This Is Olivia Dean
Olivia has a gorgeous voice but is not typically in my music wheelhouse. But I’m a little sleep deprived today, my body is tired, and it’s the perfect gentle vibe I need on this sunny Spring day to get me through my work day.
Michael Stipe still hits
This is the thought process: I am a fan of HBO Max/Bill Lawrence's Rooster. I am also a fan of its main title theme song (so much that it was my May 2026 theme song). But then Michael Stipe showed up on Kimmel to perform it live with Andrew Watt and Chad Smith (!!!) on drums. Even at 66 the man still has it. That voice! That verve! So, I fell back down the REM rabbit hole that has swallowed me whole many times through my life since I was the tender age of 9. And what I noticed is that Michael Stipe was the perfect person to reframe middle aged angst on a college campus. Because the 90s college kid listening to bands like REM and Blues Traveler is absolutely Steve Carell in 2026.
Burning Out - Single by The Linda Lindas
Such a banger! This reminds me exactly of the sounds and the voices that came out of the riotgrrrl movement when I was the same age as these guys. And what a revelation it would have been to have seen girls who look LIKE ME on stage performing THESE SOUNDS. (also shout out to Charlene Kaye!!!) When the Linda Lindas showed up on my radar in the post-pandemic months with Racist Sexist Boy, I was in . It's so great to see the Linda Lindas sustain and grow as young women and musicians. I can't wait to see what happens next for them.
Mostly K-POP
Joy is a 630am cycle to the gym along Utrecht's canals and this banger of K-pop hits from the aughts. Thank you Channel V and those early years in Cambodia for these bangers! #ifyouknowyouknow
