Pop Culture Journalism Class Blog

BY: RYAN WEISSER

A new form of music is taking over weekend raves. Instead of bubblegum techno and trippy dance tunes reminiscent of the disco age, warehouses filled with sweaty and intoxicated college students are pumping out dub-step, a genre of house music that prides itself on “making people’s ears bleed.”

At least that’s what Kayvon Nik, the creator of SauceWithThat.com and former George Mason University student, a music website dedicated to everything electronica, said.

Dub-step, house, moombahton and other forms of techno/electronica are the least bit traditional. There are hardly any instruments used besides a keyboard or electric piano and a switchboard fit for only the greatest of DJs.

“There are hardly any lyrics in a dub-step song, and if there are, you can bet they’ll be auto-tuned and altered,” said Nik, a 21-year-old from Vienna, Va. who transferred as a sophomore to Virginia Tech and is now a junior studying business information technology. “It’s a weird form of music that has A LOT of bass going on. But it’s also a very awesome experience for your ears – you never know what sound to expect next.”

Nik, while visiting friends at Mason, realized that the D.C.-area was a hub for this bass-thumping form of music.

“I’d never heard of so many people on a campus listening to dub-step before. It’s even playing at some of the restaurants on campus,” Nik said, who’s referring to a few Skrillex and Deadmau5 hits. “It’s unbelievably awesome. You know, the kids who listened to Deadmau5 and Daft Punk were the major weirdoes and probably druggies when I was growing up. Now, I see sorority girls and frat stars listening to Bassnectar on their way to class – it’s awesome.”

Nik puts only “the sickest of the sickest” tunes on his website.

“People want to listen to awesome music, and other than Pandora and Spotify, there’s no place to do that for free and without commercials,” Nik said. “So a few of my friends and I fixed that problem.”

SauceWithThat.com is still in its beginning stages, as Nik and the co-creators want to add style, fashion, art and other forms of media that go along with the “best and probably one of the most intelligent forms of music.”

“I think Mason students are really going to love seeing this site grow,” Nik said. “Mason seems so hip – excuse me if that sounds lame – but I feel like this campus loves new and different things and of course all things saucy.”

Well Mason is the place where “innovation is tradition” and students seem to be taking a liking to this new, different and definitely saucy form of music called dub-step.

“I’ve always liked dub-step and house music, but it’s never been one of my favorites until this year,” said Skyler King, a 20-year old Mason junior and government major from Murietta, Ca. “I was surprised to see them playing it at The Rat and at Ike’s, but I think it’s a nice change of pace.”

Alyssa Bilewski at first hated the dup-step music her boyfriend plays.

“But after a while it grew on me,” said the  20-year-old Mason forensic science major and sophomore from Woodbridge, Va. “Now I absolutely love it! It’s so interesting and upbeat — perfect for dancing.”

By Daniel Shyti
Sitting on a hill with a book, a flashlight, and a 12-pack of Yuengling, three young men sensed a rising force between them.

The book was The Outlaw Bible of American Poetry and the force was SELMA, a poetry collective based in the Metro Area.  With a transient membership of three to six participants, it has remained under the social media radar hosting only small readings and events in unpublicized locations.  Though knowledge of the group’s existence has spread only by word of mouth, members seem to believe that the private nature of their meetings is sufficient for their intended purpose.

“SELMA is the collective effort of a small group of young men to share their thoughts,” explains 20-year-old Matt Stone, a founding member.  “The sole purpose is to create an environment of emotional understanding, while moving forward as individuals and as a group.”

SELMA borrows its name from a plantation house in Lessburg built on land once owned by George Mason’s nephew, which is now a decrepit, B-list historic site.  This has a thematic correlation with SELMA’s literary influences, which range from Jack Micheline and D.A. Levy, to Sapphire and Ed Mabrey – all significant-yet-underappreciated American poets.  These are the poets who have been rocks in the river of the mainstream current, contributing to the volatility of what would otherwise be a calm, passive body.

