No clue why two Azalea/Azealia's have suddenly appeared on the rap scene at the very same time, and no clue why two female rappers - a rare breed in a male-dominated industry - would start beefing immediately after hitting it. Well, I do have a clue, and that's called publicity stunt, but legitimate female rappers are few and far between, and the immediate beef means the two are already known for petty cat fights and squabbles rather than their music.
Australian-born Iggy Azalea is heating things up with her freshly dropped Murda Bizness ft. TI. Rumored to be A$AP Rocky's beau, Iggy was the first female rapper to be included in XXL's prestigious freshman class issue. Banks sounded off on Twitter that this "was just all wrong" and slapped Iggy with the race card. A little bitter that she wasn't included in the issue, obviously.
We can't hate on Banks' Diplo produced track though, Fuck Up the Fun.
Our verdict? Stop beefing, ladies, makes us all look bad.
Nicolas Jaar is a mere 21-years-old but is already a veteran. Born in New York but raised in Santiago de Chile, Jaar debuted on Wolf + Lamb records when he was 17. He now runs his own label, Clown & Sunset, and drops massive tunes with a sultry, 100 BPM "blue-wave" feel. Jaar received an 8.4 "Best New Music" from Pitchfork and was ranked #20 for Album of the Year.
Studying comparative literature at Brown University and running a bright young business at a mere 21...
SABO SKIRT is our latest fashion find and what a find it is. We were at a party in Toronto on Sunday when a girl walked in with high-waisted, acid-washed studded shorts (paired with black over-the-knee socks, chunky suede black heels, a crop top, and a Chanel quilted black leather bag). It was a stunning look and the shorts were the trump card. She told us about Sabo Skirt, an Australian website launched in 2010 with some gorgeous pieces, and their own line launching next month.
Though it's not an extensive collection yet, and though with shipping costs the prices are a bit higher than ideal, we highly advise you to check this up-and-coming site out. We love the use of color (the seafoam green wrap shorts reminiscent of Tiffany's, the 60s inspired colored prints of the tops, the edgy gold metallics), the unique twist on classic pieces (check out the leopard cuffs on the white blouse) and especially the breezy, effortless feel that transports you right back to summer..
"The state has no business in the hard drives of the nation."
Mercer gives a nod to Trudeau in his rant about Safety Minister Vic Toews' controversial online surveillance bill. Toews is quickly learning how fast the intrusive hounds can turn as social media force Anonymous threatens to unleash videos of Toews' own rather messy personal life...
Do unto others as you would have them do to you, Toewsie!
Telling it like it is, Mercer.
Read more about the impending surveillance bill here.
Sherri Shepherd of The View recently defended Chris Brown as being a "role model" for second chances.
Like many others, she argues that he is reformed. He did his community service work picking up trash. He is also a victim of domestic abuse: as a child he watched his mother being beaten by his father. He deserves the warm welcome at the Grammys because he is a role model to others trying to combat violent, aggressive, and abusive tendencies.
People argue that it was a long time ago, and that if Rihanna's gotten over it so should we. And gotten over it she has, as she stepped out with him after the Grammys and at her birthday party, and the pair have since released two remixes together.
I'm sorry, but there is no excuse for what is occurring here. Shame on those who decided Brown was deserving of a Grammy a mere three years after a brutal beatdown. Shame on those who have the audacity to blame young women who tweeted about him rather than the aggressor himself. For any woman, going back to an abusive relationship is a horrible and disappointing thing, but Rihanna is letting down thousands of young women who want to emulate everything she does. Thousands of teenage girls want to be edgy and tattooed like her, want to dress like her, and now they'll think this idea of a "violent, stormy" relationship is somehow romantic. They'll give their own abusive relationships second chances because Rihanna did. They'll see it as a strength. We've seen this a hundred times - it's the bad-boy winning over the nice guy, magnified and distorted. It's this idea girls get of 'helping' a rough guy, into saving him from himself. Yeah, he's bad news and your family hates him, but you can change him if you stick with him through thick and thin, you can be the only one who believes in him and in return you'll have his undying love. Ride or die, right?
Yes, I believe in second chances. I believe in giving chances to former addicts, former alcoholics. I believe in giving responsibility to those who used to be irresponsible, or lazy, or incompetent, or trusting someone who used to sleep around. However, the difference is that second chances are usually given to those who hurt themselves, not others. Sure, a girl with a DUI is indirectly putting the lives of others in danger. I'm not downplaying the dangers of drug use or alcoholism. However, a warm welcome to someone who set out to aggressively hurt another - his own girlfriend no less - is not something I agree with. This was not a drunken fist-fight with another dude at a bar. This was an attack on his girlfriend in an enclosed space that she couldn't escape. This was his fists pummeling her face as he spewed out death threats and choked her almost until she lost consciousness. Further, he didn't stop on his own. She got away. There's no telling how far he could have taken it.
