EMMIE Fall 2020 Issue

I S T U C E H

EMMIE

G I L S

SIZZY ROCKET + interview with godly the ruler

Team View Zoom Share

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EDITOR-IN-CHIEF ART DIRECTOR ALBUMS EDITOR CONCERTS EDITOR FEATURES EDITOR PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR SOCIAL MEDIA DIRECTOR

izzi bavis / ashley evers bashir aden morgan dooley sharon koretskov zoe bockhorst daniel klugman bailey griffin

WRITERS

bennett artman nina bosnjak izzi bavis wynne collins morgan dooley ashley evers bailey griffin sharon koretskov rebecca perla camila trimberger riley younger

ART

bashir aden morgan dooley austen wallenfang

PHOTGRAPHERS

hayley snell

ON THE COVER

sizzy rocket

Letter from Editors View Zoom Share

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When we received word that our Fall 2020 print issue was to be completed in less than a month, we were faced with a moment of sheer panic that quickly turned into frantic calls to our friends. Our staff graciously took to work — creating designs, drafts, mood boards and becoming skilled with Zoom and all its functionalities. What was once deemed impossible grew to become the collection of interviews, playlists and features we have before us now.

We aren’t going to pretend that putting this together was easy. There were moments of doubt, frustration and uncertainty, but each Wednesday when our whole staff logged onto Zoom, we were met with smiling, eager faces. For their dedication and determination, we thank our writers, editors and creatives. Throughout this process our staff were more than willing to challenge themselves, even in these strenuous and confusing times.

The Glitch Issue resembles the present day. A glitch exposes the truth that is sometimes hidden and shines a light on the unimaginable. With music production in particular, glitch and error have become desirable elements of sound design and musical composition. Throughout this issue, we explore this new wave of music and how it interacts with other artists and the listener. There may be a glitch in the simulation, but this may be the necessary push we need as a community.

Our goal for this semester was for each staff member to feel well represented, included and proud of what we created. We allowed our staff to take lead on photoshoots, interviews and layouts. At EMMIE, we value community engagement and participation highly, hence the list found on the last page of organizations and resources that are headquartered in Madison to explore, support and get involved with.

This semester focused on learning, navigating and succeeding through virtual collaboration. As a collective, we pushed our limits and were blown away by the results. We are beyond proud of this issue and are excited for our readers to dive into our curated world of digital dystopia.

IZZI BAVIS + ASHLEY EVERS EDITORS IN CHIEF

6 for the record / album reviews 10 low battery: a playlist 12 godly the ruler 18 the rise of pc music 20 can you hear me? a playlist 22 loading... sizzy rocket 28 the people are rising up.

30 hyperpop, defined

ALBUM

REVIEWS

BY

EMMIE

STAFF

ART BY MORGAN DOOLEY

PUNISHER — PHOEBE BRIDGERS WRITTEN BY WYNNE COLLINS

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A somber yet beautiful ode to her past traumas and heartbreak, Punisher conveys how artist Phoebe Bridgers deals with her damaged heart and her therapeutic journey towards contentment. The Los Angeles-native delves out of her comfort zone and into the experimental in this 11-track album— including orchestra and concert band performances, double-tracking and voice memos of herself gasping for air.

Bridgers weaves her album together with a combination of emo-folk and indie-rock elements. The almost lullaby nature of the album notes on the recovery which Bridgers experienced after her past breakup and stressful journey towards self-discovery and purpose. You might get heavy-eyed with Bridger’s melancholy, redundant vocals, but listen with intention to her poetic verses and you will find graceful metaphors like, “Everythings growing in the garden / You don’t have to know that it’s haunted” in “Garden Song.” With lyrics like these, you’ll be triggered to reminisce on your own experiences of heartbreak, lost love and emerging adulthood.

The darkness of 2020 is portrayed vividly in the album’s closing track, “I Know The End,” which features people screaming, cars crashing and thunder cracking. Bridgers bares her emo side on this track; complementing ominous sound bites with the lyrics “I’ll find a new place to be from / a haunted house with a picket fence,” reminding the audience of the energy we’ve experienced thus far this year and the sense of insanity that quarantining at home can bring.

While Punisher can feel somewhat repetitive in sound, Bridgers’ ability to float elegantly through emo tracks with lyrics that alternate between positivity and darkness is definitely unique. The parallels she draws within her songs make Punisher, just her second studio album, stand out against the masses and strengthen how she is perceived as an artist. Both within this album and throughout her broader career, Bridgers will continue to be recognized for her signature self-reflective, storytelling lyrics.

RATING: 6.8/10

ALBUM REVIEWS 8/EMMIE

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WHAT WE DREW — YAEJI WRITTEN BY SHARON KORETSKOV

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In the few weeks since school has started, I’ve been doing a lot of sitting and studying. Once my in-person classes were canceled, I quickly realized the importance of blocking out times to just get up and walk around; letting the blood flow from my intensely overused, pulsing brain to my numb toes. It was a feat to get back into any sort of routine and I actually found myself feeling proud every time I remembered to make a meal or do laundry.

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As I walked down Broom Street towards Lake Monona a few days ago, embarking on Step 3 of my new daily routine, Yaeji’s “Waking Up Down” playing in my headphones, her lyrics really hit me for the first time. Beginning with a magical, synth-infused beat, this first single off Yaeji’s newest record What We Drew quickly delves into a reality that I was living just a week ago. Her voice feels flat, almost monotonous against the light synth gradient and drum pattern emerging in the background, as she sings a list of menial daily achievements — “I got waking up down / I got cooking down / I got making a list and checking it down.” This song, like much of the rest of the album, features a chorus sung in Korean, a nod to the New York-based producer’s Korean American identity. Translated, the chorus takes a somber turn, “It’s not easy / If I’m lazy / They all say it’s my fault,” framing the prior list of achievements as affirmations for her getting through the day. Relatable, no?

