Bethany Macwana, Staff

Feb. 16 – World Café Live, Philadelphia 

“Hold her while you can, cause someday you won’t get the chance.” 

Walking hand in hand with one of my dearest friends, we make our way down to the World Café Live, ready to enter the world of Stephen Sanchez. The World Café Live might very well be one of the coolest live music venues in the city. This space, which runs as an independent, non-profit, music venue was very neat. The main floor was stocked with a full bar with little bar stools around it. This area overlooks the pit, with the stage set up by the front of the room. Above the bar area, there was a balcony that overlooked the whole space. 

My friend and I went to the pit, and we were right in the middle, but all the way in the back. Even though we seemed far from the stage, the venue was not too big, so we felt pretty close. There was a wide range of people in the crowd, from college age students, to older couples there for a Valentine’s date night, to even younger children tagging along with their parents. Even though this was my first time at this venue, it felt comfortable and familiar to me. My friend and I passed the time talking with each other and catching up before the opening act took the stage. It had been a very long time since we had hung out, so it felt nice to fall back into our own rhythm together again.  

Before long, the lights dimmed and the opening act Kings Elliot took the stage. Her songs were melancholic as most of them were based on her personal experience with mental health. I did not even realize that she was going to be the opening act, but I am really glad that she was because I really loved her sound. Clear and crisp, her voice carried throughout the space and filled the room. Even though her songs were more of a serious nature, they were definitely songs that stuck with me and something that I would add to my playlist.  

Soon the atmosphere changed, and I knew it was going to be time to see the headliner of the show: Stephen Sanchez. The lights dimmed once again, and these round lights on the stage began to shine and they were pretty bright, like a dazzling glow. Soon, the main act himself burst onto the stage. I could tell at that moment that Stephen was a born performer. He immediately captivated the audience with his smooth voice, high energy, and lovable personality. I knew then that this was going to be a great show, and it only got better.  

Once he wrapped up the first couple songs, he threw his guitar pick into the crowd, but everyone was too mesmerized by him, no one really noticed. Except me. I bent down, turned my flashlight on, and right by my foot, I saw it! His guitar pick! It was a surreal moment; I really felt like I was the main character. However, truthfully, I felt like I wanted to give it to someone else. Standing next to me and my friend were a teenage couple and since Valentine’s Day had just passed, I figured “love in the air” and gave the pick to the girl, after I was able to give it a kiss and grab a quick picture with it.  

Stephen did a great job engaging with the crowd. He sampled one of his new songs “Only Girl,” and even taught the crowd the chorus so we could all sing along with him. Some other sweet songs he sang were “Hold Her While You Can,” “Lady by the Sea” and the song that blew up on TikTok, “Until I Found You.” His energy went all over the place, from a soft crooning lovey dovey voice, to jumping around the stage with his guitar in hand. In between songs, it was cute to see Stephen hug his bandmates and show his appreciation for them.  

Something that I also enjoyed during the show was towards the end. His band went off-stage, and Stephen played a few songs by himself with just his guitar. It was a nice change of space, without the flashy lights or heavy guitar or drums. Just hearing him have full control of his voice as he serenaded the crowd. During this time, it was sweet to see the couples hold onto each other and sway to his pretty voice.  

Although it was sad to see the show end, it was so magical. The venue had a disco ball, and it was so cool to see an actual disco ball shine and glitter during the last few songs. This was my first being in the presence of an actual disco ball and I am so happy I got to experience it. It really was the icing on the cake. It was the perfect ending to a really fun concert. Even though Stephen Sanchez is just at the starting line of his career, I can tell he is going to stick around for a while and I am excited to see where he goes from here. 

Jeriann Tripodi, Former A&E Editor

Header image: Vanessa Heins from Broadway World

Billy Raffoul is an alternative/indie singer, songwriter, guitarist and producer from Ontario. The award-winning artist connects with his audience through his powerful songwriting ability by using his lyrics to tell heartfelt stories. Raffoul has a growing fan base, as his music has been streamed over a hundred million times. He has also received praise from the magazines American Songwriter and Paste.

Billy Raffoul’s debut EP, “1975,” is available on iTunes for download. His upcoming EP, “I Wish You Were Here,” will be available March 24, 2023. Raffoul has also recently released fan-favorite singles such as “Bliss,” “I Wish You Were Here,” and “Jim Carrey.”

Billy Raffoul is currently on the “Best Night of My Life Tour” with the rock band American Authors. Raffoul took the time off from his busy schedule to answer a few questions. Let’s get to know him a little better. I hope you enjoy our Q&A session:

Q (JERIANN): Which song off your debut EP holds the most personal meaning for you?

A (BILLY RAFFOUL): My debut EP’s title track “1975” probably holds the most sentimental meaning to me. It’s a song about my mother’s upbringing and her strength. 

Q (JERIANN): What can the audience expect when they see you live in concert?

A (BILLY RAFFOUL): A little bit of everything! I have a lot of songs that are intimately acoustic and then some that are rockers with the band. When you come see us live, I want to give you some of each. Anthemic sing-alongs and quiet acoustic moments. 

Q (JERIANN): Growing up, which artists did you listen to that inspired you musically?

A (BILLY RAFFOUL): The Beatles, Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan, to name a few! 

Q (JERIANN): What advice would you give to young aspiring musicians?

A (BILLY RAFFOUL): Keep going! Revel in the good times. Really take in the great shows and the feeling of writing something you’re proud of because there will be lows. If you have something you’ve created that you really feel good about, put it out there! 

