#just like the discourse about them getting together and what that says about taylor and what they are doing

[shedidntevenswear]

boooo i hate that we’ve entered the actual discourse phase of this matty thing because when we kept it to just jokes and memes about our shock/dismay/loving disapproval it was so much more fun

[verstappen-cult]

HOW YOU GET THE GIRL | CL16

— 02. THE MEDDLING

PREV. PART | NEXT PART — [ SERIES MASTERLIST ]

summary: in which charles has an embarrassing crush on alex's childhood best friend and everyone meddles. content warnings: faceclaim is taylor hill but you can picture her as you’d like! some cursing and for the sake of the smau imola was not canceled. note: thank you sm for the love you showed the first part! once again if you see some mistakes please know that english is not my first language and i noticed them once everything was finished. if you want to be added to the taglist, just let me know! ♡

INSTAGRAM STORIES

MAY 14, 2023.

TWITTER

INSTAGRAM POST

📍 ROMA, ITALY

Liked by yourusername, lilymhe and 432,503 others

alex_albon Don’t believe anything they say, I won ⛳️

view all 3,799 comments

lilymhe i’m not gonna say anything. 🤐

user35 so it is true. they were with charles and Y/N user36 We don’t know that user37 someone working there confirmed it

charles_leclerc mate you fell like three times

user38 WE GOT THE CONFIRMATION user39 omg this makes it real user40 BUT WAS Y/N ACTUALLY THERE

user41 not his entire comment section filled with charles and Y/N fans 🙄🙄🙄

user42 PARENTS

yourusername shut up you know i won

user43 OH MY GOD OH MY GODDDD user44 i cant believe it i’m having a crisis over this user45 context pls user46 everyone’s saying they were in a double date and apparently this is the confirmation.

pierregasly thanks for (not) inviting me!!!

📍 ROMA, ITALY

Liked by charles_leclerc, zendaya and 756,223 others

yourusername i won. i have witnesses.

view all 2,498 comments

alex_albon keep saying that 🥱

yourusername SHUT UP

user47 not a single pic of charles and her together but we know they were together

user48 feeding us crumbs

user49 she looks so pretty

zendaya tom keeps saying we need to play golf when you’re back in london.

yourusername tell him i’m gonna kick his ass

landonorris you should play with people that actually knows how to play: ME

lilymhe SORRY? yourusername dw lils, i have your back

user50 i love how she’s befriending everyone

user51 thanks to alex user52 and your point is? user51 she’s using him for his fame user53 LOOOOOOL

pierregasly thanks for (not) inviting me!!!

user54 what’s more hilarious to me than this whole “double date” discourse are pierre comments on both alex and Y/N posts because they did not invite him.

Y/N & ALEX’S iMESSAGE

THURSDAY MAY 18, 2023 — PRESS CONFERENCE

charles is sitting next to lando and max, pierre next to him as alex stands in front of them. he’s aware they’re talking about what they’re expecting from this weekend, but he can’t seem to focus on what they are actually saying, only picking up pieces of the conversation. he’s too focused on his phone, the message thread he has with Y/N staring back at him. the last text he has from her is just a simple ‘cool’ after he was trying to play it cool.

“what you doing, charlie?” max asks, playfully poking him in the ribs. he immediately locks his phone, raising his head only to find that everyone is looking at him already.

“i know what he’s doing.” lando wiggles his eyebrows and charles wonders if he really needs his fingers to race. “you screwed up.”

charles knows he screwed up, and definitely doesn’t need lando reminding him the awful mistake he made for just trying not to sound too intense because, of course, he’s made that mistake in the past. and every girl he’s had something with always said the same: ‘you’re too much, charles’, ‘you’re taking things too fast, we should take a break.’ so ever since the last girl he dated, once again, said the same thing, charles promised himself he would not be that guy.

“hey,” alex has this look of pity in his eyes that he doesn’t like, not even one bit. “maybe we could do something to help you.”

“i don’t need your help.” charles’ tone is too sharp and abrupt it’s makes him feel a little bad for talking to his friends like that. but just a little.

“look, you like her, right?” pierre chimes in, but doesn’t wait for an answer. “alex is his best friend, if you want a chance with her, he’s the only one who can help you right now.”

but why does he wanna help him?

alex must see the question written all over his face because he says, “she’s dated a few assholes in the past and i really want something good for her. i trust you, charles.” he tries to look serious which only makes charles laugh. “besides, i have the perfect idea.”

ALEX’S iMESSAGE — MAY 18, 2023

INSTAGRAM POST

📍 VENICE, ITALY — MAY 19, 2023

Liked by scottyjames31, lance_stroll and 976,665 others

yourusername a few days ago i had the pleasure to celebrate two of my favorite people, Chloe and Scotty James. and spent two wonderful days filled with love and joy in the beautiful venice! so happy for you both. 👩🏼‍❤️‍👨🏼🩷

i wish i could stay here forever, but back to reality for now. :(

view all 7,455 comments

user55 i didn’t know she’s friends with the strolls

lance_stroll I have very embarrassing videos of you, just remember that 🍾

user56 why lance and Y/N look kinda good together

user57 That’s exactly what I was thinking. They would look pretty good as a couple user58 he has a girlfriend user59 and Y/N is probably dating charles user57 only rumors

user60 back to reality? she’s not gonna be in the paddock this weekend?

user61 why would she? nobody wants her there

user62 i thought she was in italy for the gp

user63 just a coincidence user62 still hoping she’ll be there

francisca.cgomes I’m gonna need to borrow that beautiful dress! ❤️

user63 she really knows everyone now user64 literally. she was just one time at a race and befriended everyone

user65 i feel like we’re missing something

Y/N’s iMESSAGE

SATURDAY MAY 20, 2023 — THE MISSION 007 DINNER

the second you see a head of brown hair standing at the door, you want to walk over to where alex is sitting and smash his head on the table. you made sure before arriving to the restaurant that charles was not gonna be there tonight, even lando told you he was busy with some ferrari event. obviously, both lied to you.

“hey, charles!” george, who’s standing next to you, his girlfriend carmen at your other side, waves at him. and for the first time since that fateful dinner a few days ago, you make eye contact with his bright brown eyes.

butterflies break free inside your belly, even when you try to repress everything he makes you feel.

you’ve known charles for no more than ten days but it really feels like you’ve known each other your whole life. everything is so easy with him, you can’t remember when was the last time you felt this way, if it ever happened.

you thought everything was going well between you two and, for a minute, you let yourself believe he could like you. but then he gave you the cold shoulder and everything came crashing down.

and that’s your problem. you always feel so much in so little time that when things don’t go the way you’d like, everything hurts twice as hard.

there’s no one to blame but you.

“hey,” is it possible to like the sound of his voice so much that you feel your knees going weak?

“you’re the last one to arrive. here,” george shares a look with his girlfriend that you don’t really know how to read, and both move aside. “you’re sitting here tonight. we’ll go find our seats.”

you want the earth to swallow you. you want to be in a plane far away from here because the seat george is pointing at it’s right next to yours.

before you can open your mouth to say something, the couple slips away. and suddenly it feels like you and charles are the only ones in the room.

no one says a word for what feels like hours. you’re actually trying to find a excuse to leave when charles sighs, defeated.

“i’m sorry.” his voice is almost a whisper, something only for you to hear. “i acted like an idiot.”

“yeah,” you agree because you don’t know what else to say. he did act like an idiot, ignoring you for days, not answering your texts even when you asked him if something was wrong.

“i can explain if you’d let me.”

his brown eyes bore into yours, so soft and sincere your heart skips a beat. and even if you want to say no, your whole body begs you to accept.

