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dannycaing · 4 years

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JAMICH

JAMICH by Danny Caing Date Written: March 6, 2020

Scene 1 THE INSPIRATION

May 22, 2014, @ GMC Thursday Breaktime 3:28 PM

It was Thursday afternoon I was watching on the youtube channel, when I suddenly came across a program about a Girlfriend Proposes To Her Boyfriend (Jamich Proposal https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N29dKoxjHf4) at Jamich TV. I was astonished and heartily touched by their dramatic performances. I thought this was just one of their show like movies of Mandy Moore's A Walk To Remember, Ali Macgraw's Love Story and Lelee Sobieski's Here On Earth. I was sad to know that Jam has lung cancer. Right there on then, I wrote the song Sabi Mo Mahal Mo Ako, and later I change the title of the song called JAMICH for Jam Sebastian and Mich Liggayu Love Team.

Scene 2 THE FIRST OFFICIAL PERFORMANCE

July 19, 2014, @ Funky Monkey Bar, Q.C. Saturday 8:32 PM

Laykern Wredd of RADYO Band contacted me on the phone and invited me to join the PINOY WOODSTUCK gig event, a night with Arts show and Musical Talents of the underground bands like Howler Flowers, Roy Antonio, Alasmedya, Malaya, Trigger Happy, Lnguaje, ANO-Pilipinas, Earpens, and an American Wallpaint Artist - RAVEN. Good music, vibes, and drinks. This was the first time I sang the song Jamich live in public.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LL306WwHhsc

Scene 3 THE RECORDING SESSION

August 21, 2014, @ Funky Monkey Bar, Q.C., Thursday 8:23 PM

"REMEMBER... IT'S ALL ABOUT HISTORY" by Proud & Loud Production and Rakrakan Na Tayo, featuring - Lazaro, Radyo, Laculus, Kashmir, Godzilla Versus Tokyo, Hoodlum, Danny Caing, Earpens and MAIA.

It was Norman Buena, the drummer of Hoodlum, who suggested to write as many songs as I can, record them and then post them on the internet. At that time I have composed 70 songs in which I was able to create an album called Spiral Echoes that consists of 39 songs. So, I told him that I have this new song Pila Dito Pila Doon, which might be a first good try for serious recording. After two months, we were able to set an appointment date for recording at Audiofonix Recording Studio on October 17, 2014, Friday 2:38 PM. The Studio was managed & owned by Gino Rafael of Trapeze Band. During the recording session, Norman, as the Recording Editor, proposed to me to record Jamich instead of Pila Dito Pila Doon. It took us 45 minutes to finalize Jamich acoustic song track, and then we have some pizza & drinks. I got the mp3 copy and posted it in Reverbnation (https://www.reverbnation.com/dannycaing) the following day. I wish to thank Gino & Norman for this unforgettable experience, it was an honor.

Scene 4 THE MUSIC VIDEO

February 18, 2015, @ Tremolo Music Bar, Mandaluyong City Wednesday 8:32 PM

Khakara Production and Tremolo Music Bar invited me to join the lineup performers on LOVE OUT LAUGH acoustic night gig with RJ Sun, Sacred Foyer, Gibb Capiral, Edward, Theresa Mae, Warren & Carl of Ww Are Living Aahes (WALA), Ruzkaya, Falling Debris, Raffleesia, MJ Legaspi, Talaarawan, Missing Since Thursday, and hosted by Vince Recafrente.

Joeman Papilla, Manager of Khakara Production, approached me and introduced a young student Film Director, John Angelo Sergio of Tercera Productions under VIDPROD class from Asia Pacific College, requested that his team plans to make a music video of my Jamich song as their midterm project and without hesitation, I immediately approved his request.

JOHN SERGIO: What can we give you in exchange for this favor?

DUKE: Nothing, John. I am just happy to know that you are going to make a music video of Jamich. It's awesome.

JOHN SERGIO: Thank you so much, Sir Duke. We will invite you once the music video is premiered in our school.

DUKE: I wish I could sing this song to Jam, you know.

