#but issa good list i rec all of it

[thosetwofirefighters]

tag game <3

tagged by @the-likesofus ilysm :))

shuffle your ON REPEAT playlist and list the first 10 songs

1. Midas - ari hicks 2. wow - Alaska Thunderfuck 3. Bad Bandit - Xana 4. King Cobra - Sizzy Rocket 5. WITCH - Delilah Bon & ALT BLK ERA 6. Mommy - Sizzy Rocket 7. Distracted - Honey Revenge 8. Side Effects - Carlie Hanson 9. In Loving Memory - Arm's Length 10. Martyr - KiNG MALA

your top 15 favorite tv shows can say a lot about your personality" (list your top 15 shows)

1. 9-1-1 2. The Mentalist 3. Black Mirror 4. Young Royals 5. The Good Place 6. Broad City 7. Malcolm in the Middle 8. Disenchantment 9. Archer 10. Avatar: The Last Airbender 11. 9-1-1: Lone Star 12. She-Ra and the Princesses of Power 13. Hilda 14. RuPaul's Drag Race 15. Criminal Minds

jfc that was hard lmao, no pressure tagging @lilbuddie @amandalee24 @loserdiaz @elvensorceress @poughkeepsies @mooshkat

[madamescarlette]

I'm feeling a tad bit too foggy to write up proper book reviews this month, so instead you're getting a list of Media I Particularly Enjoyed (In February)! for the audience of all two of you where these will all crossover, enjoy <3

Books:

Namesake by Kate Stradling (I also rec. The Heir and the Spare & Brine and Bone by her)

River Inside the River by Gregory Orr (I especially rec. this to anyone who is also a writer/poet, the last sequence was so lovely I had to stare at the wall every time I turned a page)

Devil's Cub by Georgette Heyer (still makes me laugh to no end)

The Selected Poems of Edna St. Vincent Millay by, well, her (I love the simplicity and sharpness of her voice, two of the three long-form poems at the very beginning made me SOB and then the rest were just very solidly good and precious to me)

Movies:

Babette's Feast (beautiful luminous never been done before)

Ponyo (rewatched after many years, still brings me unending light)

The Kingdom of Dreams and Madness (what I consider the better of the two Ghibli docs on HBO, and it may only be dear to me because it covers the development of The Wind Rises, but it left me with a weird sorrowful achey peace in my heart)

Puss in Boots: The Last Wish (I saw this with friends and I very much think you should see this with a buddy, I had a great time cackling and gasping with them over it)

Games:

Crystal Project (an as-open-world-as-you-can-make-it spiritual-successor-to-classic-JRPGs game that I was enveloped by for the better part of January and the beginning of this month. It has a great deal of quality of life things that are great for me who just likes to climb cliffs and fly over the sea, and the story was just spare and sweet enough for my taste 4.5/5)

The Last Campfire (a short and sweet puzzle-y game about the process of letting go and learning to say goodbye that is very well suited to the state I'm in currently 3.9/5)

A Space for the Unbound (a little indie that's heavily story-based; I watched a playthrough of this and unfortunately was already miserable enough that it didn't quite devastate me as normally it would have but I truly have been thinking about it constantly ever since 3.75/5)

CrossCode (for full clarity, I'm still in the midst of playing this, but I adore the main character and I think the friendships in it are so so so sweet and the conversations that they have about the game they're in get to me because I'm like hey I'VE said that!!! Issa little ARPG about a fictional MMO and the players in it and the art is GREAT 4/5 so far I'm deeply invested in it)

Songs:

Staring Contest - James Ivy (quite frankly I can't tell you why I'm obsessed with this but the bit about laundry in the closet makes me feel so known idk)

You Let Me Down - Alessia Cara

I'll Call You Mine - girl in red (drums!)

Holding Pattern - Nickel Creek (the circling chord pattern is so sparkly to me personally)

I Know the End - Phoebe Bridgers (you know the drill this song is my companion when I drive around town shout-singing at the top of my lungs)

Trying to Feel Alive - Porter Robinson (my song of this year maybe)

[texasbama]

I’m so so curious to know what are your fav shows like top 10 I need some recs

Hmmm nonny I’ve been sitting on this one for a couple days and its so hard?? To choose just 10? Impossible! I have watched so much tv in my lifetime😩

And it depends on what you’re into? Are you a sitcom person? Drama? The possibilities are endless! But here are 10 shows that I’ve watched recently that I enjoy and would recommend.

1. P-Valley

If you’ve been following me for the past couple months you’ve already seen me losing my shit. This show is perfect in every way. All black cast. Queer representation. Just yes yes YES.

2. Abbott Elementary

The perfect comedy. Quinta is a GENIUS!

3. The Bear

I didn’t think I was gonna like this at much as I did but it was really good! Made me miss Chicago and the food😩

4. Sex Lives of College Girls

Another one that I didn’t expect to enjoy as much as I did but this show is fucking hilarious 😂 I can’t wait until season 2!

