Stand up now and face the sun

I'm the man, I'm the man, I'm the man.

The Return.

This was written last August, right before the 2013 VMAs, but I never finished and published it. So, here you go.

Many of you are probably already aware of the

*NSYNC REUNION PERFORMANCE AT THE VMA'S THIS SUNDAY.

The following is a text conversation between my sisters and I.
Steph: NSYNC is performing at the VMA's on Sunday!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Me: (a link)
Elise: WHAAAAAAAAAATTTTTTTT?!?!?!?!?!?!?!
Moriah: You guys I'm trying to learn in seminary!!!!
Elise: Do they have NSYNC in seminary?
Moriah: yessssss
Elise: What? Well apparently I went to the wrong seminary.
Moriah: I learn a lot and hear lots of great music in mine. You might been hurt babe that ain't no lie!!! Everything little thing I do never seems enough for you.
Elise: That's true. But TGIF and I just got paid.
Me: I hope they perform bye bye bye. It would BRING DOWN THE HOUSE.
Moriah: digital digital get down
Moriah: come and take a ride take a space ride with a cowboy baby!!!
Steph: You guys like the dumbest songs.
Me: No Moriah likes the dumbest songs. She literally just quotes the worst ones.
Me: Space cowboy is the number one worst!!!!!!!!!!!
Elise: Yeah guys. I promise that you all like the dumbest songs.
Moriah: The cowboy one makes my heart flourish! It has the best and words and its the best.
Me: Actual best song: It makes me ill. And gone and it's gonna be me. And God must have spent a little more time on you. and bye bye bye and this I promise you. And tell me tell me baby. And that is all.
Elise: And the Bread one!!!! And that Sailing one
Moriah: and the one that sounds Chinese at the beginning.
Elise: Whaaah?
...
Me: Music of the heart or something?
Moriah: Yeah I think so.
Steph: THE SAILING ONE (attached is picture of a butcher knife)
Me: Sailing is like the worst one besides bringin' da noise and space cowboy. Except giddy up is pretty bad. and just got paid.
Steph: Except you forgot Girlfriend with Nelly (lots of heart pictures here)
Moriah: Grrrrrr rawr.
....
Me: What if they do bye bye bye and it morphs into it's gonna be me...and then they end with this I promise you?
Steph: Aaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhh
Elise: And then it makes me ill turns into God must have spend a little more time on you.
Steph: Elise! Now you've got it!
Elise: Then sailing turns into the Bread one.
Steph: NOT SAILING AGAIN!!
Me: NO MORE SAILING!
Elise: IT'S MY FAVORITE ONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Steph: You are cuckoo for coco puffs. I used to fast forward through that on my walkman!


A brief rundown:

1. remember when No Strings Attached came out and we all thought there could not be a better album cover? And the Bye Bye Bye video was clearly the most creative and groundbreaking music video in history. My first glimpse of the forbidden Mtv was to watch "Making of Bye Bye Bye" While my parents weren't home.

2. I went to the Pop Odyssey tour in Chicago in 2001. Those *NSYNCers introduced a bunch of songs from the Celebrity album, and I remember being so mad because I had to pee SO BAD in the middle of the show and I missed like 5 minutes of it.

3. When that album came out I went to Young Women's and my friend Tammy was telling me all about how her favorite song from the album was "Selfish." I was like, "ARE YOU INSANE????" I mean, really, whose favorite song would ever be "Selfish"??? Not a self-respecting *NSYNC fan, for sure.

4. Stephanie owned "No Strings Attached," not me. And I was not allowed to touch it. But I would steal it from her CD player when she was at work and listen to it on her discman (another, possibly more evil crime). Oh goodness I'm so glad it didn't get scratched.

5. We recorded *NSYNC every time they were at the Disney Summer Jam or on Rosie or on the Today show, or any other time they were on TV. And I'm not talking about DVR or TiVo. I'm saying we recorded them on VHS tapes.

6. My sisters and I have had many conversations about who gets "This I Promise You" as their wedding song. I have lost repeatedly.

7. Elise made an *NSYNC scrapbook as a companion to the detailed O-Town book I compiled. It was more colorful than mine, but not quite as elaborate.