JOHN SERGIO: That could be arranged, Sir Duke. Jam family is our neighbor and friend.

From that moment, I never thought John was serious about what he just told me. I can never forget this brief meeting.

JAMICH Music Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VjwSNx4tJrQ

Scene 5 THE UNEXPECTED MEETING WITH JAM

February 21, 2015, @ Mang Rudy's Grill Makati on February 21, 2015 Saturday 8:32 PM. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oyvvfgH3ptc

5 PM: I have a big event that night, BAWAL SIMANGOT by Red Button Production, performing live with one of my favorites underground artists- Peso Movement, Jose At Musika, Consolidar, Black Wolf Gypsies, Tree Of Soul, Crab And Corn, Danny Caing, Injent, Fiasco project, Induljencia, A Series Of Fractions, Lem David, Izkala, WetDogi, and Blackboard.

While I was rehearsing in my room and preparing my things for tonight's gig show, my cellphone rang.

JOHN SERGIO: Good afternoon, Sir Duke. I have good news for you. We have arranged your meeting with Jam tonight at 6 PM, please be there on time in the lobby of St. Luke Hospital in Global City. My mother will meet you there.

DUKE: Wow! Thank you so much, John. God is good all the time.

JOHN SERGIO: Please don't forget to bring your guitar and a letter to Jam. I told them that you are going to sing your song Jamich to Jam. Good luck and God bless.

6 PM @ St. Luke's Hospital, Global City Saturday

When I arrived in the lobby at St. Luke, Mrs. Elvi Sergio (mother of John) was already there to meet me and escorted me to Jam's room. I could not believe that I will be meeting Jam Sebastian, one of the leading men on the very popular indie film called JAMICH at YouTube. Inside the room, there were few guests, close friends & relatives of the family including Jam's mother Ma'am Maricar. Later, Mrs. Charilyn Pajo (who arranged this meeting through Ma'am Elvi) and her daughter Maria Isabel arrived with 2 Jamich fans Jalai & Joseph Ahamil. After giving my letter to Jam, I explained to him about Jesus Words to feel His Words in his thoughts and pray the Lord's Prayer. We all prayed 3 Our Fathers for Jam and asked our Lord Jesus Christ to heal Jam's sickness. I touched Jam's forehead and asked him to repeat what I was about to say:

DUKE: Jesus Christ I need You. I open the door of my heart for my Savior and my Lord. Please take control of the throne of my life and make me the kind of person you want me to be. Thank you, Jesus Christ, for the forgiveness of my sins. I love You, Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ You are my personal Savior.

I could not believe I was singing Jamich in front of Jam, I tried to hold back my tears when I saw the expression of Jam's face, but I know deep in my heart, Jam will be fine in the hands of our Lord Jesus. Then, Jam requested me to sing more, so I sang one Beatle song called I NEED YOU, then the last song was one of my songs LIKE THE TUNE OF THIS SONG.

Jamich https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TS43eYQbTWM

Like The Tune Of This Song https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGdo_A1Bxlo

I wish to thank John Angelo Sergio, the Director of the music video JAMICH and the Tercera Production crew who were shooting that day at Hagonoy, Bulacan for making this meeting with Jam possible, John's mother Mrs. Elvi Sergio and her friend Mrs. Charilyn Pajo. It's been an honor and great pleasure to meet you Jam Sebastian and Ma'am Maricar and to all the friends, fans and love ones who were inside the room. Likewise, thank you so much, Mrs. Elvi Sergio, for taking the 3 historical live music videos. This is one of my unforgettable experiences. I love you all for a million billion years.

Scene 6 THE UNEXPECTED CALL

March 4, 2015 Hightek Production & Entertainment Presents: SWABE NIGHTS VOLUME 7 @ SaGuijo Makati Wednesday.

Guest Performers: Sentido, Pop U, Jeeps Over Taxis, Suicidal Genius, Project Based, Mutya, Pernella, Summer Project, and Danny Caing.

