#My Most Listened Artists December 2023 // Spotify | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

voskhozhdeniye · 5 months

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Musical Obsessions 2023

100 gecs: 10,000 gecs*

Aesop Rock: Integrated Tech Solutions

Alice Coltrane, I listen to her more than John now.

ANOHNI and The Johnsons' It Must Change, Rest and Why Am I Alive Now?

bdrmm's Pulling Stitches

Black Belt Eagle Scout: The Land, The Water, The Sky

Bowery Electric, lots of Bowery Electric

Chelsea Wolfe, lots of Chelsea Wolfe

Coil, lots of Coil

The Decemberists' The Rake's Song

Editors' Munich*

Emeralds, lots of Emeralds

Eric Dolphy, lots of Eric Dolphy

Fever Ray: Radical Romantics

Fiddlehead: Death Is Nothing to Us*

Flying Saucer Attack, lots of Flying Saucer Attack

God Body Disconnect: The Weight of Regression

HEALTH: RAT WARS*

The Inevitable Minor Fires: How Do I Miss You At This Remove? Let Me Count The Ways

Interpol's All the Rage Back Home and My Desire*

James Blake's Fall Back and Big Hammer

JPEGMAFIA & Danny Brown: SCARING THE HOES*

Kara Jackson: Why Does The Earth Give Us People To Love?*

Katie Gately's Bracer

Kelela: Raven

Lovesliescrushing, LOTS of Lovesliescrushing

Mandy, Indiana: i've seen a way*

Matana Roberts: Coin Coin Chapter Five: In the garden…*

Meat Beat Manifesto's Acid Again

My Wet Calvin's XS Underwear

The Orb: The Orb's Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld

Pan Sonic, lots of Pan Sonic*

Ross Fish: Stasis*

Slowdive: everything is alive

Sudan Archives' Freakalizer (The Egyptian Lover Remix)

SUNN O))), lots of SUNN O)))

Surfer Blood's Gravity

Sweet Trip: Velocity: Design: Comfort.

Thom Nguyên: The Summer Passed in Monotone

Tim Hecker: No Highs

Tod Dockstader: Aerial #1

TYGAPAW: love has never been a popular movement.

Tzusing: 绿帽 Green Hat

Yellow Swans, LOTS of Yellow Swans

Youth Valley: Lullabies For Adults

Zimpel / Ziołek: Zimpel / Ziołek

Zoon: Bekka Ma'iingan

Bold and italicized indicates a favorite released this year.

Matana's is my favorite. I really, really like the Fever Ray album. I forced myself to listen to less music this year than last year. This time last year I was completely fatigued. I broke a lot of habits this year. I have a notebook I've updated yearly since 2011 that lists my first album picked up each year, which albums I had in the car for each month, and every album I've listened to throughout the year that was released that year. Yes, I can tell you what album I had in my car in December 2012. It was Kate Bush's 50 Words For Snow. I didn't keep track of which albums I put in the car this year. I've had various Yellow Swans records in there since October. I also didn't keep track of which 2023 albums I listened to. Last.fm can tell me, but I'm not worried about it.

I have completely stopped listening to the radio, and use Spotify sparsely. My best friends are my external hard drives. I keep identical backups. I don't have THAT much music.

Last year was my jazz year. The goal was to expand beyond the artists I was familiar with. This year was my '90s and early '00s electronic music year. I think I dug a lot more vigorously last year. In fact I said, "Next year I want to start digging through all of the electronic albums the synth bros swear are the most important albums ever made." Some of them I liked, and some of them..... There was a point around June, where I actively recognized my digging around this year wasn't returning as much joy as last year. Autechre, Biosphere, Muslimgauze, and Pan Sonic are the finds whose discographies I've started devouring.

I truly listen to everything, because everything has the potential to be inspiring in someway. The flip side to that is that sometimes I subject myself to stuff I don't like. One of the MTV channels still mainly plays music videos, so sometimes I'll mindlessly watch the latest and greatest music videos to see what's "cool." Most of it is trash. That's how I heard all of these lazy samples people are getting away with.

@knightofleo Andy Stott, sometimes it takes me years to get to recommendations. Yes, you were right. I am taking notes.

I've decided next year I'm going to start with Japanese noise bands and see where they lead me. @the-inevitable-minor-fires and @anarchist-caravan I'm starting with Boris. I've heard very little from them. I'll probably start with Akuma no Uta. I really like Naki Kyoku. Any recommendations from them and other bands to check out? @zombimanos I'm not sure if you go here too, but if so, your input is also welcomed. I am a blank canvas on the subject. It doesn't have to be strictly Japanese noise bands, that's just an area I know has deep veins to mine.

As for my music, I'm drifting between noise and dance. I want my dance tracks to have less structure. If I could describe the sound I'm looking for it's Heart of Aeonia dub. Look up Slowdive's Moussaka Chaos if you haven't heard it. That drunken sound, but more rotted. There's an early Yellow Swans track the eventually evolves into something that sounds like a '90s Busta Ryhmes track. Shackleton also comes to mind. I want to sound murkier, waterlogged. Doom Ambient Techno. This has become a year long project now. I'll make tracks and they feel too far to one side or the other. I planned to do field recordings this year, but never did any away from the house. I might next year.

100 gecs: A now deleted user once said they have no business going so hard. I listen to this a lot at work. Also, hearing a trans woman tell people to suck her dick multiple times puts a smile on my face for some reason.

Editors: I've known this song for years. I have no clue why I suddenly became obsessed with it.

Fiddlehead: I really love the back half of that album.

Interpol: I don't talk about Interpol on here much. Certain Interpol songs make me lose my mind. I intentionally do not listen to them very much.

HEALTH: As a music fan, I like new HEALTH. But goddamn I miss Get Color HEALTH. As a music maker, I listen to new HEALTH and take notes.

JPEGMAFIA & Danny Brown: I hate them. I also wish they mixed their vocals cleaner. I got auditory issues.

Kara Jackson: I am typing this on December 23rd. In December, I relisten to albums released throughout the year in preparation for this list. I listened to Kara's album and Hannah Jadagu's album back to back last week. I've spoken about this many times before, but as a preteen, I wanted to become an artist because I felt like the emotional palette Black people were allowed to express was extremely constricted. As a child I felt that way, 20 plus years later, and now I know you have to scratch beyond the mainstream surface. It's something I still think about a lot, and not just with music. I was much more interested in film when I was younger. Earlier this year, I heard Joe Budden complain about going to a fashion show and all they played was EDM. (I hate that term) He said, there are niggas here, play some Black music. I know that's just who Joe is, but how does he know it wasn't? What does Black music sound like? Kara's Black, is her music not Black? I'm Black, is my music not Black? Are y'all aware there are people who stopped listening to Kanye after Yeezus because it was too White? Like shout out to you for dropping Kanye before the implosion, but what the fuck? I know where these invisible limits on what Black art and even Black people should look like come from, but that doesn't make it any less frustrating to be constantly feeling pressed up against it. As for the album, I love how it starts out simple and slowly adds more complex layers and arrangements. And then you have the title track, which is breathtaking every time. Put down the controller during Elden Ring down every time breathtaking.

Mandy, Indiana: I wish this album went harder. Every time I listen to it there are moments where I'm like MORE! If I can't get Get Color 2 from HEALTH, these guys are a good candidate for it.

Matana Roberts: I feel like Matana deserves a completely separate post for an essay exclusively about her. I'm so glad she's doing this. Her and Aesop occupy a very strange space for me. I actually get nervous when they announce new music. I always have such high hopes. They always deliver, but there's always that thought of how have they evolved since their last release? Yes, I'm aware of how pretentious this sounds. I don't care. I've had many favorite artists evolve to places it's hard to follow, 1980's Miles Davis for example. Hearing her evolution has been a joy, Aesop's too. I listen to Coin Coin Three the most. That's a taking notes album, but I think this is probably her best one. This one feels more intimate to me than the others. Whenever I listen to the album I think about the very ugly fight for abortion and bodily autonomy that's happening here right now, and the gender gap that men know exists, but like racism, must be confronted if acknowledged. So society ignores it, even though it shapes everything about our lives. Throughout the album she repeats the line, "We remember, they forget." The rapes, the abortions, the morning sickness, the second class status, and so on. The women remember what was done to their bodies. The men casually forget.

Pan Sonic: My favorite find going through '90s electronic. I am retooling the modulars to incorporate ideas I've gotten from listening to them. 2024 is violence.

Ross Fish: He created those two noise synths I grabbed this year. I posted the music video for Drugs and Sex on here over the summer. This is a whole fucking mood. His Youtube channel is one of those he's just like me frfr moments. I'm worried about his mental health.

Last year's list

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alexissara · 6 months

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My Favorite Musical Artists of 2023

It is Spotify wrapped season and so instead of letting a company decide what I liked most or listened to most when it isn't totally accurate I shall instead tell you my favorite musical artists of the year and what musical art resonated most with my heart and why.

