Shuffle is pretty wonderful. The freedom that comes with hitting those two intertwining arrows and locking your phone is hard to beat. It comes with contentment that whatever plays will be listened to, and if it’s truly unbearable, the precious skip button is right there. But ignore that ever-so-tempting skip button! It’s an addiction waiting to happen!
The reason behind having your library on shuffle is not to find new music, but to rediscover old loves. Songs that you once adored, but grew away from. If you use iTunes, shuffling your library is a great way to find those anthems to your early teens, which may not be something you want to remember. Even now I’ve rediscovered my Stromae phase, unfortunately. But it’s always fun to go back through your library and explore your old music taste.
One thing that you will find is that there is a lot of bad music out there. Like, really bad. And you used to listen to it, and you used to enjoy it. “How?!” you might ask yourself. I still ask myself that whenever shuffle is on my library. How in the world did 14-year-old-me think this song was good?! If you have ever had Ice Ice Baby burst through your stereo without you choosing it, you’ll know what I’m talking about.
It seems bewildering that we could have ever been so silly to have liked songs like these, so devoid of musical talent or artistic integrity. And yet, you find yourself strangely drawn to it. The lyrics come spilling out of your mouth, and a smile creeps its way into your expression. Dancing becomes inevitable; you can’t stop yourself. You know all the words. A bandana wraps itself around your head. You are Vanilla Ice.
Ok, that might be a little extreme, but why do we like music that’s comically bad? Songs like Ice Ice Baby and Who Let The Dogs Out are horrific, but hold a special place in our hearts. They’re party songs, 4-minute anthems to dance with your friends to, laughing at the absurdity of it all. They’re fun, not profound.
There have been many claimants to the throne of shittiness that is “Worst Song of All Time,” including My Humps by The Black Eyed Peas, Rockstar by Nickelback and Baby by Justin Bieber (yeah bet you forgot that existed huh?). But is there really a point to crowning a king of crap?
After all, there are various types of shitty music. There’s the plain old musically bad song. Included in this category is the entire catalogue of Nickelback, much of Billy Ray Cyrus’ work, the aforementioned Ice Ice Baby, along with countless others. This is the stuff that’s easy to enjoy. Just switch your mind off and let the wave of dubious musical talent sweep you along. This is the fun stuff, because there’s no malicious intent or ignorance. No sense of questionable morals to go with the music. It’s just bad music, and it’s great to laugh and get drunk to.
The worse stuff comes when you delve onto YouTube, and usually involve covers. Now, I’m not one of those people who think that bad artists should be banned from covering brilliant songs, like when Kanye wanted to cover David Bowie and people got mad. If artists want to pay tribute to a great artist, who are you to stop them. You don’t have to listen to it, but there’s a line where a cover can cross into something legitimately dangerous. Like when this happens:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a7d0vKo3kvs
Yeah, that’s a real thing that exists. Someone legitimately thought that was a good idea. Taking a rich white kid and making a “vintage” themed cover of Fetty Wap’s Trap Queen, a song about drug dealing. When Fetty sings about cooking pies, he’s slanging crack. This kid? He’s literally talking about pie. He isn’t so much missing the point as he is actively avoiding anything sharp. Bad music like this is actually uncomfortable to listen to. It makes you feel dirty, like you’ve done something wrong. This isn’t fun, it’s gross.
But for the most part, we don’t love this kind of bad music. Anthems of entitlement like the above cover, along with Rebecca Black’s Friday and the Bieb’s Baby are generally hated, because people recognise that they are more than bad. They do something more than James Blunt or Starship did; they show the entitlement of the performers. It’s as if they are entitled to a hit. The cover of Fetty Wap that lies embedded above crosses another line into somewhere that’s genuinely racist, and that’s why people generally hate it. Party playlists will still be dominated by songs that make you laugh rather than groan and get depressed over the state of the world. Songs like Don’t Worry, Be Happy and Sounds Of Silence (the cover by Disturbed) are musically horrible, but they have their appeal outside of torture.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to listen to more Vanilla Ice.
Image: Jaguda
Rap videos are no strangers to controversy. Whether it’s intense language, sex, violence, drugs and so on, there’s no shortage of criticism and confrontation. Today sees New Jersey rapper Fetty Wap the subject of just that kind of criticism.
