Tag: Anne DeLello ’20
Looking Forward to the 2019 AMAs
by The Cowl Editor on November 7, 2019
Arts & Entertainment
Taylor Swift Slated to Dominate the Ceremony
by: Anne DeLello ’20 and Grace Whitman ’22 A&E Staff
Thanksgiving is not the only thing to look forward to in November, as the American Music Awards are also quickly approaching. On Nov. 24, both performers and nominees will attend the awards at the Microsoft Theatre in Los Angeles.
This year’s AMAs will use the performances to honor the music of the last decade.
Not only will there be nominees present, but there are some exciting performances to anticipate as well. Selena Gomez is slated to perform at the AMAs, and it will be her first televised performance since 2017. At those awards, she sang her hit song “Wolves.” Gomez recently released new music that has climbed the charts. “Lose You to Love Me” is the first solo single that Gomez has released that has broken the Billboard Hot 100 since her single “Back to You” was put on the charts in 2018. Fans across the country can hope to see her sing her newest single live on her return to television at the awards.
Another performer at the awards will be Taylor Swift. Not only will she be performing songs from her album Lover that was released in September, but she is said to be performing a variety of her songs to celebrate the fact that she will be accepting the Artist of the Decade award at the AMAs. According to The Hollywood Reporter, “Swift will deliver a performance to celebrate the biggest hits of her 13-year career.”
After receiving the Artist of the Decade award, Swift will be among impressive company with previous winners: Garth Brooks ‘90, Michael Jackson ’80, Stevie Wonder ‘70, The Beatles ‘60 and Elvis Presley ‘50. In a statement, Dick Clark Productions Executive Mark Bracco said, “Taylor’s impact on music this decade is undeniable. We’re thrilled to honor her as our Artist of the Decade.”
Swift got her start in 2003 when she moved to Nashville, Tennessee to pursue her country music career. She became the youngest artist ever to sign with now Sony Music Group at the age of 14. In 2006, Swift released her debut self-titled album which peaked at number five on the Billboard Top 200.
As seen through her discography, Swift refuses to put out an album that is the same as her last one. Starting as a country acoustic guitar singer with roots at the Bluebird Café in Nashville, Swift has transitioned to being an up-tempo pop diva who sells out stadium tours in less than an hour. The Reputation Stadium Tour grossed $345.7 million which was a 38 percent jump from her 2015 1989 World Tour, which pulled in $250.7 million.
In terms of the American Music Awards, Swift has taken home 23 AMAs in total since winning her first in 2008 for Favorite Country Female Artist. Last year she won four awards, including Tour of the Year and Artist of the Year. History could be made at this year’s awards night as Swift has the potential to surpass Michael Jackson’s record for most AMA wins of all time, currently standing at 24 awards.
Swift is nominated for five awards, along with Lil Nas X, who is relatively new to the music scene after his hit song “Old Town Road” exploded onto the music scene in the spring of 2019.
However, these two are not even the most highly nominated artists of the night. Post Malone is nominated for seven awards, with Billie Eilish and Ariana Grande following behind him with six each. Some other notable nominees are Billy Ray Cyrus, Khalid, and Ella Mae.
There is a lot of talent present in the nominations. One category in particular that is sure to be competitive is Artist of the Year, which includes Drake, Ariana Grande, Halsey, Post Malone, and Taylor Swift.
The show will certainly be entertaining to watch, and fans of Selena Gomez and Taylor Swift can get excited for their performances. There are multiple artists lined up to win more than one award, and it is sure to be interesting to see who comes out on top.
Spooky Season: Halloween Entertainment Preview
by The Cowl Editor on October 24, 2019
Film and Television
Streaming Services Advertise Scary New Content
by Anne DeLello ’20 A&E Staff
With October and Halloween come a slew of new, and potentially scary, movies and television shows across streaming sites. Not only are there new additions, but streaming services like Netflix and Hulu have a wide range of fan-favorite Halloween movies that users should look out for as the holiday gets closer.
Netflix began adding both original and older shows and movies to its repertoire in October. One major note is the new Breaking Bad movie. With a Tomatometer score of 92 percent, and an Audience score of 82 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie is doing well since its debut. A top critic on the site said, “El Camino, which Gilligan wrote and directed, is a powerful and unshowy epilogue to an expertly told saga. It’s slow, yes, and not overburdened with action, but pace and spills are not what turn Gilligan on.”