Normally I don't like to do this sort of list until it's actually the next year because in December maybe I'll get into Electronic Disco Funk and have 3 artists that should really be here but I figure now is a good time

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Ado

Ado really was a machine of putting out great music both on contract for anime and songs that are just related to her own work. I found her listening to the One Piece Film Red soundtrack and loving those songs this year but her vocals on Show, All Night Radio, FREEDOM and more all are breath takingly great. She clearly knows great people to collaborate with to make amazing music and her vocals are utterly delightful with a brilliant vocal range.

Ado music is perfect for making playlists for my OCs, listening to while writing, working on chores, really just a perfect artist for every function I often look to music for.

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Janelle Monae

Janelle Monae is a consistent favorite even in years where they have released no new songs they still stand among my favorite artists of the year with songs like Make Me Feel, Many Moons, Tightrope and Screwed always being on my rotation of songs. Now Lipstick Lover joins as another Monae staple that will constantly be on repeat for me. The Age Of Pleasure was a really great album and I think this era of Janelle's music was really good and I think Janelle was really bold going into being a free ass person and refusing to let themselves be defined by others on their own terms.

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Reinaeiry

While I am not the biggest fan of the same kind of operatic dramatic songs that often drive many of Reinaeiry's songs, in any given year she still puts out more songs I love then songs that are not my thing. There is a touch of bitter sweetness because my ex loved her music too and so it often reminds me of her and our break up was a bit less than a year ago but having moved back around to being friends with her the music can sit comfortably in my ears as music that means a lot to me even if some songs now have bitter sweet memories tied to them it makes some songs work better too.

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Yoasobi

Yoasobi has had a year getting to preform songs for some of the years biggest anime projects but this was the year I discovered her music and in it I found so many amazing songs. 海のまにまに is probably my favorite from the year but I also really enjoy Horizon, セブンティーン, Biri-Biri, and Hero a lot too. She has a lot of really banger music videos and they are just delights to watch. I find a lot of her songs are perfect chill songs to really set a nice calm wokring on something serious tone in the background, like just enough added energy to not be sleepy music.

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Jamie Page

While I got into Jamie Page last year, Jamie Page's music this year has also been bangers and am still loving the songs i fell for last year. Love Renewed is a new Jamie Page classic and I am always listening to songs like Encore, Gummyworm, Bitter Sweet and People play Pretend. Jamie makes perfect poppy and fun music that can get into the sadder emotions while still being upbeat and really fun to listen to.

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Joel Baylis and Shelby Harvey

The Cassette Beasts OST is probably my actual most listened to music of the year. The soundtrack is just so fucking good, like above and beyond, I really need to actually buy the album on bandcamp because I love it so much. Your Inception and Arrow of Time are probably my favorite songs from the album but Same Old Story, Wherever We Are, face down and the rest of the vocal tracks are all bangers. All these songs are gonna be forever staples for me making OC playlists and just jaming out when I am working on being creative. Their perfect songs for writing action scenes not so dominant that they take all my attention but enough to pump me up for some badass action.

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Chrissy Chlapecka

Chrissy's transition from Tiktok bimbo positivity poster to pop icon this year was glamorous. She really brings something new to the early 2000s pop kinda vibe she is going for with a much more powerful and queer vibe with an aim at being a bit more intentionally political without it being so dominant in the music to pull away from them being like "dumb" pop. A lot of "influencers" attempt the transition into music but it is very clear that Chrissy is actually a musical talent who stumbled into being popular online for not doing music then used that to boost her passion.

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Dorian Electra

Weird core legend Dorian Electra is truly a musical artist who is always worth checking out even when a song is a total wiff it's usually at least fun to watch the music video. I am always relistening to my favs from Dorian but this year had a lot of great blasphemy core music like Sodom & Gomorrah but also brilliant songs like Puppet that really all captured my heart and are just great pop songs in addition to being a little funny or whatever else Dorian is going for.

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Band-maid

J-rock legends Band-maid are always a favorite for me. BAND-MAID are so good at their respective gimmicks it almost makes me sad that they are tied to the gimmick of having to dress up as maids. I enjoy a good Maid outfit but I do think their music is just so seriously damn good and I do worry the gimmick is also a detraction from how truly badass their music is. They are just such amazing artists and they are just a delight to listen to especially if I am gaming and want to replace a sound track or something.

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Tape Girl

Ska is my favorite kind of music, while I didn't include a ton on this list I had to include at least one Ska artist and Tape Girl was an artist I found this year who really blew me away. There were a ton of great artists I discovered this year but as of now I mostly just have one song from them I really love while Tape Girl basically has no misses. Tape Girl is really fun and the instrumentations are all so good, they are just ahhh such fantastic tracks and really songs well worth listening to.

#spotify #spotify wrapped #Music #Music 2023 #2023 #Top 10 list #top 10 #list #Tape Girl #BAND MAID #Janelle Monane #Ado #Reinaeiry #Yoasobi #Jamie Page #cassette beasts #Joel Baylis and Shelby Harvey #Chrissy Chlapecka #Dorian Electra

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slexenskee · 5 months

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Hey :)

I like your playlists and I found lots of new songs that way. Would you mind posting your spotify wrapped? I'm curious 👀

This just... made my year??? Omg thank you???!

Ok plot twist I don't actually use spotify 😅 I must be the only person on planet earth that switched back to an iPhone so I could use my iTunes again... but yeah I don't use a streaming service, but I do have my most played for the year! I uploaded it here - its on my instagram as a highlight reel!

For people who don't / can't access gram:

Most Played Songs by Month:

January: Mob by Eve

Shockingly my only Eve song for the year?? Last year I had like 3. Fight Song by Eve, one the CSM EDs, was my second most played Eve song but wasn't quite in my January Top 10

February: Shiki no Real by Chanceデラソウル

Suuuper groovy future funk remix of Shiki no Uta, the Samurai Champloo ED and one of my all time favorite/most played songs in my life lol

March: You Know How We Do It by Ice Cube

I go through a huge Dr. Dre/Ice Cube/Snoop phase every year and I'm not embarrassed to say it lol (also yes these are color coded by seasons bc my iTunes top playlists are separated by seasons idk why and yes that I am embarrassed about)

April: When Your Ex Says He Wants You Back by LTB Remix

I have no idea what the real name of this remix is?? I know it's a remix of When Your Ex Says He Wants You Back by Surface, but idk which one. On a related note no idea how I managed to get a full version, the only one I've found online is this version at the very beginning of this big mix

May: Deep Down by Neverdull

I will never pass up a song that samples Crystal Water's Gypsy Woman, and I am also a massive fan of everything Neverdull has put out, so it was no surprise this was my most played song when I discovered it and was in the Top 10 for several months after

June: Blame Brett by The Beaches

Omg man did I get obsessed with this band after this song. Also a huge fan of their other single Me & Me.

July: Disco by Surf Curse

I don't dislike Surf Curse but I don't listen to much else from them but this song, that always ends up on my Top 10 lists during summer. idk what it is but it's such a great beachy vibe for me. I genuinely cannot go to the beach without listening to it several times

August: Slingshot by Good Kid

Good Kid is actually my top artist of the year, and I'm thrilled to see it. It's really rare that I like so many songs off of a band's discography, and I think I have every single one of theirs. Also in my Top 10 for August was Alchemist, Osmosis, Tell me You Know, and No Time to Explain from them.

September: Honey by ID Chief

My favorite kind of future funk is when the original song isn't so spliced you can barely hear it, but there's still enough remix involved to really modernize the disco.

October: North Wind by Six Lounge

Shockingly enough I didn't actually listen to Ao no Sumika - arguably 'The' J-rock song of 2023 - very much even though I like that song a lot. I think I just can't handle my own feels, and tbh, as far as J-rock for this year goes I liked this ED from MHA more? I think the hook is just a little smoother and catchier imo.

November: From the Start by Good Kid

While I also love the bossa nova vibes of the original Laufey version, this cover is soooo freaking good. It definitely has summer anime OP vibes and there's actually an AMV using the first JJK S2 opening that gives me so many feels.

December: Standing Next to You by Jungkook

Ooof ok I'll come clean here I used to love k-pop back in 2014 and kind of got sick of the genre after EXO and F(x) broke up and was never into BTS or any of the new K-pop acts. But man this song slaps. I'm obviously a disco fan and there's some major disco grooves in this song

#ask #music recs

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roweclementine · 2 months

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Getting ready to end my Spotify subscription when it expires at the end of the month but I’m keeping the account up so here’s all of my playlists that I’ve made since I joined back in summer 2020

Downloads (the Big One)

2023:

March 2023 (v proud of the cover for this one; can’t believe I’ve been doing these for a whole year)

April 2023

May 2023

June 2023

Fourth Of July 2023 (Rowe’s Version)

august 2023

September 2023

October 2023

November 2023

December 2023

March-December 2023

2024:

January 2024 (platonic breakup season woooo)

February 2024

March 2024

The monthly playlist idea was stolen from @trenchcrows. Each playlist has as many songs as there were days in that month (except when they don’t because some of them used to have Lovejoy/Wilbur songs in them). They were my favorite/most listened to/most looped songs from each month. It was a fun project and I think that it’s cool that I can look back and figure out exactly when I got into certain songs or when certain things were happening to me. November-January was certainly A Time.