You can see Billy Raffoul live in concert in Philadelphia on Feb. 17 at World Café Live. The singer-songwriter will also be appearing at other US venues up until March 12. Below is the schedule of Billy Raffoul’s tour dates:

2023 NORTH AMERICAN TOUR WITH AMERICAN AUTHORS

Feb. 10 — Fairfield, CT — The Warehouse

Feb. 11 — Carlisle, PA — Anita Tuvin Schlechter Auditorium

Feb. 15 — Virginia Beach, VA — Elevation 27

Feb. 16 — Washington, D.C. — Union Stage

Feb. 17 — Philadelphia, PA — World Café Live

Feb. 18 — New York, NY — Racket

Feb. 19 — Allston, MA — Brighton Music Hall

Feb. 21 — Pittsburgh, PA — Thunderbird Music Hall

Feb. 23 — Madison, WI — Majestic Theatre

Feb. 24 — Minneapolis, MN — Fine Line

Feb. 25 — Chicago, IL — Bottom Lounge

Feb. 26 — St. Louis, MO — Old Rock House

Feb. 28 — Englewood, CO — Gothic Theatre

March 2 — Salt Lake City, UT — Metro Music Hall

March 3 — Las Vegas, NV — Red Rock Casino

March 4 — Anaheim, CA — The Parish at House of Blues Anaheim

March 5 — Phoenix, AZ — Last Exit Live

March 7 — Solana Beach, CA — Belly Up

March 8 — West Hollywood, CA — Troubadour

March 9 — San Francisco, CA — August Hall

March 11 — Portland, OR — Hawthorne Theater

March 12 — Seattle, WA — Neumos

Check out the official Billy Raffoul website for merchandise and more information.

Anthony Pantalone, Editor

On Feb. 9, I had the opportunity to attend a premiere screening of Dave Franco and Alison Brie’s new film “Somebody I Used To Know” and the next day speak to them about the film along with a panel of other college journalists. “Somebody I Used To Know” is the second film from the married creative duo of Franco and Brie in which Franco directs and Brie stars—the first being 2020’s horror-thriller “The Rental”. This movie—co-written by this couple—is a hard turn from the horror genre and is a romantic comedy that takes on all the classic notions of what a romantic comedy should be. 

“Somebody I Used To Know” tells the story of Ally (Alison Brie) who returns home amid roadblocks in her professional career. Once home, Ally is forced to contend with her own life decisions when faced with her ex Sean (Jay Ellis) and his soon-to-be wife Cassidy (Kiersey Clemons)—a woman who reminds the protagonist of who she used to be. It takes this tried and true concept and adds fresh, self-aware characters with modern sensibilities. 

Dave Franco, in his sophomore directorial feature, is well-known for his acting career—starring in such popular films as the “21 Jump Street” franchise alongside Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum and the “Neighbors” franchise with Zac Efron and Seth Rogan. Franco continues along this new chapter of his career—expanding the notion of how audiences perceive him with both this film and “The Rental”.  Alison Brie, most well-known for her previous role in the beloved sitcom “Community”, has become a successful leading actress, writer, and producer in her own right in recent years with 2020’s “Horse Girl” and 2022’s “Spin Me Round.” To its benefit, this film also features a great soundtrack, a reunion between two “Community” alums—Brie and Danny Pudi—and an incredible comedic performance from Haley Joel Osment. 

At this roundtable panel, I and other journalists from local universities had the chance to sit down with Franco and Brie and ask them a question about the movie and their filmmaking process. Here is the transcript of my discussion with them at the event:

Host: This is Anthony Pantalone from The La Salle Collegian.

Dave Franco: Hello.

Alison Brie: Hello. Lasallian… Lasallian rapscallion.

(laughs)

Anthony Pantalone: “Somebody I Used To Know” does a great job of subverting the romcom genre and the tropes that typically also come with it. Why was it important to challenge these tropes that come with romantic-comedies?

Franco: I think our intention with everything we work is try to bring something new to the table. Something you haven’t seen before. And that doesn’t mean completely reinventing the wheel, but we love romantic-comedies. And we used what we know and love about them to lead the audience down a certain path where they might think “Oh, I know where this is going” and then pull the rug out from underneath them every step of the way. So hopefully all the twists and turns do feel surprising and original. 

Brie: Yeah, I feel like it’s like that old adage “you need to know the rules to break the rules.” And that feels especially true of rom-coms, because people who love them really know the formula. People who hate them even really know the formula. That’s almost why they hate them. I think we took that as a challenge to be like, “Okay, can we make something that is at the same time an ode to the genre and also sort of the anti-rom-com at the same time. I think part of it just happened pretty organically over the course of writing [the film]. It’s not like we sat down and said, “Let’s make a rom-com but also…cool.” I think we genuinely love the genre and wanted to dive into it and as we followed the characters on their trajectories. And our style of what we gravitate towards is all character-driven, relationship-driven stories. As we delved into that, we wanted to make it as real as possible and sort of felt like characters in stories now—even they themselves—have seen all the rom-coms we’ve seen. So don’t they have that in their head too? We namecheck a lot of rom-coms and movies in general in this movie, because that’s a part of our vocabulary and how we speak to one another. So I think there was an organic nature to just following characters to their natural conclusions once we change one thing. Like the “Cassidy” character, the trope of the bride in a wedding rom-com. And we tuned into tweaking her character and sending her on a different trajectory. It shook everything up, and we kind of followed it.

Pantalone: Thank you.

“Somebody I Used to Know”—starring Alison Brie and directed by Dave Franco—is now available streaming on Amazon Prime Video.

Bethany Macwana, Staff 

“I follow the neon signs to your heart.” 

The electric buzz in the air immediately surged through me as I walked through the doors of Union Transfer, a concert venue in Spring Garden. Union Transfer is one of the many live music venues in Philadelphia. On January 27, I had the unbelievable chance to see British singer-songwriter Suki Waterhouse perform a sold-out show. 

Suki’s voice sounded comforting, yet innovative. Her melodies and harmonies became amplified by the edge found in the rock-pop element she brings to the table. Seeing her was really just a stroke of good timing. I was on the phone with my sister talking about the idea of doing more things in the city, and I told her about the concert. She jumped to action and found out some tickets were still left for the show. I grabbed my wallet and, probably in the span of 5 minutes, two tickets were secured. This happened about three days before the show, so the excitement within me was very high. This being my first show of 2023, I was super excited. 

Having my sister come down for the weekend to hang out with me and to see the show was really sweet. It had been a while since I have seen her or have spent time with her, so going to a concert together was a neat experience. 