5. Snowfall

This show is wild. A fun and stressful time all the way around lol plus Damson. Nuff said🥵

6. All American/All American Homecoming

These are CW shows and it shows sometimes so tread carefully. But AA is the OG and Homecoming is the spin off. Its a fun time and majority black casts.

And these two? MY BABIESSS💖

7. Rap Sh!t

Issa Rae don’t fuckin mess. EVER. Only like 5 episodes out so far but if you need a laugh this is it

8. The Boys

This show is….I don’t even have words. It is fucked up in every way a show can be. Watch on a empty stomach. Its a great satire though 

9. Loot

I need to watch the last couple episodes but Maya Rudolph is a comedy queen.

10. 9-1-1

Now you know I had to end with my wee woos! Again, if you’ve been following me for a while you’ve either seen me obsess over my wee woos or filtered 911 so you wouldn’t have to see it 😂😂😂

Its a Fox procedural so you already know the deal. BUT it does have Angela THEE Bassett. And if thats not enough, the ensemble cast is extremely talented and make you love these fictional first responders and the family they create. (And if you start to ship two certain fellas then just know you aint alone👀)

I hope one of these shows I listed sparks joy for you. I know they all did for me! 🥰 if you watch any please feel free to let me know your thoughts! I love talkin to yall about my shows💜

[dimpled-rapper-stan]

Halo lovey. (*3*) Who is your fav fic writer and y? I need recs (°3°)

Whew chile. That’s a tall order, but no worries I gotchu babydoll.

Okay so lemme just start by saying that I started reblogging all fics I read here: @the-perfect-switch​

Disclaimer: I haven’t been reading as much as I used to back in my earlier days lmao saying that makes me sound so old because life just got so busy. T^T But every time I come across a fic that catches my attention, I save it in my drafts to come back to later when I have time, and as you can probably imagine…

Issa lot.

That being said, I got a couple blogs I frequent and have been with since day one of my K-pop fic reading life. These are all a mix of fanfics and reactions, mostly smut cuz I’m a hoe but still some good fluff in there too. Lesgetit.

@k-fiction-therapy​ - You know I gotta start with my Noona right off the bat. Like I will never get over how amazing she writes, whether it’s full fics, drabbles, heck even her responses to asks are a treat. UwU I always enjoy reading her work, even when it’s not even my kink. I still read tf outta it.

@peaches-of-1​ - Listen, this chica has some mad talent with writing and visuals, like??? Plus she writes POC fics and the aesthetics oh my god I’m livingggg. We stan a goddess. 👏🤧

@imaslutforwords​ - Ou baby, this was one of my VERY firsts. Mmf. I swear this blog gave me kinks and guilty pleasures I didn’t even know I had, no lie.

@kpopyourcherryy​ - Ahh yes, another beginner. The url is so accurate cuz this was deadass one of my K-pop fanfic cherry poppers. Again, one of the blogs that gave me kinks and guilty pleasures I didn’t know I had. Pretty sure this and imaslutforwords is where my Daddy kink started tbh.

@kpopthispussyyy​ - Ohohoho HONEY. The pure FILTH and I am absolutely HERE FOR IT. Mmf. Not for the faint of heart. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

@peached-bangtan​ - *incoherent screaming* LISTEN!!!! I can not put into words how much this blog makes my heart throb. I think I first followed back when “A Theory” was only on chapter 4? or 3? I’unno but point is I’ve been here a long ass time, the fics are amazing and “A Theory” is the reason I breathe. I deadass downloaded every song from the SHINee kisses reaction from a while back. I still obsess over “How Many Drinks” way too much and Hyungwon isn’t even my bias or my bias wrecker, that’s just how good the story is.

@idolsclub​ - Whew chile, speaking of filth. This blog is like the chocolate syrup, sprinkles and whipped cream on top of my ice cream. Perfect for those quiet nights alone in your room with a glass of wine and a curious hand…  ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

@smutfictionaddicted also @writings-by-cl​ and here on AO3 - Honestly one of the sweetest people you’ll ever meet on this site. Plus she writes for thick readers too. We stan a queen. 👏👏👏 The Tumblr purge made things all screwy, but these are all her links that I know of where you should be able to find all her works. If the tumblr links don’t work on PC, try mobile.

@ithinkilikeit-reactions​ - I think I like it. Need I say more?  ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) But seriously tho, top tier content. 10/10. And I won’t say anything else because I don’t wanna spoil anything. Go binge read it for yourself hun. UwU

@xxprincessjewelsxx​ - Ohoho honey, this is that sit down by the fireplace with a glass of red wine on a cool winter night quality fanfiction. Mmf. Love it.

@gyeommine​ - Another sweet bub. Quality content honestly. Wholesome. Fun for the whole family. XD

@kpurereactions​ - Everything here is 100% pure… I swear... ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

@indul-jaence​ - Listen hun, I’ve been following through like… 3? 4? url changes… and I’ve had a mini heartattack every time because my first thought is “OH MY GOD PLEASE TELL ME IT’S NOT DEACTIVATED I WILL CRY!!” But still here and I’m lovin’ it. UwU

@noonachronicles​ - Whew honeychild. Go to her masterlist. Read to your heart’s content. Share with friends. You won’t regret a single second of it. It’s beautiful work from a beautiful person I tell you.

