#best fucking music video. Iconic. Immaculate.

[sa-nddd]

Bestie Headcanons

being besties with the dream smp characters.

idk, I was looking through pintrest and saw a bunch of bestie pics, so I thought I'd write something 'bout it.

Dream

would totally be the kind to carry you everywhere.

just walks up to you, leans down and throws you over his shoulder.

"Where are we going, again?"

if you are wearing a skirt or dress, he would pick you up bridal style, making sure to be wary of the length of it.

this mf-

he would be a meanie.

but like, also a sweetie.

would steal your food, then offer you the rest of his meal.

if you need anything, he's got it.

cuddles. all day. every day. 25/8

man's just wants attention.

would force you to get into the cart to push you around the store.

Sapnap

definetly the type to wanna wear matching fits.

if he sees a shirt he likes, he gets one in your size, too.

When he's streaming, you are in the room or house.

If he's not, you two are at your place

not ashamed to ask for affection.

you guys go on drives and listen to different playlist depending on your moods.

you have eachothers passwords to everything.

he constantly posts from your account.

the fans love when he does.

he sometimes posts without knowing it's yours LMAO

you guys always make eachother playlists.

he probably forced you to start streaming with him.

if you aren't together, you are definitely on facetime.

he would let you paint his nails tbh.

George

He seems like he wouldn't be clingy, but i think otherwise.

Man's just has trouble trusting people.

He needs comfort, so you provide that for him.

his pets love you.

would be the type to buy something if it reminds him of you.

he's a bit of a introvert, so you guys stay home alot.

when he's streaming, you are either making a cameo in the background, or doing something around the house.

you just lay in his bed on your phone, or doing school work or something.

maybe fixing a shirt or sewing something.

chat always says hi to you.

then he got his green screen.

chat was upset that they couldn't see you, so he had to lower it to get you to wave from your spot on the bed.

chat was happy after.

Quackity

Alex definitely has you on his streams.

whether it be a short cameo or a bit he thought of, he likes your company.

on stream, he would be annoying, yelling for a CapriSun or something.

off stream, he's a sweetheart.

If you even mention something, he's bringing it to you.

You guys go shopping together.

You always steal his button ups. they low-key really comfy.

he constantly steals your phone.

you tease him alot, just like chat.

chat fucking loves you.

if he starts streaming and you haven't showed up, they are yelling at him.

Sometimes, you dress up to match Alex.

Like during his cooking stream, you randomly popped up in the middle of it wearing a nice black dress.

you guys play music together often.

you sing along to the songs he plays, and chat loves it.

they beg you to sing together every stream.

Karl

oh boy

this man, this man

fucking sweetheart all around.

always puts you first.

the type to physically perk up when your are with him.

when you walk in when he's streaming,

"Y/N!!!"

*tackles you*

"karl I saw you five minutes ago-"

"and?"

...

he's adorable. a smol puppy.

he's constantly clinging to you.

at the store? arms linked.

streaming? holding your hand.

no seriously, if you guys got in an argument you would sit with your backs together and pinkies linked.

he would probably drag you to his Mr. Beast things.

you are like his emotional support human :>

he also likes to match.

he makes you wear outfits he picked out to do insta photoshoots.

mirror pics. that's it. that's the post.

the fans love it.

another to let you paint his nails.

he shows chat when you do.

"LOOK CHAT!!!" *shows off his purple nails*

y'all use nicknames.

like, mine irl is nana, so I'ma use that one.

"Nana, can you tell dream to stop killing me?" *pouts*

"Of course, bubba." *proceeds to murder dream for fucking with karl*

Tommy

he is totally not clingy.

you can totally go hang out with other people.

it's not like he blows up your phone and whines when you do.

totally not

anyways

he's the kind to bully you, but it's somehow affectionate?

going by my height, you are short. 5'1 to be exact.

so obviously, he's gonna tease you about it

"You are so fucking short lmaooo fucking ant"

*cue you kicking his ankles*

"WHAT THE FUCK Y/N"

he's actually very different off camera.

he's a lot quieter, and he is very passionate.

he likes to give you hugs.

hugs you at least 40 times a day.

I don't make the rules :)

Tubbo

chaotic asf

cuddly asf

and overall just a bundle of sunshine.

he be the kind to learn different things to do them for you.

he watched a bunch of videos to learn how to braid your hair.

he's a professional now.

he also learned how to paint nails, do makeup, and straighten hair.

he is full of surprises.

you two have a modded server with a bunch of his streamer friends, but it's not public info.

You were the one who introduced him to ukulele and the keyboard.

you have the friendship where you do everything together.

if one of you wants to try something, the other will, too.