The walls of Union Transfer have seen a lot before becoming the beloved music venue that it is today. In the past, this space was utilized as a luggage storehouse for a baggage company. The current space has been renovated since. The exterior looked like just about any other regular building you would find, but the interior took the cake. I loved the high ceilings with the exposed beams and the chandeliers that created the ambiance of close gatherings and good times. There was a bar towards the back and even loft areas on the top catwalk, so people could stand and watch the show from a bird’s eye perspective. 

Me, on the other hand, I enjoyed the vibrancy of being in the pit alongside the pool of people surged to the front, mere feet away from the stage. In this tighter space, I felt like I connected better to the music and the true experience of seeing and hearing live performances. Being alongside so many people reminded me of the reach that music has. The general audience of the crowd were mostly people that looked like me, young college students, but there were some people that seemed older too. It reminded me that even if we all look so different, we were there together for one reason, and that is the beauty that is found in music. 

The opening act, Blondshell, started the night on the right foot, welcoming the crowd and leading us into a lull with her sweet voice. I especially liked her song “Olympus.” Definitely give it a listen. Blondshell’s set was the perfect length, long enough to get you in the mood and also preparing yourself for the true show, the headliner. Once Blondshell wrapped up their set, the anticipation within me was heightened. My sister and I were able to get close to the front, but we were on the left side of the pit, so we saw everything from a side angle. Paired with the fact that I am a little on the shorter side, it was not the most ideal spot, but since we were still so close to the front, I would not want to move anywhere else. 

The moment that Suki came onto stage, my heart nearly leapt out of my chest. Up until this moment, I did not really know what to expect, but she truly captivated the audience with her grace, powerful voice, and sweetness. Suki’s charming nature was evident as she participated in someone’s BeReal and took photos on the stage in between songs. She was so happy to just be there and that made the whole night even sweeter. I loved hearing her perform one of my favorite songs “Melrose Meltdown”, and even other great ones like, “Nostalgia” and the namesake of the tour “Coolest Place in the World.” 

The absolute most incredible moment during the show was when she looked at me. Okay, this can be debatable, but I promise you, Suki Waterhouse, and yours truly locked eyes during the performance, and she did not break eye contact either! Our gazes held one another for a good 10 seconds, at least, while she sang. At this moment, I could have just melted. Seeing an artist that I grew so fond of and for her to see me, in a sea of people, I do not think there could be anything more fantastic than that. 

The night ended with Suki performing her song that blew up on TikTok a while back, “Good Looking,” and before I knew it, the multicolor lights dimmed, and the chandelier lights came back on. The past two hours that I was there felt like it happened in a blur, but I felt this serendipitous state of mind. I felt like I was just on cloud nine, and I felt so happy. My sister left to grab her coat from coat check, and I even got a chance to meet the opening act’s lead singer Sabrina! 

The night ended from there, but the memories will stay with me forever. I am going to my grave, fully believing that in those brief 10 seconds, Suki Waterhouse serenaded me during her amazing performance in Philly. 

Chude Uzoka-Anofienem, Staff 

2022 felt like a weird year for music to me. It seemed like every song that I’d hear on the radio, I was thinking to myself, “who the heck is this?”, making me feel as out of touch as the older adults in my life who say, “you’re the only way I hear about new music.” The fact that I’m still listening to radio is probably part of the problem, but basically what happens is a song gets popular on TikTok, and then makes the rounds on Spotify, which gets it to chart on Billboard, and then it starts to receive radio airplay. A month later, your mom’s in the car singing along to a song your favorite TikToker used in their video and now it’s not cool anymore. There were lots of songs this year that I liked (Silk Sonic being my favorite act that delivered this year), but there were lots that I could do without. 

Before I get into the actual list, here are some dishonorable mentions:

Big Energy by Latto

Sweetest Pie by Dua Lipa & Megan Thee Stallion 

pushin P by Gunna & Future ft. Young Thug

Fingers Crossed by Lauren Spencer Smith

Broadway Girls by Lil Durk ft. Morgan Wallen

Bet On Me by Walk off the Earth ft. D Smoke

Music for a Sushi Restaurant by Harry Styles

She Likes It by Russell Dickerson ft. Jake Scott

Made You Look by Meghan Trainor 

#10 Woman by Doja Cat 

When I first heard this song, I thought, “What’s a ‘wooma’”? Turns out she’s putting on weird Patois, which is about as out-of-place as me “axing you question, no cap!” Doja Cat, born in Los Angeles to a Jewish mom and a South African dad, is trying to sound like she’s from the Caribbean, when the closest island she was born to was Santa Cruz. Now it’s no secret that Doja Cat is trying to sound like Rihanna, as in the song she says, “I could be the CEO, just look at Robyn Fenty.” Doja, it’s okay. We don’t need a replacement for Ri-Ri. Truth be told, I really didn’t miss her.

#9 Super Gremlin by Kodak Black

I have never, for the life of me, been able to understand the appeal of this guy. His flow is nasal and slurred, his writing is sloppy, and I can never get over his voice. He sounds like a coclique baby crying itself to sleep. ZEZE, the one song from him that I can stomach, was saved by the steel drums and contributions from Travis Scott and Offset. Kodak Black, who gets in trouble with the law about as often as I get gas, had the ninth most popular song of 2022 and it doesn’t really do much to impress me in any way. The chipmunk vocal sample grew on my nerves in record time, the trap beat is completely hackneyed, we get several poop references throughout the song, and he talks about taking fake drugs, which can lead to at best the worst trip of your life and at worst a surprise OD. Apparently, this song is a diss track towards somebody named Jackboy, who’s a member of Kodak Black’s Sniper Gang crew, but the lines are so interspersed with the bragging that I could hardly notice. Kodak Black frames himself here as a troubled antihero who’s on a redemption arc, which is always essential for a flimsy justification for defending him. When it comes to this song and gremlins in general, I’d like a little sunlight.

