Millennial News: Can Miley do anything right?

by Melissa Scott, Writing Intern

Photo by Jason Merritt/Getty Images for MTV

Last Sunday (August 24), Miley Cyrus usurped attention again at the 31^st annual MTV Video Music Awards show. This time it wasn't a self-promotional move. No twerking took place. This year, Cyrus elected to raise awareness for the millions of homeless youth in the United States. When her “Wrecking Ball” single was announced as the winner of the Video of the Year, it was instead Cyrus’ handsome and unassuming date, Jesse Helt, who took to the stage.

Helt nervously but clearly urged a live audience, and a nation of television viewers, to support homeless youth. Dressed in a simple black suit, he read from a handwritten speech, explaining the situation he and many other invisible homeless individuals face on a daily basis. “I am accepting this award on behalf of the 1.6 million runaways and homeless youth in the United States who are starving and lost and scared for their lives. I know, because I am one of those people,” he announced to the hushed crowd of celebrities and fans. “I have survived in shelters all over this city…The music industry will make over $7 billion this year, and outside these doors are 54,000 human beings who have no place to call home.”

Helt admitted that while he was from Oregon, he was currently homeless and living on the streets of Hollywood. “I’ve cleaned your hotel rooms, I’ve been an extra in your movies, I’ve been an extra in your life,” he stated, while Cyrus stood nearby in tears. He ended his speech pleading viewers to learn more about homelessness by going to Cyrus’ Facebook page, where she launched a campaign during the broadcast to stop youth homelessness.

Cyrus’s (and Helt’s) statement met surprise even to the people of MTV, who had no idea that Cyrus would be sending Helt to accept the award. According to Mashable, only rapper Juicy J, who was seated next to Cyrus during the show, knew what was coming.

PR reps reported that Marlon Brando inspired Cyrus by his actions at the 1973 Academy Awards. Brando sent Sacheen Littlefeather to accept his award for Best Actor for his role in The Godfather. But unlike the general applause Helt received, Littlefeather attempted to read Brando’s statement on boycotting the ceremony, in protest of Hollywood’s treatment of Native Americans, amidst vicious taunts. In fact, throughout the relatively brief history of music award ceremonies, onstage protests from winners register a surprisingly small number. Past bands famously declined entrance to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but only a handful of artists managed to walk on stage and use their award-winning moment to make a political statement.

Photo by Mark Davis/Getty Images

Rather than allow Cyrus to take the spotlight of something worthwhile for once, the media remained resolute in finding something wrong with her efforts. With intent to derail, the attention turned instead upon Helt. People Magazine went so far as to obtain his court records, which showed an arrest warrant from November 2011, after Helt violated his probation for the third time, resulting in a six month suspended jail sentence should he falter again. The probation stemmed from an incident in October 2010, when he tried to rob the home of one of his drug dealers. Helt pled guilty to the robbery, and was later convicted of attempted burglary and criminal mischief. Inside Edition also spoke with an Oregon court official about Helt’s criminal history, and Billboard contacted the Salem police department and confirmed the 2010 incident. The media outlets showed no mercy towards Helt (or Cyrus), sharing his charges publicly last Tuesday night.

Cyrus responded to the criticisms of her VMA date with outrage. She argued that attacking Helt individually completely missed the point of her message, and what she tried to accomplish for homeless youth.  She tweeted, “People who are homeless have lived very hard lives, Jesse included... I hope this can be the start of a national conversation about homelessness and how to end it.” Cyrus further inquired, “Does looking down upon the homeless help people excuse their inaction? The media never fails to disappoint. You’ve chosen to go after Jesse instead of covering the issue of youth homelessness.” Finally she concluded, “While they obsess over one homeless man’s legal issue lets help the other 1.6 million homeless youth,” and added a link to a contest, where fans can donate $5 or more to help the charity, My Friend’s Place, a homeless center for young people in Hollywood.

Luckily the media’s fervor to ceaselessly put Cyrus in a bad light did not attenuate the reach of her message. Within 24 hours of Helt’s speech, donations to My Friend’s Place poured in, and continue to do so despite news of an alleged criminal past. Helt even turned himself in and posted bail at the Polk County Jail in Dallas, Oregon last night, August 28.  He received support not only from Cyrus, but the local Dallas community, who announced their continued commitment to working alongside Cyrus and Helt to help the other 1.6 million youth who experience homelessness in America each year. The media may have missed Cyrus’ point, but viewers did not.

