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Remembering Dre
Brian introduced me to rap music on bus #177 in what I think was fourth grade. I know it was 177 and not 181 or 161 because this memory is accompanied by a host of other unique sensory inputs: the distinct smoky smell of the beloved driver Larry that wafted throughout the bus; the smooth…
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A Tribute to Lou
On November 8, Titus Andronicus, a New Jersey punk band, finished their set at Terminal 5 opening for Lucero with a cover of the Velvet Underground’s “Sister Ray” as a tribute to the late and great Lou Reed.
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Moments of Dreams: Dawes in Six Albums and Seven Stories
“In my moments of dogged hope, I would play “Moon in the Water,” an acoustic ballad where Goldsmith proclaims that ‘Love is for the fighter / Born to lose but never quit / Swinging for the moon in the water.’”
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Women of Hyperdub
In a genre ostensibly centered on themes of inclusion, liberation, and progressivism, the disregard for the remarkable role of women in both the development and advancement of the Electronic avant-garde is unfortunate, and even antithetical to the cultural aspects of electronic music that I find most appealing.
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Reading Between the Yard Lines
Sex and product placement in Big Sean’s “I Don’t Fuck With You” music video.
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Dylan is the New Dante
“More than anything, Dylan and Dante share an unbroken sense of pity for the ‘ill-begotten souls’ of hell. Both in the position of outsiders looking-in, this subversion of time, space, and reality is what makes hell so mystical, and this carnival of characters is what makes hell so unsettling.”
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Quack Music
I, like Kanye West, take great pleasure in talking about Kanye West. The brilliantly talented, ubiquitous egomaniac is a dual force of unbelievable music and even less believable controversy. Ye’s lyrics are witty, provocative, and complex, sometimes even bordering on academic (perhaps appropriate for an artist whose early career was university-themed)—check out this rhyme off…
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A Community Like My Own
“But I can say this: as I stood on stage on that final sold-out Saturday and belted out the final lyrics to the finale, “We’re home!” for the first time since arriving on Princeton’s campus I felt like I had a place on this campus. I felt at home.”
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Why Kidz Bop Has to Stop
On July 19th, 2011, Kidz Bop, the by kidz, for kids, musical juggernaut, released its 20th installment.
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J-Biebz as Jay Gatz
Late one Friday night, buzzed and carrying packs of sour candy from the Wa, I wandered to a room in Whitman. As my host and I sat on her bed, alternating handfuls of Sour Patch and some other Technicolor monstrosity, her roommate decided to show me a video for “Beauty and a Beat,” performed and…