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maxwell-grant · 3 years

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i have been watching old (and sometimes new) gmod animations and i grew up watching enough ytps to know the general idea behind them, and i recently gained a sort of fascination for them. there's something special about them that i couldn't quite put into words, but i think you got it down perfectly in your post about grand guignol. basically, thanks a bunch for that.

Well thank you! And, yeah, I pretty much grew up watching GMOD and YTP constantly and even today I still come back to those a lot when I'm restless and taking a break from work, and I think there's genuinely a lot that can be learned or discussed from them as uniquely 21st Century art forms.

I've been rewatching a lot of Raxxo's content lately and I think it was his content in particular that kind of convinced me that the "GMOD/SFM - Grand Guignol" analogy wasn't nearly as much of deranged word salad as I assumed it was, because in all honestly, if you had to try and condense his videos into a genre or definition or something of the sort, what the hell else can you possibly call this that in any way comes close to describing what you experience?

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Like, all of his videos are described as "GMOD animated in SFM", because SFM is usually associated with more straightforward dramatic content while GMOD has been cartoon madness from the start (and it's fascinating to watch just how tame even the early Rubberfruit videos are compared to the kind of stuff Eltorro64 or Dr Lalve are putting out), and Raxxo is the latter in the style of the former.

And his videos are not just a non-stop barrage of brain-breaking, because they have weirdly dramatic pauses, and moments of straightforward action, or simple sentence mixing, and there's continuity between his videos, and incredibly smooth and natural gestures following by the characters stretching and deforming like jello monsters on the next second as their screams warble to drown the soundtrack and then everything's back to normal, and then they start doing things that kinda even make some sense as a narrative, but you cannot even begin explaining properly why, and I've watched these so many times that I even kinda start to see what makes sense and what doesn't, even though literally no one other than Raxxo is ever going to guess why he made the choices he did, and god these jokes must have taken hours if not days to render, why does the scretching Soldier head saying "Sputnik!" shows up in everything he does, and oh did I mention he also makes up the soundtracks he uses himself and they don't match in the slightest most people's perception of his content?

And for the finale of the Soldier Dispenser saga he created maybe the most batshit collaborative animation effort on Youtube, which is about an hour's worth of 200 animators all creating their own little batshit mini-stories in reference to his own and, seriously, who the hell could have possibly predicted something like this existing back when computer game Team Fortress 2 was announced in 2007? Or when Youtube was created?

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Who could have possibly predicted something like this existing at any point in human history? Where else could anyone possibly experience this much audiovisual chaos anywhere? I can't even bring myself to watch the video in full again, but that this exists at all, and that it's far from the only one of it's kind, and that Team Fortress 2 fan content has spiraled so hard past anything the creators could have possibly predicted that it has self-sustaining meme ecosystems (Remember when smexuals were a thing? Or the Freaks?), that it's still fucking going 15 years past the game's debut, is, it's kind of a lot, is what I'm saying.

Like, I'm speaking as someone who studies a lot of pop culture and combs through it's most obscure and weirdest recesses to find stuff to write about, I'm still just as baffled by how far these things have gotten as I was when experiencing it for the first time. And you can find a lot of stories like these digging through Youtube Poop and the specific styles of certain creators or certain developing memes for franchises that grow and grow and permutate.

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Think about what has to have happened to make a video like iteachvader's What'll It Be? happen.

Long John Baldry, blues musician extraordinaire, voiced cartoon villain Dr Robotnik in a Sonic cartoon. Said Sonic cartoon and performance was lucky enough to survive through Youtube clips. People noticed one of said clips of his performance has him saying a word that sounds like penis in a funny way, so they start making jokes about it, and parodies, and then literally hundreds of parodies popularizing the concept as a source of comedy, some of which take the form of music. Said music is done by cutting, remixing and splicing audio from said performance over music beats, which can be a PAINSTAKINGLY LONG PROCESS as someone who's tried doing that several times now, all this to make something with "Poop" in it's name (which I guess isn't that different from pulp writers spending weeks and months breaking their fingers to put out a novel's worth of content every month, for newspapers and magazines that were literally going to be used as toilet paper later)

These parodies catch on a bit and die out for a bit, until iteachvader comes along, and he proceeds to build a career not just by making funny parodies of said cartoon, but also knocking out genuinely really, really good musical parodies, editing voice clips of said performance to make it sound like the villain's singing (and additionally, he also creates his own tunes, and he's shown that literally every sound he uses is taken from the show, which is just, absolutely mind-boggling effort). He's also created over the years a running joke of Tails being Dr Robotnik's son that people liked enough to ask for more, and then we come to the video above, which is a song about Dr Robotnik spoiling his son Tails asking him what he'll want, which is not at all in line with how the two characters are canonically. And said remixes would eventually get remixed even further, even with crossovers with other characters or musicians, and so forth.

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And that is the story of how dozens of creators working separately, and with little intent other than goofing around, single-handedly revived a dead man's music career, as the voice of the fan reinterpretation of a animated adaptation of a videogame villain, popular to the billions if not dozens of billions of views over a decade in the making, on a broadcasting platform said man didn't even live to see being created.

I think sometimes we like to think of ourselves as advanced and jaded enough that nothing surprises us anymore, and if we went back in time and showed an iphone to our great-grandparents they'd start screaming in sheer confusion. And, maybe they would, yeah, but imagine if you were Long John Baldry at any point in his life, even after he finished recording his lines as Robotnik, and someone showed up to you and explained that all of this was going to happen to you, to your voice, to your performance. Imagine if you were one of Valve's lead developers working on Team Fortress 2 during the nine years it spent in development, and someone showed you Raxxo's work and Soldier's Dispenser Quest and just, everything that had happened to characters you hadn't even fully created yet.

I imagine Long John Baldry would have taken it well enough eventually, by all accounts he was a fun person who loved to try new things, and he was an openly gay British vocalist in the 1960s when it was literally illegal to be gay in Britain, so I imagine nothing could possibly rattle his cage that deep in the long run.

But can you honestly tell me you wouldn't freak out at least a little trying to understand just what exactly the future was showing you? Can you honestly tell me your cynicism and world-weariness would be worth anything in the face of all this knowledge about what the world was going to do with your creations and work?

Can you honestly tell me, just now, that you have any idea what the hell is your legacy or reputation as an artist, or even what your art is known for, going to look like in a decade or two from now? And that things aren't going to get weirder than they are now?

I find that fact both frightening and strangely assuring at points, and exciting above all.

#replies tag #ytp #youtube poop #sonic #long john baldry #dr robotnik #kfad2 #silvagunner #iteachvader #raxxo #tf2 #sfm

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cafedanslanuit · 4 years

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RFA with a MC that has dyslexia

This is the last request I had saved! It’s by @gompereatsall, who sent me this:

The other is where MC has dyslexia (and dropped out of high school, so she doesnt even have a high school education) and she struggles to keep it s secret from her S/O

I ended up having no ideas for Jaehee :( Since it was already long, she’s skipping this particular headcanon. I hope you liked it, sending hugs!

Yoosung

He was really, really excited when he learnt you were the same age as his. His excitement decreased a little when he realized you weren’t enrolled at SKY, though.

He asked for your major, but you decided to keep it a secret. Since he didn’t want to share his either, you joked you would tell him about yours when he told you about his.

It was all fun and games until he told you what his major was.

You tried to hide for months, even going to the extent to say you had online classes so that’s why you were almost always home.

Until that night came.

You had decided to spend the quarantine together and Yoosung was having trouble with the whole online classes idea. You had just woken up and were still half-asleep when he came to the bedroom to ask for your help, since his classes started in ten minutes and he couldn’t get the platform to work.

“MC, I really need your help, please, get up,” he asked, shaking your shoulder gently. You groaned and rubbed your eyes.

“Help you how?”

“I don’t know how to use this platform, and maybe it’s the one you’re using too. Please, they will count me as absent if I’m late!”

“Hmm, how would I know how that works?” you mumbled, turning around and trying to get to sleep again.

“Because you… take online classes,” Yoosung reasoned. He pouted, his eyes going around the bedroom. “Right? You told me all your classes were online”.

The realization you had just messed up made you sit up on the bed, startled.

Yoosung was looking at you confused and you realized there was no way to explain what you had just said. You just looked at him, feeling incredibly small in your pajamas, his confused expression hurting you. You bit your lip, and opened your mouth to talk, but Yoosung cut you off.

“Can we… talk about this later? I’ll call Seven for help”

You nodded as he shut the door behind him. You let yourself fall on the bed again. You knew how much he hated secrets and you couldn’t believe you had done well for so long before letting him find out like this.

A couple of hours later, you went to the kitchen and found him there, drinking a can of soda as he looked at his phone. You took a deep breath and asked him to sit down on the couch with you so you could explain.

Once you told him the real reason behind your lie, his anger seemed to go away for a bit. You explained you were so proud of him for going to school, and that you didn’t want to share your experience with the education system, since you felt it had failed you and your dyslexia diagnose. SKY was a tough uni to get into, and knowing he studied there, you didn’t want him to know you were actually stupid.

Yoosung immediately hugged you tightly against his chest.

“You’re not stupid! Never say that again,” he said, pressing a kiss on your forehead. “It’s not like only smart people get into good unis. The exam is design in a way only with good memory pass it, intelligence has nothing to do with it,” he assured you. “I’m not really smart either. But you’re definitely not stupid. You had something that got in the way of your learning! Your school should have helped instead of letting you drop out”.

The next days, Yoosung took his time in getting educated about everything and anything that had to do with your diagnose. He found out all the ways he could help and tried his best to make your life a little bit easier. He always asked you what else did you need and what else he could do to fill that need.

And, honestly? That level of love and support was everything you needed

Zen

You were watching a series with him after a long day of work. The protagonist and their love interest went to a classic American prom and had the mandatory slow dance scene.

“I guess having something like prom would have been fun. The guys at my school went on a trip” Zen commented. You stayed in silence for a moment, not knowing what to say next. You just hummed and nodded, your eyes fixed on the screen. The episode ended and as the credits rolled, he turned to you again. “How was your prom? Who did you go with?” he asked with a teasing smile.

“Oh-- it was nice,” you answered. “Hey, I’m making some coffee for myself, you want anything?” you offered, getting up from the couch and heading to the kitchen.

“Hey! Why don’t you wanna tell me who did you go with?”

“It’s not important!”

“Oh, that means you did go with someone!” Zen reasoned, following you. “Babe, it’s okay, it’s not like you are still dating or seeing that guy anymore,” he said, his expression falling shortly after. “You’re not, right?”

“Of course not!” you huffed.

“Right, sorry, my mind went somewhere really dangerous,” Zen apologized. “So, why won’t you tell me about your prom? C’mon, I wanna know”

You sighed and turned around, finally facing him.

“I didn’t have one,” you muttered. “I didn’t finish high school”

Zen furrowed his eyebrows. “Oh,” he said. “Why… why didn’t you tell me? You know I also dropped out.”

“Yeah, but I didn’t do it for… you know, your reasons. You had to make a choice to further your career and you were also going through issues. I was just stupid”

“You’re not stupid, what are you talking about?”

“I… I had a lot of trouble at school. I have dyslexia and it made school so damn difficult, I was about to fail the year so I… dropped out. My drawings were somewhat good so I became a freelancer but yeah, my stupid brain didn’t let me have a prom”

“Okay, you have to stop calling yourself stupid. You’re an amazing artist! C’mon, don’t be so hard on yourself,” he asked, pulling you to his chest and hugging you.

Two weeks after your conversation, you got home after delivering a project and found Zen’s apartment filled with balloons, a small disco ball on a table, soft music playing one of your favourite songs.

Zen came out of the window wearing a light blue shirt and black pants, a slightly loose tie around his neck. You smiled when you saw him and left your purse near the door. As soon as you were in reaching distance, he twirled you around and then set his hand on the small of you back, his other hand taking yours. He started slow-dancing with you, his soft eyes fixed on you.

“Where did all this come from?” you asked with a grin, swaying your body to the music.

“I guess this way we both get to have a prom dance like the ones we see on TV,” he shrugged. “I even prepared punch, it’s in the kitchen.”

“Is it spiked?”

“You know me too well, babe,” he laughed, pressing a kiss on your forehead.

Jumin

Jumin had noticed you didn’t tell him stories about your school. He would tell you all about his time with V, but you never shared stories of your own. He didn’t mind it at first but was curious.

For a moment, he thought you might feel uncomfortable since he went to a fancy private school and you didn’t, but when time passed and you easily accommodated to his lifestyle he realized that wasn’t the case.

Jumin is a very observant man, so he also noticed how you had trouble reading. He had never mentioned it, figuring you hadn’t put on your contacts lenses.

That night when he left work and came to you, something couldn’t leave his mind. And of course, you noticed the tiny tell-tales he wasn’t as relaxed as he usually was when you two were together. You both were sitting on the sofa in silence when you couldn’t hold it any longer.

“What’s going on, love?”

“You know I hate bringing up work when we’re together, but…” Jumin sighed. “Assistant Kang wrote the speech I’m supposed to give at the gala I told you about and I just can’t see why I don’t really like it. I can’t even tell her to do it again because I don’t know why is it about it that I dislike,” he paused and took out a piece of paper from his briefcase. “Would you take a look at it? Maybe you can help me pin what’s wrong about it”.

You nodded and took the piece of paper from Jumin’s hands. He watched you as you scrunched your eyebrows, but kept your eyes focused on the paper.

“Do you need me to hand you your contacts?” he offered.

“I have them on,” you muttered, trying to concentrate.

“Maybe those aren’t working for you anymore? I could have the best optician see you tomorrow morning”

“No, I just-- I have-- Give me a minute to try and read this,” you tried to explain. Jumin looked at you confused. “I have dyslexia, so I have a little trouble reading long texts. But give me more time and I can finish this”

“I didn’t know,” Jumin said. He stayed in silence for a moment. “Did that make school difficult?”

He noticed the way your hands tensed. “I… I didn’t finish high school. Couldn’t keep up”.

And that was the moment everything clicked for Jumin.

He gave you the time you needed to finish reading and then listened to your comments about it. Knowing it was a delicate subject, he didn’t make further comment on it, but rather tried to be more affectionate than ever that night.

In the following days, he asked you if you wanted to get your high school diploma. He offered the help of a therapist that could help you and a tutor if you needed one. If you didn’t want to get a diploma, he still offered the help, as he knew it could still be beneficial for you.

He would ask a lot of questions about it on how he could make life easier for you. Do you prefer audio messages rather than texts? Because he would ask Saeyoung to change the RFA chat if needed.

He just wanted to know he would try and give you anything that could make you feel as happy as he was with you.

Saeyoung

Working this under the theory that Saeyoung has ADHD.

Neurodivergent team!

SILENCE, NEUROTYPICAL is your favourite catchphrase tbh

You try to help each other as much as you can! You do your best to help with his cluttering and remind him when he should get some rest. You also played a big part in changing his eating habits.

He also makes sure to add a feature for voice messages. Jaehee hates it because she is always working or listening to Zen’s recordings and it’s not practical. But Saeyoung uses it all the time and has upped his prank game sending the most annoying audios to everyone. But you know the only reason why he added it was to make your life a little bit easier.

He offers to pay for a therapist if you want to exercise your reading skills.

One late night, as you both had just finished watching a movie and were cuddling on the couch, you confessed you hadn’t been able to finish high school due to the dyslexia. You told him you hadn’t told him before because you were ashamed of it, and would appreciate if he didn’t tell anyone either. You didn’t want them to know you didn’t have a diploma.

“You know I can hack your school system and get you a diploma, right?” he asked. You chuckled and shook your head.

