pulled a fast one, returning to his conscious roots as Magnum Kings and Queens contestant Jah B (circa 2013), releasing “How Me Grow.” By shedding the trap packaging, Rygin King grabbed the attention of the nation, verbalising his harsh upbringing. His hybrid of being both on- and off-key, as well as his earnest crooning and audible passion, were important elements in conveying this modern trope of Jamaican struggle. “How Me Grow” was Rygin King’s stage on which he presented himself and where the unforgiving gaze of Jamaica now focused. Yet he simultaneously postulated a more violent version of his upbringing with the release of ‘Paranoid’ which took listeners down his personal rabbit-hole, in trap style. It’s worth mentioning that the timing of releases by truly independent Jamaican artistes at the early stages are mostly haphazard and producer driven majority of the times.

By 2018, trap dancehall was energized and invested. Its ambassadorial roles were filled by the “One King” and the “6ix Boss” — the former as his own storyteller and chronicler of modern-day experiences in western Jamaica’s volatile communities, the latter and his movement echoing the inner machinations and exploits of the Montego Bay underworld at-large. In a move that verified The 6ix as trend-informed, Squash released “Ohh La La,” on Stefflon Don and French Montana’s “Hurting Me” riddim, and aligning his movement with music popular in the Jamaican diaspora. A few months later, Rygin King adopted the year’s lifestyle and party themes, releasing the critically acclaimed “Tuff,” the biggest song to date from the entire scene.

While the music was beginning to enjoy real success, the environment was becoming increasingly volatile — a State of Emergency was imposed in Montego Bay as a crime-reducing measure, and Squash was arrested. At the start of his incarceration ”Money Fever” was released to full “Free Six Boss” levels of support, with the 6ix movement and trap dancehall now maturing with its own professional image. Shab Don, One Time Music, Attomatic Music and Hemton Music now came to the forefront as producers championing this sound. They would command this new space in the dancehall universe independent of Kingston’s structure/policies. With no identifiable gatekeepers, the inspired rushed from other parishes as well. The young guns of Montego Bay had broken away from all safe narratives, representing Jamaica on the community-level, less generalized and macro than their neo-reggae and chill trap counterparts. Their songs blazed a trail around the island as YouTube premiers and Whats-App group-shares, distribution methods which now seemed equal to any other standard the Jamaican music business had systemised.

Other artists entered trap dancehall’s breach. Newly commissioned to The 6ix after Squash’s incarceration, Chronic Law hailed from the rural parish of St. Thomas with a lyrical profile that embodied a balance between Rygin King and Squash’s messages. Chronic Law was already familiar to the dancehall scene, and his alignment with the 6ix and subsequent release of ”Hilltop Badness” heralded his entry into the space. Yet with a mixtape and notable single under his belt, the Law Boss followed in the footsteps of Rygin King and Tessellated, abandoning the trap aesthetic and gun-toting narratives to make “Hillside,” a reflection on the need for solace. Interestingly, with this switch, artists creating “conscious music” and promoting positive ideals and idyllic peace, also instantly revert to gunman lyrics. Their duality is a Jungian thing. Chronic Law represented a life as he could afford to, which helped him gain grassroots support. He tells tales of Braffing with his Honda and Toyotas in a way even a taxi driver could identify with. Daddy1 also used this riddim to join the ranks of The 6ix, with the hit “Out Here” giving an energetic chemistry lesson on bleaching products and hyping his eclectic street fashion and lavish lifestyle. Jahvillani was also steadily on the rise, parallel to The 6ix and though having collaborated with Squash and known 6ix artists in the past, he represented his own “Wileside” crew. Jahvillani gained national notoriety with his now-infamous street anthem “Wileside Government,” but preceding that was his trap informed “Nuh Reason,” which still evokes frenzied reactions from listeners.

There were now also artists who fully represented Jamaican scammer culture. Keeping in line with the constantly morphing, confutative and simultaneously revealing scamming culture, by the end of 2018, the term “Buss Head” had been long relegated, “Bro god” became the addressing name, scamming was now affectionately known as Chopping, and the Polo and Clark’s image had additionally revealed the phenomenon of wearing rings — commonly fraudulent, Free-Masonic merchandise — given to them by obeah men and said to guard the lives of scammers. Artists like Takeova would make thematic trap dancehall representing the ‘chopper’ attire complete with the proclaimed guard rings. Ace Gawd found a viral hit by detailing his sexual exploits in the Mark X and Axios. With no validation forthcoming from Kingston, young rural Jamaican artists are successfully operating on the fringes of contemporary dancehall, representing their experiences via trap music, with Instagram and WhatsApp as proven mediums of choice. By October 2019, Montego Bay, and the rural parishes of Westmoreland, Hanover, Trelawny, St. Ann and St. Elizabeth are the United States of Chop.

