The BEAT: Let’s Be Besties (Feb. 2022)

Greetings, Beat fans! This February,the Beat has elected to celebrate friendship in all of its forms. Your friends are going to be your guiding light, your warm refuge. These are the relationships that keep us cheery when the world outside is bleak.

Whether it’s romantic or platonic, or something in between ;) caring for our comrades has never been more important. I encourage you all to check in, be present, and have a good laugh. Cook together! Jam out together! Find new ways to get closer.

This month, we’re also highlighting the work of Black musicians in Boston and beyond. If you have a moment, check out the Dorchester Art Project website (linked in the QR code). Their Tiny DAP Concerts are delightful to watch, and a great first taste of what’s happening in the Boston music scene.

Saving you a seat near me, <3 Vanessa Bartlett

The Bends - Saint Mela Sober - Mahalia Sonja Smokes Me Out - Anjimile Friendzone - UMI Black Dog - Arlo Parks Neutrogena Spektor - Origami Angel You & Me Song - The Wannadies show me love - Isaac Dunbar All My Friends - LCD Soundsystem In Her Music Box - Atmosphere Love Is a Beautiful Thing - Theo Katzman UNBOTHERED - Oompa Don’t Swerve Annie DiRusso Fascists Don’t Cry CRASHprez

SUNDAY

MONDAY

TUESDAY

WEDNESDAY

1 Life of Agony @Brighton City Music Hall 6:30PM 7 6 iDKHOW But They Found Me @Big Night Live 6:00

8

2 Key of Caustic/ The Teezer @O’Brien’s Pub 9:00*

9 Still Woozy @The Royale 7:00PM

3 D N 6

1 D M l @ 9

13 14 Remi Wolf @ The Royale 7:00PM

15 joan @ Brighton City Music Hall 7:00

16 1 Pinegrove @ House of Blues 7:00

20 21 The Marias @Paradise Rock Club 7:00

22

23

27

28 Arlo Parks @ House of Blues 7:00PM

2 K N 7

THURSDAY

FRIDAY

SATURDAY

3 DJ Esco @Big Night Live 6:00PM

4

10 Dead Wait/ Matilde Heckler/Couch Sex @O’Brien’s Pub 9:00

11

12 Open Mic Night @ Brinstar**

17

18 Skylar Symone/CHRYSALIS/Alana Amore @ Brinstar **

19 K. Flay @Big Night Live 7:00

24 KYLE @Big Night Live 7:00

Lady Pills EP RELEASE @Lilypad Cambridge 7:30PM

25 Sweet Petunia/Ben Eisenberger/Clay Aching @Brinstar**

5 Wolf King/ Frail Body/Knoll @O’Brien’s Pub 9:00

26 Track Meat/Modern Faces/JVK @Brinstar**

* = 21+ ** = dm artist/location for address

The music industry has a long history of being unkind to Black artists. Starting with Jim Crow laws in the late 19th and early 20th century, Black musicians were not allowed to play in the same settings as white people. This racial segregation led to the creation of the Chitlin’ Circuit, an underground ring of music venues spanning the southern, Midwest, and eastern parts of the United States from the 1930s to 1960s. Boston was home to one of these venues and it had a surprisingly large role in fostering soul music in America. Located on Boylston Street behind the Colonial Theatre marquis, it was called the Sugar Shack.

The Sugar Shack was established in 1965 towards the tail end of the Chitlin’ Circuit era. Owned by Rudy Guarino, a North End Native, this nightclub served live soul music seven days a week and welcomed Black artists. The Boston Herald praised the Sugar Shack during the first year of its opening: “The blast off of the club went off without flaw, and if its second stage of operation maintains the launching standards, our downtown area will have caught another winner. It’s the brightest rocket to be fired this fall.” This article foreshadowed the massive success of the Sugar Shack. For years to follow, it would be known as the main spot for upcoming soul artists in Boston.

The Sugar Shack’s very first soul act was Wilson Pickett, who many may know as a major player in the development of soul music in America. Another particularly noteworthy performance featured Funkadelic as early as 1971 during their humble beginnings, years before they would achieve mainstream success. Other artists to play at the Sugar Shack included Stevie Wonder, Al Green, The Four Tops, and The Impressions, all known nationwide to the present day.

