#but! i did have to rework most of it so its only a lil cheating

[echo-goes-mmm]

Old Friends Finale

Masterpost

Previous

Note: Charlie, the doctor, uses they/them pronouns.

Warnings: death

They tumbled into the Dark, wrestling with each other in the black.

Laith could see Nightclaw, grayscale against the infinite expanse of pure void, but it was clear after a moment that Master was completely blind.

“You stupid bitch,” he snarled. Laith dodged a wild swing of his blade; it came down a scant inch from where his head was a mere second before.

He struggled against Master’s weight pinning him down. With Nightclaw unable to see, he finally had an advantage.

Laith wiggled out of Nightclaw’s grip, his pure rage and frustration making him sloppy.

He scrambled out of reach, and Nightclaw stumbled to his feet.

“Where are you?!” Master shrieked, swinging his blade into the empty.

Nightclaw suddenly stood up straight, eyes still searching uselessly into the black. He dropped his blade arm to rest at his side.

“Darling…” he cooed, voice soft and sing-song, “I know you’re still there.”

Laith didn’t dare draw a breath as Nightclaw’s eyes passed over him.

“I’m not mad,” lied Master. “Take us back, sweetheart. I promise I won’t punish you.”

Laith said nothing.

Nightclaw suddenly cried out, not in anger, but in pain. He dropped the dagger entirely, and fell to his knees.

Laith didn’t know what happened to people when they were left in the Dark. Some sick part of him wanted to find out.

Nightclaw’s hands pressed against his head, as if some great migraine was pulsing in his brain. He gasped, eyes wide open, and against the grayscale, Laith saw black void stream from his eyes.

It flowed off his jaw and into the Dark.

Master kept screaming, even as his eyes completely turned to pitch and his mouth began to drip.

“Laith! Help me!” he called out, desperate. “Please!”

He still said nothing, frozen in horror. Dark spilled over Master's lips.

“LAITH!” 

___________________

“LAITH!” Theo screamed, but he was too late. Laith and Nightclaw were gone.

He frantically turned in circles, searching for any sign of them. They couldn’t have gone far, not with Laith’s condition.

“LAITH!”

Mateo and Beatrice finally caught up with him.

“What happened?” Mateo demanded.

“Look for them,” he ordered, “hurry!”

They flew up into the sky, scanning the city.

“There!” Beatrice called, pointing in the distance. She dived down, scooped Theo up under the arms, and they moved in a blur.

Laith sat on the concrete, hands over his mouth. He was rocking back and forth, eyes wild. There was blood spatter on his clothes, too much to only be his.

Beatrice put him on the ground and Theo raced towards Laith. She hung back, and Mateo hovered above her.

Theo put his hands on Laith’s shoulders.

“Laith, where’s Nightclaw?”

Laith didn’t seem to hear him. Tears streamed down his cheeks. His pupils swallowed up most of the vibrant purple of his eyes, pure horror and panic in his face.

“Laith!” Theo shook him by the shoulders. Laith’s eyes snapped to Theo, as if just now realizing he was there.

“Where’s Nightclaw, Laith?”

“He’s- he’s gone,” whispered Laith, trembling. “I killed him.”

Theo inhaled sharply.

“Oh god,” moaned Laith, “I killed him!”

Laith turned away, vomiting onto the street. Theo rubbed his back as he retched.

Beatrice approached, and Theo shot her a pleading look. She held up her hands, and Theo knew she understood.

“Where’s the body?” she asked, quiet.

Laith shuddered. “I left him behind. In the Dark.”

“The Dark?” she gently prodded.

“It’s… it’s where I go. When I use my powers.”

Theo remembered the dark cold Laith brought them through when they escaped Nightclaw. He wasn’t aware it was a place, but then again, he never thought about it. 

He filed away a note to ask Laith exactly how his powers worked.

“You killed Nightclaw and left him in the Dark?”

“N-no, I-” Laith scrubbed a hand over his face. “I- I took him there- and- and I got him off of me and… the Dark did the rest.”

“Go on,” Theo encouraged.

Laith shook his head and wrapped his arms around himself, clearly unwilling to say more.

Theo was suddenly very grateful that Laith was the type to value human life. He’d make the perfect assassin if he wanted to.

Theo, Beatrice, and Mateo exchanged looks. “Am I under arrest?” Laith asked wearily.

“No,” said Mateo, his voice firm. 