Ranboo

you guys' humor? immaculate.

the type of friends who are akward with everyone BUT eachother.

you guys can be so awkward, but that all goes put the window when you are together.

you go on random trips to Walmart just to run around the toy isle.

you guys take turns pushing the basket and being in it.

basically yin and yang.

you are the more out going person, and he's more self reserved.

Your parents are so used to you guys being together, that they don't question when one of you comes over anymore.

your texts are so fucking chaotic

no one can understand them but you two.

you guys are the type to make up a secret code LMAO

he got his fashion sense from you.

Wilbur

your friendship is iconic.

the type of friends that would most likely end up in jail together KEKW

everyone is envy of you two.

he taught you how to sing and play guitar.

you do vocals for his songs sometimes.

You go ghost hunting together often

you have so many aesthetically pleasing polaroids of eachother.

Chat loves when you appear on his streams.

you are constantly checking oh his mental health, because knowing your best friend was hurting badly at one point hurts you.

just the thought that he was in so much pain at one point makes you physically ill.

He worries for you, too.

He knows what it feels like, and he doesn't want you to go through that.

you guys support eachother so much it's wholesome

when he does singing streams, he sometimes drags you to sing with him.

you guys cry together sometimes, and it is honestly refreshing.

over all very chaotic and emotional.

Niki

besties.

people wish they had your friendship.

you both can't stick to one aesthetic LMAO

you share clothes and things alot.

she loves having you on her streams, her chat does aswell.

you take alot of pictures together.

you both do alot of wholesome things, like bake and plant.

you are eachother's hype women.

she's taller than you, so her clothes are more baggy.

which you love, it's apart of your main aesthetic.

you have a ton of sleepovers.

you paint eachother's nails often.

you love her hugs, they are so warm and comforting.

you make sure she's happy, and she does the same to you.

you both speak in german alot, and if you didn't know it, she taught you it.

very wholesome and cute. 10/10 recommend.

[crybabyddl]

Here’s my ranking of the best song on each Taylor Swift album, despite not having heard any of the albums in their entirety:

Self-Titled: Should’ve Said No (Do y’all remember her performance where she has on a tearaway sweatsuit with a dress underneath? Yeah. I think about that sometimes.)

Fearless: You Belong With Me (It was a single for a reason. It’s literally iconic and catchy as hell.)

Speak Now: ENCHANTED (Any other answer is simply false. This is also Taylor’s best album. I will not be taking any criticism because I’m right.)

Red: I Knew You Were Trouble (Again, it was a single for a reason. The last chorus?? The adlibs with the YEAH-EHH-EHHH YEEEAHH-YEEEAAHH YEAH-YEAH live in my head rent free. Knew it right then! Knew it right then!)

1989: Blank Space (Listen, I feel like an idiot choosing a bunch of singles as the top track, but like I said, they’re singles for a reason. Blank Space was the blueprint for Reputation with how Taylor twisted the narrative so I will not allow any slander. Also the lyrics set the scene, the music video was ICONIC, and I love how her voice sounds in the song.)

I CHANGE MY MIND. CLEAN IS MY ANSWER

Reputation: I Did Something Bad (I am correct. The singles from Reputation were some of her worst, sorry. Ready For It, Endgame, and LWYMMD were not the move and I will not apologize for saying it. Obviously lwymmd had to be the lead single, but it still isn’t a top tier track. Anyway, the mashup with this and no body, no crime is a fucking banger. I also just want to smash an expensive vase whenever I hear this song or like hit a big red button on the beat drop like Lil Nas X does in the Industry Baby music video.)

Lover: Idk (I know the obvious answers are Cruel Summer, Cornelia Street, & London Boy. I honestly haven’t listened to any of the songs on this album in their entirety. Paper rings is cute but like most of the songs on Lover, it’s more childish & whimsical. That vibe doesn’t always suit Taylor imo. Speak Now is whimsical too, but it’s something else entirely. I guess I’ll say Lover bc I like the time signature of it. I think it’s a waltz if I’m not mistaken. Idk, I haven’t listened to it in a while.)

Folklore: I literally don’t know the songs on this album. I could not recite a single lyric. I know the names, but I did not listen to this album. If at all, I would’ve only heard it if someone else’s spotify shuffled and they skipped past a song on this album in favor of a different Taylor song.

Evermore: NO BODY, NO CRIME (The only answer. Idgaf. Champagne Problems is repetitive and kinda boring. Sorry, but it had to be said. No Body, No Crime is a STORY. It is a true crime podcast in a SONG! With harmonies for EVERYONE! The vibes it gives off are immaculate. It’s not full-on country, but it kinda is and it’s great. It’s basically like Taylor made her own spin on Church Bells by Carrie Underwood, which is a banger.)

