Category Archives: Entertainment

Music/Concerts

Why Ariana Grande is the queen of pop

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By: Kayla Madison

Ariana Grande is the queen of pop. No doubt about it. She’s been killing it since her ‘Dangerous Woman’ era in May 20, 2016.

Even Nicki Minaj (the queen of rap) said so herself in the song “Side to Side” with the lyric “I’m the queen of rap, young Ariana run pop”.

Following the Manchester bombing (RIP) which left thousands of fans, and Ariana, traumatized, she released the album ‘Sweetener’ on August 17, 2018. It is said by her: I think that it was made to hopefully bring sweeter days.

She has a song “breathin” which she said is about anxiety, which she’d already had prior to the bombing, but that only seemed to heighten it.

Roughly 6 months later, on February 8th, 2019, she released ‘thank u, next’ which she made after her ex Mac Miller passed away (RIP, he was such a sweet hearted soul,) and the split from her then fiancé, Pete Davidson. All 12 of its tracks were on the Billboard Top 100 with “thank u, next”, “7 rings”, and “break up with your girlfriend, i’m bored” occupying the top 3 spots.

After the release, it broke multiple streaming records, including largest streaming week for a pop album, and female album in the U.S., with 307 million on-demand streams.

Globally, this album was 8th in best selling in 2019, and 4th best selling for female artists.

About a month later, Ariana was set for the Sweetener World Tour that began March 18, 2019. The tour grossed $146.4 million from 97 shows. During 2020’s Grammy Awards, ‘thank u, next’ was nominated for ‘Album of the Year’ and ‘Best Pop Vocal Album’ and the song “7 rings” was nominated for ‘Record of the Year’ and ‘Best Pop Solo Performance’. Since the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards were rigged, she went home empty handed.

On October 30, 2020, she released the album ‘Positions’. Now, I don’t know about everyone else, but this album is in the top rank compared to some of the others that had dropped around this time.

My favorites from this album are “just like magic”, “west side”, and “love language”. Check them out, they’re great. Of course, those aren’t the only songs I listen to off of it. This album is not like many others, there isn’t a song on here worth skipping. They’re all great and have their own sense of style you could say.

It’s also really nice to see Ariana change vocally and see how she’s in more of a healed place mentally through the songs. She explains them all in the Zach Sang interview, which is quite long but worth watching if you love her.

She also just recently dropped her “34+35” remix with Doja Cat and Megan Thee Stallion. I’m not really into Megan like that, but her verse made me laugh (it’s very explicit so don’t play it around your parents).

On an unrelated note, she’s engaged to Dalton Gomez, so let’s hope that she actually gets married this time!

Books/Art

‘Great Gatsby’ review

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By: Mohamed Ahmed

‘The Great Gatsby’? Never heard of it. What is it? 

‘The Great Gatsby’ is a book written by a famous author called F. Scott Fitzgerald. I am going to try to determine if this book is for you. 

‘The Great Gatsby’ takes place in the 1920s. The main character/narrator is a young man with dreams of hitting it big in the bond business. After his father put a timer on him Nick rushed to find a new home which ended up being close to a distant cousin and college acquaintance. His house also put him next to the title character.

One of the things I enjoyed most is the theme of the American Dream and the harsh reality of the real world. He delves into all sorts of relationships and how not everyone gets their perfect ending. 

The story starts out very slow however. It takes a long time to set up the main characters and the new environment all while keeping the story mysterious. He slowly builds a world and gives hints to foreshadowing. 

When all the pieces are in place though, the story comes together in an incredible way. The author found a way to word the story so that he keeps the mystery of Gatsby alive, all while keeping the story flowing. 

There are lies, ghosts from the past (not literally), mistakes, and heavy plot twists. 

The most important thing about the story is that it is from an outside perspective. If the narrator was all knowing then there wouldn’t be anything left to the imagination. There are vague scenes. It leaves the story up to interpretation inviting discussion because depending on your education level, life experiences, and knowledge about the author, you will interpret scenes in different ways. 