7 PM: I was celebrating a birthday dinner with my brother Dr. Dino Caing at Max Fried Chicken in Glorieta Makati. I was also excited that night because it was my first gig performance at SaGuijo, a well-known place for the famous underground Pilipino independent bands & artists. Suddenly, my cellphone rings and it was Goo Aurellia, Highteck Production Manager and Sentido frontman.

GOO: Good evening Sir Duke. Where are you, now?

DUKE: I'm with my brother, Goo. I'm sorry that I'm going to be late.

GOO: Press people are looking for you here, from ABS/CBN. They want an interview with you regarding your song Jamich.

DUKE: Why would they do that? What's up, Goo?

GOO: They told me that Jam Sebastian died this morning.

DUKE (something hit in my stomach): Jam. Died this morning. I'm sorry Goo, I cannot go to SaGuijo right now. I'll make this up to you. Please tell them that I cannot attend the gig tonight. I'm so sorry.

DINO (my brother): Who is Jam Sebastian, bro?

I accompanied my brother to MIA-3 that night instead. I just told him that the gig show was postponed. When my brother entered the Departure Area. I took a taxi home, while on the way to Skyway, I prayed 3 Our Father for Jam's soul to rest in peace with our Lord Jesus Christ. Jam was just almost 29 years old. Life goes on.

Music Background: "Jamich" by Danny Caing https://soundcloud.com/dannycaing/jamich-by-danny-duke-caing

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crystalsoul16 · 7 years

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Answer all the questions, mwahaha >u

Get to Know Me

Oh geez

okay, challenge accepted, let’s do this!!

I’m putting this under a cut for length tho lol

1. What is you middle name?My middle name is Ryan c:

2. How old are you?I am 24, but definitely don’t feel like I am >->

3. When is your birthday?July 11th! Best way to remember is that it’s also free slurpee day at 7-Eleven lol

4. What is your zodiac sign?Cancer

5. What is your favorite color?various shades of blues and greens. Hard to pick just one ^^;

6. What’s your lucky number?16~

7. Do you have any pets?I have three dogs (two beagles at my mom’s, one undetermined breed (assumed belgian malinois?) at my dad’s), and three birds

8. Where are you from?I live in the state of Virginia, USA

9. How tall are you?5′2″, making me the shortest person in my family T^T

10. What shoe size are you?Depends on the brand, since I have 6 ½ boots that fit just fine, but also have a pair that’s a size 9. So it’s kinda hard to say ^^;;;

11. How many pairs of shoes do you own?I have 8 pairs of shoes, but really only wear one ^^; I got a new pair of shoes for Christmas that I want to use tho!

12. What was your last dream about?…..crap, I don’t remember

13. What talents do you have?I feel like my drawing skills are pretty good, and one of my instructors at school told me I’m good at video editing. I really wanna play with that skillset more and get back into making AMVs one day, and of course continue improving my art skills

14. Are you psychic in any way?If I am, I’m not aware -shrugs-

15. Favorite song?oh gosh, I have so many it’s hard to pick one… At this current moment in time though, the one that is standing out in my mind is Strike Back by BACK-ON, which is the 16th opening for Fairy Tail

16. Favorite movie?Again it’s hard to pick one, but Brother Bear is jumping at me, so I’ll go with that for now lol

17. Who would be your ideal partner?Okay, um… Well, they definitely need to like animals, cuz I do not trust people who don’t like or respect animals. They also need to like video games. Considering I spend a lot of my time playing them, and really hope to one day be involved in video game production and/or design, I feel like my partner should also have an appreciation for video games. Plus ideal casual date is cuddling on the couch and playing games together, so a shared love of gaming kinda feels like a must ^^; Plus with online games we can still hang out even if we’re not together so yeah. Video games. Also liking anime would be great, since I love watching anime and going to cons and cosplaying (oh shit couple cosplaying tho yes plz~!!) so sharing an interest there would be great! Plus then if we’re not in the mood to game, we can just cuddle and watch anime. Also having a genuine kind and caring soul is a must. Those are probably the most important points, but I guess it’d be nice if they’re also in touch with their youthful side. I can be a wee bit childish at times myself, so I just wanna make sure I ain’t gonna be judged if I decide I want to eat dinosaur-shaped chicken nuggets or cuddle with a plushie lolol Also, not a requirement, but willing to do stuff in the kitchen together would be nice~ And not judging me for watching cooking competition shows every so often would also be nice >->