Unfortunately, all good things had to come to an end. The Sugar Shack closed in 1977, with LC Smith & The Trends as its last act. Eddy Barnett, soul music connoisseur and vinyl collector, affectionately stated, “It’s been closed for 40 years and people still talk about it, so I’d say that’s a pretty legendary club.” A documentary to memorialize the soul music venue is currently in the works.

It is vital to acknowledge the hurdles Black artists faced to break into the music industry. Barring Black artists from performing at the same venues as white people doubled as an attempt to stifle Black voices. Venues within the Chitlin’ Circuit like the Sugar Shack acted as a space for the Black community to express themselves. This representation matters especially with soul music, which reflects Black identity and often holds key themes of equality. To this day, the Sugar Shack serves as an example of giving marginalized communities a voice.

<3 Maddie

Are you currently in the mood for some fresh alternative, indie, dreampop music?

Look no further. Check out Heart Shaped, a dream-pop, Belfast-based project

by Kendall Bousquet.

Heart Shaped shares a similar sound to our favorite indie rock stars, Snail Mail and Soccer Mommy. Heart Shaped’s new tune of 2022, “No Contact”, is full of catchy guitar and interesting vocals. Heart Shaped currently has one EP out and many singles to listen to. Check them out!

<3 Nicole

Fictional Men I watched Emily In Paris. Comp-het is real But at least it’s French.

Clearance Status

Besties

Wannabe Depop-er Three bags of clothes to Sell. Buffalo Exchange rips You off. Please buy them.

WTBUTHEBEAT

The Brightside At least I don’t have To get tested until ApRil 7th. Woohoo

It’s about drive Bought a poetry Book on Amazon. Next month’s Haikus will kill you.

Jessica day cosplay Matching pajama Sets provide me structure in A structureless life.

Security blankets for my fingers Put my rings back on.

They sat by the bathroom sink For days. I feel safe.

<3 Michaela

A singer songwriter whose career started in Boston, Anjimile’s work is brimming with their own inner musings and beautiful melodies.

V: How do you feel your identity shapes your music?

A: I guess it’s... in the way that like, all of our experiences also shape our current personality and belief system. And so because of like my queerness, and transness, and blackness, that’s just my lens through which I process, both everything that happens to me and like the things that I see happening in the world. And when I write, I am processing things that are happening to myself and in the world. And so my identity is maybe something of like both a lens between myself and society, and also kind of like a buffer. And my identity feels like a safe place to be when the rest of the world... is not.

V: which of your songs would you say encapsulates your state of mind recently?

A: I would probably say the song ‘Stranger’. Just because it’s it’s the most recent release as a single. And yeah, obviously, the pandemic has been like a weird and strange experience. And I think that that song is kind of touching on that sense of isolationism and things changing and not being what they used to be in a variety of different ways.

V: What are you going to miss about Boston?

A: Currently, the thing I miss most is just my friends. It’s a bummer to be away from them.

Far away from a good many of my like, favorite humans. So that’s been that’s been rough. And like, making friends in new cities is hard. Although it’s been really fun to do. So. Yeah, my buddies.

V: who is your ideal music bestie? Like, whose work do you admire? Who would you want to work with or who do you aspire to be like in the music industry?

A: Let’s see. I think this feels like such a random answer but I’m going to go with Philip Glass. I’ve been listening to a lot of Philip Glass recently. And I’ve been feeling really excited at the confident strangeness of his music. And I, I am moving myself towards embodying that confident strangeness in my own work... But he has a quote, and it’s like, ...I’m paraphrasing, but it’s like if you If you don’t need to figure out a new way to ap- follow @anjimile on proach a process, then instagram & check them you’re probably creating out on spotify! something that’s already been done. And I like that.

And I feel like he is kind of challenging his contemporaries to push the boundaries of art by making new shit, whatever that takes. <3 vanessa bartlett

It’s September of 2021. I’m in line for Phoebe Bridgers in Seaport, grateful to be enjoying in-person performances again. My appreciation is interrupted when the person in front of me is denied access. It hasn’t been two weeks since their second dose despite the nationwide vaccine eligibility for five months now. 65 percent of Boston is fully vaccinated.

Four months later, over a quarter of Boston remains unvaccinated, and only 45 percent of its residents have received a booster shot. Omicron has resulted in more breakthrough cases than ever before, and Boston winters are less than ideal for outdoor concerts. So what does this mean for music venues?