@hobiminkooksprincess1990​ - Jung Hoseok’s actual wife. I don’t make the rules. I highly recommend “Dreams Come True” (Part 1 & 2) and her “7 Days Of Pleasure” series. I read them both like 3 times.

@lonely-kitten-named-bambi​ - Sin, sin and more sin, and I love every beautiful word of it.

@imsarabum​ - Probably the reason why I want a Markson threeway tbh…  ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) That and this is another source to fuel my Jaebum thirst.

I hope these helped~ There’s a lot of other blogs that I probably have read like 1 or 2 fics from that I really loved but didn’t list here, but more than likely you will find them on @the-perfect-switch

[gardenofnotes]

book recs??

does anyone have any good book recs? cause i listen to a lot of audiobooks while i’m driving or at work and i’m between books rn. in exchange, i’ll list my own book recs down below!!

-An Unkindness of Ghosts by Rivers Soloman

nonbinary main characters!! set in the future when human kind had to leave a dying earth and live on a spacecraft floating through space.

-Aristole and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Saenz

gay besties fall in love!! super cute ya novel with a slowburn love story and agnsty teens. adorable and hella relatable, also gr8 mexican-american representation.

-The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

really gr8!! im sure a lot of y’all have heard of this, issa movie now (although i haven’t seen it yet). it’s really funny at times and also an all-around gr8 read.

[frantabulous]

Songs of the week (?)

So I wanted to be more active and I listen to a ton of music, so I figured I’d start listing my top 5-10 songs each week? Along with why I like it and such, really a song rec cause ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Lesgetit ᕕ( ᐛ )ᕗ

(uhhh btw I am not like a music professional or anything like that I just go by what sounds nice so please don’t be like ‘uM a c t u a l l y’ when I’m just going by what I hear and feel)

1. Thanks by Seventeen

Ok I LOVE this song and I’ve literally spent the entire week listening to it on repeat, I legit spent an evening just watching live stages of the boys performing it. It’s easily my favorite seventeen song and the one that made me wanna stan. I love the vocal line verses and how the rap verses fit into the song. I like the instrumental, the guitar parts and the simplicity of it but the way it builds to the chorus. This song is easily one of my favorites from 2018 and I can listen to it when I’m sad or happy or whenever. 

2. What Can I Do by Day6

I honestly bought this song just this week because I couldn’t get it out of my head. A certain someone @koalapilikseu​ really showed me this song and I’ll just be enjoying my day when BOOM it’s stuck in my head again. I really like everything about the song tbh. It starts out funky with very beginning and I always get thrown off because the chorus is so smooth and has such a nice flow. One of my favorite parts is the accidentals/key change (idek if that’s correct but it SOUNDS DIFFERENT) in the pre-chorus. The chorus itself is literally perfect to just bop to and it’s also in my range soo I can sing along ¯\_(ツ)_/¯. I like how the song progresses and really it’s just a bop. Like, it ain’t that deep, issa bop. 11/10 would recommend. 

3. Mixtape #1 by Stray Kids

I feel like a lot of people sleep on this mixtape of the three stray kids have released so far, that or I just missed the hype cause I stanned then later. Anyways, it was the first one I really listened to and I really love the message of it. It’s a softer song but it’s still such a bop and I legit will listen for years. 

4. Fool by Winner

This song is my go-to when I feel like shit and I love it. I really don’t know what it is about it but it’s just such a good song. My fave winner song, 10/10 would recommend. 

5. I Won’t Let You Go by Got7

I WISH THEY’D RELEASE THIS FOR PURCHASE ALREADY. I legit listen to it at least once a day I love all the vocal lines and it’s just such a fuckin bop. Beat out the New Era for my fave japanese release by Got7 and that’s saying something cause damn I love the New Era. 

6. Rooftop by N.Flying

I had only barely heard of N.Flying when this song was recommended to me and I honestly cannot stop listening to it. It’s such. A good song. Love the moving parts beneath the vocals. I’m legit listening to it rn it’s easily one of my favorites. 

7. Getting Closer by Seventeen

This. Fucking. Song. So I’ve been stanning Seventeen for a few months now and I had gotten a pretty good idea to their sound and became accustomed to it but then this song literally hit me like a truck. It’s so different but it’s still really fuckin good. I love the rap parts, the choreo. The duet parts, especially Jun and Joshua’s, are s o good. The way their voices fit together is so nice and just ug h imagine not stanning Seventeen. And the damn hook, that’s the part that got me, everytime I head Seungkwan’s part I get about 20 years added to my life. Another song I would kill to have released on at least spotify already. 

8. Baby Don’t Cry by Exo

(Ik it’s a universe gif but I couldn’t find anything slkghslghsg) 

I got this song stuck in my head on like, Tuesday, so I bought it (yes I still buy songs on itunes like a loser cause I can’t pay for spotify) and I literally listened to it on repeat for 4 days and it never left my damn head. Like, I’d listen to something else and it’d just,,, come back. Anyways issa bop and great for when you feel like absolutely sobbing. 