“Thank you, baby. There’s not need, though”

“If you want to try again, it’s okay,” he said, kissing your cheek. “And if you don’t, that’s okay too. Just whatever you decided to do with it… remember you won’t have to do it alone this time”.

#mystic messenger #mystic messenger headcanons #saeyoung choi #jumin han #yoosung kim #hyun ryu #mysme jumin #mm jumin #mysme saeyoung #mm saeyoung #mysme yoosung #mm yoosung #mm zen #mysme zen

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d-criss-news · 4 years

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Darren Criss acts as playwright when he writes songs. He’s far more confident, and certainly more vulnerable, when he allows himself to play the part. In such a way, songwriting opens up a whole new world that pulses with untapped potential. So much of what he has accomplished in 15 years resides in his willingness to expose himself to what his imagination and intuition have in store. He steps into a playwright’s shoes with considerable ease (just look at his resume), and always one to put on plenty of bravado, especially during our Zoom face-to-face, it’s the natural order of things.

“As I get older and write more and more songs, I really recognize that I’ve always preferred to write for another context other than my own,” Criss tells American Songwriter. He speaks with a cool intensity, gesturing emphatically to accentuate a sentence, and when you let him go, he’s like the Energizer Bunny 一 “I can tell by just how quiet you already are that you’re fucked,” he jokes at the start of our video chat. But he remains just as engaged and focused when listening.

He soaks in the world, taking astute notes about behavior and emotional traits he can later use in song. His storytelling, though, arrives already in character, fully formed portraits he can then relay to the world. It’s not that he can’t be vulnerable, like such greats as Randy Newman, Tom Waits, and Rufus Wainwright, who have all embroidered their work with deeply personal observations, it just doesn’t feel as comfortable. “I’ve always really admired the great songwriters of the world who are extremely introspective and can put their heart and soul on the chopping block,” he muses. “That’s a vulnerability that I think is so majestic. I’ve never had access to it. I’m not mad about it. It’s just good to know what your deal is.”

Criss’ strengths lie in his ability to braid his own experiences, as charmed as they might be, into wild, goofy fantasies. In the case of his new series “Royalties,” now streaming on Quibi, he walks a fine line between pointed commentary on the music industry, from menial songwriting sessions to constantly chasing down the next smash, and oddball comedy that is unequivocally fun. Plotted with long-standing friends and collaborators Matt and Nick Lang, co-founders of Team StarKid, created during their University of Michigan days (circa 2009), the show’s conceptual nucleus dates back more than a decade.

If “Royalties” (starring Criss and Kether Donohue) feels familiar, that’s because it is. The 10-episode show ─ boasting a smorgasbord of delightful guest stars, including Mark Hammill, Georgia King, Julianna Hough, Sabrina Carpenter, and Lil Rel Howery ─ captures the very essence of a little known web series called “Little White Lie.” Mid-summer 2009, Team StarKid uploaded the shoddy, low budget production onto YouTube, and its scrappy tale of amateur musicians seeking fame and fortune quickly found its audience, coming on the heels of “A Very Potter Musical,” co-written with and starring Criss. Little did the trio know, those initial endeavors laid the groundwork for a lifetime of creative genius.

“It’s a full circle moment,” says Criss, 33, zooming from his Los Angeles home, which he shares with his wife Mia. He’s fresh-faced and zestful in talking about the new project. 11 years separate the two series, but their connective thematic tissues remain striking. “Royalties” is far more polished, the obvious natural progression in so much time, and where “Little White Lie” soaked in soapy melodrama, the former analyzes the ins and outs of the music world through more thoughtful writing, better defined (and performed) characters, and hookier original tunes.

“Royalties” follows Sara (Donohue) and Pierce (Criss), two struggling songwriters in Los Angeles, through various career exploits and pursuits. The pilot, titled “Just That Good,” features an outlandish performance from Rufus Wainwright as a major player in dance-pop music, kickstarting the absurdity of Criss’ perfectly-heightened reality. As our two main characters stumble their way between songwriting sessions, finally uncovering hit single potential while eating a hot dog, Criss offers a glimpse into the oft-unappreciated art of songwriting.

In his own songwriting career ─ from 2010’s self-released Human EP and a deal with Columbia Records (with whom a project never materialized) to 2017’s Homework EP and Computer Games’ debut, Lost Boys Life, (a collaboration with his brother Chuck) ─ he’s learned a thing or two about the process. Something about sitting in a room with someone you’ve never met before always rang a little funny to him.

“You meet a stranger, and you have to be creative, vulnerable, and open. It’s speed-dating, essentially. It’s a different episode every time you pull it off or not. All the big songwriters will tell you all these crazy war stories. Everyone has a wacky story from songwriting,” he says. “I slowly realized I may ─ I can’t flatter myself, there are tons of creative people who are songwriters ─ have prerequisites to just put the two together [TV and music]. I’ve worked enough in television as an actor and creator. I can connect the dots. I had dual citizenship where I felt like it was really time for me to go forth with this show.”

But a packed professional life pushed the idea to the backburner.

Between six seasons of “Glee” (playing Blaine Anderson, a Warbler and lover to Chris Colfer’s Kurt Hummel), starring in “Hedwig and the Angry Inch” on Broadway, and creating Elsie Fest, a one-day outdoor festival celebrating songs of the stage and screen, he never had the time. “I was lucky enough to be busy,” he says. “As Team StarKid’s star was continuing to rise with me being separate from it, I was trying to think of a way to get involved again with songwriting.”

At one point, “Glee” had officially wrapped and his Broadway run was finished. It appeared “Royalties” may finally get its day in the sun. “I went to Chicago for a work pilgrimage with the Langs. We had a few days, and we put all our ideas on the map: every musical, feature film, show, graphic novel, and animated series we’ve ever thought of,” he says. “A lot of them were from the Langs; they were just things I was interested in as a producer or actor. We looked at all of them and made a top three.”

“Royalties” obviously made the cut.

Fast forward several years, Gail Berman’s SideCar, a production company under FOX Entertainment, was looking to produce a music show. Those early conversations, beginning at an otherwise random LA party, showed great promise in airlifting the concept from novel idea to discernible reality. Things quickly stalled, however, as they often do in Hollywood, but Criss had at least spoken his dreams into the universe.

“I finally had an outlet to put it into gear. It wasn’t until two to three years after that that things really locked in. We eventually made shorts and made a pilot presentation. We showed it to people, and it wasn’t until Quibi started making their presence known that making something seemed really appealing,” he says. “As a creator, they’re very creator-centric. They’re not a studio. They’re a platform. They are licensing IP much like when a label licenses an indie band’s album after the fact.”

Quibi has drawn severe ire over the last few months, perhaps because there is a “Wild Westness” to it, Criss says. “I think that makes some people nervous. Being my first foray into something of this kind, Quibi felt like a natural partner for us. If this had been a network or cable show, we would’ve molded it to be whatever it was.”

Format-wise, “Royalties” works best as bite-sized vignettes, charming hijinks through the boardroom and beyond, and serves as a direct response to a sea of music shows, from “Nashville” and “Empire” to “Smash.” “Those shows were bigger, more melodramatic looks at the inside base of our world. I’ve always been a goofball, and I just wanted to take the piss out of it,” he says. “This show isn’t about songwriting. It’s about songwriters… but a very wacky look at them.”

“30 Rock,” a scripted comedy loosely based around “Saturday Night Live,” in which the focus predominantly resides around the characters, rather than the business itself, was also on his mind. “It’s about the interconnectivity of the people and characters. As much of the insider knowledge that I wanted to put into our show, at the end of the day, you just want to make a fun, funny show that’s relatable to people who know nothing about songwriting and who shouldn’t have to know anything.”

Throughout 10 episodes, Criss culls the “musicality, fun, and humor” of Fountains of Wayne’s Adam Schlesinger and Max Martin, two of his biggest songwriting heroes, and covers as many genres as possible, from K-Pop to rap-caviar and classic country. While zip-lining between formats, the songs fully rely on a sturdy storytelling foundation ─ only then can Criss drape the music around the characters and their respective trajectories. “I wanted to do something where I could use all the muscles I like to flex at once, instead of compartmentalizing them,” he says. “I really love writing songs for a narrative, not necessarily for myself. I thrive a little more when I have parameters, characters, and a story to tell.”

Bonnie McKee, one of today’s greatest pop architects, takes centerstage, too, with an episode called “Kick Your Shoes Off,” in which she plays a bizarro version of herself. “She has her own story, and I’ve always been fascinated by it,” says Criss, who took her out to lunch one day to tell her about it. Initially, the singer-songwriter, known for penning hits for Katy Perry, Taio Cruz, and Britney Spears, would anchor the entire show, but it soon became apparent she would simply star in her own gloriously zany episode.

In one of the show’s standout scenes, Pierce and Sara sit in on a label meeting with McKee’s character and are tasked with writing a future hit. But they quickly learn how many cooks are in the kitchen at any given moment. Everyone from senior level executives to publicists and contracted consultants have an opinion about the artist’s music. One individual urges her to experiment, while another begs not to alienate her loyal fanbase, and then a third advises her to chronicle the entire history of music itself ─ all within three minutes or so. It’s absurd, and that’s the point. “Everyone’s been in that meeting, whether you’re in marketing or any creative discussion that has to be made on a corporate level by committee. It’s the inevitable, comedic contradictions and dissociations from not only rationality but feasibility.”

Criss also draws upon his own major label days, having signed with Sony/Columbia right off the set of “Glee,” as well as second-hand accounts from close friends. “There are so many artists, particularly young artists, who famously get chewed up and spat out by the label system,” he says. “There’s a lot of sour tastes in a lot of people’s mouths from being ‘mistreated’ by a label. I have a lot of friends who’ve had very unfortunate experiences.”

“I was really lucky. I didn’t have that. I have nothing but wonderful things to say,” he quickly adds.“It wasn’t a full-on drop or anything. I was acting, and I was spreading myself really thin. It’s a record label’s job to make product, and I was doing it piecemeal here and there. I would shoot a season [of ‘Glee’] and then do a play. I was doing too many things. I didn’t have it in me at the time to do music. I had written a few songs I thought were… fine.”

Both Criss and the label came to the same conclusion: perhaps this professional relationship just wasn’t a good fit. They parted ways, and he harbors no ill-will. In fact, he remains close friends with many folks from that time. So, it seems, a show like “Royalties” satisfies his deep hunger to make music and write songs ─ and do it totally on his own terms.

“I still say I want to put out music, and fans have been very vocal about that. I feel very fortunate they’re still interested at all,” he says. “That passion for making music really does come out in stuff like [this show].”

“Royalties” is Darren Criss at his most playful, daring, and offbeat. It’s the culmination of everything he has tirelessly worked toward over the last decade and a half. Under pressure with a limited filming schedule, he hits on all cylinders with a soundtrack, released on Republic Records, that sticks in the brain like all good pop music should do. And it would not have been the same had he, alongside Matt and Nick Lang, not formed Team StarKid 11 years ago.

Truth be told, it all began with a “Little White Lie.”

#darren criss #american songwriter #royalties press #press #royalties #june 2020

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mrs-i-have-too-many-biases · 4 years

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{1} Sorry, there goes your image >> S.C.

Scenario: *BREAKING* Youtuber couple Seo Changbin and Y/n Y/l/n are going viral! And that all because our favourite gamer girl has exposed her dark rapper boyfriend to be an actual softie! Type of content: Headcanons AU: Youtubers!AU || Dark Rapper Youtuber!Changbin || Wholesome gamer Youtuber!Reader || Tropes: Best friends to Lovers Genre: Fluff/ Humour Pairing: Seo Changbin X Female Reader Word count: 4K Special Credit: Shout out to @klynvan for helping me setting up the story

Introduction <> Next

AU Masterlist

“AAAH!”

ゞ◎Д◎ヾ

“WHAT?” Changbin yelled

As he hurried into her room

“I GOT AN ISLAND WITH PEACH TREES!” SHE SQEUALED

⊂( ・ ̫・)⊃

Whilst waving her Nintendo switch

(❀｣╹□╹)｣*･

In her best friend’s face

He sighed

And shook his head

Whilst smiling fondly

Y/n and Changbin had known each other for years

They went to school together

And people could always see

A huge aesthetic gap between the two

Changbin loved to wear black

(;¬_¬)

Sometimes there would be a bit of red

or any other dark tinted colour peeking through his outfits

But the dark aesthetic matched his image as rapper

He never talked to anyone

And he always seemed to have a frown

Plastered on his face

He was pretty much an outcast

And people were bothered by that

Y/n on the other hand

♥(ˆ⌣ˆԅ)

Was known as the lovable girl

who everyone seemed to be crushing on when she started to

hang out with Changbin

Before that

She was quite geeky

She still is

But back then

Nobody seemed to be actually interested in her

She was usually alone

Y/n was known to be shy besides

People thought she had ‘weird’ interests such as

Her huge love for flowers and plants

Video games were also something Y/n had always loved

And now

Boys loved the fact that she was obsessed with video games

She especially loves Mario games,

Minecraft,

animal crossing,

the sims series and many others

They would ask her to play games together

But no one seemed to be actually interested

to approach her

Mostly because her best friend

Changbin

wouldn’t let them

People just couldn’t wrap it around their finger

the fact that

a girl like Y/n was spending most of her time

with a guy like Changbin

Girls were jealous of Y/n

Thinking that she acted the way she acted

to get Bin’s attention

Changbin was hot

No one could deny that

Boys envied Changbin’s muscles

He was often seen at the gym

Where he would be working on his biceps

Making the girls swoon who were there at the scene

Y/n would be there sometimes as well

Usually she was cheering him on

And holding onto his water

She admits that she looked kind of goofy

But Bin loved having her around

And she loved being around him

He would have her try to pick up one of the dumbbells

She was quite strong

(ง •̀_•́)ง

And was able to lift weights

But she couldn’t compete with the muscles Changbin had created

They both remember

It clear as day:

The day when and how they met

Changbin was strolling through the halls

Minding his own business as usual

He heard some voices echoing through the place

But he shrugged it off since he was in a public area

He recognised the voices

They were the jocks of the school

And if Changbin heard it clearly

They were bothering someone

“Can I go through?” A small voice was to be heard

“Oh she can talk! Such a pretty voice, you should talk more for us sweetheart.”

One of them smirks as they caressed Y/n’s cheek

“Please leave me alone.”

“But we want to get to know you better-“

“She asked to be left alone.” Changbin had interrupted

as he decided to interfere

“And who the hell do you think you are?”

“Someone who doesn’t harass other people.”

Changbin replied smartly,

Catching the jocks off guard.

Y/n in the meantime was shaking and

on the brim of tears

The jocks eventually scoffed and walked off

Leaving Changbin with an overwhelmed Y/n

“Are you alright?” He asked her carefully

o(╥﹏╥)o

“N-NO DON’T CRY!”

“HNNG I’M SORRY!”