Runners Up:

Self Titled: Teardrops on My Guitar, Our Song

Fearless: Love Story, Fifteen, Fearless, White Horse

Speak Now: Literally any of the songs

Red: Everything Has Changed

1989: Wildest Dreams, I Know Places

Reputation: Don’t Blame Me

Lover: Cruel Summer, Afterglow (simply bc they sound cool)

Folklore: Betty, The Last Great American Dynasty (simply bc I think I heard a couple lines from these songs and they were decent but that could be a false memory)

Evermore: Tis The Damn Season, Ivy, Cowboy Like Me

Bonus:

I BELIEVE IN TODAY WAS A FAIRYTALE SUPREMACY! I remember buying it with an itunes card I got. Also, shoutout to SAFE AND SOUND bc I’ve cried to that song and I’d do it again.

[sugar-petals]

Rude Boy (M) — Teaser

pairing: sub!tom holland x dom!reader

genre › smut, crack | one shot

➯ your gymnast neighbour tom cranks up his music so much that it starts a house feud. you decide to put an end to this by showing up at his flat. but tom opens the door in a way that takes you by surprise.

:: a/n › don’t let the title deceive you, we’re headed for a subby tom fic! 💕with some mcu characters mixed in for the fun of it. rude boy’s past 13k words & I love to spoil you rotten so this teaser is at scenario length. enjoy! 

Now that became perfectly obvious to you: This guy was rude.

As if the plastering on the wall alongside the apartment corridor wasn’t porous enough— the hammering bass from flat #89 made it seem like the entire house was bound to corrode in a song or two.

“Hey, you! Turn the damn music down!”

Knocking at the plain door sporting a scraggly ‘Holland, T.’ sign only elicits a faint reply between beats. The voice sounds entirely out of breath. Its pitch is surprisingly high, too.

“Hello? Is this Mister Stank?”

“Who?!”

Almost an eternity passes. Footsteps follow. The door first clicks, then buckles. One second later, a babyface framed by curls peeks through the opening. Slathered in what appears to be a layer of sweat and— oddly, a white layer of powder.

Cocaine?

You’re completely stiff at the sight. So that’s Mister ‘Holland, T.’, then.

“Tony Stank! He’s been knocking here earlier. You’re not Tony, though?”

The babyface looks even more innocent than it already was by now. If he wouldn’t be all drenched and smelling like a crowded Olympic hall, the gaze would be easy to fall for. All big and hazel.

But you remain solid in your spot and feel no less irritated.

“He’s called Stark! Not Stank!”

Babyface looks confused.

“Stark? I just heard him mumbling something and things. Was busy with the weights so I couldn’t open the door.”

You place your arms akimbo.

“Tony lives in apartment #90! You know what that means?”

He shakes his head, which loosens some curls into his face.

“Um, no idea?”

You point down the corner of the hallway with more insistence.

“He lives right next you!”

“And?”

The guy’s voice goes up in pitch once again. Clearly, he didn’t catch his breath so far either. Lifting weights, he said. Poor Tony. 

In fact, poor everyone in the radius of ten miles. 

At least you know that whatever white powder is on his face—

Has to be magnesium carbonate powder.

He’s not even on drugs and acting like that.

How much worse can it get.

“Your music was so loud this morning that Tony did the same thing I’m doing right now, bloody idiot!”

“N—no need to be rude!”

“You’re the rude one! I’m from apartment #88!”

“Oh?”

Sweaty Holland gazes toward the other side of the corridor, seemingly surprised realizing that there looms the precise door you just came from. Apartment #88 in its full actual lack of splendour.

You feel like you’re about to burst any second.

“Yes?! I’m studying for exams and you’re blasting Rihanna! Since 10:30!”

Blank face. The guy really got you to a point where you roll your eyes like a preschooler. He looks disoriented more than anything, rubbing his powdery hands through his hair making it almost look strangely grey for his age. Something does seem to sway his confused features.

“Damn, shit... Wait a minute,” he says. “Tom, by the way. Sorry.”

The curly head disappears before you can say anything else. While you hear him walking away, the door ever so slowly falls open, revealing an almost loft-like building. You’d be very much at home in your casual clothing right now, but the thought of magnesium and the repugnant smell of athleticism has already ruined the sight.

Umbrella just keeps playing in the other part of the flat. Tom audibly rummages with some sort of dumbbells around the corner. They land and roll on the floor dull, making Tony’s words from yesterday all too present in your mind once more.