#8 Boyfriend by Dove Cameron

From what I’ve been able to gather, Dove Cameron is kind of like this generation’s Miley Cyrus, but on a much smaller scale. Whereas Miley Cyrus skyrocketed to fame as a child star with Hannah Montana and then went on to have 8 top ten hits as an adult, Cameron was on a show where she played her own twin and then played Maleficent’s daughter in a made-for-TV movie and then……this. In this song, she sees a girl who’s with this jerk of a guy (we have to assume) and thinks she can treat her better, in a sort of gender-swapped version of Shawn Mendes’ “Treat You Better”. It sounds like it was made in some smokey lounge and then they invited an EDM artist to completely ruin the afterparty.

“Never would have left you alone/ For someone else to take you home.”

This just seals the deal. That girl’s all by herself, because her man stepped away from her for a few seconds and Cameron thinks she’s fair game to be taken home by someone else. Let’s all thank Dove Cameron for showing everyone that a bi girl can be just as big a sex pest as a frat guy. 

#7 I Ain’t Worried by OneRepublic

I don’t have much to say here. OneRepublic is a band that I don’t really care too much for. Ryan Tedder’s falsetto is something that I can tolerate from time to time. “Feel It Still” did grow on me, but this song feels like your short window of time is running out and you’re desperate for something to hold people’s attention – which is echoed in the melodic key progression. It feels like it’s trying to diffuse into some tension, but never reaches that point, only remaining in limbo and stagnation.

#6 Bring Back the Time by NKOTB and a bunch of old goobers from yesteryear

This may have been funny a few years ago, but it’s just sad now. In 2018, these guys released a song called “80s Baby”, which is pretty much the same as this just with different guest stars. This time, the Old Kids On the Porch teamed up with Rick Astley, En Vogue and Salt-N-Pepa for what is the musical equivalent of attending your twenty year high school reunion and then attending your twenty-five year high school reunion while telling the same stories. I’d like to mention that every year, the NKOTB have a cruise, where people who lost their looks a long time ago can spend a week on a boat in hopes that a half-drunk Donnie Wahlberg can sing to them one more time. 

“So Bring Back the Time/You know we still got the magic”

Yeah, keep telling yourself that, whatever helps you sleep at night.

#5 TO THE MOON by JNR Choi and Sam Tompkins

This song begins with an abbreviated cover of Bruno Mars’ ‘Talking to The Moon’ by UK singer-songwriter Sam Tompkins, whose crooning strips the song of R&B flavor. Since drill uses samples in this vein, and adds huge percussion over it, we have UK drill rapper JNR Choi, who dropped an album last year that hardly got any attention. On this song, he seems to be doing his best Pop Smoke impression and the song goes viral because the catchphrase ‘to the moon’ is common in the crypto scene. I mean, the cover single is literally a screenshot of Elon Musk tweeting it. Capitalizing on current trends would be enough to dislike this, but the drill beat is painfully sterile, and this guy JNR doesn’t acquit himself well at all. It’s a generic love and sex song and naturally it got an American remix, with Fivio Foreign and Gunna delivering more bland garbage. So, let’s be clear here: this song got popular because of a bad cover, an even worse remix and a crypto meme. This is less like Apollo 11 and more like Apollo 1 or 13, completely worthless.

#4 High by The Chainsmokers

After releasing new singles consistently from 2014 to 2019, The Chainsmokers took a three-year hiatus. Why would DJs who make music for people to dance to might not have put out any music during a pandemic, when lots of clubs were closed down? Who knows. But during the break, they spent a lot of time listening to the Arctic Monkeys. A lot of the songs seems to be reminiscent of that era. The song is about being an enabler to an addict who can’t change. Feel like there are some comparisons to be made to people who still listen to The Chainsmokers, despite the fact that even though they suck, they just can’t help themselves. Remember when they used to get singers like Halsey and Daya? They need to do that again, because—seriously they spent three years doing nothing—they couldn’t take a couple singing lessons. Nah, just overproduce the vocals and mask it with an awful beat and we’re good to go. I could say that people could only love this song when they’re high, but I don’t believe for a second that any drug would make this tolerable.

#3 h2hoe by cupcakKe

 

Uhhhh, yeah, I can’t really type the lyrics to this song without having to delete it anyway. Anyway, for those who aren’t familiar with “cupcakKe”, (try not to cut yourself on the edge) her whole gimmick is that she’s a shock rapper. The “throw the GPS, make him come the fastest route” line made me laugh a bit, even if it is super clumsy. Honestly, I’m trying to say something about this song that won’t get me in trouble with my editor. Even though I really hate the cadence of this song, the worst part is that flute/recorder thing in the background. What is that? Overall, this song is just gratuitous for the sake of being gratuitous. It’s not particularly clever and there’s no message here, just her trying to say as many vulgar things as she can in three minutes to make a sixteen-year old’s laugh. If the goal was to expose the double standard of men being allowed to talk about sex whereas women aren’t, that would’ve been ok if Cardi B and Nicki Minaj didn’t already do this and showed the world that no one really cares outside of prudes who look like they avert their eyes whenever their wives take their socks off. I think this song is just as stupid and pointless as the rap songs about sex by men that I’ve made fun of in the past. 

#2 Rich Flex and Privileged Rappers by Drake & 21 Savage

That’s right, it’s a two-way tie, but they both get the Rick Ross award for Fakest Rapper.

“Ayy, ayy, ayy, ayy, ayy

I’m on that Slaughter Gang sh!t, ayy, murder gang sh!t

Ayy, Slaughter Gang sh!t, ayy, murder gang sh!t, ayy”

I have a question for just about every rapper out there. Why do you let Drake get away with this? Is it because he’s so popular? That every time he releases an album every song from it is in the Top 20? Do you want to be nice to him so he might feature you and be left with the sloppy seconds from his Spotify pennies? If that’s not it, then why do you let him pretend he’s such a hard gangster when he’s an actor from Canada who has a career as a rapper because Lil Wayne was high on cough syrup and said he could be on Young Money. I mean, I get it, lots of rappers are full of it. Eazy-E, one of the grandfathers of Gangsta Rap, sold drugs and then became a rapper because he felt it was an easier way to make money. I get some of it’s an act. However, a lot of them came up in rough neighborhoods and they can rap about what happened to their friends or family. Drake grew up in a country that has an average of 145-gun homicides a year. A YEAR! And he’s talking about being “on that Slaughter Gang sh!t” and “chrome on chrome”. Get – and I can’t stress this enough – outta here with that! Then he has the gall to release a song called “Privileged Rappers” and it’s NOT about how easy he had it. In fact, he says this: “I hate a privileged rapper who don’t even know what it take”. WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?! You’re a privileged rapper, Aubrey! And I know Drake stans will be saying, “but didn’t you see that post from his first show?”