Queer Playlists:

Aspec (aro and/or ace songs)

🏳️‍⚧️ (trans/nb songs)

🏳️‍🌈 (gay gay homosexual gay)

Podcast Adjacent Playlists:

Favorite SFBO Episodes

Favorite Podcasts

Songs from Let’s Learn Everything!

Playlists For Specific Artists/Albums:

GLOOM DIVISION (new idkhow album go stream it)

We’re Not Panicking! At The Disco Anymore (by Fall Out Boy)

Everything by Jon Walker (all of the songs/bands mentioned in Everything)

Jon Walker favorites

Waterparks songs named after colors

Waterparks Songs Named After Pixar Quotes

Sparrow Sleeps

Infinity on High but it's my favorite parts (by fall out boy)

Local Dreamers (the Wait I Need to Listen to Twenty One Pilots More So They Show Up on My Wrapped playlist)

American Beauty/American Psycho, but with 9% more Demi Lovato

Razzmatazz, but with 9% more Tessa Violet

Playlists For Specific Situations:

Songs to listen to at the end of the year

Beachy

Therapy :( (Rowe is not having a good time)

Therapy :) (Rowe is not having a good time but she’s trying to be optimistic now)

✨ Seasonal Depression ✨ (Rowe is not having a good time part 3, now with more Christmas)

Christmas Songs That I Actually Like (We’re going to ignore the fact that Every Snowflake is Different isn’t technically a Christmas song ok?)

Relationships:

Breakup songs

Show Me The Door (break up songs; a playlist dedicated to my mother)

/ (love songs)

Hopeless Romantic Bittersweet Yearning (more love songs)

& (songs about friendship)

Spotify Wrapped:

Rowe’s 2020 Wrapped

Rowe’s 2021 Wrapped

Rowe’s 2022 Wrapped

Rowe’s 2023 Wrapped

Rowe’s Wrapped 2019-2023 (I had Spotify in 2019 but was using a different account at the time)

Minecraft:

Fallen Kingdom Saga

Minecraft Songs

The Minecraft Archives:

TMcA

tmca!Tommy

(The Minecraft archives was a mcyt (dsmp/Hermitcraft season 8) tma au that I was working on which I am no longer writing because of Current Events)(I also had a TMcA!Wilbur playlist but I deleted it back in February along with all of my other Lovejoy playlists because fuck Wilbur)

The Rest Of Them:

Saturday Saturday Saturday Saturday (sometimes you just wanna listen to songs with Saturday in the title; here’s a playlist for that)

Favorite Covers

Walmart Radio but it’s the songs I actually like

# (songs with numbers in the title)

Duets & features

Inside you there are two wolves (aka Fall Out Boy are liars)

Eurovision Favs

and finally,

Some Songs That Aren’t Lovejoy:

When did this happen why are there so many of them this post took like an hour to make

#Spotify #playlists #music

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tellthemeerkatsitsfine · 23 days

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I don’t keep up with new music nearly as much as I used to. Not even discovering new artists or anything, but even new stuff put out by people I already like, it passes me by more than it used to. Late in 2023, I was shocked to learn two of my absolute favourite musicians had put out new albums in 2022 and I didn’t even notice. For most of my life I’ve found out about new music – both new artists and new albums – via folk festivals and country music blogs. Which is why so much of my music collection is Canadian folk music and American (plus some Canadian) country music.

But I haven’t been to a folk festival since pre-COVID – last year I finally started going to see live music again sometimes, this week I’ll be going to my sixth music gig since last August, which is less than I used to but significantly more than I did from 2020-2023, and it’s been really good. I let myself forget, in the depths of the pandemic, how big a part of my life live music was. I took it for granted most of my life, just going to folk festivals with my dad because that’s what happens every summer. And while I’ve been back to concerts, I haven’t been back to festivals, so I haven’t learned about anything new. And I don’t read country music blogs anymore because I’m too busy reading comedy forums.

So aside from blogs and festivals, how am I supposed to know if even my very favourite musicians put out new stuff? I also don’t do Twitter or anything. And of course I don’t do Spotify. I didn’t really know how Spotify worked until recently, I was just vaguely aware that it’s some demon ruining the music industry so I never looked into it. And I am still not going to look into it! Don’t worry everyone, I still have my principles, I am still horrified by the fact that my brother owns no music files and thinks it’s fine to just rent access to music that he only gets to keep hearing as long as he keeps paying and he has internet access and a corporation chooses to keep it on their platform.

However, my friend whom I moved in with in December uses Spotify, and when I hang out with him in the living room, we listen to music via the TV that’s connected to his computer, and I have to admit it’s convenient. Especially when I started typing in my favourite artists and learned that some of them have entire albums I hadn’t even known about. And, even though I’m pretty sure algorithms are a terrible thing to introduce to art, I have found a few new people I like from that.

I haven’t entirely sold out, though, because I did not sign up for Spotify (I would genuinely never do that, I will draw the line at occasionally benefitting from my roommate using it), I went and bought the albums on Bandcamp. Quick reminder of a thing that I never miss an opportunity to remind people, Bandcamp is the way to buy music where the highest percentage of the profits go to the artist (aside from just handing them money for a CD at a gig, I guess), also it’s the most convenient way to get it for the consumer (one easily downloadable folder with every song on the album as DRM-free mp3s).

I also recently raided the CD collection in my dad’s basement, because there was a bunch of stuff I knew he had and I knew I liked but was somehow not in the music collection on my hard drive. So as a result of that, I have a bunch of new music, and I’ve been greatly enjoying it.

Okay, here’s the actual point of this post, after all that pre-amble: Cody Jinks put out an album one month ago, thanks to the evils of corporatized technology I became aware of it when it was only a month old, I’ve been listening to it non-stop for several days, it’s fucking fantastic. It might be my favourite Cody Jinks album, though I’m aware that recency bias in in play. And I like Cody Jinks’ previous stuff a lot.

I should actually say that this might be my favourite Cody Jinks studio album, because he has a live album called Red Rocks Live and nothing's better than that. It's a solid cross-section of his earlier work so a good introduction, if anyone's interested in getting to know him. Which you should be, if you like his sort of thing. His sort of thing is modern American outlaw country music by a guy who used to be in a metal band. All the best country singers used to be in metal bands (him and Corb Lund).

This live version of his song Head Case is as good as country music gets. Good thing to play for anyone who spouts that claim that country music was only good back in the 70s (it was good back in the 70s, but probably wasn't good back then either if the only thing you listened to was pop music on the radio that incorrectly markets itself as country). My horrible abusive high school coach used to nickname me and any other athletes who struggled mentally/psychologically "head case", and now I play this song whenever I get sad about that, which definitely isn't that often or anything because I'm fine and not still trying to win every argument I had when I was 17. Definitely not.

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Anyway, his new album is called Change the Game, and I can't stop listening to it.

It covers the usual themes - sad, angry, drinks too much, would like to stop drinking so much (going a little harder on that last point than some of his previous albums, or maybe I'm just predisposed to notice that these days), and of course the designed outlaw country anthem, in this case it's the title track and it's great. I keep finding new stuff in it.

I often find that my favourite songs on an album change from what they are when I first hear it, but at the moment, the one I've had on repeat the most is:

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And then I listen to the level of guitar going on in this one that's ages ahead of some of the older stuff:

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But I think once the initial excitement of the new album wears off, this song is going to end up as my favourite:

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I was on the bus to work yesterday when I first put this one on and had to change the track, because the bus is not an appropriate setting for being as emotionally moved as I was by a lyric like "Don't waste your days on dreams that don't fill you/Find out what you love, and let it kill you".

Anyway, I might need to start subscribing to some musician mailing lists or something. Because I'm not signing up for Spotify or Twitter but it is nice to actually find out about this stuff.

#Youtube

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grimaider · 4 months

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They Were Always Allowed: A Personal Theory of TV Girl’s Hit "Not Allowed"

Hello internet, it's grim.

I just wanted to quickly thank everyone that went a read my last long post! My last post is probably the most popular piece of literary and analytical content that I have ever written, so I am happy that my writing is being seen by those in the community. As I start to write more over this year, I want a place to share my content beyond Tumblr, so if you're interested, I have opened up an Instagram account focused on advertising my blog here.

For this post, I plan to talk about another major interest of mine: Music and lyrical analysis. It's not something that I am totally great at yet, so please bare with me. Thank you.

Who Really Cares: The Inescapable Album of 2023

One of my favorite hobbies over the past few years has been rating albums and songs that I come across. It was something that I had picked up on when I was in 8th grade, and it helped me handle my emotions and stresses during a time of abuse. Now, as a college student, I rate albums as a past time, and I have come to enjoy it. In fact, a few of my college essays have revolved around music artists and the impact their music had on the world and myself.

Here are a few of the albums that I have rated over the past 5-6 months on AOTY.

Now for most albums, the rating process is fairly boring. I go through an album, pick out what songs I enjoyed and hated, and give my rating. Nothing out of the ordinary. But every once in a while, an album comes around that, for whatever reason, people on the internet flip the hell out over (regardless of whether the album is "good" or "bad").