Everything has come full circle. Current “mainstream” dancehall and the trap sound of the youngsters, have now combined. This sonic signatures of this hybrid can be easily broken down: Spiccato synths (strings or percussive), saw pads, scattered vocal samples, snares that have been in every “Lex Luger Sample Kit’ since 2009, and 808s with the obvious triplet hi-hat patterns. This has birthed well-received songs like Jahvillani’s ”Clarks Pon Foot” (supported by Clarks) and Vybz Kartel’s ”Any Weather”. There are currently multiple streams of dancehall in Jamaica all borrowing from each other, with trap elements being almost omni-present. The Kingston trap scene is still going strong with Stamma and Laty Kim still hosting “The Listening Party,” which is the only place I’ve been in Jamaica in 2019 and experienced producers performing with drum machines, and artistes like Iotosh making music live on stage. Tessellated juiced up another fruity blend, sticking to his rendition of Island Pop with Jada Kingdom taking vocal lead. Squash was released from lock-up earlier this year and in a powerful move, released two collaborations with Vybz Kartel. The rest is history in the making.

There is an uncomfortable truth about trap dancehall in Jamaica — besides its flirtation with the monoculture. With its originators and current viral acts acting as proponents of the lifestyles surrounding scamming, the music moves one step forward and one step back. This new genre is anchored by the shortcomings of the same forces that supported its rise and exposure. The “Cash Only” sign at each stage of production and distribution throws out the need to develop interpersonal relationships or even talent. Each new self-described “artist” procures virtually unlimited exposure but most do not continue to develop their craft or make a serious effort to record music that is more meaningful than the common topics of the scene. As Choppa lifestyle is termed “The Fast Life,” so is the career of anyone who tries to represent it, while daily chasing 15 minutes of fame. The artists champion a style of independence that does not require cooperation and where everyone is disposable. There is no physical scene, and no interdependence to bring artists, producers and audiences together. The performances by the fast rising artistes are nothing to phone home about which is where the lack of apprenticeship is seen in action. A movement like The 6ix is able to stay above the pendulum swing of the fast life by recruiting multiple dedicated artistes and producers engaging with each other

Meanwhile, the music, though often hardly impressive, represents what’s currently happening on the ground in Jamaica — in the same way that Vybz Kartel used to be its mirror image. Whatever the future holds for trap in dancehall — if there is indeed any future — it will be remembered as a music of its time, a quality which is always needed. There is only a few degrees of separation from how Jamaican artists used to incorporate Amerian soul and chronicle weed smuggling in the 70’s, complete with a representation of its own localized culture. It is a music that serves to keep Jamaicans in touch with the unnerving world outside of the safety of their homes and inside of the underbelly of how others stay alive on their own terms.

Words and photos (Westmoreland Parish, Jamaica) by Jordan “Time Cow” Chung.

Illustration by Gustavo Dao.

ORIGINAL ARTICLE https://afropunk.com/2019/10/choppa-rising-a-history-of-jamaican-trap-dancehall/

[alichabrandcummunicationy2]

Pitango Soup - week 1

Brand Research

Research the brand’s history and current marketing communications, and those of its close competitor(s). Use a range of primary (generated by your- self) and secondary (published) sources, and ensure that you comment on what they are telling you about the way the brand communicates its values. In your dossier, briefly summarise your findings under the headings Brand History, Product, Price, Place, Promotion, Competition, Environment. 

BRAND HISTORY

Pitango was founded in 2002 by an Israeli immigrant couple, Yasmin and Ofer Shenhave. In 2008, the couple began by selling homemade soup from the back of their van, created Pitango. The brand was sold into private equity ownership before going into receivership in late 2012. A year after, Pitango was bought by Australian owned meat processing company, Beak and Johnston. Graeme Laurence took over at Pitango and continued running Beak and Johnston business in New Zealand.  Pitango has grown incredibly with millions of dollars put into investment and huge profit being made, a new Pitango manufactory was planted in Auckland. 

Bibliography:

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11243674 

https://www.pitango.co.nz/our-story/ 

https://idealog.co.nz/venture/2015/06/back-van-east-asian-expansion-pitango-gears-big-overseas-push

PRODUCT

The sachet pouch was selected as the packaging for Pitango soups. These type of packaging are popular amongst instant meals as it’s easy to open, stores conveniently, durable and strong. Most importantly, the packaging is customizable and it stands up, this is highly effective for displaying the product on the shelf as it stands out. 

