Culture

SOUND OFF | The Pros and Cons of Tidal (And Other Pay-to-Stream Services)

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In 2015, Jay-Z purchased Tidal for a cool 56 million dollars, touting it as a streaming platform “controlled by the artists”. Now, his Tidal holdings have boosted his net worth to make him the 2nd richest hip hop artist in the world, right behind Sean Combs and surpassing Dr. Dre. However, users were initially uneasy to use the service, preferring instead to use free subscription services such as Spotify (with ads), scroll through songs on Soundcloud, or illegally download music. Tidal was launched with an ideological purpose: to give artists more power in pricing their music, and with any such move it has drawn both praise and criticism. Given that the majority of music listeners are college students/millennials with little cash to spare, the validity of Tidal as a major music streaming service is dubious.

Culture

EMEM ELEMENT | Why Twitter Is Gold

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There is no question that, at an increasingly fast rate, technology and media have advanced significantly. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Internet, iMessage, text messaging, and other various forms of communication can now all reside on a single smartphone. Gone are the days when one would wait months for a letter. Waiting three days to respond to someone’s text would blow the world up in flames. Amidst the forever expanding technology and media, an interesting phenomenon has come before us, that phenomenon being… social media.

Culture

KYLIE’S ROOM | Strange Fruit: The Media’s Double Standard When It Comes to Black Women

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As I get older and wiser (all 21 years and six months), I’ve come to realize that although I am an American, America (or my country) was not made for me. This land of the free was made on the backs of my ancestors who did not enjoy such freedoms. Having grown up in mostly white environments and choosing to attend a predominantly white university, I’ve become accustomed to being the only black girl in the room. My norm is either being singled out as the point person to explain race or feeling that people don’t want to speak about race around me. My norm is being put in awkward or uncomfortable situations where people might comment on my complexion, make intrusive inquiries about how I choose to wear my hair, or objectify the bodies of those who look like me.  Even more so, I’ve become painfully aware of how society arbitrarily picks and chooses when to uplift black women, put them down, profit off of them, then push them aside.

Entertainment

SOUND OFF | Cardi B vs. The World

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This year, Cardi B exploded onto the rap scene with “Bodak Yellow” after remaining relatively unknown, though she did have a large Instagram following and became a regular cast member on a reality TV show, Love & Hip Hop, New York, in 2015. Due to “Bodak Yellow”’s success, Cardi B became the first female rapper to, unassisted, hit Number 1 on the Billboard charts (other female rappers only reached Number 1 with features on their songs). She most recently began involving herself in social issues, arguing that she was kicked out of a hotel due to her race, and instigating social justice issues using her fame. Despite this, however, I don’t see Cardi B sustaining success for much longer. One reason why “Bodak Yellow” became popular, other than sending a powerful message for independent women of color, is that it sounds incredibly similar to Kodak Black’s “No Flockin”.

Culture

AN EDUCATION | Missing Connections: My Love Affair with Tinder

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I have something to confess: I love Tinder. And, disclaimer (because it’s necessary): I’m not hooking up with anyone on it. I used to think Tinder was an app that, once designed for a certain function, could no longer be subverted beyond it; an app that, once people learned of my presence on it, could only invite eyebrow-waggling and my own vague defensiveness in regards to privacy. But I won’t hide it anymore — the world is so big, and there are so many people, and there is so much to see; I’m not ashamed. Tinder, as an app, brings me joy and laughter, curiosity and satisfaction.

Culture

KYLIE’S ROOM | 3 Podcasts by Women and/or People of Color You Should Listen To

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Although there has been significant progress in recent years, there is still a lack of substantial representation of women and people of color in the entertainment industry. With that being said, podcasts are a cheap, readily disseminated way to share stories and cultural experiences. In addition, they are a medium that offers an opportunity to those who do not have a voice in the traditional media industry, a platform for their thoughts and experiences to be heard. Below are three podcasts hosted by women and/or people of color that bring a voice to those who are underrepresented in the media industry. These podcasters offer their unique perspectives not only to experiences that women and people of color might face, but also to young Americans in our ever-changing and polarizing political climate today.

Culture

DESIIGNER | Not All Netflix Views Are Equal

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A week ago, my roommate asked me if he could use my Netflix account. At the time, I didn’t think much of it. He was a friend and I had an account, so of course I said yes. A few days later, it hit me that I was subscribed to a product that could be shared amongst as many people as possible—that not all Netflix users are viewed and accounted for equally. After some research, I learned that amongst the deep sea of products and services that charge a routine fee for membership, Netflix actually stands closer to businesses that try to incentivize paying a bit extra for more shared users (e.g. Spotify) than ones that aim to eliminate all loopholes for sharing (e.g. a Cornell gym membership).

Culture

THE E’ER INSCRUTABLE | Alpha and Omega: Approaching the Issue of Time

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“’Εν ἀρχή ῆν ὁ λὀγος, καì ὁ λóγος ῆν πρòς τòν θεóν, καì θεòς ῆν ὁ λóγος. οὗτος ῆν ἐν ἀρχὴ πρòς τòν θεóν. πάντα δι’ αύτοῦ  έγένετο, καì χωρìς αύτοῦ έγένετο ούδὲ ἔν. ὃ γέγονεν έν αύτῷ ζωὴ ἦν, καì ἡ ζωὴ ἦν τò φῶς τῶν άνθρώπων· καì τò φῶς ἐν τῇ σκοτíᾳ φαíνει, καì ἡ σκοτíα αὐτò οὐ κατέλαβεν.”

“In the beginning there was the word, and the word was with God, and God was the word. This was in the beginning with God.

Entertainment

KYLIE’S ROOM | Paradise Lost: How the Bachelor Went from Fairytale to Nightmare

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I am not ashamed to admit it, but I am an avid Bachelor/Bachelorette/Bachelor in Paradise watcher, debriefer, and obsessor. For the last six months or so, my Monday and Tuesday nights have been dedicated to watching who gets the first impression rose, the ever-coveted one-on-one date, and finally the Neil Lane ring.  The franchise’s premise is a bit unorthodox; one person dates 25 people over the course of about 12 weeks in the hopes of getting engaged, then weeks later the Bachelor/Bachelorette rejects get shipped off to Mexico to find love in Paradise. It seems weird, but somehow it works. The Bachelor franchise offers viewers the fairytale experience without having to leave their couches. The show transports viewers to a mansion filled with beautiful women dressed in evening gowns, or handsome men in tuxedos.

Entertainment

AKABAS | What is the Nolan-iest Christopher Nolan Film?

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Across three Batman movies, five movies with cool-sounding one-word titles, and one movie you’ve probably never heard of, director Christopher Nolan has developed a distinctive style. So, with his latest film, Dunkirk, hitting theaters today, we’re going to answer a very important question. Instead of tackling the unanswerable question of which Nolan film is the best, we’re going to determine which Nolan film is the most typical of Nolan’s style. And we’re going to do it by running each of his movies through the following formula:

Overall Quality – 10 points: Nolan films are high in quality, so the higher quality a movie is, the more Nolany it is. Information Withheld – 20 points: One of the many reasons that Nolan’s films are so engaging is that he forces us to play detective along with the characters, putting us in their shoes.