Indigo De Souza is not afraid of the end. She doesn’t find despair in the certainty of death or endings but rather a stoic sense of responsibility and love for the world around her. Following her 2021 groundbreaking album Any Shape You Take, her third LP, All Of This Will End, takes on the void with earnestness and honesty, blending musical stylings from track to track. The beating heart of the record, though, is the notion of truly living in each moment — past, present and future — as ephemeral as they may be. The centeredness from which she imparts her truth speaks for itself. 

This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.

The Michigan Daily: Where did your journey start with music and from where do you draw your inspiration?

Indigo De Souza: I think as soon as I was able to play an instrument, it was very clear to me that I wanted to write songs. And I started playing guitar around age nine, so since then, it’s just been kind of my safe space to express myself and say the things that are hard to say. 

Music has kind of given me a way to express things that are hard to express with only words. If you are adding melody and emotion to it, it is easier to get across and easier to relate with other people. So, in a way, I guess it always has been an innate need within my body to write songs.

TMD: How would you describe your sound?

IDS: The genre thing is always tough to answer because I don’t really think about it. I just write songs, and people will kind of put them in whatever genre makes sense for them from what they’re hearing. But for me, it’s just an expression of an emotion. So like, if I’m very happy, I’ll tend to write more pop-sounding songs. And if I’m dealing with something more devastating, I’ll end up writing something that sounds more grungy or painful.

It’s changing all the time and shifting with my life and emotional state at the given time. 

Actually, one of my all-time favorites is Arthur Russell. The reason I love him is that he doesn’t really fit into a specific genre, either. You can just tell that he kind of just made all of his songs from a place of truth. Sometimes he can be very avant-garde and random-sounding. And then in other times, he sounds really collected. Arthur Russell goes between country, disco and pop, and he has so much humor in his writing. And I feel drawn to that sort of expression of truth. 

TMD: That idea of the expression of truth really comes through you as an artist as well. Your music is so deeply personal and confessional. How do you manage that type of soul-bearing honesty? And is that act of opening yourself up to perception ever a difficult task?

IDS: No, it’s not ever difficult.

For it to be difficult, I would have to feel precious about my life, or I would have to feel like my life is more special than other people’s lives. And so, therefore, it’s my own thing to keep and I should be very precious about it. But I have never felt like my existence is any more special than any other existence. It gives me the freedom to share very openly because it just doesn’t really matter. It’s like, I don’t care if people know things about my inner world because I will just be dead one day. There’s no sense in being guarded. 

But like all other artists, when you are speaking from a place of truth in the age of the internet, it can be hurtful to have someone respond in a negative way to your truth. I try not to let that get to me ever, and it won’t stop me from continuing to share myself. Like I said: It’s innate. 

TMD: What came to mind when you were talking about “everything ending so nothing truly matters” is the title of your most recent album, All Of This Will End. Is that where the title comes from?

IDS:  In a way, yes, it comes from the duality of that statement. Like, you could think: “Oh, I’m going to be dead someday. So I’m just going to destroy everything in my path.” Or you could think: “I’m going to be dead someday. So I’m going to make the absolute best of this experience and really try my best to connect with people and create community and shine a light on all the corners that I can reach.”

The world is full of people who hold death in different ways — they tend to either feel really sad about it, or really grateful for the fact that they get to be alive for a little while. I used to feel really heavy about being alive and honestly just didn’t want to be most of the time and felt really conflicted. Now in my life, I’ve come to a place of complete gratitude. I just love my life and my community and my path. And I’ve found a purpose that feels beyond me and feels very involved in the betterment of the world in my own small way. 

TMD: Can you speak on the music video for the first single of the album, “Younger & Dumber?”

IDS: The music video is an honoring of the past self and honoring the child’s self. It’s about me recognizing that the child self is still with me all the time. And that I am now holding all the weight for her.

Growing up I had a hard time — which most people do because the world is just kind of horrible. But it’s really beautiful at the same time and you can find a lot of purpose and beauty if you want to. But it’s hard to do that because you have to survive in a space that doesn’t feel intuitive to survive in. Society has been built in a way that isn’t based on things that feel natural to us as humans — like nature and community. It’s actually the most unnatural things that society builds itself upon — capitalism, consumerism, greed, money and violence.

When I was younger I was so messed up by that, and I couldn’t figure out how to function. And then I kind of came out of that and found a lot of power in holding space for people who feel the same need for nature and community. I just have so much energy now because I have found my purpose and found what feels good for me to pour myself into.

I took four grams of mushrooms for the video. I find that being in that state feels kind of like looking back at your whole life and feeling your whole existence in a single moment. That type of reflection has always been very tied to psychedelics for me. I owe a lot of my growth to my mushroom experiences. 

I have a very particular way of dancing when I’m on mushrooms and I’ve always wanted to capture it in a way that honors the experience. In the “Younger & Dumber” music video, I wanted to capture this feeling of being a creature of nature.

TMD: Can you speak specifically to the making of the new record? It’s a bit intense in some moments. 

IDS: Yeah, I mean, nothing’s ever really intentional. My music can sometimes sound more intense than I am in real life because it is used as my own personal avenue for expressing the biggest emotions that I have. So the songs can sometimes be really big and intense because I need to put that emotion somewhere, and it ended up being in a song instead of towards the people around me or holding it within my body. 

I think it just ebbs and flows. Like sometimes I make music from an intense space and sometimes I make music from a calm space, and that’s felt track to track.

I don’t really feel like I am thinking a lot when I’m songwriting. It’s more like fully embodying the sound. If I do that, then the words just come because the sounds are just waiting to be connected to them.

I write songs in the most truthful way possible rather than writing with a goal or for some other purpose. It’s not about other people. When I’m writing a song, I’m writing it because I want to write it for me.

And I just know intuitively that it usually will mean something to other people naturally because it came from a place of truth. Anything that comes from a place of truth will reach people.

Be sure to catch Indigo De Souza at El Club on May 19.

Daily Arts Writer Claire Sudol can be reached at cjsudol@umich.edu.

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Daily Readers,

Before we start, let me make a few things clear. I love dogs and dolphins. I love macaroni and cheese. I love overpriced lattes and Spider-Man movies. I love children’s movies with adult jokes (and celebrity voice actors, of course) and planning my obscure Halloween costumes 11 months in advance. But as weird as some of these things may be, no one has ever scoffed or rolled their eyes at me the way they do when I tell them I love Taylor Swift.

Honestly, I can trace all this back to my elementary school years. During the early 2010s (arguably the peak of “not like other girls”-ism), I would constantly tell people I just didn’t like Taylor Swift. But I loved her music, and I always had. My favorite song of all time was “You Belong With Me.” So why did I always feel the need to lie (especially to the boys in my class) about something I knew I liked? I was embarrassed to admit what I enjoyed out of fear that boys would laugh at me, or that they wouldn’t take me seriously. And in my eight-year-old eyes, music I thought was for teenage girls just didn’t seem respectable. 

So why, then? Why did I feel so uncomfortable admitting something that wasn’t embarrassing? Why do I still fight the urge to preface my interest in Taylor Swift’s music with a “hear me out,” when I talk to men or to adults? It’s not like she’s suffering from a lack of success. But if there’s anything I’ve noticed, it’s that Taylor Swift has a reputation (no pun intended) as someone who makes music for teenage girls — writing songs about love and boys. And who could respect an artist who panders to that audience?

Taylor Swift definitely isn’t the first artist to be carried to stardom by the masses of teenage girls. From Frank Sinatra to Elvis to the Beatles, teen female fans have played pivotal roles in locating “greats” and single-handedly elevating their career. But what I find most interesting here isn’t necessarily teen girls’ role in boosting the music industry, but society’s reactions to their involvement. It’s not like middle-aged dads were jumping to be first in line for an Elvis or Beatles concert at the time of their initial successes. But now? You better believe I can’t get through a car ride with my dad without at least one play of “Suspicious Minds.” 

I’m not saying that teenage girls are a superior brand of humans with impeccable taste. But I am saying that once teenage girls express an interest in something, that thing becomes embarrassing to the rest of the world. Yet when they back off and find a new artist to appreciate, society is suddenly able to give credit where credit is due and recognize a “great” — just with no appreciation to the group that carried them to stardom in the first place and stood by them when the rest of the world wouldn’t. 

Once again, it all goes back to the primal, B.S. elementary school idea of “that’s for girls, this is for boys.” As long as teenage girls were screaming their poodle skirts off for Elvis, no “respectable” teenage boy or adult person could be seen enjoying the same music. The Beatles may have eventually reached a wider fanbase, becoming appreciated by nearly the whole world. But for a period of time, the band was “nothing more than noise” to the majority of listeners, who just couldn’t support a band associated with “mostly 14- to 15-year-old girls.” And nowadays, I see it still. I watch as my male friends discuss a popular TikTok song on their For You pages, only to see their faces drop when I reveal that it’s the bridge to Taylor Swift’s “cardigan.” And I’ve never seen anyone more embarrassed than a teenage boy asked what his favorite Taylor Swift song is. Seriously, the awkward shuffle, the “Uhhh”, the pretending to forget the name of “Love Story” even though every member of Gen-Z knows the whole song by heart: It’s a whole routine. 

So what’s so embarrassing about teenage girls that the world would rather miss out on genius and high-quality music than be associated with our interests? In decades past, it’s been a matter of fear of being associated with the female fangirl population. But in recent years, it’s been a matter of something different: specifically, a fear of being associated with the stereotypically feminine topics typically present in Taylor Swift’s music. 

Swift’s music often focuses on the love she experiences in her life. But here’s where the signals often get crossed — as a result of lazy media and tabloid gossip, Swift has earned a reputation for her past relationships and even been labeled a “serial dater” (because God forbid a woman dates in her late teens and early twenties). But from writing about her loss of a loved one, to her love of a friend, to her love of a place to her love of love itself, Taylor Swift has made her living off of love — not just off of romance. 

I’m sick of having to say “She doesn’t just write about romance,” like that’s such a bad thing. I’m sick of seeing people sneer and say “Doesn’t she just write about her exes?” like that’s not something most artists do. If Taylor Swift knows how to write a mean love song, why shouldn’t she lean into her strong suit? Why should her love songs and the sparkly dresses she performs them in counteract the genius of her lyricism? Why should love, emotion and other stereotypically feminine ideas cause society to become embarrassed by an association with her music, if not for a societal fear of femininity? 

So, before I finish, let me tell you a few more things I’m sick of. 

I’m sick of people implying that fans of Elvis, Sinatra and the Beatles cared less about the music and more about the cute boys onstage, implying that there’s no way young female fans may actually know what they’re talking about.

I’m sick of feeling embarrassed by my love for an artist with a lucrative, decades-long career and the unofficial title of “the music industry” (RIP, Barbara Walters) because other people allow sexist and patriarchal misconceptions to shape the way they listen to music.

I’m sick of running away from my interests because the world is so desperately afraid to be feminine. So, Taylor fans, next time you’re asked your favorite artist, hold your head up high and tell them. Femininity is a lot of things, but it sure as hell shouldn’t be embarrassing. 

Happy listening!

Love,

A Teenage Girl

Daily Arts Writer Olivia Tarling can be reached at tarling@umich.edu. 