Joe Paterno recently died having lost his entire life's work at Penn State. After being at Penn State for 61 years, he was fired for his role in the Jerry Sandusky sex abuse scandal. Paterno was first notified of the alleged abuse in 2002. He reported it to his superiors, and did nothing else. Let's be clear: Paterno was not in any way directly involved in harming or abusing others. He knew this was occurring and when he saw nothing being done about it, he failed to act. Yes, this is a wrong and terrible thing. However, he didn't directly beat someone's face in. Sixty-one years of love, commitment, and dedication, gone in an instant. Yet Chris Brown can directly beat the hell out of a young woman and three years later is receiving the most coveted award in modern music??
Something is very wrong here, and I feel very sorry for you if you can't see that.
Ah, the audition. The moment of make or break, do or die. All eyes on you, critiquing, judging, whispers behind hands, head nods, head shakes. You are a specimen under a lens, vying for your fifteen minutes against hundreds of other hopefuls.
And the best part? It's all on tape.
Audition tapes are one of my favorite things to watch because you see actors in an environment you aren't used to seeing them in. We're familiar with these faces only once they've become celebrities - the red-carpet gowns, the aviators and five o'clock shadows as the paparazzi catches them jaunting around NYC or cruising through LA. The audition tape shows you prepubescent faces wracked with nerves, vulnerable and anxious to impress. You see butchered haircuts (yes, Rachel McAdams, we're looking at you). You see awkward outfits (sorry, Ellen). But most of all, you see who can really act (Natalie), who falls flat (Scarlet...) and who hasn't developed at all (Blake......)
Blake Lively's audition for Gossip Girl.
She IS Serena - Serena in Season 5 is not an eye-roll different from Blake in her original audition.
Ed Westwick auditions to be the infamous Chuck Bass. While his hair has certainly changed for the better, it's his acting that gets our praise. Here we see the shallow, spoiled playboy private school kid from Season One - compare that to the Chuck Bass of Season Five, who has developed a darkness, vulnerability, and complexity far superior to Serena's character. Give this kid a real script post-GG and I think he'll bring something to the table.
Rachel McAdams auditions for The Notebook. Despite the very 90s haircut, she shines. Compare this to Blake Lively's tape above and you see one blonde bombshell and one blonde bomb...
Ah, ScarJo. A 9 year old Scarlet auditions for Jumanji. Pretty girl, but not surprised that Kirsten Dunst beat her out for the role.
Natalie. Need we say more?
My main man De Niro!
Aaaand last but not least, Ellen Page looking a tad dumpy but ever so talented...
The only thing I have to say about Kate Upton is that less is more. Her headshot on the left - white tee, messy hair, very little make-up - is absolutely stunning. The shot on the right - tits out, make-up galore, sexy pout - sure, still a pretty girl, but she immediately looks less interesting. I'm not one to argue that a girl with make-up and a sexy dress looks slutty. I believe that a girl should be able to dress and look however she pleases and be free from judgment. However, to me, the girl on the right literally looks less nice and approachable than the girl on the left. The Left-Kate is someone I immediately respect and want to get to know. She looks confident, smart, and beautiful. The girl on the right is a girl I'd roll my eyes at. She looks somehow meaner, smuttier, more common, a girl I'd expect to get too drunk at a party and see stumbling around outside screeching loudly by the end of the night. This is not necessarily a sexist thing. For both men and women, first impressions are important. That's simply a reality of life: we process one's looks and immediately form an unconscious opinion or impression of them. Women complain that men use them for sex or only hire them for their looks. We complain that we aren't taken seriously. We complain that the media sexually objectifies us. Perhaps in idealizing women like Kate (a 19 year old, no less), we are objectifying ourselves.
Fashion is important because it forms our identities. It is how we choose to present ourselves to the world and in turn dictates how the world treats us.
The series of images above are courtesy of The Sartorialist. To me, those women are just as sexy as Upton yet not one is baring cleavage or a skin-tight dress. These women look creative, interesting, capable and most importantly, they look like individuals. Not as sexy? Any man who prefers you with tits to your chin is more animal than man, anyway.
Our skin is beautiful and deserves to be shown off and displayed, yes. I'm not telling you that anything cut above the knee is unholy - however, there is a way to enhance your sexiness and there's a way to undermine it.
Kate, you're a fox au naturale. Put your girls away for a while.
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