[biletdoux]

GTKM Tag

thank you to @strawberryjun for tagging me !!!!!! ily <3

also no worries to anyone who is mildly invested in one-love, an update will be out soon i promise!!! i was just busy this past week, but i promise i didn’t forget about it. be on the look out for pt 6 coming your way <3

RULES: Answer these questions and tag 20 blogs you’d like to know better

1. nicknames: v

2. zodiac:  aquarius

3. height: 157 cm (5′1, A Tragedy)

4. age: 18

5. time: est (currently 2 in the morning)

6. fav bands/artists: nct, bts, exo, infinte, 2pm, dpr live, red velvet, f(x), t-ara, 9muses, aoa, fob, patd, paramore, coldplay, etc (too many to list)

7. song stuck in your head: young wings by stray kids

8. last movie I saw: oceans 8, i very much enjoyed it :’-)

9. last thing I googled: ‘is brisxlife problematic’ shit is going DOWN in kpop youtube and i just wanna know whats going on and i live for drama lol

10. other blogs: main - @sooseon (i don’t do anything on it tho lol) , fic rec - @pechajae (i just made it, so it’s empty, but i’m rly excited for it because i made it pokemon themed and it’s intended to be interactive so like it’ll be a fic rec exchange kinda deal so pls give it a chance and check it out!!!!!)

11. do I get asks: nope. i am LONELY and ALWAYS CRAVING ATTENTION (this is ur cue to send asks my way, homeslices)

12. why I chose my username: it’s french for love letter (although it’s missing an L)

13. following: 446 blogs

14. average amount of sleep: it’s summer rn so like 8-9 hours, but like i can’t fall asleep until around 5-6 in the morning, sometimes later. during school, however; i get around 5-6 hours and i usually sleep around 12-1

15. lucky numbers: none

16. what I’m wearing: t shirt and gym shorts

17. dream job: nurse anesthetist 

21. favourite song: my absolute fave k song of all time is, without a doubt, ‘where do we go from here - g.soul’ it’s SO GOOd. i’m not even in a failing relationship but i can feel it whenever i listen to this song?? fuck. so good. favorite english song i’m not too sure but ‘sacrifice - black atlass & jessie reyez’ issa bop go listen to it.

18. dream trip: road trip w my friends :-)

19. favourite food: eggs are the superior food. one day i dream of going to that one legendary omurice place. i’d probably nut tbh

20. play any instruments: used to play cello

22. play(ed) any sports: BADMINTON the Superior Sport, i also played tennis and soccer in the past

23. hair color: dark brown

24. eye colour: brown

25. most iconic song: gee by snsd (An Absolute Game Changer)

26. languages you speak/are learning: english, viet, and i took spanish and mandarin chinese in high school (but can i speak them you ask??? Absolutely Not)

27. random fact: my real name literally translates to “cloud branch”

28. describe yourself as aesthetics/things: city lights, sweater paws, candygrams, cotton candy, succulents, late night drives, the 1920s (i fkn love the roaring 20s)

tag you’re it (some of my followers, WHOM i LOVE dearly <3): 

@poutyjwoo, @taomahgucci, @trblwyatt, @glossuho, @longassrid3, @ggukxie, @bangchanseonyeondan, @l0velylayla, @mrjen0, @trash4changkyun, @jenoix, @theloouiisee, @astheticfridge, @minyukhe-i, @camomileteasposts, @eianct, @uhuhtytrack, @perfchimchim, @jaehyunnyy, @mynameisinthemusic

[hannie-dul-set]

i've been side-eyeing tower of god since forever even though i've been told it's good.....hMMm maybe i'll finally give it a chance👀 the only webtoon that will be plot>>>art for me is i married an anti-fan like nssksjsj the art is sO good but i just don't vibe with the plot lmao😩

i'm currently reading uhh a lot at the same time but mostly forest of humans and witch creek road (horror genre and have very diff arts maybe you'll like it or not hehe) okE so i quickly picked and made a list bcs i have lots AAAA idk if you already know some of them:

romance - before we knew it (a pain in da hart 2 read. marupok si gurl ;-;), love falls like rain, act like you love me, devil number 4, the kiss bet

action/fantasy - unholy blood, hero killer, nano list, noblesse (the art gets better i swear), the wolf & the red riding hood

mystery/thriller - my deepest secret (romance???), garden club detective squad

and that's it hehehehe they all have such nice artstyle and interesting plots too so pick as you like :D

you're literally so talented i just 💗💟💞💕💓💖 and nooooO mother how dare u why did u not agree??? jsjsjsjwn. oH em gEe miss allex issa social butterfly :0 why do i feel like you're one of those ppl who have loud laughs najsjs not in a bad way but the nakakahawa type HHAHAHAHA (suddenly reminded me of kathang isip!haechan and i have a rant but that's for another day ohoho) - 🥚

omg wait HAHAHAH hoki first off tog is SO GOOD really. it's the same with noblesse (yes i've read that too >:3) so u just have to deal with shitty art at the beginning but it gets really good aaaa.

i've actually read/am reading a lot from ur list which is whoa!! our tastes 😔👌👌i've been meaning to read nano list and garden club defective squad so i guess i'll do that tomorrow mwheheh. ty for the recs<33 speaking of, i just finished episode seven of love is war and??? HELLO??? i've been watching since 10pm help okay i didn't expect to be this hooked but the dynamics....hoo boy i am obsessed 😩.