The design of the packaging aims to increase brand awareness and customers visibility. A design company, Jam&Co created new packaging designs for Pitango, using colourful repetitive colours to reflect it’s natural ingredients contained in the product. On the packaging, there is a section that is left transparent which takes the shape of a bowl, revealing the product within the packaging. On top of that, are images of fresh ingredients visually showing what the soup contains. The colours are coordinated with the colour of the ingredients, which are usually bright and bold making it stand out from its competitors.  

Bibliography:

http://www.packagingnews.com.au/news/pitango-soups-up-pouch-design

https://www.standuppouches.net/blog/soup-packaging-using-stand-up-bags

PLACE

I visited the New World in Te Aro as it was near my workplace. The product can be found in the chiller shelves where all the fresh ready to eat meals are located. Pitango brand was displayed on the third shelve beside Artisano and Wishbone soup brands. In my opinion, Pitango stood out the most because of its colourful design, I had no trouble finding it. 

PRICE 

Hellers - $4.79

Naked Local - $5.29 

Artisano - $5.49 

Pitango - $5.69 

Good Taste - $6.39 

Pitango has a similar price to Artisano and naked Local, in the $5 range but 20-40 cents more.  The cheapest is Hellers and the most expansive is Good Taste, Pitango costs 90c more then Hellers and 70c less than Good Taste. I think the price of Pitango is a reasonable, affordable and great price for the value. I feel like I would rather by the $5 range instead of spending less on lower quality Hellers or spending more on the same quality product, Good Taste. 

PROMOTION 

Pitango is promoted through Youtube as a pre-roll add of a short 15sec clip. In this clip, it shows the tip of the packaging getting snipped off, which looked easily done. Then it shows her pouring the soup and cooking it, you can hear the thickness of the soup and see the texture. The soup is dished up and garnished. The end result looked mouth watering. 

Pitango mostly promotes on its social media accounts such as Facebook, Instagram, Youtube and Pitango website. 

Bibliography:

https://instapage.com/blog/pre-roll-ads

https://www.facebook.com/pitangofoods/

https://instagram.com/pitangosoups/

https://www.youtube.com/user/PitangoPtyLtd/featured

COMPETITIONS

Pitango’s competitors are brands like Naked local, Good Taste and Arisano. They have a similar price range and good quality product. According to Stuff, the true competitors of Pitango are Good Taste and Naked Locals. These two brands have better taste ratings, Good Taste being the excellent choice and Naked Locals as a good choice. However, Pitango had the best nutrition, it had the least calories, low fat, lowest in sodium and high in fibre. Because of this, it was less tasty and the flavours and texture were lacking compared to its competitors. 

I have bought and tried Pitango soup (pumpkin & ginger) and I enjoyed the taste and flavour. Although, a small let down on the watery texture which wasn’t too bad. 

Bibliography:

https://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/well-good/teach-me/80735819/are-sachet-soups-good-for-you-we-try-three-leading-brands

ENVIRONMENT 

Pitango’s new factory will create up to 20 new jobs in South Auckland during peak season, as the company seeks to raise the share of its products that are sent overseas to 80 per cent by 2016. Currently, about 70 per cent of Pitango products are exported, mainly to Australia.

Laurence adds that he thinks Pitango’s increasing business will help support Kiwi farmers who supply Pitango with fruits, vegetables, meat and more.

“We’re proud that we use natural and local ingredients in our products,” he says.

“In this way we help support the farmers around the country who produce such high quality vegetables and meat.”

[news-mashable-yahoopartner-blog]

The bumpiest social media moments of the 2020 campaign so far

We're only just getting over our 2018 midterms hangover, and now the 2020 presidential race is upon us.

That means any number of candidates are starting to hit the campaign trail — and some are already misfiring on all cylinders. From here on out, every single move candidates make will be scrutinized to the fullest extent that the grinding internet news cycle will allow. 

SEE ALSO: Brand Twitter, please stay away from the 2020 election

Some of the bumbles are minor, but there are others that could hint at further trouble ahead. Here, then, are a few examples of early missteps from candidates who are either already in on the race or are flirting awfully heavily with the idea.

Elizabeth Warren's cold beer and hot takes

It seems silly that a sitting U.S. Senator would be criticized over her choice of beer, but this is America in 2019. Nothing is safe. So when Sen. Warren followed up her initial 2020 announcement with an Instagram live involving beer, you knew it was gonna make somebody mad. 