The rest of the album does not reflect the same melancholy tone as its first single. Rather, Yaeji’s soft voice layered on top of crisp beats and mesmerizing synths makes for a widely versatile listen. In an ideal world, we’d all have the opportunity to be in a space filled with far too many people, sweat dripping, What We Drew blasting. Until the moment our government gets its shit together, however, this album also makes for a great studying listen.

RATING: 7.2/10

KISS MY SUPER BOWL RING — THE GARDEN WRITTEN BY RILEY YOUNGER

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Kiss My Superbowl Ring is The Garden’s fourth studio album and it was released on March 13, 2020. The Garden is composed of fraternal twin brothers Wyatt Shears, on bass, and Fletcher Shears, on drums. When first writing this piece, I struggled to come up with a way to describe the Shears’ brothers attitude and overall genre. I did not want to brand this duo as punk, rock or grunge because they are more than just those boxes. Instead, they are a collective that represents more than one label: they are multifaceted, confusing, bold, nonchalant and mesmerizing all at the same time.

The Garden takes influences from and has worked with members of hyperpop groups such as Dylan Brady of 100 gecs and WHARWHIFT of Kero Kero Bonito. With its heavy basslines, loud, synthesized beats and recurring themes of confidence, arrogance and, for lack of a better phrase, generally not giving a fuck, Kiss My Superbowl Ring is loud and dynamic in every regard.

“Kiss My Superbowl Ring,” the project’s titular track, is the fourth song on the album. This song is inherently simple and seems to represent the album as a whole with its playful call-and-response lyrics and cocky tone. The opening lyrics are “If I come off as a problem / kiss my super bowl ring, If you got a big ego / kiss my super bowl ring.” The image of telling a person to kiss a ring that has been deemed coveted in American society has an entitled connotation. The Garden uses the “Superbowl Ring” metaphor to express to the listeners their self-confidence and punk attitude.

The Shears brothers are not phased by judgement or oppressive music labels. Instead, they embody what their young and socially active listeners feel. Their experimental, overstimulating, distorted, electricyet-punk composition of songs is unique to The Garden and The Garden only. Songs like “AMPM Truck” and “Hit Eject” display the mind-numbing nature of their music that makes people want to zone out and ignore their inner thoughts. Kiss My Superbowl Ring in its totality is an assortment of aggressive emotions that can be difficult for some listeners to connect to, but ultimately, this piece is undoubtedly and uniquely The Garden.

RATING: 7/10

FALL 2020 FALL 2020/9

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EXETER — BLADEE WRITTEN BY BENNETT ARTMAN

Given the theme of “Glitch” for this issue, I feel it is only fitting that one of the most prolific ascensions in the underground music scene this year is also amongst the most polarizing and confusing. Perfectly encapsulated as a glitch in the system, Benjamin Reichwald, better known as Bladee, is becoming notorious for his extremely monotone, heavily-autotuned melodies, droning skeletal and yet psychedelic instrumentals and enamoring aesthetic. Bladee and fellow members of his artist collective, Drain Gang, have recently been propelled to the front-line of the increasingly popular “cloud rap” sound, and in doing so, have garnered a strong and devoted cult following.

Now, in the year of our lord 2020, the Swedish rapper, fashion designer and self-proclaimed ‘sad boy’ released two back to back albums by the names of EXETER and 333—the former of which started his year off with an interesting departure from his last solo project, Icedancer. EXETER steps back from Bladee’s more mainstream trap sound on Icedancer to focus on a heavily strippedback approach to a drug-fueled, synthetic and ambient sound that “cloud rap” has become synonymous with. He maintains references to typical subject matter of controlled substances and heartache over the nonsensical boom bap of Gud’s (Bladee’s producer) instrumentals.

It would be an understatement to say that an extra listen is necessary to acclimate to the unique vibrations of a Bladee song; Bladee’s delivery on songs like: WONDERLAND,” “DNA RAIN,” and “MERRY-GO-ROUND” are simultaneously hilarious and depressing.

These cuts are soft on the ears but weird enough to keep your attention. With an open mind, anyone can easily enjoy these tracks while riding through the streets late at night, bumping these bass-heavy beats at a blaring level in a car with friends.

However, and this is a big however, it must be said that the same thing that makes Bladee and his sound so unique and captivating also acts as his kryptonite. It is undeniable that this sound is not for everyone and not for every setting. EXETER suffers from the same issue that many other Drain Gang songs do: a lack of depth in lyrics, a redundant sound and sometimes more than questionable quality. Throughout my many listenings of this album, I was consistently shocked when the puny 18-minute runtime elapsed, and more than once, I audibly laughed at some of Bladee’s childish and overly-emotional lyrics. It should also be said that when comparing this album to the rest of Bladee’s discography, I find myself asking where this fits in. I don’t think that EXETER compares instrumentally, aesthetically or conceptually to any of the other projects from Bladee and the DG crew.

In a world where norms are ignored, the definition of music has deteriorated and people find themselves emotionally detached and overstimulated by their environment, Bladee offers a niche genre of music. He confronts emotion, creates a futuristic ambiance and helps to further define the ever-expanding depths of the possibilities of music. EXETER, although lacking in some departments of classic music criticism, offers an anthem of absurdity in a day and age where maybe that is exactly what we need.