｡･ﾟ(ﾟ⊃ω⊂ﾟ)ﾟ･｡w

Changbin couldn’t hold up his act as dark and mysterious

As soon as he came in contact with her

He was taken back when she pulled him into an embrace

As she continued to cry

And he didn’t know

What else to do

Except patting her back comfortingly

And that was the very beginning of Bin realising that he

Indeed had a soft spot

And that spot was specially reserved for

Y/n and Y/n ONLY

(ﾉ≧∇≦)ﾉﾐ ┸━┸

Time passed and

Their time at school sooner but later had ended

They two had graduated together

Around that time

When they had their finals

And basically had to decide

what they wanted to do with their lives

the two had been joking about beginning a YouTube channel

People around them would laugh at them

And were certain of the fact that they would fail

That they shouldn’t even bother to try

The inseparable pair would share a look

And often shrug other people’s comments

About their new shared dream

This made people think even more differently of them

The two outsiders

Who want to do something with their life

That hasn’t have a guarantee of having a stable financial state

Later on in their life

They all just thought they were insane

Changbin’s parents thought so too

His older sister joked and told him to do it

(￣ω￣)

Mostly so she could be the ‘success’ of their family

She never meant it in a harmful way

She loved Y/n

So did the rest of the Seo family

Y/n had a very sweet and wholesome effect on Changbin

Which was something they hadn’t witnessed

Ever since he turned 14

His sister supported him through thick and thin

And eventually helped their parents support him as well

Y/n hadn’t had any difficulties talking to her grandmother

About her change in career path

Her grandmother,

who she grew up living with,

wanted Y/n to be happy

To enjoy the little things as long as it last

She would always tell Y/n that

even if she wanted to simply

a dog walker for the rest of her life

because she likes it

she wouldn’t dare to stop supporting her

she loved her too much for that

｡ﾟ(*´□`)ﾟ｡

And so

Y/n and Changbin’s journey began as youtubers

The beginning of their career

Was quite awkward and tricky

As they didn’t own any big platforms yet

One day

Changbin had decided to put his rapping skills aside

For one video

To cover a song

He didn’t think too much of it

But sooner enough the video went viral

“Dark rapper with multiple talents”

He couldn’t believe it

And Y/n couldn’t be happier for him

♥｡･ﾟ(ﾟ⊃ω⊂ﾟ)ﾟ･｡♥

Not much later

As Y/n was streaming whilst gaming

He appeared into her room

To check up on her

“CAN YOU STOP FUCKING SCREAMING-“

( #`⌂´)/┌┛

“HDHBAF DON’T SWEAR I’M STREAMING-“

(((ง’ω’)و三 ง’ω’)ڡ≡

“WELL STOP SCREAMING THEN”

“BUT THEY’RE KILLING ME!”

“THEN KILL THEM BACK!”

“IT DOESN’T WORK LIKE THAT!”

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN?”

“I’M PLAYING MINECRAFT!”

“OH!”

(ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡┻━┻

…

“and did you kill him?”

“no I had to respawn”

｡ﾟ(ﾟ∩´﹏`∩ﾟ)ﾟ｡

“MOVE I GOT THIS!”

y/n: (づ￣ ³￣)づ

A couple days later yet another article about them was written

As this time

Y/n’s stream went viral

To people loving their banter

They saw the clove in between their aesthetics

And the public became obsessed

And that was only the start of their success

Y/n had gained thousands of followers and subscribers

Changbin did as well

People now were actually appreciating

And cheering onto Changbin’s music

He felt happy that there now were finally others

Beside his family and Y/n who loved the music he produced

Y/n was also gaining attention

Due to her lovable personality and sweet interactions with her fans

She loved talking to them as she streamed

or whenever she catches them on social media

People felt included

and they loved that about her

And because so many people had requested

To Y/n and Bin to make videos together

They started their shared channel

Where they actually rarely uploaded on

“GIVE US A VIDEO TOGETHER”

“WE NEED MORE BINXY/N VIDEOS”

“DO Y’ALL ACTUALLY LIVE TOGETHER?!?

BECAUSE IT SURE ENOUGH DOESN’T LOOK LIKE IT”

….

Y/n:

Bin:

*A-cup-of-Y/n notification*: Watch me look for my favourite animal crossing villagers!

*Seo Changbin notification*: Trying to produce a rap in an hour *STRESSFUL*

Fans: (」ﾟДﾟ)」

They loved the content anyway

“Y/N! WE’RE OUT OF COFFEE!”

┻━┻ミ＼（≧ロ≦＼）

“SEO CHANGBIN PUT THAT TABLE BACK ON HIS PLACE!”

“BUT COFFEE-“

“CHANGBIN!”

‎(ﾉಥ益ಥ）ﾉ ┻━┻

Bin: (つ﹏<。)

Y/n: =͟͟͞͞ =͟͟͞͞ ﾍ( ´Д`)ﾉ

“AAAH YOU BIG BABY WE’LL GET YOUR DARNED COFFEE THEN”

Bin: ☆*:.｡. o(≧▽≦)o .｡.:*☆

And so the two of them went to their closest café

To give Bin his addition to his caffeine addiction

Bin was smiling like crazy

As he waited impatiently for his best friend

To get her stuff

“CAN YOU BE ANY SLOWER?!”

(˃̥̥ω˂̥̥̥)

“CAN YOU BE ANY BRATTIER?”

(((c=(°ロ°;q

(」゜ロ゜)」

“HUSH I NEED CAFFEINE”

“WELL IF YOU DIDN’T CHUCK THE ENTIRE THING LAST NIGHT

TO PRODUCE ON YOUR STREAM

WE WOULDN’T BE IN THIS POSITION RIGHT NOW!”

@(。・0・)@

“HEY THE SONG TURNED OUT TO BE A BOP!”

((งง •̀•̀__•́•́))งง

“AND YOU WOKE UP SO LATE TODAY I THOUGHT YOU DIED!”

o(╥﹏╥)o

“ENOUGH TALKING LET’S GET COFFEE!”

There was one thing Bin forgot

Since it was 2am in the morning

And there was almost certainly not any coffee made at this hour at most café

They had to travel half across the city

To finally stumble upon an unknown café

Changbin stormed in and didn’t hesitate to order his usual:

An iced americano

Y/n chuckled slightly to herself

As she watched her friend

Who couldn’t be more delighted with his coffee

“Wait? Y/n?” A sudden voice called out

Snapping Y/n out of her thoughts

She made eye contact with the barista

and recognised the old classmate

“Hey! I didn’t notice you!

How are you?

Aren’t you tired?

It’s almost like three o’clock!”

Y/n bombarded him with questions as she smiled brightly

Changbin looked up from his phone

And looked back and fort

between Y/n and the guy behind the display

Changbin also recognised the guy

And recalls a sudden memory of him as well

He was one of the people who dared to call out

his and Y/n future failures

he was one of the few people as well who

liked to pester them

with the idea back then that they wouldn’t be able

to make a career out of it

Changbin wanted to shove it in his dirty little face

‘HA LOOK WHERE WE ARE AND WHERE YOU CERTAINLY AREN’T

WE’RE OVER HERE BEING LOVED BY THE WORLD! SUCCESFUL AS EVER

AND YET HERE YOU ARE STANDING SADLY BEHIND A COUNTER,

DOING PROBABLY NOT MUCH WITH YOUR LIFE!’

ヽ(#ﾟДﾟ)ﾉ┌┛Σ(ノ´Д`)ノ

Is what Changbin would have loved to yell into his face

But the universe had something else in mind.

“Look, I don’t know if you remember, but I was a dick back in high school. I said some terrible things to you guys and I wanted to apologise. I hope you can forgive me for my unthoughtful and foolish acts back then.”

He said.

Changbin didn’t buy it

But Y/n felt like everyone deserved a second chance

Her heart was simply too big

And too willing to forgive

“That’s okay, we were all young once,

we all made mistakes and if you learned something from it

and if you cringe when you think back about it,

that only means you’ve grown.”

(＾▽＾ʃƪ)

Barista:

╥﹏╥

“WHY ARE YOU SO NICE!?!?”

(」｡≧□≦)」

“doesn’t everyone deserve a little act of kindness?”

Barista pt2:

ಥ_ಥ

In the meantime Bin was watching his friend comforting

Their old classmate

He shook his head slightly

‘You’re too good for this world.’

He said to himself

“(>ლ)”

But he was sure that many people knew as well

That Y/n had a heart of gold

The barista had told them to wait for a little longer and sooner enough came back with a hot cup of hot chocolate for Y/n

“It’s on the house, I’m sorry once again.”

“Hey you were mean to me too back then? Don’t I get a free drink?”

Bin asked with his head cocked to the side.

“Y-you already paid for you drink.”

(´ ˙○˙ `)

He stuttered

Still clearly intimidated by Changbin

“I can give you a cupcake?”

“Will do.”

The pair were setting up their equipment

To shoot a QNA that had been highly requested

They realised that they never really had sat down

And talked about their school years together

So they went on their Instagram and asked their fans

What they wanted to know about them

Sooner enough the two were sat in front of the camera

And laughing at the questions they received

‘What is something that everyone looks stupid doing?’

“WAIT WAIT”

（〇o〇；）！！

Y/n started

Bin looked at her in horror as he knew what she was going to say

He had his face already hidden in his hands as she began to speak

Or well more rant

“this one time

When we were still in school

And we were on our winter break

This bean was too lazy to go out

And get a hair cut

And he didn’t wanted anyone to do it for him

Because he was too scared that someone would mess it up

So instead, he grew it out.

It grew so long in such a short time that he could wear it in a ponytail.

This kid,

He put his hair in a ponytail and I watched him do it

And it looks so stupid

Like why do we bend over so far to do it

It looks idiotic

AND THEN

He comes out of the shower with his pants on and his towel wrapped

On his head

Like most girls or other people with long hair will do, but

I realised how dumb we actually look

It’s honestly even funnier when you see him do it-

Wait I might have pictures-“

“JAFDJGBKF ENOUGH, NEXT!”

（三・o・）

“BUT I-“

“YEAH YOU’VE EMBARRESED ME ENOUGH AND NEVER AGAIN.”

(┛◉Д◉)┛彡┻━┻

‘What is your best high school memory together?’

Y/n thought for a while before sharing a look with Changbin

They smiled at each other as they exactly knew

“Okay this is another story

Our year was obsessed with the idea of having a prom

And since we live in South Korea

It isn’t much of a thing over here

So, we all saved up and had a prom in some rich kid’s backyard

Because he didn’t live in an apartment like most of us do.

The ‘prom’ was quite fun to be honest.

People looked gorgeous and everyone seemed to be having a great time.”

“Yet we weren’t.” Bin chuckled

“Yup, we weren’t really enjoying ourselves.

As you guys know,

we were pretty much the outcasts.

Nobody was talking to us

Or even looking at us

We were fine and trying to enjoy ourselves

But we decided to get out early

Even though we put our own money into the event.

Bin and I would’ve gone to the nearest subway and took it to the park

Where we just sat in our formal wear

We laughed

We ate

And we just had a great time

With just us being together as a pair

We got some weird looks from bystanders

But we didn’t care

I think big crowds were never really something meant for us

We just enjoy each other’s company the best

And that’s what made that night so memorable.”

‘Who is the bigger foodie?’

“Have you seen this muscle pig-“

三ヾ(ヽ*ω*)┌┛★

“EXCUSE ME”

“BOI HAVE YOU SEEN YOURSELF

YOU NEED FOOD TO GROW-“

“STOP INSULTING MY HEIGHT-“

“I WAS TALKING ABOUT YOUR BICEPS!’

ヽ( ･∀･)ﾉ┌┛Σ(ノ `Д´)ノ

The video went on with some more questions

And even a small promotion of Changbin’s rap/ produce unit

3RACHA

He would tell the viewers to check out his livestream

that he was planning on streaming later this weak

after the QNA had uploaded

The day it came out

There were thousands of people watching him

produce new music for the unit

He was deeply concentrated

And asked people for their opinion

as he was carried away in the process

Until Y/n suddenly bardged through the door

with a hot plate of cookies in her hand

That she had made for her own channel

“Y/n, I’m busy- are those COOKIES?”

(*⌒ڡ⌒*)

She laughed as she set the plate in front of him

Before taking a seat closely next to him

She asked what he was up to

And he proudly showed off what he had up to now

As he was showing off

A coupe of fans’ true colour shined through

As they began to send toxic words into the comment section of the stream

Sooner enough Changbin had noticed and read them

(WARNING: VILE WORDS AHEAD PURELY FOR FICTION PURPOSE ONLY)

‘Such an attention seeking whore, why is she even living with him? I bet she’s just doing it for clout.’

‘Pathetic bitch, are your views low lately? Is that why you appear in our Binnie’s streams?’

‘Gtfo we’re not here to see your ugly pathetic face, you’re lucky Bin outshines you, or else everyone would be gagging.’

‘So pathetic to see someone act innocent and cute when she in reality manipulates everyone for clout and views. She’s doing this all for the fame people, don’t be fooled!’

Changbin had enough and couldn’t read anymore

He had sat back and wrapped an arm around Y/n

“Alright, we’re going to stop right now with the fucking hate comments.

I will report them all and ban you from this site.

Leave her the fuck alone, am I understood?”

Bin’s tone was deep and intimidating

and immediately stopped the toxic.

Fortunately there weren’t just toxic people watching the stream

But there were many people

Who loved Changbin’s and Y/n’s dynamic

They loved the contrast between the two

And they admired Changbin’s passion for music

And Y/n sweet, soft and supporting personality

They complimented each other so well

And the fans couldn’t get enough of them

Fans were also quick to defend Y/n

And her kind image

Spreading loving words to her

As they had noticed the sadness in her eyes

They knew she had read the comments

Bin knew she had read the comments

｡ﾟ･（>﹏<）･ﾟ｡

“Don’t listen to them, you know you’re worth so much more.”

He whispered into her hair a he hugged her from the side

Making the comment section freak out

At their bond

The stream would end soon after

Since Changbin didn’t had the concentration anymore

And he felt like he needed to be comforting Y/n right now

She had moved to the couch and sat there sulking

Bin felt his heart ache a little

He’s so used to see Y/n in a glee

That he rarely saw her upset

He tried to cheer her up by teasing her a little

Squishing her cheeks

Ruffling her hair

Doing funny faces

You name it

But nothing seemed to work

But then he knew it

“You want to go out for dinner?”

Her head shot to his directions

(;•͈́༚•͈̀)

As she looked at him with big glossy eyes

Cutely nodding yes

Before they walked out the door

Not much later they were sat at a nice restaurant

Munching on some dumplings

Y/n had her face stuffed with them

Making Bin laugh cutely at her

“You want some more dumplings, Dumpling?”

Y/n almost choked at the sound of her old nickname

Making her lean back and whine cutely

(⊃‿⊂)

“NOOOO~”

(((ೕ( ･ㅂ･)و )))

“YESSSSS~”

They would fall into a fit of laughter again

(ノ＞▽＜。)ノ(ノ＞▽＜。)ノ

Before they continued to eat

He was relieved that she felt a little better

But he knew that her mind was still on the toxicity

that the comments had left

After dinner

She assumed that the two would go home

But instead

(。･o･｡)

Changbin had grabbed her wrist

And pulled her to their favourite arcade hall

She shot him a smile

And hugged him

Whispering a ‘thank you’ before they ran off to have some more fun

The two would kill it at a dancing game

They would drum their ears off at Taiko no Tatsujin

Changbin also won themselves a price by getting a new high score

As he tested his strength

They also spend half of the money they brought on claw machines

Y/n won something as well

Which she was super excited about

♪((└|o^▽^o|┐))

“I WON!”

“at what cost? You spend like 20 bucks on that thing, we could’ve gotten that in a store for 15-“

ヽ(*´∀`)ﾉ┌┛

“BUT WHAT’S THE POINT I EARNED THIS.”

“Whatever you say.”

He chuckled

The two would walk on and Y/n’s attention was caught

By a big duck that was laid in an extra-large claw machine

Changbin had noticed her staring

And he knew that she wanted the duck

But the two were quite tired after a long day

And he also was aware of her not having enough money on her

To actually be able to win it

“Y/n, can you get us a drink?”

He asked as he almost shoved the money into her hands

( ¬_¬)

“What is there something wrong with your feet?”

She sassed back

“No, but I don’t want to interact with other humans~” He whined

Making Y/n roll her eyes

“Fine.”

She took the money and left to find a vending machine

As soon as she was out of view

Changbin took out his card

He swiped it on the machine

And got ready to play

But to his surprise

He got the duck in one go

(ﾉﾟοﾟ)ﾉ

He just stared at the shining ‘winner’ sign

And laughed loudly to himself

Before he quickly took out the huge duck that costed him less than 5 bucks.

