#Dasha Burns

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Dasha Burns and Alexandra Marquez at NBC News:

Former President Donald Trump said that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. would have a “big role in the administration” if he wins on Tuesday, telling NBC News in a phone interview that he was open to some of his more controversial ideas. Kennedy, who ran for president as an independent this year before dropping his bid and endorsing Trump, has long spread conspiracies and falsehoods about vaccines and other public health matters. He has, for example, frequently claimed that vaccines are linked to autism, even though for decades, studies have debunked this theory. Asked Sunday whether banning certain vaccines would be an option during a second term, the former president didn’t rule it out.

“Well I’m going to talk to [Kennedy] and talk to other people, and I’ll make a decision, but he’s a very talented guy and has strong views,” Trump said. Trump declined to talk about specific roles Kennedy might play in his administration, but in recent public appearances, Trump has made clear that he is envisioning a prominent role for him. “He can do anything he wants,” Trump said during an event Thursday in Arizona. He said that Kennedy was “going to work on health and women’s health,” and two sources close to the Trump campaign have told NBC News that he might play a prominent role in battling “chronic childhood disease.” On Friday, Kennedy tweeted that on its first day in office, a Trump administration would push to ban fluoride in water, claiming it is “industrial waste” that leads to problems like cancer and other diseases.

Donald Trump, with the influence of anti-vaxxer extremist RFK Jr. in his orbit increasing, does not rule out a ban on certain vaccines if he is elected.

Stop anti-vaxxer lunacy, vote Kamala Harris!

[thenewdemocratus]

Big Education Ape: George McGovern For President (1972)

Source:Big Education Ape– Senator George McGovern, running for President in 1972. Actor Warren Beatty in the background. Source:The New Democrat “George McGovern – a love of one’s country deep enough to call her to a higher plain. Nixonland: An unpopular war, an economy in the dumps, a President with low approval ratings, his opponent revitalizing his base: How did the democrats lose in 1972, and…

[deadcactuswalking]

REVIEWING THE CHARTS: 09/03/2024 (Charli XCX, twenty one pilots, RAYE)

The BRIT Awards have had their impact week - I didn’t watch them, which I know is ridiculous considering the subject matter of my blog. RAYE swept though, and we see that as well as a lot of other nonsense this week. It’s a messy one, not because it’s problematic, more so just because everyone’s here, so it’ll also be a fun one. Beyoncé is at #1 for a third week with “TEXAS HOLD ‘EM”, and welcome back to REVIEWING THE CHARTS!

Rundown

As always, we start the show with our notable dropouts, those being songs exiting the UK Top 75 - which is what I cover - after five weeks within the region or a peak in the top 40 and given the smathering of returns and new tracks, we do see quite a few, though many of them are relegated to shorter-term hits. Those of note we bid adieu to are “16 CARRIAGES” by Beyoncé, “Abracadabra” by Wes Nelson featuring Craig David, “Incredible Sauce” by Giggs featuring Dave, “Eagle” by D-Block Europe and Noizy, “Heather on the Hill” by Nathan Evans, “Runaway” by Ye featuring Pusha T (“FUK SUMN” debuted below #75, hence three-song rule is in action here), “Three Little Birds” by the late Bob Marley & The Wailers, “Rich Baby Daddy” by Drake featuring Sexyy Red and SZA, “Asking” by Sonny Fodera and MK featuring Clementine Douglas, and finally, and I mean, FINALLY, “Riptide” by Vance Joy.

Firstly, I should separate one particular artist, who was not only the artist of the year, but made the album of the year (My 21st Century Blues returns to the albums chart this week at #5) and the song of the year. Ignore that said song released in 2022, but regardless, RAYE had a good showing at the ceremony and it’s clear in a new entry we’ll discuss later, but also our gains and returns - “Prada” with casso and D-Block Europe, a Song of the Year nominee, is up to #18, but at #13, the song it lost to, and a former #1 hit, “Escapism.” featuring 070 Shake re-enters the chart thanks to BRITs support and given this song’s longevity, probably another wind. It did help that both of those songs were conveniently performed at the award show.

Now for the others, we see a nice return for “Disconnect” by Becky Hill and producers of the year Chase & Status at #67, likely boosted by its BRITs performance, which also helped “greedy” by Tate McRae, Best International Song nominee, up to #22. Sadly, neither Jungle or Kylie have much to speak for their BRITs performances impacting the chart but otherwise, we have other Best International Song nominee “Water” by Tyla at #49 and some residual performance gains for the already gaining “Never be Alone” by Becky Hill and Sonny Fodera at #23. Our other gains are probably, if not definitely, unrelated, including boosts for “Mr. Brightside” by The Killers at #61, “FE!N” by Travis Scott featuring Playboi Carti at #47, “Whatever She Wants” by Bryson Tiller at #20 (really not expecting this comeback), “Scared to Start” by Michael Marcagi at #16 and finally, to prove that notable gains aren’t healthy gains, Ella Henderson and Rudimental find their way to the top 10 once again with “Alibi”.

This week, our top five starts with Rich the Kid because, of course it does. There is no God. Hitler, Goebbels, Himmler and Goring are at #5 with “CARNIVAL”, whilst we see a push for Djo at #4 with “End of Beginning”, then Teddy Swims with “Lose Control” at #3 and Benson Boone at #2 with “Beautiful Things”, and of course, Queen Bey at the top. Now for our potpourri of new entries, starting with Madonna - but not the one you’re thinking of.

New Entries

#71 - “Happier” - The Blessed Madonna featuring Clementine Douglas

Produced by Clementine Douglas, Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs, Pat Alvarez and The Blessed Madonna

These credits perplex me. They imply that the song was produced primarily by The Blessed Madonna with vocals by Clementine Douglas but in fact, Douglas helped produce alongside two other producers, one of which, Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs, is a pretty big name who probably shouldn’t miss out on a credit. I know this is all arbitrary but I have to find something to talk about in this completely serviceable house tune. It’s got a punchier vintage groove to it thanks to the Dinosaurs and The Blessed Madonna, a DJ you probably know through Best Pop Act winner Dua Lipa’s remix album or collaborations with Best Dance Act nominee Fred again.., and yet it still just goes in one ear and out the other. Why is that? Well, despite an infectious hook, it’s lacking in quantity of hooks, it feels too reliant on that one phrase being sung by a pretty unremarkable vocalist in the form of Douglas, and its strays away from form seem to be out of necessity more than artistic intent. The little switch-ups whether they be the synth stab build-ups, complete readjustment of the drums, they all feel secondary to a groove that just chugs and chugs in a very deadweight manner, especially with that practically non-existent drop. As it is, it’s completely fine - I can even see it growing on me - but I’m surprised this is charting at all considering these aren’t massive names and this song, outside of a couple cool ideas, is not exactly making a name for itself. Just functioning.

#69 - “Green & Gold” - Rudimental and Skepsis featuring Charlotte Plank and Riko Dan

Produced by Rudimental, Skepsis, Billen Ted and Slim Typical

There are three members of Rudimental, Skepsis is one guy and then both Billen Ted and Slim Typical are duos, meaning this song not even reaching three minutes was produced by, hypothetically, eight people. I bring this up because really, production-wise, this could easily be a solo effort from a more dedicated and underground producer, or Hell, if you want to be generous, you could get something more interesting out of a winning trio like Skrillex-Four Tet-Fred again.., or you know, that famous drum and bass trio Rudimental? It’s not like there are too many cooks in the kitchen either because this is fully in the space Rudimental and Skepsis are familiar with, there’s a vaguely reggae-influenced loop replicated in the trickling electronics and beeping bass, with a smoky female vocal lead and eventually, oddly throaty bass desperately trying to keep up with preset breakbeats. I like the airy atmosphere fine, the content is in that specific arena between nondescript and nonsensical that ChatGPT usually hits, and we have an inane inclusion of a Riko Dan verse. If you know Riko Dan from anywhere, it’s because he was a member of the grime crew Roll Deep (though he barely appears on their hits), and he brings his distinct accent and energy to the song, but isn’t given much time or space - why not have him holler his ad-libs all throughout the track? Get a real MC vibe going with that, it could bring more character to a frankly worryingly lifeless drum and bass tune. The outro is a nice touch - on a worse day, or maybe without five other dudes, Rudimental wouldn’t bother with that - but it’s too little, too late for what otherwise doesn’t seem to serve much of a purpose at all. Pretty disappointing.

#68 - “Wasted Youth” - goddard. featuring Cat Burns

Produced by Jonny Coffer, Chase & Status and goddard.

Maybe producer Andrew Goddard, or just goddard., can bring something interesting to the EDM debuts, of which there are a lot of this week. He’s famous for his remix of Cat Burns’ big hit “go” so another collaboration makes perfect sense and there’s already six versions so that’s how you know it’s a hit. Jokes aside, this is pretty good - the sombre acoustics are filtered to allow for Burns’ bitter post-breakup vocals to shine, and the progression doesn’t feel as contrived as, say, Rudimental’s. Now all of that doesn’t matter because the drop is just scuzzingly hard. goddard. delivers a punchy, borderline industrial bass that has me wondering why he stylises himself in lowercase instead of block capitals, alongside a differently pitched vocal that makes the separation between verse and hook much more distinct and impactful, especially with the rubbery glitch of the bass that eventually absorbs other elements of the track, like Burns’ lead vocal. The best part of this may be that there’s an actually meaningful bridge, albeit a short one, that develops the song until its abrupt end. My main complaint here is the personality of the vocal of which there practically is none, and there’s nothing particularly potent lyrically that makes this a great song, but I’ll be damned if goddard. didn’t try alongside producers of the year Chase & Status, with his VIP mix being even more to the point and alien, probably my favourite version… if it weren’t for the incredibly creative remixes.

I’m not one to cover all versions of a song but there are a bunch of different creative reinventions of this song here, a trio in fact. The first is an absolutely killer hardcore remix by [IVY] that twists the drum and bass frolick into a thump that elevates the existing drop to a festival stage that Cat Burns’ vocal probably didn’t deserve. Yes, it is my favourite version, mostly for how it relegates the drum and bass elements for a bizarre post-drop, where they become so buzzy and distorted that it’s practically indistinguishable from the bass synth and the filters placed on Burns to make her sound utterly inhuman. The cascading of fuzzy synth in the second build-up is beautiful and the manic despair it leads into is just brilliant dissonance. Now where it gets real interesting is the ozone remix, which brings in Enya to the mix, specifically the song made famous through sampling like three or four times at this point, and that eerie tone the sample often carries takes on a new, filthy tone with the ripping, ravishing bass and trainwreck drums, interrupted at every angle by what sounds like a bark of Cerberus. [IVY] builds upon “Wasted Youth”, ozone brings in elements of another classic only to deconstruct the two songs simultaneously in complete disregard of their elements, so what does Serum do? He only samples the ozone remix, of course, making a remix of a remix that in itself remixes yet another song known for its remixes. Serum adds an acoustic guitar as well as a swinging Afrobeats groove, only for it to blast through the necessities by the time we get to the drop, including the Enya loop much more prominently to place against complete implosions of bass, warped and distorted to really non-mainstream capabilities, simultaneously boiling the song down to only its most tense staccato elements. None of these remixes meaningfully adjust the structure of “Wasted Youth” but they all tear it apart sonically and recreate it in really fascinating ways that make me almost want to give the original more props… but these remixes aren’t the songs charting. The original is what’s credited and unfortunately is what I have to consider but do note, these are some killer alternate versions.