“It was self defense,” agreed Beatrice. “And I don't think any jury would convict you anyway.”

“Okay.”

Laith sounded so tired, and his frame was so small. Theo put a gentle hand on his shoulder, attempting to comfort.

“What do you want to do?” he asked, quiet.

Laith leaned into his leg, something Theo was sure he’d never do a mere few hours ago.

“I don’t know,” he mumbled. “He’s really just… gone.”

Theo empathized. Laith hadn’t said how long he was under Nightclaw’s boot, but it was long enough that he must feel directionless without him.

“You could come back with us,” suggested Mateo. “We have room.”

Laith turned to look at him, blinking slowly. “I’m not a hero,” he said slowly, as if he thought Mateo was an idiot. “ And I’m not exactly useful.”

“You don’t have to be,” assured Theo.

Laith stood up, legs shaky. “That’s not how the world works,” he protested weakly.

Beatrice and Mateo gave each other a look.

“Who cares?” she shrugged.

“I care!” Laith’s leg went out from under him, and Theo caught him under the arms.

“Do you think I can just-” he waved a hand around, wincing, “-stick around and, what, hope you don’t do something to me? That’s not how any of this works! Not out there, not in prison, not anywhere!”

Theo slung Laith’s arm around his shoulders, and he didn’t struggle despite his outburst.

Laith panted, tears dripping off his bruised jaw.

“Fine then. I guess you’ll just be our prisoner,” said Mateo, strangely nonchalant. Beatrice stepped away from him, shock on her face. Theo gaped at him, and Laith nodded as if his point was proven.

“You’ll have to get used to regular meals and healthcare, though. It’s policy for such horrible criminals like you,” continued Mateo, and Theo caught on. 

Beatrice smacked Mateo on the shoulder. Mateo winced. “Ow!” He rubbed at the spot. 

Laith tilted his head back to look at the sky. “Fuck you guys,” he said, without any bite.

Theo took that as a yes.

___________________

Charlie was thrilled to finally have a permanent roommate in the complex, but it was months before Laith fully ventured out of his corner of the base for more than a quick shower.

Theo wasn’t sure if it was from embarrassment, resentment, or both.

But now, he often tinkered in Theo’s shop. Sometimes he even offered to assist if he was in a good mood.

Theo occasionally caught him reading in a corner, or cooking in the kitchen. Laith made a mean lasagna and worked wonders with just beans and rice. Things that Theo wouldn’t have guessed he cared to do.

On the other hand, he still flinched at most touches and unexpected company, and small static shocks could send him spiraling into panic.

Theo installed a humidifier and removed the carpets to minimize the zaps, and everyone made sure not to accidentally sneak up on each other. Honestly, they should have taken care of that earlier anyway.

Laith also hated surprises, preferred quiet, and was always there to help Charlie patch the team up.

It worked for them. Laith wasn’t in the field, but no one would argue he wasn’t part of the team.

___________________

“Hey,” greeted Theo, grabbing a mug from the cabinets. Laith was making some pasta. Pesto, from the looks of the sauce gently bubbling on the stove.

“Nope,” Laith shook his head, “not sharing.”

“Do I look like Charlie?”

Laith snorted.

Theo filled the mug with water and put it in the microwave. Mateo got onto him about making tea in the microwave, but honestly Theo couldn’t taste the difference that he insisted was there.

The microwave dinged, and Theo plopped in the teabag.

“I’m setting a timer for three minutes,” he warned Laith.

“Thanks.”

Laith drained the pasta, and poured the noodles into the pan of sauce. He folded the pasta into the sauce, sprinkling it with the good parm.

The timer went off.

Theo took out the teabag and dumped in two heaping teaspoons of sugar. He stirred it and took a sip. Laith grabbed a fork and started eating right out of the pan. A habit of his; to avoid cleaning more dishes. Something about wasting water, even though Theo had made a very efficient dishwasher for the kitchen.

“Hey,” said Theo, putting his mug down on the counter. “Are we friends?”

Laith stabbed some more pasta with his fork.

“What are you talking about?”

Theo shrugged. “I was just wondering.” He picked up his tea again. He tried not to be disappointed as he sipped at it.

Laith rolled his eyes. “Yeah we’re friends. You think I just stick around for the free room and board?”

Theo smiled at him. 

“Sap,” scoffed Laith.