This made the rounds on social media last October. He got paid $100 as the opener for a show in Toronto. You know who he opened for? ICE CUBE! Tell me who, in their first show, gets to be the opening act for a LEGEND. How does that happen without connections or privilege? Drake has so little self-awareness, he couldn’t tell you where his elbow is. Maybe next year he can write a song about how he hates Canadian rappers who had a friend whose dad was an acting agent which led to them doing over 100 episodes of TV, then had two uncles in the music industry and was able to somehow open for Ice Cube and then almost immediately, start working with Lil Wayne, who was the hottest rapper of the mid-to-late 2000s. It’s a real shame this man bought a $100,000,000 mansion and it didn’t come with a single mirror.

#1 ABCDEFU by Gayle

This song was released in 2021, but it didn’t blow up until February 2022, peaking at #3 on Billboard off the strength of angry teenage girls discovering it and using it in the TikToks to help them get through their funny little teenage breakups. Everything about this song is just horrendous. From the vocal fry singing to the lyrics where she outs herself as materialistic and self-centered. She’s mad that he has a relationship with his family, and I hate that basic guitar they buried in the instrumental so they could pretend this is a “rock” song. Finally, the whole reciting the alphabet gimmick is just childish. If “Numb Little Bug” was baby’s first ennui, then this is baby’s first teenage angst. It also goes without, but the sequence of letters in the title doesn’t spell anything. If you want to spell things, how about O N E – H I T  W O N D E R. Since releasing this song, she’s released five more; none of them charted. Her first EP debuted two months after this song’s peak success, hitting #138 on the Billboard 200 Album Chart. The slot above was Bob Seger’s Greatest Hits album. That’s right, her debut album got beat that week by a CD they’ve been selling at truck stops since before she was even born. Last but not least, I’d like to cap it off with this. She says “that sh!t you call art”. There’s an old saying Gayle, people in glass houses shouldn’t throw steaming piles of barely coherent, poorly produced, ultimately unlistenable pieces of excrement.

Anthony Pantalone, Editor

As a willing resident of Plato’s allegorical cave, I had the chance to see 53 of this past year’s newest shadows projected on the wall in front of me. 2022 was an incredible year for film—far stronger than both 2021 and 2020. Because this calendar year was so good at the cinema, I am listing and discussing my top fifteen films from 2022.

Honorable Mentions: After Yang, The Batman, Bodies Bodies Bodies, Marcel the Shell with Shoes On, Cha Cha Real Smooth

15. RRR

“RRR” is an awe-inspiring cinematic spectacle. The action in this movie is indicative of what action should look and feel like in films in the present day. Not a bland CGI fight between two CGI characters in front of a green screen with harsh gray color grading. RRR’s action quite literally makes you say “Whoa” and be on the edge of your seat. S.S. Rajamouli serves as an obvious standout with some of the best work from an action movie director in the past decade. On top of that, this movie has multiple musical numbers, and they are all amazing.

Trigger Warning: mentions of suicide

14. On the Count of Three

Jerrod Carmichael has had a huge year. An Emmy for “Rothaniel,” his recent deeply personal comedy special. He also turned heads with jokes aimed at Scientology and the racism of the Hollywood Foreign Press while hosting the Golden Globes. Above all, he released his directorial debut, “On the Count of Three.” I had wanted to include it in my review round-up for summer 2022 but refrained due to the sensitive subject matter of this film. Because it deals with suicide, “On the Count of Three” is a very, very dark comedy. The premise focuses on two friends who have agreed to a suicide pact and have one last day before they die. It’s deeply depressing to say the least but also a really interesting premise. Carmichael plays with the idea of how dark a dark comedy can go. There are scenes that are incredibly intense and sad but are then undercut comedically by a Papa Roach song.

13. Avatar: The Way of Water

“Avatar: The Way of Water” features classic James Cameron blockbuster filmmaking on a grander scale than ever seen before, and it all somehow pays off in the end. This movie feels much bigger than the original Avatar film did in 2009. Special effects that have never looked as good before on the silver screen. Bigger set pieces. Also, a genuine story that is not a “Dances With Wolves” rip-off. Jake Sully is still a pretty dull character, but the time jump and family-focused story make him more interesting and helps the story in general. The children in this family are less boring than Jake; thankfully, Cameron focuses most of the film on them. “Way of Water” feels like Cameron firing on all cylinders in the best way possible. When I watch “Avatar”, I always feel like I’m just watching “Avatar”. This isn’t me saying that I don’t enjoy the first film, because I do think it is well-made and an important piece of cinematic history. With this movie though, I sometimes feel like I’m watching the best parts of “The Abyss” or “T2: Judgment Day”. It made me remember why so many audiences adore James Cameron as a filmmaker. He goes the extra mile with his work, and his movies always end up so exciting to watch. He is willing to fight tooth and nail with a studio executive over a long take of a huge whale because he knows that audiences want to be wowed with a great visual.

12. Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery

“Glass Onion” is great, and I wish it had a wider release in theaters. Rian Johnson and Daniel Craig’s Benoit Blanc returned in 2022 after the widespread acclaim of 2019’s “Knives Out” with a new mystery film that achieves the ideal feat of any sequel: being different from the original yet still feeling similar. The audience knows and likes the prolific detective Blanc and thus follows him as he deals with a new case. This formula works well and presents the opportunity for Johnson to keep making Benoit Blanc movies in the future. Some highlights that really stood out were the set design and costume. Similar to “Knives Out”, the sets were beautiful and intricately detailed. Various decorations of Miles Bron’s house highlight exactly who he is as a person. The Glass Onion as a metaphor for Bron’s own shallowness and stupidity despite his success. A huge mural of Kanye West from the “POWER” music video which has to allude to Bron’s own narcissism and delusions of grandeur. Hanging a Rothko painting blatantly upside down. In terms of costume design, dressing up Bron in the 90s like Tom Cruise in “Magnolia” is hilarious and again indicative of him as a person. He has never had an original thought in his head. He constantly grifts and steals from others whilst propping himself up as an “innovator.” I hope Rian Johnson and Daniel Craig make at least twenty more of these movies.

11. TÁR

With a great performance from Cate Blanchett and great direction from Todd Field, “TÁR” chronicles the dark spiral of a composer at the pinnacle of their field. Alongside Blanchett’s career work, the sound design stands out as a major highlight of the film. Seeing this film on a streaming service does not do it proper justice as the sound design in “TÁR” makes it so much better to watch in a theater. The film doesn’t have a score. Portions of it seem completely silent aside from dialogue. Any piece of music that is played feels explosive to the ears due to lack of score. There are random noises and sounds throughout the film that are mixed and edited so well that I genuinely thought they were coming from inside the theater. Also, this main character of the film is simply so compelling to watch and attempt to understand. Lydia Tár is a bad person, and the movie clearly is stating that you should not like her. She is a narcissist who manipulates almost every single person in her life for her own interests and goals. She grooms young employees while in a position of authority over them. She belittles and humiliates students who have any dissenting opinions. Tár even directly threatens to harm a child. Watching her downfall feels somewhat cathartic because of her wrongful actions, and you can’t take your eyes off it in the same way you can’t take your eyes off a trainwreck as it happens.

10. Babylon

I love a movie that feels grandiose and absolutely swings for the fences. That’s what “Babylon”—Damien Chazelle’s new film about Hollywood at the end of the silent film era—does. It looks with disdain towards every other movie about “the magic of cinema” or the mythology of Hollywood and the film industry. It’s obvious from this movie that Chazelle loves and is heavily inspired by Boogie Nights and Paul Thomas Anderson. I’m absolutely okay with that though, because I too love “Boogie Nights”. This writer-director approaches Hollywood and movies in “Babylon” in the same way that PTA approaches the porn industry in “Boogie Nights”. Hollywood takes people who have nothing but dreams and ambition and consistently exploits them until nothing remains. The people that do survive the experience are left as shattered husks of who they were before success. In addition, Tobey Maguire’s casting in this film was an inspired decision and reminds me of Alfred Molina’s role in “Boogie Nights”. His seedy underworld character is genuinely terrifying and—similarly to the Molina character—shows the protagonist how low he has fallen.

9. The Fabelmans

The divorce between Steven Spielberg’s parents is probably one of the most influential in cinema. Without it, we probably wouldn’t have “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial”, “Hook”, or “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade”.  “The Fabelmans” is Spielberg’s way of addressing it directly while also telling the story of his childhood. In the hands of any other creative or writer-director, dedicating an entire film to your own childhood would likely feel just vain and self-centered. Usually, it would feel like I am paying twenty dollars to go to a theater and watch someone try to process and solve their childhood traumas instead of that person going to therapy. Because it’s Spielberg, though, it feels different. No doubt about it, he is the greatest living American director and likely the most influential filmmaker of all time. In this context, it feels like a person at the end of their road or life looking back on their life and adolescence with maturity and the clarity that might come with getting older. Spielberg isn’t indicting either of his parents with his depiction of their divorce. It’s still charged with emotion but at its core acknowledges that their interpersonal relationships were complex and strenuous but full of love. This movie also has a David Lynch cameo where he wears an eye-patch and plays famed director John Ford—which is a welcome sight.

Jeriann Tripodi, Former A&E Editor

Header image: b-sides.tv

Julia Wolf is an up-and-coming indie-pop singer/songwriter from Queens, New York. She uniquely incorporates hip-hop sounds and goth style into her pop music. Julia Wolf’s music has over 50 million streams worldwide and the global music streaming service, TIDAL, has named her one of the “Pop Artists to Watch in 2023.” 

Julia Wolf has recently released her debut studio album, “Good Thing We Stayed.” With each song containing deep and personal lyrics, Julia Wolf demonstrates her storytelling skills. Several fan-favorite tracks are “Rookie of the Year,” “Hot Killer,” “Get Off My,” and “Gothic Babe Tendencies,” which features Blackbear. “Good Thing We Stayed” has received wide praise from Associated Press, NPR, V Magazine, PAPER, and Young Hollywood. Julia Wolf has also recently made her television debut on “The Late Late Show with James Corden,” where she performed “Hot Killer.” 

Julia Wolf will kick off her US headline tour, “Gothic Babe Tendencies,” on Feb. 10, 2023. Julia Wolf took time off from her busy schedule to answer a few questions. Let’s get to know her a little better. I hope you enjoy our Q&A session.

Q (JERIANN): Which song off your debut studio album, “Good Thing We Stayed,” holds the most personal meaning for you?

A (JULIA WOLF): It would have to be “Sad Too Young.” There aren’t many songs that explain me to my core; why I am the way that I am. Most of them retell stories from my perspective and how I react to situations, but this is just me. Having anxiety and dealing with shame from such a young age shaped me into who I am today, and while I don’t offer a solution here, I’m hoping someone finds it relatable. 

Q (JERIANN): What can the audience expect when they see you live in concert?

A (JULIA WOLF): Sunday Confessions!! Every Sunday on Instagram, I invite people to write in things they need advice on or help with, and I give my two cents. Now during live shows, I’ll have a confession box set up by the merch table where people can drop in those confessions. Halfway through our set, I’ll stop and read through some! 

Q (JERIANN): Growing up, which artists did you listen to that inspired you musically?

A (JULIA WOLF): I was very much an alternative gal growing up. Half of me was Fall Out Boy and Mayday Parade, while the other half was Taylor Swift and John Mayer. But around senior year of high school into college is where I started getting into rap. The “Take Care” album really did it for me, getting super into Drake and later on Young Thug and Uzi. So many solidified my love for the genre. 

