"Give or Take" | Giveon 

Giveon does an amazing job balancing beautiful melodies with deep and impactful lyrics — making this album the perfect 45-minute emotional rollercoaster. Like everything, this album is about love, or lack thereof. "Give or Take" is Giveon’s debut album after a long two year process. It has 15 songs and was released in June 2022. I just recently discovered this album and haven’t been able to listen to much else since. 

The general concept of the album is Giveon having a series of conversations with his mom about the last two years of his life. He mentioned in an interview with Complex, that he felt as if it gave the album a more authentic feel rather than having A-list features. 

My personal favorite song is “Another Heartbreak” where he talks about getting his heart broken over and over again. The song is centered around his current relationship, featuring lyrics like “Baby, no, I can't take another heartbreak / Not saying we'll fail but I'm still scared / It all could end, all again” serving as the main crux of the song. It is a beautiful piece with wonderful writing and a unique perspective. 

The other song I want to touch on is “july 16th." In this two-minute ballad, Giveon uses lyrics like “It’s only been fourteen days / And already adore the way you are to me / I wanna ignore and take it slow / 'Cause I know where this can go” to detail the milestones of a six-month relationship. 

He touches again on his fears of giving his love to someone and moving too fast with fears of falling too hard. The reason I love this song in contrast to “Another Heartbreak” is because “july 16th” is able to communicate a very similar story in a very effective way with less time. The songs are very different in ways they are communicated but still get the same point across. *chefs kiss* 

"C U Girl" | Steve Lacy

Steve Lacy is one of those once-in-a-lifetime artists that is oozing with talent. This song was released in 2015, and it is so beautifully simple but reflects Lacy’s incredible songwriting and producing skills. Lacy's story begins in Compton where he discovered his interest in music through Guitar Hero. He produced his first song using GarageBand on his iPhone and eventually began performing. He joined a band, The Internet, that would change his career when he began producing. He eventually would go on to produce music for musicians like Kendrick Lamar and J. Cole, until he began his own solo career. 

The production of "C U Girl" is minimalistic, with the focus on Lacy's guitar and vocals, as well as a simple drum beat and bassline. The song has a nostalgic and dreamy feel, with a touch of lo-fi elements, which adds to its charm. It is a quick two-minute listen that has a very cinematic feel. 

"Aftersun"

Go tell your parents you love them, please. This movie shook me to my core for nearly two days. I was reevaluating all of my life choices and thinking back on old memories of my parents and my grandparents that left me in a hole wondering, "What is the meaning of life?" The movie is not necessarily existential, but I often find myself going back to those places following a sad film experience. 

"Aftersun," directed by Charlotte Wells, is an incredibly beautiful and gut-wrenching film about a woman named Sophie who reflects on a vacation she took with her father 20 years ago. Most of the film is spent with Sophie (played by Frankie Corio) as an 11-year-old and her dad, Callum (played by Paul Mescal), who is turning 31 on their vacation. Callum deals with severe depression and the film is able to balance the darkness and beauty of their relationship tainted or not by Callum’s state of being. 

Paul Mescal snagged an Academy Award nomination for his role in this film proving that his future is looking incredibly bright. However, many were outraged over the fact that Wells did not get a best director nomination for her directorial debut. The film is painfully autobiographical and showcases a very vulnerable side of Wells that no one knew about before, with it being based on a trip that Wells took with her own father.

After watching it initially I wasn’t affected by it like I had hoped, but after about an hour, the gloom and doom settled in. The movie is not loud in any capacity. It blooms in its subtleties and Mescal shines brighter than ever before. Mescal delivers one of the most heartbreaking, soul-crushing performances I have seen in a long time. As an audience member, you can see his raw emotions and his struggles very clearly. 

Let's talk about the ending. Without spoiling anything, I would compare the brilliance of the “Aftersun” ending to the brilliance of the “La La Land” ending. Suddenly, the film makes all the more sense and the story based in reality takes a fantastical turn to make audience members fully understand what we have been seeing flashes of all along. 

Rush to go see this film, and don’t blame me if you want to cry and be held by your parents for hours, I know I did.  

"Waco"

"Waco" is a miniseries that was released back in 2018 with little to no praise. But in 2020, Netflix put this show on its platform and the show absolutely blew up. Many people still have not heard of this show, but during 2020, viewership skyrocketed. 

This show is based on the true story of a cult in Waco, Texas and its leader David Koresh (played by Taylor Kitsch). The main dramatization of the miniseries centers around the infamous 51-day standoff between the Branch Davidians, the FBI and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). Eventually in April of 1993, the standoff ended when the FBI started a tear gas attack, claiming the lives of 76 people, including Koresh and 25 children, all in the Branch Davidian compound.

The show consists of six one-hour episodes, featuring actors such as Michael Shannon, Julia Garner and John Leguizamo. "Waco" was heavily-criticized due to its sympathetic depiction of cult leader David Koresh. At times you are almost rooting for him and after finding out everything he did you just feel gross. I think this show has the “You” effect, where you watch this murderous villain but can’t help but be invested. Of course, one is based on a true story and the other is not, but I do feel as if people want to see the darker parts of humanity.

At the end of the day, it is an interesting and emotional watch but can be hard at times. Any time we watch real events depicted in media, we have to look at it with a critical eye, unsure of what is real and what is exaggerated. While I do recommend this show, watch it with a heavy heart. You watch the show and make your own conclusion.