Theo took another sip of his sugary tea, as Laith shoveled more pasta into his mouth like a starving man.

Laith had called him sentimental, naive, soft-hearted, and a sap, more times than he could count.

It was Laith-speak for love, a substitute for the ‘I-care-about-yous’. Just like how ‘don’t die’ really meant ‘please be careful’.

Laith rinsed out the pan before putting it in the dishwasher and leaving.

Theo watched him go. He finished his tea, closing his eyes.

He replayed it in his mind. “Yeah, we’re friends.”

Theo smiled to himself.

He’d always been a sucker for happy endings.

taglist: @paintedpigeon1 @loserwithsyle @cepheusgalaxy @ohwrite

[deadcactuswalking]

REVIEWING THE CHARTS: 23/01/2021 (Anne-Marie, Juice WRLD, Young Thug)

The site I use for this show has refused to update – which is fine, it’s probably run by one guy and/or their bots – which means I had to go on the UK Singles Chart page from the Official Charts Company for information, and man, I hate that site. Anyway, despite a big #2 debut and a big remix at #3, “drivers license” by Olivia Rodrigo stays steady at #1 for a second week, which shows us a little sliver of how much longevity this song could have – and it’s good too, so I’m glad. Anyway, time for more apathy. Let’s start REVIEWING THE CHARTS.

Rundown

I feel like, especially recently, debuts don’t really stick at all. We have many songs gradually falling below the chart this week, and they place into either two categories: songs that I wished would go away already, and songs that debuted last week. Out of the debuts from last week still on the chart, we have three notable gains and four of the opposite, making this actually an okay week for debuts, but it still feels like people have not got time for new music right now, which is honestly understandable. Out of those debuts, “Streets” by Doja Cat surges up to #20, “Notorious” by Bugzy Malone and Chip drops to #39, “Best Friend” by Saweetie featuring Doja Cat is down to #42, “Regardless” by RAYE and Rudimental unfortunately is up to #51, alongside an even more unfortunate gain for “Chemtrails Over the Country Club” by Lana Del Rey at #58 (Please, don’t make this a hit). That’s it for gains for our debuts last week, as “Vibez” by ZAYN couldn’t even gain from an album boost down to #62 and “WW2” by Unknown T makes the expected second-week drill dive to #63. Our other gains aren’t much to discuss either, although I’ll admit I actually kind of like “You’re Mines Still” by Yung Bleu and remixed by Drake up to #47 (I do really want to see this as a hit). I don’t like, however, the two deep house pastiches at #15 and #16, “Goosebumps” by HVME and “The Business” by Tiesto. What’s even worse is that “Goosebumps”, a remix of Travis Scott’s song, now has a Travis Scott remix, so that remix remix could land this in the top 10 next week. What might not be is also a remix: “34+35” by Ariana Grande featuring Doja Cat and Megan Thee Stallion up to #3. It was doing okay before the remix so it could stay here but I don’t see the remix as a replacement for the original so it could falter from #3. Of course, we do have other notable fallers, mostly pointless to list and a couple weeks too long on the chart, so I’ll split it into two once again: “Go away, please” and “Go away, but maybe later”. In the first category, we have “Whoopty” by CJ at #9, “Blinding Lights” by The Weeknd at #23, “Head & Heart” by Joel Corry and MNEK at #25, “Mood” by 24kGoldn and iann dior at #28, “positions” by Ariana Grande at #33, “Midnight Sky” by Miley Cyrus at #41, “See Nobody” by Wes Nelson and Hardy Caprio at #48. “Someone You Loved” by Lewis Capaldi at #52, “Lonely” by Justin Bieber and benny blanco at #53, “Watermelon Sugar” by Harry Styles at #54, “Looking for Me” by Paul Woodford, Diplo and Kareen Lomax at #55, “Take You Dancing” by Jason Derulo at #64, “Diamonds” by Sam Smith at #67, “Tick Tock” by Clean Bandit, Mabel and 24kGoldn at #72 and “Lasting Lover” by Sigala and James Arthur at #74. I like a fair few of these songs but I’d like some new blood in the charts, like the second category of songs that seem to have started dropping out prematurely: “Therefore I Am” by Billie Eilish at #22, “Loading” by Central Cee at #25, “What You Know Bout Love” by the late Pop Smoke at #45, “Forever Young” by Becky Hill at #57, “Plugged In” by Fumez the Engineer and A92 at #59, “champagne problems” by Taylor Swift at #65, “Body” by Megan Thee Stallion at #68, “pov” by Ariana Grande at #70, “Love is a Compass” by Griff at #71 and, finally, since I only cover the top 75, “Your New Boyfriend” by Wilbur Soot at #73. We have one return here, and that’s for a song that’s a couple years old but from a new star: Olivia Rodrigo’s “All I Want” returning to #32, from the High School Musical: The Musical: The Series: The Soundtrack which I had assumed was new initially but did peak at #72 prior to this. The song’s fine, but I don’t review returning entries, and honestly it’s even more of a Disney teen-pop ballad that “drivers license” is, so I don’t find much point in making exceptions. Note to self to edit the drop-outs in whenever you know what they are.

