#learning how to come up with wordplay and instrumentals would be such an experience

[galfromearth-22191]

Scenario: Hobie and his bandmates pulling all-nighters to make songs

•Lyrics written on paper, napkins, and someone’s arm

•Everyone huddled around Hobie as he writes the final rough draft in a worn out journal (some touches may be added or removed in the future)

•a mock performance to see what they’re working with

•Cans of soda on the nearby table as they wait for a song name to appear in front of them. A homemade pizza fresh and ready to help keep them awake cause this song gonna get finished.

•Making sure the lyrics instilled a sense of hope and liberation for the people before they called it a night at 8:44 in the morning

[ancientgoddessofegypt]

Astro notes : Short N Sweet <3 Mercurial Design.

Mercury in the 1st - Comical. Socially abundant. Can be very quiet or loud. No in between. I love them actually. Would love someone that can match their flow, however most can never keep up with their every flowing wave. Their like the wind in human form. Their mind is a capsule of all the memories and experiences they've accumilated with time. Very interesting beings and could show you everything and nothing at the same time.

Mercury in the 2nd - This group has common sense enough to figure things out in such a small period of time that they can do almost anything to get what they want. They have issues with exploring things at first hand (taurus is the original ruler of the 2nd) so they can be a little stubborn but over time they quickly learn for new things to come to them from time to time. Very deep thinkers. Can be very open minded when they WANT to be.

Mercury in the 3rd - Intriguing personalities and are the gift that keeps giving. Soft spoken and has a mind thats free to any and everything. Really reluctant on having new friends but can become the bestest of friends later. they can really shy at times. There most open to conversations with strangers, it seems as they can let their whole world out from their mind and open a door to someone who is willing to listen. Beautiful spirits.

Mercury in the 4th - Sweet childlike personalities and honestly their mystique is one of a kind. Going into their world is like walking into a magical novel filled with fantasy, and coming out and it all disappears. Like a spell. Very captivating artists, and most keep the good stuff in a treasure chest, only the real ones will get a chance to open up whats inside.

Mercury in the 5th - Playful. Soft spoken. Interesting. Knowledgeable. Carefree. Those are the 5 things that is most prominent about their character. They will speak to you through song, writing, or even through and instrument. They work real well with their hands, if you can catch what I mean ;) Smooth charmers and could be a mini casanova so watch out for them. Very seductive.

Mercury in 6th - Talkaholics. Chatty Patties. You get my drift lol. Their caring to the ones they love and are advocates for everyone or everything such as animals and plants or even homeless people. You cannot get away with being mean to someone if they catch they are going to say some lol. Can be very mean spirited to the ones who deserve it. Overall, very practical and humane about things that need most of our attention. They aren't boring, their routines can switch up a lot depending on their mood so be easy on them.

Mercury in 7th - Charming individuals whose seductive prowess come out like a lightning bolt. Everybody likes them. Children come up to them the most tho. They have an angelic presence to their personalities and can get anyone to be on their side. Charismatic. Be careful, because the same way they can use this gift for good, they can switch and you know... do some damage ;)

Mercury in the 8th - Something about their wordplay is very special and potent. They have a gift with words that can transform the way you feel, think, breathe, etc. They have knowledge and insight about the world that most will never accept to be the truth. So they guard these secrets with their life, holding on until the ashes fall away connecting back with the wind. And allowing the circle of life to continue. The mind transforms a lot and they become a new person every once and a while. Be easy on them, their brain can take them to many stages psychologically.

Mercury in the 9th - Have a wit and charm to them that keeps the energy going. They aren't use to having people wanting to be around them or being attracted to them a lot however this happens more often than not. People love what they have to say, and want to hear more of how they view things from time to time. They are really interesting to say the least. Like what all do you know?

Mercury in the 10th - The audience admires these beings. Naturally charismatic and people love to see them on the big screen. They literally have a tv personality and can go viral at some point in their life. Gotta watch out for the people who always have their hands out, their naturally giving and love to share their time and energy freely.. a little too much. Keep your circle small.

Mercury in the 11th - Have a natural knack with entertaining all sorts of groups. Can commit to a cause like no other and get as many people on board. Very persuasive and social skills are through the roof. The social awkward become to most popular. The loner because the one everyone knows. These individuals are great with turning something that was 'lame' into someone fun and cool. Very different from the crowd, which what allows people to see them for their soul and not their flesh.

Mercury in the 12th - Spiritually inclined to feel the waves of the universe. Captivating the stars in the night and then going home to serve the divine with a painted canvas. A gifted creator who's only purpose is to live and die. To create and conquer the mind. The brain is the place of peace, when it wants to be. And when its not, they transmute that energy into something no other than. Something creative. Something special. The universe uses them as the vessel to give a message to the audience who desires to hear the words of God. You will never get another one of them in your life if you ever meet them.

[loseyoutoloveme]

will you do a song by song review for life support? i really liked the ones for sweetener and thank you next!

oh absolutely, i’d love to! thank you for asking and being interested 🖤 all thoughts below.

the beginning:

this was such a great way to open this album, it’s so cinematic and really sets the mood so perfectly. one of my fav instrumental intros i’ve ever heard.

9/10

good in goodbye: “you put the over in lover, put the ex in next.”

the lyrics are so wonderfully corny and i’ll love this song forever, like the chorus is literally just so fun to sing along to.

i do think it feels a little... shallow compared to the rest of the album, and the album being released so long after this song came out makes it feel disconnected from the rest. but i love it so i don’t care.

7.5/10 

default: “i know, i know this must be coming for me, i swear, i swear i will be the end of me, the end of me.”

this song is just sooo...... OUCH!

i’m obsessed with the way the chorus just SOUNDS like an emotional spiral, like her life falling apart, like falling into a deep depression, and then the outro builds like destructive racing thoughts.

also i never noticed the wave crashing and the bubbles at the very beginning until really recently, and i love that little touch. the whole song feels so underwater. cloudy and fuzzy. it does a good job of depicting certain symptoms of various mental illnesses.

8.5/10

follow the white rabbit: “is it haunting, baby, that i’m wanting, baby, that i’m wanting, wanting you?”

i actually was fully not expecting to like this that much based off the snippets she’d shared, but omg this left me WEAAAAK on first listen, which was the best surprise

there are definitely so many layers to these lyrics too, despite it being just a bombastic sexy toxic love song on its surface, particularly when thinking about the album as a commentary on mental illness, and some of the breakup/love songs as metaphors rather than straightforward love songs. definitely about infatuation and toxicity and perhaps knowingly entering a bad relationship as a bad coping mechanism, a way to avoid dealing with your pain or (as we see in effortlessly) a way to just feel anything at all.

9/10

effortlessly: “i hold my breath to breathe, hurt me so i feel, used to do these things so effortlessly somehow.”

oh god this song is just a punch in the stomach

i ALSO didn’t really expect to love this one based on snippets but the lyrics are just devastating and perfect and i hope speak to anybody who has struggled with self-harm and medication.

i don’t even have thoughts on this song, it just makes me go jsn*@(#nkdasdnkasd7*@U#j2k3n

love that this is such a fan favourite. it deserves!

10/10

stay numb and carry on: “truth is it was never love, your fault if you thought it was.”

the reverse “i’ve become emotionless” at the beginning >>>

also love the “i was gin and you were toxic . . . wish we’d just stayed plaTONIC” like a platonic relationship would be the opposite of toxic. it’s such fun wordplay.

also “i don’t feel like anyone” makes me emo, she really just slid the most simple but heartbreaking lines in everywhere and you don’t notice them until they hit you out of nowhere one day and you’re like ...OH

AND THE WAY HER VOICE STARTS TO GO MONOTONE AT “i’ve become emotionless” 

in conclusion, madison beer is a vessel for god

10/10

blue: “you could be as sweet as honey but i knew the darkness in your mind.”

this is my least favourite on the album but it’s still fantastic

the lana influence is clear without being too copycat, like it’s still SO madison. sorta like lana’s video games modernized and adapted into something truer to madison’s vibe.

love love love the whole outro

glad that this wasn’t a single like it was planned to be

7/10

interlude: “would you do that shit for me too?”

VOCODER RIGHTS

this album in general is just not really for people who don’t like vocoders and lots of technical effects. i looove that she leaned into it so hard bc it’s so HER.

this song also has so much depth for an interlude, relaying the experience of feeling SO hard about people, and realizing like you’re putting in way more than you’re getting back.

the post-chorus is like... 🤩🌌💫☄️🌠

7.5/10

homesick: “these humans speak my language, still don’t understand it.”

THIS SONG...... IS MY BABY......

oh god it just breaks my heart on every listen. the image in my head is of a little girl talking to the stars.

and why does the line about her mom and dad make me wanna cry every time? i have no idea.

I BELONG IN SPACE...... FLOATING WITH DEBRIS.......

i’m sure she’s not the first person to ever use this metaphor for mental illness, expressing the alienation of mental illness (especially one as stigmatized and misunderstood as bpd) by talking about LITERAL aliens sdkjfsdfksd, but she does it SOOOOO well and sincerely that it feels like it’s uniquely hers.

the rick & morty sample is so funny and so weird and so madison. i will probably never watch an episode of that show in my life.

10000000000/10 this song is the loml

selfish: “shouldn’t love you but i couldn’t help it, had a feeling that you never felt it.”

my absolute favourite of all of the singles, noooo question about it. it’s a perfect, perfect, perfect song.

two years, alone on new years’, nightclubs, gemini... women writing lyrics with very specific details about the shitty men that the song is about... it’s everything to me.

this song will just NEVER age. every time i listen to it, it’s like the first time all over again.

10/10

sour times: “don’t know what song of mine you heard that made you think i’d want to spend the night with you.”

home with you’s big sister<3 

not the strongest lyrics, but the concept and production are more than strong enough to carry the song.

she came on this bitch mad as hell

also love that this have been another fan favourite, seemingly??

men gross

9/10

boyshit: “don’t know how to talk or communicate, we’re so on and off, to you it’s a game.”

it took me awhile to get into this when it was a single ngl, probably because it came out the same night as evermore sjdknfsfnkjsd, but once i got into it, it became the best song ever

she’s soooo reliable with her “men ain’t shit” songs ugh

8.5/10

baby: “i’m a handful but that’s what hands are for.”

when this came out as a single it was the only thing i listened to for a solid week and a half. just an excellent song. the chorus is evvverrryttthhhiiinnnnggg.

WHAT IS IT SO CATCHY FOR?

9.5/10

stained glass: “my life’s a still fading memory of what i can’t have, and everything ’round me is starting to fade into black, but black and white is so much better, i’m learning how to hide my colours.”

i’m so surprised by how much non-stans seem to love this omg, it’s never been a fav of mine, as much as i still love it

but i’m obsessed with how different and distinctly madison it is

also this is a much more genuine take on the “pls stop being mean to me just bc i’m famous / you don’t know what people are going through” type of song than most of the others i’ve ever heard. her pain is evident, and the soft “i just might break” is just..... </3

the glass breaking and little scream are so good

she loves a good metaphor and so do i!

7.5/10 

emotional bruises: “how do i word this? was about to write you this letter, but it was just curses in cursive, you probably deserve it.”

this was definitely my most anticipated song along with everything happens for a reason, like i listened to the snippet on repeat CONSTANTLY lmao. and the full song definitely lived up.

the scribbling sound is so fun, i love her obsession with little real-life sound effects

10/10

everything happens for a reason: “i still can’t find a reason you’d wanna hurt me so bad.”

THIS SONG IS VERY MUCH EVERYTHING

again, this was for sure one of my most anticipated songs and just kjsadsdkajsm god i love love love it

i think she posted a video one time of the song over a clip of the mermaids from peter pan and it was so pretty and i still picture that video when i hear this song. it’s just soooooo hazy and dreamy and retro and perfect.

also the song on the album where she got to show off her vocals the most. she found her niche with this song, truly.

100/10

channel surfing/the end: “YOU’REBADFORMYHEALTHISHOULDPROLLYKEPTSOMEHELPICANTCONTROLMYSELFIMADDICTEDOTHEHELL”

oh my god i was FLOOOOOORED at the dear society clip. dear society was and is one of my FAVOURITE songs, and i appreciate her reasoning for not including it on the album (just wanting some space for a new song instead of one we’d already had for so long), but it did hurt a lil. i was so happy she found a little way to include it :’) rip to hurts like hell tho since she didn’t get the same treatment sjdnksd.

the channel surfing is also just such a fun concept for an outro.

and her laughing with her producers at the end followed by such a sweet calming tropical instrumental...... oooo it’s so nice, it feels like the calm after the storm.