……..or honestly, just be Yoosung >->;;;;;;;;;;; cuz it’s honestly startling to me how fuckin’ close that guy is to an ideal for me. And by close, I mean he is -hides face in hands- but of course, he’s fictional. So once again, fictional characters setting the bar high… -facepalms and sighs heavily-

18. Do you want children?At this current point in time, no. I’m still too much of a child in my own eyes to consider being a parent to anything that isn’t covered in fur or feathers. Maybe someday in the future, I will.

19. Do you want a church wedding?Not sure, honestly. It would also depend on what my partner wants. All I know is that a fantasy theme would be rad!!

20. Are you religious?Not entirely. I mean, I do believe that there is some sort of higher power, but I don’t really do much beyond that. I know there’s a term for it, but I can’t remember what it is right now

21. Have you ever been to the hospital?Once, when I was little. I think I was five? I think I blacked out though so I don’t remember much about it. Otherwise, I’ve only been to visit someone or sit in the waiting room while waiting for someone who was admitted.

22. Have you ever got in trouble with the law?Not yet, and I hope to keep it that way!!!

23. Have you ever met any celebrities?Do anime voice actors count? Cuz I’ve met a few at cons before, but I’m not sure if those count ^^;;;

24. Baths or showers?Personally I prefer showers

25. What color socks are you wearing?White

26. Have you ever been famous?Nope, and I’m totally fine with that. Too much attention makes me nervous lol

27. Would you like to be a big celebrity?As said before, I’m good without that sort of attention.

28. What type of music do you like?I tend to listen to rock music a lot, but I’m open to listening a lot of stuff. Especially video game OSTs and Fantasy/Celtic stuff!

29. Have you ever been skinny dipping?No I haven’t, and I think I’m too shy and don’t like my body enough to ever be comfy doing that ^^;;;;;;;

30. How many pillows do you sleep with?Three

31. What position do you usually sleep in?I’m usually on my side or stomach, and I’m pretty much always hugging a pillow or plushie when I fall asleep

32. How big is your house?Well, my mom’s house is bigger than my dad’s. That said, neither are very large really… My mom and I keep saying how we wish this house had more closet and storage space… And at my dad’s, my room isn’t even attached to the house lol. My brother took my old room, so I now have the small mini-house thing right next to the pool. It’s got a bathroom, a counter for a microwave by the door, and a small bedroom. I like the privacy it has though!

33. What do you typically have for breakfast?Sadly, I often skip breakfast because I rarely wake up before noon lol. When I do have breakfast though, it’s either a bowl of cereal or a bagel with cream cheese

34. Have you ever fired a gun?No I have not

35. Have you ever tried archery?No, but I want to so baaaaaaaaaaaad~!!

36. Favorite clean word?solely because of my bro saying it in a ridiculous voice, biscuit

37. Favorite swear word?Fuck, because it’s the one I use the most lol

38. What’s the longest you’ve ever gone without sleep?Over 48 hours. I had three final projects due, two of which I had to paint, so I stated up two days straight to finish them, and didn’t even fall asleep before going to school. That said, I don’t remember how late I stayed up including class, but due to class time, it was probably another five or seven hours… And it was misery. 0/10, would never recommend

39. Do you have any scars?I do have a small one next to my left eye from when I got bit by a dog when I was five, which was the cause of the hospital visit mentioned a while back

40. Have you ever had a secret admirer?umm……not that I recall, no

41. Are you a good liar?It depends. Sometimes I can be, but sometimes it’s easy to catch me. That said, I don’t like doing it