RATING: 5/10

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ALBUM REVIEWS 8/EMMIE

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HO, WHY IS YOU HERE ? — FLO MILLI WRITTEN BY MORGAN DOOLEY

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Something shifted inside me when I heard “Beef FloMix,” Flo Milli’s debut single on streaming platforms, for the first time late last year. Flo Milli’s springy cadence and eccentric vocabulary made the track something I never knew I needed but now couldn’t live without. Since then, Flo Milli has become a constant within my friends and my girls’ nights and group facetime sessions. As Flo Milli continued to drop single after single, I continued obsessing over every beat, but the track times were never quite long enough. I was always longing to hear something more.

That was until July, when Flo Milli graced us all with her iconic debut album Ho, why is you here ?

The success of Ho, why is you here ? and Flo Milli’s career in general can be attributed, at least partly, to the extreme popularity of several of her songs across social media platforms like TikTok and Twitter. The combination of her punchy lyrics, unique range of samples and backbeats and her widely-loved catchphrase “Flo Milli Shit!” makes her a perfect candidate for the emblematic female rapper of Gen Z. At the end of the day, however, it’s not only TikTok that brought Flo Milli to fame. As she reiterates throughout the project; “Bitch, I’m self made, didn’t nobody put me on!”

The album starts with “Mood Everyday (Intro),” in which the 20-year-old Alabama-native sets the tone for the rest of the project as bluntly as she can: “I’m the shit and that’s my mood everyday.” This energy is palpable and omnipresent in every verse of every track on the album—with the bouncing, feel-good beats behind songs like “In The Party” and “Pussycat Doll” and the hyper-confident, self-love-preaching lyrics in songs such as “Like That Bitch,” it’s impossible not to feel like you run the world. Flo Milli never strays from this air of self-assuredness— literally, as the closing line of Ho, why is you here ? comes full circle to the beginning ones; asking “Why you mad? ‘Cause I’m the shit?” She sticks to her word and never backs down.

With all this being said, my only qualm with Ho, why is you here ? remains the same as it was with Flo Milli’s work in general: I want to hear more. Although the content of the songs themselves don’t leave much to be desired, the brief 30-minute runtime says otherwise. At just 20 years old, I’m sure we will be hearing much more from Flo Milli in the future; but until then, I’ll be keeping this album on repeat whenever I need to hear something radiating with self-confidence.

RATING: 8/10

FALL 2020 FALL 2020/9

LOW B A T T ERY

PLAYLIST CURATED BY EMMIE STAFF 10/EMMIE

for

when

you’re

running

on

Cinderella

now

circle the drain

now

Álom

now

My Way Out

now

Wasteland

now

Monte Carlo

now

low

Bladee and Ecco2k Soccer Mommy

Bella Boo daine

Tierra Whack Toro y Moi (ft. Wet)

Aqueous Transmission now

Incubus

Lemondrops

now

Chances

now

Telana

KAYTRANADA, Shay Lia

SLOW DANCING IN THE DARK

now

Joji

Empty Sleeping

now

sylvie lou

FALL 2020/11

12/EMMIE

G

od

y the

l

WRITTEN BY MORGAN DOOLEY AND RILEY YOUNGER PHOTOGRAPHED BY HAYLEY SNELL FALL 2020/13

le Ru

r

Madison-based artist Godwill Oke, professionally known as Godly the Ruler, sat with us in a white-painted social distancing circle surrounded by a pool of sun in James Madison Park to talk about how his career in music has progressed into what is now considered “the new normal.”

Godly the Ruler, Godwill’s stage name, originates from his early years of high school in the north side of Chicago, when upperclassmen coined him with the nickname “godly.” The nickname, originally an honor, quickly turned into a lifestyle. Since then, Godwill has been consistently glitching back and forth to this persona. Godwill gained inspiration from the lineage of artists before him who used the epithet “the ruler” in their stage names. Rick the Ruler and Chance the Rapper were a few that came to mind when talking about the process of creating his alter ego. Godwill expressed that after coming up with this persona, “I just felt like a bad bitch,” he said. Godly is not just the music, it is everything that he is doing under the scope of his daily routine.

“I

jus

t

Godwill takes influence from a wide variety of pop culture elements; everything from Kanye West to video games. Everything Godwill and Godly wear, do and think are both extensions of each other and the world around him. He mentioned how he looks up to Kanye West, not because of the way he composes his music, but specifically West’s assertiveness and cocky attitude in the music industry. Godwill takes from this quality of West and uses it when he performs and portrays himself to his followers on social media. Godwill is unequivocally proud and West’s confidence is something that Godwill embodies in a personal way. Godwill loses his humility when he transforms into Godly, and morphs into a character in his own video game. When asked about the influence of his most recent releases, “gotham city” and “mortal kombat” he unsurprisingly describes them as soundtracks for a video game. These GTA-esque beats are stimulating and fast-paced and take reference from fictional games like Batman and Mortal Kombat. The short yet engaging songs he produced independently are reminiscent of sound bits from the fighting and fatality scenes in games like Mortal Kombat.

t l e f like

h ” c t i a b bad From growing up in Chicago, Godwill is used to gaining inspiration from his surroundings. At the time Godwill started making music, the culture of the Chicago music scene was centered around creating and putting out as much music as possible. Now, five years later and in a completely new city, Godwill still cites the surrounding music scene as just as valuable and motivating to his creative process. The community doesn’t only act as an inspiration for Godly the Ruler’s music, it is also part of the very thing that keeps it going. With the current state of both the music industry and the world in general, having people to like, share and interact with music is integral to gaining success. Showing love to your local artists’, Godly included, work is now more important than ever before.