Due to the number of times that the author rewrote it, you know that the story is carefully crafted and the words that are used are intentional. 

All-in-all, to most people, I would recommend this book, especially if you can pass the first phases when the characters are all being introduced. 

Editorials/Student Voice, Music/Concerts

Xenophobia in the Western music industry

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By Ellie Mulvaney and Irene Cohen

Music is often called a universal language; something that ties people together without bounds. Throughout history, genres have been passed through people and geographical groups to spread different traditions, dances, and instruments through the music they originate from.

With this history, it’s hard to imagine that modern society is sometimes extremely intolerant with music, and the culture that’s associated with it, sometimes resorting to racism or xenophobia to hate on unfamiliar forms of media.

K-Pop is a genre of music thats name is a direct conjunction of its meaning: Korean pop. It’s typically associated with bright colors, vigorous dances, energetic songs, and is usually performed by groups.

The genre has spread west in past years, led by worldwide sensation group BTS. The group kicked off their first US tour in 2015, and since then, has only grown, getting their first Grammy nomination in the “Best Pop Duo/Group Performance” category in November of 2020. However, the road to this accomplishment was anything but easy, and to this day, they still are on the receiving end of countless amounts of unjustified hate.

The stage makeup and outfits they wear are beaten down for being too feminine, while their songs are often branded as shallow, despite the language barrier that many Americans don’t care to overcome when looking into their music.

On a professional level, they have been void of some opportunities that many theorize could be due to where they’re from. At the 2019 MTV Video Music Awards, the group received a nomination for “Best Collab”, which was won with regards to their song with an ​American​ artist, rather than a nomination for their solo music video that broke the record on YouTube for the most views in 24 hours.

This lack of Western recognition for the current, biggest, boy band in the world seems to run deeper than just simple coincidence, and bleeds into the xenophobia in America.

Some argue that BTS even being included in award ceremonies is the representation of East-Asian music groups that is needed in the award ceremonies. While BTS is able to get some representation from mainstream Western media, this is the first step in a very long journey to be more inclusive in award ceremonies.

Even when foreign groups are included in these ceremonies, they have special award names like “Best in K-Pop” instead of simply “Best in Pop.” They have these categories to make it seem like these groups are good but cannot be compared to our Western music artists. It is almost demeaning to have these categories.

This doesn’t just happen to K-Pop idols, either. In many music award ceremonies they have “Latin Pop” for Latinx artists instead of giving them just the “Pop” award.

We have seen countless times that when a song isn’t in English, it does not get the same representation in the award ceremonies that English songs receive. Many a time, songs not performed in English have performed extremely well worldwide to get beaten out by some English pop songs only known in the Western world. And that’s the best case scenario. Most of the time these songs aren’t even nominated for an award.

The Western music industry needs to be more inclusive in their coverage of music. Too long the Western music industry has not recognized the success or impact of a song, album, or artist just because it is foreign. The mindset of this music industry needs to change so that products of Western artists will not always be considered better than that of different regions.

Music should surpass language and culture, not be judged on it.

Editorials/Student Voice, Entertainment

Obsessions with serial killers have gone too far

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By: Olivia Knafla

Whether you spend your time on Instagram, Tiktok, or YouTube, you’ve probably seen a thing or two about serial killers at some point. Whether it was a short video summarizing a case or a post to remember victims, there is lots of information on the internet about these killers that people naturally find terrifying, heartbreaking, fascinating, or all three.

True crime is captivating for a number of reasons. With the tap of a screen, or click of a button, we can delve into spine-chilling words from the comfort of our own couch and return back to real life afterwards. We can learn about the situation without being thrown into the danger. On top of that, true crime can appeal to many interests from psychology, to criminal justice, to law. It’s easy to see the appeal for the genre because there is so much to be learned from it.

That being said, it makes sense that people find serial killers and the cases surrounding them so intriguing – but where should the line be drawn?