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Indie Music: Vision the Kid & Tru "Somewhere in a Dark City"

by Germar Derron

I thought “Macklemore and Ryan Lewis” before I ever saw a picture. I think that’s a good thing.  In a world where the name Macklemore is tossed around in reigning king conversations, this could work. Throughout the album (Somewhere in a Dark City), the good and bad components remained consistently good and bad. 

Vision the Kid is a versatile lyricist.  That’s all I want for Christmas and most other days of the year.  I love Eminem, L.L., Tupac, Lauryn Hill, and even Fresh Prince because on any given track, album, or day they might sound like a different person. Fortunately, all of those persons are dope. VTK is not there yet, but “there” is a possibility.

Everything on the album, outside of VTK’s lyrics and delivery, is fairly problematic. Tru is a good producer, but this just may not be a match made in heaven. The album reminds me of standing in an Arizona club on "Yeezus and Hov Night."  The music was hot, but we all stood there looking around like, “what do we do.”  You can’t really dance to that, and it’s difficult to get a good bounce going. So, I stood in the corner with my girlfriend and a couple of other girls, yelled the lyrics I knew and moved awkwardly.  I wouldn't bump Somewhere in a Dark City at a party, and maybe not in my car – that’s a problem.

Like much of indie music, the hooks here are bait-less.  The best hook may come courtesy of Lizzy Fontaine and a beautiful guest vocal on “All Goes Away.”  I thought “Sunday Morning” was easily the hottest track at that point in the album, but then the hook happened . . . . 

“Lucky You” seems straight from the Macklemore playbook.  It contains one of the best choruses, and some serious instrumentality. 

This album may fit the genre too well. The best thing about indie music, is hearing the rules break, and the passion pour out . . . the true artistry. Here, that’s lost a bit. This sounds like the offspring of any major label smash hit, and every underground sound of the last 20 years. It’s a recap, where I’d prefer groundbreaking and groundbreaking feels possible.

“Roll Call” reminds me of a young D12.  I hear it and see friends on a corner passing a mic.  This isn't “Control” or even “Forever.”  It feels more like a crew and one that’s better than any I've heard in a while.

While the album didn't blow my mind, I wouldn't mind adding it to my iPod.  I’d give it three of five stars.

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Taylor Swift shakes into the Appropriation Olympics

by Melissa Scott, Writing Intern

Photo from Flickr

Taylor Swift’s “Shake It Off” debuted as the lead single from her fifth studio album, 1989, on August 18. Yahoo! Live Stream first played the song for fans around the world. The attached quirky music video received over six million hits on Youtube within a few days. But while her song advocated little more than a hearty disregard for “the haters,” the implications of her video sparked some controversy.

In the video, Swift played around with a gimpy, awkward image of herself.  She adopted a number of personas, including a Lady Gaga knockoff, a ballet dancer, a cheerleader, and a rapper. Her efforts to imitate the surrounding dancers in the different genres was abysmal. 

“I love the idea that you could tell who someone is by how they dance,” Swift explained during a 30-minute live stream with Yahoo on Monday. “My idea was that life itself and who people actually are, can be greatly reflected in how they dance. And I don't mean how good you are; I mean your willingness to dance,” she continued. “We basically decided that we would get this huge group of incredible, professional, dancers, of all different types of dances, and throw me into the middle of them and see what happens.”

However, the video frequently returned to shots of Swift dancing alongside twerking, break-dancing African American back-up dancers. Although she may have intended to mock herself, people spoke out about a perceived mockery of African American culture.

Rapper Earl Sweatshirt, from hip hop collective Odd Future, voiced his resentment towards Swift’s latest video performance. Earl tweeted three unflinching objections to her portrayal of the dancing. “Haven't watched the Taylor Swift video and I don't need to watch it to tell you that it's inherently offensive and ultimately harmful.” He added indignantly, “Perpetuating black stereotypes to the same demographic of white girls who hide their prejudice by proclaiming their love of the culture.” . . . “For instance, those of you who are afraid of black people but love that in 2014 it's ok for you to be trill or twerk or say n---a.”

Earl’s bandmate, Flan Emoji, dissented in the Daily Mail, “You know what this Taylor Swift video is missing? Some nice graffiti by Bieber. Let's be urban, everyone!”