Godwill has come a long way in the five years that he has been making music. In the beginning, he describes his creative process as more of a methodical, labored process, but as time went on and he became more comfortable with himself, the process has become so much more effortless. “I just hop on the mic and get going and I know something good is going to pop out.” Although he hasn’t been able to bring this energy and confidence on the stage recently, Godwill reminisces on past performances and his ability to quickly glitch to play the vibrant, energetic role that is Godly the Ruler. “I can go out there and do some crazy shit and it’s not really tied to Godwill because that’s Godly out there.” But as much as Godly the Ruler is Godwill’s alter ego, he emphasizes that this persona also isn’t necessarily separate from himself. The connection and ability to morph between Godly and Godwill is what directly relates to the Glitch Issue. The transformation of self identity not owwwwnly enhances his music and performance presence, but is part of what makes Godly a Ruler. It’s a part of him and that fact is not going to change any time soon— “I am Godly the Ruler ‘til I’m no longer breathing.”

14/EMMIE

ler

n o

lo

h t a

‘til I’m

” . “ g I n am i

Ru

G

o

y l d t he

FALL 2020/17

nger b

r e

PC MUSIC MUSIC

the rise of

R

WRITTEN BY BAILEY GRIFFIN Consider the multitude of adjectives that could be used to describe the internet. Loud, hyperactive, mechanical, overstimulating, electronic and futuristic might come to mind. Now imagine these adjectives as a sound — a clashing, chaotic, colorful, over-the-top collection of noises that somehow works. It’s this very aesthetic that PC Music, and those inspired by it, attempt to emulate. PC Music is an internet-centric record label and art collective founded and run by English producer A.G. Cook. Since its creation in 2013, PC Music and the artists associated with it have been known for their exaggerated and distorted take on pop music. Their signature sound and image has sparked a new wave of music characterized by internet-inspired aesthetics and outrageous distortions of traditional pop elements.

In its early years, releases under PC Music were entirely digital and free. With no major promotional or publicity campaigns, an online fan base quickly grew around this mysterious label. Tracks by Kane West, QT, Danny L Harle and A.G. Cook himself accumulated hundreds of thousands of listens within the first couple years of being posted on the label’s Soundcloud page. Several of the label’s signed artists, including Hannah Diamond and GFOTY, maintained solely-online personas during this period. The sound and visuals for these artists were so glossy and manufactured that many listeners were unsure if they were even real people until several of the label’s major personalities performed as a showcase at South By Southwest in 2015.

Now, seven years after its conception, the PC Music collective has drastically expanded its reach and influence, almost entirely through the internet. Artists and producers currently associated with PC Music and the genre it has kickstarted include SOPHIE, Tommy Cash, Charli XCX, umru, Dorian Electra, gupi and Laura Les and Dylan Brady of 100 gecs. There is no doubt that the recent rise of maximalist cyber-pop has been influenced and inspired by the work of PC Music artists and producers. Both within and outside of the collective, a new generation of producers has emerged, connecting and collaborating to create synthetic, unhinged pop masterpieces that are oh-so-internet. As more artists embrace and adopt the manufactured internet aesthetic that PC Music is so well known for, pop music is further thrust into a contorted realm where every element is effervescent and exaggerated.

18/EMMIE

The genre that sprouted from PC Music still has yet to be definitively named or categorized. In 2019, Spotify curated a playlist featuring several artists under the PC Music umbrella and titled it “hyperpop.” While the sound of PC Music had been referred to as hyperpop before, this was one of the first official attempts to label the genre.

Over the years, it has also been dubbed “bubblegum bass,” “glitchcore,” and “experimental pop.” Some have even named the genre “PC Music” out of reverence for the label which established it. As this genre continues to grow and gain prominence, critics and fans alike struggle to confine it to just one category.

Just as the internet amplifies and distorts aspects of pop culture, hyperpop takes elements that already exist in conventional pop music and inflates them to an absurd and sometimes abrasive degree. Hyperpop utilizes highpitched vocals, oscillating synths, distorted bass and lyric repetition to produce high-tempo, industrial-sounding songs. Charli XCX’s “c2.0” encompasses several of these elements, making it a great example of hyperpop for someone who has never heard the genre. The hyperactive exaggeration of pop that characterizes the PC Music sound can be easily interpreted as parody or satire, but A.G. Cook has confirmed this is not the intention of the genre. Instead, hyperpop simply aims to push conventional pop into an experimental space.

By incorporating aspects of genres outside of pop, some artists drove the hyperpop genre so far into experimentalism that it can be difficult to determine whether their music still counts as hyperpop. Trap beats, electronic melodies, grinding mechanical noises, EDM influences and punk rock vocals may be combined, sometimes all within the same song, to produce a sound that is just as abrasive and deranged as the internet. “800 db cloud” by 100 gecs and “Emasculate” by Dorian Electra are prime examples of this. The beginning of “800 db cloud” is marked by subdued high-pitch vocals which lead into EDM-inspired verses, while the last forty seconds of the song are completely dominated by jarring death-metal growls. In “Emasculate,” Dorian Electra mixes traditional pop beats with distorted heavy-metal vocals and medieval harpsichord. Artists like 100 gecs and Dorian Electra are starting to blur the lines of what hyperpop is and isn’t, as they make use of the internet-inspired aesthetic and overemphasis of pop elements that are so central to the genre, while incorporating musical aspects from outside the pop sphere at the same time.

