Pictured: Gustav Åhr (Lil Peep) in 2016 By: Jake Orban An overwhelming sadness rolled over the well being of fans on November 15th, 2017 as the beloved SoundCloud sensation and musical genius Gustav Elijah Åhr passed away of an accidental fentanyl-xanax overdose.
Better known by his stage name Lil Peep, Åhr was considered to be a musical genius by many of his peers. The standout from Åhr compared to others is he can not be giving a set genre. Apparent on his wikipedia page, he is described as a Trap, Emo-rap, Rap-Rock, Punk, Emotive, Lofi, and Soundcloud Rap Musician. Before his untimely death, Åhr had just released an album months prior entitled, “Come Over When You’re Sober Pt.1” With popular tracks such as “Awful Things” “Benz Truck” and “Save That S**t” being featured on the project. As you would suspect by the title of the album, there was a Pt. 2 planned but due to his untimely death, it was never released: until now. After the announcement in mid October, fans all across the globe are excited to see that best friend and producer smokeasac has been working on the sequel to the first “Come Over When You’re Sober” project and it is set to come out November 9th. The date being just eight days after his birthday and six days before the one year anniversary of his passing. With the track “Cry Alone’ being released before the planned date of the whole albums release, fans were able to get a taste of what to expect, and to no surprise, it is the same old Peep. Cleverly mixing both emotive-rock/punk with short and sad boy rap flows, it mirrors the first part of the two part project quite well. Will the second part to the “Come Over When You’re Sober” project be better than the first? We can only wait till November 9th to find out.
0 Comments
by Laurel Preston IT is one of the more famous scary movies, with its remake of the classic movie in 2017 it drew in about 244.8 million dollars and won an MTV Movie Award for Best On-Screen Duo against Black Panther, Jumanji:Welcome to the Jungle, Stranger Things, and Ready Player One. This iconic movie features a creepy clown named Pennywise, played by an even more creepy Bill Skarsgård. In the movie Pennywise the clown terrorizes the children of this town in Maine. But one summer in 1989, a group of bullied kids come together to destroy the the monster. This movie is a must see if you love scary movies and great characters. When you think of iconic old films you have to think of The Blair Witch Project. When this movie first came out the public was told that this was real film found in the woods. The actors in this movie were not even aloud to go outside in fear that someone would know who they were and debunk the lie. The Blair Witch Project features three people who go out into the woods of Maine insearch of the Blair Witch. The film ends with a dramatically terrifying outcome and to the audience who thought this was real, they had a hard time getting over it. This film has won an Independent Spirit John Cassavetes Award, an NME Award for Best Film, and an PGA Most Promising Producer in Theatrical Motion Pictures. Despite some flaws in the filming, like in one of the shots you can see a studio light and you can hear trucks in the back, this movie fooled a lot of people and is a great movie to see. Last we have the Shining. Now even if you haven’t seen this film you have definitely heard of it about being one of the greatest scary movies ever. This whole film is based on an hotel in Colorado called The Stanley Hotel. The Stanley is well know to be haunted and this movie is based Stephen King’s 1977 novel. Jack Nicholson plays a crazed writer who is taking care of the Overlook Hotel in Colorado. As the winter goes on in this hotel Jack slowly goes more and more crazy and son tries to kills his wife and son. This film features blood filled hallways and creepy twins that were murdered by their own father. It also features the famous REDRUM in the mirror. Nothing comes close to how amazingly terrifying this movie is and it is a must see. By Laurel Preston By now the name Colin Kaepernick is well known around the country, maybe even the world, for being the man who kneeled at the star spangled banner. Many people were outraged by this and many thought that this act was unpatriotic. Though the main feedback for the act was negative, there was another side who said he had the right to kneel if he felt like he wasn’t being treated in a fair way. Kaepernick explains that it was not the country he was mad at but yet some of the people in it.
Racism has been going on for years and this small act had a big influence on its timeline. Kaepernick, as of late, has not gotten any new invitations to play with the NFL but instead Nike has come forth and offered to feature Colin in their 30th anniversary ad for “Just Do It” The ad features Kaepernick's face and in bold text it says “Believe in something. Even if it means sacrificing everything.” This in reference to what he had to sacrifice in order to stand up for something he really believed in. Whether you like him or not you still have to agree that it was very brave what he did. Kaepernick’s peaceful protest in 2016 has sparked many other athletes and nonathletes to take a stand. There has even been one like this close to home. Last year Clear Creek Amana senior Darius Moore kneeled at the star spangled banner just like Colin Kaepernick. This led to a very hateful snapchat and many serious conversations given by the principal and vice principal about attitude in Clear Creek Amana. Survice to say Colin Kaepernick is a legend for doing what he did and the tons of hate that he did get was not deserved. I really like this guy and I know he has feelings for me too! But he only ever Snapchats or texts me. We never talk in person and it almost seems like he's avoiding me. I feel like I did something wrong. I want to get to know him better so badly. What can I do? Desperately, No face time, just FaceTime Dear No face time just FaceTime,
In this generation, this problem is not uncommon at all. Don't feel bad or like you did something "wrong." First, let's look at the positives. He likes you back! Yay! That's a win! It can, however, be incredibly frustrating when they only talk to you online. My advice is to be open and confront them gently. Let him know that you really like him and that you'd like to spend time with him. Chances are he's scared of you. When you're interested in someone it's nerve-wracking. You don't want to say or do anything wrong. Relieve that pressure and let him know that you're not going to be judgmental. Plan a relaxed date like going to shoot hoops, the movies, or the dog park. These are all things with a set activity so you don't have to be worried about filling empty space with awkward small talk. Good luck! Polly As summer gets closer, graduation party invitations start rolling in. Parties are held at many different venues like small event centers, VFW’s, bars/patios, or even just at home. Locations are usually based on the number of people that will be in attendance or just the host’s and family’s preference.
