Hi cuties! Classes have picked up, I’ve had one round of finals for a pre-term, and I’ve confessed to a few people that I will be going to Addison Rae & Smosh live in Chicago. Things are going, they’re a whirlwind, and the news is nauseating. The news is so nauseating actually, that all I think about these days is that the only thing we have in these dire times is art and music. Not much else to say!
Several things I want to write on my backlog but I come to you in a whiz this morning because I need to get some quick hits off my chest. Here we go, (and miss you!).
In defense, of the defense of Sabrina Carpenter.
The internet has been a superstorm of discourse dunking on Man’s Best Friend for being a beacon of internalized misogyny and way too male-centered. Miss Carpenter has finally crossed the stardom peak that women are allowed to reach - you know, the point where the public decides that they don’t like a woman anymore, and she’s no longer palatable to them.
A few things to say here - this is not in defense of the music, or the album. In fact, I’ll confess that while I did enjoy it, there’s only a few songs I enjoyed enough to playlist. If the dogpile of hate was about the quality of music, I honestly wouldn’t care enough to comment - the profit incentive of churning out another album definitely influences how long an artist gets to sit with their music and the creative process. So sure, critique away, fair enough!
It’s also a strange time to talk about white women like Sabrina Carpenter making pop music. At the brink of fascism and amid the total demise of media literacy in the US, there’s an extra layer of (justifiable) scrutiny put on mass media, to survey what values are upheld by them. There’s lots of discourse out there about whether this album’s rollout is appealing to traditionalism, hyper-sexualization of women, etc. I think that’s fair to question now that she’s hit mainstream. Personally, it’s pretty clear to me that there’s a high degree of irony, sarcasm, and tongue-in-cheek that explicitly communicate the values of the work… but I recognize that I could also biased from having a lot of context on her work, and know that this is classic Sabrina. That is out of scope for this shpeal, but wanted to drop a quick note.
Anyway, I’m here to defend the defenders. Because you know that… it’s extremely hard to look away from the fact that people are mainly pissed that she’s singing about men. This is such a tired critique. I’m bored! This is the Taylor Swift dogpile all over again! This is such a basic take, I’m irritated I even have to say it!
The hypocrisy in the expectations of pop girls is the same as it always has been. Her last album was famously about Barry Keoghan, and she was wildly rewarded for being open about it (the Please Please Please music video sits at 253M views). She’s spent the last year as a 26 year old woman who got cheated on - what did you expect her album to be about? The expectations, as always, are unrealistic. Talk about your love life and we’ll reward you. Talk about how it hurt you and we’ll accuse you of being too male centered.
Also, extremely clear that anyone accusing Sabrina Carpenter of always singing about men is unfamiliar with her body of work, or simply isn’t listening. Anyway.
My favs off the album are Tears, House Tour, and Never Getting Laid. Her VMA performance gagged me. No, I don’t have an opinion on the album cover.
WHERE IS MY ELIANCE… ELI NATION MAKE SOME NOISE!!!!
Eli continues to be the most exciting thing happening for me in music (Tibslog #8). Since I last wrote, she put out her next single Like a Girl, which is my favorite release so far. First of all, this song comes in at a hot 4 minutes and 19 seconds, which in a world of under 2 minute TikTok hits, is a huge breath of fresh air. A girl dedicated to the craft! It breaks traditional song structure, has a gorgeous outro, and the coolest verse with a Tsu Lang Yor reference. I’m an Eli fan for real.
She is currently putting on a sold out one woman musical in LA and NYC, featuring the songs of her upcoming Stage Girl album. I’m in Chicago but the reviews from my on-the-ground correspondent are in:
“First of all the opener was puppets” has got to be my favorite text I’ve ever gotten about a show. If anyone wants to sponsor me to fly to the New York show, please reach out.
IT’S JADE’S WORLD… AND WE’RE ALL JUST LIVING IN IT.
No joke, I don’t even know what to say. Jade’s new album THAT’S SHOWBIZ, BABY! is excellent. It’s so fucking good. She’s an artist for real. I waxed poetic about her first single last year (TibsLog #3), and honestly wondered how she could put out an album that lived up to it:
But my god. It did. It’s a 46 minute journey of genuine artistic expression, taking you through Jade’s journey’s in the music industry, in love, in self… it’s campy, sonically interesting, and lyrically well made. Every piece of the visual rollout has felt cohesive and strong in vision.
This is an album by a student and lover of pop music, FOR students and lovers of pop music. If you love artistry and earnesty, listen to her album in full, it’s worth it.
Filed under: music video’s to bring a tear to your eye. Kinda giving… Dance To This by Troye Sivan & Ariana Grande?
Favs for today are: Self Saboteur, Headache, Silent Disco.
Okay that’s all! I have to go to class. Stay safe, take care of each other, don’t lose hope. Love you! Love you.
must listen to these reccs now!!!
I AM A PROUD MEMBER OF THE ELIANCE… these are such good points i gasped at the “point of stardom where we start to hate women for being famous” point about sabrina. not a single falsehood was said
as always i enjoyed your tibslog how does it feel being sexy brilliant a fresh of breath air etc etc all the good things in life ily and i hope u are always having good days