“let’s eat first and enjoy the evening,” his face lights up like a kid on christmas day. “then i’ll let you buy me dessert and we can talk.”

TWITTER — SUNDAY MAY 21, 2023

TAGLIST (bold means i couldn’t tag you) — @leclerc16s. @willowpains. @berrnuu. @minkyungseokie. @sassyheroneckgiant. @scott-mccall-could-lift-mjolnir. @nessacarty1. @a1leexxa. @storminacloud. @lovstappen.

note: i hope you liked it. i’m sorry if i forgot to tag you! please let me know what you think, likes and reblogs are greatly appreciated. <3

[epiphainie]

Hey, I know you said you don't wanna get into fandom discourse so feel free to ignore this but I wanted to add something to you metioning yesterday how people talk about Bucktommy always bringing in bvddie/eddie somehow. I feel like a lot of people also expect this from canon including Bucktommy fans? like all the posts about which one will feel like the third wheel or which one's gonna get jealous over the other two spending time together and I find that kind of weird. I don't know if I got my point across but you know what I mean?

Hi anon,

Yeah, I think I get what you mean. Gotta say what I saw in my little corner of the BuckTommy fandom, people are usually having fun with those situations/headcanons than actually expecting something out of canon. But I can guess how a certain part of the fandom really thinks how Buck's relationship with Eddie in the context of BuckTommy must be addressed by the show. And I agree with you in that I find this expectation odd because why must they?

Is it because Buck is into men now that his significant other must address how he is/isn't okay with his friendship with another man? This was never an issue or even a topic of conversation in the narrative for Taylor so I cannot think of any other reason for why it would be for Tommy. Or on the flip side, is it because Buck is dating a man now that Eddie will feel like his time with Buck is being limited? Buck has been in a relationship for the most part of their friendship, why would this one be different that the narrative would need to address it?

I think in general in the fandom, regardless of whether people ship them or not, there's this sentiment that Bvddie has such a special relationship that needs to be addressed by their romantic partners / lampshaded by the narrative which strikes me as odd. Not because they don't have a special relationship - they have a very special relationship - but because the perception and related expectations over how the canon should treat this relationship is very different from something like say Hen and Chim. For every very intense Buck and Eddie story beat in this show, you have an equally insane Hen and Chim one. But you don't see anyone reading that relationship as something that needs to be acknowledged (as a threat or something they're okay with) by their spouses. It's an emotionally codependent friendship between a straight man and a lesbian. Not that sexual compatibility matters but they are not interested in each other that way and their partners don't even think about that.

So why would this be any different for Buck (a bi man) and Eddie (a straight man)? Like, even the idea that it must be acknowledged differently by the narrative kinda brings me back to negative stereotypes about queer men and their straight friends even though I know most people don't mean it that way.

Honestly, I kinda think it just comes back to fandoms' urge to read the intensity of relationships as romantic when it comes to two attractive men in a way we don't do with other characters. I say we because I've had my share of fandoms and almost exclusively shipped the two guys who were not canon; we just read more into these relationships regardless of whether we actively ship it or not. Like I said, Hen and Chim have some of the insanest relationship moments in this show. Like, can you imagine if something like Jonah happened to Buck and he thinks he's gonna hurt Tommy to get to him but he actually has Eddie and tortures him in front of Buck? Or if Eddie opposes Buck and Tommy getting married like Hen did with Maddie, for example. They would most certainly be read as romantic even if we had the same textual explanation as we did with Hen and Chim.

But the truth is, there is no relationship hierarchy. Platonic relationships can be as deep as romantic ones, what sets them apart is not the degree to how intense they can be, it's the flavor. And as it stands, I don't think the show treats Buck and Eddie's relationship with any different flavor than it does Hen and Chim despite how we treat it in the fandom. And sure, this does not mean realistically no love interest would be weirded out by their friendship (and negative stereotypes about bi people exist in the lgbtq community as well so that could happen too) but I don't see why the narrative would need to go there with Tommy. Like, what would be the purpose of it in-story? The acknowledgment of it would just further perpetuate the queer man in love with his bff thing that we know they said they don't wanna do. They should (and imo will) treat it as they do treat the other platonic relationships on the show.

I'm sorry, this got derailed at one point but whatever, send.

[9w1ft]

i wanna be LSK but… //

I’m so sorry anon, but I personally find it really funny when people hear the songs where taylor is working through her feelings of being betrayed by Scott B and attribute them to karlie instead.

It’s like finding a man holding a gun standing over a dead body and saying, hang on a minute… what if the real murderer is the victim’s gf… because two of her friends liked a gossipy tweet written by a known shit-stirrer!

that is to say, we know for a fact that taylor felt deeply betrayed by scott b, seeing as he’s verifiably the actual person who sold her masters to scooter, after treating taylor like family since she was very young. it’s pretty self-evident he deserves the level of vitriol in the smallest man who ever lived (besides the other descriptive details that link him to tsmwel, mtr etc).

as for taylor and karlie suddenly never being seen together again (seemingly drifting apart a whole year before the heist even happened, remember?), well she hasn’t spoken on that, so naturally we read between the lines in the songs to find out. some people have taken the masters heist songs to be about karlie, and ran with that. but others see karlie and taylor’s retreat into privacy reflected in songs under the ‘love blackout’ theme (especially around here, you’re on a longtime kaylor blog 🙈)

love blackout = the hints taylor has put out again and again that she intentionally distanced her public image from karlie’s because it was too dangerous to carry on as openly as they had at first. 2016 election sadness themes, secret love themes, all consistent over the years. all while writing new love songs that use callbacks to the rep muse, to yail even 🥺. as if taylor’s been using all the confusion and her masterful quill of misdirection to achieve her priority of protecting karlie. not protecting karlie’s public image and clout with swifties, which she doesn’t need to maintain her success because she was always successful in her own right! no, it’s all for Karlie The Person in their secret bubble of reality. all this showmanship, you know. the great war, hello!!!! too many songs to name where the kaylor chandelier is safely out of sight, but you can still see flickers through the boarded up windows ❣️

so forgive me for having a chuckle. to any anons who sincerely🛸want to believe, I’m just throwing it out there that there are plenty of us that never found the karlie-betrayer theory convincing at all. if you take a closer look at everything, the timeline of events and all the songs since, does it really make sense? (especially when there are so many shitty men in the mix who are more obviously to blame lol)

~ if you post, thank you for facilitating this rant 9wing, I’ll get off my soapbox now xxx

yup yup

i think a lot of people are predisposed to blaming karlie and so everything becomes a sort of confirmation bias.. which partially, i would argue, was by design.. so in a sense i do not fault gaylors or others for falling into this hole. but i do sometimes feel like faulting them a tiny bit for those who never climb out of it. there’s plenty of information and clues needed to figure it out and climb out of it.

one thing i don’t like about the whole “let’s not talk about muses” discourse is while the spirit of it is supposed to be “let’s study why these songs sound gay instead of commenting taylor lyrics on these people’s instagram pages,” in practice the phrasing almost is like giving yourself permission to pass judgement on the people in taylor’s story and then never reevaluate them. people often say ~lets not talk muses that’s invasive and gross~ and conveniently refuse to adjust their perception of karlie (for example) based on what taylor is putting out there, while making convenient exceptions for any interpretation they find that works to reinforce their already negative perception of her. and then after bitching about her they’ll cover their timeline in lisa frank dolphins because apparently that’s what paradise is. i dunno. it all feels dystopian to me atp 😆

[taylortruther]

re your tags "the way taylor views and approaches love is way different than mine" "so in general a lot of her songs don't strike me as super romantic"

promise im not trying to start discourse or anything, im just very curious for you to elaborate on that because i find it fascinating. how exactly do you see the way taylor approaches love, and how is it different from the way you do? and can you elaborate on why you don't find her songs romantic in light of that?

the reason im curious is because ive always felt that some of her songs describing situations i think she finds very romantic, always give me mild ick (namely "the other side of the door," i find the idea of begging for someone back who cheated on you and admitting you "need them" kinda icky, but i think she finds it romantic in a way), so its interesting to me your tags kinda echoed that feeling and im curious for you to elaborate

you dont have to answer if you dont want though

well tldr you know how i am a ~touch grass~ nondramatic blogger? i am that way in my relationships too fjkadsl. and i don't think it's a hot take to say taylor isn't like that. she wants to be a lil melodramatic and romantic and passionate and out of control--she described wanting that (and thinking love should make you go crazy) for a long time. and i like passion and intimacy but i do NOT like feeling out of control and the times i allowed it were bad for me.