#57 - “Austin” - Dasha

Produced by Travis Heidelman

Alright, I’ll bite: who the Hell is Dasha? Well, according to her obvious press release of a Genius profile, she’s a pop singer from California, which contrasts a bit with this song, a back-to-basic country hoedown that’s a bit too well produced to convince me it isn’t a California pop singer trying to emulate that sound. She doesn’t even try for a twang, though maybe that’d be for the best. Outside of that, I pretty much have no gripes with this, it’s excellent country pop. If you ever have read this blog, you’d know I’m a stickler for detail in lyrics, especially narrative-driven pop tracks, and this does it incredibly well, painting a story about two young lovers. Dasha makes plans with this guy to leave Texas for LA and move onto bigger things but he ditches her last minute and this is her lament of the betrayal, not dissimilar to the late Toby Keith’s “How Do You Like Me Now?!”, except somehow less pissy and unjustifiably mean, which is kind of what sells that song for me, and Dasha doesn’t exactly have a smoky rasp that fully convinces me on its content, like an Elle King would, but she definitely has a power to her voice that accentuates some of the more vulnerable elements of this story, like how she runs out of breath on that first lead chorus melody, leading for the wistful backing vocals to echo her and fill in the blanks, how she can’t really finish the word “Austin”, referring to the city in Texas but of course here, it could also be the guy’s name. Of course, I would love for a good bridge here, but as it is, this is a vengeful frolick that stops at dismissing the guy entirely, more so promising to herself that she will forget about her. It’s no shock to me that a compelling story and infectious hook alongside the relatively organic sounding fiddle and acoustics could go viral and become a sleeper hit in this way, even if it’s not as organic industry-wise as it may be sonically, and if we in the UK end up getting more country hits that not even the US will touch, I’m here for it, especially if it’s from rightfully pissed-off women in country. We need more songs from them in the mainstream.

#53 - “stayinit” - Fred again.., Lil Yachty and Overmono

Produced by Fred again.., Overmono, Boo and Joy Anonymous

Like his partner Skrillex, Best Dance Act nominee Mr. Again has a tendency to skewer these strange collaborations together and thanks to him, now we have a team-up between rapper-turned-whatever-he-feels-like-that-day Lil Yachty and DJ duo Overmono, who I’m not familiar with but have a following for their atmospheric UK bass and future garage tunes so I was definitely expecting something interesting and not necessarily chart-friendly here. We also get original vocals instead of a sample like with Baby Keem on “leavemealone”, as Yachty sings here - albeit awkwardly - in a filter that makes him sound like he’s crooning to you but with a very large fan in the middle. His warbling vibrato is cute and his sentimental mantra would work in a more sentimental track, but this goes for full eerie future garage, Burial-style but a tad sharper and edgier, and I have no idea why they did that. It doesn’t sound bad, it’s pretty alarming, it may reflect some darker moments about contemplating ending the life Lil Boat’s begging this person to stay in, but I don’t think there’s enough lyrically for that to fully work. There is enough detail and it’s oddly poetic for Yachty, especially that main line “you’ve got a life, stay in it”, it’s kind of potent, but it feels mismatched with thenumb violence of its instrumental. He feels like a lost optimist stepping into the wrong narrow back alley, and the song completely gives up on adjusting for him. It’s a shame, but this honestly just baffles me more than anything. Some collaborations may not need to happen, Fred.

#51 - “Cuban Links” - Skrapz, Nines and D-Block Europe

Produced by EmzBeats and chucks

Keeping up with these nondescript UK rappers can be difficult, man, I had to check what Skrapz had done prior to his #10 album Reflection and it seems like his main route to fame is collaborating with the immensely dull Nines, and that’s not changed, but thankfully, we have two certified weirdos here to cancel them out. First of all, there’s no reflection here at all over this liquid acoustic guitar and stale trap beat, he says he has a lion as a pet for God’s sake.When Skrapz started off the song, I just thought he was Nines mixed weirdly, but then Nines came in for the second verse and I realised just how further off rhythm the real deal’s rambles are. He doesn’t feel like a real rapper sometimes. Neither do DBE, of course, as Young Adz carries the very catchy chorus, as he tends to do, it really has everything I’d want from his hooks: a meandering refusal to stick to one flow or melodic idea, “ski!” ad-libs and some bizarrely infectious non-sequiturs. It is genuinely insane how much better this beat sounds with Adz and Dirtbike Lb on it than it does for Nines and Skrapz, this is a killer verse from Dirtbike, I’m being serious. The flows are effortless and he has some pretty smooth-sounding rhyme scheme ideas throughout. It even has the weird eerie outro where the entire song devolves like some DBE songs end with, I don’t even know why Skrapz and Nines are on here, let alone the primary artist. They feel added on in post to what would be a pretty above-par D-Block Europe song. Man, it’s really worrying when these are the guys saving your songs.

#46 - “Doctor (Work it Out)” - Pharrell Williams featuring Miley Cyrus

Produced by Pharrell Williams

This is the newest single by award-winning record producer Pharrell Williams featuring guest vocals from pop star and International Artist of the Year nominee Miley Cyrus. It consists of a funk groove with slick guitars and raspy vocals from Ms. Cyrus about making love to her partner. It has a chorus and bassline and a mix. This has actually existed since the Bangerz era which begs the question of: how is this so safe and boring? Both of these artists can be genuinely batshit when they feel like it so whenever they put out anything in this very familiar vein, it’s just an immediate disinterest from me, especially if it’s going to be a collaboration between the two making the thing that both of them do “best”: vaguely existent funk-pop. I’ll give it a fair shake when these two give the prospect of being in any way compelling another try.

#42 - “Dizzy” - Olly Alexander

Produced by Danny L Harle

The multinational song contest Eurovision is on its way in May, and we’re bringing our best and brightest to the competition in Malmo this year! And by that, I mean Danny L Harle because the Years & Years guy’s identity crisis has gotten to breaking point: he’s had to rebrand his former group Years & Years as Olly Alexander (Years & Years), which is now the credit given to songs created and performed by the group, not just the solo act version. Well, it’s not exactly classy, or really all that sensical, but I suppose he wants everything in one place, even if that means work is attributed to the wrong person. I don’t know why complaining about credits has been the major theme. Regardless, this is probably the guy’s best song in years, largely because of the intricacies that Mr. Harle and his fellow former PC Music fellow EASYFUN can bring to the mix, with some sparkling Pet Shop Boys synths in the right channel, a thumping Eurodance beat and enough space to show off Alexander’s vocals whilst also adding a lot of little tiny filters and soundbites in the mix to make it interesting as a studio performance, distracting you from the lack of personality. That aforementioned Pet Shop Boys lead ends up transforming into Christmas-esque bells in the chorus alongside a weirdly lo-fi crackle that makes it a lot more interesting of an otherwise simplistic and expected chorus. This is by all means an utterly serviceable song in good hands, rather than a song that feels constructed from the bottom up, but sometimes for Eurovision, that’ll work. It’s fine, we could do well with this. We’re Britain, though, so catastrophic failure is in the cards as always.

#38 - “Worth It.” - RAYE

Produced by Mike Sabath

She didn’t even perform this one, but you win that many awards, you basically get a free debut and since I don’t think this’ll stick around for much longer even if it is kind of a single, I’ll try to be brief, especially since I don’t like this one too much. Despite the melodramatic presentation that plagues all of the albums, for better and for worse, this is one of the less substanceful tracks, a bit confused about how seriously it wants to take itself considering the direly joyless composition placed against pop culture references and stammering over a tinny funk guitar. Sure, there’s some weight to the horns but this feels like a bit of a stodge overall. She’s having fun on it, sometimes, and Sabath is showing off his compositional and mixing skills… sometimes? Definitely an awkward one for me, edging close to being decent, but even then not in a particularly interesting way.

#34 - “Overcompensate” - twenty one pilots

Produced by Paul Meany and Tyler Joseph

Overcompensate indeed. You make one album that sounds just like The Killers and your next lead single starts with an abrasive industrial drone accompanied with a cacophony of incomprehensible German spoken word chatter, before dropping into a pulsating punk drive that seems to want to lure me into the lore of Trench once again, as if that last album didn’t exist at all. Maybe a smart move for the fans, but I do feel a bit lost here. The blasts of saxophones add to the intensity, and the droning vocals from Mr. Joseph strain motionlessly over the chaos in a pretty interesting manner that could definitely lead to an interesting, dark song… that gets ret-conned by boom bap and yes, overcompensate indeed by the time he’s rapping again, which is something I have never liked about this band, and yes, I know it’s an integral part of their sound. Outside of the Red Hot Chili Peppers-esque chorus, this song just feels alien to me as an outsider of the Skeletons or what have you. On a sonic level, it’s like seven songs smashed into one project file, and on a lyrical level, it seems to actively push me out of understanding it because I’m 1.) not the demographic and 2.) not willing to envelop myself in the abstract narrative deep enough because of how unadjusted the song is as a piece of music to what it’s attempting to convey. It’s not surprising to me that I just don’t get this one.

#26 - “Von dutch” - Charli XCX

Produced by EASYFUN

Even with the BRIT Awards and certified, relatively more consistent hitmakers like RAYE, Fred again.., Rudimental, twenty one pilots, DBE, Miley Cyrus and even Pharrell Williams, it’s a mid-week release from Best Pop Act nominee Charli XCX of all people with production from EASYFUN of former PC Music fame that debuts the highest of them all. It’s the lead single from her upcoming club record Brat and that’s a damn good way to describe it of course. There’s no attempt to hide her classic obnoxious Auto-Tuned whine that makes up a lot of her more interesting character, and if anything, EASYFUN wants to make this a racket. The vocal editing slurs words together, loops them and places them over gross, faux-cinematic revving that despite her moving onto planes in the music video, still functions as a high-speed car chase, she’s never that far from cars, is she? I can imagine this being the soundtrack to a Formula 1 race or, more accurately, a car crash caught on a dash-cam. I really like Charli XCX, I like noisier, more abrasive dance music, this might even be a bit too annoying for me, mostly because its tension emerges largely from its own decision to be noisy, instead of any actual lyrical tension or a functional structure. I don’t know what level of post-quasi-meta-irony Charli and co. are on at this point, but I think I finally… don’t really get it. Catchy though.