‘Bloke’s a gym rat! 20-fucking-something, sexually frustrated, IQ of a toast! Walking, cocky mess’, furious Stark in his blue designer shades had ranted meeting you on the way down in the elevator, recalling how he saw Tom moving in the other day.

Given how babyface still seems to be busy with his makeshift gym, you wish he never did.

This was one of the most crowded neighbourhoods.

“Will you please shut the goddamn stereo down!” you tap your foot more than once, still having to put up with Jay-Z’s intro rap droning from the speakers in the flat.

“Um! Searching for the remote!” Tom replies, but you’re already stepping into his training room, ready to either phone the police or take the bumping stereo out of service yourself.

But you can hardly believe your eyes. Looking into the area, framed by high shelves where towels and isotonic drinks are stacked.

Tom stands there without a single piece of clothing covering him.

No tank top. No boxers, not even socks. His arms serve as a less than adequate shield for his front.

“Shit!”

Looking all browbeaten head to toe, Tom mumbles something all panicked that gets drowned out by Rihanna’s catchy chorus. By now, the entire city of London probably knows his taste in music. And you: Just about every buff inch of him.

Fuck.

Time to get out of here.

You stumble backwards. Then, almost fall over, stepping on something squarish on the ground. Out of nowhere, the music stalls.

Silence.

You look down and realize that you’re standing on the tiny remote.

“Was getting ready for the shower! I’m sorry!” Tom repeats now that the stereo is off, covering himself with a scruffy towel in the meantime. Thank god that there are shelves around. But you have hardly gathered yourself by now.

“And... that’s how you opened the door?”

You know the answer given how Tom’s face changes from pale to crimson red, even visible through the layer of magnesium that not just his face is plastered into. It makes you wonder which odd parts of a body one can work out with.

“Was only peeking my head out! I didn’t know someone would come at this time of the day.”

Tom hurriedly tries to wrap the towel around his hips properly by now, but realizes it won’t cover enough of his backside. He hunches before you more frozen than ever. 

You sigh out. This lad indeed is akin to a toast.

“But it’s the afternoon?”

“I was only trying to prepare for the shower!” he repeats, wilding pointing about. “I’m so sorry, I—”

You pick up the remote and lay it down on the shelf to your right hoping your glare would suffice for him not to lay a finger on it anytime soon.

All this shower talk.

“Exactly where you’ll go now. Fucking twat.”

“T-twat?”

Tom’s jaw hangs loose. He’s still flushed like a ripe tomato.

“The entire corridor smells like gym. And get yourself some headphones for Rihanna, thanks.”

Enough seen, enough talk. Nobody down this very avenue could be grumpier. You bury either hand in your hoodie’s muff and turn. But Tom doesn’t look like he’s heading for the bathroom.

“Hey, wait! We didn’t even finish to introduce ourselves!”

“Do I look like I care? You’re wearing a towel! That’s past introductions. Fuck your politeness. Dickhead.”

For the sake of the other apartments and the plastering on the walls, you don’t opt for the now-you-know-how-it-feels-door-slam, but make sure to shut your own flat off from the sweaty stench in the corridor lightning fast.

Hoping that the barricade would at least block out that, if Tom wouldn’t put on Unapologetic the next hour. Who knows, you already see it coming. ‘Holland, T.’ arguably was the rudest neighbour you could possibly have. You regret doing as much as step one foot into his reeking apartment.

The silver kettle bleeps— you pour up your tea. Needs to sit for eight minutes, the fancy ‘Ayurvedic Relaxation‘ label of the bag says.

You close down the window of your unloved study notes on the laptop, alongside some other worksheets, digital drafts, presentations, and forms that need signatures from what seems to be the entire university. And then— sigh out, click the Youtube icon in the bookmarked pages. Eventually, you get comfortable in your hammock chair.

Perfect.

While the tea steams off, a soothing voice starts to play in a colourful intro. You alter the volume by three bars for better tingles. Finally: Your favourite. Mantis Chiropractic Medicine. Emotional Relief, ASMR, and life advice. Only the best cracks! And good-looking clients, too. What a dream. Atmospheric music with flutes and harps begins to chime after the intro jingle right away, making you sink into the hammock all slack.

Soft-spoken and polite as ever, Doctor Mantis begins to explain common side effects of sitting too much and how to remedy them that you stir in your tea, checking the watch: Only six minutes left of Ayurvedic Relaxation. Fair enough.

In the hallway, you hear a door closing while Mantis demonstrates a few carpal tunnel exercises. It’s from the direction of apartment #85. Likely Mister Rhodes returning from the Met Office. It’s 7PM. Punctual as ever. 