BUT!!! the really great thing about taylor's view of love is that we have seen it evolve and grow over time. she's addressed a lot of these things herself, because she's tried to unlearn a lot of behaviors that were hurting her! the archer, and much of lover in particular, is so stunning (to me) for that reason--she goes through her mentality of wanting conflict, going for the jugular, running away when things got hard or scary, icing out her partner, and basically begs him to help her through it. she said in so many ways, "don't let me let you go because i am my own worst enemy and i want to learn to be a good partner, not someone who cuts and runs." ie, she learned that cruelty works in movies, but life isn't a movie, life is about support and having healthy conflict so you can grow together. significantly different from "if this was a movie, you'd be here by now." i think she's been really clear about putting the work in and i love that and i will acknowledge that forever because it is hard to change, and she doesn't get enough credit for it within the fandom.

and this is completely normal/expected when you look at the maturity and growth of a high schooler to a 33-year-old woman. you live and you learn! it's really fascinating to see taylor do that in front of us, and i feel lucky she shares that with us.

but in general think taylor is also really driven by proving people wrong, and romanticizes her struggles more than i do--it is what makes her such a hard worker and beautiful artist and so growth-oriented. i'm not like that at all LMAO. like, i grow but i am just... different in my approach. and that's neither good nor bad for either of us.

[sophietv]

Hey! I’m hoping you can help me process my thoughts surrounding the love blackout so to speak. I’m having a really hard time understanding why it’s still necessary for Kaylor to present publicly as though they’re not in each others lives. I mean, like 99% of the fandom that aren’t lsk wouldn’t even think anything of it if they were seen hanging out again or if Karlie attended a show. They’d just be like, cool, guess they made up or are friends still and they’d move on. It was fun to pick up on the Easter eggs and the flagging between the two of them at first but it’s starting to just get exhausting when it’s been literal years since we’ve seen them together 😭 Like if they are in fact in each others lives why the blackout still. What does it achieve?

Hi!

It's a question that comes up a lot. And I do get why people are asking this question and here's my thoughts on this (it is my interpretation, I could be totally wrong too and there migth be so much more that I don't even thought about...).

So sorry... still writing this and looks like it's gonna be another novel reply lol.

For those of you who will read this and are not LSK. Well this is a LSK post. And this post will entertain the fact that LSK theories are right. It will be kind of deep thoughts, so it necessitate being open minded. If you are unconfortable with LSK theories, you might like to skip this one.

The "frienship" reunion and what it would imply

99% of the fandom are not LSK for a reason.

Ok a big chunk of that fandom is because they are not even Gaylors to start with.

But as for the Gaylors who are not LSK and are very loudly posting everyday that Kaylor is over. It is exactly because of the love blackout. (X) It's because Taylor and Karlie have not been seen together publicly since 2018.

In 2016 when they stopped interacting publicly and on social medias. The Kaylor narrative died down a lot with it. New muses where theorised and less and less people talked about Kaylor. We need to remember that even if Gaylors were an insignificant amount of people at that time. What was being said online impacted what medias said too. There was articles about Gaylors theories back at that time too. And this even impacted some Swifties. Then Kaylor narrative picked up a little bit in 2018 with the reputation reunion. But even then, it was toned down a lot due to the fact that Karlie was engaged and about to get married. When Taylor started being loud about coming out and flagging Karlie a lot in 2019. Kaylor narrative was loud again. But there was the secong wedding and everything and this kept it under control too. All that to say. That I don't think we can safely say that it would mean nothing. Or not impact Kaylor and the conversation that will be going on online if they are ever seen publicly again. Because it was very intentionally controled over all those years, for that narrative to be tamed.

But them being publicly linked again, would be confirmation enough for A LOT of Gaylors. It would take off the only thing that's been holding off some. Then there would be the Swifties narrative as well as the public one. Ultimately, one of the reason that Swifties hate Karlie so much and us talking about her, is specifically the fact that there's so much "proofs" about them having been a thing. That it's the principal "threat" to their straight image that they have of Taylor. A public reunion will lead to an increase in gaylor discourse online, wich would lead to an increase in public discourse about Kaylor too (think of the number of Gaylors mainstream articles there's been in the last year only). Gaylors have exploded over the years. So an increase in people talking loudly about them being together would be considerable. This leads me to another point. Taylor have been able to be so truthful in her songs and her flagging in the last years. Part of that freedom comes from most people believing that Kaylor is over.

Being friend publicly again with Karlie would impact her ability to be as transparant in her art. And, as long as she doesn't come out, this is one of the only way she has to express herself and be herself freely and feel seen by a bigger and bigger part of the fandom. This is not nothing. Nothing should keep this from her.

The implications of a Kaylor coming out

If Taylor ever wants to come out and finally be seen by the public. And if she doesn't want to be fully out with Karlie and the children at the same time. This can't be achieve with them being publicly friends again, for all the reasons stated above.

A Kaylor coming out would not be nothing. There's so much layers of implications and complications to consider. Depending on the narrative Taylor decides to play there's not many simple options:

Being truthful and explaining how it was her all along would invalidate all of her PR relationships she's had since 2014. That's 4 (if you count he who shall not be named). This would fuel the : Taylor lied to us narrative. This would mean having a lot of explanations to do with the children and everything. It would require a tell all. And this would be a massive call out to the industry. This would truly be epic. But not without serious consequences and push backs from the industry. Also all of the Joshlie narrative would be messed up. Josh would have to come out too. This would be really complicated to explain with the children and everything and would make a scandal. Not only in the music industry. And there might be a lot of push backs from Josh's family too. I'm sure there's a way of doing this. And turning all of this. And I'm convinced Taylor have the right people around her to work this all out. But we can't deny that it won't be anything but simple.

Going with the betrayal narrative and "breakup" to exlude the children. Would be a way to do it I guess. But this would mean that Taylor would never be able to call her potential children hers. And when people would start looking into it. It would be dificult to explain the Kaylor and Joshlie timeline crossovers. Especially with things like Kissgate being really public... So this strategy implies a lot of the difficulties of option 1.

Trying the: we were friends and fell in love only recently narrative. This one could work. Thankully the GP is gullible. But to wich extent?

There's so much Kaylors content and evidences out there, that this would be sooo complicated to play. If even possible.

Maybe there's more options and I don't see them because, well I'm not working in this world and there's so much I don't know... But yeah, the way I see it, there's no easy, simple and without serious potential consequences ways to do it. This is even if Taylor wants this part of her life out There's a real possibility that Kaylor will never come out.

And we need to be ok with this.