Edit: The notable drop-outs are “HOLIDAY” by Lil Nas X, “Princess Cuts” by Headie One featuring Young T & Bugsey, “no body, no crime” by Taylor Swift featuring HAIM, “Ain’t it Different” by Headie One featuring AJ Tracey and Stormzy, “Savage Love (Laxed - Siren Beat)” by Jason Derulo and Jawsh 685, “Show Out” by Kid Cudi, Skepta and the late Pop Smoke, and “Dreams” by Fleetwood Mac.

NEW ARRIVALS

#60 – “Friday (Dopamine Re-Edit)” – Riton and Nightcrawlers featuring Mufasa & Hypeman

Produced by Riton

“Push the Feeling On” is a song by Scottish collective Nightcrawlers that is known much more commonly for its classic deep house remix by American DJ MK, which would be known now for how much it’s been sampled in pop music: You’ve probably heard the synth riff or vocal chop in “Hotel Room Service” by Pitbull, “Dinner Guest” by AJ Tracey and MoStack, “Wiggle It” by French Montana and City Girls, “House Party” by MIST and Fredo, or even “Nightcore in tha Club” by Viper of all people. So, 20 or so years later, here comes English DJ Riton making another official remix alongside dually-credited Musafa & Hypeman, who I guess are social media influencers from articles I see about them. That would explain why this is charting... but yeah, this is lazy. A female vocalist sings “It’s Friday, Saturday, Sunday again” to the melody of the classic vocal loop, and the rest of the song is a worthless and artless “future house” track made for no-one, with Musafa & Hypeman delivering nothing more than obnoxious skits and faint ad-libs. I’ll admit, the second verse where it suddenly drops into her vocals over the haunting vibration of bass is inspired, but it goes nowhere. It uses the same drop as the original MK remix and if it isn’t, it uses a vocaloid drop that sounds way too similar to blackbear’s “hot girl bummer” for my liking. Once you hear it, you may not unhear it – although I doubt you’d come back to this song for any reason other than clicking the wrong song when looking for the original MK remix, which is still great. This, however, is useless.

#50 – “Skengman” – Ghetts featuring Stormzy

Produced by Ten Billion Dreams

This is actually Ghetts’ first ever track to hit this chart as a lead solo act and that shouldn’t come as much of a surprise. Whilst Ghetts is very important to grime and his mixtapes are considered classics, he’s not exactly the peak of commercial success – and is somewhat infamous for said squandering as he released a diss track against MTV for not thinking he was that great of an MC – which wasn’t exactly helped by beef with the Boy Better Know collective. It makes a lot of sense for him to ride off the coattails of the new generation of English rappers and make a drill-adjacent track with Stormzy, the track’s namesake. It also makes sense for this to be good: we have some pretty ominous keys and horns that sound great under this cold and minimal trap beat, relying less on percussion than it does the eerie strings. Sure, the chorus is pretty awkward and tired, with Ghetts not selling it nearly as he well as he does the verses, which even then are off-kilter. The second verse – by Stormzy – is where this song really shines, as gorgeous vocal samples combine with the rise of the strings, looming 808s and Stormzy’s deep contrast of a voice before the beat drops and Stormzy lets out his best flows. Honestly, after Stormzy’s verse, not even a beat shift really makes Ghetts’ other two verses worthwhile, as his just seem short and ineffective, even if the beat is going to keep on intensifying with these incredible strings and horns – lest we forget the choir of “Skengmen” behind him on the chorus. I really wish this was a solo Stormzy track, with no disrespect to Ghetts, who just feels out of place if anything. This could have been a lot better.