Mantis keeps on speaking gently on your laptop, showing her client how to correct his posture while typing.

You have to remind yourself not to get distracted because the notes and presentation are nowhere near finished. One video and you promise yourself to return to at least the mock exam questions. Again, you lean back into the hammock’s sturdy fabric and let the flutes carry you to another place and time.

Mantis, with her flowing black hair tied neatly into a ponytail, situated in the office with her immaculate white gown, already proceeds to diagnose a client on the screen with careful spine taps that a fast knock makes you jerk up. It’s not a sound coming from the video.

“Uh— Hello? Are you there?”

More knocks follow.

It’s Tom’s annoying voice.

“Please go away! I’m busy studying!” you shout, closing down the diagnosis video to remedy not your back, but conscience.

“Aren’t you watching a vlog or something?”

Too late.

Three bars on the volume button were a bit too loud. Damn it. Your entire Ayurvedic Relaxation is ruined.

“That’s a, a lecture video!”

You even catch yourself stuttering.

“Are you a med student or something?”

The voice remains persistent at the door.

“Tom. Fuck off into your gym, will you.”

To your anger, he actually knocks again.

“Please! At least come to the door! I don’t want to yell. You don’t have to open. Please. Please...”

You rub your eyes.

He has a point. Tony is still working during that time of the day anyways. Not to mention Rhodes. Yeah, Rhodes for sure. You close your laptop fast, slip out of the hammock, grab your teacup for emotional backing— and trot out of the bedroom with a grim feeling in your stomach.

“So what is it?” you grit, now inches away from Tom, but somewhat gladly, with the odour barricade still in place. Ten elephants and a pack of lions couldn’t move you to open that door.

“Y/N. I’m sorry for the music today,” Tom half whispers, half murmurs, now much more deferential.

He’s read your name on the door label. You sigh.

“The better apology’s leaving me alone. Can’t concentrate.”

A deep sip from your tea won’t make your annoyance go away either, but you still try and almost burn your tongue.

“With all due respect. If I would listen to lecture videos that loud my ears would be reeling, too...”

You could stomp the parquet below you to pieces on this very spot. Mister Stark was more than right about Tom. He was the cockiest mess.

“Look who’s talking! Rihanna’s bass line was peeling off our carpets this morning!”

You don’t want to know what janitor Rogers thinks about that.

“Y/N, please don’t yell,” Tom muffles from the other side repeatedly, tone more sympathetic. “I made enough noise myself today.”

“Oh, really? Never knew.”

“And, I’ve been using my earphones. Or did you hear anything Rihanna play?“

Mentally and physically, you give up your Ayurvedic Relaxation once for all and put the mug down on the next best birchwood cupboard. He does have not one, but two points. Maybe he’s not a toast, at least that. Still a bloody idiot, but you have to begrudgingly admit that he makes sense and didn’t touch the remote. 

Just in case— You peep through the fish-eye of the door and see Tom wandering about, not topless as far as you can trust your tired eyes. When he turns to the door, you try to read his face. He looks innocent. Sad, even.

“Please, Y/N. I just wanted to apologize for being rude. I’m still new here. And now that you’re playing something loud yourse—”

Ugh.

It’s a tie.

Click goes the door. And there you see him stand, in his striped Hello Kitty PJs that are way too tight at the arms, with tiny hearts printed all over them. He’s visibly scrubbed down, smelling like he’s used four shampoos at once. His curly hair looks kind of bouncy in the brutal light of the hallway.

“Nice to see you dressed for once, Holland.”

“Sorry, I probably look ridiculous.”

You open the door wider.

“Come on in rascal, still have some water in the kettle.”

© 2017-2019 submissive-bangtan. All rights reserved. Do not repost, translate, or modify my work.

[blackmusicreview-142-fan-blog]

Agoraphobia, the Mixtape

“Stones in My Pathway” by Robert Johnson

Robert Johnson’s “Stones in My Pathway” was not popular in its time--1937--but became largely recognized after the blues revival period. Johnson has been socially constructed on behalf of scholars and listeners alike as a so-called “lonesome blues man”, an embodiment of authentic rural blues sound. The lack of success of “Stones in My Pathway” when it was originally recorded was conceptualized later as testament to Johnson’s distance from the marketplace. Such logic posited Johnson as somehow more legitimate and original than his more popular contemporaries. The song was short and simple in that it featured only Johnson’s voice and sole guitar accompaniment. A metaphor for sexual pleasure obstructed like stones in a pathway, the song demonstrated desperation and despair: the “authentic” stereotype to blues audiences.