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For music lovers, there is usually a single album that comes to mind when thinking about childhood. For many, those albums from our pasts can be embarrassing, cringe, worthy of secret-keeping — think the “Hamilton” soundtrack, middle school emo or the music your dad made you listen to. Regardless of whether you are proud of your musical past (the tastes of childhood are usually unfettered and uninformed), these albums can be full of memories, beginnings, endings and self-discovery — all equally a stitch in the fabric of you. Today, the Music writers explore their past, one album at a time.
— Claire Sudol, Music Beat Editor

Silent Shout — The Knife

It’s pretty easy to see why I’ve gravitated toward Silent Shout over the years. It was middle school, an uncomfortable time for me (and for most others), and I discovered this album after becoming a massive Björk fan. Silent Shout, though it may derive some of its sounds from the Icelandic songstress, goes in an entirely different direction. Unlike Bjork’s themes of naturalistic splendor, Silent Shout is anxious and rigid, built out of tales interwoven with Swedish folklore that depict a ghost in a machine unveiling the harshness of its reality. In middle school, however, I never cared to unravel the politics of this album, though I found solace in the icy, brittle grooves scattered throughout, reflecting the uncomfortable changes middle school brought along.

Underneath the springy and perky electronics on “We Share Our Mothers’ Health” is the story of being trapped within the never-ending cycle of capitalistic greed, all the more accentuated by the repetition towards the end of the song during which lead singer Karin Dreijer layers more and more vocal motifs on top of each other until the track becomes a rambunctious cacophony. Beneath the demonic, pitch-shifted vocal effects and slippery synthesizers on the title track, Dreijer sings from a place of pure unease. She describes dreams in which all her teeth fall out, being trapped in a permanent mute state where she is unable to scream, singing “I caught a glimpse now it haunts me.” The track “Like a Pen,” my personal favorite on the album, is a cutting, four-to-the-floor dance tune about Dreijer’s contemptuous view of her own body, in which Dreijer gives an impassioned, guttural vocal performance likening herself to a vampire, as if pleading the listener to help her morph out her monstrous form: “And when the light finds my eye / I’ll be fleeting like a scent.” A revolutionary statement in modern dance music that still holds up to this day, the cold and tortured Silent Shout will always have a place in my heart.

Daily Arts Writer Zachary Taglia can be reached at ztaglia@umich.edu.

Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness — The Smashing Pumpkins

I do not often go back to Mellon Collie. Thus, the memory is still pure, rich underneath like an unturned stone: It was Halloween that day and I was shit out of parties to go to. That night, I wandered the city alone, parting schools of fifth-graders with little brown bags, past the swerves and stumbles of college-age drunks. On a bench in Hell’s Kitchen, I wrote, and the infinite sadness was my soundtrack.

It’s complained that Smashing Pumpkins, or rather, frontman Billy Corgan and his fed-up tagalongs are self-serious to a fault. This isn’t unfounded: He once called Mellon Collie his The Dark Side Of The Moon. Though his grandiose comparisons, his abrasive studio conduct and his extended cat-related feud with “globalist shill” Anderson Cooper have attracted ire and incredulity, they indicate a well of self-belief. Corgan’s work is nothing if not absolutely sincere.

Mellon Collie reflects on youth with a mercurial temperament; as someone living through that youth, I embraced the angle. The album’s a sonic wunderkind, where sunny pop-rock, arid ballads and starry-eyed symphonies come to mingle. Taken together, the mundanities of teenagehood become so big, so unnameable.

Expect to grow out of Mellon Collie. Some lyrics read juvenile; some songs run long. Even so, I look at it like I look at my poetry from that night, and smile.

Daily Arts Writer Amina Cattaui can be reached at aminacat@umich.edu.

ARTPOP — Lady Gaga

The process of listening to music is both a sensory experience and one of embodiment. While I’m not one to shy away from mellow, minimal tunes, I’ve always been drawn to larger, almost overwhelmingly grandiose music, where the sounds whirl inside my headphones to the point of dizziness, engulfing me in a pool of giddiness and euphoria. But my favorite songs also allow me to identify with them, whether they’re lyrically relatable or elevate my current self.

Lady Gaga’s ARTPOP elevates both of these experiences for me. Described by Gaga as putting “art culture into pop music,” reactions to the album were polarized upon its release in 2013, due to its bordering-on-pretentious conceptualization, ambitiousness and somewhat quirky songs. But as a soon-to-graduate high school senior listening to it in late 2019, ARTPOP was an almost spiritual experience, a liberating force from the quotidian nature of Midwestern public school life. Bizarre, extravagant and utterly mesmerizing, ARTPOP is pop music at its greatest. “Jewels N’ Drugs” had me hooked, as my brain tried to make sense of every outlandish musical element in its four-minute runtime. “G.U.Y.,” with Gaga’s loud, powerful vocals over bursts of kaleidoscopic synths, transported me into unimaginable dimensions, to the point where I felt like I had the cymbal-banging monkey inside my head. ARTPOP is glitz and glamor exemplified, with images of bedazzling sequin outfits and ornate gold chandeliers foregrounding every song. In “Donatella,” Gaga famously stated: “I’m blonde, I’m skinny, I’m rich / And I’m a little bit of a bitch.” I’m no Gaga (or am I?), but ARTPOP made me feel more fabulous than I am. At the end of the day, isn’t that what music is all about?

Daily Arts Writer Thejas Varma can be reached at thejasv@umich.edu.

Born in the U.S.A. — Bruce Springsteen

Born in the U.S.A. is not so much an album from my past as it is one from my mother’s — one of those records I keep taking out of her give-away pile even though it skips horribly on “Bobby Jean.” Though she claims to be a huge Bruce Springsteen fan, my mother’s policy was to let us play our music rather than subject us to hers, so I didn’t come face-to-face with Born in the U.S.A. until I sought it out for myself.

Born in the U.S.A. is an album of hits, so made for the stage that I can almost hear it echoing around a packed arena, even when it’s playing from my slightly waterlogged laptop speakers. Released in 1984, the album is a complete 180 from the sparse and somber Nebraska that preceded it by only two years. On Born in the U.S.A., Springsteen maintained his talent for vivid and clever storytelling, but this time paired with that passionate, moving quality that turns hits into anthems. It’s no wonder that this is the album that gave us some of his greatest classics like “I’m on Fire” and “Dancing in the Dark.”

But though there’s a grandness to Born in the U.S.A., there’s a closeness to it too. As I listen to my sister and my mom sing along to “I’m Goin’ Down” while cooking dinner, I know that Born in the U.S.A. belongs in our kitchen just as much as it does in any arena.

Daily Arts Writer Nina Smith can be reached at ninsmith@umich.edu.

Camp — Childish Gambino

To be clear, this album sucks. It’s Childish Gambino’s first project and pales in comparison both thematically and artistically to his critically acclaimed subsequent projects. Every time I listen to this album, I feel like Gambino develops an interesting idea, and starts to hit on key concepts pertaining to his meteoric rise to young superstardom only for it to be ruined by an extremely corny, immature punchline (I’m looking at you, “Bonfire”) or absolutely visceral beats that I end up wanting to skip every time.

Despite this album being admittedly terrible, there is a certain charm to it for so many, including myself. Personally, I stumbled onto this album in high school, the perfect age for this immaturity to play well in my juvenile ears. I fell in love with it, and sophomore year, it became one of my most-played albums of that year. Looking back on it from a mature viewpoint, I now know why. This album is far from perfect sonically — it’s raw, a project with decent depth in topics, but no direction. It taps into themes of the competition of being “cool” yet individualistic; it talks on adolescent crushes and love, and all the needless embarrassment that comes with teen romance. In just a mere 50 minutes, it creates a high school summer to a tee, and that’s exactly what sophomore me and many others needed to hear. The album is immature and uncut, with no clear direction. But that’s exactly how high school was for many, including myself, which is exactly what makes this album perfect.

Daily Arts Writer Nickolas Holcomb can be reached at nickholc@umich.edu.

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Is it fair to compare electronic musician Thomas Bangalter to impressionist composer Maurice Ravel? In a sense, absolutely. Ravel is one of history’s most celebrated classical music composers, specifically for the way he popularized the genre. With works like Boléro and Pavane pour un infante défunte, Ravel bridged the gap between general audiences and the elitist culture of classical music, pleasing both crowds without compromising artistic integrity. Similarly, Thomas Bangalter introduced niche, localized house music scenes to the global stage. As head of the now-defunct label Roulé, Bangalter created and cultivated some of the finest French house music of the ’90s; as half of the duo Daft Punk, Bangalter brought that same level of quality and craftsmanship around the world.

Of course, Bangalter and Ravel are similar mostly in generalities — there’s no mistaking a Ravel orchestral suite for a Daft Punk remix. But with his latest solo project Mythologies, a 90-minute ballet performed by the Bordeaux Aquitaine National Orchestra, Thomas Bangalter dives headfirst into classical music, thereby necessitating musical comparisons to the genre’s greatest composers. At times, Mythologies feels like a futuristic evolution for orchestral music; at times, the work feels beholden to some of the worst tropes and trends of classical music. But despite its flaws, Mythologies succeeds as an authentic expression of Thomas Bangalter’s passion for music and a triumphant comeback project.

Mythologies effectively combines characteristics of different eras of classical music in a way that makes the piece feel novel. Structurally, Mythologies is straight out of the early 20th century and bears a heavy resemblance to the works of Ravel. A relatively short ballet, it is stylistically similar to Daphnis et Chloé, but while ballet was organized into three tableaus, Mythologies is broken into 23 fragmented scenes. In a manner similar to Ravel’s Mother Goose suite and his orchestration of Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition, Mythologies thrives on the distinct identities created in each scene — even when he subverts expectations with musical characters that feel incongruous with the iconic mythological figures named in the scenes’ titles, such as in the subdued and mysterious “Zeus,” Thomas Bangalter excels at creating striking musical variety.

Despite its formal organization reminiscent of the Romantic era, the musical tone of Mythologies is closer to 20th-century trends of neoclassicism and minimalism. Bangalter leans heavily into standard Western harmonies, which gives Mythologies a safe, consonant sound. There are some great dissonant moments, like the climax of “Les Gorgones” and the Stravinsky-esque “Le Minotaure,” but overall, the ballet feels a little too unadventurous on the whole and grows stale in its last few scenes. Nearly every scene in Mythologies is in one of a handful of minor keys, meaning there are very few moments in the 90-minute work where the angst and tension dissipate to allow lighter emotions to emerge. Mythologies sometimes manages to achieve beauty within its simplistic harmonic framework — the B-minor opening scene introduces a gorgeous recurring nine-bar harmonic motif which is signified by its culminating suspension resolution into a half cadence. It’s a great moment that feels like it could be an excerpt taken from the B-minor symphonies of Schubert or Tchaikovsky, but it’s also a straightforward idea that lacks impact when it’s returned to later, such as in “Arès,” the 15th scene.

While Bangalter is largely reverent to the classical giants that came before him, Mythologies still occasionally runs into familiar pitfalls of classical music. The violin solo in “Le Minotaure” is fun, but its fast arpeggios are so quintessentially Philip Glass that the piece feels like a cheap imitation (or perhaps even a parody) of him. This is far from the work’s biggest misstep, however: Many of the piece’s quicker, more intense movements feel like b-roll Hans Zimmer material, due to their over-reliance on repeated single notes in the upper strings. Nothing took me out of Bangalter’s mythological narrative faster than feeling like I was watching the extended cut of a forgettable 2010s sci-fi movie, which is frustratingly how scenes like “Le Catch” and “Circonvolutions” made me feel. It’s a shame that Bangalter sometimes struggles to convincingly integrate repetitive ideas into Mythologies given how integral musical repetition was to the identity of Daft Punk.