The SELMA collective has only been active since fall of 2011 and has nonspecific plans for future events or publications.  Though they may be much less distinguished or prolific than the artists lifted above, their effort to perpetuate an unheralded art form puts their motivation in the vein of the greats that came before them.

Excerpts from untitled works by various authors:
You ebb and flow,
you’re shifiting gears,
smoothly,
truthfully transitioning,
one season to another.
Everyone, even my mother,
loves you.
—
Collapsed over the wheel,
the word “theft” blinking thick,
red on my skull.
I have tried to justify
the injustices of the world.
They have mistaken
my silence for arrogance.
I have failed
to yield on green.

BY: RYAN WEISSER

Target is notorious for teaming up with haute couture designers —  creating more affordable designs. The Missoni collection sold out in minutes — the latest designer is  Jason Wu whose designs – worn by Michelle Obama, Ivana Trump and January Jones.

Before now, Wu’s creations were out of reach for many Mason Students.

“I’m beyond excited to buy something from Jason Wu!” said Mary Kelly, a 20-year-old from Pittsburgh, Pa. a George Mason University sophomore studying history. “I feel like he’s young and up-to-date with what’s going on in the fashion world, and that really translates into his clothes.”

“Believe me,” Kelly said the week before the designs hit the store, “I’m going to be one of the first people at the doors when Target opens on Sunday.”

Wu quickly became the go-to designer for celebrities after his design for Michelle Obama’s inaugural dress was debuted in 2008. Ever since, his name has come up on red carpets everywhere.

“I absolutely adore Blake Lively’s style, and I’ve seen her wear a lot of Wu designs for red-carpet events,” said Regina Hechinger, a 21-year old Mason junior studying forensic science who is from Springfield, Va. “I’d love to be able to emulate her style when I’m out in D.C. with my friends or even just for class!”

Starting February 5, anyone can purchase a Wu design, and pull off the Lively-esque look, for the TV-infomercial price as $19.99. (The highest priced item is $59.99 — whereas his  Spring 2012 Collection that ranges in the thousands.)

There aren’t any fleecy items among Wu’s collection, yet the clothes still seem to be just as easy to throw on — a major bonus for the chronic snoozer and procrastinator.

“Wu’s dresses look like something I could just slip on with a pair of flats and run out the door. I could definitely get used to that,” said Kelly, who admits to waking up 10 minutes before class begins and throwing on a pair of yoga pants.

“I’m going to be at Target Sunday morning for sure,” said Hechinger, matter-of-factly. “I doubt the lines could be any worse than Black Friday and I’m ready to spend some money — but not too much, of course!”

Kelly and Hechinger, along with many other eager Mason students, managed to make it through the doorways of their local Target on Sunday morning, and fought there way to the check-out lines.

“I didn’t expect it to be SO packed!” said Kelly, remembering Sunday morning. “People were friendly and they didn’t really push or shove a whole lot, but there were a few who were really rude at check-out. I felt so bad for this one cashier!”

Heschinger bought a bunch of basics and lots of accessories, she says.

“My favorite purchase is probably my new Jason Wu handbag,” she said. “I can’t wait to use it!”

Flannel shirts, overalls, crimped hair, and scrunchies are all parts of the 1990s.

So is the high school sitcom “Saved by the Bell” — and one of the stars of the show — principal Mr. Belding was in D.C. last Saturday at Eden night club.

Vanilla Ice’s “Ice Ice Baby,” Spice Girls “Wannabe,” and Will Smith’s “Getting Jiggy With it” blared from the speakers. Party goers broke out their spandex leggings and Converse All-Stars.

“When I heard about the 90s party and Mr. Belding, I was so excited –I wanted to find a slap bracelet that night,” said Leslie Mathews, 26, student at George Mason University.

Around 11:20 p.m., the DJ announced that Mr. Belding was on the premises, and started to play the show’s theme song as club goers screamed for him in excitement and sang out loud to “I’m at the corner just in time to see the bus drive by.”