Sure, Warren is trying to be relatable for the young voters to whom authenticity is incredibly important. There's even a cameo from her dog! But some of her detractors, including Fox News, were quick to take issue with either her choice of beer (Michelob Ultra) or her attempt to be, well, genuine.

So far, we have Warren cracking a beer in her kitchen, O'Rourke popping champagne in an igloo, and Gillibrand baking a berry crumble, all on Instagram live. How much of this shameless pandering will we have to endure? Thank goodness for Bernie, can you imagine him doing this?

— Laura L. Wilson (@ellewilson) January 2, 2019

Does a Michelob Ultra qualify as a real beer?

— Tom OKeefe (@tomokeefe60) January 3, 2019

Warren's already up against it after her controversial claims of Native American heritage, so she's got a tight line to walk. Voters won't give her much flexibility, whether it's her policies or her choice of beer. 

Beto's trip to the dentist

Like Warren's beer, this little blip for Beto O'Rourke gets filed under "Why?" 

Beto, you may have heard, is at the center of speculation over a potential 2020 bid after his 2018 loss to Ted Cruz for a Texas Senate seat. He hasn't officially entered the race, but he's definitely acting like a guy who's interested in running. 

In other words, he's Instagramming everything. Specifically, he shared a January 10, 2019, trip to the dentist's office on Instagram Live. The reactions ranged from adoration to, well, "Why?"

Happening now on @BetoORourke’s Insta story: “I’m here at the dentist, and we’re going to continue our series about people who live along the border. My dental hygenist, Diana, is going to tell us about growing up in El Paso.” pic.twitter.com/WsGZ9c9IBD

— Grace Panetta (@grace_panetta) January 10, 2019

Peak 2019. Shows that Beto’s got a sense of humour...and insists on listening to people even while getting his plaque removed. “If you don’t know by now, don’t mess with it” - Mr. Natural

— B.G. Pelaire (@bgpelaire) January 10, 2019

If Beto has one thing going for him, it's that many fans have already gotten used to his oversharing, be it on Instagram or Snapchat, where he often sends videos of himself talking to the camera while driving or chatting with Oprah.

If anything, it's possible Beto could suffer from overexposure — and he hasn't even announced he's running. Yet.

Howard Schultz gets roasted over candidacy

Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz thought he had the big ideas necessary to bridge the political divide in the U.S., but, oh boy, did he learn the hard way that Americans are tired of white billionaires trying to solve everyone's problems. 

When Schultz announced he was exploring running for president as a centrist back in late January, he was met with a meager round of applause — and an avalanche of backlash, from people mocking his moderate position to liberals worried he'd siphon off votes from a Democratic candidate.

His initial tweet about running got ratioed pretty quickly and his subsequent tweets have suffered a similar fate.

When we said we needed someone woke at the top, a coffee CEO running is taking that a bit literally. https://t.co/VpHIEurYX1

— Ian Bowers (@iggdawg) January 28, 2019

Finally someone who can represent white male billionaires

— No More Billionaires 2020🔥 (@maxberger) January 28, 2019

Perhaps the reaction to Schultz was best captured by this heckler's yells at the former coffee magnate during an interview:

Here's the video. A heckler shouts at Howard Schultz during an event in New York: "Don't help elect Trump, you egotistical, billionaire asshole." Via CNN pic.twitter.com/oabwfNnsmp

— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) January 29, 2019

It's only going to get wilder from here.

Bernie's backlash

Sen. Bernie Sanders has yet to even announce he's running in 2020, but it seems like a foregone conclusion. And he's got a stack of problems to solve, even before he's officially in the race.

Sanders has already had to apologize to several women who worked on his 2016 campaign who were sexually harassed by other campaign workers. Things got even more awkward ahead of Trump's State of the Union speech, when Sanders announced he was doing a rebuttal separate from the official Democratic one being given by Georgia Democrat Stacey Abrams. 

Sanders, who endorsed Abrams in the Georgia gubernatorial race in 2018, faced backlash from many who saw his separate response as an attempt to take the spotlight away from Abrams.

It would be dope if Bernie was like I don’t need to do a SOTU response bc a capable Black women has got that covered but he couldn’t and didn’t and Black women see that and we won’t forget. #takingnote pic.twitter.com/9YldwWk37E

— Zerlina Maxwell (@ZerlinaMaxwell) February 4, 2019

Bernie Sanders to Stacey Abrams pic.twitter.com/rrk9JbbJ46

— Matthew A. Cherry (@MatthewACherry) February 4, 2019

2019 was the third straight year Sanders has done his own response. It didn't stream on social media until after Abrams was done, but the bad feelings lingered. (It's worth noting that fellow senator and 2020 candidate Kamala Harris also did a State Of The Union-related appearance, but streamed hers before Trump's speech.)