In addition, women’s interest blog Jezebel griped that Swift “picked the wrong week for this sappy, ready-made Target commercial cut where she celebrates her true self by crawling through a bridge of brown and black women’s butts.” Prachi Gupta of Salon also denounced the video. “[She] may not be twerking, but she is participating in racial cross-dressing, blanketed in gold chains and sporting a tight updo, a white woman dressed as a caricature of a black woman, leading a team of black backup dancers,” Gupta argued. “The image is jarring, and is hard not to wonder if this is what Taylor Swift thinks it means to ‘be black,’ and if so, how troubling that is.”

Youtube personality Lilly Singh disagreed. In response to Sweatshirt’s criticism, the Indo-Canadian Singh tweeted “SMH to people thinking @Swiftswift13 new video is racist. I'm going to rent out an entire theatre so you can take SO many seats. #stop.” She persisted, “I speak ONLY on behalf of myself but when @selenagomez wears a bindi in her music video, I'm not upset. Culture should be shared.”

Lilly referred to Selena Gomez’ portrayal of Indian classical dance in her “Come and Get It” music video.

Miley Cyrus - photo from Flickr

But Selena’s video incorporated the dancing as a tool for empowerment, and audacity. She enfolded herself among a group of dancers, perfectly synchronizing their movements. Selena “shared” Indian culture in a positive light; she made it alluringly superior.

Meanwhile, in her video, Swift deviated from the cultural dance moves and infused inanity with each step. Her tone insinuated ridicule; Selena’s tone shouted liberation. They couldn’t be more different. Lilly’s encouragement of shared culture is fair enough, but the representation of the cultures separated the two videos.

Swift’s video poked fun at herself, but also at African American culture. An unspoken theme could be “look at these stupid dance moves.” So was the message: African American dancing is stupid? The video’s appropriation of black culture merited a critical eye, but I’m not sure Swift is to blame. Miley Cyrus’ installation of “white girl twerking” sparked an adoption of a subtext-like mockery of African American culture. Swift’s controversial video mirrored the attitudes of too many people treating “black” culture as a joke. Earl and Flan made noteworthy points: are we overstepping racial boundaries, or simply being “urban?”

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The Ice Bucket Challenge

by Melissa Scott, Writing Intern

The Ice Bucket Challenge dominates social media. Everyone, from Justin Timberlake to Ethel Kennedy, poured a bucket of ice water over their head, then challenged others do the same, or else make a donation to fight ALS.  Once a person or group is challenged, they have 24 hours to complete the task.

Countless videos of people dumping ice water over their heads continue to clog my Facebook newsfeed. #icebucketchallenge.

I only just realized that the Ice Bucket Challenge is purposed for combatting ALS or “Lou Gehrig’s Disease.” ALS is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord. My confusion about the specific target of the challenge derived from emphasis placed in the videos. Few people explain the challenge’s purpose in their videos. The ones who do, rush through the introduction, eager to list the newly nominated friends and reach the cold-water action. Even celebrities forget this most important piece of the challenge. 

Matt Lauer’s Ice Bucket Challenge--broadcast on the Today Show—did not include a reference to ALS at all. I Googled "ALS" to understand what it was, and to appreciate the seriousness of the disease.

Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images

In addition to the lack of emphasis on ALS itself, the whole act of the ice bucket dumping is contradictory. The challenge provides two choices: 1) either douse yourself in freezing water within 24 hours of nomination, or 2) donate $100 to ALS research. 

The ALS Association officially describes the rules, “The challenge involves people getting doused with buckets of ice water on video, posting that video to social media, then nominating others to do the same, all in an effort to raise ALS awareness. Those who refuse to take the challenge are asked to make a donation to the ALS charity of their choice.”

In theory, the freezing water is an incentive to donate the money, since donating could be the more viable and comfortable option of the two, for many people. Those who choose the ice bucket are supposedly choosing not to donate the money. Judging by social media posts, the non-donors make up a sizable group. This is fun, and engaging, but the goal of the challenge is the contributions and awareness, not the viral social media fame.

I won’t deny the ALS Association’s success in raising awareness. The sudden and viral nature of the challenge videos demonstrates this. Those who participate, at the very least, contribute to spreading awareness, even without donating. The challenge-acceptors, who neglect to acknowledge ALS’s importance in their videos, at least spark enough interest in others.  Those others might go on to do the relevant research. 

But I doubt that lighthearted videos and tweets of wet participants smiling and laughing helps their cause much. ALS awareness might be the ostensible aim, but the Ice Bucket Challenge videos tend to feature people promoting only themselves. My reproach quavers, however, when I look at how much money the challenge actually helped raise to further ALS research.