“Empty Bed Blues” by Bessie Smith

Whereas Johnson was a wandering bluesman, Bessie Smith was just the opposite: a musician that produced commodified blues. Bessie Smith’s “Empty Bed Blues” was one of the biggest hits of the singer’s career. The song, like its artist, was largely marketed to black audiences and performed via vaudeville circuits. “Empty Bed Blues” is an explicitly sexual song filled with funny innuendos and accompanied by trombone and piano. With big-bodied character and metaphorical wit, Bessie Smith unapologetically owns her sexuality. The song is in stark contrast to Stones in My Pathway: six minutes long with robust accompaniment and Charlie Green’s trombone accenting the hilarious lyrics. Similarly, while scholars paraded Johnson’s anguish and lack of market success, they criticized Smith’s Empty Bed Blues for being sexually explicit and for its commodification to black audiences at the time. Though in reality both songs and their artists spoke of sex in the language of the blues, and both did see monetary and popular success at some point, they are caught up in the audience’s debate over authenticity and the market. 

“Afro Blue” By Robert Glasper

Robert Glasper’s adaptation of Afro Blue sung by Eryka Badu is an example of Glasper’s reach beyond jazz into R&B music as he strayed from the traditional Jazz arrangement of this song. Glasper was known for exploring genres beyond jazz and for that was critiqued by many for “selling out”. However, he argued he was being true to his desires to explore, and not doing so would be the real definition of “selling out”. Glasper’s Afro Blue has a heavy drum beat accompanied by sparse piano and the occasional riff on a wind instrument. The heavy repetitive beat keeps a steady laid back new age rhythm.

“Love Theory” By Kirk Franklin

Love theory by Kirk Franklin is a funky R&B “gospel” with hip hop influence. The inclusion of a choir in the song is a powerful addition as it is representative of traditional gospel choir songs one would hear in a church. Kirk is someone who fought to reach a wider audience, specifically the youth, by collaborating with artists such as “salt-n-pepa” and creating music that strayed from traditional gospel instrumentals to including pop, R&B and hip hop audiences.

“F**k the Industry” By Solange Knowles

Through a leaking of her unofficially released mixtape, singer Solange Knowles adheres to the theme of agoraphobia breaking the musical norms of what the industry depicts as successful female R&B artists of the 90s-2000s. She calls out her own successful sister Beyonce, Ashanti, Jennifer Lopez, aka JLo, and Mary J. Blige as the norm who all represent a similar type of style that includes precisely planned out aesthetics of Benz cars, carefully matched and coordinated hair, make-up, and clothing saying that she refuses to go along with the mainstream style just for sales and chart-topping popularity. As she claims her power in being original and true to self in her lyrics she criticizes the industry and record labels for not giving her the same attention, credit, and time simply because she is not pushing this fake alter-ego image. Using lyrics like, “I’ll never be picture perfect like Beyonce” and, “I’m sorry I ain’t in the Benzes in my videos / I’m sorry I ain’t even really trying to match my clothes … No, I don’t trust the crowd just to walk around it / So I’m writing this letter to the industry / It says “Fuck you, signed sincerely” one gets a clear picture of how she calls out the industry for its portrayal of artistry that only serves to sell this commodified version of what they want music to sound like.

“Apeshit” By The Carters

“Apeshit” by The Carters represents the theme of agoraphobia since we see Beyonce and Jay-Z, the most powerful, influential Black musician couple of modern time taking advantage of their messy extra-marital affair debacle that spread like wildfire across social media platforms like Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook, as a means of commodification turning their life into a juicy love story that everyone wants a piece of. In the song we hear a different style of rap from both artists which we have never heard them submerge themselves in before until now. They take on Atlanta-styled trap music using ad-libs like “skrrt, skrrt, skrrt/jumpin’, jumpin’, hey, hey” from Migos’ group member Quavo who is widely known for his extremely simple rap style of talking about women and money in objectifying ways. Before this album, Beyonce had not really completely submerged herself in trap music and culture and once the album was dropped, she was criticized for what people felt was “selling-out.”

“Respect” By Aretha Franklin

Aretha Franklin, although one of the greatest singers of all time and considered the Queen of Soul still conformed to the cultural trends of society during her musical career. While she began her musical career as a gospel singer, she was only able to attain modest success at best from this. Consequently, she decided to make the transition into a soul singer and ultimately reeked the benefits. One of her most iconic songs released was “Respect” in the sixties. The tune, a remix of Otis Redding’s original version, touches upon prevalent issues during this era such as feminism and civil rights movements. Simple but blissful, from the steady drum beat separated by intermittent horns, to the back-up vocals, to the saxophone solo, the song is energetic and one demanding the idea of respect which is the theme Franklin is trying to express. Released during a pivotal time, the song swept the nation by their feet, giving average people the confidence to demand the respect they deserve. From one perspective though this can be looked at as Aretha selling out by trying to use current events as a way to enhance her popularity and monetary value.