42. Are you a good judge of character?Not sure, honestly -shrugs- I like to assume I am, tho

43. Can you do any other accents other than your own?I can try, but they probably sound horrible XD

44. Do you have a strong accent?I was once told that I had a southern accent, but I’m not exactly sure. Sometimes I may slip into an exaggerated one, tho

45. What is your favorite accent?I’m a fan of a lot of accents, but I’ve always had a weakness for Australian! Probably because I grew up watching Steve Irwin all the time so I developed an early fondness for it lol

46. What is your personality type?INFP

47. What is your most expensive piece of clothing?I’m not sure, to be honest. I tend to be satisfied with “cheap” clothes, like at walmart or somethin’, so I’m not sure…. If I had to guess…it’s probably my Organization XIII coat

48. Can you curl your tongue?yurp

49. Are you an innie or an outie?Innie

50. Left or right handed?Rightie

51. Are you scared of spiders?Hell yes >~unless they’re spiders in pokemon, which always tend to be my favorite bug types for some reason lolol

52. Favorite food?shit, I dunno, I like a lot of foods….. I’ll just say pasta and be general about it lol

53. Favorite foreign food?dude I fuckin’ love me some mochi~

54. Are you a clean or messy person?Very clean when it comes to organizing files. Very messy otherwise

55. Most used phrased?Lately for some reason I’ve been saying “Oh dear” a lot and I have no idea why XD

56. Most used word?probably fuck

57. How long does it take for you to get ready?On average, to get ready in the morning takes me about half an hour, and most of that time is spent waking up =_=

58. Do you have much of an ego?I have no ego whatsoever. I could honestly use more of one, even just a small one to give myself at least a little confidence lol

59. Do you suck or bite lollipops?I try to just suck, but I tend to bite :/

60. Do you talk to yourself?always

61. Do you sing to yourself?sometimes, if no one is around to hear me >->

62. Are you a good singer?not at all lol

63. Biggest Fear?honestly, being disliked. I know I shouldn’t worry about what people think of me, but I do worry about people close to me finding me annoying or coming to dislike me for some reason.

64. Are you a gossip?nope

65. Best dramatic movie you’ve seen?Either Gran Torino or Forrest Gump

66. Do you like long or short hair?On myself? I used to always keep my hair very long, and just recently decided to try shorter hair. And I actually really like it on myself! In general though, I’m good with anything~ You do you~

67. Can you name all 50 states of America?yup. I don’t feel like listing them all, if that’s what you’re asking, but I do know that one song that lists them in alphabetical order, so yup

68. Favorite school subject?hmmm…. In school, I tended to like math best, since I was pretty good at it

69. Extrovert or Introvert?I am without a doubt an Introvert

70. Have you ever been scuba diving?nope

71. What makes you nervous?everything. My anxiety has me in a nearly constant state of nervousness lol But especially being in social situations that involve talking to strangers!!

72. Are you scared of the dark?hmmm….. I mean, I can sleep in the dark if needed, but I prefer having some sort of background noise, usually a TV

73. Do you correct people when they make mistakes?Depends on the mistake. If it’s a typo, then no. If it’s a pokemon type advantage or something like that, hell yes.

74. Are you ticklish?uhhhh;;;;;;;; yeah, I am, but I highly recommend against it, cuz I have kicked people in response before out of reflex >-> that and I’d just rather not be tickled plz >->;;;;;;

75. Have you ever started a rumor?nope

76. Have you ever been in a position of authority?no, and I don’t want to be! I’d rather be a follower than a leader!!

77. Have you ever drank underage?nuh-uh

78. Have you ever done drugs?no

79. Who was your first real crush?umm………I cannot remember, honestly…

80. How many piercings do you have?none

81. Can you roll your Rs?no, but I tried so hard to before… and my family rubbed it in that they could and I can’t so fuck :c

82. How fast can you type?I just took a quick test and averaged at about 40 WPM. Not sure how fast that is lol

83. How fast can you run?not very

84. What color is your hair?Naturally dark brown, but I like coloring the ends! So far I’ve done green and a sort of minty aqua, and I’m thinking of doing a light violet next, but I’m not sure yet