Even though Mythologies isn’t a perfectly polished masterpiece, it’s a compelling musical statement by Thomas Bangalter, especially considering it’s his first large-scale musical release in nearly ten years. Listening to the entire album is a bit of a slog, but the standout scenes like “Treize Nuits” and “L’Accouchement” wouldn’t be as impactful outside of the context of the full work. Perhaps it isn’t fair to compare Thomas Bangalter to the legendary names of classical music, at least for now. But, with his musical celebration of ancient mythology, Bangalter still beautifully captures the creative essence of humanity from the perspective of a human-turned-robot-turned-human-again.

Senior Arts Editor Jack Moeser can be reached at jmoeser@umich.edu.

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For Tyler, the Creator, the art of an album rollout isn’t just releasing singles or teasing fans on Twitter (although he does the latter frequently): it’s creating a new character. From the outfits to the public behavior, each album unveils a new iteration of Tyler as a person. From the wig and sparkly suit throughout his Igor era to his current dawning of an ushanka and cooler color palettes, each new drop becomes a reinvention of who Tyler is as an artist.

With Tyler releasing a new album every two years since the start of releasing his music, fans and critics alike suspect Tyler had been working on a project to be released sometime this year — his most recent project, Call Me If You Get Lost, was released in June of 2021. The speculation of a new album was confirmed when Tyler randomly announced in this tweet on March 27, “CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST WAS THE FIRST ALBUM WITH ALOT OF SONGS THAT DIDNT MAKE THE FINAL CUT … SO IVE DECIDED TO PUT A FEW OF THEM OUT,” and just like that, Tyler, the Creator season 2023 was upon us.

The rollout of Call Me If You Get Lost: The Estate Sale started with the release of the “DOGTOOTH”. The song offered the internet lots of fodder for memes, as it shows Tyler leaning into the recent boom of “munch” culture, where Tyler goes into staunch details about his only concern being female pleasure. 

The next phase of this rollout, which took place only a few days after “DOGTOOTH,” was the release of The Estate Sale’s concluding track, “SORRY NOT SORRY.” If you have yet to see this video and you like Tyler’s discography, please do yourself a favor and watch it. An ode to the entirety of Tyler’s career, it starts with all previous versions of Tyler in one shot, with Tyler’s “Sir Baudelaire” character rapping about how he’s sorry for the ego that has developed, fracturing his relationships with people that should be close to him. The video continues by going through Tyler’s eras rapping in the style they had during their lifespan, apologizing for each of their flaws during their time in the spotlight. As all of this is happening, a shirtless Tyler appears and starts snatching the characters offscreen one by one, until he grabs the most recent iteration of Tyler and brutally beats him, while DJ Drama announces, “A new era is upon us.” This signifies the end of the “Sir Baudelaire” era and introduces who may be the main character of his new album.

After the initial release of Estate Sale’s singles, it was hard to say where Tyler would go sonically with the rest of the record, but this short introduction to the new era was filled with some of the best Tyler tracks I have ever heard. The track following “SAFARI,” (the original end of CMIGYL) “EVERYTHING MUST GO,” is an introduction to the rest of the deluxe, which immediately flows into the track “STUNTMAN (feat. Vince Staples)” where Tyler assembled a perfect beat for Vince Staples to flow on with his signature style. The track sounds like something off of Staples’ FM! (much to the enjoyment of Staples’ fans) and showcases Tyler’s flexibility to mesh into any track he’s on.

The next song, “WHAT A DAY” is a complete switch up from the previous, replacing the bouncy bass and synths for a much more instrumental, low-key song, perfect for a chill day in the sun. The versatility of Tyler’s rapping and production is something that has always amazed me throughout his career, and The Estate Sale further cements Tyler as one of the most flexible rappers and producers in the game. 

“WHARF TALK” features Tyler in a more sing-songy pocket, with magnificent summery production and a fantastic (albeit short) A$AP Rocky feature. This duo feels like a cheat code on a song; it seems any track they collaborate on is unmatched in lyricism, flow and production. “WHARF TALK” holds true in showing the duo’s collaborative prowess. 

“HEAVEN TO ME” follows “DOGTOOTH” on the album, and quickly became my favorite song of the year. The production invokes nostalgia, with a sharp guitar loop repeating throughout, while Tyler gives an introspective look into how his perceptions change. Starting with what he considers heaven now, which is filled with rich imagery of vacations and wealth, and although he acknowledges not everyone can live this life, he suggests his audience finds what heaven is to them. He also spits a very relatable verse about having a perfect family and a large house, with him and his wifey going to see an opera. We see Tyler’s version of heaven now, which is immediately compared to his childhood. Instead of a family, his heaven was with his best friend Jasper and Odd Future trying to make money — instead of having his usual Lacoste-logoed-polo, he just wanted a Supreme shirt. This relatability through Tyler’s music is something that draws many fans to his music and continues to shine throughout his career. 

The penultimate track, “BOYFRIEND, GIRLFRIEND (feat. YG)” keeps with the summer themes, but trades a more low-key sound for bouncy synths and bells. YG absolutely kills his features, filling the track with lyrics about summer crushes. The song also features immense relatability, with the chorus filled with lyrics like, “I just want someone to talk to, whenever I start feeling alone.” This song perfectly encapsulates the adoration someone develops when possessing a crush and is an absolutely infectious earworm.

The summer sound from the past songs is then crushed by the aforementioned concluding track “SORRY NOT SORRY.” The warm, uptempo beats are replaced with high-pitched synths and chords that build to a crescendo, where Tyler delves into each era’s flaws, and through this lens we see an image of Tyler and his problems. Although this song is a severe juxtaposition with the vibes developed in the other tracks, it is the perfect conclusion to the Sir Baudelaire era and leaves the audience with the question everyone is wondering: What is next for Tyler, the Creator?

Daily Arts Writer Nickolas Holcomb can be reached at nickholc@umich.edu.

The post The official end to Tyler, the Creator’s ‘Sir Baudelaire’ appeared first on The Michigan Daily.

Taylor Swift has been widely hailed as one of the greatest songwriters of her generation. Not only are her songs catchy and meaningful, but they almost always tell an incredible, lively story. In particular, the songs that describe beautiful relationships and heart-wrenching breakups reach a level of storytelling that few other artists can aspire to. And because these songs tell such descriptive stories, it’s only natural that fans might apply the songs to other circumstances — other characters, other couples, other stories. And so, with The Swiftie Project series, Swifties within Daily Arts break down every romantic Taylor Swift song from every released album and match them to various fictional couples. The tenth part in this series contains songs from her tenth and most recent album: Midnights. Most songs from this album have been included, although “Anti-Hero,” “You’re On Your Own, Kid,” “Vigilante Shit” and “Dear Reader” have been omitted, due to their more personal, non-romantic stories.

“Lavender Haze” — Enola Holmes and Viscount Tewkesbury, Enola Holmes franchise

I’ve been under scrutiny / You handle it beautifully

Some of the best fictional couples are comprised of a woman who has brains, beauty and strength and a man who is utterly smitten by her. Take Enola Holmes (Millie Bobby Brown, “Stranger Things”) and Tewkesbury (Louis Partridge, “Paddington 2”): She’s a detective who doesn’t need a man, and he’s an elite whose family would probably prefer that he find a traditional woman. And yet, he’s constantly in awe of Enola and distinctly unable to walk away from her. He doesn’t care about what others think. He’s just happy to be with her — I guess you could say that he’s just happy to be in the “Lavender Haze,” ignoring the remarks of the public and the standards that society and propriety would dictate. Taylor Swift explained what it means to be in the lavender haze: “You’ll do anything to stay there … and not let people bring you down off of that cloud.” Whether that means “dodging weird rumors,” in Taylor Swift’s case, or ignoring society’s expectations in Enola and Tewkesbury’s case, being in the lavender haze — being in the glowy, happy feeling that is love — is the solution.

Daily Arts Writer Sabriya Imami can be reached at simami@umich.edu.

“Maroon” — Elena Gilbert and Damon Salvatore, “The Vampire Diaries”

I see you every day now / And I chose you / The one I was dancin’ with

Oh, Elena and Damon. I won’t say they’re my favorite vampire couple, because if you’ve been following the Swiftie Project you know I have a lot of those, but they come pretty damn close. They’re star-crossed in the best way: Elena is fated as a doppelgänger to be with her first love, Stefan, who is Damon’s brother, but pesky/sexy Damon just keeps her coming back for more. They go from enemies to friends to lovers in a way that led me and my roommates to literally scream at the television screen. Damon can and will charm anything that moves; Elena claims to be resisting his flirtations, but of course that’s impossible. They’re never really platonic: Even when they’re in their “friends” phase, the lyrics “Laughing with my feet in your lap / Like you were my closest friend” hint at the romantic undertones and undeniable sexual tension that exists between them. And, unlike Elena and Stefan, Elena and Damon actually have fun. I can really see Elena saying “How’d we end up on the floor anyway?” and Damon replying “Your roommate’s cheap-ass screw-top rosé, that’s how” (except, of course, replace “your roommate” with “my brother/your ex” and “cheap-ass screw-top rosé” with “expensive bourbon from a crystal decanter”). The best part is finding ways this song really could reference these two: “And I chose you” (Elena must choose between the brothers), “The mark you saw on my collarbone” (Hello? Vampire bite, anyone?) and even “That’s a real fuckin’ legacy to leave” (true VD fans know of the spin-off called “Legacies”). Anyway, thank you to Taylor and to The Michigan Daily for allowing me to write about (almost) all of my favorite vampire couples. 

Daily Arts Writer Emilia Ferrante can be reached at emiliajf@umich.edu.

“Snow on the Beach” — January Andrews and Augustus Everett, “Beach Read”

I can’t speak, afraid to jinx it / I don’t even dare to wish it

Emily Henry herself declared “Snow on the Beach” as the Midnights song that represents January and Gus from “Beach Read,” and while I can’t find the Instagram story to back up this claim, the next best thing I can do is prove to you that she’s correct (Emily, on the off chance that you read this blurb, please confirm that you said this, and I didn’t make it up). For January Andrews, “life is emotionally abusive” — her father died, she learned he was cheating on her mom, she has a massive case of writer’s block and has to live next to her college nemesis Gus for the summer. Obviously, there’s a mutual attraction that undermines their rivalry, but January would still say that Gus wanting her feels impossible. She’s afraid to let herself fall for Gus because if it doesn’t work out, that would be yet another source of heartbreak in her life. And yet … well, it’s a rom-com. I bet you know where I’m going with this.

Taylor Swift said the song is about two people falling for each other at the exact same time, and how “weird, but fucking beautiful” that can be. The idea of January and Gus as a couple might seem strange at first, since they’re polar opposites — she writes romance novels and believes in happily ever after; he specializes in gritty literary fiction and is a certified grump. But somehow, they fit together perfectly. While I know enough about weather to know that snow falling can’t actually calm turbulent waves, that’s how I picture these two. They each have their own anxieties churning within them, but the presence of the other makes it all seem quieter, more bearable.

Daily Arts Writer Hannah Carapellotti can be reached at hmcarp@umich.edu. 

