freedom february

a monthly recap + playlist

Shanté

Feb 28, 2023

here’s a recap exploring some of the media and moments that held my attention this past month:

new releases

Young Fathers - Heavy Heavy

following a hiatus, this is a solid, energetic re-emergence from the genre-bending Scottish rockers. the album’s pretty quick too at just 33 minutes long.

Liv.e - Girl in the Half Pearl

i have a new favorite track with each listen to Liv.e’s latest work and i think that’s a good sign of this album ranking high in my year-end list. of course, it’s way too early to tell. still, the artist has such a masterful way of weaving together poignant, lyrical vignettes with experimental production that you just gotta run the album back multiple times.

Kelela - Raven

as someone who recalls that hopeful, rejuvenated feeling i had on the day her first mixtape dropped1, i’m always gonna be excited about new music from Kelela. she didn’t disappoint with her first album in six years and i don’t think any of us had the expectation that she would let us down. her sound is so consistent that it’s almost like she never left.

Anna Wise - Subtle Body Dawn

there’s always something mystical and delightfully esoteric about Anna Wise’s music. whether it’s the lyrics or jaunty instrumentation, it simply elevates you to a different time/dimension/mood.
i have a lot of show memories and the following moment after her Atlanta show at Aisle 5 a few years ago stands out so vividly.

i was waiting in the burgeoning line at her merch table, that was tucked off in the corner, so i could say hi and secure some stickers for my laptop. the musician complimented my outfit and joked that i was mean mugging her from the line as she gave me a hug. truthfully, i was in awe and a bit speechless by the sacred, ultra-feminine space she had generated in this intimate, unassuming venue. so i can recall staring, despite my intention not to.

i can appreciate when artists call all the women and femmes to the front. personally speaking, because i’m short in stature and get tired of peeking around folks that tower over me and/or couples that keep closing the window of viewing the stage between them. but also because i understand the safe space that they are cultivating, even if for a fleeting moment. overall, i was captivated by the way Anna asserted herself and transcended the room. and i was feeling grateful — i’m pretty sure i had tickets because i had requested them at the radio station where i’d played songs from The Feminine: Act I and The Feminine: Act II week after week. i essentially told her as much, but maybe not with as much eloquence as i can say in retrospect.

music i’ve revisited this month

Ashanti (self-titled, 2002)

after SZA posted an IG reel with “Movies” by Ashanti playing, i felt the need to listen to this album front to back. it was something i probably hadn’t heard in this way since i was a young child — i can recall this playing a few times while visiting my aunt to get my hair done, my older sister and cousin very likely singing along. i love Ashanti’s sultry, poetic lyricism, as well as the skits and the vulnerability she displayed with this debut.

Rihanna — Music of the Sun (2005), A Girl Like Me (2006), Good Girl Gone Bad (2007)

i had a fun trip down memory lane with my Rihanna tribute post ahead of her Super Bowl performance. you can check it out below ICYMI.
things i collected
Music of the Sun//Good Girl Gone Bad
in 2005, a young singer from Barbados emerged to further cement a Caribbean influence into modern pop music. she would give us hit after hit for a decade straight before taking a break to focus on her ambitions in fashion, beauty, and philanthropy. by 2016, she had been making successful strides with these other pursuits for years now; music was essenti…
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2 years ago · 1 like · Shanté

Unknown Mortal Orchestra — II (2013)

this month, i offered two music collection reviews back to back. i felt like a baby hipster again revisiting this fave of mine.
things i collected
Unknown Mortal Orchestra’s II
one of the most defining albums of my late teens/early 20s turned 10 this week. Unknown Mortal Orchestra released their sophomore album, aptly titled II, on February 5, 2013. the first time i heard anything from this album was on college radio one early morning that year, around 3AM. it was the track “Monki” — in retrospect, this was actually the song th…
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2 years ago · 3 likes · Shanté

Baby Rose — To Myself (Deluxe) (2020)

i remember listening to this soul-stirring debut album back when it was first released, but for some reason, it didn’t quite resonate. i never really came back to the singles that often. now i feel like i was heavily sleeping on it, because something awakened within me this month where it was one of the main albums i desired to play in totality. safe to say that i’m excited for Baby Rose’s next full-length release this April!

South Side

i haven’t done a read, watch, & listen in a minute and it’s way overdue since i’ve been engaging with a variety of media. once it was recently announced that HBO would be cancelling South Side, i had to circle back to finish this show before it gets lost to the ether. i mean, it’s only right as someone who was born on the South Side of Chicago myself.

the comedy on South Side is nuanced and culturally relevant — you know a joke hit a little too well when you gotta pause the show to chuckle and reflect on what was said. i found myself doing that often with this series. next, the music direction is equally outstanding. one recurring detail i really enjoy about the show is how often Sergeant Zenobia Turner (played by Chandra Russell) changes her wigs and hairstyles. i recently bought some wigs for the first time to try out some different looks, so i am grateful for the inspo. here are some good fringe moments from the show:

images of Chandra Russell as Sgt. Zenobia Turner in the show South Side, sporting a variety of wigs: long blonde hair, a wavy wig with a bang, a long brown wig swooped to the side plus mini top buns on each side, pink bob with a bang, a long curly half-up/half-down situation, a blonde auntie bowl cut, and another bob but make it grey-ombre. — my girl loves a good “bayang” and a dip-dye

speaking of hair and comedy…

i’m not active on TikTok in a creator capacity, but i do watch and compile my favorites within the app.

@Danielfunnyashelll consistently makes me laugh by offering retrospective takes on various hair, fashion, and beauty trends from the 1990s to 2010s that “will go down in history.” i especially love the reverence and respect that’s given to the hood fabulous girlies through each viral perspective. in the following video, the creator playfully calls out those who participated in the undercut era — i am not exempt from this trend, so this one hit a lil different.

@danielfunnyashelll #greenscreen This era was so random but still iconic #barber #hairstylist #haircut #danielfunnyashell #fyp #viral #2000s #2010s #90s #AXERatioChallenge #nostalgia #hair #y2k

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this wishful thinking re: styling

my in-depth fashion month review won’t come around until Paris Fashion Week has concluded. but i’ve been keeping track of my favorite collections in the meantime. this Harris Reed FW23 look has such good volume and drama — it instantly made me think that Taylor Russell would be the perfect person to debut the gown on the red carpet, as i shared on a recent IG story below.