Fetty released the video for his latest single Wake Up just last week, which follows the story of a young him going to school and essentially realising he has better things to do than be there. It’s full of scantily dressed women, drinking 40s and references to smoking weed too, as many rap videos are. The clip itself was filmed at the high school Fetty dropped out of – East Side High, New Jersey – and that’s where the controversy is coming from.
In a statement to NorthJersey.com only a few hours ago, school district spokeswoman for New Jersey Terry Corallo said that, “It has been determined that this video was taped inside Eastside High School during non-instructional hours and that no students participated in the taping of this video. As there are procedures that must be followed in securing the use of our facilities, whether all procedures were followed is in question and being investigated – and will be addressed in a personal matter. The District does not endorse the content of this video.”
Member of the school board Kenneth Simmons echoed the sentiments of many parents, claiming that, “as a parent and school board member I think it sends the wrong message. To me, it glorifies dropping out of school and getting high. I don’t want to take anything away from the artist, he’s talented, but even though he’s made it, that’s rare. Everybody who drops out doesn’t make it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LbARTyio_0Q
So far Fetty’s team is yet to provide a statement or response. While one would think that an artist as high-profile as Fetty Wap would have gotten the permissions to film a video clip which has already racked up almost 3.5 million views, maybe there was more to it? Having dropped out of the very same high school, and with a song that promotes a ‘fuck school’ attitude – maybe the lack of permission was on purpose? Frankly it kind of just seems like the school is taking this a bit too seriously. It’s not meant to be realistic, obviously, and in fact the only young child in the whole video is the teacher. That said, we’ll have to wait till Fetty is able to speak for himself to really know.
Image: Fetty Wap Youtube
We’ve rounded up some of the best new music videos from across the entire musical spectrum, from pop, to R&B, to hip-hop, electro-pop and beyond. Enjoy!
Georgia Mae – Time With You
This was an interestingly filmed video, with some still shots pieced together with raw footage in a kind of intentionally amateur way. Some warm summer vibes for the beginning of winter from this upcoming Australian artist. The video was filmed in brisbane, and the artist had this to say about its concept: “I hope it can relate to a lot of people who have really special memories of spending time with someone important to them.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=em-upload_owner&v=aV0A8oWapzk&app=desktop
Maxwell – Lake By The Ocean
Maxwell has made a welcome return to music, and his first song in seven years now has a visual accompaniment to match. First, we meet a volunteer working at a disadvantaged village, who heads to a bar after work, only to find Maxwell performing. She dances to the smooth tune, before joining Maxwell on a swim – no doubt in a lake by the ocean – quickly showing their affection for one another. The shadows and low lighting do a good job of keeping the mood. it’s good to have him back.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BsSu0bRZEHM
Kyle Bent – Vibes
Much like the name, the video for the upcoming artist’s new track is all about the good vibes. The bright colours and summer scenes of fun create a warm atmosphere in the mix of clips that go along with the upbeat song. It’s really exciting to see more emerging artists producing this type of cheery, soulful hip-hop infusions, and we’re looking forward to seeing what’s next for Kyle Bent.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rOzyAzXG4Gc
Bat For Lashes – Sunday Love
Natasha Khan seems to be continuing the wedding theme with this video, just like in God’s House. Here, we meet a man driving on a dark road in a storm, looking as though he had been in a fight. He stops the car and is greeted by Khan wearing a white dress with a veil. Suddenly, he falls into Khan arms dead. While she is visibly upset, she kisses him. He disappears, leaving her staring at the sky. Once again, she found a tragic and exciting way to present her stunning song on video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pBfZooPrmfo
Fetty Wap – Wake Up
Once again, Fetty Wap has killed it with another playful clip for Wake Up, a track celebrating getting “Wiz Khalifa high” (aka – very fucking high.) Here, Fetty goes back to school, singing in the hallways, dancing along to the slow beat. The rebelliousness and disinterest in school that so many teenagers possess is portrayed through the integration of the hip-hop lifestyle into the classroom, which is pretty interesting in itself. The combination of the hand-drawn graphics and brightly coloured clips of high school kids chilling out create an interesting take.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LbARTyio_0Q&feature=youtu.be
Arthur Beatrice – Since We Were Kids
This is a nice little song with a simple little video. Lead vocalist Ella Girardot sits on a stool in a black and white filtered clip, directed by designer and long time collaborator Kate Moross, while coloured cut-outs surround her. They seem to keep her trapped in a suffocating little box as they crowd in front of her while she dwells on the past. A visually gorgeous clip to accompany the latest single from their new album, Keeping The Peace.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wPt-ZUpkE9w
Clams Casino – Witness ft. Lil B
Clams Casino is back, with new music and a long-awaited new album, 32 Levels, on the way. Now comes new track Witness, which not only features long term collaborator Lil B, but has also been directed by, and stars, the mysterious rapper. While I’m not a fan of his solo work, I’m really digging the track. The video is pretty typical of a slick hip-hop clip, but it’s still a fun watch. We’re really looking forward to this album.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHitmmi2VdY
Image: Billboard
Fetty Wap is the subject of a new petition that doesn’t just request his presence at the funeral of Nancy Reagan, but that he perform his anthem, Trap Queen, in her honour.