HAGSHAJA but no u r mistaken omg i don't think i'm a social butterfly HAGSJHS i just happen to know a lot of ppl and the orgs i'm in force me to interact HAHAHHA my laugh isn't at all loud omg lots of people have actually told me that i'm so mahinhin that even my laughter is mahinhin HHHH i tend to cover my mouth a lot when i laugh and always carry a handkerchief with me so :'>

[popularmolds]

Best rap, 2017

In 2007, I thought I was very fast. That fall, I was one of the top sophomores at the Minnesota high school cross country state championships, which, believe it or not, are very competitive as far as high school cross country state championships go. Then it was winter. There’s no indoor track season in Minnesota; I played hockey, like I had for my entire life to that point, but I also ran 60 miles a week in toques and gloves and terrible things called “wind briefs.” I got ambitious and decided that in the spring, I wanted to be the fastest 15-year-old in the state, the Midwest, maybe the country. 

But in the first week of outdoor track, in the middle of a mile repeat workout we were running on the sidewalk (there was snow on the track), I felt bones splinter. There were stress fractures up and down my left tibia. 

Every afternoon for the next twelve weeks, I had to find a ride from my high school down to a suburban YMCA, chosen because it had a reliably deserted pool. I needed to get in some sort of cardio with zero impact on my bones. If you’ve never seen someone water run, it looks like a recurring nightmare playing out under fluorescent lights: a skeletally thin person in the water, upright, making all the movements he or she would make on the track, but moving impossibly slow, back and forth, end to end. It’s like quicksand. I would sweat and strain and grit my teeth, but I was barely moving. 

A couple weeks into my muggy purgatory, my friend Collin burned me a CD of an obscure album he’d found on a Wordpress blog. It was called Brokelore and was by someone named Grip Grand––clearly from the Bay, but we couldn’t find anything else about him. 

It blew me away. I listened to it every day, to and from the Y, in headphones or out of those primitive aux hookups that plugged into the cassette decks in my friends’ cars. He sounded gruff and grizzled, but we had no idea what he looked like. (Eventually, Collin found a short interview Grip had done with a blog, but we assumed the press photo was of the blogger, not the rapper. Sorry, Grip.) 

The record’s mostly self-produced; the beats have a little grit and a lot of warmth. Grip’s voice is tough, but elastic enough to bounce and bend and let the humor through. Grip is quick and witty, but threads the record with these incredibly earnest love letters to rap: "96 Tears” is an extended lyrical exercise, “Hip-Hop Classic” is the sound of someone pounding his fist on a computer desk, searching. There’s a song with Percee P (”Paper Cup”) and a song where Grip thanks Percee P for dropping that verse (”Showtime (That’s Entertainment)”). There’s “Handle That,” which was probably conceived as a parody of popular rap styles at the time but got mutated along the way and sounds like a good-faith alien transmission; there’s distortion and vocal modulation and lines like “While you pretend to be sick like Ferris Bueller / Grip Grand drop gems like a careless jeweler.” 

But it’s called Brokelore. This was a few months before the financial collapse; this was Oakland and San Francisco and the shadow of the early tech boom. Sometimes Grip and his Rec League comrades broach this with a light touch, cashing bad checks and skirting tax forms. (One of the album’s highlights is the remix of “Poppin’ Pockets,” where Grip and A.G. (!) rap joyously about having absolutely zero money.) Then there are the graver moments: “Out of Service” is a half-dreamed conversation with a factory worker who’s in limbo at a bus stop; it’s tearjerking but never treacly. “Tomorrow” is sorrowful. 

And then there’s “Love/Drama” which––this is not an exaggeration––is one of the most deeply felt rap songs I’ve ever heard. It’s structured as a letter back to a writer who ripped his last record, Welcome to Broakland. An artist responding to criticism looks defensive––and that’s the point. In the space of a few bars, the song unspools into a catalog of Grip’s deepest fears as an artist.

“My whole albums’s a jack: “Impeach the President?”  Yo, how done is that?  Tribute to early rap? DIY ethic?  No, a piss-poor producer—take my name off the credits.”

The song wraps up with a venomous couplet:“You’re so astute brah, every minute flaw, you heard it / Can’t wait to hear your album, it must be perfect.” But he’s not brushing off the critic. “Love/Drama” isn’t about brushing off a detractor, it’s about scratching and clawing and stretching $10 in groceries for a whole week, pouring yourself into a record only for it to be...fine. The kicker, then, is that Grip Grand internalized all of that and made a masterpiece. 

