august annotated
turning 26, People Magazine's 2008 Sexiest Men Alive list, Audrey Hobert, rooting for a team, my personal vendetta against "Diet Pepsi" (Ben Platt's Version), justice for Jack Antonoff
It’s my birth month and I’m thinking of peridot, the transparent green gemstone that is known as August babies’ birthstone. Before Co-Star told you what your astrological sign was and all it foresaw happening in your life, there were books on high shelves in school libraries that did the job – only for gemstones. I didn’t remember this about the peridot, but learned from researching it that the gem carries a symbolic meaning of peace, harmony, and emotional clarity. It’s only able to be formed under extreme conditions; buried inside Earth’s mantle, peridot only comes to the surface by way of volcanic explosion. It’s also the only gemstone that occurs in only one color.
For the better part of my life, I’ve been a person riddled with indecision, fear, and insecurity. It’s the thing I like least about myself – except for the lower pouch of stomach fat I’ve always had and the boobs that make every shirt look like a going-out top. I’ve feared taking the reins on my own life and have doubly feared waiting on its sidelines, which is quite the harrowing catch 22 if you haven’t felt it before. All while the people around me make drastic lifestyle changes, get into long-term relationships, take risks, fail, and are able to tell a fascinating or funny story about all of it. I’m a person who prefers to be comfortable; I prefer platforms over stilettos, routine to spontaneity, silence over confrontation. I enjoy and often choose to rewatch the same TV shows and movies I have always loved. My analytical mind makes it a new experience for myself every time and my lucky watch partner gets to hear every last thought I have because I make them pause so I can voice them aloud.
I haven’t turned 26 and haven’t subsequently gotten booted off my parents’ health insurance quite yet; I’m writing this before I officially enter the late stage of my mid-twenties. And because of all of the above and more, I’ve always had complicated feelings about getting older.
However, I’ve also grown in a number of ways in my 25th year. In no particular order, I can say that I have:
Found a new, fulfilling job after the 4 hardest months I’ve experienced in adulthood – the ones I spent out of work. I conducted a thorough job search, made new connections without fear of being too forthright or too ambitious or too bothersome, and got myself through difficult rejections that I may or may not have taken too personally at the time. This new job I landed has given me things I never thought I could have so early in my career: confidence in my abilities as a writer and marketing professional, coworkers I consider friends that I enjoy seeing and talking to during the week, and the chance to make a real impact. Not to mention the fact that I am working in the music industry I never thought I could get a gig in.
Began this Substack and held myself to a standard, a routine that I could realistically follow without feeling burnt out. For years, I’ve been asked when I would start my own blog or host my own podcast or have a designated place where I could speak freely about my many thoughts and opinions. I’ve considered that a pipe dream rather than one I could simply accomplish just by giving it a try. Not concerning myself with how many readers I have or who sees and judges what and how I write. Not viewing every piece as a submission in my senior year creative writing capstone course and then, as a result, never publishing anything. Since January, I’ve maintained a regular routine in sharing my monthly entries with you. I’ve embraced both the academic and colloquial tones that color all my work. I’ve gotten frustrated with pieces I’ve written and pushed past the block to get a finished product out, even if I didn’t deem it perfect.
Taken myself out on solo dates around the city that pertain to my very special interests. One of the main reasons I moved to NYC was so that I could take in the city in my own way, see it the way I wanted to. This year, I’ve attended book signings, movie and TV series screenings, talk-backs, and small music gigs by myself. I’ve gushed to the writers I admire most about how their work has impacted me, smiled ear-to-ear the entire Uber ride home, and done things I typically would have backed out of because I didn’t have a partner-in-crime to go with or use as a social crutch. I’ve stopped waiting for permission to be myself in these types of spaces; I wept alone in the Angelika while watching the new Jeff Buckley documentary, I belted my heart out to a band’s Paramore cover in a room full of strangers, I made more truly enjoyable small talk this year than I have in my entire life and knew I was a hit while doing so.
Reconnected with my first passion in this life: singing. In adulthood, it is so difficult to find creative and expressive outlets. All throughout my childhood, adolescence, and even college years, you could find me in front of a mic or sitting on a piano bench singing one of my original songs. Whether it was a cappella arrangements of pop songs or Italian arias for that one fated semester or jazz standards or any Fearless album cut, I was always singing someone else’s words before I started writing my own. And since graduating into the real world, I’ve lost touch with that lifelong passion. But most months this year, I took myself to one-day choir events hosted by the Brooklyn-based Gaia Music Collective and sang SATB arrangements of “Pink Pony Club” by Chappell Roan, “Let It Be” by The Beatles, and “TEXAS HOLD ‘EM” by Beyoncé, just to name a few. It’s a low-commitment way I’ve been able to reconnect with my inner child and give her a tight, knowing squeeze.