Y/n was back

But sooner enough greeted by not Changbin

But a big fluffy duck that almost hid Changbin entirely behind itself

“Hey sorry, I went to the toilet as well,

I just had to post this cute win on Instagra-DAJADGA BIN?”

She squealed out in surprise when she met eyes with a big ass duck

“Behind it!” He said with a muffled scream

Before he turned

So they could look each other in the eye

ლ(^o^ლ)

…..

“WHAT EVEN-“

“I saw you looking at it, I knew you wanted it.”

‧˚₊*̥(∗*⁰͈꒨⁰͈)‧˚₊*̥

“YOU WON THIS FOR ME?”

“of course, why would I want a duck?”

‧˚₊*̥(* ⁰̷̴͈꒨⁰̷̴͈)‧˚₊*̥

“KJFHGDFBGSFDJGDNFGD”

“Was that a thank you?”

ෆ╹ .̮ ╹ෆ

“JKGTHANK YOU YOU’RE THE BEST HNNNNG!”

She squealed before she ran up to him to side-hug him

‘Everything for you.’

´͈ ᵕ `͈ ♡°◌̊

Gifs aren’t mine

Introduction <> Next

AU Masterlist

65 notes · View notes

centralsaints · 5 years

Text

here are my plans for now about everyone (or mostly) in UL

rosa is a fashion major, ofc, and owns those platform dr martens every fashion student seems to own. she’s an icon and not actually insufferable

alexy did a one year course in hairdressing/esthetics so he could work during his actual degree, which is in social work because ofc our baby wants to help people. so according to the ul timeline, he would actually be in his third year because he started it a year later

armin is out of town but is still in contact with his friends (even if nath returns his text like once in a blue moon), studying graphic design and programming (yes he does these “graphic design is my passion” jokes) (also overall living his best life being a bi icon)

castiel started a musicology degree but dropped it when the band w lys took off (not much different than the actual game, except, you know, lys). he also finally stopped dying his hair red. and yes, he did started to scream when mcr announced a comeback

lys, after many discussions with leigh, decided to sell the family farm after both their parents died. the farm actually passed on to some family friends, so they can still go visit whenever the city become too much. his major is in creative writing with a minor in musicology and yes his teachers are all over him bc he’s kind of a musical prodigy and he can plays p much every instrument. he actually knew morgan a bit already because they have the same major/minor and thus have a couple of classes in common

kim did drop out to work full time at the gym and be a personal trainer. she’s living with violette and they’re in lesbians together. they’re considering getting their first cat. violette, unsurprisingly, is an art major

iris has switched major twice at this point. she’s so tired and she doesn’t know what to do; she’s tried sociology, then media and communication and is now in film studies. she eventually joins the band

nathaniel is a literature major and fuck what everything beemov put him through there is no drug cartel or whatever involved here. also fuck his clothes.

amber is an instagram model has started her modeling career. she’s taking long distance courses in business management, marketing, and language (french here), so she doesn’t have to always be on campus and can more easily joins her work and her studies.

priya is in international law, no changes here, i think it probably the only valid choice, it was what she said she wanted to do in hs and its what she’s doing. we stan a queen

kentin is currently the only one with a science-related major and is currently being crushed under the weight of his textbooks; he somehow started taking his studies seriously and managed to get into veterinary science. his classes are in a different, separated building on the other side of campus so he doesnt have the opportunity to see the others often but he’s always happy to join them in town (when his workload gives him a break)

and that's what I have for now teehee

#my candy love #my candy love university life #mcl kentin #mclul #mcl

48 notes · View notes

louehvolution · 4 years

Note

I'm so glad you said that. Mike Adam seems like a nice guy but he has a pattern of trolling for support and clicks from certain fanbases. He doesn't have clout in the industry and uses Louis' name for clicks and follows. It may seem harmless but it's an illusion that is part of the industry injustices towards Louis. Louis is an artist who deserves real support from big names!

Yes, anon. And good point about how to some fans it gives an illusion of industry support for Louis that isn’t actually there.

Likewise some fan websites or online radio stations that aren’t promoting him to anyone outside fandom - their main and target audience. Which is fine, as long as people are aware that these are not representative of the music scene, and don’t provide real promo or visibility for Louis or his music; and are definitely not a reflection of industry support or his team doing any kind of work for him.

Similarly how some of the magazines Louis has been featured in were selling themselves and their product to Louis fans more than they were selling Louis to the world. Taking into account their reach, they had more to gain - note how often their best selling edition was the one featuring Louis - than Louis.

The illusion of support can lead to fans downplaying what is going on with Louis, or becoming complaisant. It is taken as a given that Louis be a platform for others to benefit, but there is no expectation that he should ever be the one to be receive support for himself, to be promoted significantly or to a wider audience. And it becomes normalised to use Louis, his name, and any connection to him - however tenuous, or intimate - as currency in an exchange to secure engagement and attention, at no benefit to Louis himself, and even at a cost to him. In this the stunts and larry play a significant role as a draw.

Mike Adams tweeting that picture of Harry and Louis today - it has 3K retweets when these are usually in the double digits, or at most a few hundred, for him. On April Fool’s LA tweeted a picture of Eleanor and Louis in a meme ‘as a joke’ - Louis’ closet is something to be exploited, without any consideration or respect for him, treated as part of a game anyone can play and a source of entertainment. No matter that this is his life, or the consequences of what he has been enduring for almost a decade.

Some fans participate and contribute to this, thoughtlessly - and selfishly in some cases - as long as they get their fun, or their supposed proof for or against larry. Antis have their own ruthless agenda.

And the thing is - this isn’t just random radio DJs either. The Morning Mashup on Sirius XM, for instance, was playing the game too. A tweet for the question - carefully selected from a fan - about Freddie, and then a couple about the ‘interaction’ between Harry and Louis as they were asked about Baby Yoda in their separate interviews. Naturally it’s Louis who has to deal with being asked about Harry - and his music. As obviously it was Louis who got asked about Harry’s hair cut and music, while also having to talk about Eleanor and Freddie and 1D in his interviews to promote himself and his music.

It’s Louis that is fair game to be used, as best will serve anyone but him and no matter the price for him. It’s Louis, as his own person and as an artist, and his music career, that are erased or overshadowed by the stunts or a ship, or 1D. Even when it’s his interview or his magazine feature, the focus all too often becomes the band - how many times was he asked about the 1D reunion and how many times was it presented as the highlight of his interview - or other members of the band. And consider how LA and Mike both tweet about Harry as passionately as about Louis, though it’s Louis LA got to interview, and louies who send gift packages, etc. Or remember when Louis was on The Late Late Show last summer, and the SkyOne account became a ‘Louis Tomlinson fan account’ for… a day, maybe? Before they became a ‘Harry and Louis fan account’?

Others get to shine on their own, but the spotlight is continuously shifted from Louis onto something else, and anything goes when he is a means to an end. As engineered by 1D/LTHQ over the years.

I’ve gone a bit off track with this ask, sorry. Bottomline: Louis deserves better, support and respect for himself. And fans might want to think about what certain people are selling, what it is they are buying, and what it might be costing Louis.

#anon

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lisinfleur · 5 years

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Jag Känner En Bot

The request:

Author’s Notes | I made an OC for this because of the name confusion idea and I used this music – Boten Anna (Basshunter, 2008) - as inspiration! I hope you guys like this! Thanks for the sweet request! Universe | Vikings Pairing | Ivar x OC Info | Modern Age AU, requested by anon for 5CW7 Words | 2687 ⁑ Warnings: Some cursing.

His friend was late.

Great.

He was sitting on that table, waiting for around half of an hour more than what they had settled when his phone finally vibrated with something from "G4m1ng" - a follower from his blog that became super active, enough to start exchanging messages with himself and become a friend.

His name was Dylan and they were chatting for a while now. The guy was a top supporter of Ivar's work with the blog, even suggesting he should start streaming his games for more views and maybe a career. And that was the secondary reason for that meeting, to be honest. Ivar wanted to know someone who had been giving him different tips for his favorite games, making his nights incredible fun and also, maybe start something new like a bigger and more audacious project having this supporter by his side.

His intention was to invite the guy to work with him and maybe edit his videos for a new Youtube channel, or maybe something on Twitch. He didn't know what was the best investment or platform and his hope was that talking to Dylan would help him to figure this out.

He had thought about this idea for a while and set up the meeting was something they had talked to each other for almost a whole week. They settled that place because it served the best fries of the city - something them both had in common as well.

Dylan knew about his disease and wasn't a problem. In fact, they sometimes spent days texting to each other because Ivar was having a painful day of bluest eyes and had to be in bed for a longer time.

The guy was an amazing friend - so Ivar was starting to feel worried something had happened because it never passed through his mind Dylan could, somehow, intentionally miss that meeting.

When the phone vibrated, Ivar unblocked the screen quickly opening the notification to see a strange question from his friend...

"Where are you, bro? Gave up on meeting me?"

Ivar frowned. There wasn't a sister location for that restaurant brand: it was the only one in town so it was impossible Dylan had gone to somewhere else.

His fingers started typing a fast answer, trying to figure out what was going on by softly teasing his friend to come.

"I'm at table 20. Did you found a way to get lost here, dude? C'mon... There is a pretty young lady alone two tables from me on the 18. If you take too long, I might want to sit with her and share our fries."

An emoji of a laughing face, despite the concern. Maybe Dylan was only not recognizing him or finding the table. Ivar lifted his face to look for his friend, but what was his surprise when the girl on table 18 took her wide eyes from the screen and looked straight at him, getting up from her table and coming closer to speak directly at him.

"Ivar? I mean... 'I.Boneless'?" she asked, utterly surprised.

Well, this was something he wasn't expecting.

Ivar was sure that he hadn't published his face online too many times and his avatar was the picture of a Viking prince from a series he liked to watch some years ago so. It was pretty unlikely that girl could be some kind of follower that was recognizing him.

"Yeah, I'm... I use this nick but... how do you know it's me?" he asked and she giggled before really falling on a long laugh, causing Ivar to be even more confused.

"Oh, my god! I can't believe this is happening. Fuck!" she cursed, laughing even more.

Damn... Ivar couldn't see Dylan anywhere. And that situation was starting to be embarrassing. Why the fuck she was laughing that much?

"Pretty young lady?" She said, causing Ivar to freeze. "Bro... The last thing I ever thought about myself was pretty... Now about you? Jez, Ivar, you're hot!" she joked.

Just like...

"Dylan??"

The girl exploded in laughs again.

"Dude, you should see your face!" she smiled. "Yeah, bro. I'm Dylan... Dylan Elyah Summers, and it's very nice to meet you, Ivar," the girl said, extending her hand for him to shake.

"I thought you... I..." he said, speechless, shaking her hand as she giggled again, sitting in front of him at the table.

"I know. You thought I was a guy, right?"

Dylan smiled at Ivar's affirmative nod, giggling as he scratched his nape.

"It happens a lot of times. My parents gave me a unisex name, so lots of times people think I'm a boy," she smiled.

"Yeah, that's pretty confusing," Ivar said, and the smile on Dylan's face diminished a little.

"It's not a problem for you, is it?" she asked.

Ivar could notice a certain bitterness in her voice. As a person with lots of bitter moments in his life, he knew what was that bitter taste on her tone and it wasn't hard for him to figure out her reasons: he could bet a dozen idiots had already rejected her as soon as they discovered she was a gamer girl and not the dude they were expecting to see. Other dozen had probably just started hitting on her like a bunch of horny dogs... He knew his gender: Men could be pretty toxic in his community. Instead, Ivar decided to act differently.

"Of course, it is! How dare you not to tell me you were a girl?" he started, causing her to cringe and sigh, sure she would lose another friend before he smiled at her once again. "I would be waiting for the 30 minutes of lateness, dude. Ya know, makeup, hair stuff..." he joked, receiving a small and friendly punch on his shoulder and noticing she blushed a little.

"Asshole."

They spoke for hours, sharing three whole portions of fries with cheese and bacon before they had structured together the whole plan for the new idea. Dylan was super excited about the project, but Ivar had to admit he couldn't stop thinking about how incredible it was to find such a pretty girl that was so similar to him, liked the same things, was so intelligent and charming as Dylan was...

At the end of that amazing day, Ivar and Dylan shared the Ubber that stopped first in his house, closer to the restaurant.

"I see you at the weekend!" he said, confirming the new meeting they had settled for the next weekend to start the channel's physical preparatives at his house.

"My ass! Go log on the game, bro! I see you online in the next thirty minutes! Bye, Ivar!"

"Bye!" Ivar waved back before she closed the door of the car that left taking her towards her home.

"Dylan's sister?" Hvitserk asked, stopping by his side while biting an apple after almost scaring Ivar's soul outta his body.

"No. That's Dylan. Fuck, Hvitserk! You fucking scared me!" Ivar complained before noticing Hvitserk had literally choked with the piece of that damn apple, hitting his brother's back, causing Hvitserk to spit the piece of apple and start coughing at the same moment. "Eat slow!"

"That's... That's fucking... Dylan??" Hvitserk tried, still recovering from the choking surprise. "What the fuck, Ivar!? You went out with that hottie and is standing here as if it was nothing? Brother! She's gorgeous!"

"Stop it, Hvitserk," Ivar warned while walking inside. "Yeah, she's beautiful, she's a girl, but it doesn't change anything. She's still the same Dylan we use to play together. Don't ruin the experience by starting to hit on her ok? For fuck's sake, keep your dick out of your mind!"

But Hvitserk giggled, looking at him with malice.

"Don't worry, brother. I won't hit on my brother's girlfriend..."

It was Ivar's time to almost choke with his own saliva.

"What?"

Hvitserk giggled again.

"C'mon, Ivar! You speak about this friend all the time, she likes the same things you like, she loves the games you love, you guys talk for hours! I can't believe you discovered Dylan is a girl and didn't ask her to marry you on spot! The two of you are perfect for one another!"

"Nah. No, no. You can stop it right now," Ivar warned. "Don't put your fingers into it!"

Hvitserk's smile became even more malicious.

"You want her, don't you?"

Ivar frowned and before he could answer, Hvitserk smiled bigger.

"I knew it!"

"Stay out of it, Hvitserk!"

This time, it was a harder warning.

"I really like her. She's really special and what we have is really important to me. Don't ruin everything for me or I'll swear I'll never speak to you once again!"

Hvitserk lifted his hands up, trying to tranquilize Ivar.

"Relax, brother... I won't mess up with your girl ok?"

"She's not my girl!" Ivar insisted.

"With Dylan! Dylan! Better now?" Hvitserk answered, still keeping that smile on his face.

Ivar was sure that promise wouldn't be fulfilled. However, he couldn't just get rid of all his brothers so he sighed. At least, Dylan was a nice girl and he was sure she would understand.

And he could always punch Hvitserk's nose if he was going too far so, problem solved, right?

The next few days were kinda strange.

Ivar wasn't being different, nor Dylan. But Hvitserk made the enormous favor to open his big mouth for more than eat the whole kitchen and now everyone knew Dylan was a girl.

Somehow, all the brothers found a way to get closer to her. Even Sigurd, who wasn't making any effort in her direction, ended up speaking to her for a long time about good soundtracks for the new channel, even spending a whole evening in a chat with her, explaining and teaching her about the new synthesizer and what she could make using it.

But the one who was bothering him Ivar the most was Hvitserk himself, all the time trying to be into their chat rooms, always catching Dylan's attention to himself... Ivar remember he told Hvitserk to not to hit on her just because she was a girl, but it was the same to tell a door to not to open! The bastard even invented he wanted to open his own blog just to get her attention on teaching him things so he could have a different style and not be so similar to Ivar's blog!