And the resulting VMA performace was thus:



My experience with the VMAs this year was a little less than expected. I went to my friend Ali's house to watch it (because, you know, no TV at my house), and waded through the crap of the whole for this beautiful NSYNC moment--and just as they started to perform, Ali went to turn up the volume and HIT INPUT INSTEAD and I literally missed the whole thing.

The end.

Bastille

You know, just another British band to add to the collection.

Discovered these guys a couple weeks ago (their US single, "Pompeii" is killing it on iTunes), and after I decided that I loved the song, I, very compulsively, bought the whole album. Which is something that I pretty much never do. I never buy full albums. And if I do, it is after several week's deliberation and exploration of every track to make sure it isn't dirty and that I like every bit of it.

But so I randomly bought it. AND I LOVE IT. And I didn't even know they were British until yesterday. I'm telling you, I accidentally like all the British people, and I don't even mean to.

So, if you would like to listen to Bastille, I recommend these songs first: (my comments in parentheses)

1. Pompeii (a pretty good entry song as far as their style goes)
2. Bad Blood (OH MAN, THE HARMONY.)
3. Oblivion (seriously, this guy's falsetto. dying over here.)
4. Laura Palmer

And like, definitely these ones too:
1. Things We Lost in the Fire
2. Overjoyed (the piano)
3. Daniel in the Den (okay wait. this might belong in the top category. this is too hard.)

What am I saying? Just listen to the whole thing.

Upon request

Attention: based on content, parts of this post might only be visible for a short time. Like a day. So get a peek while you can!

1. In the wise words of Lauren Conrad on The Hills, "they'll send you a text because they know that you just stopped thinking about them. It's like a radar."

2. I found the perfect description for Salt Lake boys. The Mormon Bachelor Pad blog. Remember when that was a thing in like 2010? Well, it's real life. I remembered about that blog yesterday, so I spent some productive time today on a refresher course. I now feel more fully equipped to handle man situations in Salt Lake. Because, seriously. I have never been so repeatedly confused.

Some sample textual messages:
Exhibit A:
(after a bunch of annoying texts where our plans for the next day were cancelled and he could tell I was getting frustrated with his annoyingness.)
boy: (around midnight) just been a rough night lol
me: (the next day) why rough?
boy: (the NEXT day) Cuz I didn't hang out with you lol haha
me: oh boy. what a line. :)

ARE YOU FOR SERIOUS???

same boy, but several days earlier:
me: on a scale of 1 to 10, how awesome would it be if I got a bounce house for my birthday party?
boy: Hmmm 3. I've seen them - they are ok, but they quickly become boring - or maybe 9 since you are going to be in it.

REALLY????
He then proceeded to suggest a mechanical bull. yeah, because those don't quickly become boring.

And by the way, here is the correct answer, as was provided by one favorite boy: "PERFECT 10 FOR 10."

Exhibit B: (my commentary in italics)
boy: would you say that you are on the naughty or nice list? (this one actually happened just before Christmas. And also, who asks questions like this????)
me: What??? nice. obviously.
boy: except you haven't been nice with me because you never want to hang. (I don't even know how to begin to form a response to this one. After several minutes deliberation, I decide to play nice.)
me: haha you have never asked me to hang out!
boy: hahahaa you are a feisty one! (frustration is mounting. "Feisty" is a word I generally use for small, annoying dogs. I am not happy about this. And I'm still trying to figure out what was feisty about that response. There is only one safe thing to say...)
me: :)
boy: well we need to hang (ooooh. maybe this means something will actually happen. I must be encouraging).
me: for sure! give me a day and I'll check my schedule. (because seriously, I have a lot going on all the time, somehow. And looking back, I probably should have just suggested a day or two that worked. But I'm used to BYU boys, and those boys ASK YOU ON DATES.)
boy: We have a busy woman on our hands! (and from this I read, "you are making this too hard for me, I don't want to hang out with you that bad." And then my reply would be, "your loss, dude.")

We ended up hanging out once. And it was one of the more confusing afternoons of my life. I will spare the details.