According to A.G. Cook, the name PC Music is an allusion to the PC computer and its crucial role in the production of electronic music. This is especially fitting for hyperpop artists, who heavily rely on digital, synthetic production to embody the consumerist chaos of the digital age. The evolution of pop music production has very much mirrored the technological advancements of the 21st century, as artists no longer require a professional recording studio to produce hits. Hyperpop producers are able to create electronically-infused hits with just their laptops. Modern technology not only makes it easier to produce music, but also easier to collaborate, as artists can connect over the internet and work together on a song without ever actually meeting in person. For example, Danny L Harle and Dylan Brady were both able to produce songs for Charli XCX’s How I’m Feeling Now, which came out in May, even though they were all self-isolating at home. This ability has allowed the PC Music collective to be as collaborative as it is, even with its artists being scattered across the globe. The digital nature of PC Music production and connection is a huge advantage to artists within this genre, as several of them have been able to create and release new music in the past few months, regardless of pandemic-related limitations.

Artists under the PC Music umbrella have consistently cited components of the internet, such as Vine, remix culture and “YouTube Poop” as reference points for their music. Hyperpop lyrics and visuals often cross into meme territory by way of internet slang and humor. The glitchy chaos of many hyperpop songs effectively captures the overstimulation and short attention span that prolonged internet use causes. Minecraft music festivals, PC Music subreddits and online raves emerged from the hyperpop community both before and during the shutdown of live music, reinforcing the genre’s virtual aesthetic. As a genre that emerged primarily online, hyperpop is very much the musical embodiment of the internet — a collage of all its sparkling, strange and synthetic features.

The simultaneous rise of the internet and hyperpop in the early 2010s has allowed this pop music movement to establish a noteworthy presence in Gen Z culture. The precedent set by PC Music has inspired young artists and producers to create TikTok-ready tunes filled with booming bass, metallic beats and chipmunk-like vocals, all on their laptops. The chaos of hyperpop feels familiar to today’s youth because it mimics the chaos of living in the digital age. The industrial tones and heavy synths which were once considered sounds of the future now serve as a reflection of the present. It’s hard to tell whether hyperpop will survive the test of time as the generation raised by the internet gets older. What is certain is that it has succeeded in expanding and enhancing the scope of pop music.

still has yet to be defnitively named or categorized.

The genre that has sprouted from PC Music

FALL 2020/19

can you hear me?

20/EMMIE

Curated by Emmie Staff

loud anthems for your connectivity issues

_Pony Whip - SOPHIE, BC Kingdom _​​​xXXi_wud_nvrstøp_ÜXXx (Remix) - 100 Gecs ft. Hannah Diamond and Tommy Cash _Only Acting - Kero Kero Bonito _BIZARRE LOVE TRIANGLE - JACKIE EXTREME _IPHONE - Rico Nasty _Thos Moser - food house, Gupi, Fraxiom _ U Think U Can Fuck with Me Dont Ya - Alice Longyu Gao _Iced Out (Slowed) - RILEY THE MUSICIAN _Snakeskin - Rina Sawayama _Get Got - Death Grips

FALL 2020/21

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Queen

of

SIZZY WRITTEN BY IZZI BAVIS & ASHLEY EVERS

22/EMMIE

the

(Cyber)

World:

ROCKET FALL 2020/23

Through the technological haze, Sabrina Louise Bernstein, professionally known as Sizzy Rocket, emerged with pink eye shadow and a matching bright jacket. The new greeting for artist interviews quickly shifted towards a series of “Can you hear me?” and “Can you see me?” through the lagging webcam. After a series of technological fails and glitches, the wild firecracker opened up about her life as a rock star in 2020 at her makeup artist’s home in New York City.

ANARCHY, the Las Vegas native’s third album released in late September, is a product of the new world we operate in, a world focused on online collaboration and self-isolation. Speaking to the unapologetic icon during a time of radical change was nothing short of liberating. Sizzy started her career as a fuzzy punk-rocker but transformed into a progressively loud, queer rebel-girl. She quickly dove into the experience of releasing an album during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sizzy knew creating something mundane was not an option. “Releasing an album during this pandemic was super chaotic, there was a lot of uncertainty,” she admitted. She faced many challenges related to virtual collaboration and other hardships sporadically throughout this past year. Sizzy emphasized the importance of creating something meaningful during a time of change, denoting nothing on the album was a mistake. She explained how grateful she was to have the opportunity to produce an album despite the barriers and for how adaptive her team was given the circumstances.

“I have the best team ever. And we were really quick to just think on our feet and make last minute changes and prioritize the art and the creativity. It was an experience,” she recounted.

Looking inward, Sizzy shared the importance of art and self-expression in her work, “I feel like I always strive for authenticity in my work, my songs and in everything that I do. So I think facing my art is about being as true to myself in the moment as I can be,” she said. This authenticity is apparent throughout ANARCHY and other recent creative ventures.

In under 30 minutes and ten songs, Sizzy created an album during quarantine that lends a big “Fuck You” to the world. “I’ve said it before, ANARCHY is a punch in the face,” Sizzy laughed. When asked for her biggest inspirations, she rattled off a diverse mixture of artists from Travis Scott to Karen O. Sizzy’s discography is fluid, and her wide array of inspiration shows that she draws from a number of themes, musical styles and energies.