Started becoming less afraid. Of a lot. Little by little.
In many ways, I will always be who I always have been. I used to resent that, wishing desperately I could be wired differently. Wishing I looked different. Still sometimes wishing. But my 25th year has taught me that I’m more like that peridot than I may have thought when I first encountered the gem in the book on the high shelf at the library. I am my own rare shape and shade of green, buried into myself and yet opening up every year in every little volcano. I have the great blessing of a special inner circle and am meeting ever-so-slightly new – yet totally the same – versions of myself with every passing year. I am my most confident self at the end of my 25th trip around the sun – not because I’ve had any grand transformation, but because I know myself best now which is the greatest gift I could have asked for at the culmination of my early twenties. Here’s to every little volcano.
Weird Girl Summer (starring Audrey Hobert):
On August 15th, I formally crowned a new pop princess and her name is Audrey Hobert. After listening to her debut studio album Who’s The Clown? the day it dropped, my talent scout Spidey senses have been tingling.
Hobert is best known as Gracie Abrams’ co-writer and best friend since childhood; she is the voice and the point-of-view behind Abrams’ biggest hits “I Love You, I’m Sorry” and “That’s So True”. Hobert’s fast-paced, quick-witted, sardonic lyrical flow and Valley girl vowel pronunciations are her signature, but she donated them to Abrams before realizing her own (and greater) star power. Audrey Hobert – like Gracie Abrams – is a nepo baby, the daughter to Scrubs and The Middle screenwriter Bill Hobert. She also happens to be sister to Malcolm Todd, another emerging bedroom pop artist who delivers smooth white-boy soul in the vein of Steve Lacy.
If Abrams’ writing style is the consequence of Taylor Swift’s overwriting habit exhibited on albums like Midnights and The Tortured Poets Department, Hobert’s is full of unpretentious punchlines that take most after Swift’s Red singles (“22”, “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together”). Out of all of the new Taydaughters, Hobert is the most direct of kin vocally and the most original as well. What she learned from the Swift school of songwriting is clear: hooky melodies, well-observed lyrics, and an admirable ability to refrain from casting herself in the best light possible in her songs. When it comes to painting her own self-portrait on the album, Hobert commits to being as unflattering and honest as possible. She’s not the girl-next-door, but the one a few doors down that you don’t even know exists until her cocoon bursts and she shows the world how much she rules.
One of the main critiques that Taylor Swift encountered in her early days was that she wrote about facing bullying in school, feeling invisible and friendless in her teenage years, on her earliest albums. With her perfect doll face and cascading curls, it felt unbelievable to many that she could be a victim; people were utterly unconvinced that she was anything other than a prom queen type hailing from Pennsylvania. But Audrey Hobert? Audrey Hobert is real-deal awkward. Her songs are about the beauties and frustrations that come from being awkward. They are about being a voyeur, watching everyone around you have formative experiences and being too stuck in your own head to have your own. At the same time, Hobert is unabashedly confident about who she is; on “Chateau”, Hobert does not mince her words: “I don’t care that I’m at the chateau with the whole A-list”. Hobert would rather be dancing alone in her room, as she tells us on the album’s closer “Silver Jubilee”: “if I’m being honest, I don’t really party, I just sit at home”. And at home? She’s taking thirst traps in the mirror, askew for the perfect angle.
On Who’s The Clown?’s second single (and best song) “Thirst Trap”, Hobert mourns who she was before she had a crush to impress. Instead of “[doing] the things [she likes] to do”, Hobert is taking countless photos of herself so that she has the perfect one to send to the guy on her mind. Then changing the lighting once she looks at the batch of shots and determines they’re not good enough. The cycle then continues and worsens: “but now I listen to my playlist and pretend I’m you, look at what I post and then pretend I’m you”, Hobert sings on the bridge. (Who among us have not had this exact thought process at some point?)