“Midnight Rain” — Cristina Yang and Owen Hunt, “Grey’s Anatomy”

He wanted a bride / I was making my own name / Chasing that fame / He stayed the same

When I think back on the female characters I most desperately wanted to be as a child, Cristina Yang (Sandra Oh, “Killing Eve”) is one of the first that comes to mind. She’s funny, sarcastic, confident and, above all, determined — always going after what she wants no matter what obstacles lie in her path. It’s this very characteristic that made me admire her so much growing up and is also what made viewers so doubtful that she would ever find a guy that matched her energy and drive. Though the writers of “Grey’s Anatomy” attempted to pair her with many different characters, each relationship always ended the same: with Cristina’s personal goals and aspirations overpowering her need for a partner. This same principle applied to her relationship with Owen Hunt (Kevin McKidd, “Brave”), who managed to steal her heart throughout their years-long relationship, but not her ambition. Owen wanted to get married and have a child, both things which filled Cristina with dread. Though they did end up getting married, Cristina was unwavering on her resistance to having children, and when she made the choice to terminate an accidental pregnancy, Owen’s anger and frustration reached their peak. Eventually, this conflict ended their marriage. Just as Taylor Swift’s “Midnight Rain” states, Cristina was too busy chasing surgical fame and focusing on her career to be the perfect bride and wife that Owen so desperately wanted. Their relationship was doomed from the start.

Daily Arts Writer Rebecca Smith can be reached at rebash@umich.edu.

“Question…?” — Nancy Wheeler and Steve Harrington, “Stranger Things”

Did you wish you’d put up more of a fight, oh / When she said it was too much? / Do you wish you could still touch her? 

The beginning of Steve Harrington (Joe Keery, “Free Guy”) and Nancy Wheeler’s (Natalia Dyer, “Yes, God, Yes”) relationship was a blossoming enchantment of wholesomeness. Steve was the cool, popular boy at Hawkins High School, while Nancy was the smart girl next door. However different their personalities and interests were, Steve was enamored by Nancy, and Nancy was similarly in love with Steve. But as the first season of “Stranger Things” progressed, and Nancy spent an increasing amount of time with Will Byers’s (Noah Schnapp, “The Tutor”) older brother Jonathan (Charlie Heaton, “The New Mutants”), she eventually fell for Jonathan’s nerdy antics, replacing Steve’s recklessness with a seemingly loving relationship in which she believed she was more understood. But, as the third and fourth seasons of the series rolled around, it was evident that Steve hadn’t been able to get over Nancy, and season four features a number of scenes in which Nancy double-takes as several interactions she has with Steve send their chemistry skyrocketing. Their reignited spark, especially on Steve’s part, has both of them mentally asking themselves what would’ve happened if Steve had dedicated a bit more devotion to developing their relationship, whether they’d still be together if he had only put up more of a fight. If he had, he probably would still be able to touch her, as he so desperately yearns to do. 

Daily Arts Writer Graciela Batlle Cestero can be reached at gbatllec@umich.edu.

“Bejeweled” — Elle Woods and Warner Huntington III, “Legally Blonde”

What’s a girl gonna do? / A diamond’s gotta shine

At the start of “Legally Blonde,” Elle (Reese Witherspoon, “Big Little Lies”) was the perfect girlfriend to Warner (Matthew Davis, “The Vampire Diaries”), only for him to unceremoniously dump her before heading off to law school. Unfortunately, she was so in love with him at the time that she didn’t even notice how much he honestly sucked. Still hung up on him, she studies hard and aces the LSAT to get into Harvard to be with him. She devotes all of this time and effort to try and win back Warner, to earn the respect of her professors and peers and does “all the extra credit,” only to get “graded on a curve.” No one takes her seriously, unable to look past her surface-level frivolity and bright spirit. Yet, in spite of the fact that people repeatedly assume that she’s dumb and superficial, she outshines everyone else with her kindness, tenacity, brilliance and all-around scene-stealing outfits (it’s actively hard for hot pink to not stand out in a sea of monotonous black and grayscale suits). Maybe Warner was the reason she initially went to law school, but she stays and puts in the work because she realizes that she has potential, that she could be so much more than what everyone else confines her into being without sacrificing one bit of her sparkly personality — glitz and glam be damned.  

TV Beat Editor Serena Irani can be reached at seirani@umich.edu.

“Labyrinth” — Joyce Byers and Jim Hopper, “Stranger Things”

I’m falling in love / I thought the plane was going down / How’d you turn it right around?

“Stranger Things” has a funny habit of introducing new characters at the start of a new season and then immediately killing them off by the time it ends. Normally it doesn’t bother me (I don’t really have time to get emotionally attached), but in the case of Bob Newby (Sean Astin, “The Goonies”), I cried like a baby as I watched him get ripped apart by Demodogs. His tender relationship with Joyce Byers (Winona Ryder, “Beetlejuice”) was one of the hallmarks of the show’s second season and was everything Joyce needed after going through hell to save her son. Understandably, Joyce was heartbroken after losing Bob, isolating herself from the people who cared about her most. This included Hawkins’s caring, protective police chief Jim Hopper (David Harbour, “Violent Night”), whose relationship with Joyce had always toed the line between “just friends” and “something more.” He was there for Joyce and her family through it all and was one of Joyce’s closest friends even after losing Bob. Though it was apparent from episode one of the series that these two were eventually going to end up together, by the end of the show’s third season, not even the most cynical viewer could deny the feelings they had for one another. For Joyce, this meant a whole heck of a lot of hesitation: Could she ever really love again after Bob? Was being happy with Hopper doing wrong by him? She had to wrap her head around the fact that she could love and miss Bob, while still allowing herself to be happy with Hopper. It was a startling realization for her, but as Taylor Swift’s “Labyrinth” says, sometimes someone comes along who can turn even the darkest situation into something great.

Daily Arts Writer Rebecca Smith can be reached at rebash@umich.edu.

“Karma” — Leslie Knope and Ben Wyatt, “Parks and Recreation”

Ask me what I learned from all those years / Ask me what I earned from all those tears / Ask me why so many fade, but I’m still here

One of the most believable, most perfect TV pairings is Leslie and Ben from “Parks and Recreation.” If anyone knows about karma, it’s them. After quite the slow burn from disagreeing coworkers to unlikely friends, their forbidden relationship began in secret, as Ben (Adam Scott, “Severance”) was Leslie’s (Amy Poehler, “Mean Girls”) boss. Through secret kisses in the office, stolen glances, moments in corners and embraces in the dark, they manage to grow their love. Eventually though, their sneaking around comes back to them when Leslie is approached with an offer to run for city council. Ben and Leslie break up, for the sake of both their careers and Leslie’s dream, but never stop loving each other. They learn they can not live apart. In a risky move, Leslie appoints Ben as her new campaign manager, forgoing tradition and expectations. Once again, karma, the relentless force, comes for them when their boss Chris Traeger (Rob Lowe, “The Outsiders”) puts them both on trial in the middle of Leslie’s campaign for having a relationship and breaking the rules of the department. But, as Taylor Swift so elegantly writes, “Ask me what I learned from all those years / Ask me what I earned from all those tears / Ask me why so many fade, but I’m still here / (I’m still, I’m still here).” And they’re still here. Through trials, secrets and distance, Ben and Leslie stay completely and unabashedly in love with one another. Because for Leslie and Ben, “Karma’s a relaxing thought.”

Style Beat Editor Constance Meade can be reached at meadecc@umich.edu.

“Sweet Nothing” — James Potter and Lily Potter, Harry Potter franchise

They said the end is coming / Everyone’s up to something/ I found myself running home to your sweet nothings

When I tell people that my favorite couple from the Harry Potter books is James and Lily Potter, they usually look at me with a lot of confusion, which makes sense. We don’t really get much information about their relationship in the original seven books beyond the fact that they met at Hogwarts and dated in their seventh year. However, one of the most beautiful things about the modern Harry Potter fandom is that, for us, the canon material is simply a jumping-off point. Thanks to the highly dedicated Marauders fandom, a host of characters who were barely given a second thought in the original books and movies have taken on a life of their own. In the case of James and Lily, through some intense fanfiction and “fanon” material, they have become possibly the most adorable slow burn, enemies-to-lovers arc (in which the guy fell first and harder) of all time. Yet, there’s one piece of this pair’s canon story that is pretty much nonnegotiable: their deaths at the hands of Voldemort, who put the entire Wizarding World through a brutal war during James and Lily’s young adulthood. Though they were deeply in love, they were forced to risk their lives day in and day out to fight for the kind of world they wanted their son to grow up in. In a funny way, this only strengthened their relationship. As Taylor Swift’s “Sweet Nothing” says, they retreated to the warmth of each other’s arms even as things got worse and worse. Neither needed anything from the other except the promise of comfort and safety, and they both did everything they could to protect each other and Harry even in their final moments.

Daily Arts Writer Rebecca Smith can be reached at rebash@umich.edu.

“Mastermind” — Bianca Stratford and Cameron James, “10 Things I Hate About You”

What if I told you none of it was accidental / And the first night that you saw me / nothing was gonna stop me?

From the night Cameron (Joseph Gordon-Levitt, “Angels in the Outfield”) sees Bianca (Larisa Oleynik, “The Baby-Sitters Club”), he is in love, and nothing — not even Bianca’s strict father or obstinate sister — can stop him. Upon his quick turnaround to learning French to tutor Bianca, get close to her and ask her on a date, Cameron discovers the family rule that both Stratford daughters, including the beyond-reach misandrist Kat (Julia Stiles, “Save the Last Dance”), cannot have a boyfriend if the other is single. He crafts a master plan to get Bianca to love him back. True to Taylor’s motivations in this song, Cameron becomes a mastermind to ward off lifelong loneliness. Taylor describes how she has been “scheming like a criminal” since childhood, but now, her “Machiavellian” nature is justified, with a chance for true love rather than empty promises. Cameron has moved nine times in 10 years, yet instantly knows that loving Bianca can help him find what he is missing. 

Cameron is relentless in his attempt for Bianca to fall for him, his aforementioned French crash course, having his friend Michael (David Krumholtz, “The Santa Clause”) enlist Bianca’s more nefarious suitor, Joey (Andrew Keegan, “O”), to pay bad-boy Patrick Verona (Heath Ledger, “Brokeback Mountain”) to date Kat while learning all he can about Kat to get the master plan to work. He hopes the plan will work like “dominoes cascading in a line.” He carefully places each domino before they are quickly knocked off course. Cameron often wonders if his plan was worth it, as Bianca can be frighteningly self-centered (or just tired of Cameron’s fawning) and seems to fall for the completely wrong guy. In the film’s final moments, Cameron gets the girl, Bianca stands up to Joey’s sleaziness (leaving him on the ground) and Kat and Patrick fall in love. Maybe Cameron is more of a mastermind than he thought.

Senior Arts Editor Kaya Ginsky can be reached at kginsky@umich.edu.

“The Great War” — Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley, Harry Potter franchise

My hand was the one you reached for / All throughout the Great War

I’m a strong believer that romance would perish in its entirety without the friends-to-lovers trope. What makes the trope’s relationships all the more desperately enchanting is when they’re slow-burnt into our devotedly fan-coded minds. In my humble opinion, Hermione Granger (Emma Watson, “Little Women”) and Ron Weasley (Rupert Grint, “Knock at the Cabin”) were one of the pioneer couples of the beloved friends-to-lovers trope, experiencing intense levels of mutual tension from childhood well into their late teenage years. They initially hated each other, then became best friends and were simultaneously jealous of each other when they were in relationships with different people, until they finally got together in the end. But their happily ever after was not without hardships. Their friendship with Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe, “Guns Akimbo”) placed them at great risk in the Wizarding World, and once the Battle of Hogwarts rolled around, they had to fiercely fight side by side to defend the honor of both their cherished school and their best friend. Hand in hand, they weathered the war together, never leaving the other’s side and finally recognizing that their love had been ever-present all along, they had just been too stubborn to notice it. It wasn’t until their lives were in imminent danger that they were able to completely surrender to their feelings for each other, but boy, oh boy did it lead to the cutest love story!