There's a real possibility that Taylor wants to protect what she and Karlie and the children have and doesn't want it to be broadly known. Like she sang in Peace and explained on her Musicians On Musicians interview. She would wish a normal life for her and her family. And knows that ultimately she can't offer them this with her fame and everything. But maybe, right now, this is the closest they can have it. And maybe they want to keep it that way, and it's ok.

And just like Taylor never has to come out. No matter how satisfying and validating it would be for Gaylors to be: See! I was right all along!

She doesn't need to give more validations to Kaylors.

I don't think we should see their flagging as ultimately clues that will lead to some big finish like this. It's really hard. Especially considering the hate Kaylors are getting. But I really think we should just take all the flagging that they are both doing as a way to letting us in on their life.

Offering us this unique privilege.

With nothing more to be expected from it.

When we put all of the hate, the (very normal and legitimate) want to be proven right and validated.

We are actually so lucky to be privy of this beautiful love story. To be trusted by Taylor and Karlie with those glimpses of their love. Personnally I'm honnored with only the chance to witness just this small part.

Ok this was really long. I'm sorry again... I fear we have to admit that novel answers are a very real risk when you guys ask me anons lol.

I hope this answered your question.

[sky-is-the-limit]

The bucktommy shippers really don’t understand anything related to this show to a baffling degree. A lot of them have literally just started watching the show since bi Buck became canon and they just have no clue what they’re talking about. I have been here since the beginning of season 3, and have been a dedicated Buddie shipper not because I just want to see men kiss but because they genuinely have the potential to be an amazing queer slowburn and their chemistry is top tier. Anyway I just want to say a few things.

Firstly, we don’t dislike the finale because of one 55 scene bffr. We dislike the finale because it took away a daughter from a lesbian couple and gave her to a straight couple (albeit probably temporarily), because the pacing was super weird and nothing seemed to have any emotional weight, and because they brought back a geriatric racist misogynist freak of a man for no reason.

Also the “Ryan doesn’t want Eddie to be gay” stuff is nonsense. Ryan is literally the person who came up with Buddie as a shipname, I’m dead serious him and Oliver were discussing what it would be and Ryan picked Buddie! He’s been supportive of the ship since the very beginning. He’s always said that he’s open to the possibility of Buddie happening. Him referring to Eddie as heterosexual means literally nothing because Oliver was also obviously not calling Buck bi before it became canon in the show. Ryan calls Eddie hetero because that’s canon, he can’t just say whatever he has to stick to what is shown in the show. Also they’re very conveniently forgetting the interviews with Ryan that were released after the finale in which he says that Eddie is no longer looking for a mother for Chris, that with Buck he can see what it’s like to have someone at his side to always have his back as opposed to how it was with his ex-wife, and he also used the word partner and referred to Eddie’s future love interest in a gender neutral way.

On top of that Oliver is a very transparent guy, he’s an actor but he can’t pretend to like people or storylines for the life of him. When Buck was together with Taylor, Oliver made it very clear how much he hated that ship on his social media. Now with BuckTommy he never shares or interacts with anything from that ship, the only time he did was some fanart of their first kiss and that makes a lot of sense because that’s when bi Buck became canon. But since then, not a word from him, the only things he posts and interacts with are Buddie related or just more generally related to the whole show. It’s very clear what his preference is, and even though he isn’t the writer he’s still number 3 on the call sheet and if he cannot be bothered to put his all into BuckTommy scenes because he hates that ship, eventually the writers won’t really have a choice.

Also anyone with common sense can tell after that finale that Buddie are endgame, it’s so incredibly clear which ship has the chemistry and emotional depth to last in the long-term, and it’s not the ones in that 55 second scene.

I hear you!!!

My main concern with this entire discourse, is that people are putting words into the acotrs' mouths and share it as factual.

I don't have much to add due to my extremely limited (to zero) knowledge but yesterday I watched another episode from s6 (I tune in whenever they show a random episode at 2am 😭) where Buck passed out on Eddie's couch as he was getting them beers and that was such a cute, intimate scene!! I can definitely see the chemistry between the characters.

[nancydrewwouldnever]

This is why I don’t believe Taylor and Travis are PR. Neither of them need it. Her film is going to sell out without Travis just like her tour. He is riding high from another Super Bowl win, the hottest sports podcast out there, and gigs outside of football (like SNL prior to Taylor). This is a new relationship who understands that public attention will happen and how to manage it. End of story.//

So we are all going to forget the whole discourse about Taylor dating a racist prior to this,the Ice spice discourse and the fact that people were calling out her brand of white feminism that she only uses when it serves her?! People made think pieces and videos with thousands of views, esp poc. The constant comparison with the greatest artists who also happen to be black.

She needed to get back to being America's sweetheart and what better way than to date the football jock! I'm surprised no one has put two and two together. 🤷🏾‍♀️

PR is literally Public relations, not just for the sake of money or sales but Public perception. He also gets to transition into a whole new career.

Again, it goes without saying, PR relationships are not inherently fake, but they are meant to generate interest or change public perceptions .This is surely doing that.

Very true.

[orchidsangel]

okay so i’m usually more of a silent follower (i’ve only like sent one ask ever) but i kinda love your posts/talks about things that you love (even if it’s not necessarily something i care about,,i just love it when people talk about their interests it’s amazing),, so i’m kinda curious about why do you think sos should have won over midnights,,, not saying that sos is bad or anything i actually love the album and sza but i was rooting for midnights honestly and personally think it deserves the title for many reasons,,, like i’m NOT saying that sos didn’t deserve to be aoty on the contrary, all the albums that were nominated are amazing and all had their big impact and the title is very subjective and ngl, this is one of those years where the nominees are all so good it’s actually quite a tough competition to choose between, but personally i found that midnights deserved it the most so i’m actually really curious to know your opinion on why sos should have gotten it

(i’ve already seen so much discourse about this for the past week on twitter but obviously. it’s twitter. so they don’t have any valable reasons except just pure hatred, misogyny, slut shaming and obviously racism)

Okay, so first off, thank you for sending in this ask and allowing me to speak about something I care about!! Second of all, when you added racism in the "don't have any valuable reasons section" what did you mean by that? I'm not coming for you or anything. I'm just curious if you meant racism towards Taylor or if you mean racism towards SZA.

anyways, now for my thoughts.

So, while I obviously agree that SOS is a great album, the part I disagree with is Midnights being a good album. I don't like it; I never did, and I probably never will. And this isn't me being a Taylor hater; I am a Taylor Swift enjoyer and have sat down and listened to a few of her albums. While none of them absolutely stunned me, I do think she's an overall good musician and can make a relatively good body of work. Midnights is a snoozefest. It's boring and doesn't hold a candle to the rest of her discography, which I feel fine saying because I know there are a significant amount of swifties and non-swifties alike that agree.

To me, midnights is nothing special, and most of the songs blend together. It's not completely bad, though; it has its good moments, but the many cons, i.e., boring instrumentals, mediocre lyrics, no super deep meanings, etc. outweigh the very few pros, i.e., Snow On The Beach ft. Lana Del Rey, but more importantly, Snow On The Beach ft. more Lana del Rey. And I just can't get behind Midnight's winning album of the year after being the pinnacle of mediocrity.

Now, if you wanna talk about impact, let's talk about impact. Midnights broke tons of records, most notably taking up all ten top spots on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, a feat that no other artist has managed to accomplish. But that wasn't because the album was good or because the general public was tuned in; it's because of streaming culture, because, like most fandoms these days, swifties are rabid and reaching for the charts. That, combined with the sheer size of Taylor Swift's fanbase, means that the album was bound to do well regardless of whether it was good or not.