Creating remotely is not a new feat for Sizzy Rocket. On May 11, 2020, she premiered her first remote music video for “Smells Like Sex” on YouTube. “I think what I learned from making that video is to just let it happen,” she explained. The project was directed over Zoom and is full of glitchy videos featuring Sizzy in her room and camcorder-style filmography. ‘“When I let go of my expectations, and was just like, “Alright, we got to make a video over Zoom,” I don’t fucking know, but I’m just gonna let it guide me.”’

Sizzy made it incredibly clear that transitioning to remote collaboration is not easy, but she is excited by the opportunity to explore new avenues with her art.

Sizzy connected her experience with the “Smells Like Sex” music video to the idea of “Glitch.” “When there’s a glitch usually that means there’s an error, but maybe something really dope is about to happen,” she said. Much to her surprise, the video became a hit and garnered upwards of 1.5 million views on YouTube despite the glitches and challenges she faced.

24/EMMIE

“When there’s a glitch usually that means there’s an error, but maybe something really dope is about to happen”

FALL 2020/25

From Grrrl in 2019 to ANARCHY in 2020, Sizzy Rocket grew tremendously. “I had a lot of self doubt and you can feel the trepidation in the music, I was really vulnerable and searching for myself and my sounds and what I wanted to say,” Sizzy said about Grrrl. She explained how in ANARCHY she grew emotionally and became more confident in her artistry. “I feel like you can hear in the music that I have gotten better at making creative decisions and knowing what I want and being able to communicate what I want things to sound like,” she said. Her gleaming confidence is evident in her music with each track touching on intimate issues shared by young people with a multitude of experiences.

As inconceivably emotional individuals, we felt the need to ask for the story behind the track “Rollerskating,” our shared favorite on the album. Sizzy unpacked the song explaining the tale of a love so deep that she will never forget it. “The song is about the first big love that I ever had, I had just moved to New York, I was 18, drinking for the first time and falling in love with this girl. It’s the story of that whole relationship packed into one,” Sizzy reminisced. Instead of dwelling on the romance, she discussed the importance of remembering the past and moving forward. “With time, I feel like I’m able to look back at that heartbreak with grateful nostalgia, instead of just being wrecked about it forever. At some point, you have to be like, wow, that was really beautiful,” Sizzy reflected.

We aked what advice she, an empowered queer woman, would give her younger self, and without skipping a beat, Sizzy stated with a defiant tone, “I would tell her not to agonize so much, and it’s okay to feel these really strong emotions, but you don’t have to let it hold you down and you can keep going and make your decisions and be a bad bitch.” By overcoming her innocence, Sizzy is able to write lyrics that are both validating and reassuring in a time of uncertainty about topics often labeled as taboo for someone in the public eye.

Sizzy Rocket embodies the role of a modern day rock star and maintains autonomy in her artistry while navigating the digital world, despite the obvious glitches. “I want to be a source of energy and light and love and a fucking rock star,” she said, grinning. As the Zoom call came to a close, we were presented with a glimmer of hope for the first time since March. A glitch can be a good thing — as signs of positive change and adaptation within and outside the music industry present themselves each day. Although the immediate future remains unknown, creativity will continue to run its course and music will show the way to adventitious possibilities.

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WRITTEN BY SHARON KORETSKOV

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This year has forever changed the way we perceive the word “normal.” Before this year, “normal” meant business as usual — restaurants teeming with patrons, college towns full of students, eager fans packed shoulder to shoulder at sold-out concerts. Unfortunately, “normal” for many people also meant ignorant.

In his single “Lockdown” and its accompanying music video, Anderson .Paak berates the derisive glitch that is 2020 by questioning how the world can remain in a state of so-called “lockdown” while Black lives are continually being robbed of their right to exist. For .Paak and many others who realize the hypocrisy in our government’s response to the two pandemics at hand— COVID-19 and systemic racism. This song is an anthem that revels in the roar of revolution, making it abundantly clear that the world cannot simultaneously be at a standstill while it has also been set on fire.

Though the fight for Black liberation has been ongoing for centuries, it dips in and out of the media’s spotlight as the outlets’ largely white conglomerates see fit. This battle is again at the forefront of social and political conversation, though for devastating reasons. This year has brought with it the unjustifiable deaths of Rayshard Brooks, Daniel Prude, George Floyd and Breonna Taylor at the hands of law enforcement. Additionally, the erasure of Black names, stories, bodies and lives is something that the systems instilled to “serve and protect” are actively overlooking. BIPOC lives and livelihoods are incessantly in danger of abuse, whether it is actively physical or enacted by inequitable laws. BIPOC folx are doubly at risk as the COVID-19 virus and our government’s incompetence in containing it has had, and will continue to have, serious and negative implications on the health, wellbeing and economic stability of America’s most disadvantaged and disenfranchised communities.

But this year, despite the pandemic’s lasting restrictions, the people are rising. At a time when being in public spaces within six feet of other people poses health risks, Black Lives Matter has made history as the United States’ largest movement. Across the country, nearly 26 million people in 550 cities throughout the nation have come together to protest the notion of “normalcy” that has prevailed for centuries — diminishing, dehumanizing and destroying countless BIPOC individuals in cold blood. This isn’t a lockdown; this is a call to action.

With the help of writer Rae Kahlil and co-producer J. LBS, Anderson .Paak conceived and created “Lockdown” while watching news coverage of protests occurring on Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles in late May. The chaos ensuing on the streets of downtown areas across the country in response to the murder of George Floyd inspired the opening lines of the song, “You should’ve been downtown / the people are rising.”