#49 – “Lumidee” – Chip featuring Young M.A. and Young Adz

Produced by the Fanatix

Most of our new arrivals are hip-hop or hip-hop-related, so of course whenever we see Stormzy, I guess we have to have a Chip song the same day. Is that beef still going on? Regardless, this is a very different song, named after the artist behind the awkward, minimal R&B sample used here. Listen, I like 2000s R&B, but “Never Leave You (Uh Oooh, Uh Oooh)” is just a fatal misunderstanding of what makes Timbaland’s production good. Surely that would make any reworking an improvement, especially with these subtle strings and guitars under a dancehall beat just as awkward as the original. Oh, and I call the strings subtle because it’s not like Young Adz could ever be, or Chip for that matter, as both of them deliver stiff, ugly performances about how the sex is spectacular... but also how they want this woman to treat them kindly after they cheat on her because they buy her nice things. “They” of course being everyone here, as Chip plays the same role as Adz – who only grabs the chorus – and hell, I think Young M.A., who could deliver a narrative here that criticises Chip’s attitude, just expresses the same ideas. I’ll admit that M.A.’s flow and cadence is a lot smoother, less nasally Auto-Tuned and honestly kind of good, but this honestly, much like “Skengman”, reeks of missed potential. A dancehall back-and-forth about love that means nothing but sex and materialism sounds fun on paper but nothing’s really done with it here, which is what I’d expect from these guys in all honesty. It’s weird and kind of cool to see Young M.A. on the UK Singles Chart again (She appeared on an Eminem track around this time last year too), though, so I’ll give it that.

#44 – “Pinging (6 Figures)” – Central Cee

Produced by ItchyDaProducer

Well, we can now add Central Cee to the drill guys that spark a top 50 hit out of nowhere every couple weeks. I actually quite like “Loading” mostly because of the fusion of hard 808s with those slick horn samples. As an aside, the Genius.com page for “Loading” has a comment saying the beat is “disgusting” that has a ton of downvotes, probably because of some sort of disconnect between cultures and audiences. This new track is a lot less interesting, though, relying on a really cheap guitar loop, but otherwise I do think the drill percussion works here, especially with the sliding 808s and Central Cee’s pretty constant delivery. I can’t really say he’s saying anything of interest other than the fact he supposedly turned down a six-figure record deal to stay independent, which of course is the chorus, so it’s not like this is great, or even good, but it makes the best out of a bad loop, and I can respect that, especially with piano touches, although this apparently sounds like another beat Itchy’s made so I’m not sure if that deserves much praise either. You know, I really thought Central Cee could have been on to something with the jazzier touches, but once again, this is missed potential.

#37 – “Wellerman” – The Longest Johns

Produced by ???

There aren’t any producer credits for this one, though I’m not sure to how much extent you can “produce” a sea shanty. It’s not often for this show that I can say a song that debuted is from the 1800s, but this song dates back to around 1833, where the Weller Brothers and their “Wellerman” ships became the most important merchant traders in New Zealand, operating mostly through their base in Otago. Naturally, sea shanties are sang at sea but it’s seldom seen that said songs surge up as singles on Spotify. Thanks to TikTok, however, this 2018 cover by the Longest Johns, a folk group from Bristol, debuted in the top 40. There’s no instrumentation, so this is just an a-capella cover, with some genuinely great vocal harmonisation, even if these guys aren’t great singers – not that you have to be to sing sea shanties. The end product is a pretty fun track about wishing for a supply ship to come whilst whaling, and that they hope to come home soon – or something like that. Look, I hope this doesn’t stick around even though I have the feeling it will. It’s not a bad song at all and the guys are talented, but come on, guys, it’s a sea shanty from TikTok. As that damn app still runs a lot of the charts, though, I suppose I should embrace this, because it is harmless, and that’s really all there is to it.