SOS, on the other hand, obviously didn't chart nearly as well as midnights (although it definitely did chart, like, let's get that straight bc Snooze didn't leave the chart at all last year). But that doesn't automatically mean that it was less impactful, because charts aren't that reliable these days so you have to find other means of calculating impact, and this is when we turn to social media.

(I'll be using tiktok for reference as I feel that since the app relies on music as its #1 source of content, that's the best representation for my argument)

So I'm an avid TikTok user, chronically online, way too invested in drama that doesn't involve me, a loser, blah blah blah whatever, who cares. The point is that I spend enough time on TikTok to be able to observe many different trends going on at the same time and their musical origins. There are so. many. songs. on SOS that trended on tiktok. You could not escape SZA on that app, not even if you wanted to.

Kill Bill, Seek & Destroy, Low, Blind, Snooze, Ghost in the Machine, Shirt, I Hate U, Good Days, etc.

All songs that I've heard on TikTok at one point or another, some of them having their own designated trends to go along with certain lines, and I'm sure there's more I missed.

This specific point means so much to me because I need you to understand that I didn't listen to SOS in full until WAY into 2023 (the album came out in 2022 for reference), and each track was so familiar because I had already heard so many of them on TikTok.

Now, I'm not saying that there weren't any songs on midnights that trended on TikTok. Obviously, there were. i.e., Karma, bejeweled, Midnight Rain, that one part in The Great War, etc., but when I say that most of the songs from Midnights that trended on TikTok were pretty much always used in the context of Taylor Swift, I mean that. I cannot stress this enough. If there was a song from Midnights playing in the video, then I can guarantee that Taylor was being mentioned in that same video, whether it be the eras tour, speculation about her and Joe Alwyn's breakup, her and Travis Kelce, speculation about which Taylor's version album was coming out next, or literally anything pertaining to her at all.

You might think that this is a stupid point, but to me, it's a good example of the fact that it wasn't an album the general public was interested in. And I think for an award like Album of the Year at the Grammys, the album in question should be one that is either objectively good, incredibly poetic, and thoughtful with a deep message, or beloved by the general public, and midnights wasn't any of those.

As for the misogyny and slutshaming, I'd never in a million years agree with that and don't condone that by any means. Pure hatred, if unwarranted, isn't something I really care about either because I'm a hater at my core and have a lot of one-sided beef with people who don't know me. But I will say that most people I know who don't like Taylor Swift do actually have one or two valid reasons. It's not that hard to find them, what with white feminism, not using her platform for good, dating a known racist, and committing ecological warfare, amongst other things.

If the racism you're referring to is in regards to people bringing up her privilege as a white woman, and it bothers you that people are bringing it up, then I'm sorry, but I'm not the person you want to talk to about that because I won't agree. The Grammys have a history of snubbing black and POC artists in general to favor their white counterparts; in fact, the entire music industry has a history of it, and this situation isn't any different in my eyes.

Anyway, that's most of all I have to say. Thank you for asking again, I'd love to hear why you thought Midnights should have won.

[jewishbarbies]

If we’re having a discussion about Swifties and anti-semitism, I want to I bring up how anti-Semitic a lot of the gaylor/kaylor discourse is. This is specific to the Kaylor theories. I want to preface this by saying that I don’t like Karlie Kloss or the Kushners, nor do I think they are good people and this opinion has nothing to do with Taylor Swift or the fact that they are Jewish and everything to do with the Trump association. That being said, it’s always made me really uncomfortable how so many gaylor/kaylors have created this narrative that Karlie Kloss was somehow forced to marry Josh Kushner as a beard. And the reason that Karlie and Taylor can’t be together is because the Kushners and Scooter Braun “conspired” to trap Karlie and keep them apart. This narrative claims that Scooter was holding Karlie hostage via her contract and has been forcing her to do things, like marry Josh, and Taylor tried and failed to “rescue” Karlie.

Almost the entire Kaylor narrative and rationale for why Taylor and Karlie aren’t publicly out right now rests on the idea that these awful Jewish men have conspired to trap this blonde haired Aryan woman and are tormenting another blonde haired Aryan woman. It’s absolutely disgusting and plays on so many anti-Semitic tropes. It’s always bothered me. And that’s before you even start poking holes and realizing none of this makes any sense. Karlie CHOSE to marry Josh and chose to convert to Judaism and raise her children in the Jewish faith.

This theory robs Karlie Kloss of her agency and portrays Taylor Swift as a victim and once again scapegoats Jewish people. Very few Swifties, even those that claim to be anti-gaylor, talk about this. It’s maddening and really disturbing.

I wanna make a note up front that it’s antisemitism, not anti-semitism, and it’s an important distinction. no harm done here or anything, I just want to let everyone know the proper spelling bc I see the hyphened version too much.

I’ve seen so much racism and antisemitism from kaylors. it’s truly a problem with them. supposedly the kushner karlie married isn’t closely associated with his family because he’s not republican and instead more liberal, but the running idea was that taylor stopped being friends with karlie because a lot of people would assume he was a Kushner and it would make Taylor look bad. however, if that’s true…i wanna know why taylor has no problem associating with and sleeping with horrible men. more misogyny I’m guessing. but I definitely agree with what you’ve said here. it’s despicable the way her fans talk about jewish people at all in her sphere and I’m getting tired of their ignorance. idk why but kaylors are particularly bigoted, which is weird considering they’re obsessed with making everyone gay.

[laikahh]

explaining every song on my ngro playlist cause im bored as fuck yayyy . feel free to ignore the shit out of this post as it is Nothing

keep in mind this is supposed to be listened to in the order i put the songs in 👍 its like Chronological and shit. its their road to world cup...........

enter goddess by nigel godrich (from the scott pilgrim vs the world soundtrack) - i wanted to have an instrumental track on this playlist so that i could feel superior to others. i dont really have any like Deep Analysis of the song itself locked and loaded rn but the title reminds me of how both nagis and reos lives were literally Nothing before the other showed up. like yeah sure reo had like. being rich? and nagi had Video Game but. you know what i mean uve read the manga too. ALSO this is like such a nagi pov song to me... reo just thought nagi was a little freak that could be good at soccer maybe but i truly do believe nagi fell in love right then and there on those stairs <- no he didnt

harness your hopes - b-side by pavement - well this song to me is a whole lot of words so i dont have much to say. but like reo sure as hell kinda did harness his hopes on just one person. so yeah.

scott pilgrim by plumtree - so many scott pilgrim songs at the beginning of this playlist this is so embarrassing i have watched one movie. its a little bit nagi pov to me. i think hes down horrendous for jeff bezos jr.

you belong to no-one (but i belong to you) by dead slow hoot - well i know nobody is forcing me to write this post but like i dont want to explain this one . it fits!

there is a light that never goes out by the smiths - reminded me of nagis dont die before i do bullshit. i think he would be so down to die by reos side like he really would not mind getting hit by that double decker bus. also the lines about home (in the context of ngro. and just overall when listening to this song outside of my yaoi playlist) make me crazy?

by your side by beachwood sparks - their promise to stay together............ i will kill msyelf\

drain you by nirvana - im honestly not sure about the placement of this song. it definitely reminds me of them so i dont wanna delete it but. augh. but yeah theyre both so normal about each other & im sure staying together forever would do them wonders

lounge act by nirvana - every nirvana song on this brain turn off . anyway Bye Reo

i guess by mitski - the lets meet again beyond our dreams panels sound like this

i just threw out the love of my dreams by weezer - reo breakup blues . its a weezer song i dont wanna talk about it

why didnt you stop me by mitski - moreee reo breakup blues. this one doesnt exactly fit but im so used to it being here going straight from i just threw out the love of my dreams to the next one on this list would sent me into cardiac arrest

ill see you when were both not so emotional by american football - haha i put a midwest emo (dont talk to me about is american football midwest emo discourse) song on this playlist. do the nagireo (taylors version) playlist havers even know what midwest emo is? no the fuck they dont. i am better than them. anyway read the lyrics and Trust Me on this one okay? trust is very important in a relationship.