90% of the time, I tend to wipe these albums off my list of albums to rate, typically because these albums tend to be overrated in some way, shape, or form. But in 2023, I could simply not get away from TV Girl's 2016 album, Who Really Cares. Despite the album turning 8 years old as of this year, I have still seen this album appear numerous times on YouTube shorts, Instagram stories, Instagram Reels, Twitter memes, and Spotify playlists. In fact, the reason why I even know of TV Girl is due to the fact that an ex of mine dedicated their hit song "Not Allowed" to me after our breakup. So I gave the album a 78/100 and moved on with my life (and my AOTY rating can be found here).

Fun fact: The source image for Who Really Cares originates from George M. Hester's The Classic Nude (Reddit). Arguably one of my favorite album covers of all time.

Most of the songs on the album aren't bad, and the unique sampling is extremely entrancing, but the album sounds the same throughout, with most songs lacking individual uniqueness. There were many instances in which I would attempt to write a short take on individual songs just to realize that I would be pointing out the exact same lyrics between two songs. For instance, "Not Allowed" and "For You" both use the "never intend to do what you say at all" line, which I found funny. While this could've been TV Girl using the line as a thematic or symbolic purpose throughout their album, it just felt lazy, especially since this doesn't occur in other albums that they've produced. Albums such as Summer's Over and Lonely Women were much better in terms of order, structure, and thematic principles than Who Really Cares, and neither of them have the repetition issue either.

"Not Allowed" and Misogyny : The Anthem of "Male Manipulators"

After rating and criticizing Who Really Cares back in mid-December, I didn't think too much else about it. Most of the traction around TV Girl started to die down, I started hearing their Tiktok-styled songs less, and many people started to drop the album as social media algorithms led the masses to other albums. Personally, I just liked a couple of songs and downloaded the album cover, and moved on.

A few weeks go by since I listened to the album and I decide that I want to change my profile picture on Steam. Not thinking anything of it, I changed my profile picture from Fleetwood Mac's Then Play On to a close-up of the man on the cover for Who Really Cares. Nothing too crazy, but this does go somewhere.

I hop into a good ol' game of CS2 with a few of my friends. We rage and get our asses kicked as per usual, but we eventually get paired up with another team that is more on our playing level. At the beginning of the game, everything was going well. Both teams were at about 3 or 4 points, so there was a chance of us winning. However, during the middle of the game, one of the teammates on the other team makes a comment about my profile picture being TV Girl, and claims that I was a listener of "male manipulator music." What?

I was so confused by what their teammate was talking about. What the hell is a "male manipulator?" Is it a man that manipulates people? Who is he manipulating? What does he get out of manipulating the subject in question? Or is it a woman that manipulates naive men? What does she get out of it? These questions wrapped around my brain that I had to team kill like three of my teammates to get off of CS2 to go do some research about this term.

Now from what I researched, there does not seem to be an official definition for the term "Male manipulator music." So I did what every other being on the internet does: I looked it up on Urban Dictionary.

Worst discovery ever. I listen to The Smiths, Deftones, and TV Girl so this is like my own personal 9/11.

In short, "male manipulator music" is a subgenre of artists and bands that have a fanbase of men that tend to manipulate women. Their unique yet depressing taste in music is sometimes used to reel in emotionally damaged and/or naive women into harmful relationship dynamics, hurting both the artist and their fanbase. It would be fair to argue that these men are almost like parasites to fanbases rather than part of a fanbase.

But this led me down a much larger rabbit hole regarding TV Girl that I had no run into back in December. Why is TV Girl thrown into this category of "male manipulator music?" So I went digging, and boy did I find some stuff:

(btw all the images are linked to my sources if you are interested in reading further)

Let's just say there are accusations galore about TV Girl and being misogynistic. From the lyric writing to the sampling sources, numerous cases and analyses have been written on TV Girl being misogynistic. Now, most of these are regarding different songs from TV Girl, so most of these might not apply to "Not Allowed," but then I kept running into more posts claiming that the entire point of TV Girl was to simply be misogynistic. That their aesthetic, mindset, and point of view was meant to put down women in a negative light as if men are superior, non-flawed beings. And the more I dug, the larger the accusations became.

Pack it up boys, we aren't allowed to listen to TV Girl anymore...

I was completely shocked. A song that I had picked up from an ex that helped me get through a rough spot in my life was now the target of a much larger campaign of women online claiming such music was meant to put them down? I wouldn't even care too much about the whole phenomenon, but it gets brought ALL THE TIME. And TV Girl has been making music for over 10 years.

With this rabbit hole successfully uncovered, I decided to write down the overall points that many critics point out regarding TV Girl's music.

TV Girl is misogynistic because:

Lyrics describe women in a humiliating and/or degrading manner

Songs are associated with or attract the previously mentioned "male manipulators"

TV Girl sympathizes with the male psyche post-heartbreak

Now that I had a list of reasons why people argue that TV Girl's discography is misogynistic, I am going to try my best to not only debunk these, but give my own personal interpretation of "Not Allowed," which I believe has been heavily misinterpreted and improperly characterized as an anthem for possessive, manipulative men.

Whack-A-Theory and Debunking Misogyny Claims

But before we can talk about the reasons why TV Girl's "Not Allowed" is misogynistic, we must first figure out just what "Not Allowed" is about.

According to the general consensus (aka the Internet), "Not Allowed" is a song about:

The feelings of a man who is rejected by a woman who is in love with someone else.

A man who fears to speak his thoughts on a love interest due to a fear of being socially criticized for speaking about sex.

Slut-shaming a woman who has rejected the singer.

Now, these are all very different theories, and even though they might sound similar since they revolve around a relationship dynamic filled with blurred lines, the implications of these theories vastly differ.

If any of these were MOST LIKELY to be true, it would be theory one. Let me explain:

First of all, "Not Allowed" DOES talk about sex. I'm not entirely sure why the second theory is thrown around so often in the TV Girl community, but it simply does not make any sense regarding the song. Furthermore, any basic research into the intro sample of "Not Allowed" would lead you to the feminist rap group Yeastie Girlz, which were known for their raunchy yet pro-women stance on sexual openness. In fact, the "song" that the sample is from is called "You Suck," which is a recording of the Yeastie Girlz talking about female oral sex in their album titled, Ovary Action:

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For TV Girl to use such a raunchy sample in a song that is NOT supposed to talk about sex seems a bit ironic. While it could be argued that these underlying variables are meant to poke fun at the stigma of sexual talk, it wouldn't make sense for TV Girl to use those same elements as a way to insult the girl's partner either.

Take for example:

"But now he's playing with your head But did he ever make you cum?" Personally it doesn't make sense to me why TV Girl would take a jab at the sex stigma by using sexual acts to describe his bitter attitude. Furthermore, TV Girl pokes at the girl's sexual partner (or partners), singing:

"But how quickly they [the sonnets] turn sour So be careful who you screw."

Again, TV Girl's excessive use of raunchy samples and the jabs that the singer takes at sex itself doesn't add up to this theory. No one here is benefits from the negative usage of sex in the song, making this theory seem false.

While the second theory seems like complete bogus, the third theory could hold some weight. However, I think that there is more to this theory than what is presented online. While I will argue that the singer is shaming sexual actions within the song, I would say that the singer is taking more jabs at himself and the girl's current partner rather than the girl herself. Going back to the "messing with your head" lyric, TV Girl doesn't seem to take a jab at the girl having sexual intercourse with her current partner, but they seem to take a jab at the partner and how bad they might be doing at satisfying the girl's sexual needs. While one could argue that a jab at the girl's partner throws her in as collateral, the singer makes it very clear that his feelings towards himself are not great either, stating:

"I guess it's different 'cause you love him But I've got an interactive Sick and twisted imagination And that's gotta count for something" While the singer does not degrade himself to the same level that the girl's partner is subjected to, it is important to note that the girl is the one person in this entire song that is degraded THE LEAST. Not only does this disprove theory three, but it also disproves theories one and three of why "Not Allowed" is misogynistic. If "Not Allowed" was meant to take jabs at women, it would focus way more on the girl's actions rather than the singer and the girl's partner. Furthermore, the second theory on why TV Girl is misogynistic is just a lazy attempt to play the guilty by association fallacy. The only reason I would defend this argument was if "Not Allowed" was truly ripping on the girl the entire time throughout this song, which does not happen. Also, why would TV Girl use Yeastie Girlz as a sample if they wanted to push an anti-woman anthem? None of the reasons posted on TikTok make sense, and the fact that people pushed these theories regarding TV Girl's "Not Allowed" seems silly and lazy.

We Were Once Allowed, But TikTok Thinks We're Strangers

Now we are down to just one theory. I purposely held off the first theory because my theory and the first theory are pretty similar. While I do believe that the song revolves around the feelings of a man who is rejected by a woman who is in love with someone else, I believe we are hearing the perspective of a jealous ex rather than a stranger.