Both hilarious and (I guess) disrespectful, the petition argues that the late wife of president Ronald Wilson Reagan (666!) had a hand in crafting what has gone down as one of the most diabolical schemes in America’s history.
It has been argued that while the first lady spent her time being the face of the incredibly ineffective anti-drug campaign, “Just Say No”, her husband and then-president of the United States, Ronald Reagan was directly involved with funding Contras (U.S backed and funded right-wing militia groups) in Nicaragua, who played a key role in supplying literal tonnes of cocaine to America, creating the cocaine/crack cocaine drug epidemic in the 1980’s.
The change.org petition opens up with, “she was married to the money and introduced America to the stove…”, and then goes on to argue that the duo of Nancy and Ronald Regan were directly responsible in creating a “school-to-prison pipeline.” and that “Blacks and Latinos went to jail in droves for possessing drugs her husband gave them.”
It concludes in saying that it’s only right for the Fetty Wap song to be played at her funeral, as any up and coming trap queen would likely need to, “hide in shame for her inability to be as diabolical as Nancy.”
I feel that it goes without saying that regardless of how many signatures this particular petition will get, it is a 100% certainty that Nancy Reagans funeral will be Fetty Wap free. Regardless, the comparison between the fictional characters in the song and the real life presidential duo might spark a conversation about just how outdated and ridiculous the notion of abstinence-based drug campaigns truly are. Although it’s unlikely to change anything in America, it might hopefully stop such ignorant thinking from creating similar modern campaigns in Australia (although it probably won’t.)
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_kF4zLNKio]
Image: gazettereview
Fetty Wap has made one little boy the happiest kid in the world, and he is solely to thank.
For Jayden Burgos, a case of Retinoblastoma would see the 11-year-old lose his right eye, forcing him to don a prosthetic one at such a young age. After years of living with the prosthetic, the rise of Fetty Wap, who took the internet and the hip-hop world simultaneously by storm, would prove to be a wave of inspiration for the youngster.
As Fetty Wap was blowing up, news began to emerge of the inspiration that the rapper had provided Jayden, which would lead to him removing his prosthetic eye and developing the confidence to embrace who he is.
Now, Jayden has finally been given the opportunity to meet his idol and his inspiration backstage at the rapper’s performance in Denver. People Magazine was courteous enough to make the meeting happen, and judging from the photos, it was entirely worth it, and then some.
Y’all 😍 #jaydenmeetsfetty @fettywap1738
A photo posted by @anaisvaden on Feb 24, 2016 at 6:59pm PST
Just one look at the smile on Jayden’s face and you can tell just how much it means to him to meet his idol.
There can be way too many unpleasantries in the hip-hop world, and I for am incredibly touched by moments like these, that simply make me proud to be a fan of rap.
Image: Pigeons and Planes.
Fetty Wap has got to be the hardest working dude in hip-hop (with maybe the exception of Future), and he is back at it once again with a new single and mixtape. The single is a solo track called Go Hard Boyz (Banshee), and the mixtape is with his Zoo Gang, Zoo 16: The Mixtape.