85. What color is your eyes?Hazel

86. What are you allergic to?nothing that I’m aware of

87. Do you keep a journal?nope

88. What do your parents do?My mom is a middle school teacher, and my dad does some sort of IT work

89. Do you like your age?well, I have no qualms with being 24. I just don’t feel like I am is all, lol

90. What makes you angry?Cruelty and unfairness

91. Do you like your own name?Yup~

92. Have you already thought of baby names, and if so what are they?I did at one point, but I’ve forgotten them by now lol I’ll give it more serious thought if the time comes around

93. Do you want a boy a girl for a child?I honestly have no preference

94. What are you strengths?I tend to be open-minded and empathetic, so I can understand others pretty well

95. What are your weaknesses?My anxiety and low self-esteem are not helpful lol

96. How did you get your name?……I honestly don’t know. I think my parents just liked the name lol

97. Were your ancestors royalty?not that I’m aware of

98. Do you have any scars?wasn’t this asked before…? -scrolls up- ….yup, number 39. Oh well, I’ll copy and paste it~ I do have a small one next to my left eye from when I got bit by a dog when I was five, which was the cause of the hospital visit mentioned a while back

99. Color of your bedspread?My sheets have a black and white pattern on the front, and a solid light green on the other side. Same for the pillows. The other sheets are white with a grey pattern

100. Color of your room? My walls are a beige color, and I have a hardwood floor

#K Answers #ultyso

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deadcactuswalking · 5 years

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REVIEWING THE CHARTS: 10th March 2019

Top 10

We have the same #1 from last week, specifically “Someone You Loved” by Lewis Capaldi, hanging onto the top this week for a second stint at the top.

“Giant” by Calvin Harris and Rag ‘n’ Bone Man is also not moving at number-two.

Mabel is up two spots to number-three with “Don’t Call Me Up”.

Ariana Grande’s “break up with your girlfriend, i’m bored” is currently at number-four, down one position from last week.

There’s another song from Ariana down only one space from last week at number-five, this one being “7 rings”. Both of these tracks aren’t falling fast enough, by the way.

The most interesting story of this week in pop music is the return of the Jonas Brothers and their impact on the charts. In the US, they debuted at #1, which kind of perplexes me to be completely honest, but they’re also at number-six here, so there must be some hole in the public’s consumption of music worldwide that the Jonas bros are filling I suppose. If you’re interested in stats, their last charting song in the top 40 here was in 2008, with “Burnin’ Up”, and this is actually their highest charting song ever in the UK, being their fourth top 40 but first ever top 10. Congratulations... I guess?

“Dancing with a Stranger” by Sam Smith and Normani is down a spot to number-seven.

Tom Walker’s “Just You and I” is up two spaces to number-eight.

P!nk’s “Walk Me Home” surprisingly doesn’t falter off the debut despite lack of a video, only dropping a single space to number-nine.

Oh, and NSG’s “Options” featuring Tion Wayne is down three spots to #10.

Climbers

We have exactly two, both in the top 20. “Please Me” by Cardi B and Bruno Mars moves up seven positions probably thanks to the video, to #13, whilst YNW Melly enjoys his first ever top 20 hit whilst incarcerated and on trial for double murder, as “Murder on My Mind” slips up 11 spaces to #20.

Fallers

We have a lot more of these, although it’s still relatively dry in this area too. “Wow.” by Post Malone continues its gradual fall, down five to #19, “Going Bad” by Meek Mill and Drake is down seven to #23, joining “Advice” by Cadet and Deno Driz down six to #24, “Kitchen Kings” by D-Block Europe is down seven to #26, “Shotgun” by George Ezra is down five to #31, “thank u, next” by Ariana Grande is down six to #36, and that’s it, it seems.