Let me explain:

When I first heard this song, it was after I had broken up with my ex. I'll spare you the details, but I've always seen this song as an ex that felt like he was pushed out of the way for another guy that was waiting for the girl to leave.

"Now you suck We wanna talk about sex but we're not allowed Well, you may not like it but you better learn how 'cause it's your turn now You're wasting your tongue with lame excuses and lies" This part is the singer talking about the girl, saying that she sucks. He goes onto say that they wanna talk about the sexual aspects of their relationship but they are no longer allowed to. I would argue that the singer is making the assumption that his ex is truly not over him and just hopped into a relationship for a rebound. The singer says it's the girl's turn now to hear what he has to say and that she should shut up and listen to what's in store. It could be implied that she has also gone around and spread a false narrative against the singer.

"So how should I begin this? I guess it started when you were with him. And how he never even took you out to dance But did he fuck with any rhythm?" Here we see that the singer is collecting his thoughts on when he was first made uncomfortable with the girl's new partner. He explains that the girl's partner never took her out to dance, implying that he might've during their relationship. The "fuck with any rhythm" could be taken as either him liking any music or rhythmic sexual intercourse. "But now he's playing with your head But did he ever make you cum? Did he ever make you cry?"

Moving on from the dance, the singer now leaves us with a dilemma. He claims that the girl's partner is playing with her head, which can be seen as the singer altering the truth to make the girl seem dumb, or he realizes that the girl is being taken advantage of for her partner's own sexual gratification. Personally, I'm choosing the latter. The singer then asks if her partner makes her cum or cry. Since this is in the past tense, it could be argued that this fling soon dies out or this is the current partner asking if the singer ever made the girl cum or cry, and the singer is just repeating the thoughts of the current partner.

"Do the wires in your mind get sewn together Rubbed and severed by the heat You don't know how long I could stare into your picture And wish that it was me" The singer now asks if there is a personal bond built between the girl and her partner. Based on the previous assumptions, we could argue "Yes" or "No." I would argue "yes" because the next line shows that the girl has taken pictures with the other person in question, making the singer wish that it was him. Again, this could also be seen as him feeling as if he is incapable of controlling ex or he's just jealous that she's with someone else after all that she's supposedly done.

"I guess it's different 'cause you love him But I've got an interactive Sick and twisted imagination And that's gotta count for something" Based on this, I feel like the ex might've complained about the singer's sexual habits. It might be implied here that the ex was disgusted by the singer's sexual interest towards her, but now it's different because it's someone else. The singer then gives himself the positive, claiming that his graphic imagination must be worth something.

Skipping the chorus becuase it's the same as the intro and I don't feel like repeating myself

"I dreamt I was standing in your doorstep Licking sweat off of your forehead With your finger in my mouth And the sound when leather jackets hit the ground" This could be the singer reminiscing on a past scenario in which he and the girl in question are being sensual. Nothing more to analyze. "You should hear when you're not around When it's just us horny poets Who can't wait to write it down And swear we were only being honest." I believe this excerpt is the singer rubbing the past into the face of the girl's partner. Almost like a "yeah we used to have sex too y'know" moment. It could also be the singer implying that him and his ex have made small talk since they've broken up, attempting to come to closure. Nonetheless, it's clear that this was aimed at the girl's partner rather than the girl.

"Do you like these little sonnets 'Cause I wrote them just for you But how quickly they turn sour So be careful who you screw And never call. And I'm starting to suspect You don't intend to do anything you say at all."

After taking his shot at the girl's partner, the singer seems to take aim at the girl. This time, he's offering a set of sonnets he's written about her, but they all have a bad ending. He claims that the sonnets are written this way because she had sex with him and then (possibly) ghosted him afterwards. He then finishes up the excerpt by assuming that his ex was a liar. This could be seen as the singer uncovering an abusive relationship between him and his ex.

"All by yourself, sittin' alone I hope we're still friends, yeah, I hope you don't mind." This is the part that led me to making this entire post. How could the singer and the girl "still be friends" if there was nothing else to begin with? You can't be friends with someone you never knew. This stupid verse led me to travel down a whole rabbit hole and a half just to give my own interpretation of the song, and I have no regrets. The singer is simply mocking the girl breaking up with the singer, claiming that they could still be friends and that she hope he doesn't mind, which is a common tactic that abusers might use after a relationship to hold some sort of control over their victim. This could be seen as an innocent ending to a falling out, or the ex looking for an avenue to hold onto the singer while he struggles with his own thoughts.

Conclusion

Regardless of whatever theory I or anyone on the internet come up with, I believe this song acts as a great litmus test as one's attitudes towards relationships. When I was scrolling through theories and the misogyny rabbit hole, I noticed that many people who wrote about "Not Allowed" focused on inputting their own experiences into the song, writing their theory as if the song was about their relationship. I would even argue that I did the same, and that's completely okay. I made this with the intent of simply debunking what has already been said about the song. While I think that anyone can have an opinion on what this song is supposed to represent, I didn't think any theory prior to mine was "the" meaning (as in what people should take the song as at face value). To put simply, I do not think that this song was about a male manipulator waiting to prey on his next victim, but the girl in question doesn't love him. If it was, then it wouldn't fit into Who Really Cares at all, for the album is about Brad's (the lead singer) troubled relationships with women. I think that's what people ran to because a majority of TV Girl's fanbase is women who have had shitty relationships, regardless of whether it was their fault or not. This has then led to TV Girl's reputation being about male manipulators because all the women in their fanbase simultaneously fear abusive men (and rightfully so). TV Girl simply reinforces that it could be either side's fault depending on how you look at both sides' cruel and immature behavior towards the fallout. I also found inspiration for this song analysis from NEOPUNK (it's a good listen check it out):

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If you've read through the entirety of this damn blog post without knowing about the song I've been rambling about, give it a listen. It's pretty good:

And with that, I'm tired. Good night. ~grimaider.

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ecreau · 1 year

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December 31: State of Grace

I wanted this blog to be the most special because it would be my last blog this year and next year. I decided to be on hiatus next year to rest, to regain my creative juices. Though every artist needs to recharge, I had the most fun doing my 365-day drawing challenge.

Do not worry, though, because I have scheduled surprises once a month to make this blog active! Until then, I hope you guys keep healthy, fun, and optimistic this coming 2023! It's the bunny year (in the Chinese zodiac sign)! I hope 2023 will be as cuddly and adorable as a bunny, haha; my fingers are crossed.

Anyway, I would divide this blog into three sections: announcement, recommendations, and message. I am excited to share my thoughts, so here it goes!

ANNOUNCEMENTS

The first announcement

As I mentioned, I will be less active next year on my social media accounts. However, I would still post surprises once a month to keep a few of you who support my blog active. Yay!

Second announcement

I will close some social media accounts next year, specifically Twitter and YouTube, as I want to focus more on Tumblr, Deviantart, and Instagram.

Third announcement

I am still deciding whether to change my blog's name. Until then, let's see what happens from 2023 to 2024!

RECOMMENDATIONS

This has been a tradition for me to list everything I wanted to recommend to you guys.

Podcast

Talks in Class by Jenna Barclay

If you are a millennial like me, this podcast is perfect for you. Ms. Jenna is probably the mother of the early 2000s nostalgia for me! She's funny, creative, and witty! Listen to her podcast and reminisce about your cringe early 2000s memories.

The Bald and the Beautiful with Trixie Mattel and Katya Zamo

I am not a follower of drag race, but I love these two fabulous creative queens. Suppose you like listening to random and crazy topics about life, the internet, mainstream media, or anything. In that case, this podcast is totally for you. There are no boring seconds in this podcast. You'd cry while laughing so much.

Eons: Mysteries of Deep Time

Fossils, dinosaurs, cavemen, and whatever knowledge from the past you wanna know, Eons doesn't disappoint, as always. I love their YouTube channel I am glad they now have a podcast. I wish they would continue uploading more content on Spotify. Totally worth your time.

The Kit & Krysta Podcast

If you followed Nintendo Minutes on YouTube, you would recognize these two amazing people. Do you like Pokemon? Zelda? Or any games? This podcast is totally for you! I love how I also learned some tips about games because of them.

Series

That 70's Show

I just started this series and am now in season four going five. I love this because, as someone who wasn't born this year, I appreciate all the popular things in the 70s. I love the cast and the writing because the tone is similar to Malcolm in the middle. You won't know what's coming next, haha! My favorite character is Kitty Foreman! :D

Wednesday

I love this series. I was iffy to watch this because I thought it would be full of gore, but it wasn't! I also like the casting here. It's close to the comics! I love actor Hunter who played Tyler. He is so hot and talented!

Adventure Time

I know I am 10 years late or something, haha! But I really loved Cartoon Network in the 2010s; they had such good shows. I am glad I watch this series without commercials or a season break. If you like Steven Universe, Regular Show, Adventure Time would be your thing too! It's so good!

Albums/Songs

Midnights

My first Taylor Swift album. I have previously listened to her album but have yet to be this in-depth. I just turned into a Swiftie now. Almost all my liked songs on Spotify are from her! I love Karma, Hits Different, and You're on your own, Kid.