I don't even know what this is all supposed to mean. It really just means that I have run into a large number of boys that like to play and don't even commit to asking a girl on a date. But why are they so attractive??? It's like, they can get away with all this crap because girls have always allowed it. But seriously, I am not going to play games with you. If you want to get to know me better, invite me to something. Ask me out. I will more than oblige, I will reciprocate, and I will be totally straight up with you. Because seriously, I will not have annoying and cryptic text conversations where I KNOW that you are playing games.

3. The weather was nice today (a balmy 45 degrees), so we went roller blading. I have waited for 5 years to finally live with another person who owns roller blades. Why those things ever went out of style, I will never know. 

So anyway, we went for a ride. Andrea rode a bike and me and Lauren bladed. And we went around our neighborhood and visited our friends. And so begins the 2013 Wheel Gang. Official name and Constitution is forthcoming. It is a "wheel" gang so as not to discriminate against those who don't have bikes or blades. We welcome scooters and boarders and the like. One individual who is currently on the initiation list is planning to bring one of those things that you just wiggle on and it goes back and forth. He assured me that he could keep up. Another gentleman will be bringing his jeep... I might actually discriminate against that.

4. I tried to switch my iTunes to the UK version the other day. It totally works for browsing purposes...but then disappointment reaches an apex when you find out you can't buy anything because your credit card belongs to a US bank. Why don't they let us poor Americans purchase music from across the pond???? I thought that America was the land of freedom. Free to buy whatever music you want. But it is not so. 

Maybe I just need to stop loving UK pop/rap so much. Maybe I need to re-embrace American artists.

But what is happening in American music these days? Only the P!nk and Matt Ruess song. That is the only thing. Even JB is Canadian.

5. This weekend was too fast. Friday I gathered some of my favorite Salt Lake people-- my roommates, Chris, Curtis, and Mark-- to see Oz: The Great and Powerful. It was such a lovely movie. So stylistically cheesy and awesome and I loved it. When trying to convince Curtis to come to the movie I employed the following 5 reasons: 1. James Franco. 2. Mila Kunis. 3. It's both black/white and color. 4. hot air balloon. 5. Aren't you just so curious??? don't you want to know what happens???? His response: "He becomes the wizard and eventually Dorothy shows up to kill both the wicked witches. Sorry to spoil the ending." What a grinch. But he came anyway. After the movie we had a nightcap of orange juice in pretty glasses and told jokes for a while.

Saturday I went shopping for the first time since Christmas!!!! I went a little crazy. I bought a hot air balloon necklace in memory of both "Oz" and my love of hot air balloons. And then we had a birthday party for cool boy Nick. The party consisted of root beer floats, jokes, and lots of cuddles. We were supposed to play sardines at the church but the key wouldn't work after 10pm....and we found that out the hard way.

In closing, let's just say that if certain young men find this blog, I will probably be in a lot of trouble.

Sick day

Attention: post written yesterday, on Valentine's Day.

What does Audrey do when she takes the day off because she doesn't feel good?

1. She talks to herself A LOT. I've lost my voice. So it's really funny to hear myself talk. And do you want to know what instinctively comes out when I want to test my voice?? Either the phrase, "can I talk??" or that slightly creepy "Hello, Hello" song you sing in Primary when there's a new kid. Why do I start singing that song???

2. I watch old Cary Grant movies. "I Was A Male War Bride" was briliant and hilarious. I laughed my funny no-voice-laugh a million times. It starts out as your classic "we hate each other" movie and then they decide to get married. She was a Lieutenant in the US Army and he a Captain in the French. So he has to get a visa. It's all legal and everything, but then they won't let him on the ship because his papers say he is a Mrs. You can understand the problem. So they DRESS CARY GRANT UP LIKE A WOMAN. I was rolling. Watch it. Available instantly on Netflix. Made in 1949 and based on a true story.

and..... here's a taste.

3. I watch music videos. Today it was exploration of UK artists. Because I can't deny them attention. so behold. the new British invasion:

Rizzle Kicks. These are the dudes that opened for Ed. And you can totally see Ed in the background of this vid.



The Saturdays. the new Spice Girls.


One Direction. obviously.


Ed Sheeran. obviously.


Olly Murs. this dude opened for 1D and he was rad. Also check out "Troublemaker." Probably my favorite song of his.