Conclusion

Like I prefaced, it’s weird, it’s messy, and not the greatest week either. Most of it just ended up mediocre or putting some kind of guard up to prevent me from fully getting into it. This may be my boomer moment, ladies and gentlemen, but the conventional country pop song, “Austin” by Dasha gets Best of the Week with an Honourable Mention to “Wasted Youth” by goddard. and Cat Burns, because Chase & Status tend to just land themselves here effortlessly. As for the opposite end of the spectrum, I suppose Rudimental and co. land the Worst of the Week with “Green & Gold” even if it’s not devastatingly bad and I have to tie the Dishonourable Mention between Miley Cyrus and Pharrell Williams with “Doctor (Work it Out)” and honestly, “Overcompensate” by twenty one pilots. It’s a headache to me. As for what’s on the horizon, who cares? Thanks for reading, and I’ll see you next week!

[venusvity]

hello myah, hope u r doing okay! i hope my question would not be a bother... in your opinion, are there any idols/actresses you have briefly considered using as fcs but ultimately decided against it bc something was lacking? like they really fit the biblical visuals of the girls but don't have the correct vibe? or the opposite like the vibes are there but they look completly different from their biblical face? or maybe you still used them despite it? (sorry if its not clear english isn't my first language....)

your english was great!!

i think the only person i've ever been like "oh that's a so and so" and didn't use would have to be chanelle moon for jiah 😭 loved her down during r u next and was super excited for debut until she...debuted where she did lol other than that i usually at least attempt to use a face as the girls until the lack of resources pmo fjksndfs i think shin sehwi as chloe is a great example of that sdfjksdnfjks

[zvezda-writer]

Mafia!Nikto x reader

(this is just something I've written when bored at work, don't take it seriously!)

Having someone special in his life wasn't something Nikto was expecting, especially a wife, but seemed like destiny had other plans for him. Life as a mafia lord was full of business deals and sometimes those deals included weird things, like when he made an agreement with a group from Madagascar and ended up getting a hyena as a ‘gift’. He named her Sputnik.

This time wasn't different. They've been discussing a gun deal with the British for some months and finally had reached the final contract, there was only one problem: Nikto would never accept their final request. A marriage. Your uncle was eager to get rid of you and decided that marrying you with some crazy Russian you've never met before was a great idea.

Obviously Nikto refused, he had already things enough to deal with, and he hated the idea of sharing his space with someone else. So why did he signed the papers after seeing your photo? Why did he ordered his housekeeper, Dasha, to prepare the whole second floor of the east wing of his house just for you? Why did he ordered Dasha to bring you fresh flowers every morning? Why did he ordered one of his men to find out everything you liked and simply set up everything to make his house perfect for you? For the sake of the deal, of course.

There wasn't no ceremony, he just signed the papers and the lawyer send it up for you to sign too, and even when you moved to his house you didn't saw him. He'd spend his days locked on his office, the only contact between the two of you being the texts you exchanged sometimes.

Until one day you went out with your friends, and your bodyguard of course, and ended up drinking a bit too much. The first thing you did as you set your foot inside the house, late at night, was head to his room, not even bothering knocking before entering, finding him sitting on his bed with some papers in hand and his back leaned against the wall.

Oh, this wasn't the sight you were expecting. That massive, scary and scarred russian had the most beautiful bright eyes staring at you in pure shock. He expected you to run away, scream or look at him with disgust at the sight of his burned and scarred face completely exposed. Instead, you closed the door, let your bag fall on the ground and walked to him, sitting in front of him on the bed.

None of you said anything for several seconds, his anxiety hidden behind his stoic face, his voices going overdrive as every second went by.

–You’re my husband.

Was the first thing you say, staring into his face with mixed feelings, curiosity and surprise crossing your eyes.

–Да.

His voice wasn't what you expected either, it wasn't as deep as he looked like he'd have, but it was still rich and heavily accented. Hot. You stretched your hand, smiling at him like someone meeting a new friend.

–I’m Y/N, your wife. Nice to meet you.

Oh, his heart fluttered at your smile. You didn't seem scared or disgusted by his scars at all, you were just… so incredibly bright. Like a whole set of Christmas lights. He took your hand in his, his touch as gentle as it could've been against your soft skin.

–Nice to meet you…

He was entranced, completely hypnotized by you. You two kept staring at each other in pure silence like the two weird things you were, not sure what to say or how to act.

Maybe this agreement wasn't so bad after all.

[cosmicpuzzle]

8th Lord periods for each Rising sign- Part 1 ⚠︎

8th Lord periods whether it is dasha or bhukti can be challenging. Let's see the possible issues faced by each rising sign during the 8th lord dasha or bhukti.

Note that you need to know your dasha schedule to know when you may face these issues.

Aries Rising : Mars is 8th lord and also the ascendant lord. So, Mars periods can be intensely transformative for aries risings. They may go undergo some surgery, possible accidents and also major identity changes. This can be almost like a rebirth for them.

Taurus Rising: Jupiter is the 8th lord and also the 11th lord. Jupiter can bring major changes in one's social status and finance. There may be sudden gain of wealth as well as sudden loss of income. The taurus rising may have issues with taxes as well. There may be problems through friends and elder siblings.

Gemini Rising : Saturn is the 8th lord and boy it's not an easy period for Gemini natives. Saturn is naturally a malefic so the suffering can continue for long as opposed to short moving planets like sun moon Mercury venus Mars. Saturn is also the 9th lord. So gemini rising may face issues with their fathers mentors gurus elders bosses and their university education (if it's the right age). Saturn may give struggles in understanding as 8th and 9th lord. There may be spiritual transformations but that comes from a long period of struggle penance and discovery. Saturn can also indicate burning of bad karmas through health issues.

Cancer Rising : Similar to gemini rising, saturn rules their 8th house but it rules 7th house simultaneously. So cancer rising may struggle in marriage relationships in laws and business partnerships. Saturn may also bring economic problems to the spouse. Saturn may bring chronic health issues as the 8th lord. Saturn may also bring problems in inheritance.

Leo Rising : Jupiter is the 8th lord and its also the 5th lord. Jupiter can bring issues with children for Leo rising. In extreme cases there can be loss of children (even while giving birth or just after). Jupiter can bring issues with finance, investments and cause loss in speculation but can also lead to gain in these. Overall Jupiter can give mixed results.

Virgo Rising: Mars is the 8th lord and its also the 3rd lord. Mars is a difficult planet for virgo rising. Mars can bring conflicts with in laws, siblings (especially younger), and neighbours. Mars can bring problems with marriage as well. Mars can bring some accidents as it rules 3rd house of travel and linked to 8th house. Overall, this can be a very difficult period for Virgos.

For Readings DM

[ofstoriesandstardust]

austin (j.h.s.)

a/n: this is all for @cottagecori who made the mistake of asking me what i was putting jake through now

summary: A year after Jake washes out from the Navy, and almost fifteen after you’d seen him last, you re-meet him at a dive bar outside of Austin. Drunk, bruised, and alone, you find a shell of your former lover.

warnings: alcohol/intoxication, mentions of physical violence, references to Mav and Bradley dying, angsty, unedited, highly suggest you listen to austin by dasha

word count: 1.1k

You wince at the burn of alcohol sliding down your throat as you toss back the shot of cheap tequila. 

As much as you try, nothing will numb the pain of coming back to this town outside of Austin, wipe the memories of the people and the places you left behind here. 

One of the ghosts is seated across from you at the grimy table in this dive bar on the edge of town. 

The dim light in the joint doesn’t hide the bruises coloring Jake’s face, and the exhaustion he wears is not one you remember on the often smiling boy who’d kept you warm at night and brightened your days. 

“Are you getting into bar brawls again?” You ask softly, turning his face with your knuckle to get a better look at the cut on his lip. 

“Why’re you here?” He slurs. 

The man before you is drunk, far drunker than you’ve ever seen him before. You doubt he’ll remember this interaction come morning light, if think of it as nothing more than a hazy alcohol-induced dream. 

That thought is what makes you feel safe, being here next to him and asking questions you wouldn’t have otherwise. 

If Jake had been here sober, been coherent and able to give you real answers, you’d have gotten nowhere near him. 

Not after he’d left you, cold in and alone in that bed the two of you used to share. 

“Your anger has always been your fatal flaw.” You say with a sigh, turning back to your warming beer. 

“What’s it to you?” 

“You should know better by now Jake what it means to me.”

After what most would consider to be a perfect night, after whispered promises of a future and forever, after plans of marriage that would never escape the dark of night, Jake had left. 

“I washed out, okay?” Jake finally snaps after a few minutes of tension-filled silence. “Got two- two good men killed because I wasn’t enough when it really counted. Bet it makes you feel good, watching my demise after-” He hiccups. “After all I did to you.” 

You blink. 

You’d heard Jake’s dreams of joining the Navy as the two of you had always planned your escape from this town with parents and lives that confined you so. 

But that’s all they’d ever seemed to be to you: dreams. 

Jake never talked of bringing them to fruition, of going after what he wanted. 

It makes sense that he would leave you in the dust of his rearview mirror to go after what it was that he truly wanted. 

How long had he planned on leaving? How long had he known that he would say goodbye?

Finally, you sigh. 

The knowledge that Jake had failed in his dreams does little to assuage the sting at what it had all cost him. 

“No, Jake. It doesn’t make me feel good to hear that. I loved you.” 

“Past tense?” He hiccups. His eyes are glassy.

You sigh again, letting your arm rest on the grimy bar top. “Jake-”

“Because I didn’t stop loving you.” 

The admission makes you stop breathing for a moment, questions swirling in your chest. 

How long has Jake been like this? Days, weeks, months, years? How long had he sat in this town, getting drunk to forget and sleeping in drunk tanks and getting into bar brawls, all waiting and hoping for your return? 

How many years now had it been since you’d forced yourself to leave this boy in your past as he had left you? 

But the reality is the broken man sitting in front of you is not the man you loved.

That boy had been kind. Like golden rays of light. He’d been sweet and charming unlike any other. He whispered promises of forever under a warm blanket of security. That boy had gone line dancing with you, keeping you laughing all through the night. He’d been the kid who helped you your math homework while letting you help him with his English. 

This stranger in front of you is not the Jake you once knew.

This Jake has reached the precipice of no return, at a point only he can walk away from. This Jake is hardened by years of Navy service, details of which you’ll never know. This Jake is washed up, alone, drinking to ease the pain, only pennies to his name. This Jake lets others hurt him as a punishment he believes he deserves. This Jake is forever haunted by the ghosts of his past, living and dead. This Jake will live with what happened for evermore. 

“Come home.” He whispers. “It can be like it was. I’ll be good to you this time, I promise.”

His request makes you shudder. It would be so easy to let yourself fall back. 

You could be the one to get him sober. You could be the one to get him into therapy, to get his truck back. To get him in a park of cowboy boots and dance around like he used to. 

You could be his sunlight. 

But you know Jake will never fully forget what happened and you know Jake will never be the same. 

You could see that future now.

You’d plead and beg and scream for him to stay sober but he’d always fall back. He’d bleed your bank accounts dry. You’d wait on the front porch for him to return, only for him to never come home again. He’d find his way into an untimely death, crashing his car into the side of the road or letting some person beat him too far, leaving you in shambles once more. 