I say all that to say this: I don’t know if I would have found Brokelore today. Ten years after the fact, it’s ostensibly my job to find and write criticism of rap music, including obscure releases like this. But the economics of the media industry are strange: while it seems clear that people still want to discover new music, it’s difficult to get anybody to click on articles that present it. Music discovery has moved mostly to the curated playlists at streaming sites (so, radio) and there are fewer and fewer places willing to publish full-scale album reviews for artists who are untested or unsigned. I don’t spend enough time in pools. 

Of course, there are still massive communities of rap fans who dig for new material. But as it becomes more difficult to make a living covering it––and with the collapse of the blog world, which was invaluable for fans and artists in the mid- and late-2000s––there’s less time and attention given to smaller artists. Especially the kinds of time and attention that can be turned into money. (On that count, I physically recoil imagining how much bleaker the Bay Grip rendered on Brokelore has gotten.) 

The good news is that rap is in an exceptional place right now. There are vibrant underground scenes in cities across the country. In 2018, I’m resolving to take time, stay still, and appreciate rappers who would otherwise go uncovered. 

Notes/methodology: This list, obviously, includes both songs and albums. In most of the cases where either an album or a song from it could have made my top sixty, I chose whichever entry would rank higher, i.e.- I think “The Story of O.J.” is one of the ten best rap things from this year, while 4:44 as an album would rank a couple dozen spots lower. There are exceptions. “We Ball” would probably be among my top ten entries, but I wanted to give a nod to Meek Mill’s album because it hasn’t left rotation since it came out. Similar case with Boosie: “Webbie I Remember” could easily be in my top five, but BooPac should be on everyone’s radar, even if it’s ninety minutes. Slow down.

60. YG, “Pop It, Shake It” 59. Smooky MarGielaa, “Stay 100” 58. YBN Nahmir, “Rubbin Off The Paint” 57. Freddie Gibbs –– You Only Live 2wice 56. Muja Messiah & Roc Marciano –– Saran Wrap 55. Frosty Da Snowmann, “Oh My Gawd” 54. Wiki –– No Mountains in Manhattan 53. Greg Grease –– Down So Long 52. Chris $pencer, “Shark Wrestling” 51. Chief Keef, “Can You Be My Friend” 50. P.O.S –– chill, dummy 49. 2 Chainz –– Pretty Girls Like Trap Music 48. Young Dolph, “100 Shots” 47. Roc Marciano –– Rosebudd’s Revenge 46. Bbymutha, “Roses” 45. Sahbabii, “Pull Up wit ah Stick” 44. Nef the Pharaoh, “Bling Blaow” 43. J Hus –– Common Sense 42. 21 Savage –– Issa Album 41. Cardi B, “Bodak Yellow” 40. Deniro Farrar, “Can’t Touch Me” 39. Lor Jugg & Bandhunta Izzy, “Back At It” 38. G Herbo –– Humble Beast 37. billy woods, “Police Came To My Show” 36. French Montana, “Unforgettable” f/ Swae Lee 35. Rich Homie Quan –– Back to the Basics 34. Lil B –– Black Ken 33. Nipsey Hussle, “Rap Niggas” 32. A$AP Ferg, “Plain Jane” 31. Young Thug –– Beautiful Thugger Girls 30. Migos –– CULTURE 29. Playboi Carti, “Magnolia” 28. Why Khaliq –– The Mustard Seed 27. Snoop Dogg –– Neva Left 26. C Struggs, “Go to Jesus” 25. Lor Choc, “Fast Life” 24. RJ, “Blammer” 23. Tee Grizzley, “First Day Out” 22. OMB Peezy, “Lay Down” 21. Boosie –– BooPac 20. Meek Mill –– Wins & Losses 19. Kodak Black, “Patty Cake” 18. Drakeo –– Cold Devil 17. Don Trip & Starlito –– Step Brothers THREE 16. milo –– who told you to think??!!?!?!?! 15. 03 Greedo –– Money Changes Everything; Purple Summer 03; First Night Out 14. DJ Quik & Problem –– Rosecrans 13. Nocando, “1998″ 12. Goldlink, “Crew” f/ Shy Glizzy & Brent Faiyaz 11. Mach-Hommy –– Haitian Body Odor 10. Lil Uzi Vert, “XO Tour Llif3″ 9. Jay-Z, “The Story of O.J.” 8. G Perico –– All Blue & 2 Tha Left 7. Kendrick Lamar –– DAMN. 6. Tay-K, “The Race” 5. NBA Youngboy, “No Smoke” 4. Future –– HNDRXX 3. Armand Hammer –– ROME 2. Creek Boyz, “With My Team” 1. Open Mike Eagle –– Brick Body Kids Still Daydream

[liwanags]

Hello! May we have an opinion, please? We've recently revamped and we'd really love some feedback! Thank you so much for your time!