Red

I am 5 to 6 years late, but this is my favorite album this year. I love almost all the songs here. Taylor Swift, you are talented! My favorite songs are State of grace, Red, and Message in the bottle.

The Loneliest Time

I love Carly so much! This album is such a chill vibe for me. 10 out of 10 for me!

Celestial

Ed Sheeran doesn't disappoint! I was happy when he released a song for Pokemon Scarlet and Violet. It's so nostalgic same with Post Malone's music for Pokemon.

That's all my recommendations this year that I have listened to and watched many times. I would love to have a book recommendation soon as well!

MESSAGES

I always say this, but I am genuinely happy even though I have few followers on my social media accounts. You guys still make time to respond, like, and share my artwork. I cannot thank you enough for doing this. I often feel emotional every time I get likes passed 10. It is silly, but your 'likes' and 'follows.' Make artists like I inspired and fuel me to do more creative stuff.

Thank you so much for being part of my 2022 adventure. It was not a perfect year, but we had fun learning from our mistakes, challenges, and goals. 2023 would again be our year together.

This blog's title it's inspired by Taylor Swift's song in the Red album, State of Grace. It's one of my favorite songs of hers, especially the lyrics, "This is the golden age of something good and right and real" I wanted to manifest this next year. Let's go, 2023!

Talk to you later!

- Please do not repost my artwork/design. Ask me first. ⁠

Thank you!⁠

Linktree(if the link does not work please remove href)

“Nostalgia is my favorite thing."

#blog #2023 #2022 #year recap #year review #tumblr #instagram #twitter #hiatus #nostalgia #taylor swift #ed sheeran #that 70s show #wednesday #red #midnights #adventure time #writing #PlaidConnection

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worldofsealiite · 1 year

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The Start of 2023's Musical Exploration

Firstly I would like to start off by saying this is the first time I've written a blog. I have always had the idea to make one but I always prioritized other things in my life. In June of 2022 I took the leap to create an Instagram page called worldofsealiite to express myself more. Every month on this Instagram page I would post my top songs and other things that I was into. I always intended to to be more than just that so this blog has now taken form so I can do just that. Now getting into January 2023 I wouldn't say I explored a lot but I definitely found two awesome artists that I think should be highlighted!

The Long Faces

According to their Spotify about section, I quote " The Long Faces first developed a love of unusual music whilst at school in Canterbury, soaking up the city's heritage of progressive rock, along with contemporary jazz, 60's psychedelia and choral music." They are known for blending older musical styles with more modern new sounds to create something "surprising yet familiar; abstract and yet relatable." The Long Faces only currently have 7 singles released with the first one 'Cadence' dating back to 2017 while their most latest singles 'Sail Away', 'Documentaries', & 'And Where Have You Gone, Mr. Wolf?' on their "EP" Documentaries came out in 2020. They currently have 122,309 monthly listeners with their top song being 'Jane!' which was released in 2018. I have to say this band's unique sound is really refreshing to listen to and it doesn't sound like what we hear from everyone else right now in 2023. In March of 2022 on The Long Faces Instagram at the end of their caption put "Super excited to reveal what’s in the works" but this was posted in April of 2022 and we have not gotten any word about when new music will be released. They did tweet in December "don't look back" but other than that we don't have much to go on. I do say though I will be actively checking their social media to see if anything changes. As to which songs were my favorite for them I do have to say 'Jane!' and 'Sum of My Cares' are up there. I do agree with what the popular arrangement is on Spotify. I can't wait to see what is next for them!

Stanton

There isn’t a lot known about the Bay Area’s Stanton at the moment since they are an unknown band with only 500 monthly listeners on Spotify. They first started performing and doing shows in September of 2018 according to their first Instagram post but they didn’t officially release music until August of 2019 with their first EP ‘Et Cetera’ which featured five songs on it. They released a single in 2021 called ‘Spin/Sinclaire’ and another single in 2022 called ‘IV’. On Stanton's Soundcloud there are new demos that have not been officially released to any of their other streaming sites. Their most popular song currently is ‘Spin’ with 10,373 current streams. I would describe Stanton's style as indie with a touch of alternative rock. I do know the genre is saturated currently but I think Stanton has an edge over others in the scene with their lyrics and unique approach to playing music which easily captivates the audience. It seems that they are currently only playing small house shows and venues in the bay area but I think if anyone could they should check them out live. They will be playing a house show in San Francisco on February 4 which all the details can be found on their most recent Instagram post. My favorite songs from them are ‘Spin’, ‘wite dog demo’, and ‘shogun demo’ which can all be found on Stanton’s SoundCloud. Let’s hope they get the recognition I truly think they deserve very soon!

#music recommendation #music #small bands #new music #spotify #indie music #the long faces #stanton #stanton band

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akwardlyuncool · 6 months

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Spotify Wrapped 2023

So I'm here to talk about my hella basic year in music lol. If you're new here I got 2 Spotifys, which means I compare them every year to see which one I think is more accurate.

Basically I got my daily driver, what I use most often and what’s signed in on my phone and then the Spotify I use for/while I’m working on projects on Akwardly Uncool. Anyway the LEFT side is the Daily Driver and the RIGHT is AkwardlyUncool.

So I'mma Start By Proudly Waving My Basic Card:

I might be wrong, but I feel like everybody who was even slightly in the Pop-Punk, Midwest Emo, Post Emo space had Hot Mulligan in their top 5, either artists or songs for 2023. It was just bound to happen and I ain't mad at it, cause have you listened to them?! Just had to acknowledge that real quick lol.

Minutes and Hours and Just Time:

15,850 minutes. About 264 hours. 11 Days.

Not gonna lie, based on some personal calculations, this was a shorter year for consuming music for me. (If you stick around for ACF 2024 I might divulge some of that reasoning, but for now I'll just say, It is what it is and I know why.) That being said I'll try to beef up my numbers again next year.

Top Artists:

Now don't get me wrong I love The Wonder Years down, however I made a collaborative playlist of The Wonder Years and Hot Mulligan with a friend and basically didn't turn it off lol (it was definitely a shower mix for sure) and that's how they ultimately won the award on my main account.

As for the "side" account, which felt like the main this year, Winnetka Bowling League is just one of those groups that's so good to put on and let run. Now of course I have my repeats, that I've been talking about for the last few years and then I added more and so whether it was going to their page and hitting play or seeking out my repeats, I totally get why they won there. They're coming out with a full album next year, so get used to me talking about them 90% of the time. And if you hop on their train, remember I'm the conductor.

As for the other artists who touched the top 5, I saw 3 of them in concert this year, so naturally their numbers are going to be higher. Also Watsky made it cause Intention is not on CD, hopefully yet.

Genre Sandwiches and Top Tracks:

It's Pop-Punk season mixed with Winnetka Bowling League and Watsky, so both sides reflect that. That being said, the main diver is where I play the majority of the R&B, Neo-Soul and the likes, so they're rarely reflected on my second. But KNOW, I am a mix of Pop-Punk and Neo-Soul, always!

Again it's Pop-Punk season or rather Hot Mulligan season and I spent a lot of time learning every word to those two tracks that won, but are too long for me to desire to type out now. "Draw and quarter a stranger to feel some blood on your fingers. You take away, robbery follow trends as a hobby, find flaws in everything else because you don't like yourself. Woe is me!"

Collector vs Alchemist:

They both say essentially the same thing which is that I make and listen to my own playlists more than anything else, but anyone who works with me could have told you that lol. Geniuses.

Winner? Winner? Chicken Dinner?

Again they basically say the same thing this year, which is that we listened to a lot of Hot Mulligan, Relient K is still my favorite band and if i see you in concert you tend to show up on my Wrapped for the year. I will say though that I'm hella surprised that this is the first year Lyfe Jennings didn't show up on my Wrapped and although that makes way for other folks, it's still a little sad lol.

Hey we made it through Spotify Wrapped Time and now must move on to the more nuanced and obviously better Akward Class Favorites 2023. If you don't know, it where I just go through my year in movies, music, online content consumption and other things of the like, so better lol. Don't have an ETA on when that will go up, but I've taken the notes, so hopefully before the end of December.

#Extra Talk #Spotify Wrapped 2023 #Spotify Wrapped #Hot Mulligan #Winnetka Bowling League

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thedalatribune · 6 months

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Spotify Wrapped 2023

Key takeaways from my 2023 Spotify Wrapped…

76,440 Minutes Logged In on Spotify… That's probably because of all the long flights, long rides, and nights I slept in hotel rooms this year. Spotify is my travel companion. I can't imagine making it through all my travels this year without Spotify!

Viva La Vida by Coldplay is my most played song this year. Weird story, Viva La Vida was released in 2008, but I only heard it for the first time back in the later part of December 2022 while I was browsing Instagram. And I when I heard it for the first time I was so amazed. It was a song about a kings, kingdoms, and revolutions! I immediately fell in love with. Also, I love that the painting Liberty Leading the People by Eugène Delacroix is the album art of this song. Perfect album art for the perfect song... I find it so weird that to me this is one of the best songs I've heard and I heard it for the first time 14 years after it was released?! I felt like I’ve been living under a rock. Haha.