Dennis Haskins — who more people in the room knew as “Mr. Belding”– approached the DJ booth, thanked everyone for coming out that night, and said he would meet each and every person and take a picture with them. (There were about 60 fans in the club.)

As he put down the microphone, Mr. Belding fans either ran toward for a picture or sang along to the Saved by the Bell girls workout video track “put your mind to it and go for it, get down a break a sweat” which the DJ played as Haskins made his way onto the crowds level.

“I got my camera phone ready, handed it to a friend and ran up to him for a picture,” says Rebecca Grant, 31, a consultant in Fairfax, Va. “The thought of meeting Mr. Belding is just too cool. I know every word to the theme song. The show just makes me think of when I was younger. I wanted to be just like them, the coolest kids in school.”

By Victoria Miller

Right now the strongest drink you can buy at the campus Starbucks is a Venti Iced Americano.

But that could change — maybe soon students will be able to finish studying, and order a beer from their campus barrista.

Cafe style Starbucks serving beer and wine have been popping up around major metropolitan areas, adding beer and wine to the menu. Could the D.C area be next or better yet the Mason campus location?

“I think people would abuse it and just be wasted all the time,” Christina Talhame, 22, a student at George Mason University majoring in Communications.

It would definitely “spice things up,” says History Major, Danny Tran, 22, — a lot more than that

pumpkin spice latte.

And, it could definitely add to their campus clientele. Alex Thai, 21, a junior majoring in IT never goes to Starbucks now — but if the campus cafe serves stronger stuff, he’d be a regular.

“I’d be their number one customer,” he says.

By Zohra Alnoor

The smell of smoke from firecrackers filled the air in the Chinatown district of D.C. on Jan. 29, 2012. The annual Chinese New Year’s Parade was held last Sunday on H St. NW, between 6^th and 8^th Street. The parade, which lasted from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m., wound around the streets with thousands of spectators standing on the sidewalks, eager to catch a glimpse of the music, dance and fireworks. The event was broadcasted to more than 40 million people on various local news stations throughout the nation, from Fox channels to NBC, and the viewership continues to grow each year.

Now to brush up on our history of this annual event:  The Chinese New Year is 15-days long , starting with the New Moon on the first day of the new year and ends on the full moon two weeks later. The Lunar New Year is not only celebrated by the Chinese, but also many other Asian countries, Korea and Vietnam being just two of the many participators.

Annie Yu, a Fox 5 news reporter of Korean descent, covered the preparations of the DC New Years parade all week long, and also attended the event with her family.

“It was even better than I expected! It was great watching all of the organizer’s hard work finally coming together and being a great success,” said Yu, who celebrated the Lunar New Year with her relatives during the weekend, which included many of the same traditions that the Chinese have as well.

The Chinese celebration includes dedicating each year to a specific animal. The Dragon happens to be this years traditional animal, and it’s said that many Chinese families wait until the year of the Dragon to have children. Anyone born in this year gains respect and honor within their community and are seen to have good fortune and be very powerful. For this particular reason, the festivities this year were especially large.

“They had a huge firecracker go off and I think it scared everyone for a second. When we realized what it was, everyone started laughing and cheering,” said Farrah Fazily, a 22-year-old senior at Marymount University majoring in Nursing, who attended the parade.

“I had planned on leaving early and going to a museum, but the event was a lot more fun than I expected and we stayed for the whole thing,” said Fazily.

She loved everything from the traditional Chinese Dragon dance, to the Kung-fu demonstration to the appearance from the Washington Wizards Cheerleaders.

Many guests and performers dressed in red clothing; a tradition on the Chinese New Year that is meant to ward off evil spirits, and they wore bright and intricate makeup as well as fashionable jewelry and head pieces to match their cultural outfits.

“All of the Chinese-Americans were so happy to see people of other faiths and cultures attending and a lot of the stores were offering us extra helpings of their sample dishes. It made us feel really welcome,” said Fazily, who is a Muslim of American-Afghan descent. “This is an event that I will most definitely be attending annually from now on, and I suggest others do as well.”