The lines “We thought it was a lockdown / They opened the fire / Them bullets was flying / Who said it was a lockdown? Goddamn lie” expose the hypocrisy of both our current policing system and the government’s response to COVID-19. In the wake of a pandemic, Breonna Taylor was shot in her home by police officers Jonathan Mattingly, Brett Hankison and Myles Cosgrove while they investigated a crime she had no relation to. Thousands of armed police officers and National Guard soldiers were deployed to fire rubber bullets and tear gas at protestors on the grounds that such gatherings are “unlawful,” yet bars and restaurants remain open. The government would rather infringe on the right to protest unjust systems than to step in on someone’s brunch plans. In an interview conducted for Genius, .Paak states, “Whether it’s rubber bullets, whether it’s real bullets, whether it’s pressing down on a dude’s neck, we’re supposed to be in, we’re supposed to be safe and indoors. We’re supposed to be trying to be getting through a pandemic. But for some reason, people of color are being killed in the streets every day, and there’s still time for that even though it’s supposed to be a ‘lockdown.’”

As the song continues with the lines, “Oh my, time heals all but you’re out of time now / Judge gotta watch us from the clock tower / Lil’ tear gas cleared the whole place out / I’ll be back with the hazmat for the next round,” .Paak notes that this song is also about how he noticed a sort of “awakening” occurring, one which raised societal consciousness of the consistent abuses of power against BIPOC folx and forced people into action. .Paak goes on to mention how the following lyrics “And won’t you tell me ‘bout the lootin’? / What’s it really all about? ‘Cause they throw away Black lives like paper towels / Plus unemployment rate, what, 40 million now? / Killed a man in broad day might never see a trial” are reflective of the recent murder of George Floyd, but were largely inspired by his first televised encounter with police brutality as a child. In 1991, when .Paak was just five years old, Rodney King was ruthlessly beaten by three white officers of the Los Angeles Police Department.

The brutality was caught on camera by a bystander, broadcasted globally and the police officers responsible were later acquitted of all charges. Fury ignited in response to the acquittal and individuals spilled into the streets, resulting in five days of riots in Los Angeles. This pattern of police abuse and acquittal has prevailed for centuries, but this year COVID-19 has amplified and exposed the intersectional disparities in treatment that BIPOC individuals receive in comparison with white counterparts — in health care, political consideration, social and professional discrimination. These disparities infringe upon the freedoms and opportunities of BIPOC folx, further illuminating the need for a rise in social activism, in positive and beneficial political advocacy, in understanding and in love.

2020 has, for many, revealed that a “lockdown” need not equate to complacency. As COVID-19 restrictions continue to keep individuals largely at home, the possibility to contribute to community engagement and activism becomes endless. Our own university has remained negligent of its BIPOC students, failing to meet simple demands proposed and revisited yearly by the Wisconsin Black Student Union since 1969. The “normalcy” our society values so immensely is not just, and yet it is mirrored in every social facet with which we engage.

As students, it is our responsibility to stand with our BIPOC peers and support them in demanding equitable treatment from our institution.

This responsibility extends even beyond university jurisdiction to the levels of local and national government where there is still a need for more people-oriented politicians. If 2020 has taught us anything definitively, it is that the people are rising and will not sit down until Black lives matter.

FALL 2020/29

H YPERPOP

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D E F I N E D COMPILED BY EMMIE STAFF ART BY MORGAN DOOLEY & AUSTEN WALLENFANG 30/EMMIE

Hyperpop and PC Music are much more than just two genres. They manifested a movement that derailed the way we think about pop culture and rejected the norm.

Campy, over the top artists never shy away from creating something absurd and tend to take an outrageous and ironic jab at music. The genre sets itself apart with the use of vibrant colors, over-edited art and PC motifs that are both loud and kitschy.

The hyperpop movement was cultivated by people who had no voice in the contemporary world. It is about dreaming up a new future. We are raised by technology and hyperpop embraces the dependent computer culture we grew up in. It uproots a pop industry that has a misogynistic, racist, transphobic and homophobic history.

Hyperpop challenges other tech genres that are largely male-dominated. Despite the rowdy and absurd nature of hyperpop music, the community is truly dedicated to safety and acceptance. The genre was essentially created by and for people outside the “status quo.” It has reserved a space in music for women and queer folks to express themselves and create extraordinary music.

Hyperpop introduces something that has never existed.

We are creating a new world starting with the music we listen to and make.

_ hayley snell

The hyperpop movement has produced a multitude of exciting artists, but one of the most compelling has to be Charli XCX. Rather than establishing herself as a hyperpop artist from the beginning, Charli first gained popularity as a mainstream pop star. Many may know her as the songwriter behind Icona Pop’s “I Love It” and Iggy Azalea’s “Fancy.” In 2014, her single “Boom Clap” off her second album, Sucker, became a U.S. Top Ten hit, accelerating Charli into pop-stardom. Following this mainstream success, frustration with her label’s expectations and a desire for experimentation led Charli to collaborate with PC Music artists such as SOPHIE and Hannah Diamond to create the Vroom Vroom EP, which marked her transition into hyperpop. As a bubblegum bass queen, a former opening act for Taylor Swift and a sought-after hit songwriter — Charli XCX’s versatility is unmatched.

_ bailey griffin

FALL 2020/31

In a similar way to how uncertainty plagues the future of our society, each new style or element of music introduces an unknown future for the direction of sound. As creators, we tend to indulge in ideas categorized as “larger than life.” Through a combination of diverse art styles and distorted riffs, hyperpop culture challenges both genre and the status-quo as an alternative to mainstream pop in an increasingly digital era.