CCM? This was the first time I've heard of this genre... I Googled, and it turns out, that CCM is "Contemporary Christian Music".

No 2023-released song made it to my Top Songs of 2023. Notes on some of my Top Songs: (a) 陽菜と、走る帆高 (Running With Hina) by RADWIMPS is my most played favorite instrumental music. This is one of those songs that never fails to make me relaxed. (b) Hear Our Prayer by Hillsong UNITED is a 1999 song, but I'll never get tired of this worship song!

Henry Smith is my top artist and I have no idea who he is! Haha... It turns out, he's a pianist. And he's my top artist probably because I've been listening to instrumental music until I fall asleep at night, especially when I'm sleeping in a hotel room... Usually, I fall a sleep without turning off my sleeping (all-instrumental) playlist. That's probably why my top artist is an instrumental music artist.

I've been spending more hours on podcast this year. Now, I listen to podcasts, not only when I'm on the road, but also at home... For the second year in a row, Passion City Church Podcast is my top podcast. On the secular side of things, Vox’s Today, Explained and The History Channel’s HISTORY This Week are still my favorites.

#Spotify #Spotify Wrapped #2023 #Music #Now Playing #Song #Podcast

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luwukass · 4 months

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lukes favs! december 2023!

ignore that this is 4 days late

music (according to my spotify stats, in order of most to least streamed average top 10) songs: castles crumbling, all of the girls you´ve loved before, dear reader, cowboy like me, evermore, it´s time to go, hoax, say don´t go, you´re losing me and karma albums: evermore, 1989 (taylors version), folklore, speak now (taylors version), red (taylors version), midnights, lover, fearless (taylors version), reputation and debut artists: as i said last month bc i listen to a lot of taylor the other stats can be changed if i listen to the artist like twice so this month im only including the relevant ones. taylor swift, olivia rodrigo and troye sivan

media podcasts: podcasts were the same as last month and the one before!(please let me know if you have any podcast recs) if you need a reminder they were gals and goblins which is a dnd podcast im really enjoying and swiftlit made by tumblrs own @kingofmyborrowedheart the taylor swift podcast thats deep dives into taylors lyrics! shows: i watched more tv this month!! nex and i finally finished watching loki s2 and we are fully caught up on the boys! been watching a lot of dr who i was on vacation so im not super far into it yet but im loving it so far! i continued watching castlevania with my bf! and on my own ive been watching the disney+ percy jackson series which is so good so far and im finally getting back to watching bobs burgers! i also watch the scott pilgrim show with my gf. movies: okay i watched a LOT of movies this month so get ready. hereditary, the menu, the eras tour film (3 times already), all fo the planet of the apes movies, the mitchels vs the machines, home alone, home alone 2. rewatched the hunger games movies again and finally saw the prequel, la la land, ponyo, kikis delivery service and howls moving castle. comics: i didnt read any comics oops books: read a few chapters of percy jackson 2 and started rereading the hunger games books! games: i yet again played a bunch of minecraft, i also did some jackbox game nights with my polycule and i fixed lethal company !!! it works on my laptop now and it is SO much fun, i also played some powerwash sim and sticky business bc the dlc just came out! and i played a bunch of hades on my switch!!! as always lmk if yall have any suggestions for anything!! im really trying to branch out with stuff so dont be afraid to send an ask!

also if you started following me this month im trying to make this a monthly thing so here are my november favs!

#my posts 💕#my favs 💕#taylor swift #troye sivan #olivia rodrigo #swiftlit #podcasts #lethal company

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theam-cjsw · 5 months

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The AM: December 18, 2023

The last proper AM episode of 2023, easing you into the last full working week of the year. Stay tuned for A Very AM Christmas on Dec. 25, and AM Affirmations on Jan. 1, 2024, then a two-part AM Gold looking back at the best of 2023.

Enjoy the holiday break and see you in the new year.

Listen on Soundcloud

Stream from CJSW

Spotify playlist

Hour One

Au couchant Flore Laurentienne • Single

Dance Four Slow Attack Enesmble • Delay Music

In Parallel Salamanda • In Parallel

Tokyo Blend The Park, featuring Tommy Guerrero • Fridays at the Park Season 1

Ascending Moonshine Melodien • Apeiron

Melaleuca (at night) Yu Su • Yellow River Blue

Your Mistake Was a Hidden Intention Stegosarahs • Simple Subtraction

The Kid Le Matos • Chronicles of the Wasteland / Turbo Kid (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)

Sunrise Dj Pnutz • Music Beds For Different Moods

Aerolove Column • a year in your garden

Hour Two

Black Moon Waltz / Quasar Cathedral Part Time • Cryosleep Explorer

Kuroganemochi Hochzeitskapelle, featuring Eddie Marcon • The Orchestra In The Sky [Kobe Recordings]

As If Chasing Mice The Organizing Committee • Communication in the Presence of Noise

Daddy’s Groove Röyksopp • Late Night Tales: Röyksopp

Almost Sleeping Laika • Sounds of the Satellites

Starry Night Laika • Sounds of the Satellites

Do You Know Victrix • I Saw Me EP

The Meaning of Love Perfect Angels • Exit from the Ultra-World

I Cover the Waterfront Orbiting Human Circus • Quartet Plus Two

Shackypoo My Betsy • Single

Hour Three

On Lamp Gunn-Truscinski-Nace • Glass Band

Harmonious Dance (Bonus Track) Chris Forsyth • Solar Motel

The Most Relevant Sunburned Hand Of The Man • Headless

Rainbow of Blues The Highest Order • Rainbow of Blues / The Crying Game

A Trumpet on the Hillside Cindy • Why Not Now

Find a Way Small Pleasures • Small Pleasures EP

Frenz Ryan Bourne • Plant City

After All This Time La Palma • Single

Hold On Various Artists, featuring Peaking Lights • Self Discovery For Social Survival (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)

Unknowns Wish • Wish

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djrobblog · 6 months

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2023 Faves: How the Pointer Sisters Stole the Show on My Spotify Unwrapped

2023 Faves: How the Pointer Sisters Stole the Show on My Spotify Unwrapped. #PointerSisters #SpotifyWrapped #Steppin #Spotify #Wrapped

(December 2, 2023). How did this happen? I like the Pointer Sisters. No, in fact, I love the Pointer Sisters. But I certainly wasn’t prepared for the results of this year’s Spotify Wrapped recap of my most streamed artists, songs and music genres for the twelve months gone by, where the quartet-turned-trio of California-based siblings ranked as my most listened-to act of 2023. And this wasn’t…

View On WordPress

#Music blog #Pointer Sisters #Sleeping Alone #Spotify #Spotify Wrapped #Steppin’

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solatgif · 1 year

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TGIF: Roundup for December 16, 2022

We recently hit 400 subscribers on our YouTube channel! Our Most Popular Videos is a good place to start. In case you missed it, check out our Author Interviews and The Asian American Church playlists.

Advent is here! This holiday season, join SOLA Network on Substack. I’ll send you a free daily devotion to help prepare your heart for Christmas. Our devotion for today is one that I wrote: Sing To Him A New Song: 3 Reasons Why You Should Write Your Own Hymns.

This newsletter is one of the many ways you can keep in touch with us. Find us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. For more, check out my Asian American Worship Leaders Facebook group and TGIF Playlist on Spotify. You can reach me on Twitter and Instagram.

Enter to win this wonderful book! Read my review. Thanks to Lexham Press for providing this book for our giveaway, in partnership with my newsletters for @diveindigdeep and FCBC Walnut.

Articles From Around The Web

John Lee: How to Redeem Your Singles Ministry

“Singles in your church aren’t in spiritual limbo, stuck in a waiting room until they graduate into marriage. Rather, they’ve received a unique gift from God for this season to serve and love the Lord.”

Related: Are Singles Less Sanctified? By Adam Ch’ng

Deepak Reju: Our Main Goals for Youth Ministry

“My hope is that in the years ahead, we’ll communicate solid truths, destroy social barriers, and watch members pour into our teens. Pray with us that the Lord would see fit to grant us these things.”

Related: How to Help Someone who Struggles with Pornography: An Interview with Deepak Reju and Jonathan Holmes by Tim St. John

Tim Anderson: Chan’s Wisdom Tips for Evangelism

“If you believe in evangelism (and you probably do), then having gospel conversations with unbelievers is an important skill to develop.”

Related: Paul and Silas in Prison! 3 Ways to Worship and Witness in a Worst-Case Scenario by Aaron Lee

Advent is here! This holiday season, join SOLA Network on Substack. I’ll send you a free daily devotion to help prepare your heart for Christmas.

Books, Podcasts, Music, And More

Christianity Today: 2023 Book Awards

“Our picks for the books most likely to shape evangelical life, thought, and culture.”

ACBC Podcast: Spurgeon the Pastor

Called the “Prince of Preachers,” Charles Spurgeon was a world-renowned preacher. But many do not know Spurgeon the Pastor. Dale Johnson interviews Geoff Chang.

