Editorial

In celebration of Eurovision, Beyoncé’s arrival in Edinburgh and in a passionate attempt to get an interview with Jedward, this month The Skinny has gone POP! Sadly Jedward dinghied our multi-platform attempts to get them to talk to us, which is a shame because we really wanted to discuss the atrocities of the British Empire and also The X Factor (spoiler: it’s the same thing) with Twitter’s surprise political commentators as we approach the coronation. Never mind. Tallah brought in her teenage bedroom phone, a rotary handset pasted in Backstreet Boys photos cut out of Smash Hits as style inspiration – come with us as we act out our 90s teen magazine fantasy.

Our celebration of POP! begins with a chat with the Popgirlz Scotland collective, who work to create safe spaces and tackle gender discrimination in the Scottish music scene and beyond. We talk to two rising stars of Scottish dance music, ObviouslyDan and Miss Cabbage, and take a look back on dance-pop crossovers past and their potentially cursed legacy. Pop is political – in Who Run The World? we explore how some of the world’s bi est stars have been using their platform to address issues of inequality and protest injustice. We’ve got an interview with Manchester-based alt-pop star BC Camplight about his heartbreak-inspired new album, and Glasgow sibling duo Comfort talk identity and self-acceptance as they release new album What’s Bad Enough? Film gets in on the pop(ular) action with a spread of the most artful blockbuster hits of the 21st century, and, in true teen mag style, we launch a brand new advice column from resident agony aunt Anahit Behrooz. Turn to p29 for some actually very thoughtful and good advice alongside a frankly smashing new logo.

Forming the bridge between POP! and More Features, Intersections shares a first-person piece on vaginismus and listening to our bodies. And, as acts of political resistance draw more right wing ire, we consider the nature and history of protest, its ability to incite public anger but also to effect change.

Art guides us through Alberta Whittle’s triumphant, essential solo show in the National Galleries of Scotland, and visits Edinburgh Printmakers’ Uprooted Visions group show, developed through international collaboration to platform artists who have experienced migration. Film meets Cambodian-French filmmaker Davy Chou, whose Return to Seoul tells a story of the complexity of homecoming, and the director and editor of eco-thriller How to Blow Up a Pipeline discuss the whirlwind production mirroring the urgency of this political statement.

Clubs talks to Berlin-based techno and house DJ Patrick Mason, talking about connecting with a crowd and challenging the gatekeeping of the clubs industry, ahead of his Riverside Festival set. Books shares an essay exploring the themes of musicality, desire and Blackness in Caleb Azumah Nelson’s Small Worlds. Josie Long’s debut short story collection is released this month – we meet her to talk about fulfilling her lifelong dream of doing comedy and also writing sad stories. Theatre meets Hannah Lavery and Natalie Ibu to learn about their new play, Protest, which aims to inspire hopeful action in a youth audience.

So that is the May issue – a blend of POP! and protest, the coalition of May Day and also Eurovision. Thank you for coming with us on our radical Smash Hits journey. To close, some words with AMUNDA, singer, songwriter, pop producer, who has more than one secret to share.

Cover Design by Phoebe Willison i: @phoebe.willison

Ft. Popgirlz Scotland

Top row, left to right: Nikhita; Popgirlz Josephine Sillars and Rachel Alice Johnson; KATERINA; Francesca

Bottom row, left to right: Florence Jack; Serena Sophia; Étáin; Cortnë