As popular as he is, Bernie may be treading on thin ice after this move. He'll have to do some delicate maneuvering to avoid alienating voters looking at a crowded field.

Cory Booker loves Hot Pockets

One of the biggest criticisms of Sen. Cory Booker points to the gobs of money he's received from Wall Street and big pharma companies. It's possible that microwavable food for stoners and college students will soon be added to the list of nefarious connections for Booker after this tweet, sent shortly after he announced his candidacy for president. 

My dad used to say to me: “Boy, don’t forget where you came from and the people who sacrificed to get you to where you are.” https://t.co/PqESzfPUYG

— Cory Booker (@CoryBooker) February 1, 2019

Cory Booker has already tweeted about Hot Pockets because, well, it was a whole story back when he was mayor of Newark, New Jersey, in 2012. As Newark (and the rest of the North Atlantic Coast) recovered from the devastation of Hurricane Sandy, Booker tweeted moral support to a resident who really missed having Hot Pockets.

Hot Pockets responded by giving Booker's constituents coupons for free Hot Pockets, a microwave miracle.

Full letter from @HotPockets donating 100s of coupons for free Hot Pockets to Newarkers (PHOTO) pic.twitter.com/oVO2eYZk

— Cory Booker (@CoryBooker) November 7, 2012

So the fact that he gave Hot Pockets a shout-out upon making his presidential announcement could be seen as a cute bookend to the story of Booker's rise. But Booker's in the big leagues now, and any interaction with #brands on Twitter can lead to swift and sudden retribution from an audience that's ready to pounce on something that even hints at being inauthentic. 

Sure enough, people on Twitter were already using this Hot Pockets tweet as a chance to take shots at Booker.

Shout out to one of your corporate sponsors?

— Patrick Sherrill (@SirPatrickofMi) February 1, 2019

I love a candidate who is so down to earth that the first thing he does after announcing a presidential run is shill to a corporate brand online.

— Asthma Pimp (@coolthulu) February 1, 2019

And it's only going to get tougher for Booker from here.

Kirsten Gillibrand's fundraising tweet 

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand is already finding out that being a presidential candidate brings a lot more scrutiny, no matter how small your transgression may be. For instance, she recently experienced her first food-related road bump when she seemed to show she didn't know how to eat fried chicken.

Eventually the food is served & Gillibrand starts to eat her fried chicken with a fork. She looks around, sees other people eating with their hands and says “Um Kiki, do we use our fingers or forks for the chicken?” Kiki said to use her fingers, and use her fingers she did. pic.twitter.com/jYO8DgSiBD

— Jasmine Wright (@JasJWright) February 9, 2019

More problematic, however, was a now-deleted tweet that Gillibrand's twitter account sent out which showed a GIF of her yawning during President Trump's State of the Union speech with the message, "Agree? Chip in $5 so we can put an end to this."

Sen. Gillibrand's original tweet.

Image: Twitter/Internet Archive

Whoops. That appears to be a violation of U.S. House rules, as flagged by journalists. 

Broadcast coverage and recordings of House floor proceedings may not be used for any political purpose under House Rule 5, clause 2(c)(1). https://t.co/K19eXsxLyN https://t.co/9hTcPZ7w5o

— Zeke Miller (@ZekeJMiller) February 6, 2019

It's highly unlikely this was Gillibrand's intent, hence its quick deletion. More likely, it was a mistake made while trying to quickly leverage a viral social media moment, something that pretty much everyone is doing and, as this list has shown, not exactly nailing.

Perhaps at her next social media workshop, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez can go a bit deeper into the "what not to do" category.

WATCH: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is giving Twitter classes to fellow Democrats

[spicynbachili1]

Byte: Vine creator to launch new video-looping app

Picture copyright Getty Pictures

A follow-up to Vine has been introduced, two years after the six-second video app was shut down by Twitter.

Byte shall be the same app to Vine, which helped launch the careers of stars together with Shawn Mendes and Logan Paul.

After Vine ended, these stars moved to its rivals Instagram, Snapchat and YouTube.

Dom Hofmann – who co-founded Vine together with Rus Yusupov and Colin Kroll – mentioned his new app would launch subsequent spring.

Looping six-second lengthy movies is a fairly easy thought, however Vine was amazingly profitable.

Brothers Logan and Jake Paul, two of the highest-earning Youtubers, began on Vine whereas they have been nonetheless in highschool.