I believe the line lies between two words: interest and romanticization.

The illustrate my point, consider the two following situations:

  1. A person spends some time learning about what a serial killer did, how they were caught, ect., because they find it interesting to research and learn about.
  2. A person spends some time learning about a serial killer to then post online about how much they love said serial killer, whether as a joke or in seriousness.

Which situation feels strange or disturbing?

Most likely situation B. Why? Because the person from situation B is no longer interested in what happened or why, but only in the killer themselves, and for all the wrong reasons.

It may seem unrealistic for somebody to post about their fondness for a killer online, but it has happened more times than can be counted.

Even off-screen, killers in prison can receive up to hundreds of letters of fan mail weekly or even daily. And while online, such interactions may be less direct, they are certainly not invisible.

From people posting about how attractive Ted Bundy is to making fan accounts for Jeffrey Dahmer, it’s an understatement to say things have gotten out of hand. This was not the work of a couple internet trolls or people posting solely for attention (although I’m sure those people have some sort of involvement in these types of posts), but a large number of people.

For example, in January, of 2019, Netflix had to take to Twitter in response to people posting about how hot Ted Bundy was in the documentary: ‘Conversations With a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes’ and near the release of: ‘Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, and Vile’ with the following statement:

All of this being said, it is no secret that Hollywood enjoys glamorizing killers and their relationships. Take the TV series ‘You’ for example. The show is centered around killer Joe Goldberg and his relationships with women who just seem to love him so much.

Rather than talk about, quite literally, anything else, social media flooded with posts about how attractive Goldberg was, creating a uniquely uncomfortable environment for actors and those affected by similar situations.

Possibly worse than all of this though, was in early 2020, when teenagers located the Instagram account of an alleged active killer in the east coast, named Peter Manfredonia, a 23-year-old student at the University of Connecticut. Authorities were attempting to locate him after he was suspected of murdering two people, assaulting one, and finally kidnapping another. However, this did not prevent his comments from being flooded with everything from compliments to people writing down their home addresses and phone numbers.

Below are some of the comments that were left under his photos.

It should be obvious that these responses are not normal nor acceptable, and there are several answers that go further in depth explaining why.

Firstly, to show appreciation to somebody who is a serial killer is wildly insensitive to the victims and their families. Walk a mile in the shoes of somebody who was tortured and killed and then consider leaving these comments or making such remarks.

If that is not enough, think of the further damage such remarks could cause. Of course, no person is the same, and killers all have different ways of thinking and unique minds. However, by directly inflating the ego of one of these people, especially those who are not yet incarcerated or dealt with legally, is irresponsible and foolish.

No person who willingly hurts or preys upon others deserves any sort of fanbase, and by giving it to them you are telling them that you approve of them and what they are doing. And make no mistake – there is no excuse for it.

So, one may ask: how are we to get people out of this mindset? How are we, as a society, going to stop showering the monsters who walk among us with love and appreciation?

While there may always be some who enjoy the attention or shocked laughs they receive for glorifying these folks, the best thing you can do is to not do it yourself. If you choose to interact with an individual who participates in such behaviors (either online or in person), explain to them that it is wrong and why. Only when we all value our lives and the experiences of others will we move forward from this. And that I hope we do.

Editorials/Student Voice, Travel/Food

GMOs vs. organic

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By Nora Doyle

The debate on whether or not GMOs are good or bad has been going on for a while now and has become more of a commonly talked about issue as the organic foods movement has become more popular.

What are GMOs? GMO stands for Genetically Modified Organism. ​Forbes.com​ scribes GMOs as an organism whose genetic material or DNA has been changed in an unnatural way. ​’Forbes​’ also says GMOs are mostly designed to increase the nutritional value, and protect crops against pests.

As for organic food, ​’Forbes​’ describes it as food that doesn’t contain any pesticides or fertilizers, and is completely natural. Some people swear by organic foods and refuse to eat anything that has been genetically modified, and others don’t want to spend the extra money just for products that are fully natural.