My three siblings, who have all graduated before I even reached high school, had their grad parties at our home; this made me realize that people really don’t need to go anywhere other than home to have a good party. All three parties were at our house using our garage and a big tent. Although 200 plus showed up, it still went amazing, with great food like homemade tacos and Mexican rice, and cake. It also went great because there were other things set up to do other than sit in the garage or tent, like playing bags with friends, or having your kid go play wiffle ball in the back yard. I personally like the idea of just having a party at home. The fact that you get to enjoy everything in the comfort of being home instead of having to set up somewhere else, plus setting things up right outside your house that you have made a lot of your memories up to this point gives more of a home feel than doing it somewhere else. Plus when your whole extended family knows right where home is, it makes it even a little more special than needing an address. More and more people have started to have their parties away from home, which isn’t always a bad thing, unless you have a smaller budget. Parks, bars, and event centers will usually have deals for grad parties, not always cheap ones, but honestly to some people that really isn’t an issue. There are many options out there for a good graduation party, and it really doesn’t matter where it is as long as it’s fun and the person graduating enjoys it. Because it is for them. And when said and done that is the main thing that matters. Lil Pump posing in front of a flashy sports car By: Jake Orban
Hip-Hop once was a platform to express inner thoughts and problems that occur within a musician’s life. Many tracks are riddled with messages of emotional and mental struggles, feeling victimized by racial profiling and even the attempt of overcoming drug abuse. This form of Hip-Hop was formed in the mid 80s, but has seemingly vanished by the mid 2000s. The reason this once highly coveted music genre almost completely died off is because of the newest wave of “cloud rap.” The two genres are night and day, as the new wave of hip-hop glorifies violence, self harm, and not overcoming but yet succumbing to drug abuse. As far as lyrical complexity goes, well… there is none. The music world still has the J-Cole’s and Kendrick Lamar’s who are pushing the revival of lyrically complex and meaningful message poetic like rap, but on the other end of the spectrum, the world has it’s Lil Pump’s and Playboi Carti's. Where they push the use of drugs and then push the use of drugs and then finally push the use of drugs. Its over saturated! Gucci Gang was a platinum hit for Lil Pump, but, he said “Gucci Gang” fifty three times. It's like listening to a broken record player that keeps repeating the same part of a song. Not to mention the lyrics are just him gratifying his consumption of prescription drugs. Music is a huge influence on the American youth, as many teenagers have found an interest in hip-hop. As you’d suspect, just like the musicians they listen to, teenagers have replicated their favorite musicians drug abuse tendencies. The question we must ask not only our youth but the musicians that influence them is when will this stop? When will musicians stop glorifying the use of drugs and trying to exhibit the use of drugs to be “cool” or “lit”?
By Rori Wagner Music is influential for many people and the music I listen to is mainly ones my dad and sister enjoy.
My dad has always introduced the 80’s and his own style of music. In terms of what he likes to listen to he says, “Kiss and about everything [else].” My sister, listens to country songs and older hits since our dad has shown them to us. With my other family members listening to so much old music I have my own older music that I enjoy listening to.
Overall I live by the saying an oldie is a goodie since my family has introduced many older hits to me since I was young. By Dylan Sheely As your average high schooler, I spend at least one night a week at one of my schools sporting events. From football in the fall, to soccer in the spring. The student section is always packed, the cheers are always loud. While school administrators try to keep things PG-13, I won’t lie and tell you the referees don’t get slandered. And while the words and their actions may be over exaggerated, I have to admit it is getting easier and easier to find flaws in the referees calls.
