The Controversy of ‘Euphoria’

‘Euphoria’ premiered in 2019 and in this short time has seen no shortage of people questioning the shows scenes and motives.

The most cynical reviewers seemed to be that of an elder generation, those who have not experienced the reality of high school in at least two decade. As someone who finished high school just two days before the show came out I would like to represent the other side.

The Cruel Reality of High School-

High school, while fun at points, is a gruelling process but one which no one is exempt from. Over the years school has become a place where aspects like drugs, bullying and sex are very prominent.

Euphoria represents it as just that, while in every day life high school drama is brushed off like it doesn’t matter by the older generation, euphoria brings a different light to it. It’s in your face, it’s there- clear as day and unapologetic. It isn’t pleasant and it isn’t trying to be, it’s showing how cruel and horrible drama that is brushed off is.

The Toxic Masculinity in High School-

High school is a place full of maturing teenagers with growing bodies and mindsets, because of this they are very susceptible to high school culture. A boys may be one that sees women as sexual objects, sports being the most important thing and typical masculine properties being important and this is shown in ‘euphoria’ through the ‘jocks’ like Nate and McKay, they never show their true selves because of the culture they’re surrounded by. This repression ends up in heinous acts to keep up this persona.

I often see the older generation compare Euphoria to the Netflix Hit ’13 Reasons Why’ because of the subject matter and triggering aspects. This comparison is most likely by people who have not seen either show. The reason i disagree with this is because ’13 Reasons Why’ seems to have trouble identifying itself in the message it’s trying to send and resultantly glorifies the Love & Suicide tale it tells. Euphoria does the opposite, while it tells a story of love and drugs it shows the grit of these two things. Rue’s drugs, while having a ‘euphoric’ effect, always end up causing a downside, whether that is shown through her loved ones or Rue’s very real depression set on screen. Teenage love is also shown to be a hard and painful process, the struggle with loyalty, the factor of trying to understand each other’s struggles but ultimately failing- none of it is shown to be something people want, even if there are nice moments.

Everyone’s acting in this show is near enough to perfect, adding to the believability of the reality shown. Zendaya, plays Rue Bennet, a drug addiction who has recently OD’d as she makes the transition back into school life, quickly falling in love with a new girl at school. Rue has no shortage of struggles as relapsing and depression are very prominent factors in her life. Hunter Schafer plays Jules, the new girl. If being the new kid wasn’t enough she also faces the struggles of being a transgendered person in society, although she quickly finds that Rue is the only person whose approval she cares about. The most surprising part of Hunter Schafer’s role is that she’s actually a first time actor which is frankly amazing considering how good she is.

Adding Sam Levinson’s talented writing and directing, beautiful cinematography and a stellar soundtrack to this ensemble makes euphoria a highly engaging and worthy watch.

This show pushes boundaries and does it well and I personally cannot wait for season 2.

The Genius of Blonde.

In August of 2016 Frank Ocean dropped 2 albums, endless and blonde- Endless was originally a live streamed video around 45 minutes long which depicts Ocean building a staircase while the albums tracks play.

Endless was relatively experimental, a moody album with dreamy aspects, something he made when he was in his feelings, raw and emotional and all the songs work. The album was good, really good.

We have come to understand that Endless was in fact a ploy for Ocean to get out of his with Def Jam Records. Ocean felt mistreated at Def Jam, like he was sidelined when he felt his talents should be treated with more weight. He wanted a new chapter but had to finish his contract before he could start that. Endless was released properly on the 19th of August and with some convincing, it was released exclusively on Apple Music and with that Ocean had completed his contact and was free.

Many fans thought Ocean was done. It had been 4 years since his debut album ‘Channel Orange’ and most thought it’d be another couple of years before his third but strangely, the very next day, Ocean released ‘Blonde’ under his own label, ‘Boys Don’t Cry’. This caught everyone of guard, no one knew about this album- not even some of the people featured. Another group that was caught off guard by this was Def Jam Records, not only had Ocean probably been using studio sessions for purposes other than Endless but this surprise also cost them the insane amount of $20,000,000.