goodbye my danish sweetheart by mitski - listen either you are a teenage girl who had what reo thought happened to him happen to you irl at the same time you first got into this manga and you Get It or youre Not and you Dont. simple as that. support group for girls who are like reo mikage if reo mikage was worse and also not rich

drunk walk home by mitski - i really wish i could images in this post without fucking up my formatting. anyway google "episode nagi im not your toy reo panel"

running up that hill by kate bush (car seat headrest cover) - well i mean . they do not fucking Get one another. so. csh cover cause theyre sad teenage fa[i am dragged off stage] [I CAN RECLAIM BTW]

pantyhose by tv girl - i am thinking about nagis gloves. he got them from reo... did you guys know that...... and i mean they were divorced as fuck during the u20 game......... i am going to jump i am not kidding i Will do it

tommys party by peach pit - blue lock fandom heaven is nagi seishiro hell its a very efficient system. shibuya mustve been great for nagi . like hi reo has new friends now and hes hanging out w them and having fun. talking about stocks and shit (desperately checking his phone to see if nagi has texted him but its not like nagi knows this)

creatures in heaven by glass animals - i miss my wife choki. i miss her a lot

pork soda by glass animals - early manshine... before the basmun game... wahhh wah waahh

pink in the night by mitski - can i try again try again try again and again and again and again and again and again and again. i need you reo.

i want you by mitski - reo pov of this ^ whole event. kinda. it Kinda fits i rly ran out of manshine songs...

breed by nirvana - i see a lot of people say that kurt cobain described this song as being about marrying you high school sweetheart at 18 and having a baby and fucking hating it in an interview somewhere but i cannot find a solid source for that. even if he Did Not Fucking Say That i still like this interpretation of the song so its what im running with. basically um their current relationship is Not Good? so unless they improve (begging reo to give you some new heat does not count as improving nagi. telling nagi that you have a play also doesn not count as improving reo.) im trapping them in married at 18 jail. ill move this song to a different part of the playlist if they stop sucking sometime soon but for now its staying here.

✌

[tayloralisonswift]

hello, previous anon here! I’ll try to explain more of what I mean.

first, imo the concept of a “breakup album” really only applies to an album about a broken romantic relationship that comes out relatively soon after an artist’s breakup. taylor’s next new album would be more “breakup album” material (assuming she doesn’t have any breakups between now and then). but depending on when that album comes out, if it’s like 2 years from now, well, the song material would really dictate whether it’s a “breakup album.” if she writes about non-relationship stuff, I don’t think it should be considered a “breakup album.” the first part of my argument is that there is some intellectual reason for albums to be considered “breakup albums.” there’s existing discourse (academic and pop culture) about these types of albums specifically, so it’s not a categorization to throw around as lightly as people like to.

second, humans never have knowledge of the future. reinterpreting art that came out in the year 1950 with the lens/values/culture of the 2020s obviously comes with some nuance and gray areas that people interpreting art have to tackle. that’s why we understand that, okay, maybe some lyrics seem dated or inappropriate today. of course you take into account what was happening in the artist’s life before the album was released. and 1950s album is going to sound way different than a 2020s album too. point is, there are plenty of parts of an older piece of art that are explainable because of a time difference between its creation and when someone is opining about it, or because of biographical reasons. but there are some parts that aren’t explainable in that way, and it’s also unrealistic to say that every artist will have made art about (for example) their breakup to happen in the future. no one of us could have really known what taylor and joe were feeling when midnights came out. obviously everyone had interpretations of songs that were more positive or negative about their relationship than other people’s interpretations. consensus, though, was generally that they were pretty happy and solid. most people were not claiming midnights was a breakup album…yet. so another part of my argument is that swifties writ large only claimed midnights was a breakup album after the breakup. that doesn’t pass the basic smell tests of “did you put some legitimate thought into why midnights belongs in the genre of ‘breakup albums?’” and “are you assuming you can figure out taylor’s feelings more than you actually can ever know?” if someone would have answered yes to the first, they were probably in a small minority pre-joever, ie not part of the consensus. saying yes to the second is also usually something that delegitimizes lyric interpretations.

to me it seems like the swiftie habit of saying “omg ___ is a breakup song, it makes so much sense now!” or “think about *insert lyric here* in the context of joever” is rooted also in online-ness and/or sensationalism for clout. this might just be my narrow viewpoint, but most of the times when I see someone claiming midnights is a breakup album, they’re doing it with that kind of internet cookie-cutter speak that gets interactions. something like “I want to d*e because I thought about how sweet nothing is about wanting nothing and him not even being able to give her that.” or a 3 minute tiktok analyzing a single line like “you don’t really read into my melancholia” and concluding that, omg of course we should have seen joever coming, she said he wasn’t even paying attention to her feelings. I’m being hyperbolic, but you get the picture. it’s literally just swifties discovering dramatic irony. those readings against the grain were always possible, it’s just that most people didn’t do them because they didn’t think they were real/valid/realistic. because joe and taylor were still together. so if you read it that their relationship was anything but solid you were just wrong. you were not using your brain to see the obviously more correct interpretation. you were not worth listening to. and therefore you could not influence the consensus.

the reason the tide shifted is that it was joever, and then people engaged in the noble and favorite pastime of analyzing taylor’s lyrics, and then internet and social dynanics took over, and popular interpretation shifted to “midnights is a breakup album” because of many and/or vocal people engaging in small acts of sensationalism and internet-izing their discovery of dramatic irony. I’m of course not saying everyone did this, nor that the people who did are evil for doing this, nor that they were trying to be anti-intellectual, nor that any one person having such a realization is dumb or anti-intellectual on its own. it’s more the collective effect is anti-intellectual.

anxiety about the general state of culture and thought aside, I’m sad that swiftie culture makes those kinds of sensational lyric analyses some of the most valuable. I would much rather hold other virtues, like thinking lyrical analysis is good because it’s unique or different or makes you inspired to find other connections.

hopefully that makes sense, I’m really not trying to be a hater, just trying to have a conversation about an unpopular opinion! love to you, kathryn 🩵

I realized i never posted this!

I think I’m probably someone you’re criticizing here, but your opinion is valid ! 🩷

[tayfabe75]

I love your thoughtful opinions on things! It would be great to read some more of your thoughts. 

What do you think happened with the collab, do you think the reason was only because of the hate? And do you think they might release it anytime soon? I mean, it's no secret anymore that it exists, and now a lot of people really want to hear it, like there is the logic in just releasing it now.

And what do you think about Matty's verse? I read that people think his lyrics are terrible, but I really liked them, I think it matches the vibe of the song. And "then she called me a gentleman" will haunt me forever 😭

Sorry if this was too many questions 😅 these two just live rent free in my head 

Hi anon! Oh, trust me, these two live rent-free in my head, too. Or, perhaps I should say that the Fearless Love Gaze™ acted as an advance rent payment for some indefinite period. Probably a while. Also, never too many questions! I love answering questions.