Aaron Lee: Related Works

Book Reviews: Faith Undaunted by Donald Macleod, Washed By God, by Karl Deenick, Tolkien Dogmatics by Austin M. Freeman, Faithful Disobedience by Wang Yi, ESV Expository Commentary: Isaiah–Ezekiel by Crossway. Listen to our TGIF playlist on Spotify. Join my Asian American Worship Leaders Facebook group.

Subscribe to our podcast for our interviews, messages, and article reads! Available for free on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.

Featured This Week On SOLA Network

Aaron Lee: A Message of Hope: A Book Review of “Shame” by Esther Liu

“Asian Americans will find much to relate to in this book—from feeling like we need to climb ladders of success to feeling invisible. When we feel small, insignificant, and unnoticed, we can remember that God sees us and we matter.”

Renee Zou: God or Money: Detangling a Complicated Relationship

Money is a great gift from God. He lovingly provides it to us in order to meet our daily needs. We need to see it as God does: as a means to be generous and serve the gospel.

Aaron Lee: Writing About Shame: An Interview with “Shame” Author Esther Liu

The effects of honor-shame culture, the need to succeed to avoid shame, how she wrote to her “younger self,” and combating shame while writing the book.

TGIF: Roundup for December 9, 2022

Do We Need a Revival of Neo-Calvinism? / To Be Free, You Need Self-Control / The Fallacy of Artistic Immortality in TÁR and The Banshees of Inisheer / How the Gospel Helps Us Pursue Ethnic Diversity

General disclaimer: Our link roundups are not endorsements of the positions or lives of the authors.

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avaliveradio · 1 year

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Groundbreaking Hip Hop Tracks of December 2022 to Blow The Roof off

Hip hop has come a long way. What we once knew as hip hop has gone through multiple divisions that pulled it apart and put it back together again in very unusual ways. We are seeing layers of sounds and spiritual elements as well as influences of Heavy Metal and cyber trap. The directions that Hip Hop artists are going with their music is diverse and unique so we gathered a short list of favourites we heard in December 2022.

NOW PLAYING

A.V.A Live Radio is ranked in the top 5% most globally shared podcasts on Spotify. Radio Listeners in over 79 countries including the US, Canada and Europe. 1.4 million minutes viewed and currently in the top 10% of video viewed on Spotify over their entire podcasting platform. We launched 86% more music than any of Spotifys affiliated music program with a goal of doubling that for 2023.

Radio host Jacqueline Jax blows the roof off with some Groundbreaking Hiphop tracks that just arrived for December 2022. Hip-hop has come a long way. What we once new hip-hop has gone through multiple divisions that pulled it apart and put it back together in unusual ways. This edition of our hip-hop show offers you some very diverse and unique new songs.

Discover Hip hop on our playlist updating daily..

Featured Artists..

WhoBe - Suck the Blood

Release date: Dec 08, 2022

Genre: Trap (Hip-hop)

Other: Brostep

Similar artists: Travis Scott, Lil Uzi vert, Rick Ross, Skrillex

Suck the blood is a classic trap song which ends with a surprise. This Visionary Sound design fused with Spiritual enchantments and ritualistic rhythms brings the artists Cyber Trap sound to light as her pulls from influences like Travis Scott, Playboi Carti and Michael Jackson. WhoBe draws inspiration from Heavy Metal acts like Slipknot and Ozzy.

TikTok - Instagram

Nicki Knightz -Bigger Things

Release date: Dec 13, 2022

Genre: Rap, Old-school Hip-Hop, Alternative Hip-Hop

Similar artists: Young Ma, FLOHIO, Little Simz, J Cole, LEX AMOR, Enny, Jeshi, Slowthai, Loyle Carner

'Bigger Things' a reflective, smooth track describing the mindset of an artist balancing working a dead end 9-5 job and also having ambition/dreams of pursuing a music career. A nostalgic sultry piece accompanied by vocals from Ivohé.

A voice for the outcasts, routing out of Hackney, rapper Nicki Knightz’s emotional turmoil is easily identifiable through her husky tone and self-descriptive lyrics over demanding, bass fuelled alternative production. Inspired by ‘B.I.G’s’ smooth flows and low tones, Nicki’s voice is still nothing short of ‘unique’ and raw, accompanied by her partner @hennyknightz left-field production, making her ‘sound’ even more of a breath of fresh air categorising it underneath the genre – Alternative Hip-hop.

SoundCloud - TikTok - Spotify - YouTube - Instagram

KOSHA DILLZ - Rise Up

Release date: Dec 02, 2022

Genre: Hip-Hop / Conscious Hip-Hop

Similar artists: mac miller

"Yo! You wlll dig a strong hip hop song with quality lyrics about fighting all the horrible anti-semitism and standing up for yourself but it sounds fire!!! Something different but needed! With all the rising antisemitism in the pop culture market, Kosha Dillz has released the follow-up for his song Death Con 3 which dissed Ye for his original remarks. The viral song hit millions of views and of course, the follow-up The hip-hop song has a core bounce to attack all the haters and it is a good time for all to rise up. You can hear it all in the lyrics he spits on the chorus.

"They appear to have flavor it's all disguised. Hatred is what I hate when kids got it normalized. I'm trying to live every day and lead a normal life cuz we started from the bottom and up is where we rise."

SoundCloud - TikTok -Facebook - Twitter - Spotify - Bandcamp - Instagram

Otilefty - Follow Me

Released by: Otilefty On The Beat

Genre: Afrobeats / Afro-pop / Afro-fusion

Similar artists: Wizkid, BOJ, Burna Boy, Rema, Omah Lay

“Follow Me” is a single from my upcoming EP titled “Pree My Life”. I intend on releasing this project at the end of January. I also produced and engineered this track to showcase my versatility. This single is part of my upcoming EP i intend on releasing in January 2023. So far it has been playlisted on audiomack Africa official playlists. I intend to promote this track as much as i can and possibly seek to get a publishing deal going forward for this track and my upcoming EP that is yet to be released.

Producer, songwriter and sound engineer born in Lagos, Nigeria. Lefty as he often prefers to be addressed moved to England in his early teens and continued to nurture his sound and blend music from Nigeria, US & UK into his own. “Music is all about Simplicity” he often says. Dive into his unique sound where creating vibes yet catchy melodies that communicates directly to the soul.

TikTok -Twitter -Spotify -YouTube -Instagram

Roman Toyi - LAF (feat. Justy)

Release date: Dec 07, 2022

Genre: Rap Hip-Hop / Conscious Hip-Hop/ Alternative Hip-Hop

Similar artists: Justy, Chris Patrick, Redveil, Kenny mason, Wakai, Alex Wiley, The Mind & Cj fly

"This begins the rollout for my upcoming project with features including mick Jenkins, cam the artisan & producer/ artist Origami beats & Gami.

LAF short for “life ain’t fair”, is the lead single from the upcoming “Shades: The Gray Area” project. Life ain’t fair is a gray topic, set with questions of why and how come and even prompting solutions that seem so simple but in reality are harder to obtain that given credit. The hook “ Life ain’t fair I’m aware that anything goes, Life ain’t fair I hope you aware of that tho” is a reminder that we all operate in this space, unfair, unjust and simple yet complex.

Through Almost a decade or creating music, Roman Toyi has made a clear point that Style and lyricism are the only tunes he understands. Utilizing his vocals as an additional instrument beyond the beat is not an aspect new to music but as a Rapper or Hiphop creative the notion can be overlooked more times than less. Roman offers honestly from his life while setting the tone of invoking true emotion from an audience.

TikTok - Spotify - Instagram - Apple Music

Pelligroso -Street Poetry

Release date: Dec 09, 2022

Released by: Give A Beat Records

Hip-Hop / Conscious Hip-Hop

“Street Poetry” is the debut single by the talented multi-instrumentalist Pelligroso (whose birth name is Koeppell McDade) and the second single launched by Give a Beat Records.

Incarcerated for four years and released in September 2020, Pelligroso’s inspiration for writing the track came from his experience behind bars. He hopes listeners will take away a new understanding of the incarceration system with this first release. “Music is my therapy,” the artist expressed.

“Street Poetry” came to life as Pelligroso collaborated with L.A.-based rapper and producer Zeroh. “He knew exactly what he wanted to do going into it, which made it very easy to drop in and have fun during the recording and editing process,” Zeroh explained. “Sessions like that don't feel like work really; there's enough space to have more meaningful conversation that ultimately helps to illuminate the artist's message/vision."

Zenodro - Ven Aqui feat. Zano

Trap (Hip-hop)Rap

Moods: Energetic, Aggressive

Similar artists: jack harlow

An upbeat song, with a catchy chorus and great lyrics. "This is my third new song. Rapper from New Jersey. I have an eclectic style, being able to rap over any type of beat.

Facebook -Twitter -Spotify -Instagram

Pj Panda - Christmas In The Livin’room

Release date: Nov 25, 2022

Trap (Hip-hop)

Other: Holiday Music, Trap (EDM)

Moods: Energetic, Happy

Let the fun and dope times begin this holiday with Pj Panda’s Christmas In The Livin’room

TikTok Spotify - Instagram

#Hip Hop Music

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