10/10

overall, this album was just SO worth the wait, it’s so fantastic, it’s the loml, one of my favourite albums ever. i LOVE that it’s helped anyone with BPD feel seen and understood, and as someone who doesn’t have bpd but has a couple of loved ones who do, the emotions she expressed in these lyrics have helped me to understand this disorder more too. just such a special album.

most of the criticism i’ve seen of the album has been that it’s overproduced, and that’s definitely criticism that i understand, bc it IS heavy on the technical side and some people just don’t like very heavy production, buuuut... some people do! i do! madison does! and heavy production does not automatically make an album bad. this type of production isn’t something that i expect her to move away from, because it’s clearly her thing, and maybe that just means her place in the industry will be more with the heavy heavy pop fans and maybe even in more hyperpop circles. i also think it’s SUPPOSED to be overproduced; it’s supposed to be a mess of emotions and sometimes a little chaotic. she executed it very well.

i hope by the time her next album is out, people will stop comparing her to like every single artist out there. some reviewers seem determined to pigeonhole her and compare her to every female artist under the sun, which feels like an absolute disservice to me. she is influenced by many different people and they comes out in her music, as it does any artist’s because everybody has their inspirations, but her sound is VERY much her own. as someone who has liked her for years, i can absolutely feel her essence in each song and nobody else’s.

a 10/10 album and such an amazing, promising debut<3  

[argentdandelion]

Papyrus is Probably a Better Boyfriend than Sans: Summary

←Previous (Bonus) Summary

This is a summary of the most important factors of each part of "Papyrus is Probably a Better Boyfriend than Sans."

Part 1: Dealbreakers

When it comes to food, Sans seems to have an unhealthy lifestyle, for he makes a large amount of "midnight snacks", eats out every night, and likely goes to Grillby's multiple times a day. However, it's impossible to know for certain whether this is actually unhealthy, due to a lack of information on skeleton monster physiology and how monsters' bodies process monster food.

In the game itself, Papyrus seems to have very few friends. However, many Snowdin residents seem to know about him and care a little about him. Though not in the Royal Guard, that he's Undyne's student/apprentice and an informant for her seems to be public knowledge, which may give him some social status. His status as monsterkind's mascot/ambassador to the humans (depending on the human child's choices) would likely elevate his social status.

Part 2: Humor

Humor is valuable in a mate. While both Papyrus and Sans often engage in humor attempts, Papyrus is better at it. His puns/wordplay is more creative, and Sans himself knows his jokes are bad.

One should also consider the purpose of the humor attempts. Sans' purpose for humor attempts can be neatly wrapped up into one theme: "trolling". Trolling, as defined by lefthanded-sans, is: "Screwing around with another individual in an attempt to confound and especially frustrate them.” Sans' near-constant lighthearted and jokey demeanor is likely to irritate all but the most tolerant or mellow of potential love interests. This is especially true when major life stressors happen. In addition, some of Sans' trolling attempts are, essentially, lying, and dishonesty is a known relationship dealbreaker.

Part 3: Physical Attractiveness

Some of Papyrus's physical features line up with what women, on average, find attractive, while others do not. Sans is cutesier (arguably more feminine-looking) than Papyrus, but on average women don't show a strong preference for masculine or feminine men either way. Applying human standards to skeleton monsters is of limited usefulness, though.

Even if someone initially finds Papyrus not that attractive, with enough time that won't really matter. The mere-exposure effect means that the longer one has known someone, the more attractive that person gets. Furthermore, physical attractiveness perceptions are heavily influenced by non-physical traits. For example, those with positive personality traits are perceived as more attractive, and the opposite is true for negative personality traits. Thus, with time (and likely boosting by Sans), Papyrus' many good traits will likely make him seem very attractive.

Part 4: Kindness and Intelligence

According to The Conversation, both men and women say they prefer a kind and intelligent partner. Based on the Wikipedia definition of kindness, Papyrus is kinder than Sans. He shows more concern and consideration for Frisk. Sans, while friendly, is no paragon of ethics, and if he has much concern or consideration for Frisk, he doesn't show it. Evidently, he interprets his promise to Toriel in a way that requires minimal involvement. Though that approach may have some merits, it's certainly not the kindest approach.

One definition of intelligence is: "A very general mental capability that, among other things, involves the ability to reason, plan, solve problems, think abstractly, comprehend complex ideas, learn quickly and learn from experience." By this definition, both Papyrus and Sans are intelligent, but in different ways. It's impossible to tell which is more intelligent than the other.

Part 5: Miscellaneous

The ability to play high-quality improvised music makes a potential romantic partner more attractive. Sans can (inexplicably) play a trombone, and Papyrus's dialogue might mean he uses it to "plague [Papyrus]'s life with incidental music" at multiple occasions. However, it's unclear whether he plays it well. (There's no evidence Papyrus knows how to play an instrument.)

If flirted with in-battle, Papyrus uses "Bone Cologne", and Papyrus's claim he "smells like the moon" might mean he often uses scented products. Based on the results of a study, it is plausible that using fragrance makes Papyrus feel more confident, which in turn may change his behavior in a way that increases his attractiveness to others.

According to the results of a study, people are more attracted to those whose emotions they can easily, confidently understand. Papyrus is more expressive than Sans; the ease of emotionally "reading" him could thus be a perk he has over Sans. Sans' mouth is apparently frozen into a smile at all times. (with the exception of when he's hit in the Genocide Route, where it's briefly more of a grimace) In addition to relative inexpressiveness, Sans' constant smile may be interpreted as unnerving or irritating in situations where smiling isn't appropriate.

[astrotranslations]

[Guide to Joining the Fandom ①] “Handsome But Even Funny”... ASTRO’s ‘Useless Facts’

Kind mummy bird, JinJin

If you’re curious who’s the red head from their 'Crazy Sexy Cool' stages, it’s JinJin. On the day of the interview, he hurt his eye during practice and had to do the interview before everyone else. Despite needing rest from his injury, he told me that he’d go through the arranged schedule and approached me first so I was both thankful and apologetic. He left after enthusiastically filling out the questionnaire and earnestly answering my questions. It was even more of a shame since he thought of his ipdeok* point as his 'eye smile'.

The remaining members of ASTRO promised me that after JinJin left, they’d do an exposè on him but what actually happened after he did leave was hem only going on about how cool and good of a leader JinJin is. He was exactly like the leader who mentioned his ipdeok* points were his eye smile and sincerity.

Q. You wrote 188cm for today’s profile? JinJin: I wondered how the air is like up there because my friend from middle school was 189cm so I got teased a lot whenever I went around with him (laughs). It’s my wannabe height (Cha Eunwoo, who was listening in from the side, explained to him that the air up there is like this and that and Moonbin, who was next to him, burst into laughter).

Q. Your command of slang is commendable (Cha Eunwoo and JinJin went "Agreed? Yeah bogam**," skilfully mastering slang) JinJin: I learnt from Seol Hyuksoo’s video (laughs). I learn a lot thanks to our fans. My friends don’t know too well. (They call you an 'oldie' if you learn) Ah! Cha Eunwoo: I learnt from him.

Q. It’s written here that you’d like to play 10 years later. JinJin: I want to do nothing and enjoy myself on a holiday for a month. Moonbin: Take us along too!

JinJin decided on writing his ranking according to who eats well. The members heard him and nodded their heads in agreement. I heard various revelations about how much ASTRO are capable of eating.

MJ: I think Eunwoo’s no. 1! JinJin: Eunwoo’s more about the side dishes than his rice. MJ hyung eats often and he’s the first to put his bowl down. To be honest, I also though of Eunwoo as no. 1 but MJ hyung…

ASTRO mentioned that they’ve ever eaten 100 million won worth of pork belly when they were trainees. They said it was was to the point that they each ate three bowls of rice and had four servings of soybean paste stew. They tell me they’ve eaten 250 million won worth of beef. They claim that even when they go overseas, they’ll go till the end when it comes to food.

Q. What you remember from 2017 and what you want to achieve in 2018 are both 'AROHA'. JinJin: I talked about it when I went for the Seoul Music Awards with the members, I said how nice would it be if we could fill a concert venue just as big with only our fans. We held our first solo concert and got our own lighsticks, it was touching seeing the venue coloured with purple light and I was also thankful to our fans. We have a lot of members who can play instruments so I feel like you can see ASTRO’s diverse colours if one day we form a band.

Q. Where do you want to hang out with AROHAs? JinJin: Gangwon-do? (JinJin corrected himself right away after the members asked if it isn’t cold out now) I went to Anmyeondo with my family and the view was great. We were walking towards the lighthouse and on our left was strong waves while on our right, the water was still because of the seawall. It felt like I was witnessing two faces of the sea and it was cool so I want to show it to AROHAs.

JinJin asked, "When is ASTRO the coolest?" For your information, the answer he was expecting is, "When I meet eyes with JinJin."

*’ipdeok’ means to join the fandom. **It’s a wordplay on ‘Donguibogam’, or otherwise known as ‘Treasured Paragon of Eastern Medicine’.

The most dangerous age of 19, Rocky

To be honest, the first person who swiftly wrote down his answers to the questionnaire was Rocky. He jotted them down quickly and waited for the there members. He showed off his unique charms in unexpected areas. I can’t forget how he listened attentively to the members’ answers and showed animated reactions. It’s often that someone would think 'Rocky = dance' but you can also think 'Rocky = articulate'.

Q. Is Rocky ASTRO’s 'handsome rock'? Rocky: I used to introduce myself at the reliable rock but I think I’m handsome lately so I added that on and wanted to go with 'handsome rock'. But maybe not now. Today’s not my day (laughs). But I’ve lost my baby fat so… I want to grow handsomer turning into an adult (When are you the most handsome?) When I finish performing, my bloating has gone down and I’m about to go back to the dorm, I take a look into the mirror and since my bloating has all went away, that’s when I try to take a selfie.

Q. You wrote down that ASTRO are really cool. Rocky: Our image is bright and we give off the vibe that we’re very playful but we change 180 degrees when we’re altogether creating a stage where we have to show something. There’s a side to us that focuses on work. I think it’s cool how we’re always bright and then go all in with practising.

Q. As expected, Rocky’s ipdeok* point is dance? Rocky: No matter whatever way I think of it, dance is where I’m the most charming. The fans always say different things but they usually know me first through dance and then look at my visuals etc. after gaining interest.

Q. Is it your dream that after 10 years, you’ll be putting together your own house? Rocky: (Rocky was the most enthusiastic when he was answering this and he explaining with his eyes wide open) I looked into land in Jinju. It’s really wide and cheap. I talked to my dad about building on that land and living there. I got it down to the details.

Rocky organised simply the 'ranking them my way' placings according to age. He said he was worried what criteria he should go by and the members might feel hurt no matter how he does it so he wrote it starting from the youngest, Sanha.

Q. You’re an adult next year, right? Rocky: I’m no longer attending school and turning into an adult so I have to do well on my own (He says that when he becomes an adult, he wants to go to the bathhouse even in the early hours. He continued on that before that, minors weren’t allowed to enter after 10PM so it was a shame. In 2018 you’ll be able to see Rocky lying spread out in the bathhouse).

Q. Give some adice to Sanha who will soon be turning 19. Rocky: I’m a year older than you, um… I think you’ll have to live while being thankful for each and every day. It’d be nice if you attend school regularly… Ah, we won’t just sit still later on when you act cute to us and whatever else so maybe you should start doing them properly now… Yoon Sanha: I will~ (Even after that, Sanha was constantly doing aegyo to his hyungs all throughout the interview)

*’ipdeok’ means to join the fandom.

Cha Eunwoo whose titles are also burdensome

Cha Eunwoo’s the member who was last in answering his questionnaire. He also added on to his answers as he listened to the other members’ ones. It was to the point that after hearing the reason why MJ chose a purple pen, he purposely borrowed it to write his 10th answer which was a question to AROHAs. He quietly listened to what his members had to say. Contrary(?) to his clean cut image, he’s a good looking guy who’s unexpectedly familiar even with the trendy slang. Cha Eunwoo grew up always feeding on AROHA’s praises and love.

Q. You drank americano just a while ago, do you need a latte? Cha Eunwoo: Usually I have my coffee in the form of latte. There’s a certain charm to it. My mood gets lifted when I drink it.

Q. You also wrote that you need Rocky’s choreographing skills. When you say 'cha', are you talking about it meaning 'tea' or 'car'? Cha Eunwoo: There’s something I need to practice on so I thought it’d be better if I had Rocky’s choreographing skills. Both of them are correct but I feel like I’m getting healthier when I drink a lot of tea. I mainly drink whatever’s being offered as '2+1' (laughs). I also want to hang out together with the members (using a car).