The first topic of this argument has to do with this money opinion.

When you look at a package of organic blueberries at the grocery store, compared to blueberries that do not say organic, you will notice that the organic blueberries are significantly more expensive. Some people believe it’s worth the extra money, but some don’t.

There are a few reasons why organic food is more expensive according to ​OrganicAlberta, ​and one reason is that the demand is often greater than supply. Also, they say organic farming methods are more expensive than non organic farming methods, meaning they have to sell at higher prices.

Is organic food actually better for you?

According to ​Harvard Medical University, ​organic foods don’t appear to have nutritional advantages. USDA data shows that organic foods do have fewer pesticide residues, but both organic and non organic are the same level of safe for consumption.

However, Harvard studies do say that organic farming doesn’t feed their animals growth hormones. They are mostly naturally raised, so it may be arguable that organic is better for the animals.

Overall, it seems as though GMOs don’t really do much for us, but neither does organic food. Eat what you like how you like it!

Movies/TV/Theaters

‘The Social Network’: A smart movie

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By: Hayden Fitzsimons

In the conversation of the greatest films ever, The Social Network regularly crops up. David Fincher’s 2010 film has been seen as an incredibly perfect film with little to no mistakes within its creative elements. The screenplay, provided by world-renowned Aaron Sorkin, is often seen as the greatest screenplay, or at the very least one of the best to ever grace the earth. With a director such as Fincher, and a writer of Sorkin’s calibre, it seems as if the potential of the film was too good to be true, however, in my opinion, the expectations were sufficiently met.

While I personally don’t see The Social Network to be the best ever, it is without a doubt a masterpiece of some of the highest quality. Fincher is a personal favorite of mine, and his ability to get the best out of his actors once again is exhibited in The Social Network.

Fincher has also always been a director with a very specific visual style, and this style is seen once again in this film. The pairing of a visual director with Sorkin, who is a very dialogue-heavy writer, seems odd on paper, yet when it comes to its fruition the pairing worked wonders. Sorkin’s skills lie within his unparalleled ability to write realistic and attention-grabbing dialogue. So, it’s unsurprising that The Social Network has been praised mostly for it’s dialogue, which is of a quality rarely seen in film.

Comparing The Social Network to many of the other dialogue driven films I’ve seen, I find myself at a loss to fins other films which can rival the quality of Sorkin’s work in this film. The Social Network relies heavily on this supreme dialogue as it is the main selling point, however this isn’t to say the other elements of the film are lacking. It’s quite the opposite; every element of The Social Network rivals the quality of Sorkin’s writing.

The performances from Jesse Eisenberg, Andrew Garlfield, and Armie Hammer (who played two characters, often at the same time) amongst others are all incredible to the point where the viewer may likely forget the names behind the faces and be fully enveloped in their performances. The eclectic editing aids the equally dramatic story to a perfection, all thanks to Fincher’s understanding of camerawork and pacing.

To put it simply, if you haven’t yet seen The Social Network, you should, and you shouldn’t worry about having high expectations as they likely will be met.

Editorials/Student Voice, Music/Concerts

Why K-Pop is good

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By: Kayla Madison

So, I’m not really sure how to explain why K-Pop is good. It just is.

So, I’ll just kinda explain why I like it, because I didn’t before this year, 2020.

Fortunately, I don’t like BTS. Their fans are literally crazy and they’ll like, eat me. I listen to NCT and all their subunits: Ateez, TXT, Got7, Monsta X, SuperM, Red Velvet, Twice and, Stray Kids.

Here’s what I’ll say, no matter what – there’s always someone hot in a K-Pop group. It’s unethical to stan for that reason, but it’s a reason nonetheless. I won’t lie. I can’t lie.

I may not know Korean, but I know whatever they’re singing or rapping about…is facts. It’s so catchy. All the songs I’ve listened to are so catchy. Doesn’t matter what I’m doing, it’s always in the back of my mind.