sure, i’d love to! please note that this is an opinion and these are merely my thoughts and suggestions. i do not mean to target you or your work negatively; i will provide criticism with no intent to bash/hate your group as a whole but rather to point out the areas that i think you can improve on. i’m gonna keep this under the cut bc it got long ezvhlk

i love the icon, cheers to that! though, bc of it i expected a darker vibe on your main. speaking of aesthetics, i’m not a fan of the header, mainly bc there’s no consistent color scheme from the icon to the header (which i see now are your only graphics aside form the skeletons’). the candle gif on it is choppy too. so my thoughts on that would be: stick to the dark color scheme. your icon and skeleton graphics go well together, the header just doesn’t fit as well as the other two. 

a mobile navi is important, so make sure to leave a link to that somewhere in your description. on the navigation page, when i click ‘back’ it doesn’t redirect me back to your blog, so you might need to reedit the code and link it back to your main. the plot is very well detailed, i love it? i have no comments on that overall but a few grammar checks here and there, especially on the description’s summarized plot– just super minor ones though, like apostrophes and such. 

what makes a good rule page is just go straight to the point; the part where godmodding (which was spelled wrong btw) was touched there is no definite “no godmodding” statement, which, i know is already a given, but it can be quite confusing to people who are not familiar with godmodding altogether. also, a part of your written explanation for godmodding was: “…This is mainly towards violence or something like that.” the phrase ‘something like that’ is very vague? i suggest you omit that part and link a definition of godmodding, or copy an easy-to-understand definition and link the source instead. 

the only other concern i have for the rules page is the fact that you do not have an age rule? for both muns and muses. are muns aged 18 below allowed to apply? will you be having muses aged 16 below? it’s always a good idea to keep track who’s underage or not especially when it comes to participating in mature threads.

beyond the original character application, i think it looks better if you quoted the app format below each “IF YOUR CHARACTER IS A WITCH/FAMILIAR….ETC” just to make it look more neat.

blogrolls make it hard for me to follow blogs individually so having to link your main’s /followed list instead is much more convenient for your players.

your locations page is stunning and the color scheme of that is how i expected your main to look like! pages like this are a pain to code (for me at least) and i always end up only doing it halfway so i commend you on that.

all the extra pages are the bomb.com and you should be really proud?? the work you’ve put into this is amazing.

tl;dr: all the details are amazing, header doesn’t go well with the other graphics, a mobile navigation should be put up on the description, age rule both for muns and muses should be established, rules page should be straight to the point– i think that’s it? 

anyways, i can definitely see how much work you’ve put into this and i hope it takes off the direction you intend for it to go. issa a REC for me! anyone looking for a skeleton/oc rp, check them out!

[clayray3290]

Clayray Closeout 2017

Time once again to reflect on a year of media consumption, heh.

Music - Artists

The Maine

Michelle Branch

B.A.P

Dashboard Confessional

Sam Hunt

Taeyeon

Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness

Ed Sheeran

The All-American Rejects

Britney Spears

Honestly, the only reason The Maine is #1 on this list is because they have a lot of songs on Spotify, and when I see an artist in concert, I listen to their entire discography, and I must have let that go a few times through. I don’t particularly feel that strongly about them, to be honest, and couldn’t really sing back a song of theirs to you, so this is a dubious title.

As I said, I saw The Maine (as an opener) in concert, and I also saw Dashboard Confessional, Sam Hunt, and The All-American Rejects. I also saw Jesca Hoop, Brooke Annibale (Err, well I didn’t actually see her open, but I still listened to her discography anyway), Kawehi, Jean Michel Jarre, Emily Wells, Chris Janson, Maren Morris, The Social Animals, Baio, Sun Seeker, Canyon King, Soft Pyramids, Michael Christmas, Dutch Rebelle, Grace Mitchell, and St. Lucia. If some of these artists sound random to you, it is because I have a weakness for entering giveaways and so sometimes I end up at concerts for artists that I know nothing about.

My emo-ness was in full force this year. I went to a live band emo karaoke thing, and then of course I saw Dashboard Confessional/The All-American Rejects/The Maine/Social Animals.

I haven’t listened to that much K-Pop this year, despite BTS actually blowing up stateside, which K-Pop has been trying to do for ages. I only really paid attention to Taeyeon’s solo album and TS artists (which, Sonamoo’s been putting out some great releases lately).

Music - Albums

Hamilton OBCR

Dear Evan Hansen OBCR

Taeyeon - My Voice

Hamilton Mixtape

Michelle Branch - Hopeless Romantic

Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness - Zombies on Broadway

Ed Sheeran - ÷ (Deluxe)

Glass Animals - How To Be a Human Being

Sam Hunt - Montevallo

Dia Frampton - Bruises

I went to a bunch of musicals this year. The first half of the year, it feels like I went to New York almost every month. I saw Hamilton, Dear Evan Hansen, Bandstand, Great Comet, Company (in the Berkshires), and I saw Newsies in theatres. Also Blue Man Group? Lol.

The rest of the albums on this list are all mostly artists that I’ve listened to for a long time and had a comeback. Michelle Branch, Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness, and Dia Frampton (back from Meg & Dia), for example, are artists I’ve been longtime fans of, and I listened to their new albums a lot in an effort to really like them, but unfortunately, while I liked these albums, I didn’t love them.