Singer Shawn Mendes was additionally found on the app aged 15 after his Vine of Justin Bieber’s track As Lengthy As You Love Me went viral.

It was additionally common for pranksters – together with Frenchman Jerome Jarre, who has since helped elevate greater than $2m for the Rohingya refugees in Myanmar.

Byte creator Dom Hofmann has spoken about making a follow-up to Vine – nicknamed v2 – since 2017.

Dom Hofmann’s Vine co-founders Rus Yusupov and Colin Kroll have had success with one other app since Vine – quiz app HQ Trivia, which launched final yr.

At its peak, Vine was mentioned to have 200 million customers.

Twitter reportedly purchased it for $30m (£23m) in 2012, earlier than it had even formally launched, however it struggled to become profitable and sustain with its opponents.

Though Vines have been led to 2016, the archive continues to be accessible on-line.

Probably the most-looped video is a clip from the match between France and Germany in 2015 when an explosion was heard in the course of the Paris assaults.

It has over 750m loops.

However the content material of most Vines weren’t so critical.

Different common ones embody a boy’s emotional state quickly altering and an Australian information reporter getting “attacked” by a rooster.

Animals at all times did effectively.

So did optical illusions and pranks.

And judging by the response to Byte’s first tweet, there’s undoubtedly urge for food on the market for extra movies like these.

Comply with Newsbeat on Instagram, Fb and Twitter.

Take heed to Newsbeat reside at 12:45 and 17:45 each weekday on BBC Radio 1 and 1Xtra – when you miss us you possibly can pay attention again right here.

from SpicyNBAChili.com http://spicymoviechili.spicynbachili.com/byte-vine-creator-to-launch-new-video-looping-app/

[picturebookmakers]

Tor Freeman

In this post, Tor talks about the creation of ‘Welcome to Oddleigh’, a hilarious and hugely engaging comic. Tor self-published this project, and talks here about the freedom of this approach.

Visit Tor Freeman’s website Visit the ‘Welcome to Oddleigh’ blog

Tor: Hello! I’m going to talk about my web-and-self-published comic, ‘Welcome to Oddleigh’.

Although I’ve primarily worked in children’s books during my career, my interest when I was young was in making comic strips. I think in pictures before words, and enjoy trying express myself through expressions and movement of characters, so it has always felt a natural fit for me. But it took me until very recently to realise that I could practice having the ‘right’ ideas for those drawings, too.

I wanted to make a comic about a strange town, in the vein of ‘Twin Peaks’, ‘Eerie, Indiana’, Buffy and the many other stories of places with uncanny goings-on beneath the surface. I made the main protagonists police officers as that naturally involves them in all the local goings-on. I am drawn to characters that are ‘sensible’: Flora Poste in ‘Cold Comfort Farm’ is probably my favourite literary heroine, and my rat police chief Jessie was inspired by her.

I faced a few challenges starting out.

One was formatting the comic... With no guidelines and every possibility available, how would I pick what was best? I started by following The Phoenix magazine’s submission guidelines, and began working on four-page stories. But that was quickly overwhelming, especially with my lack of comic-writing experience. Shorter, episodic comics seemed the answer. As soon as I started drawing episodes onto A5 sheets, the ideas came much more easily – from a novice trying to write a full novel in one sitting to serialising it instead.

Self-motivation was another challenge; without an external deadline and no one clamouring for a finished book, I knew I needed some kind of check on myself. I’ve found social media is really helpful for this. I don’t think you need many followers to feel a commitment to finishing something you’ve promised in public – no matter how small a public it is! This suggested that a good option would be making a webcomic with a fairly strict self-imposed schedule of posting – at least twice a week.

But the main challenge I faced was my lack of comic-writing experience! Although reading comics was part of my childhood, I didn’t know much about making them, and felt I was a late and unconfident beginner. Reading books seemed a way in, and I found invaluable help in those of both Scott McCloud and Will Eisner, and re-reading Stephen King’s ‘On Writing’ for the third time!

The other surprisingly helpful thing has been taking improvisation classes recently. From those I learned: going straight into stories without tons of exposition, having the characters do ‘space work’ and letting the stories devise themselves. As I’ve read other writers mention, I’ve found once I’ve got some characters they will often write their own lines.

And of course the biggest help in learning to write comics has been... writing comics! Looking back to my first ‘Welcome to Oddleighs’ from last year, I can see such an improvement since then, in both pacing and drawing.

I put each finished episode up on a Tumblr blog, and also I use the video function in Instagram to put it up frame by frame. It’s been interesting trying to promote it myself.