With stanning comes the secret shipping, making it known that you have a ship in a group of guys isn’t good for them, it hurts the group and it also hurts the company. If the company is SM, do everything in your power to hurt them, and not the group. SM sucks so much. Ask anyone into K-Pop. They’re terrible. So are the MAMA awards, but going into that would take me hours.

How I got into K-Pop is pretty simple actually. I’m not sure what I was watching, but “God’s Menu,” by Stray Kids, popped up and I was like “that’s funny.” I gave it a listen and my jaw dropped all the way into the asthenosphere. It was so good. The boys looked heavenly. The vocals *chefs kiss*, FELIX’S PART, holy who knew a voice could go so deep *tear starts rolling down*.

My bias for that group…yes, I have a bias for every group I’ve ever listened to, well it’s more than 1 haha. Lee Know, Seungmin, Han, Hyunjin…I’m naming everyone. Apparently I don’t have a bias; I love them all.

Anyways, ever since I’ve listened to “God’s Menu” I’ve sunk deeper into the fascinating world that is K-Pop. Don’t knock it before you try it. Give it a listen.

Books/Art, Movies/TV/Theaters

‘One Piece’ review

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By: Mohamed Ahmed

What is ‘One Piece’? ‘One Piece’ is the number one best selling manga in the world. ‘One Piece’ started on June 3rd 1999 and is still going on today. During that time ‘One Piece’ broke every sales record for manga sales in manga history. It is one of the big three anime and is by far the number one most popular and best selling manga on earth. 

There is an anime show that is based on the manga ‘One Piece’. There are lots of reasons people have for not watching ‘One Piece’. The number one reason I have heard that makes sense is that it is too long. The manga, ‘One Piece’, is currently at chapter 999 and the anime has 954 episodes out. 

The reason why ‘One Piece’ failed in the west was because of the infamous 4kids dub. 4 kids was given a dubbing license as part of a package deal with some other series. ‘One Piece’ is not a show that can maintain its charm without the dark elements. The corruption of the world government, the main antagonistic force and the brutality of the pirates cannot be conveyed through censorship. 

‘One Piece’ has heart wrenching backstories and when you censor them to the point where it changes the plot, and closure is not given to the characters who found some way into the story, this takes a lot out of the way people view the series. 

The animation is another problem people have. Many ‘One Piece’ fans had that problem before watching the anime. After watching the anime people tend to miss the objectively bad animation and have a sense of nostalgia. That said, some people cannot watch something if it doesn’t suit their standards. 

Overall, I feel that people should give this series a chance, and not just rely on what the internet says about it. 

Manga rating: 10/10 

Anime rating 8/10

Movies/TV/Theaters

‘Come and See’: Real horror

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By: Hayden Fitzsimons

The World Wars are a subject in film and media which has been done to death and beaten beyond recognition. However, within all of the schlock and reasonably good war movies, there is one particular film that stands above the rest. That film is the 1985 masterpiece, directed by Elem Klimov, ‘Come and See.’ Elem Klimov set out to depict war to the realest degree that he could, along with Belarusian cinematographer Aleksei Rodionov. Both experienced the Second World War firsthand, Rodionov in particular who fought against the Nazis whilst he was still a teen.

‘Come and See’ follows Florya, a young teen, as he excitedly joins the Russian revolution against the Nazis. Florya is left behind by the revolutionaries, and he is heartbroken. Florya returns to his village following an attack on the revolutionaries’ base with his newfound friend Glosha. When he returns to his village, Byelorussia, they find the village to be empty.

From this point forth, the film transforms from a somewhat tense and emotional romp to one of the darkest and realistic depictions of war to ever be made. The viewer accompanies Florya as he witnesses the pure evil of the Nazis, and their conspirators, against innocent men, women, and children.

Florya turns from a cheerful & optimistic child, who wants to do nothing more than fight for his people, to an aged and decrepit husk of his former self after watching all those around him die in extremely brutal fashion. Not only was what Florya saw some of the cruelest horrors one could see, they are all depictions of reality. All the events of massacre in the film were truly committed by the Nazi forces, and that is what makes the film absolutely destructive to one’s psyche.