Daily Arts Writer Graciela Batlle Cestero can be reached at gbatllec@umich.edu.

“Bigger Than The Whole Sky” — Jyn Erso and Cassian Andor, “Rogue One”

Every single thing to come has turned into ashes

“Bigger Than The Whole Sky” is an intensely final song, outlining a tragedy so great that there’s no sense in rationalizing it. Instead, it sits with its own sadness and accepts the fact that “it’s all over now.” This makes it the perfect song to describe Jyn Erso (Felicity Jones, “Inferno”) and Cassian Andor’s (Diego Luna, “Andor”) relationship in “Rogue One.” Both characters are hardened criminals who instinctively mistrust one another when they first meet. But after teaming up to undertake a high-stakes mission for the rebellion, they start to find real solace in one another, laying the foundations for what could become a truly excellent relationship. Before anything can be made official, their mission comes to an end. It’s successful, but only because they sacrifice themselves for the sake of the rebellion. Jyn and Cassian — spoiler alert — die at the end of “Rogue One,” when the Death Star destroys the planet they find themselves on. It’s really, really sad — a lot like “Bigger Than the Whole Sky.” Much like the song, the characters accept the tragedy of it all, knowing that their survival is simply “not meant to be.” All that they can do is sit and watch everything “(turn) to ashes.” It’s crushingly sad, but there is some solace in the fact that they die in each other’s arms, both of them finally having found real connection with another person. They accept their fate, knowing that their relationship was “more than just a short time” — it was a beautiful, gratifying thing. Not only that, but it made the galaxy a better place. By teaming up, Jyn and Cassian were able to thwart the empire and contribute to a future of galactic peace. Their relationship was a lot more than an alliance or a romance, it was a spark of hope in the midst of a bloody war. As they wait for the end to come, their love is most definitely “bigger than the whole sky” — it’s a sacrifice that changes the course of galactic history. 

Daily Arts Writer Lola D’Onofrio can be reached at lolad@umich.edu.

“Paris” — Emily Cooper and Gabriel,  “Emily in Paris”

Romance is not dead if you keep it just yours / Levitate above all the messes made 

When original girlboss Emily Cooper moved to Paris for her marketing job, she had no idea what her new life had in store. She begins to blog under the name @EmilyInParis and makes waves in the industry. Unfortunately, for viewers, “all the outfits were terrible / 2003 unbearable” — but that’s not the point of this blurb. Emily begins her Parisian affair with, well, a Parisian affair. She meets Gabriel after accidentally attempting to break into his apartment, and was “taken by the view.” Gabriel, however, is dating Camille, but this doesn’t exactly put a stop to the romance at hand. Emily is “so in love” that she “might stop breathing,” and Gabriel isn’t doing anything to better the situation. The two “levitate above all the messes made” (most of which were their doing, of course) for the entirety of the show’s three seasons, but keep going back to each other nonetheless. After all, “romance is not dead if you keep it just yours.” 

Daily Arts Writer Lillian Pearce can be reached at pearcel@umich.edu.

“High Infidelity” — Daisy Jones and Billy Dunne, “Daisy Jones & The Six”

High infidelity / Put on your records and regret me

To give into temptation is an extremely human defeat. The protagonists of Taylor Jenkins Reid’s bestselling novel “Daisy Jones & The Six” know all about the impossible task that is to refrain from giving into temptation, especially when it’s of a romantic and sexual nature. Although happily married to Camila Dunne (Camila Morrone, “Valley Girl”), Billy Dunne (Sam Claflin, “Me Before You”) can’t help but be tempted by captivating starlet Daisy Jones (Riley Keough, “Zola”) when she first collaborates with his band “The Six” on their first record-breaking single, “Look At Us Now (Honeycomb).” Once the single topped the charts, asking Daisy to become an official member of the band was a no-brainer. But, even if he eventually caved, Billy was against the prospect of Daisy joining “The Six.” No one understood why this tested his patience so much, but it was a matter of really looking into the situation and understanding that, for Billy, Daisy represented every temptation he was unable to resist. Their chemistry was unparalleled, and they have several very tense moments of magnetism that rendered them both speechless. But when all was said and done, everyone, including Billy and Daisy, knew that Billy would never leave Camila. So Daisy did what every anguished rockstar would do: She wrote a gut-wrenching heartbreak song and, after making everyone on the band vote, forced Billy to include it in the final cut of their iconic album Aurora. Much like Swift’s “High Infidelity” demands that the heartbreaker regrets the heartbroken, Daisy made herself unforgettable to Billy by writing “Regret Me” as inspired by his inability to admit his true feelings for her, wickedly stringing her along for his own entertainment. 

Daily Arts Writer Graciela Batlle Cestero can be reached at gbatllec@umich.edu.

“Glitch” — Monica Geller and Chandler Bing, “Friends”

We were supposed to be just friends

Monica (Courteney Cox, “Scream”) and Chandler (Matthew Perry, “17 Again”) are one of, if not the, best sitcom couples to ever exist. That’s a hill I will die on. The reveal that they slept together for the first time in London got such an explosive reaction from audiences that it’s no surprise these two became a fan-favorite couple. Referring to their relationship as a “Glitch” is fitting from the opening lines of the song — like the speaker and her lover, Chandler and Monica never thought of themselves as anything more than friends, maybe a casual hookup at most. But the universe (re: the writers) had other ideas, though, and we’re all the better for it. Shortly after these two begin sneaking around, it becomes clear that their connection is more than just a glitch. Taylor Swift sings, “the system’s breaking down,” meaning that her relationship is becoming more serious and permanent … and as we all know, Monica and Chandler are endgame. They face a few bumps in the road, like Chandler’s poor track record in relationships and Monica’s control issues, but they’re still easily one of the healthier couples on “Friends.” God, I love these two.

Daily Arts Writer Hannah Carapellotti can be reached at hmcarp@umich.edu.

“Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve” — Lydia Bennet and George Wickham, “Pride and Prejudice”

Give me back my girlhood / It was mine first

God help me, there’s not a literary man on this earth more despicable and contemptible than George Wickham. A foot soldier in the British militia good for nothing more than flirting and gambling, Wickham manages to half-heartedly and yet maliciously court no less than three women in the “Pride and Prejudice” calendar year — a scandalous rate for Austenian times — with the final and most tragic affair being with one Lydia Bennet. A young, naive and, yes, sometimes obnoxious girl, Lydia was well-known for being fun-loving and a bit of a flirt. When she stumbled into his path, she was a child of only 15. Yet he didn’t hesitate to do what he did best, taking complete advantage of her youth and lack of connections and extorting what he could out of her family and friends. Throughout the many different adaptations of the original “Pride and Prejudice” novel that have emerged throughout the years, Lydia is oft portrayed as a nuisance who the Bennet family is better off without, set on dragging them all to embarrassment and financial ruin. But in reality, while her outgoing personality can be grating, she was a child who was grossly taken advantage of and, at times, neglected by her own family members. All I can say is that Lydia Bennet, no matter her flaws, deserved better, and this powerful condemnation from Swift against a similarly gross relationship puts that into words perfectly.

Senior Arts Editor Annabel Curran can be reached at currana@umich.edu.

“Hits Different” — Luke Danes and Lorelai Gilmore, “Gilmore Girls”

Movin’ on was always easy for me to do / It hits different / It hits different ’cause it’s you

If you’ve seen “Gilmore Girls,” then you know that even though Lorelai Gilmore (Lauren Graham, “Parenthood”) has dated quite a few guys, only one really matters: Luke Danes (Scott Patterson, “Saw V”). These two basically invented the will they/won’t they dynamic. It takes almost five seasons for them to get together, after which they break up a few times and date other people before they finally (finally) end up together for real in the final episode of the series, and they remain happily together in the revival series “Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life.” The greatest obstacle in their way throughout the original series is that Lorelai is usually dating other men. Whether it was a serious relationship with Max Medina (Scott Cohen, “Love & Other Drugs”), a return to her toxic relationship with Rory’s (Alexis Bledel, “The Handmaid’s Tale”) father Christopher (David Sutcliffe, “Proof”) or other small flings, Lorelai is usually with someone else, causing her to overlook Luke’s (very obvious) interest. However, when Luke and Lorelai find their way to each other, it’s clear that this relationship is different — it matters in a way that her past relationships didn’t. This, of course, only makes it harder when they break up for the first time after Lorelai’s parents’ vow renewal in season five. The Target edition bonus track “Hits Different” perfectly describes the feeling of losing a relationship that means more to you than any other past relationship, and seeing Lorelai crying in her bed, heartbroken at Luke’s departure, visualizes that devastation. Luke and Lorelai do get a happily ever after (thankfully), but that scene is hard to forget. Needless to say, “Hits Different” is their song — after all, isn’t Lorelai Gilmore the “argumentative, antithetical dream girl”?

Daily Arts Writer Sabriya Imami can be reached at simami@umich.edu.

From all of us Swifties, thank you from the bottom of our hearts for following along with us as we created The Swiftie Project! 

The post The Swiftie Project Part Ten: Midnights appeared first on The Michigan Daily.

Taylor Swift has been widely hailed as one of the greatest songwriters of her generation. Not only are her songs catchy and meaningful, but they almost always tell an incredible, lively story. In particular, the songs that describe beautiful relationships and heart-wrenching breakups reach a level of storytelling that few other artists can aspire to. And because these songs tell such descriptive stories, it’s only natural that fans might apply the songs to other circumstances — other characters, other couples, other stories. And so, with The Swiftie Project series, Swifties within Daily Arts break down every romantic Taylor Swift song from every released album and match them to various fictional couples. The ninth part in this series contains songs from her ninth album: evermore. Most songs from this album have been included, although “marjorie” has been omitted, due to its more personal, non-romantic stories. Furthermore, her collaboration song with Big Red Machine, “Renegade,” has been added to this list due to its place in her discography timeline.

Warning: Spoilers for various TV shows, movies and books are included in the following article. 

“willow” — Willow Rosenberg and Tara Maclay, “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”

The more that you say / The less I know / Wherever you stray / I follow

First of all, we’re all just going to have to ignore the repeated line “That’s my man” in this song. OK? OK, great. Willow is one of the greatest characters ever portrayed on television. She’s got it all — the fashion sense (“I come back stronger than a ’90s trend”), the witchy powers, the crucial cuteness/hotness combo. Yes, I have a crush on Willow’s character, and no one is good enough for her (the song choice for this relationship is literally her name, after all). Except maybe Tara. Tara (Amber Benson, “The Killing Jar”) and Willow (Alyson Hannigan, “How I Met Your Mother”) meet in the gayest and most beautiful way possible: at a witch club meeting in college, hence Taylor’s line “As if you were a mythical thing.” Tara is the perfect first gay love for Willow. Their relationship unfolds slowly and carefully. They’re both shy and unsure, but they let their love and care for each other guide them. “The more that you say / The less I know” describes their tentative forays into recognizing their feelings for each other are romantic. “Wherever you stray / I follow” — Tara seamlessly becomes one of “the gang,” along with Buffy, Giles, Xander and all the rest. And as for their tragic end (which I attempt to avoid thinking about), the lines “I’m begging for you to take my hand / Wreck my plans” sum it up pretty well. Although it’s always disappointing when a show falls into the “bury your gays” trope and I felt like I was punched in the gut, their sapphic relationship was not only revolutionary for such a popular show at the time, but was also integral to my exploration of my own identity. So thank you, Willow and Tara, for being the queer witchy representation I needed and that we all deserve.