He really couldn't figure out why was Hvitserk doing this, but surely it was hitting on his balls! And Ivar decided that weekend would be the day for him to put a period on that sentence.

Dylan was his friend for a long time, he liked her, they had everything in common and if someone in that house would be with her, this someone would be him!

When Dylan arrived for their meeting, Hvitserk went all smiles to open the door, receiving her, and even spending a long time of conversation with the girl before Ivar could actually figure out she was already in his home.

"Oh, hi Ivar!" She said, smiling bigger at him than she was smiling at Hvitserk,

But noticing Ivar was kinda serious, Dylan closed her smile.

"We need to talk," he said, getting the girl kinda anxious.

"Is there something wrong, Ivar?" Hvitserk asked.

A malicious smile on his face. Surely the bastard was planning something. Ivar just kept his icy eyes into his brother's greens.

"I'll talk to you later. This is something between me and Dylan."

Hvitserk shrugged as Dylan started following Ivar to his room.

"Did I do something wrong?" She asked, really anxious now.

"No," Ivar answered, walking through the hall.

"Did something happened?" she asked again.

"No," Ivar answered, monosyllabic one more time, opening the door and entering his room into what Dylan stormed up, annoyed.

"Then tell me what the fuck is going on at once, Ivar!"

"I like you. More than just a friend. And I want you to be my girl."

The sentence sounded like a slap in Dylan's face that became instantly red like a tomato while Ivar was closing his door before looking at her once again.

"W...What did you just say?"

"I said..." he looked straight into her eyes, to warrant she would be able to see his true feelings through them. "I said I like you and I want you to be my girl."

"Ivar..." Dylan hesitated, looking at him. "Are you sure? I mean... You're... I am... I..." she stumbled on the words causing Ivar to smile.

She was sweet when speechless like that.

"You just have to say yes or no, Dylan. It won't change the way I see you. I just want to be real for you. I like you for real, I hardly doubt I'll ever find a girl who sees the world and thinks about it the same way I do... Like you do... You make me happy; you make me forget the disease, the pain; you paint my world in a way I can look at it without seeing it grey. And I want this... I want you by my side."

"Jez..." She spat.

And it was the time for Ivar to think she would break his heart probably saying he wasn't his brother...

He wasn't like Hvitserk, for sure.

But Dylan just smiled.

"You're pretty, sweet, and really know how to speak to a woman. I deserve an achievement for this," she said, lifting her hand to touch Ivar's face with a sweet smile on her lips "Something like 'World's best guy's girlfriend' or something like that..."

Her smile became bigger and Ivar smiled back, coming closer.

"I agree. We should receive some new achievements like 'Ivar's girl' for you, 'Dylan's boy' for me," he said causing her to giggle. "However, I think there is one more thing missing for us to reach these goals."

"Oh, you think? And what it is?" she asked with a smile.

Before Ivar leaned his face, softly mashing his lips against hers; what Dylan received with tenderness, wrapping her arms around Ivar's neck.

They ended up not working at the project, spending the whole time she spent in his house together, exchanging caresses and enjoying each other.

By the night, when she had to go home, Ivar suggested Dylan come back tomorrow for a new visit.

"Then we could try to start working on the channel this time," he joked and she smiled.

"If I can stop trying to find the stars in the sky of your mouth, we can maybe work, for a difference," she answered with a giggle and Ivar smiled, caressing her face before they exchanged a new kiss of goodbye.

"See you tomorrow, Dy."

"Wait, are you two together?" Hvitserk's voice echoed and Ivar turned from the door towards his brother.

"Yes. Dylan is my girlfriend now and I would like you to..." Ivar started, about to tell Hvitserk to stop hitting on his girl when Hvitserk giggled, patting his back and interrupting him.

"Fucking finally! I thought I would have to really try to kiss her to have you motivated, little bro. Congrats!"

Dylan started laughing almost immediately. Ivar, on the other hand, frowned looking at Hvitserk.

"What?" Hvitserk said, smiling. "You are perfect to each other, bro! I just knew you wouldn't go forward so I made you think I was interested just to give you a little push forward. You're welcome!"

"Fuck you, Hvitserk!" Ivar answered punching Hvitserk's shoulder and watching as his brother left, laughing.

"He's smart... I think I owe him some fries for infuriating you," Dylan said and Ivar smiled at her.

"He doesn't worth a dime. Don't get yourself misled, love."

Dylan instantly smiled tenderly.

"Oh... That's so cute."

"What?" Ivar asked, surprised.

"You called me 'love'," She smiled. "I really can get used to this."

Ivar came closer embracing her with his free hand and smiling.

"Well, get used to being spoiled all the time, love. I'll call you like this for a long... Long time...”

Do you like my work? Support me!

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theadmiringbog · 4 years

Photo

I had a fragile but agreeable life: a job as an assistant at a small literary agency in Manhattan; a smattering of beloved friends on whom I exercised my social anxiety, primarily by avoiding them.

I wanted to make money, because I wanted to feel affirmed, confident, and valued. I wanted to be taken seriously. Mostly, I didn’t want anyone to worry about me.

Conversation with the cofounders had been so easy, and the interviews so much more like coffee dates than the formal, sweaty-blazer interrogations I had experienced elsewhere, that at a certain point I wondered if maybe the three of them just wanted to hang out.

They wore shirts that were always crisp and modestly buttoned to the clavicle. They were in long-term relationships with high-functioning women, women with great hair with whom they exercised and shared meals at restaurants that required reservations. They lived in one-bedroom apartments in downtown Manhattan and had no apparent need for psychotherapy. They shared a vision and a game plan. They weren’t ashamed to talk about it, weren’t ashamed to be openly ambitious. Fresh off impressive positions and prestigious summer internships at large tech corporations in the Bay Area, they spoke about their work like industry veterans, lifelong company men. They were generous with their unsolicited business advice, as though they hadn’t just worked someplace for a year or two but built storied careers. They were aspirational. I wanted, so much, to be like—and liked by—them.

It was thrilling to watch the moving parts of a business come together; to feel that I could contribute.

What I also did not understand at the time was that the founders had all hoped I would make my own job, without deliberate instruction. The mark of a hustler, a true entrepreneurial spirit, was creating the job that you wanted and making it look indispensable, even if it was institutionally unnecessary.

I wasn’t used to having the sort of professional license and latitude that the founders were given. I lacked their confidence, their entitlement. I did not know about startup maxims to experiment and “own” things. I had never heard the common tech incantation Ask forgiveness, not permission.

I had also been spoiled by the speed and open-mindedness of the tech industry, the optimism and sense of possibility. In publishing, no one I knew was ever celebrating a promotion. Nobody my age was excited about what might come next. Tech, by comparison, promised what so few industries or institutions could, at the time: a future.

“How would you explain the tool to your grandmother?” “How would you describe the internet to a medieval farmer?” asked the sales engineer, opening and closing the pearl snaps on his shirt,

Good interface design was like magic, or religion:

The first time I looked at a block of code and understood what was happening, I felt like nothing less than a genius.

Anything an app or website’s users did—tap a button, take a photograph, send a payment, swipe right, enter text—could be recorded in real time, stored, aggregated, and analyzed in those beautiful dashboards. Whenever I explained it to friends, I sounded like a podcast ad.

four-person companies trying to gamify human resources

... how rare the analytics startup was. Ninety-five percent of startups tanked. We weren’t just beating the odds; we were soaring past them.

While I usually spent sleepless nights staring at the ceiling and worrying about my loved ones’ mortality, he worked on programming side projects. Sometimes he just passed the time between midnight and noon playing a long-haul trucking simulator. It was calming, he said. There was a digital CB radio through which he could communicate with other players. I pictured him whispering into it in the dark.

At the start of each meeting, the operations manager distributed packets containing metrics and updates from across the company: sales numbers, new signups, deals closed. We were all privy to high-level details and minutiae, from the names and progress of job candidates to projected revenue. This panoramic view of the business meant individual contributions were noticeable; it felt good to identify and measure our impact.

Was this what it felt like to hurtle through the world in a state of pure confidence, I wondered, pressing my fingers to my temples—was this what it was like to be a man?

I was interested in talking about empathy, a buzzword used to the point of pure abstraction,

The hierarchy was pervasive at the analytics startup, ingrained in the CEO’s dismissal of marketing and insistence that a good product would sell itself.

He just taught himself to code over the summer, I heard myself say of a job candidate one afternoon. It floated out of my mouth with the awe of someone relaying a miracle.

As early employees, we were dangerous. We had experienced an early, more autonomous, unsustainable iteration of the company. We had known it before there were rules. We knew too much about how things worked, and harbored nostalgia and affection for the way things were.

The obsession with meritocracy had always been suspect at a prominent international company that was overwhelmingly white, male, and American, and had fewer than fifteen women in Engineering.

For years, my coworkers explained, the absence of an official org chart had given rise to a secondary, shadow org chart, determined by social relationships and proximity to the founders. Employees who were technically rank-and-file had executive-level power and leverage. Those with the ear of the CEO could influence hiring decisions, internal policies, and the reputational standing of their colleagues. “Flat structure, except for pay and responsibilities,” said an internal tools developer, rolling her eyes. “It’s probably easier to be a furry at this company than a woman.”

“It’s like no one even read ‘The Tyranny of Structurelessness,’” said an engineer who had recently read “The Tyranny of Structurelessness.”

Can’t get sexually harassed when you work remotely, we joked, though of course we were wrong.

I was in a million places at once. My mind pooled with strangers’ ideas, each joke or observation or damning polemic as distracting and ephemeral as the next. It wasn’t just me. Everyone I knew was stuck in a feedback loop with themselves. Technology companies stood by, ready to become everyone’s library, memory, personality. I read whatever the other nodes in my social networks were reading. I listened to whatever music the algorithm told me to. Wherever I traveled on the internet, I saw my own data reflected back at me: if a jade face-roller stalked me from news site to news site, I was reminded of my red skin and passive vanity. If the personalized playlists were full of sad singer-songwriters, I could only blame myself for getting the algorithm depressed.

As we left the theater in pursuit of a hamburger, I felt rising frustration and resentment. I was frustrated because I felt stuck, and I was resentful because I was stuck in an industry that was chipping away at so many things I cared about. I did not want to be an ingrate, but I had trouble seeing why writing support emails for a venture-funded startup should offer more economic stability and reward than creative work or civic contributions. None of this was new information—and it was not as if tech had disrupted a golden age of well-compensated artists—but I felt it fresh.

I had never really considered myself someone with a lifestyle, but of course I was, and insofar as I was aware of one now, I liked it. The tech industry was making me a perfect consumer of the world it was creating. It wasn’t just about leisure, the easy access to nice food and private transportation and abundant personal entertainment. It was the work culture, too: what Silicon Valley got right, how it felt to be there. The energy of being surrounded by people who so easily articulated, and satisfied, their desires. The feeling that everything was just within reach.

We wanted to be on the side of human rights, free speech and free expression, creativity and equality. At the same time, it was an international platform, and who among us could have articulated a coherent stance on international human rights? We sat in our apartments tapping on laptops purchased from a consumer-hardware company that touted workplace tenets of diversity and liberalism but manufactured its products in exploitative Chinese factories using copper and cobalt mined in Congo by children. We were all from North America. We were all white, and in our twenties and thirties. These were not individual moral failings, but they didn’t help. We were aware we had blind spots. They were still blind spots. We struggled to draw the lines. We tried to distinguish between a political act and a political view; between praise of violent people and praise of violence; between commentary and intention. We tried to decipher trolls’ tactical irony. We made mistakes.

I did not want two Silicon Valleys. I was starting to think the one we already had was doing enough damage. Or, maybe I did want two, but only if the second one was completely different, an evil twin: Matriarchal Silicon Valley. Separatist-feminist Silicon Valley. Small-scale, well-researched, slow-motion, regulated Silicon Valley—men could hold leadership roles in that one, but only if they never used the word “blitzscale” or referred to business as war.

“Progress is so unusual and so rare, and we’re all out hunting, trying to find El Dorado,” Patrick said.

“Almost everyone’s going to return empty-handed. Sober, responsible adults aren’t going to quit their jobs and lives to build companies that, in the end, may not even be worth it. It requires, in a visceral way, a sort of self-sacrificing.”

Only later did I consider that he might have been trying to tell me something.

Abuses were considered edge cases, on the margin—flaws that could be corrected by spam filters, or content moderators, or self-regulation by unpaid community members. No one wanted to admit that abuses were structurally inevitable: indicators that the systems—optimized for stickiness and amplification, endless engagement—were not only healthy, but working exactly as designed.

The SF Bay Area is like Rome or Athens in antiquity, posted a VC. Send your best scholars, learn from the masters and meet the other most eminent people in your generation, and then return home with the knowledge and networks you need. Did they know people could see them?

I couldn’t imagine making millions of dollars every year, then choosing to spend my time stirring shit on social media. There was almost a pathos to their internet addiction. Log off, I thought. Just email each other.

All these people, spending their twenties and thirties in open-plan offices on the campuses of the decade’s most valuable public companies, pouring themselves bowls of free cereal from human bird feeders, crushing empty cans of fruit-tinged water, bored out of their minds but unable to walk away from the direct deposits—it was so unimaginative. There was so much potential in Silicon Valley, and so much of it just pooled around ad tech, the spillway of the internet economy.

Though I did not want what Patrick and his friends wanted, there was still something appealing to me about the lives they had chosen. I envied their focus, their commitment, their ability to know what they wanted, and to say it out loud—the same things I always envied.

I wanted to believe that as generations turned over, those coming into economic and political power would build a different, better, more expansive world, and not just for people like themselves. Later, I would mourn these conceits. Not only because this version of the future was constitutionally impossible—such arbitrary and unaccountable power was, after all, the problem—but also because I was repeating myself. I was looking for stories; I should have seen a system. The young men of Silicon Valley were doing fine. They loved their industry, loved their work, loved solving problems. They had no qualms. They were builders by nature, or so they believed. They saw markets in everything, and only opportunities. They had inexorable faith in their own ideas and their own potential. They were ecstatic about the future. They had power, wealth, and control. The person with the yearning was me.

could have stayed in my job forever, which was how I knew it was time to go. The money and the ease of the lifestyle weren’t enough to mitigate the emotional drag of the work: the burnout, the repetition, the intermittent toxicity. The days did not feel distinct. I felt a widening emptiness, rattling around my studio every morning, rotating in my desk chair. I had the luxury, if not the courage, to do something about it.

As I stood in the guest entrance, waiting for the stock plan administrator to collect the paperwork, I watched my former coworkers chatting happily with one another in the on-site coffee shop and felt, wrenchingly, that leaving had been a huge mistake. Certain unflattering truths: I had felt unassailable behind the walls of power. Society was shifting, and I felt safer inside the empire, inside the machine. It was preferable to be on the side that did the watching than on the side being watched.

#uncanny valley #books #best of

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accsta-blog · 5 years

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hello friends , i’m admin ris but you can call me that Big Dumb if you want ! i play TWO characters –– my little demon RONAN ACOSTA and my sweet forrest princess COSIMA CHASE who’s on her own main blog , so i will probably double like everything possible bc ....... support and love. anyway !!! below you will find some information about ronan including wanted connections , but feel free to LIKE THIS if you’d like me to come plot w/ you or just feel free to slide into my dms + u get bonus points if u tell me a joke :~)

shawn mendes. twenty-two. cismale. he/him. shawn mendes. | i can’t believe i just saw RONAN ACOSTA walking out of cadence records. they’re a single POP/POP ROCK artist who’s been in the industry for SIX YEARS. the tabloids love to focus on their WITHDRAWN nature , but they’re also pretty CHARISMATIC and they seem to give off a vibe that reminds people of SUNGLASSES & BALL CAPS TO AVOID THE CAMERA , SURPRISED REACTIONS , & HIDDEN CHAOTIC BEHAVIOR. | admin ris. 21+. est. she/her.

