“Painted” | Lucky Daye

Listen to this album now, thank me later. It’s groovy and is such a pleasant listen. Top to bottom, every song is fantastic. I had the pleasure of seeing this album performed live, and I felt like I was ascending to another plane of existence. 

When this album was released, Lucky Daye was 34 years old, and he was on the verge of quitting music. He decided to release the first track of this album, “Roll Some Mo,'' to see the public’s reaction and received an incredibly positive reaction that ultimately inspired him to continue his pursuit of music. 

This album comes with my highest recommendation. All 13 songs are fantastic. My personal favorite is “Late Night,” but I look forward to hearing yours after you listen.  

Lucky Daye has a sensational voice and he makes incredible music. Listen ASAP. 

“Cozy” | Caragan

This is one of the hardest working artists I have ever seen, and his music reflects that. I am surprised this song only has 800,000 listens on Spotify and not 800 million. When I am feeling down, I listen to it. When I am feeling happy, I listen to it. There is never a bad time to listen to this song. 

While I am sure the average listener might find the song’s meaning of love to be simple, I derive a lot more from it. Like any good song, there are many memories attached to it, but this song has been there for me since its release. This song has helped me see the sun behind the clouds in some really dark times, so it really does have a special place in my heart. I am likely 70% of the total streams. 

Caragan is only at the start of his career, but I feel very lucky to be listening to him now before his career takes off. I genuinely love his entire catalog. If Caragan is not on your playlists now, you should change that. 

Give this song a listen, I promise you won’t regret it. 

“Princess Mononoke”

This one is in my top five favorite movies, hands down. Studio Ghibli does not make bad movies. This 1997 movie has an incredible way of showcasing its social commentary regarding the environment and visually, it is one of the most incredible things I have ever seen. 

The film is 2D animation, so everything is drawn by hand and it is absolutely stunning. When watching the film, look at the backgrounds and the attention to detail and think about how much time that took. 

Many people talk about which Ghibli movie is the best and it usually comes down to “Spirited Away” and “Princess Monoke.” To me, “Princess Mononoke” has better themes, more complex characters and a way more dynamic plot. Between the two, Princess Mononoke takes the cake for me every time. 

This film has countless themes about the environment, mankind, love, and in many ways it can be compared to "Avatar.” My favorite theme is the dichotomy between humankind’s growth and advancement and the lengths they are willing to go no matter the obstacle. I love how it talks about nature and fights against itself within its own themes throughout the film. 

Watch this beautiful movie, available on HBO Max. It is delightful. 

“The Sopranos”

I reluctantly decided to watch this show last year, and it was the best decision I have ever made. There is a reason people say this is the best show ever because to put it simply… it is. There are six seasons of the show and it only improves as it progresses. The writing is stellar. The show was very ahead of its time with their editing techniques and having a powerful main character going to therapy, who deals with anxiety and mental health issues. 

This is a heavy show and is not to be taken lightly. Every episode extracts a heavy emotional toll which makes it difficult to binge. Even though each episode is an hour, there is so much that happens that makes it feel  longer.

While there is a lot of violence and it is action packed, this show also explores some pretty dark parts of life. In some of the most unique and extreme ways possible it deals with guilt, death, divorce and loss of a loved one. The show does not shy away from anything and its courageousness and commitment makes it beautiful. Truly it is breathtaking.  

This show broke barriers for so many more shows to become what they are. Without a doubt "The Sopranos" is my favorite show I have ever seen. It’s available to stream on HBO Max.