Daily Arts Writer Emilia Ferrante can be reached at emiliajf@umich.edu.

“champagne problems” — Jo March and Theodore (Laurie) Laurence, “Little Women”

Sometimes you just don’t know the answer / ’Til someone’s on their knees and asks you

If you’re one of the many people who wish that Jo and Laurie could have ended up together, I have two things to say to you: I don’t blame you, but also, you’re wrong. Now, normally I am all for a childhood-friends-to-lovers relationship, and these two would be the epitome of the trope. They’re basically joined at the hip for the entire first half of the story, and whether you’re reading it or watching it, you can’t help but wish that they’ll end up together by the end. But Jo (Saoirse Ronan, “Lady Bird”) values her independence too much to truly settle down in the way Laurie (Timothée Chalamet, “Call Me By Your Name”) wants her to. Romance and marriage also signify the end of her childhood, another thing she desperately wants to avoid. “champagne problems” is the perfect song to represent these two, and not just because of the surplus of fan edits that you can find online. The song tells of a couple who everyone expects to get married, except the woman turns down the proposal. We may not know why she does this — it’s implied that she struggles with her mental health — but at the end of the day, the decision is hers, just like it was Jo’s to turn down Laurie’s proposal (in one of the most devastating but gorgeously shot scenes I’ve ever seen). Jo may love Laurie, but she recognizes within herself that she cannot give him what he wants. Besides, she knows that someday he’ll find the real thing instead — and she eventually does, too.

Daily Arts Writer Hannah Carapellotti can be reached at hmcarp@umich.edu.

“gold rush” — Amy March and Theodore (Laurie) Laurence, “Little Women”

My mind turns your life into folklore / I can’t dare to dream about you anymore

It’s almost impossible to pick a singular lyric or line from “gold rush” to best represent Amy and Laurie. From Laurie’s (Timotheé Chalamet, “Call Me By Your Name”) aristocratic beauty and seeming unattainability (“What must it be like / To grow up that beautiful?”), to his taciturn and stubborn nature that provokes Amy’s (Florence Pugh, “Don’t Worry Darling”) disdain (“At dinner parties I call you out / On your contrarian shit”), “gold rush” captures the pair perfectly as an ode to Amy’s deepest desires and insecurities that never fail to creep out of the woodwork when it comes to Laurie (“Everybody wants you / But I don’t like a gold rush”). “gold rush” tells the story of an impossible love too good to be true — a sentiment that perfectly captures how Amy views Laurie. Older, wealthier and only just brushing off the disappointment of rejection after years of doggedly pursuing Amy’s sister Jo, Laurie appears out of reach for Amy. But after a closer examination of their characters, it becomes clear that the two were meant to be, each bringing out the best parts of each other while quieting the worst. “gold rush” is a near-perfect fit for the pair, true. But Amy and Laurie take that impossibility of a gold rush and make it a beautiful, unexpected reality.  

Senior Arts Editor Annabel Curran can be reached at currana@umich.edu.

“ ‘tis the damn season” — Marianne Sheridan and Connell Waldron, “Normal People”

And the heart I know I’m breakin’ is my own / To leave the warmest bed I’ve ever known

“ ‘tis the damn season” is a story of “maybes” and “what ifs”: an ode to hometown romance, to that one person you run back to time and time again. For Connell, an insecure, middle-class student struggling to find his way in the world, that person is Marianne. Marianne (Daisy Edgar-Jones, “Where the Crawdads Sing”) and Connell’s (Paul Mescal, “Aftersun”) love story is an uncertain one, yet remarkable in its security and stability. No matter what hardship, trial or tribulation either goes through — from emotional turmoil following the death of a friend to the rocky waters of an abusive relationship — they always show up for each other. For better or worse, their relationship followed them from high school to university, serving as a comfortable escape from reality. Although the novel leaves readers unsure of the pair’s future, it’s safe to say that there’s not much that could keep these two apart. 

Senior Arts Editor Annabel Curran can be reached at currana@umich.edu.

“tolerate it” — Nicole Barber and Charlie Barber, “Marriage Story”

You assume I’m fine / But what would you do if I / Break free and leave us in ruin?

I have never seen a more heartbreaking movie than “Marriage Story,” and I would argue that “tolerate it” is one of Taylor Swift’s more heartbreaking songs. The film follows Nicole (Scarlett Johansson, “The Avengers”) and Charlie (Adam Driver, “White Noise”) through their separation — from trying to mediate, finding lawyers and vicious screaming matches to eventually reaching a somewhat good place that part of the strain comes from the blurred lines between her personal relationship with Charlie, and the two of them belonging to the same theatre company (she’s an actress; he’s the director). Little by little, Nicole comes to the realization that she’s lost herself in the relationship. She says at one point, “I realized I never really came alive for myself; I was always feeding his aliveness,” but once she finally found something that made her come alive for herself like she wanted, Charlie didn’t celebrate it with her. 

So much of “tolerate it” could apply to Nicole’s side of the story. Taylor Swift sings, “I made you my temple, my mural, my sky / Now I’m begging for footnotes in the story of your life.” All the subject of the song wanted was to be seen by her partner, to have her love celebrated by him, but instead he only tolerated it. The song ends with a big “what if” question — it’s unclear whether the song’s speaker actually took the plunge, but Nicole did. Since she and Charlie still share a love for each other, albeit much different than a romantic one, I can only hope that he celebrates her a little more now that they’re not together.

Man, why do I keep writing such sad blurbs? I know I did this to myself, but still.

Daily Arts Writer Hannah Carapellotti can be reached at hmcarp@umich.edu.

“happiness” — Rebecca Pearson and Jack Pearson, “This Is Us”

There’ll be happiness after you / But there was happiness because of you / Both of these things can be true

I have a confession to make: I only ever watched “This is Us” because my Mom was watching it. I was never really a superfan, and I haven’t seen the show in years. However, regardless of my indifference toward the show as a whole, there is one storyline that has stuck with me ever since I watched the first episode, and that is Jack (Milo Ventimiglia, “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”) and Rebecca (Mandy Moore, “Tangled”) Pearson’s tear-inducing love story. For these two, it was pretty much love at first sight. As viewers, we got to watch them go on dates, get married and eventually have triplets together. However, due to the unusual non-chronological structure of “This is Us,” we also got to watch in agony as we found out exactly how Jack ends up passing away, something that we were aware of from the first episode, but were not given the details of until a later season. Of course, courtesy of the very talented and very evil writers, it had to be in the most traumatizing and heartbreaking way possible: a house fire.

Yet, even after losing the love of her life in such a gruesome, sudden way, and having to transition to being a single mom, Rebecca Pearson bounced back. She showed up for her kids in every way possible while working to honor Jack’s memory. She even ended up finding love again with one of Jack’s best friends, Miguel Rivas (Jon Huertas, “Initiation”). She was able to continue to love Jack while still loving her life after Jack. In this way, she embodies Taylor Swift’s message in “happiness” — that one can still find joy even after losing somebody they love. 

Daily Arts Writer Rebecca Smith can be reached at rebash@umich.edu.

“dorothea” — Andy Sachs and Nate Cooper, “The Devil Wears Prada”

You’re a queen, sellin’ dreams, sellin’ makeup and magazines

“UGH” — the only correct reaction to hearing the name “Nate Cooper” (Adrian Grenier, “Far More”). Talk about unsupportive, dramatic and, I’ll say it, detrimentally insecure boyfriends. When Andy (Anne Hathaway, “Eileen”) lands a job working for the fashion magazine editor and legend Miranda Priestly (Meryl Streep, “Don’t Look Up”), Nate is at first happy for his girlfriend and the status she acquires; however, when Miranda bares her teeth and Andy starts working overtime, Nate grows concerned. This concern, though genuine, turns into a less respectable judgment and later, jealousy. To account for this change of heart, I would alter Taylor Swift’s “dorothea” lyrics from “You got shiny friends since you left town” to “You got shitty friends” — but since “dorothea” reads like a monologue from Nate’s P.O.V., I’ll have to turn my attention elsewhere. “But it’s never too late / To come back to my side,” Nate basically whines to Andy when she realizes she deserves more than him and what he can give her (albeit, for only a moment). “You know, you’ll always know me,” he cries, and it’s this sentiment that makes Andy turn back. We were rooting for you, Andy!  

Daily Arts Writer Lillian Pearce can be reached at pearcel@umich.edu.

“coney island” — Marissa Cooper and Ryan Atwood, “The O.C.”

And when I got into the accident / The sight that flashed before me was your face

“The O.C.” is one of the most iconic teen dramas of the early 2000s, in part because of the show’s memorable couples. Marissa Cooper (Mischa Barton, “The Sixth Sense”) and Ryan Atwood (Ben McKenzie, “Gotham”) first meet in the pilot episode and instantly connect — she asks him, “Who are you?” and he replies, “Whoever you want me to be.” Ryan’s the boy from the wrong side of the tracks who’s been taken in by the wealthy Cohen family and Marissa’s the not-so-innocent girl next door. 

Marissa and Ryan were an on-again, off-again couple for three seasons of “The O.C.” That is, until Marissa died in a car accident during the season three finale. It was one of the most heartbreaking moments of the series, and it didn’t help that Imogen Heap’s version of “Hallelujah” played as Ryan carried a dying Marissa in his arms. “coney island” is a melancholic song that evokes nostalgia for a past relationship — quite fitting for Marissa and Ryan’s love story. 

Books Beat Editor Ava Seaman can be reached at avasea@umich.edu.

“ivy” — Anna Karenina and Count Alexei Vronsky, “Anna Karenina”

He’s in the room / Your opal eyes are all I wish to see / He wants what’s only yours

Anna Karenina (Keira Knightley, “Pride & Prejudice”) and Count Alexei Vronsky (Aaron Taylor Johnson, “Bullet Train”) are the obvious choices for “ivy,” a song about an illicit affair. From the first lyrics, Taylor Swift manages to capture the enchanting first meeting of our couple: “How’s one to know? / I’d meet you where the spirit meets the bones,” as if together they reach a new plane of existence. Anna is unhappily married to Aleksei Karenin (Jude Law, “Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore”), which makes it all the more encouraging for Vronsky to attempt to win her over. Swift sings about this obstacle of sorts, saying “Oh, goddamn / My pain fits in the palm of / your freezing hand / Taking mine, but it’s been / promised to another,” which directly brings to mind the illegitimate yet desirable affair between Anna and Vronsky. The two do share a peculiar yet profound bond, and pour into each other like water; “Oh, I can’t / Stop you putting roots in my dreamland / My house of stone, your ivy grows / And now I’m covered in you.” Though there are attempts, one cannot escape the other; they are painted in their sordid love until the end.

Daily Arts Writer Lillian Pearce can be reached at pearcel@umich.edu.

“cowboy like me” — Evelyn Hugo and Celia St. James, “The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo”

Hustling for the good life / Never thought I’d meet you here / It could be love / We could be the way forward / And I know I’ll pay for it

If you’ve heard of Evelyn Hugo, you’re probably familiar with her seven husbands. But if you’ve read Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid, you know that Celia St. James was the real love of her life. In the ’50s, Evelyn is an aspiring actress eager to shed her past and start anew in Hollywood. She’s certainly “got some tricks up her sleeve,” “telling all the rich folks anything they wanna hear” as she cons those around her into her own agenda of acquiring fame, wealth and success in the industry. Although “the old men that (she) swindled really did believe (she) was the one,” Evelyn first and foremost looks out for herself. She’s well-versed in deceiving the world about her real identity, love life and public image, but Celia is one of the few people that really, truly knew her. 