Also, I know I complain about Ed Sheeran to my friends, but I do actually like his music in general (though I like his earlier stuff better). It’s just that there are a couple of songs of his that just really really get me irate. “New Man,” as catchy as it is, is the outdated entitled male version of T. Swift’s “You Belong with Me.” But I really like “Galway Girl” and I enjoy “Eraser”!

Movies

Like last year, this is a subjective ranking and not numbers-based.

Get Out Absolutely brilliant. Who’d’ve thunk that Posh Kenneth, possibly the most useless character in Skins, would end up in such a knockout film.

Gook This year I started volunteering for the Boston Asian American Film Festival, and through it, I got to find a great community and watch some incredible films (Shout-out to The Apology, an excellent and important documentary. I conducted an Q&A with the director!). I had actually first seen Gook at the Boston Independent Film Festival, and met a few of the producers afterwards. It turns out that I went to college with one of them and lived in the same dorm for three years! Personal connection aside, Gook is artistic and emotional and at times, hilarious.

Lady Bird I actually just watched this on Friday haha, and I saw it with one of my college roomies, and she was the perfect person to watch it with. We both saw so much of our relationships with our mothers on the screen, and also just the state of being a high school girl. I had only seen Greta Gerwig in Frances Ha as an actor, and with such a great debut work as this, I can’t wait to see more from her.

The Big Sick I knew going into it that it was a movie about an interracial romance based on Kumail Nanjiani’s real-life love, but I somehow missed why it would actually be called the big SICK lol. But regardless, this was a touching and adeptly witty film that was such a delight.

Wonder Woman I mean, not a perfect movie, but I’ve been waiting for this movie. I wrote in my grad school paper about female superheroes in 2014 that this movie was supposed to come out, and so I felt even more invested in this. More female superheroes!

Note to self: Still really really wanting to see The Disaster Artist, Call Me By Your Name, and The Florida Project.

Television

I’m ashamed; I only watched like 5 new 2017 television shows, so I guess I have no choice which shows to highlight. There are a number that are on my list that I haven’t watched yet: Big Little Lies (I want to read the book first!), Legion, Dear White People (I thoroughly enjoyed the movie), Mindhunter, Godless, the Magic School Bus reboot (Still would love to work for it, so if anybody has any connections, let me know)...I think I just felt so tired through a lot of this year, and so I would find myself going back to good ol’ standbys.

The Handmaid’s Tale Considering, well, the state of the country and the world, The Handmaid’s Tale was a wrecking ball coming straight for your gut. Coupled with the fact that it’s set in Cambridge/Boston, it felt genuinely terrifying to me. I had read the book back in high school, but had forgotten much of the details. Incredible performances (Alexis Bledel and Samira Wiley!!!) really make the terror of it all really sink in.

Las Chicas del Cable This show contains practically all of the elements I enjoy in my television. Beautiful period costumes! Antique telephones! Independent ladies! A chance to practice my Spanish! And *SPOILER* in the second season, ~MURDER~. It’s not an excellent show, per se. It often falls on tropes and flimsy plotlines, but it is positively enjoyable.

13 Reasons Why I’m still not perfectly sure where I stand on this in terms of a developmental psychology/health point of view. I do think it is a dangerous, dangerous thing to be messing with the topic of suicide in the form of enticingly palatable and powerful television. And I recognize I was fortunate enough to be in a good place to watch this and be okay. I had read the book when I was younger, and so my ears had perked up in recognition upon hearing about this show. From an entertainment point-of-view, yes, this drew you in and was compelling. However, I really don’t think there needs to be a second season.

Riverdale The little I’ve seen of the second season feels a little bit off-the-rails, but the first season was delectable. I love the dark take on the Archie-verse and I also love seeing heartthrobs from the 80′s as the grown-ups. I also just love a good teen drama.

Introvert Boss I really wanted to like this. It has Yeon Woojin! And also Hyosung! And has to do with mental health! But it unfortunately fell flat and became a bit of a tangled, convoluted mess. I didn’t actually watch any other Korean dramas this year, except for a little bit of the Korean Criminal Minds. I need to get back into watching some K-dramas.

Some great shows returned as well this year: Search Party, Master of None, Stranger Things, Superstore, Black Mirror, Skam, The Good Place...And Insecure, bias aside (It’s Issa Rae’s production company that had the contest of which I became a semi-finalist earlier this year).

I was on a cruise with my family for the holidays, and television options were limited, but I did watch a lot of in-depth pieces on Al Jazeera, like about sand and Chinese embroidery and such...

I have been continuing (or starting!) my watch-from-the-beginning’s for several shows as well. Gilmore Girls is still my gym show, and It’s Always Sunny was my doctor’s appointment show, but that’s not on Netflix anymore. So now I just watch Suits at the doctor’s. The Wire has become my plane show, as I decided it wasn’t my gym show. (I’m not sure if the plane is much better of a venue, but oh well) I’ve also started watching from the beginning Parks and Rec, Mad Men, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, and I finally finished Pushing Daisies. Which I absolutely loved.

Alrighty, I have now egotistically reflected on my tastes of the year. Onto another year of entertainment!