I may lack the qualifications necessary to speculate about the course of the pandemic, but I did in fact dance with the CDC director’s son at my friend’s bat mitzvah.

Much like Ed Sheeran’s “A Team” brought us together, Mayor Michelle Wu plans to do the same with her B Together plan.

Starting January 15, Boston requires proof of vaccination for access to indoor spaces, including music venues (check her Instagram for details).

While venues have independently been requiring proof of vaccination, Mayor Wu’s plan brings hope to Boston’s music scene, as

it does not allow a negative test to act as an alternative for access.

It is also important to note Omicron’s predicted timeline. There are speculations that cases will reach their peak in late January, and will decline more quickly than previous variants. Therefore, we can hope that even if artists postpone concerts or venues close down, the shutdown period will be shorter than what we saw in 2020. Furthermore, venues may opt to simply reduce capacity and more strictly reinforce the mask mandate, as a second shutdown puts smaller venues at risk of permanent closure. The current rule of masking when you aren’t “actively eating or drinking” doesn’t work out well when concertgoers sip their drink over a two-hour set. I’m not saying that venues should stop concessions, but don’t be surprised if security steps up to more strictly enforce masking.

As a 20 year-old humanities student, I can not make any predictions of my own. I wish I could offer a better call-to-action (journalism professors want me expelled), but there is no one solution individuals can reach within this pandemic. BU may require boosters, but the rest of Boston looks different. Until the Omicron surge passes, wear your mask, follow isolation precautions, and cooperate with music venue’s Covid operation protocol. <3 michaela patriacca

“Spreading Love through Art and Music.” That’s the mission of Boston-born singer/songwriter Shellz, who’s been heating up the local hip hop scene since 2018. DJ Fiery Nairi sat with her to chat about Kompa, friendship, her multiple projects, and more.

N: Your Haitian culture seems to be a very important influence for you, especially influences from Haitian méringue dance music known as Kompa. Could you explain to me what Kompa means to you?

S: Kompa is the heart of Haitian music, it’s what unites us. It is a mixture of a lot of instruments. There is a lead singer but the band is the most important part. They have to play music harmoniously for a long time, at least ten minutes. Kompa music is to be played live, and it’s a type of genre where the songwriter needs to know how to be very metaphorical.

One famous song that influenced my generation as well as the older generation is “Chocolat” by Alan Cave. He spends a lot of time describing chocolate, but of course, he’s speaking about women!

The way Kompa artists write is just so amazing to me.

So, I feel like Kompa is the best part of our culture, besides the food!

N: Do you have any musician besties?

Artists or producers that you’ve totally vibed with?

S: First and foremost, my musician bestie is my little brother Neezy Beats (@omgneezybeats). He’s the yin to my yang in the music scene. As for collaborat ing with those around Boston, my favorite is Dutch Rebelle (@thedutchrebelle). I look up to her so much. She’s the reason why I believed in myself. Growing up, hip hop has depicted women in many ways, and if you feel like you can’t be that way, it’s hard to feel like you belong. Right around the time when I was going away to college, Dutch Rebelle was rapping in Massachusetts. She’s the first Black women rapper that I saw that motivated me. She’s Haitian, just like me. Watching her made me believe in myself, because she doesn’t abide by the hip hop industry standards that are put on women! Not only is she my bestie, she is one of the reasons why I feel confident doing what I do.

N: What’s your favorite thing about being a part of this scene?

S: It’s the feedback! A lot of people have told me they see potential in me. I’ve never been an artist anywhere else, there’s been so much support and that helps me keep on going. There have been so many times where I’ve wanted to stop, but people send me messages about how my songs have helped them through a tough time, have put my song in their workout videos, and so much more. I love being part of the pioneering of the industry in Boston, because growing up, I <3 Nairi Kalpakian didn’t see much of this.

