4-6-25 MY FAVES: indigenous artists

 music of the week

there's a really cool music discovery app called radiooooo, which i discovered, thanks to buzzfeed, years ago. i believe it was the summer before my senior year that i listened to it pretty constantly. i redownloaded it recently, and i am pretty saddened to see how many features are unavailable if you're not a premium subscription member (subscriptions are the cancer of our society in my opinion). still, you can enjoy shuffle mode and some islands (themed playlists). this spring, my plan is to discover some new songs through this app, so i'll be reporting back soon with some gems. 

at the mix i discovered a new local dj - dj red-i, as well as an indigenous dj  shub. shub's songs are much more dubstep and ravey, but his visuals at the mix were mesmerizing. dj red-i is also part of a duo called freshproduce.

some songs that i saved while listening to their work on spotify:

move like that - dj red-i

gold pieces - freshproduce.

midday - dj red-i

bullets - shub, phoenix pagliacci, randy bachman

books of the week

i just read conversations with friends by sally rooney. normal people was my first book of this year. i stumbled upon both of these books while taking a walk in the fall around my neighborhood - i regularly check out the neighborhoods little library (and frequently sort the books so they're nice and neat - does this count for hoa deduction?). i think i liked conversations with friends better than normal people. i think i resonate with frances a lot - she was very realistic and extremely flawed, yet calculated and intellectualized her issues (i find myself doing this too). the brief endometriosis awareness was valued but how on earth has she not heard of endometriosis? this was the least convincing part of the book.

 i am confiding to you that i haven't watched either series adaptations yet, but if i had to choose between a joe alwyn as nick or a paul mescal as connell, i am choosing paul in a heartbeat. 

my next book is in her words - amy winehouse. i got this book during my birthday roadtrip to columbus, at the coolest bookstore i ever visited - the book loft of german village. i was a bit disappointed when i saw amy's father and mother being co-authors of the prologue, and for a second i regretted this purchase. it was comforting to know that proceeds to this book go to the amy winehouse foundation, a charity that works with the youth, using music therapy, recovery programs, music projects, and housing for women in recovery.

movies of the week

i watched frida starring salma hayek and alfred molina (as diego rivera). frida kahlo was a huge inspiration for me in high school (i wore flower crowns in  honor of her, and wanted to mimic her hairstyles), and this film has been on my 'to be watched' list for quite some time. i really enjoyed how playfully artistic it was. the accented english was okay, but i feel like spanish would've made the acting seem less plastic. the film, like many biopics, was very romanticized, but you know what? they romanticize these famous dudes all the time (elvis???). frida was that bitch!

i don't give a shit what the world thinks. i was born a bitch, i was born a painter, i was born fucked. but i was happy in my way. you did not understand what i am. i am love. i am pleasure, i am essence, i am an idiot, i am an alcoholic, i am tenacious. i am; simply i am ... you are a shit.

saturday night i watched empire records with boyfriend. it reminded me a bit of a 90s rendition of the breakfast club. it also felt like a plot of my bratz play games i used to do when i was a kid. i loved robin tunney in the mentalist, and only recently began discovering her 90s work - and she is amazing! young renee zellweger too - was amazing! i think it's such a chill movie with an amazing soundtrack. damn the man, save the empire!

 

finally, as an afternoon not-so-delight this sunday, we watched everest per sib's request. i was kind of half watching while prepping our late lunch and finishing my collage, but i got to lock in halfway through. it was definitely frightening especially knowing it was based on a real event -a disaster in 1996. mount everest is sib's fear and obsession and she is "exposing herself" by reading more about this scary mountain, and events that repel any risky excitement. experiencing through other people's experiences is good enough for me.