On Thursday, February 23rd, “Evening On Aux” had the pleasure of having the members of almost monday on the show for an interview. Capping off their recent North American tour with a hometown show that night at the Music Box, almost monday had a lot to celebrate. Additionally, their latest single “only wanna dance” was released that night, commemorating a undeniably exciting start to the new year. In this interview with KCR radio, the band reflected on their tour, favorite spots to eat, current inspirations, and future musical endeavors. Listen in to find out more!
JAWNY, the self-described “sad boy” singer-songwriter, is continuing the narrative as he is gearing up to release his long-awaited debut album, which is set to arrive on March 3rd of this year. The 27-year-old sensation, who rose to fame in 2019 with his hit single “Honeypie” has been teasing fans with snippets of his new music for months.
Now, with the announcement of his upcoming album, it’s never fair, always true, fans are eagerly awaiting the release of the full project. The album is said to reveal a mix of different sides to JAWNY’s songwriting capabilities, he shares with us his motivation behind the process, explaining that he wanted to make the “dream record” he wished he could have created when he was younger, and do it in a way that “start[s] super happy, super tongue and cheek, super indie, super fun, and then somehow by the last song you’ve somehow gotten to the saddest place you could ever possibly get to as a human and it all makes sense.” Additionally, JAWNY wanted to ensure the album was a “cohesive body of work that all had a through story line and [didn’t] just sound like a
bunch of songs thrown together and called an album.” After taking a long time to complete, he is proud of the final product and excited for the world to hear it.
JAWNY has already released two singles from the album, “true” and “strawberry chainsaw,” and both have been met with critical acclaim. The tracks are noted to be upbeat and full of emotion. The album will also feature a collaboration with artist Beck, who has supported JAWNY in his music journey.
Image from IT’S NEVER FAIR, IT’S ALWAYS TRUE artwork
In a recent press release, JAWNY shared with our outlet that he hopes the album will “have a song for whatever mood someone is in that day or whatever someone is going through. JAWNY’s aim for his discography is to provide music for all kinds of emotions and experiences that can be shared by many. He wants to craft stories that can apply to multiple people, irrespective of their backgrounds and feelings.
JAWNY’s approach to songwriting is highly unique. He prefers to “fake a song into existence” rather than take influence from what is currently trending in the music industry. He puts a lot of effort into his lyrics and often tells stories in his songs. He also makes sure that the music he creates is authentic to him, rather than trying to copy other artists. The result of JAWNY’s hard work is his debut album, it’s never fair, always true. It is a collection of songs that range in sound and have something for everyone.
JAWNY’s upcoming album is sure to be a hit and will surely cement his status as one of the most exciting new artists of the year. Fans can look forward to hearing more from JAWNY in the coming months and an opportunity to see him perform live as he takes the stage on March 3rd in San Diego to kick off his North American Tour.
SDSU held a panel at this year’s San Diego Comic-Con about the upcoming Major and Minor in Comic Studies here at SDSU. It was such an exciting thing to witness, not only as my first time at SDCC, but also as a student at SDSU to see so many faculty speaking about comics in such a passionate and educational way. The panel structured how the upcoming curriculum would lay out as well as all the various focuses that can be selected within the Comics Studies area.
The faculty talked about how the long history of great artists that have been creating comics for 100’s of years had inspired them to look into this possible future education path. But it wasn’t until they all noticed that so many professors were making small, one off classes focused on pop culture and comics that they realized how viable this curriculum could be.
During the pandemic, the staff spent months over Zoom putting together the curriculum to win SDSU’s Great Big Idea Program, a grant given to those projects that SDSU deems worth it. What they currently have created is 4 workshops open to the public (one a semester) with the aim of Fall 2024 to have one new Comic Studies Certificate. There are many different focuses revolving around comics such as censorship, global panic, and even the LGBTQ+ movement. The specific image below showcases the modern iterations of comics’ example of “Queer Coding”, which will be one of the focuses in an upcoming course.
If any of this is of interest, there is currently the Center for Comics Studies at San Diego State University which explores all types of comics through an analytical and research-oriented approach. Within SDSU’s library, you can have access to over 100,000 comics, learn about how comics can transform humanity, and even join an active student comics club.
There are many exciting new programs coming to San Diego State University, and pretty soon Comic Studies will be jumping off the page and into the classroom.
Tai Verdes performed on the main stage of San Diego’s House of Blues on 4/20
Tai Verdes got his start on Tik Tok with his song “Stuck In The Middle” which quickly became a viral hit. He has also debuted songs such as “A-O-K,” “Sheesh!,” and “DRUGS,” which have all seen success on Tik Tok and even made their way over to mainstream radio. With Tai’s newfound stardom, he has been able to turn his Tik Tok hobby into a music career and was able to quit his job at Verizon Wireless.
Tai Verdes had a fantastic set that had fans dancing and singing to every song. When looking into the crowd, it was very obvious that Tai has many dedicated fans. It is quite rare for an artist who starts on Tik Tok to have a big and dedicated fanbase outside of social media, but it appears that Tai Verdes was able to break that barrier.
Tai Verdes, photo credits: Faren Holland
His music style is very happy and positive. He even took time during his set to speak to the audience and encourage everyone to follow their dreams, just like he did. I have never felt so uplifted by an artist; it was like a concert and a motivational speech all in one.
Tai Verdes brought his own band with him which consisted of a bass player, guitar player, and drummer. They did a great job performing and interacting with each other. The energy between Tai and the band was contagious and just watching them have fun up on stage made me have an even better time in the audience. At one point during the set, Tai even jumped down into the audience and walked around while singing.
Tai Verdes, photo credits: Faren Holland
Tai Verdes has a song called “DRUGS” which is about doing drugs to “change his mind up,” as quoted from the lyrics. Since the show was on 4/20, obviously, this song was a big hit. It was such a crowd-pleaser during the main set that when the crowd was chanting for an encore, Tai and his band performed “DRUGS” again and it was just as big a hit. He even lit up a blunt and passed it around the stage with his band to celebrate.
Overall this concert was very good and entertaining. Tai Verdes’ ultra-positive personality and music paired with the crowd’s energy made for a very enjoyable night. I would highly recommend going to see Tai Verdes live. Whether you’re a superfan or just know a few songs, it will be a great time.
Written by: Faren Holland
KCR College Radio: The Sound of State
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