Bye Bye BTS 😩
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It's getting COLD here atm friends!!! I'm not gonna lie, I do love a bit of cold weather, but it does NOT make getting up to write the newsy very easy!! What do I have to fill you in on?? The other night my flatmate Tom made the most AMAZING birria tacos, which gave a few of us the shits the next day, but it was WORTH IT. Was that TMI? I feel like nothing is TMI in here.
I've also been LOVING Love Island (and you've been loving our debrief) and I've been obsessed with Everything I Know About Love!! Aaaand I'm really trying to get back into reading (I've been slack lately) but my next book is The Knife Of Never Letting Go, so I'll let you know (in our bumper book list) how that one goes! There's the Luce update you didn't ask for, love u pen pals! xxx
Bye Bye BTS
TikTok is the town square now
Not Every Musician Wants To Be A TikTok Star
Billie Eilish played a new song and I love it
We’re getting a new season of Squid Game
Do you like reality TV?
BTS are taking a break
HUGE news from BTS this morning - the world's favourite K-Pop band are going on hiatus to pursue solo projects. They said they're going on an extended break (we all know what that means, eh One Direction?) and that the group had been going through a 'rough patch.'
Here are some quotes from the dinner, where they announced their break:
"We're trying to find our identity and that's an exhausting and long process" - Jimin
"I always thought that BTS was different from other groups, but the problem with K-pop and the whole idol system is that they don't give you time to mature" - RM
V also told fans the group was not splitting for good, adding that they would get back together "later, when we gather again as a group, that synergy will be like no other".
I haven't even dared to open Twitter today, but I know this will have absolutely ROCKED the BTS Army, and I wanna give them all a hug 😢
TikTok is the town square now
Yes to this entire piece by Kate Lindsay from Embedded! You all know I love Embedded (because I link to basically every piece they write), but every email I get from them seems to sum up some sort of internetty thing that I didn’t even realise I’d been thinking about, but I defs have pondered before. This weeks was about how TikTok is the new town square. And by that they mean - you no longer need to be scrolling on Twitter or Instagram or (shudders) Facebook, to know what’s going on on the internet. All you need is TikTok.
“Something I’ve noticed, however, is that exclusively using TikTok doesn’t mean I’m only exposed to TikTok-specific trends and culture. In fact, many of the dust-ups from other platforms still make their way onto my For You page. Rather than a standalone platform, as it was in its early days, TikTok has become the ocean into which—and out of which—the streams of all the other platforms run. It’s no longer a corner of the internet, but the whole town square.”
I’m not saying that this is a good thing or a bad thing, I’m just saying it’s a thing, because it’s so true. If there’s drama going down on Twitter, I don’t even need to have the bird app on my phone, all I need to do is scroll on TikTok for five minutes and I know what’s going on. If there’s a new fashion trend I don’t need to read about it in Vogue, I’ve seen it on TikTok. If there’s a new food trend I don’t need to see it on Bon Apetit, or to read a recipe - I’ve already seen it on TikTok!!
“This is happening because TikTok is the closest we’ve gotten since the rise of Twitter to putting everyone in the world in the same room all at once. As a result, there are more conversations, memes, and bizarre recipes to keep up with than ever before. That’s why we’re all living like coastal grandmothers while also somehow welcoming back indie sleaze as fast fashion retailers push out low-rise jeans. But it’s not that trends are moving quickly: It’s that, as always, different people are doing different things. We’ve just never had such a holistic view of them, and our brains are trying to make sense of it all.”
Is this healthy? Obv not. But is the internet ever?
Here’s what Kate says, and so true:
“I do think a healthier web is, in the words of Gita Jackson, “a series of sites to visit throughout the day instead of one huge central hub where we are all forced to be in a pile together.” That tweet is referring to Twitter, but TikTok is just a different, bigger pile. By participating in the internet, we make the internet. If TikTok is the new town square, can it be a means of aggregating and documenting culture without warping and poisoning it? That’s not really a question for TikTok—it’s a question for us.”
Speaking of TikTok - our latest episode of Culture Vulture is: Not Every Musician Wants To Be A TikTok Star
Not Every Musician Wants To Be A TikTok Star - Culture Vulture — open.spotify.com
This week: a big chat about the newspaper that basically gave Rebel Wilson a 'deadline' to publicly come out, and a bigger chat about how OBSESSED major music labels are with TikTok and what this means for big (and little) artists. A great one today angels!!!
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We’re getting a new season of Squid Game
I know, we knew this! But now we know… slightly more about it. Still no release date, or many details at all, but we have a note from creator Hwang Dong-hyuk:
“It took 12 years to bring the first season of 'Squid Game' to life last year. But it took 12 days for 'Squid Game' to become the most popular Netflix series ever.
As the writer, director, and producer of 'Squid Game, a huge shout out to fans around the world. Thank you for watching and loving our show.
And now, Gi-hun returns. The Front Man returns. Season 2 is coming. The man in the suit with ddakji might be back. You'll also be introduced to Young-hee's boyfriend, Cheol-su.
Join us once more for a whole new round.
- Hwang Dong-hyuk”
And I’m SO EXCITED.
Billie Eilish played a new song and I love it
I think it's called ‘Maybe I’m The Problem’ and she performed it on tour the other night. Here are my fave lyrics:
“I'll put on Survivor just to watch somebody suffer
Maybe I should get some sleep
Sinking in the sofa while we all betray each other
What's the point of anything?”
And the incredibly topical:
“The internet's gone wild watching movie stars on trial
While they're overturning Roe v. Wade”
Here it is, it’s amazing:
Do you like reality TV?
Personally, I love it. Well, I love Love Island, and if I had the time, I’m sure I’d love other shows too! But I asked you all, and here’s what you said:
28% of you like it
31% of you don't
41% of you love it and hate it all at once
Also if you answered yes, you need to listen to our Love Island debrief thanksssssss!
Me af:
Jack Dorsey is skipping web4 and going straight to web5 (Here’s his deck)
‘Joker 2’: Lady Gaga in Early Talks to Join Joaquin Phoenix, Todd Phillips in Musical Sequel (The Hollywood Reporter)
Post Malone Announces Birth of Daughter — and His Engagement (PopSugar)
Our Love Island Debrief (Ep 1-5) (Culture Vulture)
Not Every Musician Wants To Be A TikTok Star (Culture Vulture)
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