𝐚𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐚𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬.

loose, un-gelled curls , hidden hickeys , hiding from paparazzi , sweet, completely faked smiles , a room full of laughter , bad boys who look like good boys , broken hearts , hidden agendas , honest moments behind closed doors.

𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐜𝐤 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐬.

full name : ronan mateo acosta / orientation : pansexual / style : relaxed. jeans , tight fitted t-shirts , put together but casual. / family : angelo & cynthia acosta , musicians. / tattoos : butterfly on shoulder , guitar on foreman inside , family surname on ankle , song lyrics ( his moms ) foreman inside , traveling music notes around wrist , heart outline side of middle finger. / hometown : los angeles , ca. / zodiac : aries.

𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲.

○ ronan grew up in the public eye , though his parents attempted to keep him very humble and out of the spotlight until he was ready. his parents are both famous musicians , his dad originating in protugal and his mom in the states , he moved to los angles after he met her and it was a true , sappy love story. they really did attempt to keep ronan’s life private but he was always Known like any famous celebrity’s child. ○ ronan was a pretty SWEET as a kid –– though he was definitely spoiled. his parents thought that giving him everything he wanted would keep him ... behaved ? i don’t know why they thought that. but they did. give the boy what he wants and he’ll listen to us. and at first , it was working because he was still young + didn’t have his own access to their money. yet. however , as he started getting more and more , he was getting more and more stingy + pretentious. ○ and then ronan starts to want to do his own music. he learned guitar , piano , and even the violin and begins to find his voice. as his voice finds itself and he finds his love for much , ronan & lachlan forms –– a duo group via youtube with his best friend when ronan was 15 going on 16. because of famous background , they quickly took off and because of how ronan’s parents wanted him to be seen , ronan was formed into a very pure + angelic mold and his best friend was pulled into this mold too. except , things didn’t work out being forced into a kid friendly mold for the duo as they got older , and they split about three years ago. ○ after the split of ronan & lachlan , ronan began putting out his own music and that’s when Demon Ronan really comes out –– except , his music is mostly pg and clean and appeals to a Youngerish crowd , and he’s still keeping up with the same imagine as he was before. ronan’s music basically matches shawns with the exception of some songs + a little bit of an added rock element ; although my favorite song to put to ronan is nervous bc it’s literally the OPPOSITE of him + one of his biggest hits. his image and sound is very sweet and pure with a soft hint of ... thirst trap thrown in to keep people interested. at first , ronan didn’t really mind this and then after the split of his group + finding himself as a teen , ronan realized he REALLY didn’t fit the mold the world wanted him to. ○ so you’d think that he’d start emerging as his true self , except his manager urges him he needs to keep him imagine pure or it might crash his career –– he’s popular to younger fans and can use this image to support things he cares about and to stay relevant. however , as time goes on , ronan just gets worse. partying , drinking , all that fun stuff all while hiding from any camera that comes in the room. it begins to be a game for him –– how long can he keep this up ? rip to all this team who had to clean up after him. gd mess. ○ anyway ! the general SUM UP of ronan is that on the outside , he’s PURE and sweet and kind with a simple addition of towering 6′2 height and perfectly sculpted arms + abs and thanks to the occasional wet shirt , the people get to see just enough to toggle the line between innocent and thirst trap. it’s definitely a thirst trap. don’t let him fool you. however , when you see the real ronan he’s a MESS who’s partying on private jets , getting drunk in the middle of the day , and having his messes cleaned up for him constantly. ○ personality wise , ronan is FUN , no matter which side of him you may know. if you’re introduced to the fake , public eye ronan –– he’s sweet and kind and funny , but if you really known ronan –– he’s flirtatious , Wild , always offering unsolicited advice , a Pure Comedian , and a hot freaking mess and u know what ? he’s the worlds hot mess.

𝐞𝐱𝐭𝐫𝐚 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬.

○ ronan is publicly pansexual and talks about it openly on social media & is happily an ally and support to his lgbt+ fans. this was something his manager advised against and then he was spotted kissing a Boy and took to an interview to talk about it and regularly advocates for lgbt+ youth. though there was some backlash against this , he was still coming out of his duo phase and highly regraded as a good role model + used his platform to advocate which just Progressed his pure image. it’s the one thing that’s not fake tbh.

○ ronan also talks openly about current events + issues but is careful to make sure he was research and doesn’t heavily share too much across platforms but does like to show his support for certain things. it almost feels like it would be part of his Sweet facade but he really does care about some things. believe it or not. ○ ronan has very few close friends , though he was have some people who completely call him out on his bullshit. it’s really a surprise that the world still thinks ronan is so pure and angelic because this boy is .... a freaking ........ mess. he’s got PLENTY of party friends who happily don’t give a shit about his hannah montana style life but not many friends who .... do care that he’s a messy lil demon who’s fooling the whole world. ○ he comes off as super humble but this boy ..... is not. not humble at all. name brand everything. best everything possible. ○ he's actually not a terrible person despite being a demon , he’s just got super chaotic energy but hopefully like ur chaotic fav chaotic energy :~) ○ in my head , ronan is slowly starting to chip away at his innocent front –– partly intentionally + unintentionally. his new music is less innocent + his thirst traps are getting Thirstier and people are starting to realize the make up that’s always caked onto his neck and the glazed look in his eyes in the middle of the day. he can’t really get away from people noticing. his manager is going through extremes to preserve his imagine instead of having his morph into a new one.

𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬.

○ he’s got a pr relationship / stunt wanted connection on the main. they are currently “ dating ” and honestly it’s hilarious. pls take this so ronan can text them stupid fake couple things and they can laugh n be dumb together. i do feel like they’re surprisingly close + this muse backs ronan up when he’s almost caught being chaotic. they got together on the nudge of ronan’s management team - why your muse as chosen can be discussed ! but they help better his image + they so really Look like a couple but they’re just friends :~) ○ other things include fwb , exes , friends , party/bad influence friends , etc. specially , i would love a close friend , the closest thing ronan would say to best friend. they get him and his chaotic energy. they just get each other and he’s comfortable around them. ○ would also really love some type of will they / won’t they who likely thinks ronan is in an actual relationship but they also know ronan is a hot mess and this person is NOT his type + they suspect it’s a stunt but he refuses to tell them the truth.

#cadence.intro #ʜᴇᴀᴅ ғᴜʟʟ ᴏғ ᴅʀᴇᴀᴍs & ᴅᴇᴍᴏɴs –– filed : character study.

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darrencrissarmy · 5 years

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Cue the ’90s nostalgia!

Darren Criss is no stranger to the decade — he’s celebrated it playing songs with his brother Chuck in band Computer Games and explored its darker side in his role as killer Andrew Cunanan in The Assassination of Gianni Versace. Now, he’s throwing it back with an EDM cover of Dave Matthews Band’s “Crash Into Me.”

PEOPLE sat down with the singer — after a Barry’s Bootcamp workout where he debuted the track — to talk about his upcoming show Royaltiesand his single with Steve Aoki.

“It’s something that, like most things in my life, started with me just having fun and not taking anything seriously,” he tells PEOPLE. “It was just a sort of silly idea that I’ve had forever.”

“I just love smashing unexpected forms of music together to have people re-contextualize themselves with music,” he adds. “I like getting people’s minds in different modes to experience something you thought you knew.”

The 32-year-old explains that the plan to convert the ’90s “unconventional ballad” into a “club banger” was something he has always wanted to do.

“‘Crash Into Me’ has this really special place in the hearts of a lot of musicians and people my age,” he says.

From movie and TV show remakes (The Lion King and All That) to musical reunions (The Spice Girls and Backstreet Boys), nostalgia has taken center stage in pop culture these days — and Criss understands why.

“People really hold onto the things that really defined their adolescence and it’s a huge part of what they celebrate as adults,” he explains, sporting a sleeveless Beavis and Butthead shirt. “As those adults get the front seat of the cultural zeitgeist, f— yeah, you’re gonna see a lot of those things.”

As for the single: if there’s anyone who knows how to cover recognizable tracks, it’s the Glee star. From his early starts on YouTube with StarKid Productions to his role of Blaine Anderson on Glee, Criss has made re-imagining music and storylines part of his career.

“It’s fun for friends of mine who know the song, just the look on their faces when they’re like, ‘No f—ing way, is this Dave Matthews?’ And I’m like, ‘Yeah,’ because you would never hear this kind of version of Dave Matthews in a club setting,” he says.

And to make the track into an EDM hit, Aoki was the perfect pick since the Emmy winner and Aoki “share a penchant for flying in the unexpected for audiences.”

“We started to record it almost immediately,” he says.

“I’m not really a club kid, but if I was at a club… I mean obviously, I’m biased, but if it wasn’t me, and I heard this version, it would keep me at the club,” he laughs.

Criss will hit the stage with Aoki pretty soon at the iHeartRadio Music Festival, which Criss has attended as a music fan for a long time.

“They’ve given me kind of like a punch card, where I’ve done enough in a row where I get a free smoothie, but instead of a free smoothie I get to actually perform at it,” he jokes. “So yeah, I’m excited to do that, man.”

Aside from working on the track, Criss says he’s “neck deep” into an upcoming project with platform Quibi titled Royalties.

Aside from Criss, other stars such as Idris Elba, Chrissy Teigen and Steven Spielberg have all confided in the new platform to bring content to life. And if we’re still talking ’90s nostalgia, Quibi will also feature a modern remake ofVarsity Blues.

Criss — who is writing, starring in, executive producing and making music for the show — says Royalties has “been a pet project forever and ever and ever.”

“This is the closest I’ve ever come to maybe admitting I may have spread myself too thin,” he explains. “I’m doing everything for the show.”

Criss has been working closely with his friends from Starkid Productions to bring the musical comedy series to life. The show follows the satirical story of songwriters behind their biggest hits.

And the creation of this show has been quite similar to his work on StarKid Productions — “we’re basically doing the same thing we did 10 years ago,” Criss says.

“This time, we’re putting our big boy pants on with some amazing talent and amazing creatives and a lot of my friends,” he explains. “That sort of flavor and humor that makes the spirit of StarKid, and that we invite into our shows is very much present in Royalties.”

And though Quibi won’t be released publicly until April 2020, Criss says “he was blown away” by the new technology and interface.

“What’s nuts is that everything sort of [happens] at the right time,” he explains. “Have we made the show any earlier, Quibi wouldn’t have been around. This is how we did things on the internet 10 years ago and now Jeffrey Katzenberg and Meg Whitman have flown into the picture being like, ‘we want to do this but like on a way bigger level.’”

As to who fans can expect to see on Royalties: “definitely some heavy hitters.”

“It’s manifest destiny,” he says. “If I say this to you guys, maybe it’ll happen.”

#darren criss #steve aoki #crash into me #royalties #starkid

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idolizerp · 6 years

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LOADING INFORMATION ON NEON’S MAIN DANCE KIM MICHA...

IDOL DETAILS

STAGENAME: N/A CURRENT AGE: 22 DEBUT AGE: N/A TRAINEE SINCE AGE: 15 COMPANY: Midas SECONDARY SKILL: N/A

IDOL PROFILE

NICKNAME(S): cha cha (due to her passion for dance and always being on the move), 미카추 (mikachu, originates from her likeness to the pokemon “pikachu” when she attempts aegyo), 미친 (michin, used as a term of endearment, in honor of her somewhat reckless and mischievous behavior) INSPIRATION: the women in mi cha’s family have always served as her greatest inspiration. it’s hard to not want to succeed with such talented family members preceding her. she has fond memories of watching her mother defy gravity on stage in performance halls as a child and remembers wondering what it’d feel like to fly. SPECIAL TALENTS:

freestyle dance

“cola pouring” impression (x)

“human jukebox” / good at guessing song names within the first second of hearing them (x)

NOTABLE FACTS:

fluent in english

proficient in arcade rhythm games (DDR and guitar hero)

her grandmother owns a children’s dance studio in daegu

performed in a K-PAP showcase in middle school

IDOL GOALS

SHORT-TERM GOALS:

her main priority as of late is a well-received debut that will, all stars aligned, snowball into a successful idol career. she anticipates management steering her in a direction that makes her image easier to manage as far as personal activities go.

LONG-TERM GOALS:

she’s ultimately determined to one day become a choreographer along the lines of lia kim and bae yoon jung and choreograph for her group, and other groups as she gains seniority. she’d also like to moonlight as a radio personality or a fixed variety cast member as a metaphorical “fuck you” to the silencing of women’s voices.

IDOL IMAGE

she’s trouble, she’s fun and sexy, reckless and unfiltered - the classic party girl type, the near embodiment of neon’s concept and she nearly doesn’t make the cut. a long list of demerits and reasons to keep her locked in the proverbial basement follow her like the train on a gown, but she’s chosen in spite of it. her deviance becomes her and her talent in dance is too good to let rot away with the less-thans. her ultimatum is this: keep your hands clean or you’re out. it’s: no scandals if you know what’s good for you and please, make them like you. it’s: remember you’re replaceable, mi cha. replaceable, they say, like there’s any chance of neon going anywhere without a girl like her.

she doesn’t care. the way she sees it, they need her more than she needs them. she knows business and she knows that cookie cutter can only take a group so far in 2019. times are changing and as far as she’s concerned, her charm precedes her.

they take the things that make her, her and decide to dial it back several notches to make her easier to swallow.

kim mi cha: family-friendly and cool. she doesn’t swear, she doesn’t party, she’s never dated but, boy, if she isn’t fun. the high school mean girl with a heart of gold all grown up and better for it. who says bad girls can’t be marketable? she’s opinionated and progressive, upbeat and fun, charming and powerful in her sexiness and her quick wit. kim mi cha: sharp and strong, a woman that girls can look up to - scratch that, kim mi cha: a woman that girls can compare themselves to, a woman that girls miles below her will want to be. she’s got that something.

listen to neon and maybe you can pretend you’ve got it, too.