“Soon All Will Know” By Wynton Marsalis

Wynton Marsalis is a globally recognized musician who has performed in an expansive array of musical groups. Unlike many artists who over the duration of their career conform to the likings of society, Wynton has maintained a fear of the marketplace and stayed loyal to the principals of Jazz. One of his most popular songs which implicates the transcending message jazz music is trying to portray is “Soon All Will Know” from his Grammy winning album ‘Standard Time Vol 1’. In the song, Marsalis elegantly and effortlessly leads his quartet in creating a relaxing type of mood by dancing around the pianist and drummer with his trumpet. Marsalis’s ability to continuously produce immaculate compositions and refusal to alter his emotionally evoked trumpet playing style has allowed him to remain significant within the classical jazz world for nearly four decades.

[soundofawesomeblog]

This Fall, we are counting down the 100 best tracks of the 2000s with a new article every Monday. To learn more about the project and why the 2000s were amazing for music, click here.

After what felt like forever, we finally made it to the end: this week, we present the top 10 positions of the countdown. To listen to every single track listed in our top 100, you can head to the Spotify playlist we created at the bottom of the page.

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10. The Strokes - Hard to Explain

True, it is a little easy and inaccurate to say that The Strokes single-handily saved rock music in 2001. But during the summer of that year, the new band felt like a breath of fresh air, no matter how much they smelled like cigarette. Hard to Explain sounds easier than it is with a metronome-like drum beat and an endless stream of downstrokes. The track keeps moving forwards and forwards until it reaches its climax two minutes in and, just like that, disappears completely. The band then reels it right back and goes for the ride a second time, as exciting as the first. It is the track that rightfully set the expectations rocket high for the band’s first album Is This It and it’s a miracle they managed to reach them.

9. Amy Winehouse - Rehab

If America wasn’t already sold to Amy Winehouse yet by the time Rehab was released, it took only about 30 seconds to get it all hooked. On the biggest single of her cruelly short career, Amy wastes no time belting out the chorus in the opening seconds, backed by soul band the Dap-Kings and immaculate production from Mark Ronson. Don’t get it twisted though; it truly is Amy’s presence at the center stage that infuses the song its magnetism, with her defiant and relentless personality, giving it enough character to live long after she’s gone. With Rehab, Amy Winehouse kicked the door wide open for women to sing their imperfections with sass and break from the picture perfect plastic mold.

8. Radiohead - Idioteque

Radiohead truly became immortals in the 2000s, thanks in no small part to key tracks like Idioteque. After all, only a rock band in full grace mode could ditch its guitars for 1970’s computer music samples and end up with such a compelling piece of music. Thom Yorke’s falsetto, which ranges from delicate to plain manic as the song progresses, clashes with the robotic and cold background provided by a highly compressed drum machine and a Paul Lansky chord progression. The result sounds both like a virtual nightmare Yorke tries to wake up from, and a real dream to IDM-trained ears.

7. Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Maps

As punk as the Yeah Yeah Yeahs were on their début album, no track they would ever release would reach the height of the tender ballad of Maps. Propelled by Nick Zinner’s rapid strum and secret weapon drummer Brian Chase’s thoughtful performance, the Fever To Tell highlight remains a love song for the ages. Meanwhile, Karen O’s feelings can’t help but burst out the iconic track, helped by its iconic “Wait, they don’t love you like I love you” line.

6. Grizzly Bear - Two Weeks

By the end of the decade, indie pop was still interested in bedroom aspirations, making delicate, intimate pieces of music. Grizzly Bear, however, was ready to make the most grandiose track they could with Two Weeks, and it sure feels like they reached both the moon and the stars. Starting with a bouncy piano motif and cartoonish whoa-ohs, Two Weeks builds upon a drum loop that would make Vampire Weekend jealous before crashing into a confetti convention in the chorus. The dizzying layers of synths and celestial backing vocals elevate the track to outer space for the band’s finest hour.

5. The Knife - Heartbeats

In the 2000s, few choruses felt as vital as the one The Knife cranked out on their synthpop masterpiece Heartbeats: “To call for hands from above to lean on/Wouldn’t be good enough/For Me, oh”. What is magical about the track, however, is the way Karin Dreijer Andersson sings. Channelling her inner Björk, she injects a duality of emotions in her delivery as she tiptoes between pure joy and pure nostalgia. Instead of “hands up above” though, she leans on a colourful yet robotic wall of synths and steel drums, one that is trying to rationalize her confused feelings. Heartbeats might not have been exactly a hit when it first came out, but such an ageless track can only win in notoriety through the years.

