Paula Irmschler about Sum 41, Kitana, Justina, Bebe Rexha, “Brainwashed” and the *NSYNC reunion.
I’ve been a bit “off” lately, so a lot has built up again. For example, what happened to the people at Burning Man? I certainly have her in my prayers.
Pop Punk of the Week: Sum 41
What else happened? After the pop-punk revival of the young people, Olivia Rodrigo, WILLOW, KennyHoopla and the like, I woke up yesterday to two songs from the past. Did I sleep too long or too short? But the time stamp, something with 2023, told me that everything was correct.
Of course, the OG of the genre don’t want to let their butter be taken away from their bread, which not only brings us new pop-punk outpourings from Avril Lavigne, but also from blink-182 (finally back with the original line-up) and Sum 41. The latter have a video Delivered in a way that you really can’t tell whether it’s nostalgic or simply stuck with you. Doesn’t matter! It’s all kind of fun and that’s the main thing.
Documentary of the week: “Brainwashed”
You all too often feel like you’re caught in a time loop when you go to the cinema or your own living room. The director Nina Menkes also knows why. In the documentary “Brainwashed – Sexism in the Cinema,” which is actually a visualized lecture, she explains about the “male gaze” in films – and it’s all even more deeply rooted, even in you, than you would have thought. In addition, it is more current than one would like: the woman as a passive object, who is observed and sexualized and rarely looks herself, is still found in abundance in cultural products – and of course has left its mark on female and male socialization. You thought that a lot had happened since Metoo and that there are so many female directors now who do everything completely differently? Puppy cake. In other words, everything gets better much more slowly. Just think of the current video Rolling Stones or, unfortunately, “Barbie”.
Click here for the documentary.
Video of the week: Justina with “Chashm (Yes Sir!)”
Not just against the male gaze, but also against male violence, which leads to systematic imprisonment and murder, and for female unity – that’s what rapper Justina is all about, who recently released the track “Chashm (Yes Sir!)” in solidarity with the protests published in Iran. In the video you see female anger that cannot be corrupted, cannot be controlled, cannot be marketed – and leads to victory over the patriarchy and to one’s own freedom. It couldn’t be more radical.
Song of the week: Kitana with “Kitana Season”
The latest track by the Austrian rapper Kitana is also brave, in which she addresses clear words to “the child victim Yung Hurn”, whom she accuses of sexual violence. And this in a climate in which those affected have repeatedly been shown how unimportant their experiences are if they cannot be legally proven, in which famous men repeatedly intimidate and threaten with their strong lawyers, in which those affected are accused of lying to be sneaky and fame-hungry. Kitana seems unimpressed by this. She raps about Yung Hurn: “For him and his companions, drugged girls stand on the Tech Rider and yet she continues to book every festival. Julian, you bitch, go ahead and send the ad.” About well-known artists who let very young women be delivered to them like goods, who have girls recruited or who hit on and harass them themselves, about drugs and alcohol, which are often involved, about the power relationship that is always at play, is mentioned in all places talked about and rumored, here and there it is also condemned. But rarely does anyone dare to talk about it openly and demand consequences. Of course, because all of these dudes have the best lawyers on staff, they know their guilt. Yung Hurn hasn’t made a public statement yet, let’s see what’s next and how long the track will stay on the platforms. On the plus side, however, there is at least Kitana’s courage.
Comeback of the week: *NSYNC
It’s probably really happening now. After *NSYNC presented Taylor Swift with an award at the VMAs – she was suitably stunned – there will now be a new song after 20 years. People really didn’t believe in it anymore, Justin Timberlake in particular seemed to have risen to greater heights. Of all people, he has now gathered his “brothers” back in the studio to record “Better Place”. I’ll put it this way, I think it’s super cute how studio-like the GUYS are making out, how they contort their faces as if they’re totally touched by it and as if it’s not a pretty mediocre song. So they can still do the drama. I’m all in!
Plain text of the week: Bebe Rexha
The very talented and of course very beautiful Bebe Rexha is, as you can imagine, fat-shamed a lot on the Internet because she is fat. Because fat women are a presumption for most people, especially if they were once slim, as is the case with Bebe. Then it’s even more incomprehensible, because how could you conform to the norm and then no longer, right? Can this happen to everyone, including ME? Does becoming fat have complex causes? And isn’t it the worst thing in the world? Yes, sure. We have learned that fat people are hated and discriminated against and rightly so because it is so cheeky of them. Of course, women in particular should not take up any space. If they do it, then they must be particularly courageous, there is no other way to explain it, then they probably have to stand for body positivity and stand above discrimination and hate. You should then stand in front of an audience and be self-confident – knowing that easily 90 percent hate what you are and are afraid of being like you. Of course that’s not possible. And even an artist as popular as Bebe Rexha cannot live up to this in the long term. She talked about this on TikTok ahead of the VMAs. She didn’t know if she could go because she was afraid and uncomfortable. Finally she was there, good for her. But I would have understood staying at home too. Because: You don’t have to work on your own self-confidence, but people have to stop being fat-discriminating assholes.
Click here for her plain text TikTok.
Album of the week – all???
I don’t know, but there’s something going on this summer, there were just great albums released so I can’t single out any. When was the last time that happened, the ultimate pop flood, in 1998? So please, check them all out: Doja Cat, K. Flay, Olivia Rodrigo, Cleo Sol, Kim Petras, Kylie Minogue, Mitski, Madison Beer, Tinashe, Reneé Rapp, and so on and so forth. I still have a decent list open. Good, because after all there is time to bridge the gap until the release of the year…
What happened until now? Here is an overview of all the pop column texts.