Cher Lloyd. infectious.


Adele. doesn't really fit in this category. she is above and beyond. but still.


And the list goes on.

4. I talk to my brother on the phone. That brother of mine was like, "HOLLER IF YOU CAN HEAR ME!!" In the middle of our conversation. And I was like, "HOLLEEEERRRRRRRRR" in my almost-no-voice-that-disappears-when-it-gets-too-high-pitched. And then conversation continued like normal.

5. And then I try to get up the motivation to get out of bed and maybe do the dishes or something. But what is a sick day good for if you still have to do the dishes??

and that's about it. I keep thinking I should read a book or something... but somehow it never happens. All I want to do is go shopping, but I have told myself not to buy any more clothes until Spring is legitimately in the air.

Tonight I'm going to eat dinner with my girl Lauren and then we're going to "Safe Haven" (not my pick) with our fave home teacher, Chris. Seriously one of my favorite people in my ward. Maybe he'll be my Valentine. Attention Rachelle: he looks like a mix between (speaking in code now) that one boy you dated who got engaged on campus while his fiance was wearing her backpack and that other boy you only KIND OF dated who has the same first name as that other boy that you actually did date but then everything blew up bad. Get the picture?

And now I present to you a small sample of textual interactions of the sick day (any other social happening was limited, don't judge):

1. This text from my favorite boy, who I kind of wish was my Valentine: "...being in DC reminds me of you and then a Queen song came on in my head which made me think again. Happy Valentine's day to you!"

2. And then this convo with the one and only Mike Poulson.

Mike: Audrey....
Me: Yeah?
Mike: nothing. I just wanted to text your name with an angry inflection.
Me: Too bad I didn't read it that way. But why angry?
Mike: It was a sudden impulse. No explanations. But now that we're talking, how are you today?
Me: home sick. in bed.
Mike: homesick or at home, sick?
Me: At home, sick. I am going to St. George tonight, though.
Mike: both things sound unfortunate.

I don't know why I still talk to him.

3. Nathan: did you stay at home?
Me: yep. unfortunately.
Nathan: That sounds like it's no fun...except you have a 30 day weekend.  (it's really 5 days)
Me: yeah, but I'd rather have the days spread out.
Nathan: but sick days aren't worth anything if you don't use them.
Me: exactly why I'm still in bed.
Nathan: lol, dork

hey, now. That was uncalled for. not really sure why I still talk to him, either.

4. Elise: I got asked out today by a 32 year old neuro-surgeon from LA for dinner tonight. On Valentine's day. Omg...
Me: So did you say yes? How was dinner?

no response. so rude.

And I guess that's about it. The lame day of a lame Audrey.

hahahahahahah get it? get the pun??

The concert.

The dude seriously records the sound of his Rice Krispies in the morning and then freestyles to it.

At the beginning of his tour for "+" he did a concert in Birmingham and at the beginning asked the crowd to part and then set up a table in the middle of the floor and just stood on it with his guitar and performed the whole thing acoustically without a microphone. in the middle of the crowd. would that not be the coolest thing of your whole life???

Some videos. If you watch one of them, please let it be the second one. Or the third.

A great interview:



A great studio session:


And another great studio session:


I watched these sorts of things. live.

It was the best concert I've ever been to. Let's recap the other concerts I have seen: NSYNC, BSB, One Direction, Neil Diamond, Beach Boys, Goo Goo Dolls....and I don't remember what else. I loved the Backstreet Boys concert. It rocked. It was a dream come true.

But Ed was just a different story. He wrote these amazing songs and then he performed them, on his own, with no band, and I was just standing there, smashed in the crowd, with my fists clenched and my mouth open. The whole time.

Lauren and I got there a little over an hour early and found my friend Candace in line. We were so lucky to have her. She was towards the beginning of the massive line and we got excellent placement in the crowd once they opened the doors.