Dropouts

Thanks to streaming cuts, two long-running chart hits have dropped out as they always do because of these arbitrary UK chart rules: “Play” by Jax Jones featuring Years & Years is out from #22 and “Lost Without You” by Freya Ridings is out from #25. Otherwise, we just have a few natural dropouts, with “Promises” by Calvin Harris and Sam Smith dropping out from the return last week at #37, “Undecided” by Chris Brown dropping out from #38 (Good riddance) and the sad loss of “Black” by Dave from #40, although there’s no questioning it’ll rebound at a much higher position once the album impacts – which, by the way, you should check out. It’s called PSYCHODRAMA and it’s fantastic.

Returning Entries

“Leave a Light On” by Tom Walker is back at #37. Please go away.

NEW ARRIVALS

#34 – “Don’t Feel Like Crying” – Sigrid

Produced by Oscar Holter – Currently charting at #15 in Scotland

So, I like Sigrid quite a bit, actually. I had a really negative reaction to “Strangers” more than a year ago when it first debuted on the charts but that opinion has waned with time, although it’s still probably one of the worst she’s released, especially on the album Sucker Punch, which I admit I haven’t finished but contains some pretty great UK synthpop, especially the title track, which is awesome and I’m quite sad that didn’t turn out to be the hit from the record, but instead we’ve got the second top 40 hit from young Norwegian singer and BBC’s “Sound of 2018”, which seems to be the token break-up hit on the record (Although there’s probably more songs on the topic throughout), and honestly, it’s pretty epic. I love the orchestral strings that start the track off, they step the fine line between classical-tinged and more electronic sounds by having that synth harmonising with it and the unnatural sound of the slick, polished pop song. The chorus, despite a somewhat concerning falsetto, is catchy and anthemic, and especially in the second verse, it’s such an effective kiss-off, despite being really clean and inoffensive. Similarly to “Sucker Punch”, it’s just Sigrid doing what she knows best: singing some cool synthpop songs (With a rock edge that I appreciate) that she only co-wrote, with enough indie cred in the interesting vocal mannerisms and 808s to seep through what I would usually see as manufactured and boring. Yeah, this is pretty good, even though I feel it could be improved by being less repetitive and more developed, since it’s two and a half minutes long and I feel it needs a proper bridge instead of an admittedly weak post-chorus. Next.

#32 – “Bally” – Swarmz featuring Tion Wayne

Produced by DABEATFREAKZ

Apparently this is a returning entry according to the BBC, and so is “Don’t Feel Like Crying”, but they also think Swae Lee isn’t on “Sunflower” with Post Malone so you know, it’s not exactly like they’re the most reliable in their top 40 countdowns they have available on their Radio One website. Anyway, this is Swarmz, a UK rapper from the same irk as all the faux-reggae-influenced British hip hop artists that break through nearly every week now, sometimes twice, with a slightly bigger name as a feature, in this case Tion Wayne, who also features on a top 10 hit right now by NSG (Making this his second top 40 hit and obviously Swarmz’s first). It sounds really similar to “Options” actually, with a blunt piano-lead beat, almost reggaeton or dancehall percussion as well as a deep 808 drowning out everything else, except, in this case, the piano is completely or at least partially off-beat for the intro and outro due to how washed out the percussion and claps are. The mix is okay, but Swarmz’s autotune especially is pretty muddy, with the multi-layering making the song especially cluttered but I do love his verse and chorus actually, since he has so much charisma and he’s pretty funny and exciting due to his happy delivery despite dark lyrics about shooting people. Maybe it’s because of the BlocBoy JB level of stuttering in the hook or his elongated syllables, but something about this dude is hilarious. Tion Wayne is okay here too (I especially like his pre-chorus), and the beat is decent enough for both of them once it really gets started, so to be honest, I can’t really complain about this one too much, it has a cool almost afrobeat swing to it and I quite like it. Maybe it’s just because I’ve heard so much of this trash that any slightly better forms of this style of British hip hop amazes me, but at least I’ve started to see the reason for this co-existing with people like Dave and people like Loyle Carner; there is some quality to be found in faux-dancehall-gangsta-rap, sometimes.