No amount of love you had for the boy Jake had once been will save the stranger in front of you. 

“I don’t deserve you, I know that. Just come back to me.”

The pleading in his voice is what breaks you. It’s what propels you while haunting all your dreams. 

“Goodbye Jake.” You whisper, slipping off the barstool.

His eyes fall, the sadness consuming them. You try not to think about it as you leave this place behind. 

Jake had left you behind once before. He would do it again. 

The truth was that Jake would never move past this moment right here. This rock bottom for him is all he would ever continue to be. 

Maybe Jake had no way forward, but you did. 

It was time for you to forget him. For good. 

“in 40 years you’ll still be here/drunk washed up in Austin”

[dysthoepiadaily]

how are you gonna casually mention the symbolism behind dan's branding and not drop the entire essay, wth op... 😔

Mostly because if I write it, it'll take a lot of effort, and I think I'll be writing for an audience of one, LOL, given that I tend to get slightly technical with vedic astrology, and my whole thesis is based on vedic astrology, LMAO. And, bc this is already in my mind, I didn't really think to elaborate on it, given how much vedic astrology exposition I would have to do. But, I am itching at the seams to talk about it, so prepare for a long ass essay under the cut, ig

DISCLAIMER: I am not trying to say that any of this is REAL, I am simply pointing out coincidences and patterns that are interesting to me. While I believe in astrology, I don't expect others to, and I'm uninterested in arguing about the causes, effects, and underlying meaning of any of this. I just find it interesting

Basic thing is that Dan has Ketu (South Node) in the first house, and that is interesting, because Ketu is quite an invisible planet. Like, what it rules is authenticity, purity, soul purpose, divine inspiration, isolation. When you think of a planet like this, it's almost impossible for it to get famous, if that makes any sense. Fame would ruin the purity of a planet like this. The ideal expression of this planet is as a saint or a monk, away from the world.

Fortunately, this planet is always expressed to the masses through its opposite, Rahu (North Node). Rahu is a planet that rules glamour, the material world, fame, the occult. Rahu and Ketu are two halves of a whole, often symbolized by an immortal beheaded serpent. Ketu is considered to be the body of the serpent (lacking senses, but has the ability to move using muscle memory), and Rahu, the head of the serpent (ability to speak, think, see, focus, but unable to act). Having Ketu in first house means that Dan's Rahu is in the seventh house, the house of the partner.

Because Ketu is associated with purity, it's also associated with loss, fire, and doom. Kind of like, it burns down whatever is in its way, and what remains is the purest form of the object (According to hindu mythology, the material world is not real, and ashes, then, show the inherent nothingness of the world. brand appropriate for Dan). This is where we get into Dan's first symbolic brand, which is "danisnotonfire". With this branding, Dan sort of erases the effect of the firey nature of Ketu, and increase his Rahu. Funnily enough, according to the Vimshottari Dasha system, his Rahu dasha (activation period for Rahu) began in April 2009. I couldn't begin to make this shit up, because Dan started his twitter account in May 2009, a month after his rahu dasha started. This dasha will end in April 2027, btw.

With Rahu being in the house of the spouse, this name is also what attracted his partner to him (Phil has pretty significant Rahu in his chart, as well, which is why he is indicated by Rahu in Dan's chart, but Dan's Rahu is stronger, just harder for him to access, since it is not HIM). This partner also brought him fame and material gain.

Because Rahu is associated with glamour, it's also associated with inauthenticity, hoarding (material resources are simply not real), anxiety and, also... fun. Ketu is all about purity, doom and gloom, and meditation, but Rahu is about stimulation. If you get too into it, and base your life on it, it becomes anxiety inducing, but if you treat it as a video game you can log out of anytime, it starts to become fun and enjoyable. Unfortunately, this is very difficult for most people to do, because Rahu is the material reality that tries to trick you into thinking it is the most important thing in the world.

Rahu and Ketu require for there to be a balance, basically, for their ideal expressions, because excess of Ketu brings depression and inertia, while excess of Rahu brings anxiety and overstimulation. They are natural cures for one another. Rahu and Ketu are also not real planets, and they are mathematical points that are meant to show the timings for... eclipses. Yes, a classic Dan Branding!!!!

The best way to deal with Rahu and Ketu is by enjoying Rahu, and then burning down the Rahu with Ketu whenever it gets too anxiety inducing. So, when Dan got tired of the inauthenticity of Rahu, he basically burned down the danisnotonfire brand, to be more authentic to himself. And, during this time as Daniel Howell (his true self, in a way), he posted less, and he came out as gay to be true to himself (Ketu authenticity).

Because he actively tried to strengthen his Ketu during this time, he also lost a lot of projects he meant to do (ketu rules loss, if you guys remember), and had a bit of a difficult time. Ketu isn't an easy planet to deal with, AT ALL. Strong Ketu means dealing with constant failures, dislike from other people, and being forcibly isolated in many ways. That said, Ketu is still a force to be reckoned with, and if something is successful even when Ketu is strong, it's considered extremely important, materially as well as spiritually, because it is divinely guided, and Dan executed some of his absolute best work during this time, as well, as is natural for ketu.

Anyway, Dan's new return to youtube is marked by... DanandPhilGames, the channel where he is with Phil, who represents his Rahu. With Phil, he can gain a lot of success, because Rahu allows you to do the fun and silly projects that Ketu will never let you do.

I think that's maybe all of it? If you guys have any questions, feel free to ask, LMAO

TL;DR

Rahu is inauthentic material life and also fun, ketu is authentic spirituality and also depression, Dan's Ketu is him by himself, and his Rahu is Phil. Dan's eclipse shirt brings balance to his Rahu and Ketu, his danisnotonfire brand reduced the impact of Ketu into his life, and also got his partner into his life, and the DanandPhilGames brand does a similar thing as danisnotonfire did.

[youremyheaven]

Hi! I’m 21 and my Saturn mahadasha started in 2021, do you have any advice on how to get through it and come out happy? I’m starting uni soon and now I’m worried things won’t get better 😬🥲 I should be more optimistic though 💪

I’m UBP sun and mercury btw! With swati moon and ardra rising

Saturn dasha is the longest, so this will be the next 16-17 years of your life ✨

Everybody makes Shani (Saturn in Sanskrit) dasha sound scary as hell but I assure you, so long as you do your part, Saturn will do his.

What does this mean?

Saturn represents justice, fairness, dharma, duty, discipline, time, karma, punishment etc

Adhere to its principles and he a good student because Saturn is a strict teacher

Do not try to cheat or loot anybody

Don't try to take shortcuts

Don't even think of doing anything "immoral" ,, other people probably get away with that type of stuff but you 100% shouldn't try to imitate them because God will use you as an example 😤

Do not lie to others about anything major

Always be fair and kind

Do not SLACK, always put the work in

Always be punctual and do whatever is required of you

Always be kind to those who are less privileged than you, the elderly, the sick, the poor etc

Be fair and just,, don't be partial to people in ways that hurt others who are perhaps just as deserving

BUILD 👏🏼A 👏🏼ROUTINE 👏🏼

Saturn 🤤loves 🤤 discipline. Wake up at 5 am, do Surya namaskars, do abhyanga, study for class, go to college, come home and do chores. Basically, any opportunity you receive to do work of any kind??? TAKE IT UP and go hard at it

Physically doing work is the fastest way to burn off karmas

You can do yoga or a different kind of exercise as well

Saturn punishes those who are lazy and makes their path harder. Even if you dont care about it, give it your 100% and work hard because Saturn will reward you for it.

[chadillacboseman]

I dont know if you're doing deimos yet or based off song fics, but if you do. Deimos x Fem! reader, exes to lovers . Maybe starting off the fic with a flashback, the flashback being based off austin by dasha where the reader ran into Deimos again when they were tracking him, reaching him before the others only to realize who he was off his voice and asking him this, "Did your boots stop workin'?, Did your truck break down? (Truck break down), Did you burn through money?, Did your ex find out? (Ex find out), Where there's a will then there's a way, And I'm damn sure you lost it, Didn't even say goodbye, Just wish I knew what caused it, Was the whiskey flowin'?, Were you in a fight?, Did the nerves come get you?, What's your alibi?, I made my way back to LA, And that's where you'll be forgotten, In forty years you'll still be here, Drunk, washed up in Austin" By all means please disregard that part if you dont do song fics that's fine! but pretty much just the reader calling him out for leaving their plans behind which lead to her joining rainbow. Then the two of them eventually making it up later down the line after the flash back, the two being forced to work together, or maybe after a fight something happens and they have to rely on each other for survival, only to realize they're still in love all these years later Thanks for taking the time to read :) feel free to dm if you need more details!

FIRST OF ALL- Thank you for the new song, I'm in love with it.

SECOND- A DEIMOS REQUEST?! Truly we are blessed.

Timeline-wise I'm not sure this makes any sense whatsoever but eh.

Deimos was always a bridge burner. It was what he did best.

Maybe it was foolish, but you truly thought that the bridge between the two of you couldn't be burned. Until you came home one night to find all of his things gone, everything he'd kept in your apartment cleared out as if he'd never been there.

Phone calls were useless. His number had already been disconnected.

You had no idea what had driven the sudden disconnect. His work had always been secretive, much like your own, but he always assured you that you'd be the first to know if he had to go dark.

Perhaps it was your fault.

In the months that followed, you threw yourself into your work, desperately trying to push Gerald from your mind until Harry Pandey showed up on your doorstep.

"You'd be an asset to Rainbow," Harry clutched the mug of tea you'd offered him as he sat across from you at the small table, "We're facing a new threat, the Keres Legion."

He said the name as if it would mean something to you. When you didn't respond, he cleared his throat awkwardly and continued, "They're led by Gerald Morris."

Your heart dropped into your shoes as soon as the words left his mouth. Harry must have sensed the change, swiftly pivoting the conversation back to recruitment.

"Joining us would give you a chance to make a difference."

You knew what he meant.

--

Harry was dead by the end of the week that he'd recruited you.

Rainbow was in disarray, constantly besieged by the Keres Legion and now without a leader. Your integration to their ranks was rocky at best- distrustful looks often followed you, accompanied by whispers behind hands.

Jordan, "Thermite" as they called him in the field, was your support in the first few weeks after your recruitment. You were assigned to Redhammer alongside him, tasked with hitting Keres hard and fast, hoping to catch them off-guard.

You were filled with a kind of righteous fury that only Gerald could bring out in you.

You threw yourself into each mission, carving a warpath like a raging wildfire. Every Keres member that you put in the ground only served to enrage you further, mere pawns that the mighty 'Deimos' put between you and him.

Jordan told you to use it, to unbottle the anger and unleash it in full. He was angry too. He'd already lost friends in the Nighthaven split, and now Harry was dead.

"We take him alive, understood?" Jordan gave you a pointed look as he spoke. Weeks of field operations had led you closer to Deimos and his hiding place.