Q. I thought you’d write 'face genius'. Cha Eunwoo: For 'cool guy' and 'reliable pillar', that’s who and what I want to be. I want to be an existence you can depend on. As for 'Father', it’s something I realised recently, but the members are all cute (Cha Eunwoo kept calling MJ 'My son!' throughout the interview).

Q. It’s unique how you described ASTRO as 'gentlemen'. Cha Eunwoo: Ever since previously, we have been trying to express a gentleman-like vibe. Like the movie 'Kingsman'. Other teams also have good teamwork but I’m really confident that our team’s is really good. As for 'pro idol', it’s because I’m good at communicating with our fans and I can do well on stage? (laughs) I’m 'Father' so that’s why 'family' and we’re overflowing with energy so I wrote drown 'energetic'. We’re fun and full of pep.

Q. There are so many things that you wrote for your ipdeok* point! (coolness, good looks, voice, kindness, detailedness, diligence, sometimes funny, sweetness, intelligence, softness) Yoon Sanha: I don’t want to admit it but I admit it. He’s handsome even though I see him all the time. Rocky: We find him funny too. Even though we see him all the time (laughs). Moonbin: I let out an exclamation whenever I watch TV. I’m always fascinated how he can look like that. We always see him all the time yet we’re like this (laughs).

Q. What do you mean by 'cool guy'? Cha Eunwoo: A  guy who keeps to his promises, who has a sense of responsibility, who’s cool both inside and out. As for 'South Korea’s best popular guy', it’s something I want to really experience once. I attended an awards ceremony and there were cool singers and actors engulfed by cheers so I was jealous and I want to work hard and be worthy of being called 'popular'. I watched all of 'Useless Facts'. It’s a program I really like and it’s fun watching stories embedded with information. I liked writer Kim Yeongha the most so just like those people, I want to be an all rounded good looking guy who also knows a lot. When I age 10 years later.

Q. Instead of now, you made a dance ranking for 5 years later? Cha Eunwoo: Because I really want to be good at dancing. I’m getting help from Rocky. It’s ranked my way but I want to develop an interest and work hard.

Q. Seems like the hiccup with the audio system during the media showcase left quite the impression on you. Cha Eunwoo: I was taken aback and there was sweat dripping from my bum (There was a problem with the audio system during the media showcase for their 'Crazy Sexy Cool' comeback where they had to pause in the middle of a song. They witty dealt with it by momentarily posing for picture taking, introducing their side tracks, etc.)

Q. What do you want to experience in 2018? Cha Eunwoo: There are a lot of things I want to experience. Before this round of promotions, I tried tennis and I also wanted to try sign language so I looked into it. I wanted to earn a license for being a soccer referee too so I looked it up. I often watch international soccer. I even inquired the federation about what I should do but realistically, it won’t work out. You have to referee for at least 100 middle school matches and 100 high school matches before they can give you the official license. There are a lot of things I want to learn an expose myself to. I also want to try unfamiliar things like fencing and ice hockey. I used to be afraid of challenging myself but you can do it when you actually try. Rocky, Yoon Sanha: You can just referee for our soccer matches!

Q. It’s interesting how you asked "How many times did you think of ASTRO today?" and "Im doing a good job right?" Cha Eunwoo: I’m curious how much our fans think of us in a day. I wanted to make this promotion meaningful so I try to upload a post on the fancafe everyday but I came into a little bit of a crisis yesterday. I uploaded but I hope they’ll one day be encouraged. It’s fun since I do it everyday and there are a lot of cute points when I go through the fans’ answers so it makes me laugh and there are many things I gain. It gives me energy and motivation.

(The fans would probably go, "I’ve to watch ASTRO’s video now so why study?" or "Why do I have to work?") Cha Eunwoo: Ah, really? Moonbin: Eunwoo tries to communicate a lot with the fans through twitter, vlive and the fancafe. He’s the one who takes lead the most.

Translations by @99pm​h Take out with full credits

[thefreshfinds]

Savvy The Savior

By: Natalee Gilbert

Amid high pitched-registers, soulful, angelic cries and beat breaks, Savvy The Savior approaches the beat with his signature boom-bap style, letting it roam free over a range of lively instrumentations. Hopping straight out of a time machine, you'll come to know that he was born in the '90s. His take on transitions and loops range from jazzy to funk-ish, then faces classic, gold-slated hip-hop head-on! 

Considering these points, Savvy The Savior's strategy behind the sound leaves listeners anticipating more, "It's very cinematic, and it will take you through a movie in your mind!" Savvy The Savior adds, "I produce and I rap on a lot of boom-bap beats but also I produce original uptempo, trap, trap/soul beats. I have to keep practicing rapping on fast-paced beats; then, I'll be good." His lyrical prowess serves truth, understanding, empathy, motivation, and what it's like to be, well, Savvy The Savior.

Regardless of the environment, you can flip through his discography. Since 2017, he's been consistently pushing out new records and projects, releasing his 26th project, DIAMOND FLWRS, this year! It's the perseverance that keeps his music's momentum high. So flap your ears open, and experience sounds that'll awaken your soul. 

His moniker, Savvy The Savior, wasn't the first to be chosen. First, he went with Raiden DaGame (Raiding The Game) at 15, but shortly after, Savior deemed himself as Regal Aces. Then, by chance, he came across the word 'savvy,' and it sparked something off. Eventually, Savior integrated 'Savvy' into his moniker. Before, the official add-on, he opted for 'Savvy Beatz' because he focused on producing. But after turning 19, he found his real name's calling: Savvy The Savior. "I call myself this because I'm saving hip hop, myself, the people, and the world." 

Savior's way of creating music involves flowing from his spirit. Around the clock, he's inspired, so it doesn't take much time for him to lock-in. Life lessons give his artistry wings, along with other samples.  

He continues: "I listen out for loops to catch, or if the song I'm sampling is perfect and has great transitions, I'll chop it up and flip it. You're putting markers in any spots on the song and slicing that section off. Then soon, you'll have parts of the song you can play on your drum pads. Eventually, you'll be able to get creative and flip the pieces of the songs around. I am momentarily rapping lyrics flow in my head. Beats give me goosebumps and just high amounts of energy! I have to push myself to write every single day, though, because I do get blocks sometimes, but I have a lot of songs and lyrics were written. If I don't write, I have parts of songs written I put together, and it just all synchronizes. If I'm in a session, though, I can write a song on the spot because the creative energy gives me all the power I need!" 

In summary, he goes through phases so he'll produce beats, write songs, title songs, and hits (in specific ways). He'll also write hooks, choruses, and chants on how he's feeling. "Emceeing is an art, so I like to have bars, wordplay, phrases, lyricism, catchy hooks, big words, flow, a bit of storytelling, storytelling is something I want to get better at though, and I'm still learning how to freestyle."

Moving forward, Savvy The Savior will be pushing out a debut and beat tape, along with more marketing, performances, and out-of-state trips. "Music is healing, and it saved my life. I don't know where I would be if I couldn't create music."

One line he resonates with is: "My biggest enemy is my inner me" from Lupe Fiasco and Yummy Bingham's "Much More."

LINKS:

1.

[lucretiars]

