I've had a Jonas Brothers awakening
For years I used to mock the Jonas Brothers. My brother and I would jokingly sing along to their music, emphasizing their vocal fry, and I laughed at Joe and Kevin's attempts to straighten their hair into some sort of teen-friendly, Disney-approved, emo coif. I even got mad at them on behalf of Taylor Swift, Selena Gomez, Demi Lovato and Miley Cyrus, who can all join the weird club of people who have dated a Jonas. But because I was of that age, I was relatively clued in to all the actions the JoBros took in the 2000s. I watched the Camp Rock movies, begrudgingly enjoyed the Burnin' Up music video (despite maintaining that Nick and Joe couldn't really hit the notes in the song) and even semi-watched their Jonas show, which tried to set the brothers up as some sort of Beatles-lite comedy team. I never attended the concerts, purchased the music or called myself a fan, but by growing up during the 2000s, you just naturally had the Jonas Brothers forced upon you. Earlier this year, the brothers, who formally broke up the band in 2013, announced that they were reuniting to release brand new music. After a number of tense years, team Jonas had taken the time to talk through their differences, develop musical taste, learn how to style their hair and take some voice lessons. And friends, I'm all in. It's very easy to suck me into a pop culture movement. So as the internet exploded at news of the reunion, I wanted to be a part of the excitement!!
I loved Sucker, the first single representing the new Jonas Brothers, and got excited that maybe I would be onboard with this new era of music. I enjoyed Cool, the second single, and began to eagerly anticipate their full album release next month. It all came together in my head after I watched their performance on Saturday Night Live. The JoBros played part of Cool and then decided to transition to a throwback and launched into a revved up performance of Burnin' Up. "This is amazing," I thought to myself. Am I... am I a Jonas Brothers fan? I myself was slipping into the lava, trying to keep from going under, as I processed these emotions. All at once, I realized where my change of heart had stemmed from. Nick and Joe could now actually sing Burnin' Up well. They weren't scream-singing, desperate to hit the notes. They were actually trained singers who could execute the vocals required. I rushed into work on Monday eager to spread the good word. "I think I like the Jonas Brothers now," I excitedly proclaimed to all who would listen. I quickly clarified, I'm not saying I was wrong before, just that I'm open to this new feeling. The feeling of excitement for new Jonas music. This feeling of suddenly wanting to drop money on tour tickets. The feeling of getting over the Taylor Swift/Joe Jonas feud. The feeling of wanting to watch the JoBros documentary. The feeling of hoping that the Jonas family is a little less cultish now that the boys have grown (have you seen the Married to Jonas show -- Kevin's wife did not look happy). The feeling of cheering for their successes and brushing their failures under a rug. The feeling of possibility.
As Seen on Screen
Netflix has been churning out content at what feels like an even higher speed than normal and with that comes some big hits and plenty of misses. Fortunately, the Knock Down the House documentary that was released earlier this month is one of the bright spots. Without the inclusion of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's inspiring success story, the film would have been a bit depressing, as the other progressive candidates featured, Amy Vilela, Cori Bush, and Paula Jean Swearengin, all ended in defeat. And the movie's director, Rachel Lears (a female director, heeeeey), makes the wise or necessary choice to focus primarily on AOC's rise to the top. Her journey to success is no secret, as she's one of the few Congressional leaders who has created a serious buzz on social media and become a target for right-wing politicians because she's a woman who speaks her mind (scary stuff!), but I didn't fully know much about her backstory, journey to Washington and how much of an upset her election was, which the movie covers on all fronts. Because it's still pretty rare to have open conversations about the sexism and struggles that women face in elections, it's refreshing to hear AOC speak to directly to the nerves and pressure she faces as a young, female candidate. As she points out, there aren't many other case studies that she can emulate when looking at successful campaigns. Myself and the women of the internet also took note of her extteremely supportive boyfriend, who never appears threatened by his girlfriend's success, provides endless support and most importantly doesn't pull focus away from AOC. And I appreciate that under the eye of a female director, she never turns to focus on the boyfriend's story, or for that matter any of the male supporting character's own backstories. The documentary focuses on women. Another favorite moments was when AOC mentioned how she feels like her voice automatically goes up an octave when she's trying to have a conversation with potential voters, as I feel like my voice does the same thing when I'm in a high-pressure situation. Most of all, it's inspiring to watch a story unfold that illustrates the success of a woman who wanted to make change, saw an opportunity, fought hard, beat all the odds and won.
Haven't You Heard?
Speaking of Jonas... I told you I had an awakening. And that involved throwing it back to Joe's days with DNCE. I did a deep dive into their music and am loving their summer vibe. My favorite of the songs that popped up on shuffle? Man on Fire from the band's 2018 June EP. The first time the song came on, I was surprised by how different it sounded from anything I'd heard before, while still maintaining a very fun, sultry vibe. The buildup over "I want you, I think / You need me, I think / Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah," into the chorus of "Let me entertain you, take our time / Don't just leave me waiting for a sign / You can lay your body here tonight / Oh, tip-toe, got me walking on a wire / Goddamn, I'm a man on fire." On your Jonas journey to the past, give it a listen.
Required Reading
Over the last few weeks, I've felt myself feeling increasingly angry anytime I looked at the news or opened up my Twitter feed. Every time I did I was filled with an onslaught of frustrated voices discussing the abortion bans taking place in Alabama, Ohio and other states across the country. Every time I read more about the details in this legislation, I found myself growing more and more frustrated by the ways in which female bodies are regulated by those who claim to be "pro-life," but disregard the lives of immigrants, victims of gun violence, access to healthcare, access to birth control, victims of hate crimes and plenty of other seemingly "pro-life" stances. In times of anger, Rebecca Traister often says it best, and she delivers yet again with this article in The Cut, where she discusses how disappointed she is in both Republicans and Democrats for minimizing the voices of women.