We did not stay in that excellent place. I have never experienced such pushing. People started pushing towards the front the moment the place started to fill up. It was a little insane. And I started to lose it a little bit. I don't think I've ever been so mean in my life. But when you are in this sort of situation, you have to hold your ground, dang it! If you let everyone in front you that tries to push forward, you will end up at the very back of the crowd, which would be no bueno!! One girl was like, "can I get between you guys?" Because she and her girls were trying to find their friends up at the front. I said no. She was like, "but I need to find our friends." And I flat out said, "they have literally saved a bubble of space up their for you? Because there is no room." She was like, "WHAAA?" And I said, "you can go up there if you want, but you'll have to find a different way."

I took a picture to commemorate the small air bubble in front of me for a couple minutes. And that girl's hair, btw, was OUT OF CONTROL and in my face LOTS.

After a while Lauren and I started to feel like we are getting too old for this.

Lauren, Candace, me.

But we had our matching shirts on and we were just SO EXCITED to see Ed.


There were two opening acts. The first one was boring-ish and the only thing I could think was that opening acts are the worst idea in the history of mankind. But then the second one was good. Both openers were British, which was cool, but then they spoke so fast that we couldn't understand them when they said their names. It was difficult. But we figured out that the second was called Rizzle Kicks. They were UK rapper dudes. Zac Taylor would have loved them. And they grooved. I was excited.

And then Ed appeared. He opened with "Give Me Love" and I about died.

Ed in blue.

And then the set list included "Drunk," "U.N.I.," "Grade 8," "Small Bump," "Kiss Me" (again, I die.), "Lego House," "Wayfaring Stranger" (not an Ed original, btw), "Gold Rush," "You Need Me, I Don't Need You" (which went on for like 10 minutes), a traditional Irish piece (I wish he would have closed with this), and finally, "The a Team."

oh hello there Ed.

He kept telling everyone to sing instead of scream and he would give us harmonies. And then for the slower, sweeter songs, he just told everyone to be silent--almost like it was reverent. It was really cool. And he would sing and play and loop his stuff like in those videos.

They should pay me for taking a picture this good.

Ed waving good bye

When it ended Lauren and I were speechless. We wandered back to the car, and while we were waiting in the parking lot for literally 1 hour before we could pull out, we listened to the whole album again. And it was like magic.

Oh, and Saltair was pretty cool. I'll have to go out there again because it was SO FOGGY that I swear I couldn't even see the whole building, nor the surrounding areas (namely, the lake).

So if you ever get the chance. Buy tickets to see Ed.

at the end... :(

the shiny gold thing??? That's about the only part of the building we could see.

waiting in the car, very sleepy.

And also. "The a Team" is nominated for Song of the Year at this year's Grammys. And Ed's performing. So watch it.

And a last note: Someone asked in an interview what he has spent his money on since becoming rich and famous. He was like, "well, someone gave me a Ralph Lauren sweat shirt that I really liked... so I bought 7 more in different colors." Who does that???

Grammys 2012.

Love this recap of the grammys.

Some highlights:

1. major praise of Adele (which I am always in favor of)
2. Some hating on Chris Brown, which is hilarious.
3. Some talk about how Nicki Minaj should have checked the Madonna catalog of performances before choosing the theme for the monstrosity of a performace that she released on the grammys.
4. Some ripping on coldplay for producing boring songs since Chris Martin married Gwyneth. WOOhoo.
5. MANY comments on the random combinations of performers... aka that old lady and Alicia Keyes. Or Adam Levine, the Beach Boys, and the cute Foster the People guy. WTR (what the random).
6. A lot of talk about Bruno Mars and his cocaine habit. Which isn't funny... but somehow... is.
7. Praise to the grammys for NOT focusing on Lady Gaga for once.
and last,
8. A lot of reverent moments for Whitney Houston, and Jennifer Hudson's beautiful memorial performance.

But you should read the whole thing. It's so darned funny. Especially if you watched the entire 3 hours of the grammys this year like I did...

Oh and Adele won 6 awards... that ties for the most awards won by a female in 1 night. Beyonce set the record in 2009 (?).

I love pop. and I love pop culture. whoop whoop.

And one quote to inspire you:
" I re-reverse my opinion after Adele thanking "all of you lot." British accents are the most charming and Adele is the most beautiful talented angel and if anyone says anything negative about her I will smash their brains in with a Grammy."

A Media Update. Because that's what I'm good for.

