...Third time I’m doing this because first I accidentally highlighted and deleted the whole thing and the second time I accidentally clicked to go back. It’s supposed to ask you if you want to leave or stay on the page, but somehow it bypassed that. I’m so annoyed, but here we go again... -______-

What’s something that makes you feel more creative? Nothing. What are the last three nail polish colors you wore? I last recall wearing black, which was a few years ago so I don’t know what I wore before that. How often do you switch up your nail polish cover? Not often apparently. What’s the last thing you binge watched? Catfish. Do you watch youtube videos or tv shows more? Both.

Who’s the most shallow and superficial person you’ve watched on youtube? I don’t consider any of the YouTubers I watch to be like that. What’s the last magazine you’ve read? I don’t remember. What’s a DIY project that you don’t think actually works? I don’t know. Do you collect Mason jars to use for crafts? No. What are you tired of right now? This survey because it’s now my 3rd time doing it. What gives you a quality of life? Uhhh. What would give you a high quality of life? Good health. Do you have any rugs on top of carpet in your home? No. What color is the last teddy bear you bought? I only buy stuffed animal giraffes, and they’re the color you’d expect a giraffe to be. Have you ever gotten rid of something and then regretted it? Yes. If so, what? (or what’s one thing?) A lot of things. I have a hard time getting rid of stuff. How does your stomach feel right now? It’s been bothering me. What color is the zip-up hoodie you wear the most? Black. Do you have a mattress cover on your bed? Yes. Do you live in an apartment that has inspections? I don’t live in an apartment. Do you hate taking naps during the day? No. Who in your immediate family has the best natural hair? My mom. Who has the best personality on youtube? Shane and Trisha Paytas, and the many ASMRists I’m subscribed to such as GibiASMR and PrimASMR to name a couple. Which youtuber seems uber confident? One of the ASMRists I watch, ASMRxBABEE. What is the funniest youtube video you have ever seen? I’ve seen many in over the past 11 years that I’ve been watching YouTube. Would you ever audition for American Idol? Um, no. I can’t sing and I know that. Do you know anyone who thinks they’re more talented than they are? No. Do you buy gum? I haven’t in awhile. What’s your favorite dollar store? I don’t have one. How many cell phones have you had in your lifetime? Like 5 or 6. Can you play the ukulele? No. Do you correct spelling and grammatical errors? Sometimes I will in a survey, but not in the question itself. I just correct it in my answer. Did you get a perfect SAT score in any subjects? I didn’t take the SATs. What is the origin of your last name? (i.e., Italian, French, etc.) Irish. Do you know the meaning of your first name? Yes. If so, what is it? "to be crowned.” Have you ever been inside a Victorian mansion? No. What was the most boring field trip you ever want on? I didn’t consider any of them boring, really. The last time you went, what were your favorite rides at Cedar Point? Never been. Have you ever ridden a horse? Once, at a fair. Sorry horsey, I was a kid and didn’t know any better. Do you enjoy watching videos of babies being born? Um, no thank you. If you had a boy and a girl, what would you name them? Which country do you have no desire to visit? *shrug* Which country would you most like to visit? Sweden. What is your nationality/what are your origins? American. ^What is the stereotype associated with that nationality? Probably that we love guns or something and that we’re fat. ^And do you feel like you fit it? Nope. What are your favorite types of videos to watch on youtube? ASMR and vlogs. What’s a DIY craft project you want to try? I don’t do any. Is your room clean? Mostly. It’s a bit cluttered. Are you a hoarder? A bit. When you think of your past, do you hurt? When thinking about parts of it. I also miss parts of it, though. Is there a guy (or girl) that you wish things had worked out with? Yes. I do wish things had worked out between Ty and I. I wish we had least remained friends if we couldn’t be anything more. I truly loved having him in my life. Do you ever call yourself stupid in your head? That and many other putdowns. “Stupid” is the least of them. What was your favorite Barbie doll? I just loved Barbies. If you were to start a collection, what would it be? I do, I have a ton of stuffed animal giraffes. If you were rich, what things would you get done cosmetically? I’d just want to get my teeth fixed. How old were you when you got your license? I haven’t still. Are you parents too controlling? No. Do you think “Sarah/Sara” looks better with an “h” or without? Whichever. Would you ever give your daughter the middle name Marie? Do you think “Ann/Anne” looks better with or without the “e”? Again, whichever. Who is your favorite fictitious redhead? Archie Andrews and Cheryl Blossom. Name 5 fictitious redheads that you can think of. Those 2, Merida from Brave, Daphne, and Wilma. Do you like musicals? Some. What shows have you seen on Broadway? The Phantom of the Opera. What big cities have you been to? Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Atlanta. What other big cities do you want to go to? New York for sure. Do you follow through with your new year’s resolutions? I don’t even make ‘em anymore. Do you make bucket lists? I did one years ago. What’s number 1 on your bucket list? I do wanna travel. Do you have a relationship with God? Yes. Do you hate haters? Haters gonna hate. What do you want to be for Halloween this year? I don’t dress up anymore. Do you like unique spellings of names? Sometimes. Do you trust anyone? Yes. What kind of milk do you drink? I use soy or almond milk for stuff, but I don’t like to drink them by itself. Have you ever “fired” a doctor? No. What’s your favorite type of cheese? I love cheese. American, cheddar, provolone, mozzarella, ricotta, parmesan... What store do you want to win a shopping spree at? Hmm. What clothing store would you like to win a shopping spree at (if different)? I don’t know. Do you wear heels or flats more? Neither. Do you love shopping? I like online shopping. Who is the prettiest Asian youtuber that you can think of? I’m not sure. Do you watch a lot of youtube videos? Yes. What is the best news you’ve heard lately? Ummm. Do you use a sunlamp? No. What was the temperature where you live today? I think mid 60s F. Is your sleep schedule all messed up? Yep. Has been for many years. Do you keep up with trends? Some. Did you wear green last St. Patrick’s Day? Nope. Name three positive things about the Internet. Tumblr, surveys, online shopping. Have a lovely day! Thanks.