Questionable publicity aside, the Ice Bucket Challenge amassed $4 million over the last two weeks, as opposed to the $1.1 million raised in the same period last year. In fact, ALS Association-wide donations broke a single-day record this week with a whopping $1.9 million! So while the high activity of the ice buckets should indicate that people choose not to donate, the numbers show otherwise.

Some people, like Jimmy Fallon, publicly announced their choice to commit to both options – they get drenched, but still donate. Others, such as President Obama, preferred to donate to ALS and stay dry.  Knowing that this money goes toward treating people with an incurable and deadly disease, has slowed my criticism of the challenge. I’ve decided that the ends justify the means in this case.

A friend nominated me, via Facebook. I’ve already mentally planned the water dumping, and my nominations. I fell into the same trivial trap of staging my awesome challenge, for social media me.  I do plan to donate the suggested $100, and now I understand the benefits of that donation. If the Ice Bucket Challenge trend ultimately helps others, does it really matter if social media frivolity is a by-product?

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Bieber v. Bloom: Who’s to blame?

by Melissa Scott, Writing Intern

Photo by Angela Weiss/Getty Images for Variety

After spending three months as a criminal defense intern, I have a new appreciation for the phrase, “there’s always two sides to a story.” I’ve seen good, bad, and ugly. I found it challenging to assist clients who had committed violent and unnerving crimes. Other times, I felt immeasurably proud to represent clients accused wrongly or unjustly. It’s a rickety role to take on, and certainly a job bounded by blurred lines.

I used the knowledge gained from the internship in this analysis of Orlando Bloom’s recent brawl with Justin Bieber.

As a defense intern, I would first go to the scene of the crime and assemble the most accurate and unbiased account of the occurrence.

Bieber and Bloom congregated at the Cipriani restaurant in Ibiza, Spain, on Tuesday night or early Wednesday morning, along with a handful of other celebrities.  The crowd included Leonardo DiCaprio, Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, and Diddy. Bloom made his way past Bieber’s table. Bieber offered a handshake. Bloom refused.

In response, Bieber made a snide remark regarding his own involvement in the alleged infidelity of Bloom’s ex-wife, Miranda Kerr. In an apparent retaliation, Bloom swung a fist aimed at Bieber’s face. He missed. Although Bloom missed his target, that fact merely changes the crime from assault to attempted assault.

Next, I might dig into the dirtier details of those involved.  Is there a history between the assaulter and victim? What was the reaction of witnesses and bystanders? What events may have occurred afterwards as a result of the dispute?

The bad blood between the two stars began with the 2012 Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show.  Bieber was seen getting forward and flirtatious with Bloom’s wife at the time—gorgeous Victoria’s Secret model Miranda Kerr. Bieber and Miranda allegedly partied after the show and sent dirty texts to each other. Reportedly, the fashion show Bieber-Kerr buzz led to growing tension between her and Bloom. The married couple separated in October 2013, less than a year later. Additionally, the newly single Bloom was later seen spending time with Bieber’s incessantly on-again off-again ex-girlfriend, Selena Gomez, in April.

Back at the Cipriani, after the punch was thrown, the restaurant erupted in cheers and claps. Eye witness Spanish journalist Anastasia Skolkova reported, “It was amazing. Everyone stood up and started watching like it was a show and clapping. ... DiCaprio was flipping out.” It seems to be pretty clear what attitude the bystanders had in regards to the confrontation.

Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

Bieber retaliated, as he would, through social media. He uploaded two inflaming pictures to his Instagram: one of a weeping Bloom, and a racy shot of Miranda in a bikini. He deleted both images within an hour of posting them.

Celebrities not involved in the squabble used social media to flash their responses to the event. Joshua Malina jokingly tweeted, “This Justin Bieber/Orlando Bloom thing is the first time I've been interested in a featherweight match.” Stephen Colbert agreed in his tweet, “Orlando Bloom was in LOTR, married Miranda Kerr AND punched Justin Bieber? By my count his monkey paw only has 2 fingers left.”

Someone even created a Change.org petition asking President Obama to declare July 29 “National Orlando Bloom Day.” The petitioner asked that Bloom receive the honor for giving Bieber a “knuckle sandwich on behalf of the entire civilized world.”

Usually, victims spark sympathy. But every so often, the assaulter is seen in a better light, and the general consensus is supportive. Bloom may have thrown the punch, but Bieber’s hands are certainly not clean. It didn’t take an actual investigation to designate fair blame in this case.

             

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