I, for one, have never heard a song so unflinchingly honest about the pressures of being a girl in the social media age. Hobert knows it’s a fruitless pursuit – all this thirst trapping – and she’s disgusted with herself for it. But she also is smart enough to know that none of it really matters. The bridge of “Thirst Trap” captures this duality perfectly:
After Hobert admits to dulling her shine and spending too much time trying to be who she thinks her crush wants, she arrives at the conclusion that “some people’s beauty can’t be captured”. There’s a bravery and defiance in saying that – especially in a time when FaceTune and SkinnyTok continue to brainwash women and low-rise skinny jeans slowly become a trend again. As Hobert sings on the album’s closer “Silver Jubilee”, “it’s fun to be a normal girl”. Amen, sister.
Musically, Hobert also calls to mind the likes of Hellogoodbye (“Here (In Your Arms)”) and He Is We (“Happily Ever After”) – acts with sounds beloved by corner kids rather than your popular crowd. I only wish I could set “Silver Jubilee” as my mySpace or AIM profile song right about now. As a forever weird girl, Audrey Hobert is someone I wish I had to listen to in middle and high school. A teenage dirtbag in her twenties and a star in the making. Watch this space!
Who’s The Clown Highlights:
Filed in August’s Favorites Folder:
Denim ads… no, not that one. Lucky Brand partnering with Addison Rae for an ultra low-rise flare pair with her name as the selling point. Gap partnering with global girl group KATSEYE for their “Better In Denim” campaign in which they dance in their Gap denim to the timeless “Milkshake” by Kelis. After the uncomfortable Syd Sweenz x American Eagle ad snafu from last month, Lucky and Gap nailed what a denim ad should look like in 2025. But that should come as no surprise to anyone who’s followed these brands’ marketing over the years.
Demi Lovato posting a photo dump from her karaoke birthday party. As the reigning queen of karaoke and karaoke birthday parties, I am more than happy to pass the torch to Demi. On Instagram, Demi shared clips of her wailing out Whitney (“I Wanna Dance With Somebody”), hitting every note of Cynthia Erivo’s “Defying Gravity” riff, and covering her own absolute banger “Here We Go Again”.
This is one of many wins for Demi this August, who recently and notably sang Camp Rock classics “This Is Me” and “Wouldn’t Change A Thing” with the Jonas Brothers at their MetLife show earlier this month.
This healed me as a Joe x Demi truther; I loved when Joe wore thick-rimmed black Ray Ban glasses in 2010 and dated jet-black-hair Demi. I mean, look at the material!
Joe Jonas + Demi Lovato Teen Vogue cover shoot (2010) They were so punk together… sigh. Of course, it is so great to see Demi healthy and happy today. In 2026, after Demi is inevitably over her Charli xcx cosplay phase (“Fast”), I would like to see her turn as Elphaba on Broadway. I would like to hear it and I would like to see it!
TikTok user @b_tchspork’s pop culture commentary and fan casts. If you are not on this wave, let me put you on. My new favorite follow on TikTok is a pair of friends who do what they call in their bio “revisionist herstory”. Literally perfect. In a particularly inspired vid of theirs, they do a fan cast of A Walk To Remember if it were remade in 2025.
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Enable 3rd party cookies or use another browserTLDR: Olivia Rodrigo would be their pick for the Mandy Moore character while Shane West’s Landon Carter would be played by her real life actor BF Louis Partridge, who looks like a young West meets RPattz-as-Edward-Cullen. While I don’t personally advocate for mixing personal and professional lives, I see their vision. If it were up to me, I’d do a more thorough star search for Landon perhaps for a previously undiscovered leading man. Another fascinating vid of theirs dissects the sociopolitical ramifications of Ryan Reynolds’ sense of humor and unfunny banter with his wife Blake Lively. Another incredible reboot idea of theirs fan casts Ayo Edebiri as Julia Roberts in a remake of horror film My Best Friend’s Wedding. My current fave is their dissection of Chloe x Halle’s brief but impactful stint in 2020; they mourn – as do I – the possibility of them being a duo selling out arenas and bringing us the Destiny’s Child energy we so desperately crave in 2025. “Do It” was a smash in my household in quarantine. Anyway, @b_tchspork is just over 15K followers and I believe the pair is destined for greatness, so give them a follow.
Hailey Bieber teasing that serious sheet mask innovation is going down in the Rhode labs. I very much enjoy the sensation of a cooling, wet sheet plastered to my face. Especially if it has a refreshing scent and stays put where it should be.