I decided to self-publish it in time for the Leeds comic festival’s ‘Thought Bubble’ in November last year – and Comic Printing UK did a brilliant job. It opened my eyes to the possibilities of self-publishing, the freedom and the high quality it affords... I have lots of ideas for the future!

Making a comic feels like being the director of a film for which you are also the writer, the set designer and all the actors at once. The possibilities feel endless to me – a receptacle for any idea I might have floating about. Because it’s my own project, I’m unconstrained by aiming at a particular age group or market – and the freedom feels excellent.

I feel fond of my two main characters, Jessie and Sid. I’m looking forward to seeing what happens to them next!

Illustrations © Tor Freeman.

Buy this book

Welcome to Oddleigh

Tor Freeman

Self-published, United Kingdom, 2016

Chief Inspector Jessie and Sergeant Sid are tasked with policing the town of Oddleigh. Jessie's sworn to uphold the law of the town, and she's going to do it – no matter how weirdly its citizens are behaving...

[whatkindofwatch]

What Watch Does Jerry Seinfeld Wear?

Comedian and actor Jerry Seinfeld likes to spend his considerable fortune on luxury cars and watches. 

This combo can be seen in every episode of his series Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee. Where he pairs a fellow comedian with a car that suits their personality. I don't think he pairs his watches to the guest comedian, but a little part of me hopes that he does. 

Before getting into some of his more recent watches, let's backtrack a little to the glory days of Seinfeld. Jerry Seinfeld was, and remains, an avid Breitling fan-boy. His most popular watch during his sitcom days was a Breitling Chronomat with a bullet bracelet as seen below:

Images: NBC

I would argue that Jerry's Breitling Cronomat has stood the test of time and would still look fantastic if he wore it today. I can't say the same for his 90's mullet-esque hairstyle... 

Anyway, his love of Breitlings continued and can be best seen through his web-series Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee (CCGC), which is available on Netflix. It first aired on 2012 and has been building momentum ever since. 

I watch CCGC primarily because I enjoy learning how different comedians think. I'm also a fan of Jerry's comedy and enjoy his casual interviewing style. These keep me coming back for each new episode. But what keeps me engaged within each episode are the watches worn by Jerry (and his guests) and the cars.

Need a recap of Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee? Here's some highlights from the 2019 season to get you in the mood. You also get a sneak peak of several of Jerry's watches:

Jerry describes each car at the start of the episode, but not his watches. So, it's always fun to do some watch spotting throughout each episode and I've compiled some of these for you below. 

Jerry's Breitling Aerospace

Jerry sports a Breitling Aerospace in numerous episodes, including those with Ellen DeGeneres and Kevin Hart. Jerry's wearing a jacket so it's difficult to spot - especially when distracted by Ellen's Paul Newman Daytona! 

Images: Netflix

Jerry's super distinctive Breiting Aerospace is an analogue-digital watch known as a 'super quartz' because of its high accuracy. 

The pilot watch has many handy features such as a night vision goggle compatible backlight, 1/100s chronograph, countdown timer and secondary timezone. These are all operated via the crown by pushing, pulling, turning & turning fast.

In a way, the Aerospace take some practice and effort to master. Much like driving the manual 1977 Toyota Land Cruiser he chose for the episode with Ellen. 

Jerry introduces the Land Cruiser, "It's basic, it's classic, it's durable, it's user friendly."

The Aerospace also ticks most of those boxes, so I'd say he's done a good job of matching it to the Land Cruiser.

See, I told you there were some links between his car and watch selections! 

Jerry also wears his Breitling Aerospace in other episodes, including S5 E1 with Kevin Hart . 

I enjoy the ridiculousness of the goggles as Kevin and Jerry cruise around in the 1959 Porsche RSK Spyder. 

Images: Netflix

Jerry's Breitling Navitimers

Jerry's love affair with Breitling continues as he chooses the Navitimer for several episodes, including the one below with Will Ferrell.

Images: Netflix

Jerry's Navitimer in this episode features white dials at 12, 6 and 9. This departs from the more common 3, 6 & 9 format mostly associated with new Breitling Navitimers. 

Breitling still release a Navitimer with the 12, 6 & 9 dial layout that some prefer because it can appear more balanced. This is the Navitimer Chronograph 41. As the name suggests, it's also a little smaller than most Navitimers at 41mm, which some find more wearable than the larger 43 or 45 Navitimer models.

Breitling Navitimer Cosmonaute

The next Navitimer on Jerry's wrist is another Navitimer. This time it's a limited edition black steel Navitimer Cosmonaute. 

The idea behind the Cosmonaute is that allows calculations to be made by pilots (or astronauts such as Lt. Cmdr. Scott Carpenter) directly on their wrist.