#31 – “Bad Boy” – Juice WRLD and Young Thug

Produced by Pi’erre Bourne

Now, I’m usually cynical about posthumous releases from Jarad, and I was initially for this, but it has been in circulation as a leak and it was also completely finished with a music video produced before his death by Cole Bennett of Lyrical Lemonade, who directed a lot of Juice’s earlier videos (including “Lucid Dreams”). It has Young Thug on the second verse and Pi’erre Bourne on production so I can’t be mad at this at all. As long as these posthumous projects from now on don’t have tacked-on features and are surrounded by collaborations from only his genuine friends who cared for him, I have no issue with them going on – even if I’d prefer for all of his demos to be released with proceeds going to charity (which should be done with most if not all artists after their passing unless they have an album on the way). It helps that this song isn’t just respectful, but it’s incredible. The hard trap beat from Pi’erre has this great squealing guitar and noisy synth blend that kicks ass whenever it comes in, especially when at odds with the more casual bleeping in the verses. Juice’s chorus is infectious and fast-paced, exactly how he should be on his “banger” tracks, but his verses are really a genius blend between his melodic and technical skills that I wish I heard more from Juice when he was alive. Oh, and Young Thug has what might be verse of the year, with smooth flow switches as always, unique inflections as always as well as playing with the beat perfectly as he drops the nasal screech of his “skrrt!” ad-libs amidst a more simple, intense flow by the end – with the addition of that squealing guitar. Is the content unique? Maybe not, as this is mostly flexing over an explosive trap beat, but there are enough quotable rhymes and vocal deliveries that make this more than honestly the sum of its parts, as out of context I don’t think this beat, this feature or Juice’s hook could work nearly as well as they do. As is, however, this is one of Juice’s best songs, hell, even one of Thugger’s best – and he has a strong discography – so, yeah, for the part of me that appreciates ignorant, stupid-hard trap-rap, this clicked. I hope it’s a hit and even if it isn’t, this is one of the best send-offs they could have chosen for Juice, and I’m just glad it’s finally met an official release.

#2 – “Don’t Play” – Anne-Marie, KSI and Digital Farm Animals

Produced by Mojam and Digital Farm Animals

“Bad Boy” seems like it should be the big story here, as it’s a massive lead and/or final posthumous single from one of the biggest rappers in history featuring another A-list that is getting a lot of praise and YouTube views... but alas, this is the UK, so here’s KSI and Anne-Marie. Is this KSI-Digital Farm Animals collaboration going anywhere? He had a similar one last year with “Really Love” featuring Craig David and that was kind of big – still is – and I think also debuted at #2 behind a really strong #1. They also had awkward, ugly cartoon cover arts, so maybe this is a collaborative project between KSI and the EDM producers? Well, “producer”, because Digital Farm Animals is actually just one guy. I think I honestly wouldn’t mind that considering how better KSI pulls off rapping over EDM than hip-hop. Anne-Marie is filling Craig David’s role, although this time with a verse and lead billing, so it could be from an upcoming album that may or may not exist. Honestly, who cares? Is the song good? No, the chorus is lazy, the UK garage-adjacent beat is cheap and KSI gets outshined in his verse both performance and mixing-wise by orchestra hits. Is the content interesting? Well, KSI’s lyrics are supposedly subliminal disses towards other YouTubers, which annotators on Genius have “marked as a stretch”, only to be met with downvotes from fans because of course, they would. Is it catchy? I guess so, that is the purpose. Hence, we have an inoffensive pop song from three artists who have made better but mostly through freak accident. Top 10 material? Probably not, but the charts are weak and it’s the UK so you can’t really expect much more. Also, why does this have an extended version?

Conclusion

Whilst I’m writing this conclusion, the site I use still has yet to update, so I’ll actually have to do a Kanye in 2016 and edit this post-release for the top 10 and drop-outs. For now, though, I can pretty solidly give Best of the Week to “Bad Boy” by the late Juice WRLD and Young Thug, with an Honourable Mention to I guess “Wellerman” by the Longest Johns for at least being different, although most of these debuts reek of missed potential. “Wellerman” could have been a lot more jaunty with actual instrumentation, “Don’t Play” could have replaced Anne-Marie with an actual personality, Ghetts could have gone in harder on “Skengman” and the beat in “Pinging (Six Figures)” could have actually existed. Therefore, the songs with the least potential are the victims here, as Dishonourable Mention goes to Chip, Young Adz and Young M.A. for “Lumidee” and Worst of the Week goes to “Friday (Dopamine Re-Edit)” by like, four complete nobodies, honestly, I do not see the purpose in that song existing at all. Well, here’s the top 10 for this week – or at least it will be here in a couple hours:

I can’t make any solid predictions for next week other than Billie Eilish and ROSALIA, maybe Lil Skies? You can follow me @cactusinthebank if you’re vaguely interested in doing so, thank you for reading, and I’ll see you next week.