____________________________________

by Karina Schultheis

Amid a sea of romantic comedies and horror-suspense movies, the highly-anticipated WWII film “Red Tails” premiered last month. Chronicling the lives of the nation’s first all-African American aerial combat unit, the production boasted household names like Terrance Howard, Cuba Gooding Jr., and – of course – George Lucas.

Lucas spent close to 25 years reviewing logbooks, official transcripts, and interviewing surviving members of the Tuskegee Airmen before the film hit theaters. He covered the entire cost of production with his own finances and provided millions of dollars to allow for distribution. The film was well-researched, well-funded, and well-casted.

So why did they play it so safe?

Despite the fact that the plot addressed multiple controversial themes, the dialogue remained strictly G-rated and at points was practically laughable. Many talented actors contributed to the production, but the plot did not provide adequate opportunity for their characters to develop into lovable and believable people.

The action sequences were exciting, sure; though even these were unrealistic. Considering how much time was spent identifying the different planes, anyone with an elementary knowledge of aviation would understand that many of the tricks depicted were simply impossible. And when a member of the unit is shot down, hurling towards his death, it is difficult not to roll your eyes at his epic last words: “Darn!”

The theme of overcoming racial discrimination is a clear undertone of the film. However, it is difficult to anger and inspire an audience when the actual scenes depicting racism are so underplayed. Profanity and violence are not always necessary, but the film seemed almost to cater to young children — those who certainly would not understand the social importance of what I believe the film was trying t0 say. Glancing through my middle-school history book would play on my heartstrings more than the discrimination seen in “Red Tails” scenes.

This hyper-censoring affected the rest of the film as well. Martin “Easy” Junior (played by Nate Parker) was blessed as perhaps the most developed character in the film. His obvious drinking problem, which causes a rift between his abilities to lead the squad and his ability to respect himself, is another real-world issue that the film attempts to address — but abandons too soon. One of the most powerful scenes in the film is when Easy pours out the remainder of his whiskey after his best friend Lightning (David Oyelowo) has died. Easy’s alcoholism is prevalent throughout the film, but it never truly comes to fruition. He drinks heavily (several times) before jumping into his cockpit during the most important missions. If the film was attempting to address the diabolical nature of alcoholism, why have Easy continue to be the hero? Why not show what really happens when an intelligent, kind, but nonetheless active alcoholic takes the reigns of heavy machinery while extremely drunk?

Overall, the film had incredible potential but fell short due to its unwillingness to take chances. If the producers and directors had been open to offending or disturbing a few people, the underlying purpose of the movie would have been much more direct and evocative. Racism, alcoholism, war, and death are not easily digested topics that parents want their young children to see. I doubt that “Red Tails” was a box-office hit for parents with young children.

So why cater to them? By throwing in a few realistic curse words, by showing a few despicable scenes which upset and inspired the audience, and by allowing the harsh realities of these themes to come to life — the film would have been miraculous.

As it is, it remains lackluster; like its characters Easy and Lightning.

Something that really should have been legendary, but for one reason or another, didn’t live up to its own expectations.

Mason Alumnus Shines at NFL

By Rachel Newdorf

The NFL Honors–the NFL’s first award show–will air this Saturday at 9 p.m., with a George Mason University alumnus tied to the project.

Khoi Phan, the designer of the awards show, worked along with art director Mollie Wilkie, project manager Andrew Conde and creative director Shandon Melvin to make this project become a reality.

Speaking about the project, Khoi describes what a “blessing” it was to work with “such a wonderful team.” He’s “proud” to see the project come together as well as having an “amazing advantage” being associated with such a prestigious organization such as the NFL.

Khoi,  26, has worked with the NFL on numerous other projects, such as Madonna’s Super Bowl Halftime ads, as well as Super Bowl XLVI programs and the NFL Military Appreciation Week 2011 program.