I cannot think of hyperpop without thinking about Grimes. While her work can drift towards darker tones, her music is largely characterized by the electronic and experimental-pop sounds that flood the hyperpop genre. She wrote, sang, produced and engineered the entirety of her 2015 album Art Angels, which embraces the distinctive hyperpop sound and went on to be declared one of the best albums of the year by many major publications. Interestingly enough, the Canadian musician dislikes the album and does not believe it should fall under the pop umbrella.This poses the question: What exactly makes something hyperpop? The music of Art Angels contains many elements that are largely agreed to make up the genre. This conception led some to say Grimes paved the way for the genre, while others are still on the fence about classifying her as a hyperpop artist.

_ nina bosnjak

Anamanaguchi is arguably a more subtle example of hyperpop when compared to the almost overwhelming nature of other artists who fall under this umbrella, however this does not stop the group from encapsulating the genre with high energy, electronic and anime-inspired beats. My first encounter with Anamanaguchi was in middle school when I played songs such as “Meow” and “Miku (feat.

Hatsune Miku)” on repeat while I skated around my neighborhood. If I discovered them any sooner, I would definitely own a pair of cat-ear headphones. Every song from the band closely resembles sounds from an 8-bit video game, which eventually led to them composing the soundtrack for Scott Pilgrim vs. the World: The Game in 2010. Music videos from the band are filled with bright neon lights, anime girl merchandise and ‘90s-style computer graphics. In the “Endless Fantasy” music video from 2013, the band launched a slice of pizza into space! While Anamanaguchi sometimes edge on being electronic music, the band paved the way for the hyperpop in 2020.

_ camila trimberger

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Hyperpop is more than an exciting new musical genre—it is a movement concerning what pop music should be both stylistically and culturally. Stylistically, the riffs are fast and the voices are auto-tuned to high-pitched whines—often counteracted by a pulsing bass turned lower and louder than that of typical EDM dance tracks. A single song could include an array of genre elements from R&B, indie-pop, rap, bubblegum pop and EDM. Culturally, many of these musicians are members or vocal allies of the LGBTQ+ community and purvey sexually explicit lyrics as one of the main foundations of hyperpop to promote sexual freedom and queerness. Adding to the culture, many hyperpop musicians mock the shallowness associated with pop culture through the contrast between experimental sonic cadences and bubblegum pop choruses. Artists like Hannah Diamond and Slayyyter go even further by creating hyper-feminine personas or emphasizing girlish presences that praise stereotypically gendered iconography, including candy or the color pink. The ironic encapsulation of gender norms that restrict musicians highlights the ludicrousy of individuality in the pop music machine. In the end, hyperpop is beyond fresh lyrics and sound; it’s an exercise in performativity.

100 gecs, the musical duo of Laura Les and Dylan Brady, blasted into the mainstream music consciousness in 2019 with their debut album 1000 Gecs. In proper hyperpop fashion, the two pulled out every trick they could think of to do it. The album features extreme voice distortion and long song outros — similar to noises heard on a construction site — to assemble a 23-minute fever dream of neurotic synths, chipmunk-pitched vocals and unexpected dubstep. They don’t stop there! Their most recent album, 1000 Gecs and the Trees of Clues, follows hyperpop experimentalism with risky techniques such as overly-boosted bass and autotune. 100 gecs fit the modern hyperpop mold as they possess a skewed vision and influential gonzo sound that have many asking themselves: What the hell is this? A familiar line. One that has been said about Nirvana, Prince and jazz. If you don’t “get” 100 gecs, forgive yourself. But understand that hyperpop is destined to stick around.

_ rebecca perla

FALL 2020/33

ES RC

ITY RESO N U U M M CO

Black Umbrella Group Impact Demand Mission: to seek justice and demand change for Black lives in Madison, led by Black youth.

Mission: to be the resource our community needs and continue to provide the safety net to other communities along the way to Liberation.

UW Madison BIPOC Coalition Mission: to build a unified community of BIPOC voices at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and create a collective platform that realizes and streamlines actionable initiatives that focus on structural changes to ensure members are heard, recognized and respected.

Reparations Thrift Mission: to convert donated clothing into money and necessities for BIPOC in Madison and the organizations that support them.

LINK. Mission: to build a community through BLM kickbacks, art shows and thrift events.

The Black Voice Mission: to offer a platform for the historically silenced voices of Black students to be heard on UW-Madison’s campus and beyond.

Wisconsin Black Student Union Mission: to foster an environment that better suits the needs of Black students and provide an environment conducive to the academic and extracurricular pursuits of Black Badgers.

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Freedom Inc. Mission: to achieve social justice through coupling direct services with leadership development and community organizing.

SPECIAL THANKS TO: WISCONSIN UNION OFFICER PREISDENT LILY MILLER Through the publishing of our six student-run journals and magazines, the Publications Committee of the Wisconsin Union Directorate provides a creative outlet for UW-Madison students interested in creating poetry and prose, reporting on music and fashion, or delving into research in science and public policy. We celebrate creativity on campus by providing handson experience in publishing, editing, writing and artmarking.

PUBLICATIONS COMMITTEE DIRECTOR EVANKA ANNYAPU PUBLICATIONS COMMITTEE ADVISOR ROBIN SCHMOLDT CREATIVE ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR JOSHUA MITCHELL FALL 2020/33

THE GLITCH ISSUE.