David Berman: Honoring the Collective Void

In today’s world, through any medium you can write a eulogy. That is the magic of language; no matter the vehicle, if something is meaningful, there is no denying its impact. This is the way I felt when I read musician Kevin Morby’s Instagram post eulogizing the late great David Berman, former poet and songwriter of the Silver Jews and Purple Mountains. Morby writes, “David Berman one-liners are like verbal baseball cards. When you find yourself in the company of other Silver Jews fans you all wanna show off your favorite one. He’s been one of my secret handshakes over the past 16 years since discovering his work.” That same magic of language is something that Berman himself was a master of. A Berman-ism is at the same time instantly recognizable yet fascinatingly inventive. A completely refreshing way of seeing something we all internally experience. A deeply universal and profound observation of life disguised colloquial punch-line. No matter the channel, his fluidity, cleverness, and insight using words could forge some new association to a thought or a feeling that you thought was so deeply internal that is wasn’t able to be conveyed tangibly. In Berman’s absence, his words remain and waver potently through my headphones in my ears and on the page I graze my fingers across. And I think, is there a difference between the power of lyrics and the written word? As celebrated for his poetry as he was for his songwriting, Silver Jews was the initial and primary vehicle for Berman’s writing until his first and only book of poetry, Actual Air, was published by Open City Books in July 1999. After a decade of silence post-Silver Jews, Berman’s newest musical project, Purple Mountains, published an album just 3 months prior to his death in 2019. In his music, Berman’s distinctive baritone growling voice serves as an amplifier to his words etched against the background of melody. In his poetry, his words contain the ability to extend his experimental language further than the limits of a song. Through both channels, the writer is veiled behind the guise of the “speaker” or the “singer”. Both create worlds open to interpretation by the masses. Both can hold facets of yourself and both can be crafted with lies, dreams, and fiction. Born in 1991 wading between the grouped identifications of “post-Generation X” and “Millennial”, I was a guinea pig to the internet beginning at a fairly young age. I grew up online late enough that I didn’t have social media or a cell phone until high school, but early enough that I learned and adapted to the strange solace of screaming out into a collective void. I grew up in the emergence of the digital age early enough that when I hear a specific song, I still anticipate the opening chords of the next one on the album because I’d spun the CD over and over, but late enough that I only listened to music on tapes and vinyl for the experience of it, not the necessity. The Warehouse (a CD palace) was my church, and on some Sundays my mom would let me pick one out that I would later on be able to play on my very own boombox, sprawled on the carpet buried deep in the liner notes reading along the lyrics as they played. Words always meant something to me, and I found poetry in everything: in the comment section on songmeanings.com where anonymous users professed their love for a lost memory that the song was associated with, the comments section on Youtube videos where folks anonymously bonded over the gravity this music video had on their life, and the sprawling cacophony of chat rooms and IM exchanges expressing the mundane yet somewhat magical musings littered with typos and faces made with colons and parenthesis. The internet was there for you when nobody else was. It was a conduit to transform some sort of thought you had inside into words on a screen. Words that everybody else could read. When Berman died, that collective void of the internet erupted. Fans of Silver Jews and Actual Air alike joined forces shared their own Berman-isms on social media accounts, blogs, comments on Youtube videos, Reddit posts, etc. I had always heard that along with being a lyricist, Berman was a poet and had his own collection, and after finding myself beckoned through the screen of my laptop and immersed in the world of Berman’s words, I needed to get my hands on it. Amazon was selling books for $200 a pop. eBay was even more. And Drag City, the record label that produced the book, was sold out. On their website there was a button to select to put your name in for an order when they become available again, and though I was doubtful it would even work, I pressed it. Five months later, living in the same city that Drag City operates out of, the same city that Berman last occupied before he died, I receive notice that my book is on its way. Given my taste for always trying to find some meaningful intimacy in the written word, I held this email I received quite close to my heart. Hey there, loyal Drag City customer web 134064-5, We've actually lived up to our end of the bargain – your order has shipped! Keep in mind that all orders are shipped via USPS First Class or Media Mail, depending on weight, so they may take a few days to arrive and there's no tracking number. In our know-everything digital age, isn't it nice to get a surprise in the mail every once in a while? We think so and hope you'll agree. There was something about the candor and sweetness this message held that enveloped me in a wistful appreciation for my love of words and the power they convey. If I can find beauty in this 2-sentence email that was probably just mass-texted to hundreds of people, sandwiched between spam advertisements and bill notifications, I had the dawning realization that no matter the medium, language is hugely influential and the act of crafting it to deliver a feeling that once only lived inside is the raw and subtle beauty of existence. The difference between lyrics and poems is that through poetry, language is the instrument. In music, the words reverberate against a background of sound. Which is more vulnerable? Which is more exposed? Why did David Berman choose to publish the words he wrote on paper and the words he recorded through song? How do we compare the literary resonance between lyricism and poetry? No matter the vehicle, Berman was equally revered for both forms of work, who honored the righteousness of personal experience and was not afraid to expose despair and honesty through art. Through my dive into Berman’s work, I was thrilled to find hidden connections, especially ones that I couldn’t determine if they were purposeful or not. One particularly “deep-cut connection” I found was through the openings of Silver Jews albums The Natural Bridge and Purple Mountains: a slow, almost apprehensive “Well, I….” And “No, I….” (respectively). These articles prefacing the personal claims Berman gets ready to confess next almost serve to give both us and him a moment to prepare. The Natural Bridge kicks off with “How To Rent a Room”, a rumination on death, loss, and coping, and Berman conveys both unease and accepted reflection in “No I don't really want to die./I only want to die in your eyes.” Purple Mountains kicks off with “That’s Just the Way That I Feel”, a circular repetition of apathetic pleading. Berman sings in an almost comedic honesty, “Well, I don't like talkin' to myself./But someone's gotta say it, hell./I mean, things have not been going well./This time I think I finally fucked myself.” In addition to their trepidatious starts, another common aspect of the songs is the juxtaposition of a joyful, energetic melody and dark, pensive lyrics. Berman creates a tune so hypnotically catchy through the verses (including one of the most clever feats of wordplay I might have ever heard with “I've been forced to watch my foes enjoy ceaseless feasts of schadenfreude”) and slows us down in the hypnotic carousel of insatiability in the chorus, merely repeating: “The end of all wanting is all I’ve been wanting.” The want. How unbearable is it to want? We wake and we want, we rest and we want. We are overflowing with want. In addition to this voraciousness, another powerful aspect of “That’s Just The Way That I Feel” is the fact that these lyrics were the first words Berman gave us after a decade of silence. He illustrates his triumphant return of joyful self-hatred, quintessential honesty, self deprecation, and the confident lack of hope. Not everything has a happy ending. In a particularly notable YouTube video of one of the Silver Jews’ last shows, they jam through a standout song “Black and Brown Shoes” from the album, The Natural Bridge—a fan favorite that includes the palpable and dreamlike depictions of the views around us (“a jaded skyline of car keys”, and “the water looks like jewelry when it's coming out the spout”). Towards the finality of the piece, Berman slows the band, places two hands around the neck of the microphone and instead of continuing with the melody in his voice he reads the next lyric as if it is in fact a piece of poetry: “When I go downtown, I always wear a corduroy suit./Cause it's made of a hundred gutters that the rain can run right through.” After these words are spoken, the melody gradually begins to emerge once again, as Berman drawls the next and final lines in song. The break of song to highlight this almost absurd yet striking musing lets the audience absorb the gravity of the words. In “Pretty Eyes”, an introspective ballad that closes The Natural Bridge, a gentle guitar strums against the concluding verses: “I believe that stars are the headlights of angels/Driving from heaven to save us, to save us/Look in the sky/They're driving from heaven into our eyes/And final words are so hard to devise/I promise that I'll always remember your pretty eyes/Your pretty eyes.” Through an observation alluding to death, Berman illuminates the beauty in physical tangibility against the beauty in imagined personification. Heaven, a beacon of hope is observed against the permanence of memory in the subject’s eyes. Even if everything is lost and through the most delicate nature of fleeting time, that memory will remain. After Berman mutters the final line in “Pretty Eyes”, there is 43 seconds of gentle guitar strumming, almost allowing the listener to reflect on this closing observation. This instrumental decrescendo moans like a lullaby. This purposeful pocket of time in which no words are spoken almost acts as a space in which the listener can consciously do nothing. The song still holds us in its grasp, but we are given the opportunity to mediate on what’s been spoken through the absence of words. “Introduction II” begins the Silver Jews’ 1994 album Starlike Walker. Through slow and jagged guitar chords, Berman drones fragments of words and sentences almost inviting the listener into his psyche: “Hello, my friends/Hello, my friends/Come in, have a seat/Come on in my kitchen/My friends, take it easy”. After these drifting portions of thought, the music quiets and the final lines of the 1 minute song are sung in a juxtaposed conciseness: “Don’t you know that I never want this minute to end?/And then it ends.” This powerful reflection on the passing of time, introduced in such an intimate way, is a driving theme in many of Berman’s pieces. The poem “Classic Water”, which includes brief moments of anaphora and reminds me of Joe Brainard’s “I Remember”, reflects on the past in order to somehow solidify a lost memory into a tangibility. He writes, “I remember the night we camped out/And I heard her whisper, “Think of me as a place” from her sleeping bag/With the centaur print.” (Berman 4) Similarly in “Tableau Through Shattered Monocle”, after eight dense stanzas detailing a piece of architecture, the final line reverberates: “These words are meant to mark this day on earth.” (Berman 12) This remark serves to honor the virtue of personal experience—the power in documentation and creating a testimony of a life. Both convey this feeling of capturing the rawness of immediacy; the long-winded desire of marking a certain feeling or moment in a permanent way—making what has been lost somehow last. The final line of the poem “The Moon” acts as a portal through Berman’s process: “And the moon, I forgot to mention the moon.” (Berman 27) The lack of poetic intention in these words is apparent, yet the notion of needing to include that idea of the moon and the evident affect it had on the speaker further conveys the tenderness in capturing emotion and transitory feeling. There is power in observation and inspiration even in the mundane or ordinary. We cradle the things that we have experienced and use them as evidence that we have lived a meaningful life. In a similar notion of using writing as a vehicle to document and possibly further understand the world around us and how the past has influenced us, Berman’s work frequently reflects on the past versus the present, transcending time in order to unearth the absence or garnering of growth. In “Trains Across the Sea” on the Silver Jews’ Starlite Walker, Berman sings “Half-hours on earth/What are they worth?/I don’t know/In 27 years/I drunk 50000 beers/And they just wash within me/Like the sea into a pier.” Berman converses with himself, admitting a loss of the grasp of how time passes and using the organic image of something so cyclical in nature—the incessant serenity of crashing waves—to juxtapose against the perpetuation of habit. Tal Rosenberg remarks in The Fader about this stanza, “There’s the setup, the mechanical pleasure of routine beer drinking, and then the unexpected curve — the situation’s cinematic and symbolic equivalent, an image that beautifully corresponds to the same elegant manner of incremental decay.” In a similar notion of exposing honestly in the mundane and the contemplations of personal development through time, the poem “The Charm of 5:30” closes with the stanza: “In fact, I’ll bet you something./Somewhere in the future I am remembering today. I’ll bet you/I’m remembering how I walked into the park at five thirty,/My favorite time of day, and how I found two cold pitchers/Of just poured beer, sitting there on the bench./I am remembering how my friend Chip showed up/With a catcher’s mask hanging from his belt and how I said/great to see you, sit down, have a beer, how are you,/And how he turned to me with the sunset reflecting off his/Contacts and said, wonderful, how are you.” (Berman 44) In the perfected brevity of “Somewhere in the future I am remembering today” we succumb to the idea of our past selves, drifting in memory on loop in our heads—forever. Every splice of our lives is packaged into a pocket of our brains—and ranging from the absolute thrill to the dreadfully ordinary, the things that we experience serve to influence the way our present and future world is shaped. In addition to the contrast between the aural word and the written word, therein lies even a deeper contrast in experience through both of Berman’s mediums of work. The energetic connection through live performance and the detached, yet intimate connection through solitary listening. The act of presently hearing a reading performed without the ability to see the words on paper and the act of reading the work alone, able to analyze and study the words on paper. What is more significant? What hits you deeper? What experience feels more comfortable, and what experience feels more as if you’ve bore witness to something revelatory? In her article “Measuring the Immeasurable”, Sarah Rothenberg discusses the transformation of “active listening”, comparing the capacity of digesting music before and after the technologic revolution. Before recorded sound became a staple in our daily lives, she explains that music was only experienced two different ways: “One made it oneself or one was in a room where someone else was making it.” She goes on to illustrate an anecdote about a young music lover in the nineteenth century who hears of Beethoven’s newest symphony. After months of waiting, the piano reduction is received through mail, and she hastily stumbles through the piece, attempting to recreate whatever it is that Beethoven has just released to the world. Many months after that, she takes a four-hour journey into Vienna to hear the piece played by a professional orchestra for the first time. Rothenberg presses, “You do not know when, or if, you will hear this work again. How do you listen?” Berman held the capacity to create a realm of “active listening” whether the words were divulged live or not. The solitary experience and the collective experience were similarly an act of power. He reaches with a certain word or turn of phrase and it acts as a gentle tap on the shoulder, urging us to wake up! Look at the world around you! Wade in the reality of your life, because we are all experiencing it. The reverberation of his words by themselves are enough to create a resounding experience, but the haunting dynamic of this thought is the fact that Berman will not be able to perform live in front of us, ever again. His words ring, deafening, into the void forever. We know that we will never hear new work again. How do we listen? As Morby wrote on Instagram after his death, Berman’s words are a form of human connection. The collective celebrating of his work is a joyful and vulnerable experience, and that power of resonance, with anybody, about anything, is reverberating. Even sitting at my laptop last night as I put the final touches on this document, wishing I was a half-drunk hero on a barstool with a like-minded soul but instead, was I a half-drunk sap listening to the Silver Jews, I felt closer to these words I have been so obsessed with trying to understand over the past month. Berman paved the way for acceptance of the candid displeasure of the world; the honest beseeching of meaning; somewhere that the meandering search for identity can float without pressure to comfortably land. From his words, I’ve learned that that very discomfort of “not-understanding “can be the tarmac for our emotions. The process of coming to terms with the things that we witness and feel is just as important as the experiences themselves. As the man himself said, “final words are so hard to devise”. So with that, I salute a cheers to David Berman. Thank you for allowing the space to dismantle the fear of unknowing.

[acehotel]

When Your Joy Meets The Hunger: An Interview with YCA’s Jamila Woods and E’mon Lauren Black

Illustration by Leigh Cox

Chicago’s most defining characteristic is that the city as a whole eludes definition, operating on an ideology of constant experimentation, forward-thinking and shifting perspectives. In many ways, it’s a city of perpetual rebirth. Carl Sandburg, a Chicago poet, put it best —  “I don’t know where I’m going, but I’m on the way.“

But today, there’s a new kind of cultural revolution at work, helmed by the sounds and stories of Chicago’s youth — many of whom attribute their success to an organization who believes in cultivating artistic voices, new narratives, critical thinking and civically engaged young people — Young Chicago Authors. YCA provides young artists with the space and resources they require to produce and perform meaningful works of art, culminating in the world’s largest poetry slam competition Louder Than A Bomb. The organization is a testament to the revolution that happens when you hand over the mic.

Jamila Woods is a poet, musician and the Associate Artistic Director at YCA. She’s been called “a modern-day Renaissance woman” by the Chicago Sun-Times, and her poetry has been published by MUZZLE, Third World Press, and Poetry magazine, to name a few.

Her album, HEAVN, is on heavy rotation in our HQ, and is, in her own words, “about black girlhood, about Chicago, about the people we miss who have gone on to prepare a place for us somewhere else, about the city/world we aspire to live in. I hope this album encourages listeners to love themselves and love each other. For black and brown people, caring for ourselves and each other is not a neutral act. It is a necessary and radical part of the struggle to create a more just society. Our healing and survival are essential to the fight.”

We wanted to interview Jamila for this blog, but instead she proposed a conversation between herself and another young artist in Chicago — E'mon Lauren Black, a BreakBeat Poet, the Youth Poet Laureate of Chicago and a YCA Teaching Artist Corps member. In conversation with each other, their voices and thoughts expand their stories and support one another. As they speak to the nature of their art and its making, of finding voice and maintaining self, and realizing how to find the words that cast spells, we can hear what vision sounds like.

Ace: You both work for Young Chicago Authors, and have gone through the program. Can you tell us about the organization and your experience there?

Jamila Woods: Young Chicago Authors is a non-profit organization that focuses on youth literacy and art expression rooted in writing and poetry. It started about 25 years ago, and we run the largest youth poetry festival in the world, Louder than a Bomb.

The teaching artists corps is the heart of the organization, which E'mon is a part of. It consists of six artists that go out to different neighborhoods in the city and teach residencies in all different types of high schools from magnet schools to alternative schools, and lead the poetry clubs there to participate in Louder than a Bomb. YCA also does events in the school to alter that school’s culture.

We have a space in Wicker Park at Division in Milwaukee where we lead free workshops every Saturday, and also have the longest running youth open mic every Tuesday, Wordplay, where a lot of artists come through. We also have poetry workshops, hip hop/rap writing workshops and journalism workshops — all focused in storytelling and the idea that everyone is an expert of their own experience and should have the potential to tell their story in their own words.

I'm the Associate Artistic Director at YCA. I started out as a member of the teaching artist corps several years ago. A lot of us that work there have come through the program, and after a couple years of working as a teaching artist, I became Associate Artistic Director, which allows me to work with the teaching artists still developing, still working on professional development. 