When it comes to speculation, I live in a very weird nebulous state where I can see several different viable realities at once. Before I give my opinions I want to preface a little bit…

I don't base any of my opinions or speculation on gossip sites (including longtime assumptions regarding who this or that song is about - you'd be shocked easy many are to debunk, actually). I mostly speculate based on lyrics first and foremost, things that I can prove Taylor or Matty have said or done (with the understanding that they are also unreliable narrators when necessary, as 'Dear Reader' suggests). That said:

What I think happened with the collab:

My best "inside-the-box" guess about what happened with the collab was what I stated previously, but the "cliffs notes" version is that it seems most likely to me that Matty would have requested to pull the collaboration because of the hate campaign against him. As the lead singer of The 1975, he's something of a spearhead or mouthpiece for their band and tour, and dating Taylor put him at the center of our current cultural Panopticon. They might've broken up, gone on break, or distanced themselves from each other for optics.

However, I prefer my best "outside-the-box" guess: Taylor and Matty never broke up. They just want us to think that they did. In actuality, they are proud partners in crime currently writing their Kayfabian 'Love Story' (with the help of Brad Troemel and I would wager to guess, many others). They're pulling a Robbers-style heist on the media and celebrity culture as we know it, and they have us right where they want us: engaging in discourse about the collab.

What I think might happen with the collab:

If my first guess is accurate - Probably nothing will ever come of it. I personally hate this scenario, and not even because I don't get to hear the collab of my dreams, but because then it means the hate mob won. Taylor is about as close as Americans get to having royalty, and I guess that means she's what, beholden to medieval values of her many subjects (fans)? Look at how they rejoice in this strange cultural alliance with the NFL that came as a result of a 'betrothal' to the All-American football Prince. However, the video for Bejeweled mocks this idea. Alexa, play Lavender Haze!

The only kinda girl they see is a one night or a wife I'm damned if I do give a damn what people say. No deal, the 1950s shit they want from me

Meanwhile, Taylor has likened herself to Juliet since at least 2007/8. The entire point of writing 'Love Story' was to change the ending so Romeo and Juliet could be together.

In this scenario, we probably will get the collaboration! When? Whew, well…

Disclaimer: Wild speculation ahead!

As I've said, "Slut!" feels cyclical to me. In 2014, Taylor described herself as being a "lightning rod for slut-shaming" and she's been quoted as saying, "People often greatly underestimate how much I will inconvenience myself to prove a point." I get the sense that she could coax the world into slut-shaming her more overtly (just after they all streamed the hell out of "Slut!", how poetic that would be!), as right now the public is very interested in this whole "betrothal" storyline going on with a certain football star. The world, so it believes, took away her "bad bad boy shiny toy with a price" and if "Slut!" is any indication, she still wants it: "we'll pay the price, I guess"

That would be he perfect time to drop the rumored music video to accompany it (especially if say, they happen to have some kind of archival footage from 2014).

Again, this is all under the assumption that this is all an elaborate Kayfabian ruse. Let the fans choose her Kens and "play Barbies" until she burns down the dollhouse… While this sounds perhaps callous on its surface (especially for supporters of her current pairing) but… she already told us: This is why we can't have nice things.

But Mark my words: Taylor choosing Matty over a beloved "Chad" in such an overt way could be the catalyst for the cultural reset we desperately need. But that's a different tangent… back to "Slut!"

My thoughts on Matty's (alleged) verse:

I am going to take a wild guess and assume you saw people making fun of the lyrics on Twitter, aka the place where all benefit of the doubt goes to die. What people who simply read the lyrics and judge them to be "bad" are missing is… the melody! Matty's verse is longer than its replacement by one line, but you can kind of sing along with Taylor's second verse, let me try to help by putting them side-by-side with Taylor's lines:

Lights blink // Send the losing // code, he's my mind // waiting What // there we think // the sticks happens // and stones to rhyme // they throw I // Froze drink, drink // mid-air Fortune timing // Everyone's wants him Days shrink into long nights now // that was my crime (sing fast!) Plus 44 // the wrong place on an American phone // at the right time Cat eye // and I running down // break down her cheekbone // then he's But it's elegant // pullin' me in (sing fast!) I tell her, "You are not a slut, // in a world of boys You're just relevant" // he's a gentleman

It's also hard to judge the lyrics without hearing how Matty would sing them, right? Like go ahead and make fun of the 'relevant' line if you must, but I bet his inflection is what makes it.

So, are the lyrics "good"? Well, here's what I will say: it's much easier to criticize someone else's art than to share your own. Regardless of whether or not Matty did pen these lines, gotta admit, I like them (especially correctly paired with the melody). They seem specific to the point that they are likely inside jokes that only Tatty would fully understand, particularly the word most often criticized: "relevant", which I think Matty gave a clever nod to on Chicken Shop Date.

Apart from that, these 'new' lyrics feel Tatty-coded in that they might be self-referential. Considering most people still don't believe 'About You' is actually about Taylor (despite Matty heavily insinuating that it is on multiple occasions, for instance: 1, 2, 3), I won't even bother going into possible parallels…

Anyway, even before the alleged "leak", I felt quite confident that this song was about him (and that The 1975 were always meant to feature on 1989). The "leak" did nothing but validate my suspicions.

[thesinglesjukebox]

SEXYY RED - "POUND TOWN"

They were gonna find out anyway...

[5.69]

Crystal Leww: When I was in high school, I went over to a friend's house to work on a school project together, and she put on "Ms. New Booty" by Bubba Sparxxx. As teenagers, we were absolutely shrieking at that chorus, just like jumping up and down, hyped up on 7-11 Big Gulp soda. It is still one of the most viscerally funny, goofiest, most unserious things I've ever heard in music. I hope that feeling that I bottled up and hold dear to my heart even today is what what teens today felt the first time they heard "my coochie pink, my bootyhole brown!" [8]

Joshua Minsoo Kim: It was the pound heard 'round the town, and Sexyy Red became an instant star. It's easy to see why: she's having a total blast here while rapping with minimal effort, in a regular talking cadence. She lets out a laugh or two, throws in casual ad-libs, and says some of the most memorable lines of the year. Kanye talking about bleached assholes was always unrelatable; finally, a bootyhole song for the people. [7]

Ian Mathers: Look, I enjoy my trips to Pound Town as much as the next person, I just have some questions about how the Pound Town tourism board is spending their budget. [5]

Nortey Dowuona: This has been Sexyy Red's year, as last year was GloRilla's year, as last year was Doja Cat's year, as last year was Megan Thee Stallion's year, as last year was Cardi B's year... can we just let them all share the next year? I'm really irritated by the way we hype up a new femme rapper for a year, praise them to the roof and back, then give up on them afterwards (remember Chika? Remember Saweetie? Remember Free JT? Remember Maliibu Miitch? Remember Treety? Remember Dreezy?) We let too many mid male rappers get the chance to drop and hog the discourse with either praise or condemnation and seem to forget that women rappers are just as diversely populated and are good as hell. (REMEMBER CUPCAKKE!!!??) I can't even be too positive about this song cuz I know what happened to literally everybody who we were like, "they so good omg we love them, twerking on the runway" -- not doing that shit this year. All you folks pissed about Yachty making Tame Impala Feeding Music use that anger to engage with the next Rapsody album instead. And "Hellcats SRTs" is the actual best song Sexyy Red has ever done, but it's not as memeable. Fuck this. [9]

Alfred Soto: Wary of stanning for female rap artists who wield vulgarity like an épée -- the fandom, depending on its expression, can look an awful lot like exoticizing -- I resisted Sexyy Red. Her conversational tone reminded me what I admire about the Everyperson anonymity of dance singers from Shannon and Bernard Sumner to Katy B and Peggy Gou. I've accepted "Pound Town." Now, about her embrace of Trump... [7]