1. I realized, today, that you all are probably just DYING to know what I have to say about "Under the Mistletoe." haha. Well, the diagnosis is good. I think that the album is just perfectly everything that I wanted it to be. It's Bieber at his finest. Some of my favorites are "Only Thing I Ever Get This Christmas" (I'm just going to say that the Bieber is growing up...), "Christmas Eve" (sweet sweet R&B), and "Christmas Love." They are some of the many original songs on the album. The standout cover on the album is "Santa Claus is Coming To Town," and it's stand-out quality is due largely to its reminiscence of the Jackson 5 ("shake it shake it baby...") ALSO, I think that every track EXCEPT ONE says the word, "mistletoe" at least once, which is hot, and frankly, it's what Justin Bieber is all about. My comments on the recent paternity accusations? I'm ignoring the whole thing... until after he takes the test next week. THEN, if he's guilty, there will be some more ignoring. If he's innocent (which I'm betting my copy of "Under the Mistletoe" he is), then I will not shut up about that horrible woman who accused sweet Bieber of such an atrocious thing. And I'll write some nasty letters or something. Or else just tweet a bunch of condolences to JB until I get a retweet. The end.

2. I've been watching The Cosby Show like crazy for about the last two weeks-- since I realized that seasons 1 through 8 are available instantly on Netflix. Holy. That is amazing, right? So in this one episode, Theo goes to the store and picks up a very expensive designer shirt for his upcoming date. Cliff freaks out a little and exclaims, "No 14-year-old boy should have a 95 dollar shirt unless he is on stage with his 4 brothers!" I love that Heathcliff Huxtable.

3. I currently love The Script. They are an Irish band. And they are hot. and did I say Irish? And I melt away into a puddle of nothing every time I hear their current single, aptly named, "Nothing."

4. HOLY CRAP. I'm excited about this movie. And I hesitate posting the trailer here because I'm kind of a weirdy, and this book (and many other books) are such private, emotional, and personal experiences for me that I have a hard time sharing it with the world. Like, I kind of want to see the movie by myself so that whoever I am with can't taint the experience. I think I'll like the movie, though. I have a very poor track record with "books into movies," but this one appears to be everything I hoped it would be. And if not, I'll silently cry myself to sleep and never speak the words "Hunger Games" again in my lifetime. I'll just secretly maintain my devotion to those wonderful books, and write editorials in my head about why it's so good and what it could all mean. I think I should clarify, though, that on Audrey's Scale of Book Loveability, Harry Potter is like 1,000,000 lbs of importance and Hunger Games is like 1,000. They are very uneven--which is why I am even going to attempt seeing this movie (well, and because of this bomb trailer). So... after all the disclaimer and description.... enjoy.


5. I realized today that there is very nearly only one certainty in life. No matter how much EVERYONE hates them, Nickelback WILL ALWAYS manage to have a new song on the radio. Or an old song. Or any song. But you cannot escape them ever. And no matter how much I loathe that man's voice, I still find myself singing along at times (I'm telling you- inescapable), and somehow, it's comforting.

I think that's all.

Oh wait. RIHANNA-- you may have finally fell off the deep of the "too creepy for Audrey" scale with the video for "We Found Love." Buttttttt.......I'm still excited for your new album. Which comes out next week.

Beyonce and Bieber

My two new favorites:

Call Me Crazy.

So... I've been listening to Prince... lately.

I know you never thought I'd go there... I always knew I would.

Especially since the discovery of "Purple Rain" in 2009. Yep, that song for sure started it.

Some lyric gems (this is about 60% of why I listen):

• From "Let's Go Crazy": (spoken) "...We are gathered here today... 2 get through this thing called... life." haha. So profound.
• "I Would Die 4 You": "I'm not a woman. I'm not a man. I am something that you'll never understand." Yes Prince. You are. No one will ever understand.
• "Kiss": "Act your age (not your shoe size)... not your shoe size." If I acted my shoe size I would be 7 and a half. I guess Prince doesn't like 2nd graders.

Anyway, I just thought I would share my current music listening habits with ya'll. I think it's a sure sign that I'm doing well. My crazy music habits are indicative of my well-being, I believe.

"200 degrees, that's why they call me Mr. Fahrenheit...."