E'mon Lauren Black: I’m a teaching artist for YCA. I'm also the Youth Poet Laureate of Chicago, titled by YCA and New York Urban Wordpress. I started coming to YCA since I was about 13, 14, but my first actual participation was Louder Than A Bomb, also in high school.

After I couldn’t compete because of high school graduation, I continued to go to the program and participate in the weekly open mic, Wordplay. I was also in Bomb Squad, which is an Internship Apprentice Program. 

After that I did more work with YCA, working as an apprentice and through internships, through various types of roles helping, organizing, being a part of the conversations of programming, and figuring out roles where I could be of assistance. I wanted to stay in that environment — the environment I grew up in. So we're here, and continuing the work, and now I'm a special teaching artist in the teaching artist corps of YCA.

Jamila: The first time I ever went to Young Chicago Authors was my senior year of high school. I went to Wordplay. It was one of the most important places that I was able to find in high school, because my high school was not a very creative environment. YCA was one of the first places where I saw people free to be themselves, and where I saw a space being run by young people, where they were listening to each other and affirming the being of who they were. Ever since then, whenever I was home, I would always come back to Wordplay, to YCA, because I felt like it was a way of rechecking in with my community. It was always my most valuable audience to share my work with, and that still is a big part of my process today as an artist in my work as a teacher and organizer.

Ace: You’ve both been in a mentor and mentee role at YCA. What do you think makes someone a good mentor?

Jamila: I think for me the mentors I've had that have been really instrumental are the ones that have really affirmed my voice as an artist. I remember the first time I performed at Louder Than a Bomb, one of my mentors afterwards said to me "What makes you sound the way you sound? You don't yell, you're not overly animated when you perform, but still you're able to captivate the audience, and you speak in a normal speaking voice, but quiet compared to other people. And I just wondered how you got that way." That was the first time I thought about the way that I performed and realized that it was different from other people in a way that could be considered really strong.

E'mon Lauren: My mentors are the people I work with now. Kevin Coval, Jamila, obviously, really helped me when I was first coming up in terms of being an attentive mentor, helping me and giving me room to explore. I feel like that was the first path — to have so many different writing topics, especially from artists who already have their artist statement organized and their artistic voice understood. As far as performance, I'm very appreciative of Jaquanda Villegas and Jacinda Bullie from Kuumba Lynx for helping me understand what it means to be censored in a performance state, to know what performance actually is. Some people like to say ball is life, or poetry is life, but what helped me was to think that every time I'm performing, the life is inside of me, and I need to give that. I'm always focused on the light of the momentum where I was writing from.

I'm also very appreciative of Kristin Franklin. She was the main person who told me to gather my artist statement. I never knew what an artist statement was. I know everyone has a style or a voice, but to be able to put all of that into one bottle...This is the artistic element of what my writing represents.

It's a very profound thought. It makes me think everyday to make sure that everything I'm doing is in pursuit of fulfilling my artist statement, and all in all still finding my purpose.

Ace: What was that process like for you, making an artist statement? How did you get to the root of what you do?

E'mon Lauren: It really took me to examine my writing. Usually I go based off of my conversations with the way I naturally talk to people, how I carry myself when I'm explaining situations, when I'm explaining scenarios that I've been through, or just in natural ways of survival. Like if I have to get home, and I know I don't have any money, finessing the bus driver. That conversation — that is poetry. That is how I survive, and poems are meant for survival. They're meant to be like manuals, and instruction, and tips. Not necessarily to say I'm the final imprint, but to say that this is how I survive.

So when I was thinking about what I want my artist statement to say, I want it to say how I plan to get through this survival as a black queer woman. What do I want my survivalship to look like? What do I want my journey to look like? And to put that into words through my poetry, I was able to figure out not the necessary labels, but the necessary terminology. It opened me up to learning the terminology and the proper vernacular of how to explain profound thoughts.

It also was about figuring out my intersections. What are my points of figuring things out? What are my triggers? What are all these necessary things that I need to know to bring it all together?

Jamila: I like what E'mon was saying about the poetry of everyday, how you talk. Gwendolyn Brooks is one of the major influences of Young Chicago Authors and how we teach Louder than a Bomb. This year we’re celebrating the centennial of her birth, and so the poetry slam was themed after her. We started this year reading her advice to young poets, and one of the main things she says is to trust the way you talk and the language you hear in your community, how that can be poetry. I think that really influences me, especially having grown up raised a lot by my grandma. I always think about the way my grandma's speech is poetry, and how she says so much with one word, with just the inflection of that word. Or how she would mix a Bible passage into telling me how messed up my hair looks, or whatever it is. She just had this amazing way of speaking, and I think that's a big inspiration for my work.

Ace: What have been some of your other influences?

Jamila:  In terms of poetry, definitely Gwendolyn Brooks and Patricia Smith. I was definitely influenced by Nikki Giovanni and Sonia Sanchez, and a lot of the Black Arts Movement poets. I still also get really inspired every year from Louder Than a Bomb. Something about youth poetry always reinvigorates me. Just seeing how people innovate on the form of spoken word is really inspiring to me.

E'mon Lauren: I'm really inspired by Nikki Giovanni, Natalie Diaz, Morgan Parker — she's pretty amazing. I really love Morgan Parker. I also stay grounded in the artists around me that are always coming out with something, like Kush Thompson, and Jamila, and Nate Marshall, and Brittiney Black Rose Kapri. As far as who I find myself most respected to or most in homage to, it would be Zora Neale Hurston. Her exploration of love, and how she manifests different forms of love, or what her love is for others, on dynamics that we often dream about, or I find myself dreaming about as a young woman, is profound to me.

I'm also inspired by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. I appreciate Chimamanda's perspective and her way of standing in forms of solidarity. Especially when I was growing up, trying to figure out what it meant to find a place, to find a place of your equality— I struggled with that a lot when it came to my identity. That's something that I think about a lot.

Ace: What is it about Chicago that spurs such talent and creative output?

Jamila: I think Chicago is unique, unlike other cities in the Midwest. Different from other cities on the coasts, because it doesn’t have as much access to industry, like music industry or film industry. There's a lot of people who have a do-it-yourself kind of attitude towards things; it makes you have to work together with people more. There’s a collaborative energy and spirit that’s here.

It's also a very working class city. It has that element of grinding, or hibernating to get your work done. I also think there are really strong programs for young people, obviously like Young Chicago Authors, Youmedia, and at times Gallery 37 . These have all been hubs for young people to view art without being segregated into genre. At Wordplay, for example, you see poets, you see musicians, you see rappers, and it's a place for people to build together. There's also a lot of DIY places too like The Dojo and Rupcore – places where people can put together shows and shape their artistic careers.

E'mon Lauren: Yeah I couldn't have said it better. I think Chicago is highly diverse, but also highly segregated. We keep an overall goal, which is to live in better. Whatever that better looks like for us, because in Chicago we all undergo things together. No matter what perspective you have on it, or what type of effect it has on you, you still undergo it as a person from Chicago. And I think that that better that everyone sets their mind to can sometimes lead to competition and a sense of rivalry — of everyone trying to get to that better, whatever it means for themselves.

When I think of the art — the renaissance that Chicago is undergoing — it’s making a turning point on what that rivalry is. I think it’s spaces like YCA and other places that allow artistic growth to start. Art makes the better. But we also have the issue of schools closing, so we have youth who don’t get to experience that, but that becomes just another natural cause for us to reach for that better.

It's very challenging to be in the renaissance – you want to help others. If you have the right perspective to help others, everything will work out.

E’mon Lauren: Jamila, you've always had a unique sound. Did you always have a unique sound, or was it something you had to mold?

Jamila: I don't know if I thought of it as a unique sound. I’ve loved so many different kinds of music. When I write I know people say, "Oh, that's R&B," or "Oh, that's neo-soul," but I don't hear a genre that I fit into. I'm sure a lot of artists feel that way.  I could also write pop songs. I could write alternative rock songs. I always look for a cohesive feel, in albums, in books that I read and in my own writing. 

Sometimes I feel like I'm more scattered cause I love so many things. My influences lead me in so many different directions. What I'm trying to do now more is to create something that sounds more cohesive so I can develop towards my sound. Sometimes you can hear a beat and be like "Oh such and such rapper would definitely be on this beat. I know because they've honed their sound that way."

Ace: What do you love in Chicago?

E'mon Lauren: There’s this one place, this vacant lot on Congress and Federal. It's an open lot, and it's by a part of the river in Chicago. You see where the river flows, it just flows naturally.

But now they have it fenced up, cause they're about to build something there. But that was the place where I would go to just figure stuff out in high school, and knew what I wanted to do but did not know how to go about it all. When you see those movies like the Goonies, or the old Goosebumps books, where they would always meet at some tree in some forest, off some road for an adventure; that was our place. To be black and brown in Chicago, to be Midwest kids, all trying to figure out what we were gonna do. There were people out there who saw us and it was like – we know what it looks like. We're dirty, rugged, cruddy kids who just want to walk down State Street all night. But we had plans. We had goals. Aside from wanting money, we wanted to do something with that money. We wanted to do something we actually liked to make our money. Those were the conversations I needed.

And it was an open Chicago. Nobody was bothering us, and when you're from Chicago, that's very rare. To just have an open space to go, where nobody was trying to take it over, nobody trying to divide it between your side of the line. We were just out here doing us.

Jamila: One of my newer favorite places is this park. It's off of Halstead, and 32nd or something like that. Palmisano Park.

E’mon Lauren: With the heads?

Jamila: Yeah with the heads. There's all these Buddha heads on a hill, an art sculpture I think. But they also have a manmade body of water. It's really beautiful. It feels kind of odd that it's just in the middle of the city, but I really like it. I like to go see the moon there.

Ace: What is the best advice that you've gotten and what advice do you give to young artists just starting out?

E'mon Lauren: The best advice I've probably ever gotten was from my mom. She always said "Stay focused and maintain, and if you cannot be true to yourself who can you be true to?" She would always tell me that. That was like the main consistent thing that I remember, and I never understood it: grammar school, elementary school, I never understood what that meant. High school, it started kind of creeping in what that meant...to be myself, when you get to the whole lunch table situation, when you get to the whole club situation, when you get to school people and majors, and faculty telling you who you needed to be in order to graduate. That's when it's time to understand what a personal goal is, that's when it's time to understand who I am as an individual with regard to making my goals. But I need to stay focused and maintain who I am to stay true to myself. And with all of that, I'm exactly where I need to be right now, because I constantly am staying focused on the goals of being me, of giving my art, of sharing myself, and by sharing myself happily, without breaking myself, without staying unfocused on myself.

It's still a learning process. That would probably be the advice I would give young people coming into this — it's a process. It's the process of constantly learning about yourself. Being an artist is more than selling records, more than getting on magazine covers. It's more than taking yourself on trips. It's about really taking care of yourself, and understanding who you're taking care of. Figuring all of that out. Figuring that process out. It takes a process, and I think that is what the hard work is in artistry, is working on that process. That's the hardest job that you could ever have, that anybody could pay you for, is working on yourself. That would probably be my advice. It's such a lifelong process too. It sounds simple to say "Trust yourself," but if you don't yet know who you are, you can't yet.

Jamila: I think about these two quotes that I heard that really helped me. One of them is by Kate Bornstein. And she said "Your life work begins when your great joy meets the world's great hunger." And when I heard that, it was kind of like this feeling that I already had, and it put words to it in a really concise way. I always want what my work to feel, kind of like what E'mon was saying before, like it has utility to it, or like it's doing something in the world.

And when that intersects with what makes me happy, then I think that's when I feel like my work is at its best. A litmus test that I use in my work is like, sometimes I write a song, and I literally just need to listen to that song for that hard week I was having. And that song helps me get through that week. And I hope that has that effect on other people. But it feels most authentic when it starts with that place of utility with me, and I feel like that's what makes it connect to other people, as opposed to if I was just trying to write something that I thought other people want to hear. So that is a really strong quote to me.

The other thing that my friend, Nico, told me — "Everyone is better than you, and you are better than everyone else. Live like like that and practice everyday." I think that as an artist, you look at someone else and compare yourself to them, or think that you should aspire to do the things that they're doing, but you can only be the best version of yourself. And someone else can only be the best version of themselves, they cannot take your place. And if someone asks me "Who's better, Lauryn Hill or Erykah Badu?" I'd say you're crazy! They're both the best, and I love them. There's space for so many people. Even if someone is amazing, they're not taking anything away from you, and you focusing on that is taking your energy away from you. I would definitely share that with young artists. What project are you working on right now, E’mon?