IDOL HISTORY

her mother is a dancer(, and her mother’s mother and her mother, too). she’s born with rhythm in her bones and a legacy to uphold; a silver spoon between her lips and not a worry in the world thanks to her father’s fat pockets and his foot in the door of every restaurant in seoul. she wouldn’t call him a thug but, then again, if you asked where all the money came from, she’d tell you to mind your business. mi cha doesn’t pay much attention to the money anyway, it’s the only thing she knows - comfort and the inborn privilege of never having to want for anything. the trouble comes in her abilities.

she’d like to pretend that she came out of the womb with the basics down but truth be told, she struggles. as a child, she’s clumsy and nearly incapable of moving with any fluency when a song comes on. her limbs don’t cooperate despite her desire to soar and her mother nearly declares her a lost cause, enrolling her into a performing arts school as a last ditch effort to polish her jagged stone of a daughter into a gem. they sand down all of her wayward edges into something easier to build on, a flat platform of good enough to pass as decent with the reach goal of being something great. she’s not the prodigy they want her to be but she’s not a disgrace to the family line of contemporary excellency either.

and mi cha, she loves it. as much of a pain it is to learn the basics until she’s gotten good enough to tackle more, she thrives in the act of dancing. she shies away from how cliche it is to be two times the daughter of the daughter of a dancer and want to dance herself but shines when she finds her footing on the dance floor, when the squeak of her sneakers on the wax coated flooring of the dance studio she’s taught in becomes like sweet, sweet music to her ears. she gets good enough that it’s not a joke for her to make a career out of it.

initially, she auditions at midas just to be a dancer, uninterested in becoming an idol, sufficiently turned off by the diet horror stories and the dating bans that she’s already sufficiently made a mockery out of at the ripe age of fifteen, already familiar with the ins and outs of dating and sneaking out and older boys. she gets in because they see potential and to this day, she tells her friends its the worst decision they ever made.

two years into her tenure, she’s offered the opportunity to train as an idol could-be. by now already having experience doing work as a back-up dancer for company seniors like JiNX and Su.Grr, she’s a lot more confident in her abilities, a force to be reckoned with in the realm of dance but her voice leaves something to be desired. so, she’s an idol trainee - a girl group hopeful, now. she needs to be able to carry a tune, determined not to be another cliche dance only member that doesn’t contribute to the overall sound of the group. she’d be damned if she got boxed into a trap of perpetual oohs and ahs with the sometimes-promise of a dance break.

she works hard but her focus dwindles when she falls into something like love but more like infatuation with a boy, a man, really, but he’s forbidden nonetheless. she’s eighteen and stupid so she finds herself spending late nights out at clubs and bars, gay clubs per the influence of her other freer dancer friends, and she finds her spice in stolen moments in alleyways and in the tiny seoul apartment that her dad is paying for. it’s a whirlwind of sex and bad decisions and sleep drunk mornings on the subway to get to midas, to train. she’s dead on her feet in vocal lessons, inattentive and petulant to the point that her progress is plateauing. her bubble bursts when she gets caught out during a routine trainee phone check, glass shatters when one of the other trainees she’d considered a friend rats her out for partying.

they break up. (see: her training sessions and schedules are packed so intensely that she’s barely even got the time to sleep, see also: they take her phone and lock it away and swear on everything that she’ll never see him again, read: she’s put on probation and locked up in a tower like rapunzel, escorted home and back by a low-ranking manager so she’s not lulled into the illusion that she can get away with it again. kim mi cha: delinquent.) he doesn’t put up a fight. she moves on.

she can’t help the bitter feeling that settles into her stomach when aurora debuts and she’s forced to face the reality of the time she’s wasted. they’re only one girl group of many in the industry but it doesn’t matter anymore, not when she’s playing catch up with other trainees who’ve been waiting just as long for something, anything.

years pass and she’s got nothing better to do but improve and stay on her best behavior in the hopes that the strict grip will give. (it doesn’t.)

and then, by some miracle, she’s called in as a member for project n. (read: JiNX jr.) her first thought is: party. the second: a passing wish that her members aren’t a bunch of stick-in-ass prudes. mostly she’s just glad that she’ll finally get to be on stage, as the main event this time. kim mi cha: idol dancer. kim mi cha: star. she finds it a little unfair how hawk-eyed they are on her behavior like she’s the only fuck up to ever exist under their management, fat fingers pointing heavily at the dating ban and staring her down behind thin wire-framed glasses. it’s a subtle reminder for her to not fuck this one up, to behave herself because she’s not the only life on the line here.

she’ll think about it. (she tries.)

#id.bio #id.trainee #id.neon #id.midas #id.seo soojin

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theautisticbarbie · 3 years

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Pas Des Deus - Chapter 2

A modern OC x Canon Attack on Titan fanfic that I started writing after being inspired by all of the amazing creations on this platform! Y’all are great! Also s!4 Eren is HOT.

Set in the ambiguous mid 2010s, Esther Wilson, a 20-year-old ballerina develops a crush on Eren Jeager, a 19-year-old in her troupe. For y’all’s convenience, I attached a picture of canon timeline Esther I made years ago in a dress up game for AoT scouts.

Also y’all should know that there are explicit sex scenes in this fic so minors DNI 🚫. Thanks.

Act 1: The Nutcracker

Chapter 2: Dance of the Snowflakes

Your warnings for this chapter are as follows: Religion, mentions of ABA, mentions of Anti-Semitism. Let me know if I missed anything! At some point I’ll make a list! I’m hoping to have Act 1 complete by Christmas Day!

Everyone welcomed their new dancer with open arms. Everyone, that is, except Eren, who was wondering what the hell she was doing there.

“All righty everyone!” Madame Zoë started. “Let’s start learning Dance of the Snowflakes! Mikasa is going to observe!”

This wasn’t unusual. Madame Zoë typically started teaching the group dances before the individual ones. It made rehearsals a lot more streamlined. The fun thing about choreographing the Dance of the Snowflakes is that no two performances of it are exactly the same. There is no set choreography and there are no traditional costume designs for the snowflakes either. Like true snowflakes, every single interpretation is different. It’s easily the most fascinating thing about the dance.

Choreography went okay for the most part. Mikasa noticed that despite the fact that there was quite a bit of warming up, everyone was still fairly clumsy at first.

“All righty, Mikasa! Why don’t you give it a shot?” Madame Zoë eagerly encouraged. From across the studio, Mikasa could see Eren fold his arms like he was waiting for an “I told you so” moment.

And immediately, Mikasa understood why everyone was so clumsy. Ballet is a lot harder than it looks, even for professionals, apparently. Getting the timing in sync with the music, which sounds simple enough in theory, was a daunting task in practise.

“Not so easy is it?” Eren asked, approaching the girl after choreography for the first part of the dance was learned.

“I’ll figure it out,” Mikasa said dismissively.

“Why don’t you stay in your lane? What happened to MMA fighting? What’s up with the career change?” he asked.

“Like I said,” Mikasa repeated firmly, “I’ll figure it out.”

Madame Zoë ran through the first part once more and kept the music playing after so that the dancers could familiarise themselves with the beats. And that’s when Mikasa first noticed a defining characteristic of Esther’s.

Esther had a habit of getting lost in the music. And her feet went rogue when she did if she was not highly conscious of it. She most definitely enjoyed herself and nobody seemed particularly annoyed by it. Nobody except for Annie, that is, who was all about following the steps to the letter.

In a way, Sasha admired Esther’s spark. Some members of the troupe even found it endearing. Jean Kirstein and Conny Springer, Sasha’s two closest friends, were observing Esther in her joy. This was free entertainment to them. “Esther’s gone postal again,” Jean joked before chugging coffee out of his thermos.

Esther’s pigtails were flying every which way with every twirl, fouetté and pirouette. Madame Zoë had previously joked that her long black hair was gonna put someone’s eye out.

“All right, let’s refocus!” Zoë called, rewinding the music back to the beginning. Esther deflated almost like a balloon and shot a look of disappointment. “Back to one, people! Back to one!” Zoë continued as the dancers returned to their places.

Esther assumed her position and began dancing from the beginning. The Christmas whimsy of Tchaikovsky’s score filled her heart with joy as she took every step. After they finished learning choreography for the Snowflakes, it was time to wrap up and call it a day.

“Great work, everyone! We’ll get more familiar with it tomorrow and hopefully move to Waltz of the Flowers next week!” Madame Zoë called.

“Thank god. I’m starving,” Sasha said.

“You’re always starving! You’re a bottomless pit!” Conny retorted.

“You aren’t even just a little bit hungry?” Sasha asked.

“I didn’t say that,” Conny sheepishly retorted.

“Come on!” Sasha said playfully slapping both Conny and Jean on the back. “Let’s go to Juicy Burger! My treat! It’ll be a great excuse to hang out and bypass traffic heading back to Dauper!”

Dauper was a census designation in the Inland Empire, but much like Venice, Marina Del Rey, Palms, Mar Vista or so on, it’s not an incorporated city. It was part of Riverside. Parts of it were also in Ontario and Norco.

“Why don’t you tag along?” Sasha asked, extending an invitation to Esther. “I could give you a ride home after!”

The truth was that Sasha had seen a viral video of someone on Esther’s bus going on an anti-Semitic rant and apparently this was a thing this dude did multiple times and he wasn’t banned from the bus service or even kicked off when he went on these bigoted tirades. Sasha was worried for Esther’s safety.

“Sure!” Esther said, eager for any opportunity to not have to wait for a bus. She, of course, was unaware of the anti-Semite who occupied her route home.

At Juicy Burger, Esther was looking through the menu. There were a very small selection of foods she could or would eat. Her need for same foods as an autistic individual is compounded by the fact that Vanessa was VERY staunch about the aspect of Judaism that prohibits non-kosher food. And even though she personally doesn’t agree with her religion 100%, she didn’t wanna disappoint her mother figure. It also made same foods pretty easy to find because kosher food never tasted unpredictable.

Truthfully, Esther had never had a burger before. Vanessa would never allow that kind of junk in her household. She always wanted to try one, though. The commercials she’s seen them in always made them look so good.

“Nice to see you again, Sasha! Jean, Conny, likewise to you as well. Can I recommend the Classic Bacon Barbecue Burger for the newcomer?”

“Oh, I actually—“ Esther began to point out that her faith prohibits non-kosher foods.

“Come on, Esther!” Sasha encouraged. “Give it a shot!”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Esther said, still hesitant.

“Why don’t I start y’all off with something to drink?” the server offered.

Sasha, of course, had a chocolate milkshake, Jean had a beer since he was the only one out of the group that was old enough to drink and Conny had a Sprite.

“I’ll try a Pink Lemonade!” Esther said.

“There you go! Live a little!” Sasha encouraged.

“Well, to be honest, I didn’t know lemonade could be pink,” Esther confessed. “Does it come from pink lemons?” she asked curiously.

“Esther,” Jean started, mortified at her ignorance. “You’re 20.”

“What does that have to do with anything?” Esther asked out of genuine curiosity.

“Most people your age know perfectly well that Pink Lemonade doesn’t come from pink lemons,” Jean continued.

“Oh, I see,” Esther said, embarrassed.

Jean’s choice of words set off a panic in the girl. Esther’s therapists in ABA had vigorously trained her, in ways that are not so nice, to be indistinguishable from her neurotypical peers. So when there was the occasional slip-up and Esther broke one of the many unwritten social rules of society, she went into panic mode. She became frightened at the possibility that she may have offended someone. And here she goes again. Trying to asses the damage to her friendship while hyperventilating. She must have not been as discreet as she thought she was because Jean raised an eyebrow and looked very confused.

“I mean it’s no big deal that you didn’t know,” he said hoping to diffuse the tension. “I thought that narwhals were a mythical creature until I was in college.”

“I thought that sloths were extinct until I was in middle school,” Conny said, contributing to the peace offering.

“I thought that Netflix and chill meant you went home watch Netflix and get fro-yo by yourself until like 3 days ago,” Sasha confessed.

“Wait. It’s not?” Esther asked.

“You always have food on the brain, Sasha!” Conny protested.

“Wait, then what does that mean?” Esther asked curiously having all but forgotten her little blunder regarding the existence of pink lemons.

“It means you go to their place, MAYBE watch Netflix for a bit and then fuck,” Jean said bluntly.

Excellent timing as well, seeing as how their server just came back with their drinks. Esther blushed, mortified.

“Oh please, that’s hardly the most lewd thing servers say to each other,” Jean said, not batting an eye.

“It’s true,” the server said, laughing. “Are you ready to order?”

“You know what?” Esther started boldly, “I WILL try the Bacon Barbecue Burger!”

“Yes!” Sasha encouraged.

“Just don’t tell Vanessa,” she added sheepishly.

“Lips are sealed!” Sasha declared loudly.

“And what will you three be having?” the server asked the other three.

“I‘ll try the stuffed artichoke chicken burger,” Conny said.

“I‘ll have a mushroom Swiss burger,” Jean said.

“And I’ll have the double steakhouse supreme with extra cheese. With chili onion rings instead of fries,” Sasha added.

Good lord, could Sasha eat.

“I’ll be back with your order,” the server said after he finished jotting it down.

“Sooooo,” Sasha started. “He was cute.” And that was Esther’s queue to cover her face with her hands. “Sasha!” she protested.

“Sheesh! Why are you always trying to set Esther up?” Conny asked.

“That’s just how I am. I’m the wingman of the group.”

“Hey guys,” Esther started, and they could tell something was bugging her. “Do you think Madame Zoë notices how hard I work?”

“Oh yeah for sure,” Jean said dismissively.

“I just wish I could be in the spotlight more,” Esther lamented.

“It’s not like she’s NEVER made you Prima Ballerina,” Conny reminded her. “You and Jean were great in ‘In The Night’ and the DVD of your performance in ‘Lydia, The Swiss Milkmaid’ is still one of the company’s best sellers!”

“Not to mention that your Kitri variation went viral TWICE!” Sasha added.

“And I’m grateful for all of that! But I wish I could have bigger roles in more popular ballets! It would be an absolute dream to dance as Giselle, and just once I wish I could be Odette, the Swan Queen,” Esther pined.

“Every ballerina in the world wants that stupid role. Plus you would have to dance as Odile too, and don’t take this the wrong way, but you’re not cut out to be seductive,” Jean rambled. “There’s also the fact that Madame Zoë is practically allergic to tragedy and the company would never take a chance on a version that has a happy ending. Those variants never do as well in the box office,” he added.

Shortly after Jean said that, their food came.

“I’m sure you’ll get your chance to shine,” Sasha said reassuringly. “There are plenty of main roles in Nutcracker! If you shoot your best shot, I’m sure you’ll land on something good!”

Esther straightened up. “You’re right, Sasha! I just gotta give it my A-game!” she said before taking a bite out of her burger. Instantly, her entire face lit up.

“How is it?” Sasha asked curiously.

“Life-changing,” Esther responded in a dream like state.

Meanwhile, back at Eren’s place, the 19 year old was toking up on his bong and passively playing some FPS game when he heard a loud thud coming from Mikasa’s room. He went to investigate to find Mikasa sprawled on the ground, a pair of pointe shoes very improperly fitted onto her feet.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Eren demandingly chided before making a beeline to her feet and tearing the shoes off. “Are you trying to get yourself killed?”

Mikasa looked more confused than anything else. Eren sighed, remembering she is new to this. “Mikasa, you NEVER wear pointe shoes right out of the gate in ballet. It takes YEARS of experience to get there. If you wear pointe shoes without the experience you need, you could literally hurt yourself so badly that it can kill you.” Eren had removed the pointe shoes from her feet and began examining them. “You didn’t even break them in properly. Were you trying to cut your toes off? Where did you even find these anyway?”

“AliExpress,” she meekly answered.

“Have you completely lost your mind?” Eren asked. “Listen Mikasa, you NEVER buy pointe shoes from cheap places like that. You want guaranteed safe pointe shoes? Buy them DIRECTLY from a pointe shoe maker. They sculpt them directly to your feet and even still, it’s a fuckton of trial and error of taking them apart and putting them back together to find the perfect fit. And we go through them like tissue paper. There’s a reason why the company foots the bill on shoes.”

Eren finally took a long exasperated sigh. “Look, just promise me that you’ll stay on soft shoes until it’s safe to move to pointe, okay?”

“Okay,” Mikasa meekly agreed.

Eren began examining her legs, making her blush and her heart jump. “You’re pretty lucky,” he said while examining her. “It doesn’t seem like there are any broken bones. Just cuts and bruises. I’ll be right back.”

Eren went to the bathroom and when he returned, he had a first aid kit. Immediately he began cleaning and bandaging Mikasa’s wounds. She winced as he applied antiseptic. “Look, Mikasa,” he finally said, “Ballet is more complicated than just wearing a special pair of shoes and doing a few turns. It involves a lot of discipline and strength. And a metric fuckton of balance. If this is what you really want to do, you’re in it for the long haul.”

“Eren, I’m willing to do whatever it takes.”

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d-criss-news · 5 years

Link

Cue the ’90s nostalgia!

PEOPLE sat down with the singer — after a Barry’s Bootcamp workout where he debuted the track — to talk about his upcoming show Royaltiesand his single with Steve Aoki.

The 32-year-old explains that the plan to convert the ’90s “unconventional ballad” into a “club banger” was something he has always wanted to do.