While it is February and love is in the air, why not take a quiz to see how well your friend knows you? You might just find yourself with someone who’s more than a friend: a best friend! marisol barcelata <3

1. When is their birthday?

2. Their favorite zine? (it’s us, we know)

3. Their favorite creative outlet/activity?

4. Do they have a first kiss ick? If so, what is it?

5. What is their signature vice?

6. Ficitional character that resonates most with them and why?

7. Do they have a favorite seasonal café order?

8. Have they read the “Am I A Lesbian?” masterdoc?

9. Do they have a fictional character that played tribute to their ~awakening~ ?

10. Their favorite album? Musical artist?

11. What is the most recent TikTok trend they have participated in?

12. Which news source do they follow?

13. Did they ever read or write fanfiction? What kind, if so?

14. If they were a character from a fictional series, who would they be?

15. Do they wear a helmet when they ride a bike?

16. What will be the name of their future pet?

Baked Brie in Puff Pastry For this high-end shareable snack, you will need: 1 8-12oz wheel of brie; 1 sheet thawed puff pastry; all purpose flour; 1 large egg, beaten. For stuffing, get out your choice of dried cranberries, nuts, honey, jam (try a pepper jam for a spicy kick). If you’re feeling like caramelizing onions, I won’t stop you. Don’t forget baguettes or crackers to serve this with!

Step 1: preheat your oven to 400F. Line a baking sheet with parchment.

Step 2: Dust your workspace with a small amount of flour. Roll out puff pastry onto the floured surface.

Coat a rolling pin with flour and roll out the pufff pastry into an 11 inch square (approximate) Step 3: Place the wheel of brie in the middle of the pastry. Top with your aforementioned toppings, then fold the courners of the pastry over the brie. Gently press the edges of the pastry into the brie.

Step 4: Transfer the wrapped brie to your baking sheet (a pie plate works too). If your pastry has gotten warm, refrigerate for 10 mins before putting in the oven.

Step 5: Brush the pastry with your beaten egg.

Step 6: Bake on middle rack for 35-40 minutes, or until the pastryis golden brown. WAIT 10 MINUTES before serving! You don’t want guests to burn their mouths.

Chorizo Pumpkin Pasta For this quick and easy dinner, you will need: 12oz uncooked gemelli or spiral pasta; 12 oz fully cooked chorizo chicken sausage (or whatever you can find), sliced; 1 cup canned pumpkin; 1-1/12 cups shredded monterey jack or manchego cheese; fresh cilantro (optional); 3/4 tbsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper.

Step 1: Cook your pasta according to the directions on the box.

Step 2: In a large skillet, saute sausage over medium heat until browned. Reduce heat to medium low, and then add pumpkin, cream, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture is heated through. Toss in that pasta, with enough pasta water to keep everything moist. Stir in your cheese, and if you bothered to get cilantro, go ahead and sprinkle it on top.

<3 Vanessa

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When I think of food with my friends in Boston I think of one place: Tasty Burger.

There is not a better burger on this planet and I am one hundred percent convinced of this. Maybe the memories sway my opinion a little bit…but it is still fantastic nonetheless. One day early in the semester while still getting my bearings straight, I recruited my dear friends to come to the glorious Fenway Target to pick up some essentials. We all got more than we needed and decided we would walk back to campus and eat at one of the dining halls. As we were walking down Boylston, we smelt a smell so delicious we had to find out what it was. We saw the “Tasty Burger” sign. Tasty Burger has something for everyone. My friend who doesn’t eat meat decided on the veggie patty, My gluten free roommate got a bun sans the gluten. A friend of mine even got a hot dog. I don’t know why one would commit this blasphemy, but we all took a first bite that changed our lives. I am of course being over-dramatic, this burger joint is great, but if I went on my own it wouldn’t be the same. We all sat for a while just chatting and enjoying the last bit of summer heat, all while still getting to know each other. As I said this was in the first few weeks of our first semester in college so it had ist awkward moments, but when there was a lull in conversation we would talk about how amazing the food was. I highly recommend everyone to go try it out if you do bring a friend it will make the experience even better. <3 sutton

This edition of the Beat has been brought to you by music lovers and artists so determined to create that they worked over winter break to make this happen! Join our team, and you too may feel that same level of dedication!

Contact Us: CONTRIBUTORS Madeline Hain Nairi Kalpakian Sutton Faye Sophia Gaunt Mari Barceleta Michaela Patriacca Nicole Levitsky Nat Vega-Munguia Vanessa Bartlett

wtbu.thebeat@gmail.com @thebeatwtbu on instagram

EDITORS

Vanessa Bartlett: Editor in Chief Nicole Levitsky: Managing Editor Nat Vega-Munguia: Graphics Editor Mari Barceleta: Content Editor Michaela Patriacca: Social Media Coordinator Cover by Sophia Gaunt see ya next month, besties!! <3