Jordan looked exhausted. Dark circles haloed his eyes and his beard had become unruly. Since Harry's death, he had taken on more responsibility, alongside Doc and Caveira.

Redhammer was huddled outside a warehouse bathed in moonlight, all eyes trained on a floor plan that Jordan had laid on the ground. Red arrows and Xs indicated entry points and positions; you were to take the cat walk that ran above the central room, gaining entry via the window to the east.

Getting inside was easy. Too easy.

You crept along the catwalk while Ash and Thermite came in from below. Fuze set to work planting charges on the exterior of the building.

Beneath you, Keres mercs rifled through crates of weapons. They were of no concern to you, your eyes were fixed on the reinforced door on the opposite side of the room.

Just as you reached it, the sounds of gunfire erupted below, muzzle flashes lighting up the dim space as Thermite and Ash engaged in a firefight.

The gunfire didn't concern you.

You leveled your boot into the door near the handle and it banged open, ricocheting off the wall and sending splinters into the room. You caught sight of Gerald's back as he leapt through the open window and you swore, bounding after him. He had no time to detach his rope, so you followed him down, landing gracefully just feet behind him.

You jumped, tackling him around his middle and bringing him to the ground with a dull thud that forced the air from his lungs. He rolled onto his back, and before he could recover, you leveled a punch into his gut that made him grunt under his mask.

"Deimos," you spit the codename out and he chuckled, "end of the line."

"Still just as pretty, even when you're tryin' to kill me," you could almost hear the smile in his words, "see they got you fightin' the good fight."

"Give me a reason," you hissed.

"I'm bettin' Trace told you to take me alive."

You faltered for a moment and Gerald laughed again. He hadn't attempted to push you off yet, but you knew it was coming. Back in the warehouse, discordant yells were still mixed with gunfire.

"Why did you do it?" you finally asked the question that had burned a hole through you for months, your pistol still pressed firmly against his chest, "Why did you leave?"

"You knew the game, doll," he cocked his head as he stared up at you, "Not like I had fun doing it."

"You didn't even say goodbye," your voice wavered, despite your best efforts, "Not a fucking word- just gone."

He didn't respond, which only pissed you off further.

"Not once did you try to reach out to me," you pressed the gun harder into his chest, "Why?"

"You were safer that way."

The gunfire stopped and your grip on Gerald faltered. In one swift motion, he rolled, knocking you off of him and scrambling to his feet before he disappeared into the night. You cursed and aimed your pistol wildly into the dark, but he was already gone.

--

Jordan knew it wasn't your fault, not really. But that didn't stop Sam from handing you your ass in the days that followed the botched capture attempt.

As punishment, he'd stuck you on watch duty, holed up in some shithole safe house with ears and eyes trained on the warehouse across the street. By the second day, you felt as if you were losing your mind- you were practically begging for something, anything to happen.

And then something did happen.

"Can't believe Rainbow still uses the same safe houses after all these years."

You leapt from your chair and spun on your heel to find Gerald standing in the doorway. Your heart took residence in your throat as you stared him down, your own reflection looking back at you from the eyes of his mask.

"You can relax, sweetheart," he took a few steps forward and you tensed, eyes darting to the door behind him. How much had he changed in all these months? Some of the files you'd read...

"You think I'd hurt you?" he sounded wounded, but you kept your guard up, cursing yourself for resting your sidearm so far from you.

"You've hurt plenty of other people," you glanced at the door again as you spoke, but he had planted himself firmly between it and you.

"They weren't you."

"Why are you here?" you dared a small step toward your pistol that rested on the table near the window.

"Because in about six minutes, this place is gonna be crawling with Masks. Zero isn't as meticulous as Harry was. Shame."

"Harry would still be here if it weren't for you," you shot back and he shrugged.

"You gonna come with me, or you plan on dying to prove a point?"

As if on cue, there was a commotion at the front of the safe house that told you the location was compromised. You glanced at the door, then back to Gerald. He cocked his head in anticipation.

You grabbed your gun from the table and together, you leapt through the window, rolling gracefully as you hit the pavement below. Shots rang out from the window and hit the pavement, sending showers of sparks that lit the dark street at your feet.

You trailed behind Gerald as he wove through the darkening alleyways. No doubt Zero would get word that your location had been compromised. He'd likely send a unit, and you had to wonder if he'd even be disappointed that you weren't there.

Gerald's safe house was nicer than Rainbow's, a fact that wasn't lost on you. You knew that if word got back to HQ about this, you'd be court-martialed at the bare minimum.

It wasn't until your adrenaline ran dry that you noticed the way he clutched at his side protectively, gloved fingers glinting crimson under the fluorescent light.

"You're hit," you moved toward him and he chuckled, pulling his hand to the side so you could see the wound.

"Always so observant," he drawled and you rolled your eyes.

"Let me look at it."

Gerald sank into a chair near the covered window and shucked his jacket to reveal the bloodied area. The bullet, by some miracle of poor White Mask aim, had passed clean through and missed anything vital.

All the anger you'd had was still there, bubbling just below the surface. You still resented him, still hated him with every fiber of your being.

But when he pulled his mask off and tossed it aside, you felt your heart hammer as it had before. He was still the same. Still sharp features and dark eyes that watched your every move as you cleaned the wound and packed it with gauze.

"Harry was right to recruit you," his voice was low as he observed your work.

"Well, he's dead now and losing you last time landed me in this mess."

Gerald grunted in response and you felt the anger as it welled up behind your teeth, threatening to fall out of your mouth like a red hot flame.

"You still hate me, don't ya?" he cocked his head and for a moment the fire died down as your eyes met his. They still crinkled at the corners when he smiled, though new wrinkles had joined the old since you'd last seen his face.

"Do you blame me?" you spat and his smile faded, "Did your phone stop working? Did you even think about me once?" the fire was back, raging in your chest as you stared up at him, defiant as always.

"I never stopped thinkin' about you."

The fire went out in an instant.

"Every day I hoped you were safe. I used to drive by the old place just to make sure you were alive," Gerald leaned in toward you and your heart jumped into your throat, "And every goddamn day, I prayed you'd forgive me."

You opened your mouth, then closed it again, unable to find the words. You'd spent so much time hating him. Resenting him to the point that it made you ill.

Now, here he stood before you- not the mighty Deimos, just Gerald Morris. The man you'd loved.

The man you still loved.

For so long you'd buried it under the anger, convincing yourself that you hated him, convincing the world that you hated him.

"So, do you?" he asked and you met his gaze again, furrowing your brows in confusion, "Forgive me?"

Before you could stop yourself, your arms were around his broad frame, and your face found it's old home buried against his chest. He chuckled and returned the embrace, resting his chin on the crown of your head.

"That a 'yes'?"

You weren't even sure what your forgiveness would look like- how you could reconcile what he'd done- what he would continue to do. But in that moment, it didn't matter, none of it did. You had him here, and he had you.

"Yes."

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Dan Pfeiffer at The Message Box:

The generally accepted — and oft-repeated — narrative about Trump is that he is a cult-leader who can bend the Republican base to his will. On issues like free trade and foreign policy, he broke with long-standing Republican orthodoxy and faced no repercussions. He attacked Republican stalwarts like the Bush family and John McCain. Not only was there no blowback, Trump also made these folks' personas non-grata in the Republican Party. Whether it’s indictments, his sexual assaults, or his dalliances and dinner dates with Nazis, Trump could force the Republican Party to go along. The GOP is Trump’s party and what he says goes. Trump is a man accountable to no one. This has benefited him politically and brought in folks who hate politics and distrust institutions. But that image became fuzzy last week when Donald Trump bent to the will of anti-abortion extremists in a stunning flip-flop on abortion that tells us everything we need to know about Donald Trump. He poses an existential threat to reproductive freedom for tens of millions of Americans.

The Flip-Flop to End All Flip-Flops

I have written about Trump’s abortion flip-flop a couple of times in the last week, so if you are a regular reader of Message Box, please feel free to skip ahead. If not… In an interview with Dasha Burns of NBC News, Trump implied that he would vote for the amendment on the Florida ballot guaranteeing access to abortion and effectively overturning the state’s six-week ban. Trump is now a Florida resident and many are unsure how he plans to vote on the amendment. Trump’s stated position on abortion is that it's up to the states. For crass political reasons he has been critical of Florida’s extreme ban. A day ago, Trump flip-flopped, telling Fox News that he would vote NO on the amendment. So what happened in the subsequent twenty-four hours?

Well, the evangelical community and anti-abortion activists went ballistic. They blew up the phone lines to Mar-a-Lago or wherever Trump  was laying his head last week. They argued that Trump’s new stance would depress turnout from his base. Ever since Dobbs, Trump cannot get it right. He watched his slate of hand-picked candidates get mowed down in 2022 and he sees the polls showing large majorities oppose the overturning of Roe v. Wade and the sorts of state and national abortion bans of which Republicans have long dreamed. Trump thought his “leave it to the states” policy would help. It didn’t. Floating the idea of voting for the abortion amendment was another desperate effort to get on the right side of the issue that has cost Republicans nearly every election. This time, Trump crossed a line. The anti-abortion faction of the party told him to reverse course and he did so immediately. One of the core tenets of Trump’s political philosophy is to never, under any circumstances admit to wrongdoing. Heck, Trump doubled, tripled, and quadrupled down on defending and dining with Nazis. So the fact that Trump changed course so quickly and with so little resistance on abortion is quite notable.

[...] These folks will be calling the shots in a Trump Administration. They will influence policy and staffing decisions and that should scare the shit out of anyone who cares about reproductive freedom. Dobbs was the beginning — not the end — of the Far Right’s efforts.

Donald Trump being made to cry “uncle” and say that he is voting no on Florida Amendment 4 after being heavily criticized by anti-abortion commentators when he stated that he would initially consider voting in favor of Amendment 4 is proof that the anti-abortion extremists still call the shots in the GOP.

[mysticstarlightduck]

Roast Your OCs Tag!

Thanks for the tag, @urnumber1star (here)!

Rules: boil your OC down to their barest, most cliche, stereotypical essentials, and phrase it like a headline

Let's go with some of the cast of Grim City Chronicles, my Victorian/Edwardian historical fantasy WIP!

GRIM CITY CHRONICLES

Willem - Anxious seventeen-year-old indentured servant with severe self-esteem issues and a heart of gold, got involved with an insane sorcerer and now doesn't know what to do about the ✨consequences✨

Jesse - Sprightly little boy way too good for this world and who radiates Oliver Twist vibes in the best way

Vince - BREAKING NEWS: Angry local Victorian Era prostitute pretends he doesn't care about anyone other than himself and his cousin. But cares IMMENSELY

Peggy - Seemingly bubbly adorable girl whom everyone thinks is a historical version of a manic pixie girl but is actually much more than that. Also, she loves macabre, gothic things and has a bug collection.

Ilya - Chaotic con-man who also happens to be a musician - loves a good measure of troublemaking chaos and makes it everyone else's problem

Dasha - Hyperactive teenager obsessed with explosives and inventing new machines with clockwork. Will blow something up if too bored.

