Divesting from Twitter, pop culture recs, and my year of concerts
I’ve made a decision about the newsletter - it’s gonna be focused on pop culture. Thanks for those that participated in my poll, though I think I decided on it before I even saw the results. I really don’t have another place to share these thoughts and recommendations - this newsletter has always been the best method for me, especially since it’s getting harder and harder for freelance writers to publish not only cultural critique, but publish period. The media industry has been fucked for awhile now, but in the last year or two, the layoffs and shut-downs of outlets have been particularly severe. Many of the independent media sites were bought by tech bros or venture capitalists, who eventually decided if they don’t make enough money, they’re not worth keeping around. Of course, good writing and journalism have nothing to do with profit margins, high click rates, and going viral, so it was never a good marriage to begin with, but it seems like outlets have had to learn this lesson the hard way.
I’ve spent a lot of time building up a following on Twitter over the last 7-8 years, where I was able to share my writing and engage with others on all these different topics I’m interested in. Twitter was also an essential place for freelance writers to make connections with editors and other writers and get some name recognition. But then a white supremacist, misogynist, transphobic man-baby bought Twitter and proceeded to dismantle it over the past year. I thought many times about leaving Twitter this year, but all the alternatives that had sprung up just weren’t good substitutes. That all changed last month and “soft-quit” the site (my account is still up but I’m no longer posting there). Elon Musk’s blatant antisemitism finally made me divest from Twitter—and just this week, he welcomed that disgusting waste of flesh Alex Jones back onto the site, so I feel like I’ve made the right choice.
Aside from politics, what made it easier to leave was that I was getting almost no response to my posts anymore, because Musk changed the algorithm to de-prioritize people who weren’t paying him $8/month. So with over 8000 followers on Twitter, I was getting zero engagement - i.e., no one was seeing my tweets. Musk also converted the famous Twitter blue check into a meaningless blue check, where it no longer signified verification. A blue check no longer means the person the account claims to be *is* that person. Instead of verified journalists and notable public figures, a blue check now just means someone is paying for clout. Twitter had become one of the most important news sources in our country over the past decade, and now it’s basically a misinformation platform with no support staff or moderators to check the the spread of harmful slurs or lies (of course Musk is one of the worse offenders).
So now I’m trying to rebuild followings on two main platforms: BlueSky and Threads (Meta’s newish text-based platform). Yes, I know Zuckerberg is also an asshole billionaire and that Facebook facilitated the spread of misinformation leading up to Trump’s election. However, at least there are still some guardrails over at Meta, and Zuckerberg doesn’t seem to be driving his business directly into the ground like Musk is. This is basically a lesser of the two evils situation. BlueSky doesn’t have the baggage that Threads has, but it also has some limitations - one of the biggest for me is the dearth of pop culture critics and a general overemphasis on politics. I need to be able to engage with other cultural critics/scholars and not just have it be doom and gloom all the time. As for Twitter, there are many people I really admire who are still very active there - and I have to admit I’m judging them for it at this point. But I also know everyone has their own dealbreaker, and I stayed on Twitter longer than others did.
Anyway, if you’re on BlueSky and Threads, come find me! You’ll need an invitation code for Bluesky but I usually have a few to give out - let me know if you need one.
A few things I published recently at Grammys.com:
The Sonic and Cultural Evolution of Reggaeton in 10 Songs
Why 1998 Was Hip-Hop's Most Mature Year: From The Rise Of The Underground To Artist Masterworks
Is anyone else watching the latest season of Fargo? I’ve actually not watched the previous seasons, though I’ve heard the first two are the best and the third and fourth are weaker. It’s an anthology show (different characters and story each season, set mainly in Minnesota, as the original film was), so you can watch some and not others. The critical consensus is that Fargo is back in a big way this season. Jon Hamm as one of the main stars is what got me watching, but it also stars Juno Temple (the actual protagonist) of Ted Lasso fame. I can’t imagine a character more different than Keeley Jones, and she’s incredible as this badass living a double life. Great accent work as well. Hamm is also fantastic as a very zeitgeisty villain, lots of January 6 insurgent energy. The third main actor is Jennifer Jason Leigh, who’s quite funny as a rich bitch who’s made a fortune as CEO of a debt collection agency. Lots of political satire going on, as well as some amazing action set pieces. But warning: it is violent and gory so if that’s not your thing, skip it. Streaming on Hulu.
Last time I talked about revisiting Friends in the wake of Matthew Perry’s tragic death. (And speaking of people gone too soon, we found out this week that an immensely talented and versatile actor, Andre Braugher, died on Monday at the age of 61. A huge loss). So I’ve continued to find rewatching Friends to be a great comfort watch, but wow, was it a bad idea to seek out the list of the best Friends Thanksgiving episodes. One of consistenly chosen favorites is season 5, ep 8, where we see different flashbacks and one of the main ones involves Fat Monica. It was painful to watch and so dismissive of this teenage girl. It’s ridiculous how bad the fatsuit is, and this is how it always is - thin actors in fatsuits never look like real fat people, which compounds the harm to us, as it distorts how we actually look in addition to mocking us. So in the same episode, there’s a flashback of the year later, after Monica lost all the weight, and it’s absurd to believe that a previously fat girl who lost weight would suddenly look like the very thin Courteney Cox. I don’t understand how, in 2023, critics consider this one of best Friends Thanksgiving episodes - they should know better. I’m able to compartmentalize this one really bad thing about Friends, but I really wish I didn’t have to.