Freddie Mercury, ladies and gentlemen. I can't believe it took me so long to realize what an amazing singer/artist/musician this man was. I mean, really? Freddie, Freddie, Freddie. There are no words to describe.

In the words of Lynne, which I think are pretty accurate, "Freddie Mercury defies all expectation."

It's so true. He's CRAZY. He is like a constant surprise. The one thing about him you can count on, I guess, is for his voice and performance ability to always be amazing.

I don't know why I have this thing for music artists that are weirdos. Exhibit A: Michael Jackson. Exhibit B: Freddie Mercury. Oh wait, I know exactly why. They are fascinating. They are extraordinarily talented, like I'm talking mind-blowing skills, and really, they are just true artists. You know what I mean? There are artists who paint and artists who sculpt, and then there are artists who make music and actually treat music as art. They respect it, and they use their talent to enhance the art- further it- do more with it than had been done before. So many singers claim to be artists, when they are not. You cannot be an artist without changing your art in someway by what you do.

So Freddie had an unusual past. He was a Parsi-- a Zoroastrian whose ancestors migrated from Iran to India. He was born in Zanzibar, went to school in India, and then moved to England with his family when he was 17. They were fleeing Zanzibar for safety reasons- to avoid the Zanzibar revolution. It was in England that he me Roger Taylor, Brian May, and John Deacon- the other members of Queen.

And I guess the rest is history. I don't need to talk about the impact that Queen has had on modern music. We all know and love Queen songs. "We are the Champions" anyone?

But I do need to pay tribute to Freddie's skills as a performer. In 1985 Queen performed for 72,000 at a charity event called Live Aid. As a response to the performance, on critic wrote: "Those who compile lists of Great Rock Frontmen and award the top spots to Mick Jagger or Robert Plant, etc all are guilty of a terrible oversight. Freddie, as evidenced by his Dionysian Live Aid performance, was easily the most godlike of them all."

The "godlike" description brings to mind a comment that I read on YouTube under a video of a portion of the Live Aid performance (and seriously, ya'll should watch it). The comment read, "Elvis Presley is the King of Rock and Roll. Michael Jackson is the King of Pop. But Freddie Mercury is the god of Music." I'm not saying that I agree, I mean, obviously I love both Elvis and Michael more than I love Freddie. But, the quote makes a good point towards the amount of sheer worship that Freddie received from fans. Plus, it's just kind of funny.


My current favorite Queen songs--- that I would recommend to all and everyone.

1. Don't Stop Me Now (Seriously, one of the funnest songs I've heard in a while. It's fast and clever and upbeat. And just so fun to sing. The title of this post comes from this song. And it is actually the reason for my new obsession. Because I found this song. Thanks to Dani, actually).
2. Too Much Love Will Kill You (A beautiful ballad that showcases Freddie's amazing range and emotional attachment to his music.)
3. Let Me Live (OMG. Gut-wrenching, this song. The story is so real. The woman portrayed needs to leave poor Freddie alone. Let him live!! Sample of the lyrics: "Why don't you take another little piece of my heart/Why don't you take it and break it/And tear it all apart.")
4. No-One But You (written and recorded, I believe, after Freddie's death, so he doesn't actually sing on it. But the other members of Queen do a beautiful job, and I really think that the song is about Freddie, and moving on without him.)
5. I Want to Break Free (Okay, seriously, you have to watch the video for this song. Freddie is dressed like a woman, but still wearing his mustache. It's just. so. perfectly. unexpected.)
6. Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy (ha. hahaha.)
7. Another One Bites the Dust (I didn't realize until a couple of days ago that this is actually ONE OF THE COOLEST SONGS EVER!)
8. Under Pressure (with David Bowie. Can you get any better than that?)

Video of Freddie being really awesome at Live Aid. 



The end of Freddie's story? He died of bronchopneumonia brought on by AIDS. People suspected that he had AIDS for years before it was publicly announced, and when he finally did announce his condition, he died 24 hours later on November 24, 1991.

FINALLY, GUESS WHAT????!?! I own a song in my iTunes called "State of Shock." It's a Michael Jackson song that I have somehow overlooked. But guess who is featured in the song?? FREDDIE MERCURY. Bam.