E'mon Lauren:  Right now I'm currently working on my first book of poems, my first chapbook of poems is called Commando. It will be released by Haymarket. I'm getting it together. It's a process. But my next book literally just came to me in a dream last night. The title literally just came to me last night. Not going to talk about that. I need to manifest that in myself a little bit more, but I'm excited about that.

Jamila Woods: What's Commando about?

E'mon Lauren: Commando is about the intersection of womanism, or to be a womanist, and to also be the hood. To be the block, to be the Southside of Chicago. When people usually think about the block or the hood, or however they identify a marginalized neighborhood, they often associate that with hyper-dominance or dominance and hyper-masculinity. They never think about the correlation of how that ties to the woman, or how that ties to a black queer woman. Aside from the fetishizing of us and our bodies, and our sexuality or the energy of that, what else do we speak on? What else do we stand on? I talk about those experiences, and try to lead a way for other black girls to say "You know what? I'm tired of this too. I want to speak up." Being called angry black women for voicing our opinions, etc. etc.,, this is where part of the energy is coming from — me responding however I need to respond to survive and tell my story, so I can be heard. It seems like all that is heard is anger, which is another side of being open or being bare. This is where Commando comes from. What about you? What are you working on?

Jamila:  Right now I'm kind of in the middle, between things. I'm more focused on my live show, so I've been trying to decide what I want the live experience of my music to be. And I'm going to be performing at Pitchfork, which is the biggest show that I will have done. So I just want that to be really awesome. I'm thinking of ways to do that.

And I'm also thinking towards my next project, how I want to be involved in the production of it.  I'm taking music lessons, and I'm learning piano, and I'm trying to get better at guitar. I used to play guitar more. So that's mostly it. And I'm still writing songs, looking for inspiration always.

Ace: Yeah, that’s an interesting thing, the performance side of it. Poetry and songwriting are such private personal things, that delve into the deepest, darkest parts of yourself. And then you have to perform them, so suddenly you're sharing your secrets with the world. I wonder how do you two find the courage to translate the private to the public?

Jamila Woods: One of my mentors, who I mentioned before, Avery R. Young, he used to talk to me a lot when I was first starting to perform my poetry about how to authentically, and also in a healthy way, connect to what I was saying, and not just read my poem. So it's a balance. Say you wrote about something that was really hard. The goal is to not go back to that exact mental and emotional place where you wrote it, but to go back to the place where it empowers you, to claim that as your story and connect to it.

Performing for me is the best when it feels good and I'm able to connect to it, not only with myself in a deeper way, but to the people that I'm performing to. And I think with music, especially when I started performing with a live band, it feels like I'm most with myself, even more than if I was just in a room by myself. I’m most in touch with myself when I'm performing my music, which is a really good feeling. It's almost how some people like to meditate or go for runs. It feels like it gives them clarity, or a sense of being present. That's how I feel when I'm performing music.

E'mon Lauren: I try to think about the oxymoron of the situation – what it means to be silent, and what the silence of that experience that I'm writing about makes me feel like. Silence is one of the biggest things that causes me anxiety, It is a trigger, and I’ve allowed it to hold me captive in a lot of situations. So a lot of my work is me saying "Listen to silence." And when I write, I know I have an opportunity to really put all that out there. That's really where it starts, just me writing it out. It doesn't really get to anybody else or anything like that until I put it in a verse first.

That's where it starts. That's healthy, that's natural, and that's safe. Words are safe when they're used for safety. We all know the power that words hold, and I think that's also something that I think about. What I want my words to transpire to. Words that cast spells. I want my words to cast spells like, “Oh my God, this is what poetry is.” Making use of my words, and making use of my healing process. And I think that's all that I think about when it comes to sharing. You never know when my words can be a medicine to somebody, but once it starts with a medicine for me, then I will be a vibe dealer to all.

For the rest of the summer, when you book a room at Ace Hotel Chicago, a portion of the proceeds goes to Young Chicago Authors, as well as our other community partners Little Black Pearl and 826CHI.

[jakewright]

Top 10

As a recent member of 'Club 30', I thought I would reflect on the past 25 years of listening to music and select my 'Top 10'  favourite songs of all time. I plan to revisit this when I'm 60 and see whether my taste has changed. 

A special mention must go to The Beatles, Gerry Rafferty, The Verve and Dekker, Desmond & The Aces, who didn’t make the cut, but who I owe for influencing and shaping my early sojourn into the world of music.

First clause: It's a top 12.

Second clause: There's no particular order.

1.     AC/DC – You Shook Me All Night Long

I became a hard rock addict when I first heard the strutting two-barrel guitar riffs of AC/DC's T.N.T on Tony Hawks Pro-Skater 4. As a mid-teens teenager with a new electric guitar, I was obsessed with learning licks and riffs in my room and AC/DC provided me with the right rhythm and blues to get me rocking-out in front of the mirror. Obviously, Back in Black was the go-to album with more than enough guitar licks to master, but it was You Shook Me All Night Long that struck deepest, with its jangly intro; no fucks given power chords verse, and bluesy guitar solo that had me hook, line and sinker. I will never ever tire of hearing it and I will never tire of 'Acca Dacca'.

2.     The Cult – She Sells Sanctuary

Another song that was introduced to me by a video game. If I remember correctly, The Cult's She Sells Sanctuary was on the playlist of in-game radio station V-Rock on Grand Theft Auto Vice City. It grabbed me instantly with its pulsating rhythm, catchy lyrics and psychedelic lead riff. The song's energy is addictive and always has me coming back for more.

3.     Arctic Monkeys – A Certain Romance

The most important band to have ever graced my late adolescence. Through Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not, Turner and Co. produced a soundtrack to our lives at the time, telling the familiar stories of drinking, fighting, clubbing, trying to chat up girls and having a tight group of friends – more like brothers – to experience it all with. A Certain Romance is by far my favourite song on the album. Its honesty, sincerity and poignancy reminds me of the best and worst parts of growing up. There's a lyric in the song that goes, Well over there, there's friends of mine / What can I say? I've known 'em for a long long time / And yeah they might overstep the line / But I just cannot get angry in the same way. Every time I hear it, I think of the friends of my youth and realise that without them I wouldn't be the man I am today.

4.     De La Soul – Eye Know

A song to fall in love to. Lyrics, samples and production - closest thing to hip-hop perfection.  

5.     Pharoahe Monch – Push (Feat. Showtime, Mela Machinko & Tower Power)

I bought Pharoahe Monch's album Desire back in 2007 on a whim. The album is truly great, but Push captured me wholeheartedly. The all-consuming bass line and flourish of trumpets truly shocks the soul into life like a round of CPR. The song itself is about keeping ones resolve and never giving up no matter how tough things get. Advice we can all heed.

I live my life one day at a time / Hold my head, so I don't lose my mind / Sometimes you might fall down / But you get back up, get on your journey / Yeah, keep on pushin'

6.     Bob Marley & The Wailers – Three Little Birds

Where to start. I was given Legend by Bob Marley & The Wailers when I was about 10 years-old as a birthday/Christmas present. It's was a great introduction to reggae and the songs of Bob, Tosh and Bunny. When I heard the simple but beautiful Three Little Birds I instantly knew it would be a favourite of mine. The reassuring refrain of Don't worry about a thing / 'Cause every little thing gonna be all right genuinely warms my heart. Couple this with the fact that it's one of my beloved Cardiff City's walkout songs, and that Ninian Park (Cardiff's old football ground) once hosted the great man himself makes the connection all the deeper.  

7.     The Pogues – Misty Morning Albert Bridge

Not a song, but pure poetry. A poem about dreams, love and the passage of time. Its references to London's Albert Bridge and Celtic melodies remind me of my Northern Irish grandparents, who met in London in the 1940s and would have undoubtedly passed by the bridge during their courtship and early married life. Sadly, neither of them are with us any more but when I hear this song I like to think of them both, meeting for the first time and falling in love (possibly by the Albert Bridge). Jem Finer's lyrics in the final verse make me deeply believe that one day I will see them both again. Goosebumps.

Count the days / Slowly passing by / Step on a plane/ And fly away / I'll see you then / As the dawn birds sing / On a cold and misty morning / By the Albert Bridge

8.     Jurassic 5 – Concrete Schoolyard

There’s enough groove on this record to quench my thirst for old-school, boom-bap hip-hop forever. Match that with the beautifully interwoven wordplay by rappers Chali 2na, Akil, Zaakir, and Marc 7 and it's no surprise that Concrete Schoolyard made my top 12. Add into the mix a trip down memory lane of summer hoops with some of my best pals when I was a teenager and it's the perfect fix.

9.     The Impressions – People Get Ready

I remember watching a great programme on the BBC called Soul Deep when I was about 13. The series told the story of how soul music was forged from r 'n' b and gospel to become the most successful music in the world. Safe to say I bought the compilation CD that accompanied the series and People Get Ready by The Impressions captured me in a way I still can't really describe. Curtis Mayfield really captured the spirit of community, struggle and racial harmony at a time when African-Americans fought brutal oppression as they marched for their civil rights. And this message was not lost on a middle-class white boy from Wales. The hairs on the back of my neck stand up every time I hear it because it makes me believe that whatever the struggle is it's something worth fighting for. Something bigger and better always lies on the other side.

People get ready / For the train to Jordan / Picking up passengers / From coast to coast

Faith is the key / Open the doors and board them / There's room for all / Amongst the loved the most

10.  Joan Armatrading – Love and Affection (Remix)

A lyrically rich song, with great harmonies and instrumentation. A worthy listen when you're ready to fall in love or when you’ve already fallen in its wake. Recently, I was listening to actor Clarke Peters (most famous for playing Lester Freamon in The Wire) being interviewed by Michael Berkley on his Private Passions show on BBC Radio 3 and discovered he is the man behind the deep backing vocals on the track. Seriously cool.

11.  MJ Cole – Sincere

I love UK Garage (UKG) and this is quite possibly the best UKG track ever made. MJ Cole's first album, also called Sincere, earned him two top 15 singles on the UK Singles Chart; a prestigious Mercury Music Prize nomination; Brit Award nomination, and beat Dr. Dre to win a MOBO Best Producer award in 2001. But more importantly, the album became one of the soundtracks to inner-city life in the early noughties – at a time when I was a teenager and looking for an identity and music scene to belong to. Cole once said, “London is a multicultural city… it’s like a melting pot of young people, and that’s reflected in the music of UK Garage.” But UKG not only influenced young Londoners, it influenced young people from inner-cities and suburbs all over the UK. The fact that his music replicated the pirate radio experience (key to UKG’s existence), and was dark, 'urban' and edgy was all part of the appeal. Even now I can listen to Sincere (the song) and imagine I'm at an underground UKG rave in Elephant and Castle with cheap prosecco in hand, two-stepping away.

12.  Vaughan Williams – A Lark Ascending

And finally. I remember being a young lad, perhaps 11 or 12 and I was alone in the house. It was a Sunday morning and the summer sun was belting through the dining room, making everything shimmer with a golden glow. I decided to put dad's stereo on and set the dial for BBC Radio 3 (my old man was fond of putting classical music on a Sunday and I thought I would do the same). Then bam, I was hit with this weightless, airy violin that sonically sent me to the heavens, speaking to me on an ethereal plane. It was of course, Vaughan Williams's A Lark Ascending. Every time I hear this composition, I transcend reality and imagine myself to be as light and free as a lark, feeling the cold air about me as I rise and fall, flying across a vast endless landscape. There is a glory in listening to something so beautiful, however, there is also poignancy in the music one must be prepared for - to me, it invokes the idea that one day one's voyage will come to an end. The magnitude of the escapism means that by the end of the 15-minute opus you feel quite perturbed when you are set back down to reality. Still, worth it all the same.