Images: Netflix

How do you use the slide ruler on the Navitimer?

If you're not accustomed to how a slide ruler on the Navitimer works, they can look terribly complicated and even intimidating. 

It's actually quite easy to use once you know how. Check out this video for a 90 second explanation:

Breitling Navitimer Chronograph 41 

The Chronograph 41 is a very wearable size for Breitling, while still making a statement with loads of functionality. 

Chronograph automatic movement

Built in slide rule

41mm (ie wearable for most)

Check Prices

The Breitling Navitimer Chronograph 41 pays tribute to the original Navitimer 1 with it's vintage looks prominent circular slide rule on the perimiter. 

It mostly comes in stainless steel with several face color variations. But there is also a rose gold model that is considerably more expensive. 

The slide rule allows on-the-fly airbone calculations to be made such as fuel consumption, climbing times & converts miles into nautical miles or kilometers.

The 41mm watch size has proven popular with those like Jerry that are after a classic looking watch that is unlikely to ever make a calculation like fuel consumption. This wearable size means it avoids the criticims levelled at some other Brietlings for being too big. 

The movement is Breitling Calibre 13, based on the super reliable Valjoux/ETA 775. This external movement is different to other Navitimers, which has also required the sub dial layout to change to the less familiar 12, 6, 9 layout. But, I like this sub dial layout as it makes the watch look more well-rounded than some other Navitimers. 

Jerry clearly loves his Navitimers and it's easy to see why. They make a statement but are still very functional and have a great history (and story). 

Pros

Inspired by iconic 1952 design

Circular slide rule

Wearable 41mm size

Cons

Be good to have more than 30m water resistance

Specifications

Movement: Chronograph automatic

Crystal: Sapphire

Case: Stainless steel

Case size: 41mm

Band material: Stainless steel

Bezel: Unidirectional 

Water resistance: 30m (100 ft)

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Breitling Navitimer Chronograph 41

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Jerry's Heuer ‘Siffert’ Autavia

This vintage watch from Heuer really speaks to the car enthusiast in Jerry. Autavia's are very sought after by watch collectors as they are synonymous with F1 racing of the 60's and 70's. 

One of the most sought after from the 1960's is the 'Jo Siffert'. Jo was a Swiss motor racer who won two races as a privateer and died in competition in 1971 at the age of 35. 

Jerry confirmed his purchase of a Heuer 'Siffert' Autavia with this Instagram:

View this post on Instagram

Watch in Box.

A post shared by Jerry Seinfeld (@jerryseinfeld) on Mar 5, 2016 at 10:04pm PST

You can see Jerry sporting his Heuer 'Siffert' Autavia in in this episode with comedy legend Jerry Lewis (S10 E12):

Images: Netflix

Watches worn by guests in Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee are included below too. 

Ellen DeGeneres - Rolex Daytona 'Paul Newman' (S10 E3)

Guest Ellen DeGeneres who sported a super impressive Rolex Daytona 'Paul Newman' in season 10 episode 3:

Images: Netflix

We've previously covered Ellen's watches in more detail. She particularly loves her Rolexes and I would love to see her Rolex collection side-by-side with Jerry's Breitling collection. 

Kevin Hart - Rolex Sky Dweller (S5 E1)

Not to be outdone, Kevin Hart shows off his Rolex Sky Dweller.

Images: Netflix

The Rolex Sky Dweller is one of the most complicated mechanical watches in Rolex's impressive line-up. The pilot watch allows Kevin to view two time zones simultaneously. This would come in very handy with his busy acting schedule. 

The other significant feature is the annual calendar, which only requires setting every year (to account for February's leap year) as opposed to every month. 

The Rolex Sky Dweller comes in white gold & stainless steel versions. I'm not sure which version Kevin wears, but if there's an actor that can afford the white gold version, it is the incredibly successful Kevin Hart. 

Barack Obama's FitBit Surge 

We've previously covered Barack Obama's watches here, but we did not include this FitBit in the list. 

This is one of my favorite episodes of CICGC because of Barack's candid nature and surprisingly good sense of humor for a president. 

This exchange between Jerry and a Secret Service agent is the best:

Jerry: "We're just going to run out for a quick coffee.

Secret Service: "I'm sorry, that's not possible" 

Jerry: "I do this little show called Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee. We'll be right back."

Secret Service: "You're a comedian with the president going nowhere. Back it up."

Images: Netflix

I will try and update this list of guest comedians and their watches too. But if you have a particular guest you want me to cover, then please let me know if the comments below!

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