#18 – “How it Is” – Roddy Ricch, Yxng Bane and Chip featuring the Plug

Produced by SpeakerBangerz

Okay, let’s name off everyone here, starting with probably the most well-known. Yxng Bane is perhaps the most recognisable here as he’s a rapper from East London who is one of the few of the rappers in this style who know how to have a pop sensibility and still be decent, but honestly when he charts his songs are painfully and pathetically bad. His song “Vroom” is probably even worse than I dubbed it in retrospect. This is his fourth Top 40 hit and second top 20. Chip is definitely the artist with the biggest (And probably best) discography here, and can be seen as more of a legacy act in recent years, being one of the few UK rappers to have connections with the US hip-hop scene that aren’t forced, probably because he used to be on T.I.’s record label. He’s collaborated with people like Emeli Sandé, Chris Brown, Trey Songz, Keri Hilson, Stormzy, Elton John and even Big Shaq (No, the last two are not on the same track, although that would be interesting to say the least), and 16 UK Top 40s under his belt, including 10 Top 20s and a number-one hit, although this is his first hit since 2013. Roddy Ricch is an American rapper heavily affiliated with Meek Mill and somehow Marshmello, who seems to be gaining buzz for his trap-rap mixtapes recently. This is his first ever charting song in the UK. The Plug is seemingly a collective that pulls everything together, we’ve seen another collaboration between UK and US rappers initiated by the Plug end up on the chart before, making this their second hit. The song itself isn’t as interesting as any of these backstories if you’re wondering, its piano melody is nice and I like the ambience it builds until Roddy Ricch comes in with the beat and drowns out whatever was there, sounding like a slightly less watered-down version of Young Thug than, say, Lil Baby, but still a shameless rip-off with not near enough quirkiness to make it work. Chip’s verse is mixed awfully and he sounds pretty bad with that autotune anyway. I may as well add that every single verse goes on for a few too many bars to make this song in any way tolerable, and that it’s nearly five freaking minutes, with only three verses but an incessant repetition of the hook. Yxng Bane doesn’t add anything but for once he doesn’t really subtract anything. I actually kind of like the distorted vocals he pulls off. Otherwise, this is gutter trash. Let’s talk about the Jonas Brothers.

#6 – “Sucker” – Jonas Brothers

Produced by Frank Dukes and Louis Bell – Currently charting at #1 in the US and Canada

I’ve never heard a Jonas Brothers song before this, and I’m frankly not going to bother researching a Disney-grown boy band that probably didn’t even make interesting enough music to commentate on despite most probable lack of quality. I have heard some stuff they’ve done outside of this project, with Nick Jonas having two boring solo hits that aren’t much to speak of, Joe Jonas being the frontman of the band DNCE, who had two excellent hits over here, with “Cake by the Ocean” and the funky Nicki Minaj featuring “Kissing Strangers”, and not going to lie, has probably aged the best out of the brothers, musically and in appearance. Sorry, I’ll try to keep it professional – Kevin Jonas, well, I’m sure he existed too, but he didn’t really make music, he just went into either acting or off the face of the Earth until they made their return. Well, I can’t really discern their voices from each other, but I can tell that the shaky falsetto comes from Nick, and the bland, dime-a-dozen production comes from producers Frank Dukes and Louis Bell, both of which known for their aggressively pointless and emotionless, manufactured instrumentals, especially the guitars here, which are so watery and gross. I like the melodies here and I’d be lying to say it wasn’t catchy, especially the whistling in the post-chorus, but there’s nothing really of interest to speak of here, other than the striking similarity to “Feel it Still” by Portugal. The Man, and in response, I see it, but I don’t care.

Conclusion

Not much here was outright bad except the obvious stinker, so Worst of the Week goes to the Plug, Roddy Ricch, Yxng Bane and Chip for “How it Is”, while Best of the Week probably goes to Sigrid for “Don’t Feel Like Crying”, although I feel like I should mention that I do like “Bally”, so Honourable Mention goes to Swarmz and Tion Wayne for making British faux-dancehall hip hop interesting for a brief three minutes. See you next time!

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