[smartrapper]

This video will help If you are looking rap song structure, song structure, and song structure examples. - @Rob_Level We are going to talk about rap song structure 2020 rap song structure examples how to write a rap song structure rap song structure bars *My Entire How To Rap Course* https://ift.tt/2MphgxD *My Lyrical Wordplay And Punchlines Course* https://ift.tt/2Fj4xc2 *Check out my entire How To Rap Playlist* https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXCZkp3kXkfpF1djpyUE_XRCSzlsbUT0Q *My Song SHARK TANK From The Intro* https://ift.tt/2SaVQYI Quick explanation of what rap song structure is in case you don’t know. Song structure, which is also called song arrangement in music is how the different sections in the song are positioned to form the composition. New songwriters don’t tend to understand how MASSIVELY important the order of these things are. Not only in the lyrics they record, but also in the order of the instrumentation they are recorded over. The order of the instruments, vocals and loudness of each part, intrigue someone who is listening because these slight changes tickle the ear and keep them listening. A song is supposed to be a journey for a listener. It can never get bland or dull at any point or you just want to turn it off and you don’t get to the end of the song right. Would you get on a roller coaster that just went straight and never went up and down and all around? No, because it’s boring. So we don’t want to do that to our songs either. I took the my Smart Rapper team and employees to Universal Studios and the roller coasters were great. Not boring. So if you structure everything correctly, it’s exciting and you get what is known as a crescendo. Every song has crescendo It’s the highest point reached in a progressive increase of intensity. A song starts with an intro with just a few instruments and gets louder and louder until the end. Meaning it gets more and more exciting so you don’t want to turn it off. Then the listener wants to go on the ride again and you get another stream and that means you are making more money. Okay so Here Are The 6 Primary Pieces Of A Rap Song Structure Intro. Like the beginning of a movie or book, a song intro should be made to really capture the listener's attention so they want to continue listening. Verse. The verse of a song is a chance to tell a story Pre-chorus. Although optional, a pre-chorus helps to heighten the impact of the chorus Chorus Bridge Outro The Most Popular Rap Song Structure In Music Today There are 2 Rap Song Structures most commonly used. INTRO-VERSE-CHORUS-VERSE-CHORUS-CHORUS-OUTRO Or INTRO-CHORUS-VERSE-CHORUS-VERSE-CHORUS-OUTRO But check this out, here is a more commercial form of rap song structure combining pop with today’s standards. Because of streaming paying out per stream and people wanting you to replay the song, they are getting shorter and shorter. Sometimes there isn’t even a second verse Like Lil Tecca’s Ransom song. It’s just INTRO-CHORUS-VERSE-CHORUS-CHORUS Here’s the thing though, when you arrange these, we also need to discuss, how long are these verses, how long are these choruses? How many bars? When it comes to that, the length isn’t what matters. That’s what he said. Sometimes you only need an 8 bar verse instead of a 16 bar verse. Sometimes you first verse with be 8 bars and your 2nd will be 16, or your first will be 16 bars and your 2nd will be 8. It all depends on what works best for the listening experience and the flow of the song to keep it entertaining. I’m going to prove that to you right now. Now in this song, it’s only 4 bars then the HOOK happens seamlessly. The hook comes in so seamlessly you don’t even know it’s the hook until it comes back again which is a pleasant surprise for the listener. If you look here, the first verse is only 4 bars, The hook happens, then I finish the remaining 12 bars in the verse… as the 2nd verse. There are no EXACT rules. It’s about WHAT sounds good. Now did you know there isn’t ONLY rap song structure and arrangement to the overall song, but there is also specific ways to write the hook of a rap song structure that will make it better. There is more to song structure than simply structuring where the verses and hooks go. You can build your song structure and make it more entertaining by learning how to record voice overs in the right areas to add bounce to the song. You can learn how to add instruments in certain places in the song to add more excitement and build the song up more. You can take out instruments to make your vocals more powerful. More in this rap song structure examples video. 🔥➡️ https://ift.tt/2XgYpYi ⬅️🔥 🎵⏫ Rob Level - Built Like This (Song From Intro) ⏫🎵 Rob's Instagram Over 300,000+ Followers 🤯 https://ift.tt/2ptDbrR 🤯 by Smart Rapper

[hottytoddynews]

Tad Wilkes, aka Moon Pie Curtis

Oxford singer-songwriter Tad Wilkes is living proof that good things come to those who wait. Some just have to wait a good while longer than they ever imagined.

After more than 25 years of honing his craft and polishing his riffs in local bars and cafés, Wilkes has scored his first win in a national competition, beating out more than 600 fellow tunesmiths for first place in the prestigious bimonthly American Songwriter Lyric Contest, sponsored by American Songwriter magazine.

“I still don’t really believe it happened,” said Wilkes, a longtime journalist and the Oxford-based editor of Hotel F&B Magazine.

Wilkes’ winning entry, “Be Good To Your Woman,” will be featured in American Songwriter’s upcoming March-April issue. It will also be one of six finalists for the magazine’s grand-prize competition at the end of 2018.

“I’ve entered their contest a few times in the past, but I never placed or anything,” Wilkes said. “You’re going up against songwriters from all over the country and maybe internationally. I had actually submitted a different song to the previous issue and didn’t get anywhere. I’m not even sure why I decided to submit another one. It was only a $15 fee, and I figured I could spend that. But I had no hope that I’d win.”

Wilkes received a new PRS acoustic guitar and a Sennheiser microphone, but the real prize is the exposure—including a Q&A interview with photographs—in one of the music industry’s top magazines. Recent issues have spotlighted acclaimed artists like Willie Nelson (the January-February cover subject), Chris Hillman, Kenny Chesney and Nicky Mehta of The Wailin’ Jennys.

The magazine’s lyric contests are judged by some of the leading songwriters in the business, including Charlie Worsham, whose album, “Beginning of Things,” was named one of the “25 Best Country and Americana Albums of 2017” by Rolling Stone; Grammy and Oscar nominee Allison Moorer; Taylor Goldsmith, the frontman of indie rock band Dawes; and Austin-based Slaid Cleaves, hailed by Rolling Stone as “Americana’s most underappreciated songwriter.”

“These are all songwriters’ songwriters,” Wilkes notes.

Like a lot of those masters of the craft, Wilkes’ own musical style defies easy labels. It owes a little bit to the likes of Guy Clark, John Prine and Kris Kristofferson and a lot to no one you’ve ever heard before. Peppered with raunchy wit and piercing self-deprecation, his songs manage to be intensely personal and universal at the same time, filled with longing and laugh-out-loud one-liners. Even the saddest and sweetest of his songs will make you guffaw when you least expect it.

His debut CD, “Enter the Fool,” released in 2015 and co-produced by his good friend and former songwriting partner Joshua Cooker of the Nashville-based Captain Midnight Band, features both a comedic paean to sexy soccer moms in yoga pants (“Your Mama and Them”) and a snappy, bluesy-rock rumination on the bitter aftermath of a failed marriage (“It’s Called Divorce”).

“Enter the Fool” is available for purchase at Apple Music and on Spotify.

The cleverly metaphorical and immensely catchy “Be Kind, Rewind,” meanwhile, portrays a doomed romance in terms of Hollywood artifice:

Remember the opening credits We were both billed as stars The director yelled ‘action’ And we made out in my car But somewhere in the second act The storyline went south Some hack writer put some crappy dialogue In my mouth It all came out And I don’t even know what I was talking about

It’s a style that Wilkes has been fine-tuning since he was a teenager. “In high school, I made up what I would call novelty songs—silly, juvenile kind of stuff,” he recalled. “Songs with titles like ‘Booger on the Bronco’ and ‘Eatin’ Dog Food.’ My friend Ayers Spencer and I had a band called The Dingleberries—I sort of dragged him into it.”

At Ole Miss, Wilkes and Cooker went on to form the hard-partying band Cardinal Fluff and began taking songwriting more seriously. “Josh and I started writing songs together—even though they were still funny, they were real songs,” he said. “We were serious about being funny, sort of like Frank Zappa. I got my first real acoustic guitar at that time and then started listening to old country music and writing my own songs.”

Delving into the roots of what would later become known as the Americana genre, he immersed himself in the works of country- and folk-music storytellers like Prine, Clark, Steve Goodman, Jerry Jeff Walker and Willie Nelson. He also absorbed a lesson or two from another master raconteur, his own father, the late Dr. Thurston Wilkes. “He could tell a joke better than anybody,” Wilkes recalled. “From my dad I think I learned to add a little humor to complement the darkness and the deep thoughts—or what qualify as deep thoughts for me, anyway. Like George Carlin or Richard Pryor, he chose every word carefully, knew how to put each word in exactly the right place with the right emphasis. The first line of any song is the first impression, so I always believed in having a great first line. You add a little humor to see if they’re paying attention. That’s what my dad would do—he would throw some off-color joke into the conversation just to see if you were listening.”

Wilkes’ father, Dr. Thurston Wilkes, known for his hilarious off-color jokes and anecdotes, influenced his son’s songwriting style.

In Cardinal Fluff, Wilkes invented an off-color persona of his own, a bewigged, madcap character called Moon Pie Curtis, a name that he still performs under today (minus the wig and the wacky wordplay), while Cooker re-christened himself Captain Midnight. Cardinal Fluff lasted six or seven years, performing hilariously dirty-minded ditties with titles like “Position Impossible” and “Proud Totem.” But the bandmates parted ways when Cooker moved to New Orleans and then to Nashville, where the guitar-slinging Captain Midnight still fronts his own jam band and describes himself as “an internationally ignored superstar … (and) the world’s only purveyor of waterbed rock-and-roll.”

Wilkes, meanwhile, opted for a quieter, more domesticated life. “I thought, ‘Well, I want to have a family, so I should have a real job and keep living in Oxford.’ Songwriting was something I could still do here whenever I wanted. I figured it’s not like being a stand-up comic where you have to live in L.A. But, while that’s technically true, your chances of success in songwriting are much lower if you don’t live in Nashville and you’re not networking and co-writing and working with other musicians every day. I don’t think I really appreciated the magnitude of that at the time.”

Not that he has any regrets about opting for the joys of hometown domestication. He and his wife, Amy, have two adorable young daughters, and, in addition to his job with Hotel F&B, he founded Roxford University, a unique music school for children that offers both individual lessons in various instruments and a live-performance track, giving kids the experience of starting their own bands and putting on concerts twice a year.

In the meantime, Wilkes’ songwriting and musicianship have continued to evolve and mature. “Be Good to Your Woman,” the song that won the American Songwriter contest, was inspired by a piece of advice given to him years ago by his grandmother on her deathbed. “She had heart disease, and even breathing had become painful for her,” he said. “One day she told me, ‘Make sure to be good to your woman because they think real deep, and they hurt real easy.’ That just stuck in my head for years. But it’s hard for me to write a song like that—something that’s so heavy and deep. That was a tall order.”

The last thing Wilkes wanted to write was some maudlin, cliché-ridden tear-jerker, so he took his time with it—a lot of time. “I thought the first version was the best song I’d ever written,” he said. “That was about 10 years ago. Then, I realized the second verse was throwing the whole vibe off-course. It reflected my own distinctly male point of view, and that wasn’t what I wanted the song to be about. I knew I had to redo it. Looking back, it’s probably a good thing that I put so much thought into this one song, making all those revisions. I guess I always thought somebody would hear it eventually, and I wanted it to be perfect.”

“Be Good to Your Woman” will likely appear on Wilkes’ next CD, which he plans to cut with Cooker later this year. Although Wilkes, in his Moon Pie Curtis gigs, usually plays solo and unplugged, full studio instrumentation and Cooker’s sure hand on the production side bring glossy new life to his tunes while preserving the raw, throbbing ache that lies just underneath the wryly funny lyrics.

And winning the American Songwriter contest proved that Wilkes can still get his songs heard in Nashville without living there.

“It means that I haven’t been wasting my time doing some silly creative endeavor all these years,” he said. “I don’t feel discouraged about writing songs anymore. Now I know I’m not just doing it for myself.”

By Rick Hynum

The post Oxford’s Tad Wilkes Wins National Lyrics Contest with American Songwriter Magazine appeared first on HottyToddy.com.

[momentsinsong]

Moments In Song No. 013 - Dezmond

“Moments In Song” asks people one simple question, “What are you listening to?” We believe that you can learn a lot about an individual and their experiences based off of the music they love. For every installment we ask someone to make a playlist of 10 songs they’re listening to, whether it be something new they stumbled upon, or a song they’ve always loved, and explain the story behind their choices. The person’s playlist is then uploaded, giving them the chance to share it with others. Each post aims to profile someone from a different walk of life, whether they be an artist, a student, the mailman, a school teacher, an athlete, a nurse, your next-door neighbor, anyone with a love for music; showing that no matter where we come from, what we do, or what we look like, music has the ability to bring us together.

Dezmond shares a playlist made up of songs that have played a role in shaping his mentality and how he presents himself. Through the Baltimore based artist's playlist, we learn more about how his perception of music has changed over the years, his appreciation for Syd and The Internet, and what musical artists have inspired his artwork.

Words by Julian.

Photos by Tayo.

What was the thought process you put into making your playlist?

Bruh let me tell you. It was frustrating, interesting and none-the-less entertaining. Each moment that passed I couldn't help but think, “How am I gonna put this playlist together?” What I ended up doing was picking songs that went well together, and flowed well from the ending of the one song to the start of another.