This past monday, my peers and I got out first opportunity to watch our girls soccer team compete in their first home game. Many of us were excited to see how the team would perform after losing almost half their starting squad to graduation the year before. However, we soon learned that the focus of the game would be hogged by the ref’s mistakes, instead of our girl’s play. Early on in the first half, the other team was using an offensive opportunity to attack the goal. As the team advanced, a pass was made to a player that was quite obviously offsides. As one might expect, the line judge held up her flag to indicate the call. However, play continued and the ref chose not to blow her whistle, allowing for the other team to get an easy shot and net an easy goal. At this moment, many of us students were left in confusion? “What is she doing?” “Why didn’t she blow the whistle?” Many questions were asked but we were left without answers as play continued. We remained optimistic however, as the game was only tied at 1-1. Later on in the game, the opponents were yet again on the attack. As they passed through our defense, they made an errand pass near the corner of the of the field of play. The ball traveled past it’s target and ricocheted off the orange cone on the ground holding up the corner kick flag. According to probably every soccer rule book ever made, this should be considered out of bounds. However, as three refs watched on, play continued and the game wasn’t stopped, leading to yet another goal for the opposition. To make this long story just a tad bit shorter, the game ended in double overtime, 5-4 with the opposing team coming out on top. If you take those two goals away from the other team, the games end in regulation with a 4-2 victory to the home faithful. While I understand both these instances happened in the same game, things like this are happening on a daily basis in high school sporting events across the state of Iowa. The focus has shifted from how good will our favorite players do to what mistakes that ref’s will make to change the course of the game. We are at a point where things need to change. The state needs to make a major impact to find suitable refs for high school sporting events before these sports become unwatchable. By Rori Wagner Photo courtesy of Pixabay Have you ever watched a movie and wondered if it got the facts right? Or if it was 100% accurate to the history it’s based on?
Most movies aren’t completely accurate to what event, or set of events, they are basing the film off of. Early childhood teacher, Danielle Wagner, believes that,“Sometimes movies have it right and sometimes they have it wrong it just depends on the type of movie you want to watch.” Personally, I like to watch films that are as accurate to the history they are trying to replicate as possible, with still knowing that filmmakers need to make an appealing movie to the majority of people. With this in mind, I was outraged to learn that two of my favorite movies were getting the facts wrong. One being a childhood classic for me, Hercules by Disney. This film is directed by Ron Clements and John Musker and came out in 1997. It is based on Greek myths which teach moral lessons to children and adults alike. The movie follows Hercules, the son of Zeus and Hera, where soon after his birth he is poisoned by Hades’ demons and also follows his journey as a young man to get back to Mount Olympus. This all sounds all fine and dandy until looking into the original myths. The first fact I noticed that Disney seemed to miss is the main character’s name. In the movie his name is Hercules. In Greek myth it is Heracles and the only connection between these two names is that Hercules is the Roman version of Heracles. This is a detail that I thought might have been left out for children’s sake. Remembering my mom telling me that it is difficult for young children, who would typically watch this type of movie, to pronounce certain words. Danielle Wagner told me after hearing the two names that in her opinion, “Heracles is easier to pronounce because [children] already know how to say hair which is the beginning of the word.” With this in mind, there seems to be a lack of reason for changing the name of Heracles when the rest of the characters in the film are known under their Greek names. Another flaw in this movie is Hercules’ mother. In Greek myths, his mother is a mortal woman named Alcmene. In the film, his mother is Hera, Zeus’ wife. One reason I came up with for changing this fact was to hide Zeus’ affairs from children who are not yet ready to see that kind of information. Danielle Wagner seemed to agree saying, “For a children’s movie I don’t think it should be totally accurate. Because they are at a different developmental level of understanding and may not be ready for certain explicit content.” This change seems to benefit younger viewers which in the long run is better for the movie’s success and impact towards children and their parents. Another film that I really enjoyed watching was DC Comics’ new movie, Wonder Woman. The film is based off past comics about Wonder Woman that DC already created. Wonder Woman was directed by Patty Jenkins and came out in 2017. The movie follows Diana Prince, an Amazonian, that has grown up on the island Amazon her whole life and has trained to be an Amazonian warrior. Her sheltered life all changes when a pilot crashes into the waters surrounding Amazon. He speaks of a war that is like none he has ever seen before. This intrigues Diana and she goes to the outside world to stop the war, World War II, and stop Ares, the Greek god of war. Again the movie sounds great, but when looking into the Greek myths you are met with an intriguing connection to this film. That connection is that Artemis, the goddess of the hunt, has a Roman name just like Heracles and that Roman name is Diana. Diana Prince is clearly not meant to be Artemis, but when the film claims she is a god there is something left to find out. Like is Diana Artemis? Or is this just a coincidence? Diana and Artemis seem to have a lot of similarities. A few being that, both of them are strong powerful woman and gods. There are also differences between them as well. Such as, Diana being sculpted from clay and Artemis being the offspring of Zeus and the Titaness Leto. Another difference is that Artemis is strongly connected to the forest and Diana seems to have no connection to nature. Diana could be Artemis, but there are too many differences to tell for sure. Films may not always be accurate, but sometimes it’s the story that stands out. And sometimes accuracy is not always in the best interest of viewers. Sources: “Artemis • Facts and Information on Greek Goddess Artemis.” Greek Gods & Goddesses, 2010, greekgodsandgoddesses.net/goddesses/artemis/. IMDb. “Hercules (1997).” IMDb, IMDb.com, www.imdb.com/title/tt0119282/. Karas, Michael, and Charilaos Megas. “Hercules | Heracles.” Greek Mythology, Michael Karas, 1997, www.greekmythology.com/Myths/Heroes/Heracles/heracles.html. “Wonder Woman (2017).” IMDb, IMDb.com, www.imdb.com/title/tt0451279/. |
|