However, the grueling and realistic story is not enough without the proper film elements to support it. Fortunately, ‘Come and See’ has masterful execution of every factor in film in spades. The cinematography, especially for being an 80s Russian movie, is top notch.

Head-on shots of characters are a repeated motif throughout the film. These shots have the characters often looking directly at the camera, and are an excellent way to dig into the viewer’s psyche as well as depict deep emotions without the need for dialogue.

The cinematography also includes views that are often behind the characters, as if they are constantly being stalked.

In addition to these, many of the shots are long, winding, tedious sequences that continually feed into the next shot after the next after the next. There are nearly no breaks, no moments of calm. It is a constant deluge of pain and suffering, with no end in sight.

The sound design is also incredible, rivaling that of many films which have come out decades later. This sound design accompanies incredibly with the long arduous shots at creating a film that feels intensely real and difficult to watch, yet still terribly hard to look away from.

‘Come and See’ is real. No, it doesn’t follow real characters or a real life story, however what happens in the film is still real. Innocent people were massacred in the millions by Nazi forces. Their methods of murder are real, and truly horrific. Everything presented in the film, the viewer knows to be true, even if it is just a fictional depiction.

Once all is said and done, there is still no resolution. No solace, no victory, no optimism, no release, nothing. ‘Come and See’ only lets the viewer feel pain, a pain they know to have been real.

I believe ‘Come and See’ is the best war movie to ever be made. This film should be seen by all, as it is one of the closest ways to see true evil without truly seeing it happen. However, the film is extremely brutal, intense, and realistic. It is not for the faint of heart, but it still is for everyone. ‘Come and See’ is a depiction of the true evil that lies within humanity. If we were to live in a world without pieces of art such as this film, we may then live in a world devoid of understanding, devoid of hope, and devoid of resistance to evil.

Music/Concerts, Science/Nature

Music and the brain

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By Nora Doyle

Why can listening to your favorite song sometimes cheer you up like nothing else? Why can we remember all the lyrics to a song we haven’t listened to in years, but not math formulas?

Professors at the University of Central Florida have been trying to answer questions like these for a long time. They explore how music impacts brain function and human behavior, including by reducing stress, pain, and symptoms of depression, as well as improving cognitive and motor skills.

These professors say that these reactions on the brain can be seen on an MRI. Professor Kiminobu Sugaya says, “Lots of different parts of the brain light up.”

Music affects different parts of the brain in different ways according to this study by the UCF professors. For the temporal lobe, which processes what we hear, professor Ayako Yonetani says that this part of the brain allows us to appreciate and enjoy music. Have a favorite song? This part of the brain is what likes it.

Music affects the Broca’s area, which enables us to produce speech. This is because playing an instrument may improve one’s ability to communicate. This is where we express music.

In the Wernicke’s area, where we comprehend written and spoken language, we simply enjoy the music through analyzing it. Analyzing lyrics, instrumentals, and tunes helps us enjoy a song.

In the optical lobe, which processes what we see, professor Sugaya says, in short, that musicians visualize cords and notes as they perform.

As for the cerebellum, which coordinates movement and stores physical memory, Sugaya says “An Alzheimer’s patient, even if he doesn’t recognize his wife, could still play the piano if he learned it when he was young because playing has become a muscle memory. Those memories in the cerebellum never fade out,” which is probably the most incredible thing that music can do to the brain! Muscle memory is a term that is also used in sports, like dance, because we also connect music to movement when it is choreographed.

The remaining parts of the brain are affected by music through translating notes from our brain to our fingers while playing an instrument.

There is the fact that music can be addictive like a drug. When I hear a song for the first time and love it, I want to play it over and over again. Also, songs are addictive in the way that they get stuck on our heads.

So, next time you listen to music, think of all the ways it’s affecting your brain!