What was the criteria a song needed to meet in order to make it on your playlist, and were there any songs that you knew just had to make it on your playlist?

The criteria for this playlist satisfied a vibe that was consistent with a late night conversation. Whether hanging with friends, or a special somebody, this playlist offers something calm, cool, and collective. One song that just had to be on there? I would say Kanye West, “Devil In A New Dress.” Man, that beat. Growing up, I was a bit of a movie guy- so when ever I hear the build up of “Devil in A New Dress”, theatrics comes to mind. Sort of like the feeling you get right before the beginning credits start to play during a movie. It’s exciting.  The tempo and orchestrated symphonies portray a sort of vibe that resembles an urbanized opera house compiled with endorphin fulfilling sounds and acoustics. As you listen, a story is told. And with it a beginning, a climax and ending.

How would you describe your taste in music?

I would describe my taste in music to be a bit transparent. My preference in music as of lately has been based around Indie and soulful artists with great producers. I can fully listen to Gotye's "Like Drawing Blood" album and then switch to Bas' "Too High to Riot" album shortly after. I'm a great fan of music, but like I mentioned earlier, the beat determines it all.

When you first start listening to music, you kind of just listen to what is on the radio, or what other people are playing, or what you see on TV. But after a while, there’s a point when you start actively looking for music, or you start to keep up with a certain artist. Is there an artist, album, or song that helped you get to the point of developing your own taste in music?

There hasn’t been an exact moment when I first started looking into music on my own. It was still pretty new to me and all I had access to at the time were the radio and what my older brother was playing from his room. There’s some music that I really didn’t get into until the whole “baggy clothes” movement was over. When Kanye West made the bet with 50 Cent talking about who could sell more. At that point I was like, “Hey, you don’t really have to be that type of person. You can have your own original style and still be great.”   One artist/group that I really enjoy listening to is The Internet, dating all the way back to their first album, “Purple Naked Ladies." It was certainly worth staying up all those late nights.  After that, I really got into Kendrick’s album, “Section.80.” It was after that point that I realized, I didn’t have to listen to all that other stuff concerning selling drugs and participating in the senseless violence around me. It can be about something totally different. Music provided me with that option.

What would you say about the music you heard from The Internet and “Section.80” stuck with you?

The music was talking about a lot of issues that are going on today, like abuse, and women wearing a lot of make up to stand out. And with The Internet since she [Syd] is who she is, she’s open to sing about love and romance with other people, and have it serve as a contribution to the culture.  

What role, if any, would you say music plays in your life? I know with you being a creative person, music might inspire you creatively.

Music to me, it’s kind of like a conversation. The way I listen to it, and what it means to me. There’s a song for every emotion. Especially in your mentality and how you present yourself. For example, “In The Morning” by J. Cole, represented class, and something respectable and lavish.

I’ve also seen you with pieces of art inspired by different musicians. You have ones about Kanye, Erykah Badu, and Janelle Monae. What about those artists made you pick them as subjects for you work?

With the women, Erykah Badu is kind of like the present. You have girls with the natural hair, out there doing their thing. And then Janelle Monae, she does everything you wouldn’t traditionally see a woman do. She wears a suit on stage, she owns and takes charge, she speaks for her own and doesn’t need anyone to represent for her. For that, I can see what the future woman could possibly be like. As for Kanye, he's always been a favorite. I love his albums, his vibes and especially his wordplay. He’s just a really dope artist. One thing they all have in common is their influence on our culture today. Each one plays an important role.  

Can you pick one song on your playlist and give us the story behind it?

I’m gonna talk about “Analog 2” by Odd Future. That track is something you probably wouldn’t think Odd Future would come out with. It’s a collaboration with Frank Ocean, Syd the Kid, and Tyler, the Creator, and it has this real angelic feel. At the time it came out, I just got my whip. It probably wasn’t the best thing, but it was something. It was a big moment, and it was kind of like, “Oh I’m kind of independent now.” There a line in there that’s like, “Meet me by the lake at ten, if I'm not there just call, And if you're on your way there, I'll ride you on my handle bars.” To me, my car was my handle bars, steering me down a road of maturity. It all represented a period and state of like, “Ok cool, I can kind of do my own 'thang' now.”

Anything else you want to say about your playlist?

My playlist is a reintroduction to live instruments. All of them have some type of instrument that’s being played. Now, on the radio I hear club bangers, so I tried to dial it down a bit, and tried to show that instrumentation is still the foundation of music.  

Listen to Dezmond’s playlist on Spotify and Apple Music.

Connect with Dezmond:

https://twitter.com/Designs_by_Dez

https://www.instagram.com/dez.by.design/

https://www.designsbydez.shop/

Connect with Moments In Song.

[hottytoddynews]

Tad Wilkes, aka Moon Pie Curtis

Oxford singer-songwriter Tad Wilkes is living proof that good things come to those who wait. Some just have to wait a good while longer than they ever imagined.

After more than 25 years of honing his craft and polishing his riffs in local bars and cafés, Wilkes has scored his first win in a national competition, beating out more than 600 fellow tunesmiths for first place in the prestigious bimonthly American Songwriter Lyric Contest, sponsored by American Songwriter magazine.

“I still don’t really believe it happened,” said Wilkes, a longtime journalist and the Oxford-based editor of Hotel F&B Magazine.

Wilkes’ winning entry, “Be Good To Your Woman,” will be featured in American Songwriter’s upcoming March-April issue. It will also be one of six finalists for the magazine’s grand-prize competition at the end of 2018.

“I’ve entered their contest a few times in the past, but I never placed or anything,” Wilkes said. “You’re going up against songwriters from all over the country and maybe internationally. I had actually submitted a different song to the previous issue and didn’t get anywhere. I’m not even sure why I decided to submit another one. It was only a $15 fee, and I figured I could spend that. But I had no hope that I’d win.”

Wilkes received a new PRS acoustic guitar and a Sennheiser microphone, but the real prize is the exposure—including a Q&A interview with photographs—in one of the music industry’s top magazines. Recent issues have spotlighted acclaimed artists like Willie Nelson (the January-February cover subject), Chris Hillman, Kenny Chesney and Nicky Mehta of The Wailin’ Jennys.

The magazine’s lyric contests are judged by some of the leading songwriters in the business, including Charlie Worsham, whose album, “Beginning of Things,” was named one of the “25 Best Country and Americana Albums of 2017” by Rolling Stone; Grammy and Oscar nominee Allison Moorer; Taylor Goldsmith, the frontman of indie rock band Dawes; and Austin-based Slaid Cleaves, hailed by Rolling Stone as “Americana’s most underappreciated songwriter.”

“These are all songwriters’ songwriters,” Wilkes notes.

Like a lot of those masters of the craft, Wilkes’ own musical style defies easy labels. It owes a little bit to the likes of Guy Clark, John Prine and Kris Kristofferson and a lot to no one you’ve ever heard before. Peppered with raunchy wit and piercing self-deprecation, his songs manage to be intensely personal and universal at the same time, filled with longing and laugh-out-loud one-liners. Even the saddest and sweetest of his songs will make you guffaw when you least expect it.

His debut CD, “Enter the Fool,” released in 2015 and co-produced by his good friend and former songwriting partner Joshua Cooker of the Nashville-based Captain Midnight Band, features both a comedic paean to sexy soccer moms in yoga pants (“Your Mama and Them”) and a snappy, bluesy-rock rumination on the bitter aftermath of a failed marriage (“It’s Called Divorce”).

The cleverly metaphorical and immensely catchy “Be Kind, Rewind,” meanwhile, portrays a doomed romance in terms of Hollywood artifice:

Remember the opening credits We were both billed as stars The director yelled ‘action’ And we made out in my car But somewhere in the second act The storyline went south Some hack writer put some crappy dialogue In my mouth It all came out And I don’t even know what I was talking about

It’s a style that Wilkes has been fine-tuning since he was a teenager. “In high school, I made up what I would call novelty songs—silly, juvenile kind of stuff,” he recalled. “Songs with titles like ‘Booger on the Bronco’ and ‘Eatin’ Dog Food.’ My friend Ayers Spencer and I had a band called The Dingleberries—I sort of dragged him into it.”

At Ole Miss, Wilkes and Cooker went on to form the hard-partying band Cardinal Fluff and began taking songwriting more seriously. “Josh and I started writing songs together—even though they were still funny, they were real songs,” he said. “We were serious about being funny, sort of like Frank Zappa. I got my first real acoustic guitar at that time and then started listening to old country music and writing my own songs.”

Delving into the roots of what would later become known as the Americana genre, he immersed himself in the works of country- and folk-music storytellers like Prine, Clark, Steve Goodman, Jerry Jeff Walker and Willie Nelson. He also absorbed a lesson or two from another master raconteur, his own father, the late Dr. Thurston Wilkes. “He could tell a joke better than anybody,” Wilkes recalled. “From my dad I think I learned to add a little humor to complement the darkness and the deep thoughts—or what qualify as deep thoughts for me, anyway. Like George Carlin or Richard Pryor, he chose every word carefully, knew how to put each word in exactly the right place with the right emphasis. The first line of any song is the first impression, so I always believed in having a great first line. You add a little humor to see if they’re paying attention. That’s what my dad would do—he would throw some off-color joke into the conversation just to see if you were listening.”

Wilkes’ father, Dr. Thurston Wilkes, known for his hilarious off-color jokes and anecdotes, influenced his son’s songwriting style.

In Cardinal Fluff, Wilkes invented an off-color persona of his own, a bewigged, madcap character called Moon Pie Curtis, a name that he still performs under today (minus the wig and the wacky wordplay), while Cooker re-christened himself Captain Midnight. Cardinal Fluff lasted six or seven years, performing hilariously dirty-minded ditties with titles like “Position Impossible” and “Proud Totem.” But the bandmates parted ways when Cooker moved to New Orleans and then to Nashville, where the guitar-slinging Captain Midnight still fronts his own jam band and describes himself as “an internationally ignored superstar … (and) the world’s only purveyor of waterbed rock-and-roll.”

Wilkes, meanwhile, opted for a quieter, more domesticated life. “I thought, ‘Well, I want to have a family, so I should have a real job and keep living in Oxford.’ Songwriting was something I could still do here whenever I wanted. I figured it’s not like being a stand-up comic where you have to live in L.A. But, while that’s technically true, your chances of success in songwriting are much lower if you don’t live in Nashville and you’re not networking and co-writing and working with other musicians every day. I don’t think I really appreciated the magnitude of that at the time.”

Not that he has any regrets about opting for the joys of hometown domestication. He and his wife, Amy, have two adorable young daughters, and, in addition to his job with Hotel F&B, he founded Roxford University, a unique music school for children that offers both individual lessons in various instruments and a live-performance track, giving kids the experience of starting their own bands and putting on concerts twice a year.

In the meantime, Wilkes’ songwriting and musicianship have continued to evolve and mature. “Be Good to Your Woman,” the song that won the American Songwriter contest, was inspired by a piece of advice given to him years ago by his grandmother on her deathbed. “She had heart disease, and even breathing had become painful for her,” he said. “One day she told me, ‘Make sure to be good to your woman because they think real deep, and they hurt real easy.’ That just stuck in my head for years. But it’s hard for me to write a song like that—something that’s so heavy and deep. That was a tall order.”

The last thing Wilkes wanted to write was some maudlin, cliché-ridden tear-jerker, so he took his time with it—a lot of time. “I thought the first version was the best song I’d ever written,” he said. “That was about 10 years ago. Then, I realized the second verse was throwing the whole vibe off-course. It reflected my own distinctly male point of view, and that wasn’t what I wanted the song to be about. I knew I had to redo it. Looking back, it’s probably a good thing that I put so much thought into this one song, making all those revisions. I guess I always thought somebody would hear it eventually, and I wanted it to be perfect.”

“Be Good to Your Woman” will likely appear on Wilkes’ next CD, which he plans to cut with Cooker later this year. Although Wilkes, in his Moon Pie Curtis gigs, usually plays solo and unplugged, full studio instrumentation and Cooker’s sure hand on the production side bring glossy new life to his tunes while preserving the raw, throbbing ache that lies just underneath the wryly funny lyrics.

And winning the American Songwriter contest proved that Wilkes can still get his songs heard in Nashville without living there.

“It means that I haven’t been wasting my time doing some silly creative endeavor all these years,” he said. “I don’t feel discouraged about writing songs anymore. Now I know I’m not just doing it for myself.”

By Rick Hynum

The post Oxford’s Tad Wilkes Wins National Lyrics Contest with American Songwriter Magazine appeared first on HottyToddy.com.