In the midst of “hustling for the good life,” the two actresses unexpectedly fall in love, as Evelyn comes to the realization that they’re more alike than she thought. Evelyn’s gaydar wasn’t the greatest, but it “takes one to know one,” I suppose. Something as simple as dancing together at a party quickly becomes “a dangerous game” for the pair as they have to actively hide their relationship. There’s always tabloid gossip circling whichever husband Evelyn’s currently with to deflect attention from her relationship with Celia, but for a time, they’re in it together, willing to risk it all. Between Evelyn’s unrelenting ambition and Celia’s stubbornness, their similarities and murky pasts do come to haunt them. With all of the lies and husbands, “the skeletons in both (their) closets plotted hard to fuck this up,” and broke them up a few times over the course of several decades. But for all the time that they had together and spent apart, forever truly was “the sweetest con” for Evelyn when Celia tragically dies near the story’s end. One thing is for certain: Once Evelyn fell in love with Celia, she was “never gonna love again.”

TV Beat Editor Serena Irani can be reached at seirani@umich.edu.

“long story short” — Nora Stephens and Charlie Lastra, “Book Lovers”

And he feels like home / If the shoe fits, walk in it everywhere you go

Nora Stephens definitely knows about “(falling) from the pedestal,” being “pushed from the precipice” and overall having “a bad time.” In Emily Henry’s third novel “Book Lovers,” Nora is dealing with the fallout of her mother’s death, taking care of her sister, struggling with a string of bad relationships and maintaining a time-consuming position as a literary agent. Enter Charlie Lastra. Charlie is an editor Nora has to work with, and the two have an interesting history, where neither one made a great first impression. Despite this, the two characters fall hard for each other. Amid Nora’s stress about her sister’s pregnancy, Charlie’s father’s health issues and the weird, whacky and wonderful environment that is Sunshine Falls, North Carolina, the two realize the depths of their feelings. Nora is used to men who don’t care about her, the kind that break up with her over the phone to date pretty, perfect farm heiresses. But Charlie is the exception — he stands at her side, willing to help her tackle her demons while still letting her be her own person. And even though, at times, it feels like the world is working against them … well, “long story short,” they survive. 

Daily Arts Writer Sabriya Imami can be reached at simami@umich.edu.

“closure” — Alex Karev and Jo Wilson, “Grey’s Anatomy”

Yes, I got your letter / Yes, I’m doing better / It cut deep to know ya / Right to the bone

After the extremely traumatizing deaths of Mark Sloan (Eric Dane, “Euphoria”) and Lexie Grey (Chyler Leigh, “Supergirl”), I was pretty much done with “Grey’s Anatomy.” I’d been forced to watch my favorite characters die left and right and was ready to stop bothering altogether — that was, until surgical intern Jo Wilson (Camilla Luddington, “The Healer”) made her debut in the first episode of season nine, and I was finally given a reason to keep watching. Right off the bat, her flirty interactions with the moody and sarcastic Dr. Alex Karev (Justin Chambers, “The Offer”) had me hooked. Over the span of the season, these two went from enemies to best friends to lovers and quickly became one of my favorite “Grey’s Anatomy” couples of all time. Yet, just as the show’s writer Shonda Rhimes has managed to ruin every good character or plot line she has ever created, she eventually destroyed the relationship between Jo and Alex, too. In season 16, Jo received a multi-page letter from Alex explaining that he was leaving her to be with his ex-wife, Izzie Stevens (Katherine Heigl, “27 Dresses”). This was completely out of character for the caring, protective Alex Karev that we knew, who was, according to many, the best-developed character in the series. Nevertheless, it was a low blow for poor Jo, who was forced to move on from the person she had thought to be the love of her life. This is why Taylor Swift’s “closure” is the perfect song to encapsulate Jo’s pain, not only because it alludes to a letter similar to the one she receives from Alex, but because it shows just how deeply one mourns losing the person they are closest to in their life. For many, they feel it all the way down to the bone.

Daily Arts Writer Rebecca Smith can be reached at rebash@umich.edu.

“evermore” — Emily Dickinson and Sue Gilbert, “Dickinson”

I had a feeling so peculiar / That this pain would be for / Evermore

As far as Swiftie fan theories go, the notion that “evermore” is a tribute to Emily Dickinson isn’t all that far-fetched. Most notably because the album was announced on Dickinson’s birthday, but also because the ending line of this song, “for / evermore” hauntingly resembles the final line of one of Dickinson’s most infamous poems: “Sue — forevermore!”

In the eponymous show “Dickinson,” Sue (Ella Hunt, “Anna and the Apocalypse”) is the focal romantic figure of Emily’s (Hailee Steinfeld, “The Edge of Seventeen”) life, the source of inspiration for countless poems and as constant a fixture in her story as her poetry itself. Though Sue is married to Emily’s brother, she and Emily were “friends” first, so Emily has to eternally contend with their marriage. The pain of their hidden romance and periods of separation linger in her thoughts and seep into her words as Emily pens letter after letter, poem after poem in dedication to her, some “addressed to the fire,” others to the vast collections of unpublished work she presumed would never be read. She spends much of her time writing in solitude, sitting in her room, “staring out an open window / catching (her) death” as it passes her by and putting it into words. Time and time again, they cross the line with their clandestine meetings, forever dancing around Sue’s marriage, “sending signals” unnoticed by everyone else. Emily is the one left to grapple with the ill-fated nature of their relationship, weighed by the knowledge that for her, “this pain would be for / evermore.”

TV Beat Editor Serena Irani can be reached at seirani@umich.edu.

“right where you left me” — Camilla Macaulay and Henry Winter, “The Secret History”

Did you ever hear about the girl who lives in delusion? / Break-ups happen every day, you don’t have to lose it / She’s still 23 inside her fantasy / How it was supposed to be / And you’re sitting in front of me

In “right where you left me,” Swift sings of the pain and solitude of heartbreak and of being left behind. Although the song’s lyrics may be telling the story of a devastating breakup, it’s safe to say that the loneliness and melancholy the lyrics evoke can easily be applied to the Greek tragedy that was the short-lived love of Henry and Camilla. After watching her boyfriend die at his own hand right before her eyes, Camilla is left unmoored, drifting purposelessly throughout her life with few friends or family left to guide her. Henry, who supported her and helped her flee from an abusive familial relationship, was all that was holding Camilla upright after the disastrous events of “The Secret History” by Donna Tartt, and his death leaves her unsure of herself. When, years later, Camilla reunites with her former friends under less-than-happy circumstances, Richard, who had loved Camilla since he first laid eyes on her, tells her so, asking her to marry him. Despite Richard laying all his affections right out on the table, Camilla can’t even contemplate moving on — although years have passed, she still loves Henry. 

Each and every character of “The Secret History” can be infuriating in their distasteful cruelties and their cultish devotion to one another. But, regardless of their hubris and their fatal flaws, they are deep and complex human beings, capable of deep regret, love and devotion. In this way, and with her seemingly everlasting love for and idealization of Henry, Camilla is no different. 

Senior Arts Editor Annabel Curran can be reached at currana@umich.edu.

“it’s time to go” — Rhaenyra Targaryen and Alicent Hightower, “House of the Dragon”

She was not in fact what she seemed / not a twin from your dreams / but a crook who was caught

Humans often operate on instinct. Sometimes, “old familiar body aches” nudge us away from situations before we even realize how bad they really are. Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy, “Truth Seekers”) finds herself struck with this exact sensation at the midpoint of the HBO series “House of the Dragon.” When her father King Viserys (Paddy Considine, “Hot Fuzz”) dies, she’s thrown into the midst of a cutthroat scramble for power, resulting in an assortment of betrayals from those closest to her. Rhaenyra is forced to leave it all behind, accepting that “it’s time to go” and fleeing to her ancestral home to escape political opponents. In the midst of all this tragedy, Rhaenyra’s biggest heartbreak is the betrayal of her childhood best friend Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke, “Pixie”) who positions herself on the opposite side of the impending civil war. Rhaenyra and Alicent were raised together. Their relationship was innocent and quietly romantic. There was a time when they cared more for each other than anything else on earth, spending their days exploring the castle and wondering about futures they might share. When the two are driven apart by political infighting, Rhaenyra is forced to realize that Alicent may never have been “a twin from (her) dreams” but instead “a crook who was caught.” It’s not a particularly angry realization. Instead, Rhaenyra just looks at her old friend with melancholy and a little bit of longing, suffering through the “breaks in (her) soul.” “it’s time to go” is a song all about cutting your losses in a relationship and moving on, no matter how much it hurts. Rhaenyra spent “fifteen years” at court, “begging til (her) knees bled” for respect. When not even Alicent can grant her that anymore, she finally leaves her “palace of bones” — and her love for Alicent — behind.

Daily Arts Writer Lola D’Onofrio can be reached at lolad@umich.edu.

“Renegade” — Simon Hastings and Daphne Bridgerton, “Bridgerton”

Is it really your anxiety that stops you from giving me everything? / Or do you just not want to?

Simon (portrayed in the show by Regé-Jean Page, “The Gray Man”) and Daphne’s (portrayed in the show by Phoebe Dynevor, “Younger”) romance in the first season of the “Bridgerton” series may be a worthy example of the “fake relationship” trope, but man, these two could be such a stronger couple if they knew how to communicate. When these two are quickly rushed into an arranged marriage in order to avoid scandal, neither one really minds, since they’re obviously in love with each other. But their relationship as a married couple is much different — and darker — than their courtship. Simon knows that Daphne wants a family of her own, but he vowed to himself that his bloodline would end with him. Except he doesn’t tell her that he won’t have children; he tells her that he can’t. Daphne is smart enough to figure it out for herself, but how she figures it out is problematic, to say the least. In “Renegade,” Taylor Swift sings about being with someone who struggles with their mental health. Something like anxiety can’t always be controlled, but it can still put a strain on both sides of the relationship. That’s why communication is key, as the old adage says. Simon and Daphne may not have it down, but “Renegade” captures its importance.

Daily Arts Writer Hannah Carapellotti can be reached at hmcarp@umich.edu. 

The post The Swiftie Project Part Nine: evermore appeared first on The Michigan Daily.

Last Friday night, instead of laying in bed and procrastinating on my assignments, I found myself crossing train tracks and inhaling the earthy scents of Aroma Indian Cuisine as I made my way to The Blind Pig for the first time. Walking in, I looked around, taking note of the velvety dim lighting and the numerous band stickers on the poles. I was early and happened to be one of the few people there, aside from the performers and the employees. Gradually, groups of people started coming in, which made me feel less out of place, and I even made small talk with some of them. 

I was here to see three student bands — pluot, Cherry TV and VUP — with three largely different sonic palettes. Cherry TV, a self-described “groovy indie pop punk/funk band,” is a four-member group that puts funky twists on pop and rock classics. VUP — which in contrast leans into jazzier textures — is a seven-member band with an entire brass section. Pluot is a four-piece Japanese math rock band, led by lead guitarist Taka. Despite being somewhat unfamiliar with the bands prior to this, I came in knowing I was about to experience some wild shifts in atmosphere. 