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Enable 3rd party cookies or use another browserSheet masks are notoriously hard to talk or eat in, but Mrs. Biebs took to TikTok to let us know she’s on the case.
Extra points for the “Life Is Worth Living” audio. Well played, HB.
The jubilance with which you all watch Amazon Prime’s The Summer I Turned Pretty. Inquiring minds might like to know if I’ve dipped my toe into this Gen Z CW-esque series, especially since it checks off many boxes for me: love triangle, teen drama with drama between the parents as well, et cetera. Now, sometimes you have to know when something is not for you and this is a show that is simply not made for me and I’ll tell you why. I cannot get behind a show whose ingenue seriously goes by “Belly”. It’s embarrassing for all parties involved. As a sibling myself, I cannot get behind a show in which a love triangle exists between two brothers and their childhood friend. “Belly” is tearing a damn family apart! She seems like a lovely girl from the little I’ve seen online, but for her own mental health I think she needs to move elsewhere and meet some new boys, join a nunnery for a few years, or simply block their numbers for good – her choice. She is on the brink over a guy whose head is shaped like a dumpling and a Hype House member. All that being said, I think the world needs teams to rally behind right now. If “Conrad” and “Jeremiah” (helloooo, Bible camp fanfic names) can be the ones to give American Eagle the idea to make “Team Conrad” and “Team Jeremiah” graphic tees in the tradition of Abercrombie and Hollister’s “Team LC” and “Team Kristin” ones for Laguna Beach in 2005, then I can get behind it as a cultural phenom for you all. Not for me, though. I genuinely hope you all are having fun with this! It seems like you are!
Team LC and Team Kristin shirts from Abercrombie/Hollister circa 2005 
Team Conrad and Team Jeremiah shirts from American Eagle (2025) Trisha Paytas walking down the aisle to “Welcome To The Black Parade” by My Chemical Romance. Yes, you read that right. Trish got married a few years back, but this is the first I’m hearing of her big walk song selection and I should believe it knowing her… but I cannot. Every time, she outdoes herself. Every time! No notes.
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Enable 3rd party cookies or use another browserDoja Cat’s newest single “Jealous Type”. I am notoriously someone who’s never really gotten Doja’s whole thing, but the chorus of her latest offering is frothy in all the right ways. It fizzes the way pop music should. Pop is the mode Doja is best suited for as demonstrated by her biggest hits “Say So” and “Kiss Me More” with SZA, whether she wants to believe it or not. Jack Antonoff is the main producer on this ‘80s-inspired ditty, the synths classically Antonoffian. It’s an unlikely artist-producer pairing but one that is really working for me right now. I do think that the Frankensteined ‘80s pop sound is largely tired and on the outs, but if it’s going to include a sax… at least it’s swinging big. Doja has stumbled many times in her career thus far, primarily when she demeaned her fans for enjoying her pop songs and said they are not clear representations of her artistry. But now, it appears, she is back to basics. It always puts a bad taste in my mouth when artists actively try to discredit their prior work and attempt a clean reset, telling their audience that “no, this is who I really am and all those other versions of me were fake”. I’m interested to see what she does next, which I haven’t ever been before, and I count that alone as a win. It may not be in the upper echelon of songs released this year thus far, but it’s a hit and is a fantastic reminder that Jack Antonoff can produce the hell out of a track that isn’t Taylor Swift’s in 2025. A reminder to all that there’d be no Melodrama and no Norman Fucking Rockwell without him! Put some respect back on his name.
August Watchlist:
Scandal starring Queen Kerry Washington. This show has everything: morally decrepit people, adultery, forbidden love, political corruption, the pursuit for justice, and guest stars galore. It’s bingeable in the best way; I’m midway through the second season and only started it mere weeks ago. It’s scratching the Succession-sized itch in my life, while also filling the Alias-sized void in my heart. It’s a show with a strong female lead who is the definition of a complex female character. Shonda Rhimes, I applaud you many years too late.