It is Fetty’s fourth project in less than five months, following his self-titled debut album; the For My Fans EP; and his French Montana collaborative mixtape, Coke Zoo. The mixtape features 17 songs by Fetty, Monty, Oskama, Guwii Kids, Khaos, PNB Rock, Blicky, and more.
Zoo 16 also boasts six Zoomixes, where the Zoo Gang remixes Fetty’s music from previous releases, including the classic My Way. If you love Fetty Wap or any of the Zoo Gang, this mixtape will not disappoint. Listen to it in full below.
Fetty’s new song Go Hard Boyz (Banshee) is exactly how it sounds – it goes hard.
[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/245017965″ params=”auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true” width=”100%” height=”450″ iframe=”true” /]
The song is as Fetty as they come, as he chants “Fuck a whip, I bought a Banshee.” It’s good to see nothing, including a motorbike accident in September, will get in the way of Fetty doing and achieving what he wants. I hope he stays safe on that Banshee and continues to produce killer tracks and killer mixtapes.
Go Hard Boyz also comes with an anti-gun message; “Bikes up, guns down,” he raps, later adding, “We believe in bikes, we don’t believe in hammers.” This further adds to Fetty’s “good guy” image (he’s even been classed as a feminist – a rare occurrence in hip-hop), and is in reference to the rally against gun violence called Bikes Up, Guns Down, which took place in Miami on Martin Luther King Day last month.
In what could possibly be one of the most unlikely collaborations to come out of the last few months, Selena Gomez and Fetty Wap have paired up for a remix of Gomez’ Same Old Love.
Both artists made major waves in the music industry last year, with Gomez’ Same Old Love and, Fetty Wap’s Trap Queen receiving No. 2 positions on the Billboard charts. Despite their obvious differences, it’s somehow fitting to hear them on a track together. While the track’s structure remains largely the same, there are some obvious Fetty Wap influences on this version, both sonically and lyrically. The track is easy enough to listen to, sure, but it’s not exactly deep or about the break any new ground. The lyrics contain meaningful and quotable lyrics like, “I am so sick/ I’m hoping you’ll notice, yeah baby/ So sick of the same old love/ Like a dose of the same old drug, yeah baby/ Really starting to get under my skin.”
This isn’t the first time Same Old Love has been reworked, however. Just last November, Gomez shared the Same Old Love (Remixes) EP, which featured remixes from electronic artists, including Borgore and Filous.
Listen to the track below:
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fzL8zcZleGw&w=560&h=315]
Young Thug has been all over the news of late. From calling Rich Homie Quan out over homophobic comments, to demanding custody of his, erm, 11 children, to beefs with Lil Wayne and beyond, it often feels like the talented artist is keeping himself in the news for any damn reason, musical or not. But considering he’s on one of our favourite albums and singles of the year, we’re particularly excited about the news that he’s just announced a series of collaborative mixtapes.
Sure, we haven’t actually received a full debut album from Young Thug just yet, but that’s not to say we haven’t received a huge amount of Thugger music in 2015, including massive leaks, Barter 6, and plenty of collaborations. In a new interview with French publication Mon Entourage, Thug has now announced three exciting upcoming collaborative mixtapes – that will hopefully see the light of day in 2016, with Post Malone, Fetty Wap and Migos. The direct quote, is, “I’m bringing out a mixtape with The Migos, I’m bringing out a mixtape with Fetty Wap, and I’m bringing out a mixtape with Post Malone. All of them are done, it’s probably just like four songs left on one of them. But all of them are done. So there’s like 50 more songs.”
The 22-minute interview sheds light on a side to Thug that we don’t usually see, as he’s notoriously quite closed off on interviews. Speaking about his troubled upbringing and the music he grew up on, and the journey to where he is now.
Some are calling Fetty Wap Rookie of the Year, some are calling him a hip-hop feminist, one 10-year-old boy calls him an inspiration, and his grandma just wishes he would pull up his pants. As for myself, I am calling him legit, and his new EP For My Fans is no exception.