Q (JERIANN): What advice would you give to young aspiring musicians?

A (JULIA WOLF): Don’t let yourself forget that everyone is working on their own timeline. It can be easy to feel discouraged because you see fellow artists “popping off” seemingly overnight. But things take time. It could be a viral video, or it could be 3 years of dead ends; through all of it, you just have to keep showing up for yourself and putting in as much effort as you can. 

You can see Julia Wolf live in concert in Philadelphia on Feb. 18 at The Foundry at The Fillmore Philadelphia. The singer-songwriter will also be appearing at other US venues up until Mar. 2. Below is the schedule of Julia Wolf’s tour dates:

Tour Dates:

Feb. 10—Atlanta, GA—Vinyl at Center Stage

Feb. 11—Nashville, TN—The Basement East

Feb. 13—Washington, DC—Union Stage

Feb. 14—Boston, MA—Brighton Music Hall

Feb. 16—New York, NY—Bowery Ballroom

Feb. 18—Philadelphia, PA—The Foundry at the Fillmore Philadelphia

Feb. 20—Chicago, IL—Schubas Tavern

Feb. 21—Minneapolis, MN—7th Street Entry

Feb. 24—Portland, OR—Holocene

Feb. 25—Seattle, WA—Barboza

Feb. 27—San Francisco, CA—Popscene @ Rickshaw Stop

Feb. 28—Santa Ana, CA—Constellation Room

Mar. 2— West Hollywood, CA—The Roxy Theatre

Check out https://www.girlsinpurgatory.com/ for merchandise and more information.

Anthony Pantalone, Editor

Television is often overlooked in the Arts and Entertainment section, but music is typically ignored almost entirely. In part, this exclusion is because I am far less versed in music than I am in film or television. This article, therefore, is allowing me to analyze and review some of the best (in my opinion) best projects released in 2022. There were a bunch of great projects this year. Frankly too many to discuss in their entirety in this article. So here are some of my personal favorites.

Kendrick Lamar- Mr. Morale and the Big Steppers

This pick is incredibly biased. While Mr. Morale is objectively one of the best albums to come out this year, my opinion here is very subjective because I am a big Kendrick Lamar fan. After five years, Kendrick finally returned to music for his final album with Top Dawg Entertainment in 2022, and the wait was more or less worth it. After ascending to the top of the rap world over the course of his four prior studio albums, this rapper had nearly no more mountains to climb. Now, Kendrick Lamar instead looks inward and reflects on himself as a person. “Mr. Morale and the Big Steppers” is much more personal and vulnerable than anything this musician has shared before. The album functionally serves as a therapy session for Kendrick who is forcing himself to finally confront his flaws and the generational traumas haunting him. Throughout the course of the album and specific tracks, he explores his sex addiction and infidelities along with his fraught relationship with his father and toxic masculinity. Later, the rapper goes on to confront his own prior homophobia in “Auntie Diaries.” The album crescendos with “Mother I Sober” where Kendrick Lamar attempts to tie together his understanding of his own issues and feelings to break the generational curse of trauma. He needs to figure out why he is the way he is, so he can be a good father and not transfer his own pain and grief onto his children. In confronting traumas of sexual abuse from members of his family, he hopes to “set free” pent-up generational pain and grief in hopes to heal from it in the future. 

Beyoncé- RENAISSANCE

Similar to Kendrick Lamar, Beyoncé also returned to music after a long absence in 2022 with “RENAISSANCE,” her first studio album since “Lemonade” in 2016. Everything about this album is incredible. Its celebration of past black music and culture. The flawless transitions between songs. The house music instrumentals. Bey is back, and she is proving yet again why she is the best at what she does. Every song matches a mood or feeling perfectly. “BREAK MY SOUL” channels all the pent-up energy and emotions of people who have persevered through the last few years of the COVID-19 pandemic. “ALIEN SUPERSTAR” is an otherworldly, one-of-a-kind song. “PLASTIC OFF THE SOFA” is—in my opinion—one of the best-written love songs of the 21st century. “SUMMER RENAISSANCE” takes Donna Summer’s classic disco hit “I Feel Love” and reimagines it so that the genre of disco experiences its own renaissance in the modern day. Listening to it feels like joyful escapism, and Bey intended it that way. The idea behind the album was creating something through which people feel like they can “escape, travel, love, and laugh again” after all the tragedy and hardships of the past few years (Beyoncé qtd. in Harpers’ Bazaar).  Every song feels so unique and carefully crafted. I would never expect Beyoncé to let listeners down, but I think I also underestimated her. “RENAISSANCE” is so much more cohesive and fully realized as an artistic vision than any other album I have listened to this year.

Black Country, New Road- Ants From Up There

I had never heard of Black Country, New Road before 2022. By the end of this past year though, songs from this album were among my most listened to music on Spotify. It is incredibly difficult to describe what Black Country, New Road is or what their music sounds like. They’re alternative? Post-punk? Rock but folksy? But also very indie and different from anything out there. It feels silly to say, but there are so many different instruments at play. Much of the lyrics throughout “Ants From Up There” don’t always make sense, and they don’t need to. The lyrics used adequately fit the mood and melody of the music. In some other songs though, the song lyrics deceptively pack an emotional gut punch. For example, “Good Will Hunting” is an amazing exploration of romantic yearning but is humorously undercut by a chorus about how a love interest has “Billie Eilish style.” Also, the vocals in this album feel so vulnerable and cut deep for the listener. Isaac Wood, the lead singer of Black Country, New Road, quit the band only days after the album’s release and before their 2022 tour. While this album was met with widespread critical praise, Wood’s personal mental health struggles caused him to quit making music. The band has stayed together without the lead vocalist, yet it will be interesting to see how exactly they will move forward after both a prolific debut and a major loss.