Taylor Alatorre: "TRUMP TO CITY: DROP DEAD" [2]

Katherine St Asaph: Please note as you read this score that for our 2023 return, we have also re-curved the rating scale, and the YouTube comments are a [-10]. [0]

Leah Isobel: "Pound Town" works wonders as a comedy bit and as an introduction to Sexyy Red's charismatic delivery -- the way she tosses off That One Line and then audibly starts giggling into the next is star power personified. I'm not sure it functions as well as a song as it does a meme, but that's what "SkeeYee" is for. [6]

Michelle Myers: Sexyy Red has better comedic timing than most professional comics. On "Pound Town," she's playful and winky, delivering unhinged lines about scouting Miami for hoochie daddies and exposing her cheating man (love u baby!). [7]

Wayne Weizhen Zhang: "My coochie pink, my booty-hole brown" was the first line that made me laugh out loud. The rest of "Pound Town" is a treasure trove of deadpan punchlines, from the withering delivery of "I'm out here in Miami," to the feigned imperative of "come suck a bitch toes," to the fourth wall breaking of "I can't say his name, 'cause he be cheating." The Nicki remix, for what it's worth, is an [8]. [7]

Will Adams: Listening to a song shouldn't make me want to furiously smash Logic's nudge function to get the vocal to actually align to the beat. [2]

Jeffrey Brister: Somewhat less...technically complex than "WAP," but I value directness. There's a lot to be said about clever wordplay and all the other literary techniques you want to reference, but sometimes you just need to hear "come suck a bitch toes" and appreciate the simple beauty of being insanely and candidly horny. [7]

Thomas Inskeep: I've been known to enjoy filth, but you've gotta give me something to latch onto. Filth for the sake of filth is just sad. 2 Live Crew, for instance, were filthy, but they at least sounded like they were having fun. John Waters of course glorified in filth in his early work, and made it art. There's no fun or art in "Pound Town"; Sexyy Red just sounds bored and uninspired, like she's just waiting for this to catch on online so she can start cashing checks. I hope she invests well. [0]

Jacob Sujin Kuppermann: Obnoxious! [8]

Jonathan Bradley: During his career peak, even while he was claiming to be the best alive, Jay-Z would often demur about whether he was actually a rapper. He didn't write anything down; he was a businessman; he would retire any minute now. This disengagement with the expectations of art, the notion that creativity might call someone to account and absorb them into a guild with traditions and limitations, has been resisted by other rappers since: Lil B, for instance, switching from Bay Area sneaker raps to rambling psychedelia or such MCs as Blueface or Teejayx6 severing the links between beat and flow. On "Pound Town," Sexyy Red reminds me of how Chicago drill icon Katie Got Bandz mumbled and smirked through her way through her rhymes, as if she were too dangerous to bother trying to be a rapper. Sexyy Red mumbles here, and cuts her lines off into short, simply rhymed taunts, as if she's too hot or maybe too horny to rap properly. She collapses into a giggle half way through some of these missives, switches to a playful sing-song for others, and breezily apologizes for almost giving away a man who's been sneaking around with her ("I love you baby!"). Despite the brooding piano-led beat, which approaches hook-ups the way Nas did paranoia home invasion in "Shoot Em 'Up," it's fun! Sexyy Red does what she wants; why would she bother putting in the effort of rapping properly? And even if "Pound Town" is more languid and less urgently anarchic than "Born By the River," and perhaps less insistent than "SkeeYee," it still has an important message about which parts of Sexyy Red are pink and which parts are brown. [8]

Brad Shoup: The textbook definition of "it ain't that deep". [8]

[Read, comment and vote on The Singles Jukebox ]

[downahill]

not to keep discoursing about the show the summer i turned pretty bc if i wasn't unemployed and back home kickin it every day w my 15 year old sister bestie i never would've watched this show but now that i have. the thing that bothers me most about jeremiah being so fucking annoying in the love triangle is the fact that there IS a potentially interesting storyline in the fact that he's the only openly queer person in the summer house family and that the town of cousins is so invested in this heteronormative vision of summer love through all the rituals of the debs (with the discussion in s1 about them letting two girls be in it together for the first time) so there is like. SOMETHING about the fact that he's so fixated on the one girl who is so approved by his family AND that this is the same girl who his older brother who he always looked up to and who is apparently better at football and liked by their father more is into, alongside the fact that there feels like a subtext in the fact that conrad and belly were initially like yeah jeremiah will just move on from belly after s1 and date someone else (which has like a whiff of a bi slut trope there).

like sure jeremiah is also just into belly but that storyline is so boring and borderline unwatchable in s2 bc. it's conrad. like there's no way she doesn't end up with conrad. BUT it could be so interesting if his continued storyline in the love triangle had more of an element of like interrogating what else might be happening here.

PLUS the context of aunt julia saying that suzannah basically married their father and continued the cycle + belly said laurel was never actually that into her husband and was never romantic with him + the husband said in s1 there were always 3 people in their marriage bc of suzannah. a different jeremiah storyline could also be the catalyst for the moms queerness becoming part of the text instead of the subtext of the show (which also just works within the broader theme of the kids continuing the parents' storylines in different ways, like how belly is like suzannah and is the one tasked w keeping the magic of cousins alive + the steven/shayla/taylor/milo stories echoing the fisher dad's affair + conrad like laurel just refusing to get help while struggling massively w their mental health in s2)

[taylortruther]

Can we please stop being so dramatic about the whole thing. It's been just a couple of days and we're already making things difficult for her talking about it 24/7 and saying things like we've lost all hope in love ?!?!?! That just equals the swiftie who left flowers at her old appartment. No offense here and this is not directly at you, I like how you're handling all these asks but they make me uncomfortable because I'm seeing the same topic on repeat and I'm certainly sure she's not gonna enjoy them if she comes across them either. Especially considering that's not the type of role model she want to be for young people and she has stated that multiple times before. She's not a god, she's no perfect, a relationship is private behind doors, we don't know what for or why they split, it could've been the best decision for both of them actually! "She seemed happy" it's prove we all didn't fucking know a single thing about their real relationship, and that's the truth! So adding that you've lost hope to find true love because of a relationship you've projected in your fantasies, that you have barely seen on screen and you don't even know them, it's so demaging for you and for her actually. Just look at other parents who have been together for more than 20 years or go outside and look around you, focus on your own life and reality. Please, I'm begging. I know it sucks and that it's sad right now, but it's not the end of the world and Taylor herself is precisely fighting her life for people to separate her from her romantic partner and to see her for a real human being completely capable of being on her own!

i get what you're saying tbh and i do agree that perspective is needed. but, like you said, it's been a couple of days. in a week or month, the fandom will have chilled out a bit, everyone is still just reacting about this big news. and i just said in my last ask... we're on taylor swift tumblr on our taylor swift blogs where we come to discuss taylor swift with our taylor swift friends. a taylor swift-dedicated space is the wrong space to be in right now if the discourse is too much. (and i'm not being bitchy or sassy. the discourse was too much for me initially and that's why i wasn't on here much until today.)

but i do want to emphasize that yes, you are right that we do not need to suddenly lose belief in love because taylor and joe broke up. they are just imperfect people, which fans sometimes forget but taylor wants people to remember always (which you said!) my belief in love isn't shaken, and i wish i could share that with others, because it is a little alarming and also sad to see fans struggling in that way. and i think that's why i have sympathy, too. it's beyond taylor and joe, it's personal and taylor/the fandom was a vessel for these hopes, fears, etc.