Gemma - American thief who moved to London and just wanted to have one normal day but ended up caught up in a whole conspiracy with a bunch of other young weirdos instead.

Tagging (gently): @sleepy-night-child, @kaylinalexanderbooks, @smol-feralgremlin, @oh-no-another-idea, @littleladymab,

@winterandwords, @eccaiia, @sarahlizziewrites, @illarian-rambling

@agirlandherquill, @anoelleart, @ray-writes-n-shit

@writernopal, @anyablackwood, @unstablewifiaccess, @forthesanityofstorytellers

@i-can-even-burn-salad, @cakeinthevoid @thecomfywriter

@thepeculiarbird, @clairelsonao3, @memento-morri-writes, @starlit-hopes-and-dreams @amaiguri

@differentnighttale, @leahnardo-da-veggie

[clarynewme]

My initial is A, he/him.

I am from Mumbai, India

My D.O.B is 01st August 2004

Time of birth : 01:37 pm IST

I would like to know about my future spouse.

Thanks

Hi😊 For your reading I am going to use mostly vedic astrology.

In D1 chart aquarius saturn is transiting your 5th house (dating/hobbies/creativity) aspecting your 7th lord mars in leo 11th house (jupiter + mercury) by 7th aspect indicating that you might meet your future spouse or longterm partner this year, but there could be a certain delay or obstacles when it comes to dating and creativity. You might meet this person online, through friends/groups, social networks. This gives me slow burn/serious romance, friends to lovers or online dating. Actually the delay could potentially be that your partner comes from a different background(wealthier than you or have different values or the need to build stability for example) with mars being 2nd lord or you can become friends online and then later meet in person to have a romantic relationship.

With taurus jupiter transiting 8th house aspecting all these placements above it brings abundance, support and optimism helping you guys meet sooner and overcome obstacles in the relationship , mitigate misunderstandings, share interests/goals and values, communicating openly about your feelings fears/traumas, healing, transformation, etc.

MOON CHART (considering moon as rising)

Taurus jupiter is transiting your taurus 5th house bringing abundance in romance/dating/hobbies/creativity/finances/stability/selfworth.

D9 CHART 

In your D9 chart Jupiter in taurus is transiting 12th house saturn aspecting 7th lord scorpio jupiter(10th lord) conjunct sun indicating that your future spouse might be meeting you this year. This meeting might be fated/karmic (soulmate), you might meet each other through dreams, foreign lands, spirituality or in a transformative/healing time. You might grow and work together in service oriented projects, support each other, overcome obstacles related to work, past traumas, daily routine, physical and mental health,etc.

With aquarius saturn transit in 9th house aspecting leo moon in 3rd house and all these placements above this confirms long distance relationship and possibly meeting through higher education or in a foreign country. Your future spouse might be facing challenges related to higher education, travel, learning, communication, emotions, authority figures, mother, siblings, family. You guys might have communication issues, one of you might not open up or know how to express their feelings. (Delays in developing a relationship)

Pisces/virgo rahu/ketu is transiting your 10th/4th house axis so your future spouse might be focusing on her career, trying to balance his personal life with professional life, could be changing jobs or rethinking about his responsibilities, etc.

DASHA/TIME PERIODS

You are currently running rahu-venus dasha from 2022 till 2025 which is great for marriage/meeting spouse (rahu is in your 7th house and venus -> love + significator of spouse for men).

(You actually went through rahu-venus-mars dasha from 19 november 2023 till 22 january 2024; Have you met someone back then? Mars is your 7th lord and Darakaraka -> spouse ).

Right now you are running rahu-venus-jupiter dasha till 28 november 2024 which is a good chance as well to meet your longterm partner (jupiter ->marriage and is conjunct your mars).

You also have good chances next year 2025 specially during rahu-venus-mercury dasha from 19 may till 22 october, mercury is conjunct your mars; gemini jupiter transit in may will be affecting your gemini venus and saturn activating longterm romantic relationships/marriage; Cancer jupiter transit in october will be influencing 7th house from moon chart👀 (you might also gain a lot of success/recognition in your career cause you sun in cancer 10th house in d1 chart)

If you want to know specific time periods(dashas pictures) or more you can DM me. 

NOTE1: Remember that we might have many soulmates and potential long term partners.

SOLAR RETURN

I am going to use solar return of 2024/2025.

From the 7th lord sign and 7th house energy we can see what kind of person you will meet,  probably one of his big 3 placements and how your relationship would be.

You actually have 7th house gemini moon which means this would be a emotional/nurturing connection based on communication, knowledge, learning, working together, exploration, friendship, flexibility, playfulness, etc. She could be close to her mother/family, emotional, charming, nurturing, caring, flirty, creative, communicative, teasing, balanced, fair, possessive, dualistic, complex emotions, restless energy, negotiator/advisor, words of affirmation and physical touch,etc. With moon in 7th house this year you will feel a strong desire to have a longterm relationship.

With 7th lord leo mercury conjunct venus in your 9th house she could be creative, youthful,  beautiful, childlike, wise, spiritual, open minded, supportive, intelligent, creative, nurturing, affectionate, confident, passionate, show off, proud, loud communicator, extroverted, loyal, honest; values freedom, travelling, spirituality, arts, intellectual pursuits, luxury, legacy, family, etc; aloof, arrogant, know it all, egoistic, overindulgence, blunt, overdramatic, need for validation if not managed.

You can have a creative intellectual connection discussing about every topic you wish to learn, share interests. You can do artistic projects together, do spiritual practices, travelling, having fun, learning/studying together, explore the world, being playful, words of affirmation, physical touch and gift giving, etc.

Balance between freedom and partnerships is crucial as well communication and knowing yourselves to overcome misunderstandings and conflicts.

7th lord is aspecting aquarius saturn in 3rd house by 7th house indicating possible communication barriers, misunderstandings, different beliefs, boredom vs creativity/fun, etc.

Finally 7th lord is aspecting taurus mars in 6th house by 10th aspect that could indicate conflicts related to daily routine, work, health, financial stability need to be solved. Service, support and determination are essential in this relationship as well balancing creative goals and practical goals, working creatively in a disciplined, etc.

One of her big 3 placements could be same or opposite sign of 7th lord so aquarius or leo. (if you happen to meet her before your birthday she could have aries/libra)

DARAKARAKA + 7TH LORD D1

In regards to magha mars Darakaraka + 7th lord  in 11th house D1 chart conjunct mercury and purva phalguni jupiter your spouse could embody these characteristics: hot, attractive, energetic, active, creative, spiritual, influential, romantic, diplomat;values heritage, father, family, money, aesthetics, beauty and luxury; beautiful, sensual, affectionate, well dressed, leader, charming, charismatic, passionate, creative, confident,persuasive, generous, assertive, famous, wealthy, regal nature, tricky, unpredictable, flirty, unique ideas, intelligent, dualistic, honest/blunt, loyal, wise, sense of humor, good natured, dramatic, social engaging, proud, loves his friends, egoistic, arrogant, need for validation/recognition, wants to leave a legacy, strong, transformative, intense, supportive, loves sports, fitness and arts, gift giving/receiving, challenge society (rebel), competitive, agressive, loud communicator, know it all, etc.

Mars is aspecting libra/aries ketu/rahu 1st/7th house axis indicating that your future spouse or longterm partner could have unique and unconventional ideas about relationships and the way she expresses herself, desire for public recognition through partnerships. This could cause misunderstandings, lack of balance between personal desires and relationships. This relationship could be very intense and transformative (you could argue/fight a lot due to rahu in aries 7th house).

Lastly mars is aspecting capricorn moon in 4th house by 6th aspect indicating emotional conflicts related to home, family and domestic responsibilities that will need to be solved.

VENUS

Venus is also significator of spouse/marriage (for men mostly), your jmvenis is in mrigashira gemini conjunct ardra rahu in 9th house so your spouse/marriage could embody these characteristics: foreigner or different culture/religion/ethnicity, abundance, optimism, transformative, unconventional, will allow you to grow individually and together as a team; communication and intellectuality, learning how to connect with each other, balancing desires/goals with spiritual/ethic/moral values, challenging society expectations, engaging in philosophical discussions and deep conversations, etc); Your future spouse could be intense, transformative, charming, communicative, sociable, friendly, lucky, fortunate, creative, optimistic,curious, youthful,persuasive, spiritual/religious, tricky, flirty, well educated (have a high education),intelligent, dualistic, honest/blunt, loves travelling/arts/philosophy/adventure/freedom, adventurous, intelligent, seeks the truth, good sense of humor, know it all, use logic to process his emotions, anxious; sibling" rivarly, twinflame, menthor/student, etc.

7TH LORD D9

7th lord in D9 nakshatra and sign could also show future spouse characteristics and how will be the marriage.

You have 7th lord sun in scorpio jyestha conjunct Anuradha rahu in 6th house there is an emphasis on emotions, transformation, loyalty, stability, intensity, karmic, finances/shared resources, passion, intimacy, spirituality, recognition, daily routine, health, healing, work and creativity in this connection. Spouse can be wealthy, supportive, intelligent, generous, secretive, overgiving, emotional but hides them, intense, passionate, ambitious, stable, mature, loyal, hardworking, assertive, good advisor, organized, service oriented, investigator, curious about occult, talented, creative, intuitive, psychic, dualistic, health conscious, compassionate, agressive, competitive, jealous, possessive, stubborn, overindulgence, neatfreak, need for validation, etc.

APPEARANCE + CAREER + SYMBOLISM

When it comes to appearance fs would have masculine features; strong jawline; large defined hips/butt; prominent hair/forehead/ankles/calves/legs/chest/lips; strong bone structure; youthful appearance; angular/sharp features; pouty features; tattoos; piercings; average to tall height; muscular or defined body;  have reddish or dark features; hot; unique/exotic or exagerated features (ex:large eyes), different culture maybe; thin defined/muscular legs; etc (You can find more from Camila Regina tiktok🤌)

For your future spouse career I am trying out this tecnique the 10th sign from 7th lord in D1 or D9 could indicate possible fields: 

D1 Taurus: so anything related to banking, real estate, culinary arts, beauty, wellness, music, performing arts, luxury, retail, garneing, horticulture, agriculture, farming, finances, law, management, creative arts, entrepreneur, education, etc

D9 Leo (moon): so anything related to leadership, sports/athletics, politics, healthcare, marketing, sales, travel, tourism, real estate, media and communication, government, military, law, creative arts, design, hospitality, events, entertainment, performing arts, psychology, counselling, business, spirituality, education, entrepreneur,  boss,  etc

Regarding your meeting, pay attention to symbolisms of these signs: 

Cancer: mother, family, home, house, crab, lake, lobster, car, showing up at your house, food, restaurant, hospital,nursing, foster home, baby, child, etc.

Aquarius: color aqua, waterfall, watercarrier, spirituality,  tarot, astrology, Internet, technology, online, science, sea animals, dam, arts, accident, sudden, Electricity, aquarium, social media, groups, friends, etc.