Footage from sombr’s Lower East Side album release pop-up show. Every generation needs a lanky heartthrob and for Gen Z, it’s 20-year-old sombr – whose breakout hits “undressed” and “back to friends” gave him credence to call himself a true yearner in the rock tradition of Jeff Buckley and The Strokes’ Julian Casablancas. sombr grew up on the LES and graduated from LaGuardia, the NYC arts high school that also gave us stars like Timothée Chalamet, Nicki Minaj, and Lady Gaga. To celebrate his debut album release on August 21st, the city kid shut down the Lower East Side on the corner of Canal and Orchard for a pop-up show that attracted the kind of massive crowd indie rockers got around those parts and in Brooklyn in the 2010s. There were people standing on their balconies watching his show, out on their rooftops to hear it. sombr is certainly a diamond in the rough with plenty of room for growth, but also a ton of potential. The previously unreleased tracks on his new album I Barely Know Her are shockingly refined for a musician of his age and stature. sombr delivers multiple songs over 2 minutes on this album, pushing back against his labeling as a “TikTok artist” whose songs are only made to be clipped for viral fan edits. There are harmonic changes that subvert structural expectations, most notably on the swooping “canal street”. There is excitement bubbling around him and I am locked in to see where he goes next, whether it be making an even better sophomore album or securing a Best New Artist nom at this year’s Grammys. For more on this album, read Larisha Paul’s incredibly astute review for Rolling Stone.
Rebutting the Existence of “Diet Pepsi” (Ben Platt’s Version):
A few weeks ago, I bravely asked my most active group chat if it was a safe space for me to voice my distaste for Ben Platt’s viral cover of Addison Rae’s smash “Diet Pepsi”. ICYMI: at the Las Culturistas Culture Awards last month, Ben Platt took the stage to perform his rendition of Addison’s borderline-nonsensical, Lana Del Rey-esque hit – which co-hosts Bowen Yang and Matt Rogers had nominated for their Record of the Year category.
My group chat was, to put it bluntly, not pleased. I get it: it’s a somewhat surprising take coming from me, a card-carrying member of the Gleek community. The idea that a trained talent like Ben Platt would take a novelty like “Diet Pepsi” for a spin should appeal to me. Platt has a generational vocal gift and it’s undeniable that a song like this is a walk in the park for such a celebrated Broadway actor. Platt’s rendition blew up overnight on the Internet. In a skillful marketing move by his team, Ben’s Version became streamable on every streaming platform and they struck while the iron was hot – for the first time since a) he said that he was the only man who could ever play the titular role in Dear Evan Hansen’s movie adaptation (which is particularly insane considering his husband Noah Galvin also played Evan Hansen) and b) his purported friendship breakup with Molly Gordon made headlines in the small-but-mighty community of people who watched 2023’s Theater Camp.
Here’s the thing: I have thought long and hard about why this performance irritated me. I have come up with two distinct possibilities.
The first possibility: when Ben Platt was asked by Bowen and Matt to perform, he thought that the sheer concept of him singing a song by Addison Rae was funny in and of itself so he took the gig. Is this song undoubtedly funny? Yes. But it’s also a perfect pop song written by three women in their twenties that delicately balances post-Lana, post-Halsey, and post-Britney sensibilities. I almost hear it as a song parodying how silly sensual pop songs can get. It’s always read – to me –like Addison was in on the joke while recording it. She is savvy, more savvy than anyone gives her credit for. When she sings it live, she means it. To me, when Ben Platt sings it with his trademark glottal vibrato and theatrical flair, it’s almost as if he makes a mockery of how serious the song is about itself. The song, as it is written, is unserious. But Addison commits to it and you believe her; I believe her. When Ben Platt over-commits – with a live orchestra backing him – he’s milking it for a laugh. But what about it exactly is funny? In many ways, it reminds me of how I felt when Ryan Adams recorded his own version of Taylor Swift’s 1989, using the same title and replacing its synth-pop sound with his brooding acoustic strumming. There’s an appreciation there for the original work to even re-record it in the first place, but it feels slimy. And to those who will inevitably tell me to learn how to enjoy things, I will tell you that you’re reading the wrong newsletter. Stream Addison’s version!
The second possibility: I’ve been on the record saying that Ben Platt is a deeply annoying fixture in pop culture. His vibrato and lame-o interpretation of the Evan Hansen character have each – and in tandem – done extensive damage to the overzealous vocal tenor community, a community that did not need more of an ego boost. If you were a part of your high school theatre department during the years 2015-2017, you may be entitled to financial compensation. I know I am.
In conclusion, I think there are very few individuals who can pull off singing these lyrics and meaning them without a wink. Addison Rae does. Many have said that Platt “Kelly Clarksoned” “Diet Pepsi”, a term invoking our one true American Idol’s name to mean that his version is better than the original. But Kelly is never doing a bit. Let’s put this discourse to bed: Ben Platt is not a viable popstar despite how hard he tries. He is best singing other people’s songs.1 But decidedly not Addison Rae’s. I yield the remainder of my time to the judge.