“‘Crash Into Me’ has this really special place in the hearts of a lot of musicians and people my age,” he says.

And to make the track into an EDM hit, Aoki was the perfect pick since the Emmy winner and Aoki “share a penchant for flying in the unexpected for audiences.”

“We started to record it almost immediately,” he says.

“I’m not really a club kid, but if I was at a club… I mean obviously, I’m biased, but if it wasn’t me, and I heard this version, it would keep me at the club,” he laughs.

Criss will hit the stage with Aoki pretty soon at the iHeartRadio Music Festival, which Criss has attended as a music fan for a long time.

Aside from working on the track, Criss says he’s “neck deep” into an upcoming project with platform Quibititled Royalties.

Criss — who is writing, starring in, executive producing and making music for the show — says Royaltieshas “been a pet project forever and ever and ever.”

“This is the closest I’ve ever come to maybe admitting I may have spread myself too thin,” he explains. “I’m doing everything for the show.”

Criss has been working closely with his friends from Starkid Productions to bring the musical comedy series to life. The show follows the satirical story of songwriters behind their biggest hits.

And the creation of this show has been quite similar to his work on StarKid Productions — “we’re basically doing the same thing we did 10 years ago,” Criss says.

And though Quibi won’t be released publicly until April 2020, Criss says “he was blown away” by the new technology and interface.

As to who fans can expect to see on Royalties: “definitely some heavy hitters.”

“It’s manifest destiny,” he says. “If I say this to you guys, maybe it’ll happen.”

#darren criss #people magazine #crash into me #royalties #press #july 2019

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shirlleycoyle · 4 years

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The Rise of the Highly Unlikely Twitch Streamer

“If I’d known at the start of this year that I’d be paying a queer artist in Germany to draw a horse wearing clothes for Twitch, I’d have been like: what the fuck is going on?” says British musician Shura. The horse in question has become a regular character in Shura’s lockdown life, a shared joke that grew from a story told to fans on Twitch, where she now streams three times a week.

The streaming platform, which emerged in 2011, is still mostly known as a place for gamers. But during lockdown, creatives from music, comedy, TV and so-called “variety streamers” have taken to Twitch to share their talents and engage with fans.

Back in spring, Shura was in New York when festival performances and tour shows for her latest record forevher were abruptly cancelled. Other musicians began regular Instagram Live gigs – many unpaid. Shura did a few, but: “It was not satisfying – you’re literally performing to a wall.”

Instead, she played videogames to relax. “I knew what Twitch was, but never understood why you would want to watch anyone on Twitch,” she says.

But while researching The Last of Us Part II, Shura browsed Twitch. She came across American gamer ChellOAG and loved her stream: “I was like, maybe I should do this? There were a lot of videogame references in my first record, so by chance I set myself up really well to become a gaming musician on Twitch!”

Her followers and subscribers are, she estimates, 95 percent prior fans of her music. Twitch has offered Shura a surprising way to forge a closer bond with them: “It was like making this giant sofa on the internet where you can hang out and still have some connection with your fanbase.”

While the music industry has focused on mailing lists to reach fans, Shura feels she’s found a more effective route through Twitch and the associated Discord server many streamers use as a place for followers to chat: “It’s been weird to realise there are these other tools that musicians have previously neglected.” She’s also determined to create a welcoming environment for fans in the gaming world, which still has pockets of misogyny, racism and homophobia: “It’s important to make this safe space where people who are queer can go and not have shit thrown at them.”

Shura has done some music streams – on the one-year anniversary of foreveher’s release, she played demos, did a Q&A and piano performance. Yet even while gaming, she’s found streaming replicates the on-stage experience: “You get that same adrenaline rush. You’re performing – if you want people to enjoy themselves, you have to find ways of engaging beyond the game.”

Sean Morley. Photo: courtesy of subject

Comedians also saw their schedules wiped during lockdown. Scottish comedian Limmy has streamed for years, but announced his retirement from TV to focus on Twitch. Others joined him there – Josie Long and Richard Herring, while Bilal Zafar has thousands watching him in character as a PES football manager.

Sean Morley, standup and co-host of Mandatory Redistribution Party podcast, also moved comedy onto Twitch during lockdown. At first: “I had friends do guest parts, I’d write loose plots – like a comedy play.”

But after committing to twice-weekly streaming, he realised Twitch demanded a different approach. He introduced more audience interaction to two solo streams, Meme Machine and King Morl, and recently started an interactive game, Escape the North, with comics in Manchester.

“The premise of Meme Machine is: I’m making an image for Twitter, I want to go viral, but I have no ideas,” Morley explains. “So I ask people to donate ideas, then we make memes based on that.”

Fans have immersed themselves in unexpected ways. Morley plays Creative Commons-licensed music during streams – fans made their own albums containing shared jokes and posted them on Creative Commons for Morley to find. The Meme Machine community also received a commission from composer Ben Gaunt for a video to be played at a Nottingham University symposium. “It’s one of the weirdest things I’ve ever seen, let alone made,” says Morley.

King Morl is a little different. It uses an existing game, Crusader Kings II, but the audience can modify the world. “We let the chat choose a long-form objective. They learned early on that there were non-human characters in the game. They all said: make the pope a bear.”

Months-long storylines developed. Morley uploaded past streams to YouTube so anyone could catch up: “Even when there was 30 hours to get through, people started doing it.”

King Morl recently had its cinematic finale where a bear was finally crowned pope. “People were quite emotional – they said it helped them through a really horrible year. It was sweet. You can’t get close to that vibe with an hour-long [stand-up] show.”

Claire Lim (AKA Wee Claire) on Twitch. Photo: courtesy of Claire Lim

It’s this collaborative, community aspect that Scottish TV presenter Claire Lim loves most about streaming. Lim, known as Wee Claire on Twitch, has presented for the BBC and NME and joined Twitch in 2018. She started streaming videogames, but soon tried new formats, chatting and playing interactive games – guessing someone’s age based on their teenage crush or drawing followers’ portraits.

When she got a PC, she decided to make slicker TV-style formats: “It’s a big learning curve in terms of production, but I started to go: what can I do that’s always been a dream in my little nerdy head?”

Lim now hosts various chat shows, including the Top 10 List of All Lists and How I Met Your Streamer. There’s also the Wee Marbles Federation (“by far the most popular show”), a WWE-influenced programme that layers soap opera-style storylines onto a game called Marbles.

The pandemic encouraged Lim to learn new skills – she’s improved her editing and branched into music-making, creating a Christmas EP with input from her community, the Wee Squad. “People come to watch me, but it takes on a life of itself,” Lim says. “It’s 50 percent community, 50 percent streamer. The Wee Squad have helped me through the pandemic – economically in terms of subbing [subscribing], but also in terms of belief. The power of community is incredible.”

Like Shura, Lim also works hard to create a welcoming space for fans: “I have friends from the LGBTQ+ community, different backgrounds, ethnically and otherwise, so for me it’s important that my stream reflects my values.” Moderators (Lim highlights her “dad mod” DW who’s been with her since the start) uphold these values.

While streaming helps Lim hone presenting skills, it could one day be a career in itself. “I’ve had struggles trying to get agents and producers into what I’m doing on Twitch,” Lim says. “But if you’re looking to be an entertainer, be hugely creative and not just play games… I do think Twitch could be an alternative route. As long as you know that it’s just as hard.”

Morley has also turned Twitch into an income-maker. While streaming twice a week doesn’t equal his normal comedy earnings and there’s a battle with the algorithm to be seen, the in-stream tipping function mirrors “pay what you want”, his favoured comedy payment model. “You try to make people feel they are wilfully contributing to something they want to succeed,” Morley says. “Twitch has that from the start.”

Unlike Spotify and Apple Music, “the culture around Twitch is to support creators,” Shura says. “I’m also making significantly more from my merch than if I wasn’t on Twitch. It does help support all the other avenues at a time when your job basically doesn’t exist.”

All three artists plan to continue streaming when their industries return to normal. There’s also shared hope that Twitch will continue to diversify beyond gaming. Lim’s been watching more music streamers, such as The Village Ruse, while Shura’s given Ladyhawke tips on setting up her own channel.

Lim says: “There are so many amazing people on Twitch that are way funnier, more creative, dynamic and interesting than people I see on television. Twitch is a more diverse place if you go and find it. It’s not perfect, but the more people that come to it, the better it will be.”

@ohrhealy

The Rise of the Highly Unlikely Twitch Streamer syndicated from https://triviaqaweb.wordpress.com/feed/

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aikungfu · 4 years

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President Donald Trump is reportedly expected to issue an order compelling social media app TikTok to sell its US operations. | Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

Trump says he isn’t banning the app — for now — because he’s open to having Microsoft buy it instead.

President Trump won’t try to ban TikTok in the US — at least for now. On Monday, he reversed his stance on the wildly popular video streaming app and said in a White House press briefing that instead of banning it, he would allow a US-based company to purchase the app.

“I don’t mind if — whether it is Microsoft or someone else — a big company, a secure company, a very American company, buys it,” said Trump about TikTok. Trump also warned that TikTok will be “out of business in the United States” by September 15 if the company doesn’t reach a deal to sell by then.

Though TikTok, which is owned by the Chinese company ByteDance, is best known as a place where teens share short, often lighthearted musical videos, it has become the center of geopolitical controversy between the US and China over technological power.

For months, Trump and other bipartisan politicians have periodically raised concerns about TikTok as a potential national security threat, worrying that the app’s Chinese parent company could censor content in the US or access American users’ sensitive data at the behest of the Chinese Communist Party.

The company has vehemently denied these accusations. But reports last year showed a lack of TikTok content about subjects controversial with the Chinese government — such as videos of the Hong Kong protests. These reports have fueled US government suspicions that the company is influenced by the Chinese government, particularly as China has been expanding its surveillance state in recent years and US-China diplomatic relations have become more strained.

Over the past few days, TikTok reentered the spotlight when Trump told reporters on Friday evening that he planned to ban the app effective “immediately” — saying he would do so using emergency economic powers or an executive order.

But getting rid of an app used by some 100 million Americans isn’t easy, even if you’re the president. According to a New York Times report, after Trump’s advisers convinced him that an executive action to ban TikTok would face severe legal and political consequences, Trump agreed that instead of issuing a ban, he would allow the tech giant Microsoft to continue its previous talks to buy TikTok, which had reportedly been in the works for weeks. Since Microsoft is a US-based company, the idea is that if Microsoft took control, it would ensure all of TikTok’s user data is stored in the US, secure from the potentially prying eyes of the Chinese government. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella talked to Trump about it over the weekend, according to a Microsoft blog post published on Saturday evening, and has agreed to work out a deal — or not — by September 15.

Here’s a rundown of the recent controversy surrounding TikTok and what’s expected to happen next:

TikTok’s political troubles

TikTok has faced intense political scrutiny for months now, long before Trump’s latest call for a ban.

Republicans have escalated their attacks on TikTok this summer, with some bipartisan support from Democrats as well. Last Thursday, Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Josh Hawley (R-MO) sent a letter to the Justice Department demanding that the agency open an investigation into TikTok and Zoom over reported violations of “Americans’ civil liberties” and national security concerns about relationships between these companies and China. This followed statements in July from Trump and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who both said the Trump administration was considering banning TikTok altogether.

For the past year, it’s been thought that the app has been under government review for national security reasons. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin confirmed this last week, and said he’s expecting the review to conclude soon. The government committee in charge of this review, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), has the power to recommend the president force TikTok to sell to a US company.

Even if Trump doesn’t issue a full ban, a government decision that forces TikTok’s parent company to sell it off would be a game changer for the social media industry, and would threaten to disrupt the app’s extraordinary popularity. And for established social media giants Facebook and Google, the decision could significantly weaken their fiercest new competitor.

A forced sale of TikTok could have negative consequences beyond the people running TikTok, too. The move threatens to jeopardize the success of an app that’s had a meteoric rise from a relative underdog to one of the most downloaded apps in the world. And since TikTok is one of the only recent social media startups to compete with tech giants like Facebook, weakening TikTok could further concentrate power among a few tech giants in the US.

“While we do not comment on rumors or speculation, we are confident in the long-term success of TikTok,” a spokesperson for TikTok told Recode on Friday, adding the company is “committed to protecting their privacy and safety as we continue working to bring joy to families and meaningful careers to those who create on our platform.”

How a sale would work

You may be asking how Trump can force a company as popular as TikTok to sell itself, or go so far as to try to ban it. The answer is complicated and bureaucratic.

To force a sale, Trump could issue an order for ByteDance to divest from TikTok through CFIUS, an interagency committee that reviews foreign acquisitions and investments in US businesses that can threaten national security. The committee, chaired by Mnuchin, has the power to block or reverse mergers and acquisitions involving US and foreign companies.

Increasingly, the agency has been exercising its authority over foreign-owned tech companies operating in the US. Last year, CFIUS helped block one of the biggest deals in tech history, after Trump followed its recommendations to stop Singapore-based Broadcom from acquiring the US semiconductor company Qualcomm. The committee also forced Chinese owners to divest from the dating app Grindr and the health startup PatientsLikeMe.

But as Brookings Institution fellow Geoffrey Gertz has written, tech companies weren’t always the target of CFIUS. In the past, the committee “tended to focus on companies with military or intelligence connections,” but more recently, personal data and high-tech intellectual property have become a bigger focus for the committee.

Last year, CFIUS started investigating ByteDance, which had purchased the Chinese-owned lip-sync video platform Musical.ly in 2017 and then rebranded and launched a similar app in the US under the name TikTok. When that investigation comes to a close, the committee’s recommendations will reportedly lead to Trump’s order for ByteDance to sell TikTok or divest its US operations.

It’s unclear how CFIUS would enforce a potential unwinding of ByteDance and TikTok, but last year, the committee issued a $1 million fine to an undisclosed company for not following through on a mitigation agreement, its first penalty of that kind. It could also fine TikTok — or Trump could just continue to dangle the threat of banning TikTok altogether, no matter how legally or politically contentious that would be.

In a press briefing on Monday, Trump said that whoever ends up owning TikTok should pay the Treasury department of the US government a “substantial amount of money” as part of the deal. As some have pointed out, including Axios’s Dan Primack, Trump’s comments could be “skating very close to announcing extortion.” It’s not immediately clear how Trump would try to ensure the US government gets a cut of the sale or whether it’s even legal to do that.

What comes next

If Microsoft or another major US company does purchase TikTok, it’s likely that TikTok as we know it would remain largely unchanged.

TikTok is a valuable brand in a lucrative industry with a massive, devoted user base — so for Microsoft, buying TikTok would be an opportunity to seriously compete with other major tech companies like Facebook and Google in the social media space.

Microsoft also has experience when it comes to purchasing already successful companies and allowing them to retain their independence — as it did when it acquired the platform for software developers, GitHub, in 2018, and the video game Minecraft in 2014.

Depending on how Microsoft chooses to run TikTok — if it acquires it — the app could continue to grow, and with the backing of a major US tech company, it might more seriously take on other social media companies, including Facebook. Microsoft isn’t the only potential buyer — other firms could try to buy TikTok or share ownership. Reportedly, Microsoft may invite outside investors to join them in the deal, according to the Wall Street Journal.

It’s too soon to say what impact a sale would have on the app’s popularity and growth. But in the meantime, there are plenty of Clippy jokes to make.

On Monday, a spokesperson for TikTok told Recode in a statement that the company is “committed to continuing to bring joy to families and meaningful careers to those who create on our platform as we build TikTok for the long term. TikTok will be here for many years to come.”

Update, August 3, 3:05 pm ET: This article has been updated to include new comments from President Trump and new reporting about ongoing negotiations between Microsoft and TikTok.

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