Oh, and one last thing. The man had terrible teeth.

Straight Through My Heart.

The Backstreet Boys say, "This Is Us." The new album will be in stores October 6, 2009. Before I get to the main point of this post, I just have to say that I will forever be a loyal fan of the BSB. Their music has been a large part of my life for the past decade (what other music group could say that? Okay, besides NSYNC and the Beach Boys), and I truly do still love their music. No matter what they do, I am still a fan.

But their new music video and album title are trying my patience and fanhood. I have to say that while I am excited about the album, I am disappointed in their unoriginality and conformity to the masses. Let me illustrate.

1. This is it. This is us. I cannot have any Michael copying around here. I'm serious about this. But if that wasn't enough...
2. The music video for "Straight Through My Heart" has VAMPIRES IN IT. I hate all the vampire stuff. I'm sick of it, it's gross, it's tacky, it's cheesy, it's NOT attractive, it is NOT cool, and I'm mad about this. I expected more of my Backstreet Boys who supposedly turned into men.

But for now, here is the first single, in music video form. The song, I like. The dancing in the video, I like. The concept of the video, I loathe. Now, enjoy.



That music video sent a pain straight through my heart. In a bad way.

A Fundraiser for J. Timberlake

I wish to attend the "Justin Timberlake and Friends" concert in Las Vegas on October 17, 2009. I am even already going to be in St.G that weekend for my brother's wedding. It would be perfect.

Key words here: WOULD BE.

I have no money. The tickets are $100.

And so, here, I am putting out an official declaration/plea. If anyone would like to help me, a poor unfortunate soul who's only desire is to see Justin Timberlake in concert, please donate to the cause. Comment with your pledges.

Sidenote: If you have a really good idea for a fundraiser that is legal and safe and fun, let me know.

How Could You Be So Heartless?

I loved Kanye West, and I still love Kanye West. BUT, I am very disappointed, and I am placing him on probation from my fanhood. Beyonce may have deserved that award, but heck, he didn't have to embarrass poor Taylor on national television. It was her first Spaceman! Dumb.

On a related note, Beyonce is one classy lady. She gave Taylor her chance to talk. I support that woman.

Also, Chris Brown is still on probation but is slowly making his way back to my good graces. I liked his interview with Larry King a couple weeks ago.

Last, "Run This Town" is a super awesome song- Jay-Z, Rihanna, and Kanye scored big time. BUT, make sure that if you are going to listen to it, you get the CLEAN version. That is muy importante.

Holding Out For A Hero

Props to my awesome roommate, Genevieve, and her mad editing skills. Also, these people are the coolest ever.

I love the Beach Boys too!!

I was recently reminded just how great the Beach Boys are. They represent my entrance into the music world- beginning when I was very tiny, and obsessively carried around a walkman and headphones with the Beach Boys' "Endless Summer" album playing inside. My first CD was even a Beach Boys greatest hits CD. And I have enjoyed several others since. And I promise, I can sing all of the songs, and every word to all of the songs. Ask Rachelle. I demonstrated this ability in the car the other day.

As far as their amazingness, according to Billboard, in terms of singles and album sales, The Beach Boys are the No. 1 selling American band of all time. Cool, right? And they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988- The year I was born! What fate!

My Top 15 Favorite Beach Boys songs:
1) Darlin'- My all-time fave. I promise, I will play this song at my wedding.
2) Shutdown
3) Little Deuce Coupe
4) I Can Hear Music
5) Dance, Dance, Dance
6) Do You Wanna Dance?
7) Good Vibrations
8) Barbara Ann
9) Surfin' USA
10) California Girls
11) Wouldn't It be Nice
12)Don't Worry Baby
13) Little Old Lady from Pasadena
14) Do It Again
15) Getcha Back

Yay for the Beach Boys! To all of you who haven't experienced their awesomeness, I suggest that you do!!!! I can burn you a CD if you would like. Because as far as music goes, the Beach Boys were HANDS DOWN my first love.

Oh, and PS, I got to go to a Beach Boys concert when I was in high school. It was muy excellente. Although I have to admit that there is something odd about hearing old men sing about California Girls and surfing and stuff. But still. It was cool.