After around half an hour, pluot took the stage as bright red and green lights flashed onto the members. They began to perform a slow, lingering tune, and I was stunned by vocalist Echo’s singing, which was wonderfully delicate, yet commanding. For the next 30 minutes, I remained entranced by their set, which was a delightful mix of original songs and covers. While every song was in Japanese, the music felt deeply resonant, with the songs’ dreamy atmospheres conjuring a sense of longing and nostalgia that made me feel warm and fuzzy. But there were some powerful moments, like during their original song “Apocalypse,” where for a moment it felt like the drums and guitar were fighting it out with each other, the sheer chaos of which mirrored the title’s namesake. Later in the same song, there was a dazzling solo by bassist Shudane, traversing notes and scales at lightning speed, lighting up everyone who was there. 

Following pluot’s exit and a brief soundcheck, Cherry TV made their way to the stage, seemingly ready to get the party started. Most people were here for them, so the venue was practically full at that point. They started off with a cover of Lana Del Rey’s “West Coast,” which stayed somewhat true to the original as vocalist Anna Agrawal maintained the haunting character of Del Rey’s singing but coated it in a funky sheen, with touches of slap bass and syncopated guitar rhythms. Both Agrawal and co-vocalist Kiran Mangrulkar traded spots across songs, with Mangrulkar often singing the covers originally by a male vocalist while Agrawal often sang songs originally by a female vocalist. Their cover of “Death of a Bachelor” by Panic! At the Disco was exceptional — Mangrulkar’s vocals surged and descended like a rollercoaster ride, only grounded by the steady instrumental backing. 

But what really made the set for me was their personalities. Although each member rarely spoke, the way they carried themselves on stage, dancing and enjoying themselves the whole performance, was incredibly infectious. Throughout the performance they would tell the audience to dance, emphasizing the need to have a good time. I’m usually the last person to dance (in public no less), but even I started shifting around to the rhythm, singing along to some of the classics I knew. More than anything, their set felt like a party. The setlist was also incredible, as they ran through a number of classic songs, many of which I used to be obsessed with during high school. To top it off, the set ended with a killer performance of “Mr. Brightside,” as everyone in the venue started jumping so hard I thought the floor was going to collapse underneath me. 

After yet another soundcheck, VUP, the final band of the night, came out to perform. They began with a lush cover of Michael Jackson’s “I Can’t Help It,” which fooled me into thinking it would be a mellow come-down contrasting the unbridled energy of Cherry TV. It quickly became a fun way to cap out the night as they continued to play contemporary and classic jazz and R&B songs with gorgeous arrangements. Vocalist Ari Kertsman had a rich vocal tone that matched the maximalism of the backing instrumentation perfectly, while the brass players and pianist presented a brilliant contrast between the brashness of the brass instruments countering the graceful electric piano chords. Similar to Cherry TV, they were dynamic on stage, and often called on the audience to join in on the songs. Their cover of Silk Sonic’s “Skate” was immaculate, with everything in harmony and the crowd singing along. It was one of the best performances of the night, and I’m glad that I didn’t miss it. 

While there are plenty of campus bands, each of them serves its own unique purpose. That night, Cherry TV, VUP and pluot showcased their musical skills, but they also made sure that we had a good time. Musically, it felt nostalgic and helped me forget about school for a couple of hours. But simply being with everyone else there and taking in the music made me reflect on the great experiences I’ve had with others in my three years at the University of Michigan. And if there’s anything a great concert should do, it’s that.

Daily Arts Writer Thejas Varma can be reached at thejasv@umich.edu.

The post Cherry TV, VUP and pluot showed us a good time appeared first on The Michigan Daily.

Following in the footsteps of The Michigan Daily Arts’ Music Talks, The Daily Arts section presents Arts Talks, a series where Daily Arts Writers gather to discuss their opinions on and reactions to the latest and major releases in the Arts world.

In this segment of Arts Talks, some Daily Arts writers come together to discuss the record, the latest album from boygenius, a band composed of musicians Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus and Julien Baker.

This conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity and brevity. 

Lillian Pearce, Daily Arts Writer: I’ll start: I love boygenius. But, the more I listened to their EP, I noticed that each song screamed a particular artist; “Me & My Dog” is a Phoebe Bridgers song through and through, and “Souvenir” has Julien Baker written all over it. It made me wonder what exactly was the boygenius sound. the record, though, feels like a collaboration, and I am really happy about that. 

Lola D’Onofrio, Daily Arts Writer: Yeah, that’s true. the record has a really different sound compared to their EP. It’s very rocky, very heavy. Past songs like “Me & My Dog” and “Salt in the Wound” have crunch and noise to them, but the record feels a lot gentler and more cohesive. 

Annabel Curran, Senior Arts Editor: I haven’t listened to their EP that much. I’m familiar with it a little bit, but I didn’t listen to it when it first came out. So the record was actually my introduction to boygenius. It’s cool to hear all of their different styles creep in. It is easy to pick out who did what, I think, but it all blends together really well. I’m obsessed with this album. I don’t think there’s a song I don’t like. 

Serena Irani, TV Beat Editor: I’ve only listened to it a few times. But right now, I’m kind of ambivalent. I like a lot of the songs — I think my favorite song is “Letter To An Old Poet” because it sounds like “Me & My Dog” part two — but some of them I’m just not there yet with. I agree that their sounds coalesce a lot better on this album; however, sometimes I feel like I’m bouncing around from artist to artist. Maybe that’ll change when I listen to it a few more times. 

Zachary Taglia, Daily Arts Writer: This album definitely does feel a lot less rocky. I think Julien Baker has the rockiest cuts, but I like the softer cuts more, honestly. I liked “Emily I’m Sorry” a lot when it came out. I also like “We’re In Love” a lot — I thought the songwriting was so good on that track. I am sad that we don’t hear much of Lucy Dacus on this album. 

AC: Me too. The songs that do have a heavy Lucy Dacus presence are my favorites, like “Not Strong Enough.” Her verse is my favorite part. I wish she could sing me to sleep every day. Her voice is just so clear, and her harmonies are always so, so good.

ZT: I think her songwriting is so fleshed out, whereas when I hear the typical Phoebe Bridgers motifs, I’m exhausted. I’m tired.

AC: I totally agree. There’s one song — what’s the song where she’s like, “But you’re not special, you’re evil”? Is that “Letters To An Old Poet”? I was like, Phoebe, what are these words? It was silly. But in the second half of the song, when she says “I wanna be happy / I’m ready,” that hurts so bad. That was so good.

Claire Sudol, Music Beat Editor: The lyric “You think you’re a good person / Because you won’t punch me in the stomach” honestly stopped me in my tracks — it was so bizarre. But I think the absurdity and sometimes over-dramatic flair of Phoebe’s tracks are the key to her charm.

LP: Serena mentioned earlier that “Letter To An Old Poet” sounds like “Me & My Dog.” Similarly, I was thinking about how the song “$20” references “Souvenir” from their EP, when Julien Baker sings, “$20 in souvenirs,” and the other nods to their old work together, which I think is cute.

LD: In “Letter To An Old Poet,” they redo the “Me & My Dog” riff but instead of “I want to be emaciated,” it’s “I wanna be happy.” It’s very soft. I feel like that’s kind of the mission statement of the album — the EP was very harsh and self-deprecating, and the record is more mature and reflective.

LP: I definitely agree with that. At the end of “Souvenir,” there’s the lyric that I love (but is very self-deprecating), “When you cut a hole into my skull / Do you hate what you see? / Like I do.” the record, on the other hand, seems to be about giving themselves more grace, being more mature about their pain instead of blaming themselves for everything.

LD: That being said, I’m curious what all your opinions are because I’ve struggled to find, like, a core theme. the record feels pretty disjointed and I’m wondering, what was their overall vision?

AC: I think that’s a fair question. Thinking about Phoebe’s two albums, and Lucy’s discography as well, there’s a lot of storytelling. I think it was Stranger in the Alps where Phoebe said that she wrote about what human beings can do to hurt other human beings. Like she has “Chelsea” on there and “You Missed My Heart.” But on the record? I don’t know if there was one central theme. I think there’s a subtle shift in tone from their EP for sure — just like Lillian said, they’re giving themselves more grace. But I don’t know if there was a big idea.

LD: Part of the issue of it is that they’re three different artists. They’re not one hive mind. Maybe the point is for it to be disjointed and highlight their different perspectives and experiences. 

LP: When they released the first three singles, I thought, “Oh, here’s my Julien song, my Phoebe song, my Lucy song.” But when I watched “boygenius – the film,” I was like, “Oh, I think they are all aware of that.”

AC: On that same thread, though, I did notice how the songs subtly connected to each other. I don’t know if this was intentional, but they did reuse a couple of lines throughout the album. Like, they mention “spinning out” repeatedly. I think it’s in “Not Strong Enough” where Phoebe sings “I tried, I can’t / Stop staring at the ceiling fan and / Spinning out.” And then later in “True Blue,” Lucy sings, “When you moved to Chicago / You were spinning out.” It all comes back together.

CS: Maybe then the throughline is in showing the places they find themselves in now as opposed to the EP. The act of calling back to old tracks and phrases made me think that the record is all about their maturation as individuals and as a collective. Not only are they seemingly more mature in life and love, but also in their collective songwriting and production. 

ZT: I have to say, like, you know, this album is good, but I find myself enjoying their individual records a lot more. They just go way more in-depth in their personal work; Lucy’s Home Video, for example, is full of stories from her childhood and relationships. the record seems like they just tried to satisfy the public.

AC: They’re all such storytellers. I would have loved more of a story because they’re so good at it. Sonically, I’m obsessed with this album. I could listen to it forever. But it would have been nice to get into an actual story.

LP: Have they talked about their process? Like how collaborative is it — do they write lyrics together, music together? Do we know that? 

SI: Do you remember when we said earlier, like, “Oh, this is a Julien song?” You can tell almost right away, like “Oh, this specific individual wrote this song.” And, yes, the others are singing, too, and I’m sure they influenced the process, but some songs do feel distinctly like one artist. That’s what makes the album feel disjointed — when they fall out of sync with each other. 

LP: I agree, and sometimes it makes me wonder why didn’t they decide to release some songs by themselves? Like, why isn’t “Emily I’m Sorry” a Phoebe Bridgers single? At the same time, there were songs that blended their sounds well, like “Not Strong Enough.” 

CS: It’s an almost pass-the-mic of an album and I agree that some tracks might fit better within their individual discographies. I would disagree that it feels disjointed — the record really shines when played from a physical form. Most tracks flow into the following like the transition between “Emily I’m Sorry” and “True Blue” — though I think there’s something to be said about the abrupt changes in tone, texture and color in other transitions. There’s also a locked groove on the vinyl format that keeps the album in place on the word “waiting” at the end of “Letter to an Old Poet.” It plays that lyric revolution after revolution, waiting for the listener to pop it out of place into the next track. 

LD: Maybe the EP was the way to go. They got to collaborate, to put some songs together. I don’t know if a full-length album was needed. I would have liked to see them be featured on each other’s album, like any other artistic collaboration. 

AC: Despite our many critiques, I really do like this album. I will listen to it on the way home just as I listened to it on the way here. And I will continue listening to it until Phoebe releases a new album. 

ZT: I probably won’t return to the record. I’d rather listen to their solo music. 

LD: Shout out to “Revolution 0” for getting zero mentions during this.

CS: Beatles White Album reference. That’s all I’ll say about that. 

Daily Arts Writers Lillian Pearce, Lola D’Onofrio and Zachary Taglia, TV Beat Editor Serena Irani, Music Beat Editor Claire Sudol and Senior Arts Editor Annabel Curran can be reached at pearcel@umich.edu, lolad@umich.edu, ztaglia@umich.edu. seirani@umich.edu, cjsudol@umich.edu and currana@umich.edu. 

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