Sagittarius: horse, arrow, Bow, education, travel, foreign, OK cupid, shooting, spirituality, museum, adventure, risk, philosophy, culture, college, etc.

NOTE2:  cancer from vedic chart ; aquarius 2x; sagittarius from tropical chart

(This technique is by Camila Regina on tiktok💗)

Vedic Astrology placements D1/D9 (includes atmakaraka AK):

Aquarius/Leo/Gemini/Sagittarius/Capricorn/Cancer/Scorpio/Taurus

Mars,Sun,ketu , jupiter, mercury, saturn, moon nakshatras/influence

Okay I think I am done😅 I hope you like this reading if you do leave feedback on my page🙏 And let me know if it resonates👌it helps improving my readings🫶💜

[daria-dam1enlover]

RU: Рубрика "взорвать жопу противникам селфшиппинга" начнется через 3...2...1...

Бум!

Я уже несколько недель горю идеей создать, так скажем "законного" дитя для Даши и Дамиена и сегодня я смогла поработать над концептом (!!!КОНЦЕПТОМ!!!) этапов взросления их дочери (как вы видите на схеме семейного древа, я решила назвать её Мари). У меня уже есть несколько идея для полноценных артов с этим чудесным ребёночком :D (даже планирую коллаб с моей интернет подругой селфшипперкой), так что ждите))

Из новостей: завтра иду к психологине, готовиться к поступлению в колледж и проработать свои бесконечные ссоры с семьёй (я была у неё и раньше по поводу проблем с пищевым поведением и честно очень рада вернуться на терапию:3)

Также небольшое примечание: я составляла образ Мари основываясь на том, как вела себя, что бы выбрала в этом возрасте, как бы одевалась и тд. ЛИЧНО Я. Я не хочу поддерживать какие-либо стереотипы или что-то в этом роде, просто я брала пример с себя, так как я прошла практически все эти стадии (не считая 20 лет), но зато вспомнила, как тогда вела себя моя старшая сестра (кстати, это платье я тоже позаимствовала у неё, когда она выпускалась из школы :D)

Если у вас есть вопросы касаемо Мари, не стесняйтесь задавать их, мне будет интересно рассказать о ней поподробнее))

ENG: The heading "blow up the asses of opponents of selfshipping" will begin in 3...2...1...

Boom!

I have been burning with the idea of creating, so to speak, a "legitimate" child for Dasha and Damien for several weeks now, and today I was able to work on the concept (!!!A CONCEPT!!!) the stages of their daughter's growing up (as you can see in the diagram of the family tree, I decided to name her Marie). I already have some ideas for full-fledged art with this wonderful baby :D (I'm even planning a collaboration with my online friend selfshipper), so wait))

From the news: tomorrow I'm going to a psychologist to prepare for college and work out my endless quarrels with my family (I've been to her before about eating problems and I'm honestly very glad to return to therapy:3)

Also a small note: I made up the image of Marie based on how I behaved, what I would choose at that age, how I would dress, and so on. PERSONALLY, I. I don't want to maintain any stereotypes or anything like that, I just took an example from myself, since I went through almost all these stages (not counting 20 years), but I remembered how my older sister behaved then (btw, I also take this dress from her, when she graduated from school :D)

If you have any questions about Marie, feel free to ask them, it'll be interesting for me to tell you more about her))

[scarlet--wiccan]

I’m starting to read Wanda’s comics and I’m a bit confused by Marya and Django’s story. I know that they are her adoptive parents- but what happened to them? They were attacked and Django died but Marya survived?

I know there are a few twists and surprises, but I feel like this shouldn't be that confusing. It's all spelled out very clearly on the Marvel wiki, if you need a quick summary, and, just as a reminder, I do have a reading guide linked in my blog directory that's designed to walk you through when and where Wanda's backstory was established.

In the current version of canon, Marya and Django Maximoff are Wanda and Pietro's maternal aunt and uncle-- Django's sister, Natalya, is their birth mother. Django and Marya raised the twins from birth, as Natalya felt that her life as a witch was too dangerous, however, the family's location was given to the High Evolutionary by a local priest, and the children were abducted and taken to Mount Wundagore. Natalya apparently died while attempting to stage a rescue, but the circumstances of her death are still a mystery, and the twins were eventually returned to Django and Marya's care.

When Wanda and Pietro were young adolescents, the family was attacked by a racist mob and the covered wagon they lived in was set on fire. The children were separated from their guardians and believed them both to be dead. As a result of this trauma, they both experienced selective amnesia. Django and Marya were separated from each other, and Django was struck on the head, apparently causing memory problems which persisted for the rest of his life. Marya was severely burned, resulting in facial disfigurement.

As young adults, Wanda and Pietro are reunited with Django, who had been living in Russia, but comes to New York to find them after seeing the Avengers in a newspaper. They agree to return with him to Transia to learn more about their past and recover their memories. Upon arriving, Wanda is accosted by Modred and taken to Mount Wundagore, where she is possessed by Chthon for the first time. Django helps Pietro and the Avengers rescue her, but passes away shortly after. [Avengers (1963) #181-188]

Django never reveals Natalya's identity, and they never realize that the couple who raised them were their aunt and uncle. Some time later, the twins are approached by Magneto, who believes that he is their biological father, and so Wanda and Pietro spend most of their adult lives believing that they are the children of Max and his late wife, Magda. [Vision & Scarlet Witch (1983)] Years later, after discovering that this is not true, Wanda makes contact with Natalya's spirit for the first time, and returns to Europe to dig up more information on her family's history. Her search leads her to an old friend of Natalya's named Dasha, who reveals to Wanda that Marya actually survived the fire and is now living in a remote part of Serbia. Wanda drives out to meet Marya, and the two share a tearful reunion as Marya finally explains the full truth of Wanda and Pietro's origins. [Scarlet Witch (2016)]

And that is the current state of Wanda and Pietro's parentage-- they were raised by their maternal aunt and uncle, but the family was separated when the twins were still kids. Everybody survived, but Marya and Django each thought the other was dead and the twins, who experienced trauma-induced amnesia, believed they were orphans. Django died years later after reuniting with Wanda and Pietro, and Marya, by all accounts, is still alive.

[deadcactuswalking]

REVIEWING THE CHARTS: 09/11/2024 (The Weeknd & Anitta, Tyler the Creator)

Gracie Abrams snabs her first UK #1 this week with “That’s So True”, which just two weeks ago debuted at #19 and is now, thanks to special discounted sales, topping the chart, usurping Gigi Perez’s “Sailor Song” after just one week. As for what’s below, we have a cooler week so welcome back to REVIEWING THE CHARTS!

content warning: language, references to sex, weapons, daddy issues and prostitution

Rundown

As always, we start the episode with our notable dropouts, those being songs exiting the UK Top 75, which is what I cover, after five weeks in the region or a peak in the top 40. This week, we bid adieu to not only all of the Halloween tracks, which aren’t really worth listing – you know them all by now and they’ll be back last week next year – but also a set of duos: Liam Payne’s solo cuts, “For You” (Fifty Shades Freed) with Rita Ora and “Strip that Down” featuring Quavo, two tracks falling victim to arbitrary UK chart rules: “Noid” by Tyler, the Creator and “Pink Pony Club” by Chappell Roan, more on those later, and Coldplay having both “WE PRAY” with Little Simz, Burna Boy, Elyanna and TINI and “feelslikeimfallinginlove” drop off this week. Other than that, we say our farewells to “Mantra” by JENNIE and “You & Me” by Disclosure featuring Eliza Doolittle: a lot of good songs making their exits this week, sadly.

Now, what’s making up for all that? We have a few gains and four strong new entries to pick through later in the episode. As for our returns… well, it’s a slow week in November, meaning we begin our annual thawing of Christmas music, starting with “Last Christmas” by Wham! at #61 and “All I Want for Christmas is You” by Mariah Carey at #58. From this point on, these episodes may be shorter and forcedly more festive. We also see a spike in older tracks returning once again, amidst some newer tracks, with the list as follows: “Dreams” by Fleetwood Mac at #75, “Belong Together” by Mark Ambor at #72, “Yellow” by Coldplay at #71, “Scared to Start” by Michael Marcagi at #70, “Iris” by the Goo Goo Dolls at #68, “Mr. Brightside” by The Killers at #67, “NEW DROP” by Don Toliver at #64 and perhaps most notably, “labour” by indie-folk one-hit-wonder Paris Paloma at #62. It peaked at #29 in 2023 the same week Ed Sheeran’s “Eyes Closed” debuted at #1, and due in part to its feminist themes, as well as fitting a wave of more emotionally open folk-pop from women on the charts, it has had a resurgence that I can’t really complain about – I didn’t remember the song but on relisten, I still like it, perhaps more than I did back then. Turns out in my old review for it that I almost predicted a similar trend to what is actually happening on the charts right now with a larger focus on organic, 2010s-resembling indie and folk-pop having a larger moment. Maybe I don’t always bullshit my way through these episodes – and, hey, she still has the time to launch a second track on the charts, it’s an opportune time for her.

There are some noteworthy gains here too, many of which have also been here a while, such as “Riptide” by Vance Joy at #65, unfortunately, “Slow it Down” by Benson Boone at #60, “The Days” by Chrystal at #55, “The Sound of Silence” by Disturbed at #54, “What Makes You Beautiful” by One Direction at #53, “I Only Smoke When I Drink” by nimino at #52, “TOO COOL TO BE CARELESS” by PAWSA at #51, “Burning Down” by Alex Warren at #50, “Heavy is the Crown” by Linkin Park at #49, “Don’t Dream it’s Over” by Crowded House at #48, “I Had Some Help” by Post Malone and Morgan Wallen at #46, “Austin (Boots Stop Workin’)” by Dasha at 42, “Close to You” by Gracie Abrams at #41 (she’s really having a moment right now and it’s beyond me as to why), then “Stargazing” by Myles Smith at #29, “The Emptinesss Machine” by Linkin Park at #28, “Lose Control” by Teddy Swims at #26, “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” by Shaboozey at #25 – I will say that sometimes it’s disheartening to see so many long-term hits rebound just as there should be a winter shake-up. Not that the newer tracks are any fit to replace them, with “Timeless” by The Weeknd and Playboi Carti at #21, sigh, but also “Bad Dreams” by Teddy Swims at #15 as he grabs a second top 10 with “The Door” at #8, a song that has grown on me a lot since my review, and finally, just on the cusp of that region is Billie Eilish’s fantastic “WILDFLOWER” at #11, which I think will be able to make it there in the next few weeks.

In terms of our top five, we already know about Gracie and Gigi’s folk-pop songs switching places at #1, but we also see Chappell Roan hit a new peak with “HOT TO GO!” at #5 and there’s a woman playing at least co-lead on every track here, as Abrams’ “I Love You, I’m Sorry” sticks to #4 and “APT.” by ROSÉ and Bruno Mars is down to #3. I’m not sure if that’s a significant stat considering the political climate, but it’s something. You know what’s not… women?