4. Arcade Fire - Rebellion (Lies)

With its first album Funerals, Arcade Fire launched nothing less than an indie revolution in the mid-2000s. This rings especially true with Rebellion (Lies). The cathartic single is a deep journey to the grandiose. The real tour-de-force here is how natural it sounds; how Win Butler and his friends manage to create such a resonating piece, such an emotionally heavy track without ever sounding fake, forced or cheesy. Instead, the band wears its feelings right on its sleeve with an attitude that would inspire thousands of alternative rock bands for generations to come. Sung from the point of view of a child, Rebellion (Lies) pleas for the listener to stop hiding underneath the covers and to be who they want to be and to dream outside of their bed, an advice that isn’t as naive as it sounds.

3. M.I.A. - Paper Planes

The Clash started as a punk band but quickly incorporated elements of funk, reggae, hip-hop and world music to its core. It is therefore fitting that an artist like rapper M.I.A., one who was born from DIY and punk ethos, would end up sampling a song of them. On Paper Planes, the Londonian celebrates globalization one cash register noise at a time. Migrants, refugees or stoners, there was something for everyone on this global track, even if the visa trouble that inspired the song come from M.I.A.’s very own personal experience. In a decade with so many male rappers using girls as props in their videos while literally calling themselves P.I.M.P. in the process, it is telling that the most essential rap single of the 2000s came from a woman.

2. The Rapture - House Of Jealous Lovers

If you can scream the title of this track and count to 8, you can already sing 90% of House Of Jealous Lovers. The Rapture forms here the tightest rock unit making the nastiest, sweatiest, slickest disco song possible, one that could make CBGB and Studio 54 burn simultaneously. The quintessential dance-punk number gets its power from a groovy bass for the ages, funky drumming, an incisive guitar sound, epileptic vibratos and a stupid amount of cowbell. In the 2000s, there was simply no other song that managed to channel such frenzy as effectively as House Of Jealous Lovers.

1. LCD Soundsystem - All My Friends

Growing old is scary as fuck, which is why our culture is so obsessed with staying young. Pop stars rarely survive long after they reach 30 years old, either because newer stars replace them, either because they literally die before they get old. James Murphy was, therefore, a bit of an oddity when he first came out of the New York scene with his début single Losing My Edge at 32 years old. Sure, his indie dance tales are a little too weird for him to truly become a star; he only got a number one album in the USA on his comeback album in 2017 on an especially slow chart week. But for a generation of well-informed music fans, he was the best-kept secret of the 2000s.

It also helped that, with LCD Soundsystem, Murphy wasn’t especially singing about being young. He preferred to sing about inviting an A-list electronic band to play in his basement, about death or about being the fat guy in a t-shirt doing all the singing. Losing my Edge, in fact, addressed this very situation, exposing a narrator who was starting to lag behind the cool kids, but who wanted to show he was still cooler because he “was there” when it started.

This all leads to All My Friends, without a doubt the greatest single track of the 2000s. Starting with a shivering piano riff, the song builds on as Murphy adds years to his odometer. All My Friends isn’t exactly a party track as much as it’s a song about trying to live the life of the party, about doing everything to get as much from our younger years, surviving the tomorrows and ruining our bodies just trying to fit in and live. Soon, the piano riff becomes drilling, it feels more and more urgent. The rapid-fire hi-hats open more and more often. The guitars and the synths are more and more present, leading to a mid-thirties James Murphy pleading to “see all my friends tonight”. As LCD Soundsystem reformed itself in 2016 after a five-year hiatus, Murphy’s words bear more and more weight, with the idea that each stupid decision, each thrill could be the last. All My Friends is more than a song about the midlife crisis: it touches themes of nostalgia, friendship, growing old and trying to make it work out in the end. And just like a lifestyle of partying, the song never puts the breaks on, drifting at 140 beats per minute before crashing seven minutes and a half later. 

In the end, All My Friends is scary. It’s frenetic, it’s wise, but it’s also so brutally honest in its statement and subject matter that it ends up intimidating. In a decade that saw the increase of the influence of the internet, of social media, of phones and of everything else that would make our parents cringe, All My Friends arcs back to the universal idea that you are probably missing out, that you are missing your friends more than you think, that your life is getting empty and that your youth is slipping away. Goddammit, do something with it before it’s too late. Check the charts, figure it out and go out there. 

(Note that Jay-Z’s 99 Problems and Primal Scream’s Kill All Hippies are not available on Spotify)

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