Shamir on Tumblr, food vloggers & problematic faves

We speak to the indie auteur about his favourite online obsessions, from queer Tumblr memes to ‘specifically black’ Instagram comedy

3November 2017Text

Grant Rindner

Dazed Faves is the series where we talk all things online – that surreal meme account you’re obsessed with, weird conspiracy theory subreddits, ASMR YouTubes or slime Instagrams.

Shamir’s cathartic new record, Revelations, cements the soon-to-be 23-year-old musician’s metamorphosis from house pop wunderkind to guitar-wielding indie rock auteur. Its predecessor Hope was the result of a weekend-long recording binge during a dark period in which he considered quitting music entirely, and his latest is equally stripped down and deeply personal, focusing both on his own struggles and those of his generation at large.

“I feel like Hope and Revelations are like sister records, and I think they’re both a journey,” he says. “Hope is full of questions, and I think Revelations is full of answers.”

While the album is full of honest, occasionally bleak reflections on his recent personal and professional hardships, it’s thrilling to hear Shamir finally have the chance to channel influences like Courtney Love, Blake Babies, and Velocity Girl into this grunge-inspired project that feels like the young artist fully taking the reins on his career. The singles “90’s Kids” and “Straight Boy” each tackle weighty subjects while showcasing his sparkling knack for melodies and pristine tenor.

The latter is a critique of self-centered tendencies of straight males as well as a send-up of the commodification of allyship. The former is as vivid an account of millennial anxiety as we’ve heard lately; it’s fittingly both droll and dire which fits a generation all too accustomed to making World War III jokes on Twitter. “We talk with vocal fry / We watch our futures die,” he sings in the opening verse.

The “90’s Kids” video is a mesmerizing crash course in meme history with Shamir’s vocals and lips animated into everything from Salt Bae to a yelling Meryl Streep (which he says is his all-time favorite). “I knew what I wanted to do because I’m like, “What’s a universal way that ‘90s kids transfer their anxiety and problems and energy into the world?” he explains. “Memes.”

With memes on the mind, it makes sense for Shamir to take part in our Faves series, where we speak to artists about their online obsessions. A week before the release of Revelations we caught up with Shamir over brunch in Philadelphia, discussing the ineffable appeal of Trisha Paytas, queer comedy, and the Twitter hero who showed him where he could get a gluten-free Philly cheesesteak.