The EP totally lives up to its name, featuring five tracks compiled of three freestyles and two original cuts, which should not only appease the Fetty fans, but pull in a few more of the as-yet-uninitiated. For added star power, For My Fans features guest appearances from his fellow Zoo Gang members House Party & Cartel Lb.
There is no denying Fetty’s rise to the top of the freshmen crew in 2015, with his self-titled debut opening at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, earning him an impressive two American Music Award nominations. He was also the first act to have his first four singles chart in the top 10 on the Hot Rap Songs chart simultaneously, Trap Queen, 679, My Way and Again.
For My Fans is Fetty’s third release in three month, following his collab with French Montana, Coke Zoo. For My Fans is available for free stream on SoundCloud, check it out below:
[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/235511852″ params=”auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true” width=”100%” height=”450″ iframe=”true” /]
Hip-hop has long been notorious for it’s disrespect towards women. Granted there are a lot of good artists who refrain from the easy-to-slide into culture, and it’s extremely catchy slang. But, sadly many artists still try to imitate the subject matter that rappers like Kool G Rap, Too $hort, and 2 Live Crew, gained mainstream attention with.
Many rappers have taken influence from the 60s and 70s pimp culture. Children’s movie star Ice Cube and SVU’s Ice T adopted their names in part from reading the well known pimp Iceberg Slim’s last book, Doom Fox. Most pimp references in Too $hort and Snoop Dogg’s music, ultimately can be traced back to Iceberg Slim. Even Jay-Z has referred to himself as Iceberg Slim in the lyrics to his song Who You Wit.
This disrespect for women in ingrained in some of the great in the hip-hop game, and while not as prevalent in today’s music as the late 90s and early 2000s, it is still far from acceptable.
Fetty Wap has always been in the news for being a good bloke, he has given a young boy the confidence to not wear his prosthetic eye and is not afraid to go against the macho man culture of hip-hop, by tearing up when he discussed winning Music Choice’s MC100 Award of 2015. But, would you go as far as to say he is a hip-hop feminist?
Legendary rapper MC Lyte thinks Fetty Wap is a bona fide hip-hop feminist. During a roundtable discussion at the White House Council on Women and Girls, which specifically focused on women in hip-hop, Lyte pointed to Fetty as an example of how to respect women in rap music. “He may have a very unique way of presenting his ideas, but he does love women,” she said. “For what he’s up against in this climate with all of the other emcees, he’s taking a stand. He’s being pretty courageous right now with what it is that he presents in his music. Because it’s really not the norm.”
Lyte also referred to artists like Kendrick Lamar, Big Sean, Common, and Talib Kweli for discussing women in a respectful way in their music, and urged all rappers to realise they needed to take responsibility for the content of their lyrics.
MC Lyte has brought up and important issue within the hip-hop genre and I don’t mean to discredit her or Fetty Wap. I just think it’s hard to find a rapper with a good positive representation of women within their songs. In Fetty Wap’s shout out to his girl – Trap Queen he comes oh so close, but loses it in the last verse – “I’ll run in ya house, then I’ll f*** your hoe.” I think ‘feminist’ might have been the wrong word. I do, however, totally agree with the aforementioned artists being “at the forefront of what could be a great change in hip-hop.”
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_kF4zLNKio]
“What I will say is that we need to give a few of these good men a chance in hoping that they will develop to be something else in the future,” Lyte said. “I know that when I first started I used a whole lot of profanity. I wasn’t good at communicating, so I just used what I knew. And the more you understand that you’re not just rocking for the block, that these words are going out across the entire globe. You at that point have to take responsibility and accountability.”
Hip-hop is far from rid of it’s chauvinistic and derogatory character, but I do believe in what MC Lyte has said. She has started the discussion and put forth some rappers with the ability to change the next generations ways.
Lyte also created the perfect way for me to Segway into Fetty Wap’s new song. “Big Sean raps about his grandma,” she said. “Any man that raps about his grandma you gotta show some love to.”
Which is exactly what I am doing now by showing some love to Fetty Wap’s new track called Grandma, which is dedicated to his grandma who scolds him for wearing his pants too low.
[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/234038900″ params=”auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true” width=”100%” height=”450″ iframe=”true” /]