Another rewatch I’ve been doing is Girls, which was big about a decade ago. After rewatching the first two seasons I said to myself, “I think this might be the best show about people in their 20s I’ve ever seen.” Season three continued to astound me and I’m not sure why I didn’t realize how good this show was the first time I watched. It’s officially in my top 10 now. I think the characterization of these four young women in their post-college years, in addition to a handful of important male characters, is phenomenal. They’re so richly written and believable - all four of them are insufferable and lovable in different ways. The writing skewers each and every one of them at different times, but particularly the heroine, Hannah, who is self-involved, often childish, but also very smart and perceptive. She stands up for herself and is a not-thin woman who has plenty of sex with various attractive men. I know she’s hugely problematic and messy as a person, but Lena Dunham (the star and creator of the show) is a genius. If a man had made this show, I feel certain it would be considered one of the best shows ever made. I’ve also been giggling at all the guest stars who were on this show before they became big stars: Greta Lee, Donald Glover, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Gaby Hoffman, Riz Ahmed. Streaming on Max.
Movies roundup from the past few months
Killers of the Flower Moon, Martin Scorcese’s latest film. Not sure if it’s available to stream yet, but it’s still in theaters. I certainly haven’t seen all of Scorcese’s films, but I’ve seen quite a few, and this one is pretty high up on the list. It’s 3.5 hours but amazingly didn’t drag for me. It’s based on a true story about the Osage Indians in Oklahoma striking gold in the 1910s and becoming rich, and the white men who start preying on them to get their money, mostly by marrying Osage women. Scorcese has always been obsessed with American crime - whether of the mob type (Goodfellas, The Departed) or other types of crime (Gangs of New York, The Wolf of Wall Street), but never before has he made such a strong political statement about white supremacy and violence as with this film. All the performances are great (really, when are Robert De Niro and Leonardo DiCaprio ever bad?), but Lily Gladstone is particularly incredible, the heart and soul of this film. It will be a strong contender at the Oscars next year.
May December recently came out on Netflix and it’s a really thought-provoking film by Todd Haynes, who made the stunning film Carol in 2015. May December is about an actress (Natalie Portman) making a movie about a Mary Kay Letourneau figure (Julianne Moore) who entered into a relationship with an adolescent when she was in her 30s. The performances are fantastic - especially Moore and Charles Melton, the grown-up version of the adolescent who in the present day is the age Moore’s character was when their relationship began. It’s a real breakout role - I think he’s a lock for an Oscar nomination. There’s a lot of subtext in this film - you can’t really only take it at face value to appreciate what it’s doing, but there’s some interesting commentary about the stories people tell themselves about their actions. I also recommend reading some critics’ reviews after you watch, or listening to a film criticism podcast (my fave is The Big Picture).
Oppenheimer will also be heavily represented at the Oscars. I saw it this summer and if you haven’t yet, I was really impressed. Another extremely long film (almost 3 hours) that held my attention. Sometimes I’ll find a 2-hour film overly long, and with other much longer films, they are paced in such a way that they don’t drag. Anyway, this is obviously a biopic and Cillian Murphy is incredible as the titular character. I think Christopher Nolan (writer and director) did an impressive job of portraying the moral quagmire of spearheading the creation of the atomic bomb in order to beat the Nazis to it, only to have it used horrifically in Japan after they were defeated. There’s a particularly memorable scene of Oppenheimer watching a newsreel about its use - which is juxtaposed with scenes of cheering from the team who succeeded in creating the bomb. The third act takes a different turn, focusing on how Oppenheimer was subsequently blackballed during McCarthyism. Great supporting performances by Matt Damon, Robert Downey Jr (likely Oscar nomination), and others.
On my to-watch list: Past Lives, Poor Things, Anatomy of a Fall, Saltburn
Let me know what you’re watching and enjoying!
Finally, I just wanted to shout out the live music I saw in 2023. It was my year of concerts! I went to more concerts in the second half of 2023 than I have in years - and I’m vowing to be more of a concert-goer moving forward.
Renaissance in late summer - I mean, what can I say that you don’t all know? Beyoncé does the best concerts, period. And now she’s released a film all about it.
Janelle Monaé - one of my faves. She toured her 2023 album (The Age of Pleasure), and it was a beautiful, raunchy celebration.
Tony Toni Toné - one of my 90s faves, the group reunited for a tour late this year. I’ve written about the group, and interviewed both Raphael Saadiq and D’wayne Wiggins for separate pieces, but had never seen them live. They did a phone-free concert (our phones were literally locked up!) and I was so glad because the audience energy was amazing and we were all locked in to experience their spectacular musicianship. Of course the Bay Area is their home turf.
Finally, I crossed a concert off my bucket list - the Colombian rock-fusion band Aterciopelados, whose music I have long adored. I’ve wanted to see them live for years and I finally got my wish. This concert was one of my favorites because it was the most intimate in terms of audience size and we were close to the stage, along with all these Colombians and other Latinos, singing our hearts out.
Ok friends, this turned into a much longer post than I expected. I’m gonna try to be more consistent and less lengthy in the new year. I and my family are off to Cuba for a few weeks. Wishing you the very best this holiday season - Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas, Happy Kwanzaa - and may we see more peace and justice in 2024.