FAVE TUMBLR: MILES JAI

Shamir: Miles Jai grew up in North Las Vegas with me. I was roommates with his best friend. He’s also in my first video (for ‘If It Wasn’t True’). His posts are so funny. A lot of it is very queer and gay-specific too. Pretty much every time I open up my Tumblr app, instead of going through what’s already on my dash I type in ‘Miles Jai’ first, go through his Tumblr, and then go through my dash.

Read Miles Jai’s Tumblr here

FAVE TWITTER: LANAKANE

Shamir: So she became my angel in life. I had been living out here (in Philadelphia) for maybe a year-and-a-half and got strict about not eating gluten, and I just really wanted a cheesesteak. I’m like, ‘It’s not fair, I live in Philadelphia, I can’t eat a cheesesteak.’ She gave me the info that Joe’s in Fishtown has gluten-free rolls. I was like, ‘Girl, you lying?’ And I went there and they had it and I was like, ‘You are an angel.’

So I think she lives in, like, Jersey and after I followed her on Twitter we were DMing. She’s definitely into comedy and is just so funny. She had this one great tweet where I was talking about people who still think gender and sex are the same thing, and how also those people like to bring in science – when obviously they don’t know about science, because they still think gender and sex is the same thing. And she’s like, ‘Everybody’s a scientist when it comes to gender, but nobody’s a scientist when it’s like 80 degrees in the middle of October.’ And I was like, that’s so fucking true! All of her other posts are so funny, I love her Twitter.

that AND the fact they claim to know my good sis science when obviously they don't

everybody's a scientist when it comes to gender but not when it's 85 degrees in the middle of October

Replies

44 Retweets

2222 likes

Twitter Ads info and privacy

FAVE VLOGGER: TRISHA PAYTAS

Shamir: I’m sorry – I get so emotional when I think about Trisha because like... (pauses) I don’t even know. I just love her. I want to be her best friend. I just see so much of myself in Trisha. She’s definitely like, problematic at times, but she’s definitely a problematic fave. I think that it’s kind of a character that she plays up, but (at the same time) definitely think it’s an extension of her. I just think that she lives in her own little world and it’s refreshing to see.

I don’t know if anyone can really describe – like, anyone who loves her – can really describe why they do. I just think it’s like, she kind of seems like someone that we all know who’s kind of problematic, but not intentionally. The 7-Eleven one is so good, with her pink trunk. I would literally watch her have a mukbang, eat a bunch of shit, for literally an hour. It feels like you’re having dinner with her. I don’t watch other mukbangs except for hers.

FAVE INSTAGRAM: LALASIZAHANDS89

Shamir: She’s just funny as fuck. She’s like, ratchet funny. She’s just great. Her voice is funny, the way she talks is funny – how she just will just openly pull off her wig in the middle of a conversation. Her voiceovers are funny. She’s just fucking funny. Generally I’m good at explaining (things), but when it comes to like Trisha and probably (Lala), that’s a little hard. Trisha, definitely, I just can’t explain – like I just love her – Lala is slightly different because I think that her sense of humor is just so tailor-made to me, the ratchetness of it. It’s kind of just black humor.

One specific post I can think of for LalaSizahands is the one where she’s so hungry and she sings this song behind a, like, New Edition instrumental, which is so specifically black – but it’s just humor that I normally really couldn’t send to my white friends ‘cause they’re like, ‘Who’s New Edition?’ You know, most white kids my age don’t know New Edition. Most black kids do because their parents listened to them – they’re like One Direction before One Direction, but black. I definitely send my LalaSizahands videos to my black friends and we laugh about it.

I think that’s why Lala specifically hits home for me. It’s definitely black humor. I think Miles (Jai)’s humor is a little more universal (than Lala’s) and definitely a little more queer and gay-based.

FAVE WEBSERIES: EIGHTY-SIXED

Shamir: So Eighty-Sixed is a show I found through my friend Owen (Thiele), who plays Owen in the show. And I just saw it on his Instagram and I’m always down to watch a good webseries. That’s how I found Isa Rae (with Awkward Black Girl). It’s so great to see her grow, and I definitely see the same potential with this show… Eighty-Sixed is really funny – I see a lot of myself and my friends with them, like how they communicate.

The birthday episode is the best one, where she goes live and says her name and then goes off live (when Remi’s ex joins) and she’s like, ‘Did you really just say (my) name right now and then go off live?’ We all have friends that are ridiculous like that. That one specifically kind of reminds me of my best friend – we’ve been best friends since eighth grade.