Rapid Fire Recs:
HIT GIRLS by Nora Princiotti. I devoured this book while on vacation earlier this month. It’s the most comprehensive book we have right now about the top-tier class of pop girlies whose stars rose near the start of the millennium. Nora does a great job filtering pop history through her own personal anecdotes and worldview, which is my preference when reading nonfiction.
Summer Fridays Pink Guava lip butter balm. It really is that good.
Truffle gouda. I am a founding member of my office’s version of The Office’s Finer Things Club and when a coworker brought truffle gouda in for the group to sample, I fear my life was changed. Run, don’t walk to your nearest Whole Foods.
Buying those tickets to see your childhood fave band live. I spent a not-so-pretty penny to see The Fray live at Pier 17 earlier this month and it was worth every second. If you are unable to hear their influence on male yearners like Role Model and sombr today, you are not tapped in enough. This was a decision I would make ten times over. This is the good life; viva La Fray.
Watching every clip of Kevin Jonas singing his first-ever solo song at the Jonas Brothers’ show at Fenway. Two Jonas mentions in one issue? Stranger things have happened. Shoutout Kevin: the unsung hero of the JoBros and the brother with – potentially – the most breath control out of the three. I found out recently that he was the first of the three to be listed on People’s Sexiest Men Alive list in 2008 when he was just 21.
![Kevin Jonas photoshoot[ALL SIZES] | Photoshoot for the sexie… | Flickr](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!DNnP!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe7479eca-b937-4b7b-b0c7-542a42e7a6aa_424x603.jpeg "Kevin Jonas photoshoot[ALL SIZES] | Photoshoot for the sexie… | Flickr")
Kevin Jonas’ page in People’s 2008 Sexiest Men Alive issue Okay, Kevin! Smize for us, why don’t you? Side note: I love the idea that Kevin was named before Nick; you just know that irritated Nick to no end.
Laughing at clips of former SNL cast member Devon Walker’s podcast “My Favorite Lyrics”. I wish there were more episodes of this pod. On it, Walker talks about his favorite lyrics of all time and asks comedians and other personalities for theirs. More often than not, these are lyrics that are truly hilarious or lines that make little to no sense. Walker and his guest riff off each other, unpacking their meaning. They often go on tangents, like when Walker asked comedian Jo Firestone which part of the Cha-Cha Slide most resonated with her. Her answer? “Go to work!”. This is a rabbit hole I need you all to go down with me.
![Kevin Jonas photoshoot[ALL SIZES] | Photoshoot for the sexie… | Flickr](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!DNnP!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fe7479eca-b937-4b7b-b0c7-542a42e7a6aa_424x603.jpeg "Kevin Jonas photoshoot[ALL SIZES] | Photoshoot for the sexie… | Flickr")
Next time you hear from me, I’ll be 26 years old. That feels like the note to end on. It’s been a summer for the books – though in New York City, the summer’s not over ‘till Halloween. That reminds me: do you guys have your costumes together yet orrrr? I always wait until it’s too late.
Sleeper Hit #13: Pharrell/The Neptunes collaborating with pop girls. You may not agree with his vision as creative director for Louis Vuitton – and I am certainly not saying that I do – but that man has an ear unlike anyone else. My favorite underrated pop artist/producer pairing that never fully got its time to shine is Pharrell and Ariana Grande, specifically for their work on Grande’s sweetener – her finest album to date. On songs like “R.E.M.” and “blazed”, Grande is simply able to play vocally because the beats are so buoyant. I very much enjoyed Grande’s latest album eternal sunshine, but I still feel there’s uncharted territory she has not reached because she has not worked fully with Pharrell yet. I’ve also been streaming the hell out of Britney’s collabs with The Neptunes, namely “Why Should I Be Sad” off Blackout (2007). I need Pharrell to get back into the studio with some of the girlies. I’d be so interested in hearing what a Pharrell-produced Sabrina song would sound like, now that Sabrina has successfully shed her own Ariana cosplay. This is musical food for thought. Insert Pharrell’s signature four-count start here.
BP’s live cover of “Maybe This Time” from Cabaret blew my socks off. I can and will give credit and kudos and props when it is deserved!