New Entries

#69 – “One by One” – Central Cee

Produced by Cash Cobain

Okay, let’s get the needed waffle out of the way: this was initially promoted with the live performance on A COLORS SHOW, which genuinely has so little distinctly different from the official version that it may have just assumed that role instead. This beat samples Bryson Tiller’s 2015 track “For However Long”, which itself cribs from Jodeci’s “Alone” from back in 1993. Neither were released as singles, and both in eras where that actually mattered, so they never charted. What I most want to acknowledge in this is the top one slizzer, the Slizzy God, Cash Cobain, finally making his official dent on the top 75 after having influenced Jordan Adetunji’s “KEHLANI” earlier this year. As briefly discussed in the review for that, sexy drill, slizzy drill, whatever you wish to deem it, is a niche subgenre pioneered by Cash and surrounding artists like Chow Lee, PoWR Trav, wolfacejoeyy, etc. out of New York and taking a more melodic, R&B-sampling approach to that city’s burgeoning drill music. The lyrics are sexual, the vocals are dripping wet with meek Auto-Tune, and the beats have a certain constant underlying tension to them due to the drum patterns and mostly shoddy mixing. This year has been big for the genre thanks mostly to “KEHLANI” and, ahem, “Grippy”, and I’ve become somewhat of a scholar just because it’s a fun scene with often recognisable samples and funny lines or deliveries that creep up on you on multiple listens because they’re not immediately obvious or practically mumbled. I for one have been hypnotised by Cash Cobain’s debut solo album, PLAY CASH COBAIN, practically since release.

One thing Cench definitely isn’t is subtle or saying anything you won’t notice on first listen, given his crass delivery, but that perfectly fits with the shoddy bass master and chipmunk sample, and he leaves a similar amount of empty space, given the lack of ad-libs originating from the fact it was originally published as a live performance, so it functions perfectly fine as a sexy drill song, and is actually enhanced and made unique by Cench’s presence, as his lyrics actually have genuine attempts at multisyllabic rhymes and clever wordplay, unlike most slizzy drillers who rely on comically autopilot sex raps, not that this is a bad thing, but Cench is also just really funny here! He threatens those who are tweeting at him to log out of their account whilst also saying that he bought the PS4 and scented candles to his trap to help make it “homely” which is hilarious… though I guess Cench can’t even get a PS5. He seems to be slightly disdained, but not particularly, about not being able to watch Disney Channel but SPECIFICALLY The Suite Life of Zack & Cody – I question if that’s much of a loss – and that is all in the chorus. It does help that Cench’s flow, whilst mostly the same throughout, brings a typically British mouthful to a genre that is otherwise “less is more”, whilst still shouting out New York, as well as comparing himself to Jason Derulo and… Tyga, saying he had “young money”… I’m not sure if even he is aware of the other meaning there because I’m not sure he would have kept the lyric in otherwise. My favourite part of the whole song, which feels not like a mockery of the genre but him being very ridiculous over it, is when he starts the second verse by just listing the weapons he would own not only if he didn’t live in the UK, but in different time periods, because if he lived in the Stone Age, he would have had a spear. Great. Thanks, Cench. This is the kind of humour and unique production I found appealing before he started to succumb to the pressure of trends and virality, and I’m glad to see it back even if briefly. Let’s hope he locks in on the album.

#47 – “Casual” – Chappell Roan

Produced by Dan Nigro and Ryan Linvill

I’ve long been frustrated with not really connecting to Chappell Roan’s singles from The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess that have charted, often for small nitpicks of reasons that have to do with the production or structure not functioning as well as they could to uphold the strong writing and a narrative connection I often resonated with or appreciated to some degree. I’m glad that this one has actually been the one to click really well. That could be found in the lighthearted conceit of it all that speaks to deeper issues: the comical framing of her hanging with a potential romantic partner in a more platonic way and asking at what point during their sexual and more wholesome intimacy is it still a casual and not long-term relationship? That all gathers, through a droopy 80s synth and gated drums, a wave of distrust and disappointment about her girlfriend’s lack of commitment, and as the descriptions of sex get more intense and vivid, as well as the mental health sacrifices Chappell’s making for her girlfriend’s family get revealed, the longing turns into a hateful frustration, a bitterness that arises in large part to the expectations Chappell has coming into a relationship that she acknowledges aren’t only unfounded but perhaps unrealistic, shaming herself for them in the second verse for giving into “dumb love”. It has a more reasonable and less unlikeable bitterness than “Good Luck, Babe!”, no production issues that deweight its impact like “Red Wine Supernova” and the writing actually progresses quite sensationally towards the outro, unlike the somewhat muddled “Pink Pony Club”, so I think aside from the dumb fun of “HOT TO GO!”, this is the first of hers to really stick with me, and definitely elevates above that song, even if the core conceit isn’t too dissimilar. If I had one issue, it’s that I get too connected with the narrative that the effective, disappointed self-blame hits too close and makes me want to hear much more about how this relationship actually ends. If that’s not effective songwriting, I don’t know what it is.

#33 – “Like Him” – Tyler, the Creator featuring Lola Young

Produced by Tyler, the Creator

Out of all songs from CHROMAKOPIA to swap out “Noid” with, I did not expect the late-album ballad, if anything I assumed we’d see one of the bangers, like “Rah Tah Tah” or especially “Sticky” with Sexyy Red, GloRilla and Lil Wayne. I’m not complaining though, because this is one of the best songs of the year, it’s heartbreaking and I cannot do it justice. It’s not all doom and gloom, of course, as Tyler inserts some comedy in it as always, whether it be the “huh?” he slides in from what sounds like a shoddily-EQ’d Baby Keem sample but I stand corrected if he actually went in the studio to record a few sounds, or the intro, wherein Tyler’s mother Bonita compares Tyler to his father, setting up the “Like Him” theme but also listing every point of comparison on his body before she gets cut off. That kind of bittersweet, slight ironic humour comes with the familial territory the song otherwise works in, with the track acting as a bit of a plea to Bonita: if he’s so like him, why doesn’t he know who he is, or where he is? Where is Tyler’s father in his life? It’s a question that T has been struggling with for much of his career with constant references and some full songs directed to his absence like “Answer”, which is particularly potent in retrospect considering this song is full of questions.

Starting with sombre pianos and a frail high-register performance from Tyler, who sings for all of the track, it eventually develops into a progressive soul track backed by harmonies from British singer Lola Young and a gorgeous soaring guitar in the back and the detailed soundscape you should expect from one of Tyler’s slow jams, that fuzzy synth coating in particular contrasting with the breathless gasps that appear all across the album. You also have the chorus accentuated with what sounds like Bonita herself chiming in with “Like what?”, acknowledging the role she played with the absence of Tyler’s father, which is expanded upon firstly in the second verse, wherein Tyler croons directly to her, with a great pause before he delves into how everything worked out and there may even be a sense of guilt there that Tyler is still on the hopeless chase for something he never had and won’t ever need – hence all the empty gaps left in the production. It resonates particularly hard for me, not that I’m in this specific situation, but as someone without a father figure in adulthood, I can relate to the idea of having something inexplicably missing there that you just kind of have to fill in for yourself. The most potent point is that incredible bridge, wherein Tyler stops the question at simply, “Do I look?”, asking his mother whether it’s worthwhile searching for either his father or that part of him that’s missing due to his absence, before a glance of piano and a vacant hole failingly filled in by Baby Keem pre-empting a wraparound of synths climaxing the song with utter defiance. In his third, improvised-sounding verse, spent mostly in the mix as backing vocals, he half-raps about his devotion to his mother but simultaneously, the insistence that he doesn’t “look like him”, because he’s everything HE wanted himself to be, and even with how abrupt Lola Young’s belting ends, you still get the time to chew on that dynamic… before that crushing outro, a home recording of his mother apologising for her involvement in keeping Tyler’s father out of his life, a plea from her for forgiveness over an off-tune bass note and cascading keys that really tugs at the heartstrings as someone who’s followed Tyler’s career and knows just how common and meaningful this topic is to him. Hell, it even wraps up the closure Tyler desperately seeks on the album, and leads into another banger in “Balloon” that, in many ways, is a middle finger to what a father figure could have brought into his life, that being restriction, tradition and hypermasculinity. Once again, it’s a brilliant song from a brilliant album, I wouldn’t be surprised if we get yet another switcheroo but I’d be delighted to have this one stick around. It is a wonder of a song.

#22 – “São Paulo” – The Weeknd and Anitta

Produced by The Weeknd, MIKE DEAN and Sean Solymar

Named after the Brazilian city that he premiered the track in, this new single with co-star Anitta, a massive singer in her own right in Latin America, is in some ways an embracing of Brazilian funk, which has been having a viral surge creeping up in the western world and having major influence on western artists now after years of it soundtracking the country’s cities. This song in particular is probably the widest western audience funk mandelão will ever get, and it’s not compromising either! It’s not as minimal as what you may hear from the genre, but it’s got the raw aggression of the rough cheap synths and the bass-heavy rumble manned by an oddly-mixed Anitta who, despite the genre being so in your face, feels about as far away from the party as possible even when you translate her stuttering, Auto-Tuned chanting to English and realise just how filthy it is. In fact, that’s my main problem with the song: as much as it embraces the genre, it seems way too distant as an overall piece from the actual fun, and sexiness, that this genre could be used for, with Abel on a murmuring autopilot once again – he sounds so sick of even opening his mouth this whole album cycle so far – and drenched in a reverb that echoes him out of the immediacy this production needs, with his sexual lyrics not prompting anything all too interesting either.

I like the chaotic sample brought in to an almost off-beat bridge but that all leads to what should be a promising second half… and ends up just trailing off. The Weeknd somehow ends up both robotic and out-of-breath – I’m not accusing it of being AI because it absolutely sounds human, but that’s also how I would describe what happens when you filter high-pitch vocals through AI and it gets all glitched out, losing breath, life and also clarity like Abel does here. I do enjoy the sly reference of the prostitute being “desensitised with money” and him needing to pay for his pleasure with work of his own, but outside of a burst into a drop that fails to really make much impact thanks to MIKE DEAN’s wankery souring the party, I’m unsure to what point any of the song’s second half serves that the first didn’t. It’s not the worst of his singles from this album so far, but it’s the one that tests your patience the most and honestly shows the most frustrating potential. Sadly, trying isn’t exactly on the agenda for the team behind this final album, and I hope the album gives me at least something to latch onto, unless, and I fear I might be correct, this is part of a narrative that involves losing interest in the “Weeknd” persona and shedding that baggage away. I suppose we’ll just have to see.

Conclusion

I suppose it has to get Worst of the Week, given that it’s the only dent on an otherwise above-average set of tracks this week, though Tyler, the Creator still blasts them all out of the water so he grabs Best of the Week easily with “Like Him” featuring Lola Young. As for the Honourable Mention, choose your gender, and as for what’s on the horizon… I don’t know, JLS? Who cares? Thank you for reading, rest in peace to Nipsey Hussle, and I’ll see you next week!