SZA- SOS

Like Kendrick and Beyoncé, SZA came back after five long years with her sophomore album “SOS”, a worthy follow-up to her 2017 debut project “CTRL”. While not as fully realized and polished as her first album, “SOS” is still an incredible feat for this musician. The tone of the songs appropriately match the theme of the album cover art and title. SZA feels far alone out at sea figuratively in her life and literally in the cover art. She was obviously dealing with strife in her love life and failed relationships and channeled those emotions in her songwriting. Even though I love this creative output from her, I sincerely hope she is going to some form of counseling or therapy. This album does feel less concise than “CTRL” as it meanders across a 23 song tracklist, but I don’t mind it at all. “Kill Bill” obviously has become very popular and boasts an Uma Thurman film reference. “Gone Girl”—a grandiose track about a tumultuous relationship—is incredibly underrated and also references another great “Good for Her” movie. “Ghost in the Machine” somehow effectively blends the singing styles of both SZA and Phoebe Bridgers. “Used” is amazing with a great Don Toliver feature and a great line where SZA says that she’s focused like Obi-Wan Kenobi. “Open Arms” probably takes the crown as my favorite song off this album, because it showcases SZA playing up to her strengths with a breezy genuine ballad.

Honorable Mentions:

Ethel Cain- Preacher’s Daughter

Steve Lacy- Gemini Rights

Charli XCX- CRASH

Denzel Curry- Melt My Eyes See Your Whole Future

Orville Peck- Bronco

J.I.D.- The Forever Story

Anthony Pantalone, Editor

While the Arts and Entertainment column ideally should encompass every form of media pertaining to “arts and entertainment,” it does not always meet that standard. In this section of The Collegian, film is quite often the star of the show. The end of a year and the beginning of a new one allows for a person to reflect on that fact and adequately give credit where credit is due to other forms of art and entertainment—particularly television shows. Here are some of the objectively best—in my biased opinion—shows that deserved a bigger spotlight in The Collegian in 2022.

Barry Season 3

“Barry” is one of the most underrated shows on television. This program follows a hitman who wishes to give up his lethal profession in favor of acting. The first two seasons are a near perfect dark comedy, and this third season heightens the intensity much further. At this point, Barry feels simply dark instead of darkly comedic. Pretty much everyone in the cast—Bill Hader, Sarah Goldberg, Henry Winkler, and Anthony Carrigan—turns in career work this season. I love Henry Winkler, and I never knew he had a performance of this caliber in him. Also, NoHo Hank has been my favorite character on television for years. The morale of the story is that no matter what he does or how hard he tries, Barry always falls backwards into a life of violence with horrific consequences for everyone around him. For a show that has balanced comedy amidst a story this violent and tense, this third season takes a turn towards tragedy. NoHo Hank—easily the show’s best and most whimsical character—has a storyline involving torture, kidnapping and the “bury your gays” trope. The episode “710N” in particular features an incredibly long take of a motorcycle chase on a congested highway. Each episode of the second half of this season instills an alarming sense of dread for the audience as something horrible can happen at a moment’s notice. The ending of the episode “candy asses” for example forces the viewer to simply sit there afterwards and process the deep dark spiral of these characters. 

The Bear Season 1

Debuting in the summer, “The Bear” was one of the best new shows to grace television screens this year. Following Carmy who inherits his deceased brother’s restaurant, this show is essentially about the grief of losing a loved one and the ensuing struggles in running their business. Jeremy Allen White recently won a Golden Globe for his performance as the main character, and this honor was genuinely warranted. White brings a quiet intensity to a character who is desperately trying to keep afloat amidst his own grief and the significant financial hardships his brother left him. The seventh episode “Review” is filmed as one long take as everything goes wrong in the restaurant in a matter of twenty minutes. Even if you have not worked in a restaurant or food service, you will likely have to take a deep breath after this one.

Atlanta Seasons 3 and 4

“Atlanta” returned in 2022 with a third season set in Europe and a final season set back in the show’s titular city. I love this show and was really sad to see it end. It is always amazing to see a show that experiments with the medium of television and has so much fun while doing it, and “Atlanta” has always been that type of TV show. About half of the third season does not even feature the main characters or overarching plot of the prior seasons, and these standalone entries were some of the best episodes of “Atlanta” ever aired. In the final season, some great storylines are wrapped up. There is an amazing parody of Tyler Perry in which Donald Glover is covered in make-up and prosthetics—akin to the season two “Teddy Perkins” episode. Also, in one of the final episodes, this show makes an incredible fake documentary about the making of  “A Goofy Movie.” In classic “Atlanta” fashion, when people expect a crazy subversion of expectations for the series finale, Glover and director Hiro Murai choose the funniest “It was all a dream” ending.

Andor Season 1

This opinion could be debated, but “Andor” is the best Star Wars show or movie with anything truly nuanced to say about politics since George Lucas in the 1970s wrote about resisting imperialist oppressors. The creative team behind the show could have settled for the same tired creative beats that almost every Star Wars property has taken on since being acquired by Disney. Some type of cameo. Using the crutch of being part of “a shared universe” instead of actually effectively plotting a story over a season. Instead, it offers intelligent commentary on the matters of revolutionary suicide and the carceral slavery that props up imperial systems of power. It also talks about how fascism and authoritarian philosophies often preys upon and seduces young men with low self-esteem that feel entitled and directionless. In “Andor,” the viewer is rewarded with manifestos and arguments about the morality of violence against fascist occupiers instead of a caravan of “Glup Shittos.”

The White Lotus Season 2

Whereas the first season of “The White Lotus” worked really well as a class satire, the second season of this HBO show delved more into sexism and power dynamics within relationships. There are three generations of men that express harmful masculinity toward women. The grandfather openly sexually harasses women. The father—played by Michael Imperioli of “The Sopranos” fame—treats women better than his own father yet still objectifies them in private as sexual objects. The son appears to be the least harmful—appearing like a “soft boy”—yet still holds concerning views about women. Then the storyline featuring Aubrey Plaza of two couples vacationing together is so incredibly messy but written in such a compelling way. Jennifer Coolidge shines yet again this season—earning her a Golden Globe Award two weeks ago. Mike White is a genuinely great writer and I hope he makes