‘Blonde’ has many aspects ranging from a hopeless love ballad to the mourning of a lost relationship. This ensemble proves to make Blonde a pretty stunning album.

My favourite part of ‘Blonde’ is in the song ‘Nights’, although an amazing song, Nights offers something more. Exactly 3 minutes and 30 seconds into the song a beat switch happens, this beat switch also happens exactly 30 minutes into the 1 hour runtime of the album. It’s more than a beat switch, it represents a mood switch, the tone of the album switching from a rather upbeat portrayal of someone falling in love to a tranquil and quieter mood showing the loss of that love and the mourning of it from then on.

This mood switch is best portrayed in ‘Facebook Story’, an interlude of sorts that tells the story of a producer, SebastiAn. The producer speaks of when a girl broke up with him because he wouldn’t accept her on Facebook. This story shows the ignorance of both sides in the relationship, possibly detailing how Ocean felt in the relationship ‘Blonde’ is about.

Loyle Carner- Music, Food and a perpetual love for his mum.

Loyle Carner sporting an vintage England shirt

Loyle Carner (Benjamin Coyle-Larner) is one of my favourite artists. His tone, flow, production and personality are some of the many reasons of this.

Loyle Carner’s first EP, A Little Late, has some of his best tracks on- BFG, October, Cantona and The Money are some of my personal favourites. BFG is a sad introductory song about the pressures and Ben’s struggle with stepping up helping his mum and brother after his stepfathers death. Loyle refers to his stepfather as Dad because of his minimal contact to his real father and I will also refer to Ben’s stepfather as his dad for the rest of this article. My Favourite song on the album is probably Cantona, This poetic ballad seems to speak once again on the death of Bens father- it speaks on his loneliness throughout the ordeal.

Loyle Carner’s early life was seemingly a struggle, from an early age he seemingly was recognised with ADHD and Dyslexia. He always says his ADHD is the best and worst thing to happen to him and in a way his name is a blessing from his dyslexia- His real name is Benjamin Coyle-Larner his joint hyphenated last name being of confusion and as that- Coyle Larner became Loyle Carner.

Loyle Carner’s debut album, yesterdays gone, was released on the 20th of January 2017, this album is one of the best albums of this decade- from start to finish it is an instant classic. He raps along melodies about how he feels and there are anecdotes scattered throughout consisting of conversations- one standing out of him talking to his mother about swearing- this showed his affection with his mother and gave the listeners a more personal look into Bens life. The final song on this album is a poem from Bens mum, Jean, about the their love and happenings in their live. It’s a touching ballad of their love.

Post Yesterday’s Gone was when Loyle Carner began to gain major traction- in 2017 he performed at Glastonbury bringing his mum out on stage- as he puts it the best moment of his career, Ben has also created a cooking school, it is one for kids with mental health problems, being that of ADHD, anxiety etc. It’s been in progress for a couple years now. Loyle also presented a new song that’s still unreleased. I’m hoping to see it before 2025. Loyle Carner also made headlines and a twitter moment after trading his tickets to shows for vintage football shirts- he now has a massive collection.

Ben and his producer, Rebel Kleff

Most recently Loyle Carner presented his new album, Not Waving, But Drowning. This album begins with a happy message to his mum about how he has met his girlfriend and is now moving out. The first side of the album seems to be sunny and joyful- it’s about love. The second side of the album seems to have a sadder tone but still suggests the same love-filled message but is about the deep thoughts and the heart in love. He also talks about his money – a present theme throughout all three projects. And he talks about his real father.

The Final Song on the album is a poem from his mum, again, this is described as better by Loyle- Jean talks about Ben getting a girlfriend, their struggles getting through the death of his dad and the way she feels for him. It’s a touching poem for Ben. The last line hits hard- ‘ for I have gained a daughter, I have not lost a son’ this references to ben’s fear that he has left his mother for his girlfriend.

Loyle Carner is a talented, young, brilliant artist with more to come. He keeps it real, always. He fills his songs with his heart. It’s full of love.

Signed,

Spike Aitchison