Khoi’s national debut this Saturday didn’t come easy. After graduating from George Mason in 2009 with a BFA in Graphic Design, Khoi and a friend, after a two year sabbatical, moved to New York City with “zero years of professional experience” and “just a few internships” which eventually led to designing for Macy’s and other “small jobs designing websites for musicians, photographers and art galleries.”

When Khoi’s “bank account hit $50,” he decided to move home to Fairfax, where he grew up.

” I was extremely disappointed and frustrated,” he says.

But he didn’t give up. Working for his family’s professional soccer academy, HP Elite & Beyond, Khoi rebranded the company resulting in an increase in client base just over a few months.

With his success with his family’s business, Khoi set his sights on creating “Vintage Futbol,” a lifestyle-clothing brand marketed to “soccer specific organizations” and that provided kids with “an identity away from the traditional Nike/Adidas” brands. One investor and three months later, Khoi landed a job at an advertising agency in Rockville, Md. While in Maryland, Khoi worked with various high profile clients, such as Brooks Brothers, VW, the Washington Redskins as well as the Washington Capitals, just to name a few.

Finally, after four months working on Vintage Futbol, on July 7, 2011 Khoi successfully launched the brand and immediately had more than 7,000 visitors to his website, 900 plus Facebook fans and more than 300 followers on Twitter.

Just days after launching Vintage Futbol, Khoi got a call from a representative in the NFL asking if he was interested in working for them up in New York City. As Khoi described his new job, he said that he found himself “relocating to New York City working for one of the largest sports organizations in the world. The NFL, the big time.”

Working on such a big project hasn’t hit the up-and-coming designer yet. Khoi has been with the NFL for almost seven months, and while working on multiple projects simultaneously, the fact that the NFL Honors will be broadcast worldwide still hasn’t registered with him yet. While he is excited, Khoi is still getting everything ready for the big premier and will be happy with the result when the project is done.

With the NFL Honors premiering this Saturday, Khoi has a lot to be thankful for. He attributes a huge part of his inspiration to his friend, Allie Coates who has been there for him through his journey. He does however, not contribute any of his success to luck. “Nothing in life is about chance or luck,” Khoi says. “Every opportunity is created, and with a positive resilient attitude, you can achieve anything you want.”

For more information about Khoi Phan or if you want to check out his blog, go to http://www.khoiphan.com/.

This Spring, it’s been evidenced in many top designer’s runway shows that bigger definitely is better. 1950’s vintage-inspired bouffant hairdos, pouty lips and mega lashes a la Brigitte Bardot are forecasted to be the go-to trend for beauty, while apparel will play up the pin-up sexiness of the glamorous old Hollywood that is iconic to American style. In perfect sync with Spring’s hottest trend comes the songstress of the moment, Lana Del Rey. The 25-year old, self-proclaimed “gangster Nancy Sinatra” is firing up the music scene with her sultry looks and equally sultry voice. While she’s already a YouTube hit, (her single “Video Games” has already garnered more than 2 million views) the real test of talent came with the January release of her first studio album, “Born to Die”.

Del Rey’s title track starts the CD off with theatrical strings and drums as she croons about a “love” based on getting high and having fun. The type of relationship that Del Rey sings about in “Born to Die” also mimics the lyrics in “Video Games” (“He holds me in his big arms/Drunk and I am seeing stars…”). While her songs paint a carefree picture of young relationships, the music accompaniment across the whole album has an eerie feel. Even her vocals are jaded and distant as she proclaims “They say that the world is built for two/ Only way worth living if somebody is loving you”

There’s no doubt that Del Rey’s premiere album is a one-noted song, but I don’t hold that against her. She’s a caricature of the glamorous starlets who graced the silver screens in during the heyday of Hollywood. While she, of course, didn’t live and breathe the seedy streets of 1950’s LA, Del Rey is convincing. As far as staying power in the game, it’s hard to tell. She fits right into the style of “now”, but she may need a reinvention by next season in order to keep her relevancy with the public. If music doesn’t work out for her, though, I won’t be too bummed; her gorgeous face and hair is enough to keep her at the top of my inspiration board.

— Avery Cheatham Banks

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