This continuation of the popular series is not the only thing viewers should watch out for as Halloween gets closer. According to Harper’s Bazaar, there are some films on Netflix that are a must-see during the Halloween season. One of these is Cabin Fever, a 2002 film which tells the tale of a group in a cabin in the woods where everything seems to go wrong. Some other recommendations are the 2013 movie The Conjuring, and the 2000 classic American Psycho.
Not only does Netflix have some of the best scary movies out there for anyone looking for a frightful Halloween night, but they also have some more family-friendly favorites as well. These include movies like Coraline, Casper, and The Addams Family.
Netflix has great options for Halloween shows as well as movies. According to Popculture, one Netflix series that is fitting for the Halloween season is Penny Dreadful, which features both 19th century English and Irish Gothic Fiction in the series, “including Oscar Wilde’s Dorian Gray to Abraham Ven Helsing and Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein.” Another Netflix show that could be binged this Halloween is The Haunting of Hill House, which “follows the lives of five adult siblings who continue to be haunted by paranormal experiences they had during their childhood,” writes Popculture.
Netflix is not the only streaming site that people should look to for their scary fix. Good Housekeeping has dubbed a Halloween spent watching movies on Hulu as “Hulu-ween” and having one is definitely possible with their options. Some of the movies include A Quiet Place, starring John Krasinski and Emily Blunt, and the classic Rosemary’s Baby. Some more lighthearted films on Hulu include teen favorites Fun Size, and Liar, Liar, Vampire.
Whether you are looking for a scary or silly movie to watch on the night of Halloween, or a series to binge while you enjoy the season, there are plenty of options on Netflix and Hulu to get you in the mood for the holiday as it gets closer.
Ariana Grande and Taylor Swift
by The Cowl Editor on October 10, 2019
Arts & Entertainment
Grammy Nominations for Record and Song of the Year
by Anne DeLello ’20 A&E Staff
Lately it seems that any time Taylor Swift or Ariana Grande releases a song, it is bound to be a hit. Swift has outdone herself yet again with the release of her seventh studio album, Lover, and Grande’s album, thank u, next, catapulted the singer even further into superstardom.
This past February, the two pop princesses were nominated for Grammys for Album of the Year, Swift for Reputation and Grande for Sweetener. Grande ended up taking the award home. This is not the first time the two artists have been up against one another at the Grammys.
After they were nominated for the same awards at the Grammys, which neither star attended, a fight ensued between loyal fans of Swift and Grande on Twitter. The two stars have not commented on any supposed rivalry in which their fans have participated.
Though the artists are competing for Album of the Year and Record of the Year at the upcoming Grammys, they are similar in that they are strong female artists. Both women have fought for female equality in the music industry and have broken down barriers for female artists who will follow them.
They continue to break barriers with these Grammy nominations. It has only occurred 10 times in Grammy history that the same artist has won Record of the Year and Song of the Year with two different hits. In this year’s upcoming Grammys, both Swift and Grande will have the opportunity to do so. Swift’s single “You Need to Calm Down” is up for Record of the Year and matched against Grande’s “7 rings.” The stars are also competing for Song of the Year—Swift with “Lover” and Grande with “thank u, next” and “Boyfriend,” which was written in collaboration with Social House.
Although Swift’s album launched to its high position on the Billboard charts soon after its release, it did not initially have as many streaming downloads as one would expect. According to the New York Times, “Its streaming total—225 million—was also relatively modest for such a high-profile pop release; Ariana Grande’s thank u, next, for example, started with 307 million in February.”
However, no one should count Swift out based on these numbers. In a world where streaming services have become more and more popular and CD purchases are rare, “Nielsen credits 679,000 sales of Lover as a complete album, a nearly impossible sum these days—all 199 other titles on the Billboard 200 this week sold only 361,000 copies combined.” Both stars have a shot of winning Record of the Year and Song of the Year, and if one of them wins both awards, then Swift or Grande could join the exclusive club of artists who have achieved this feat.
The 71st Emmys
by The Cowl Editor on October 3, 2019
Arts & Entertainment
by Anne DeLello ’20 A&E Staff
The 71st Primetime Emmy Awards on Sept. 22 showcased the best of the best in television. Shows such as The Big Bang Theory and Game of Thrones that have both released their final seasons dominated the nominations alongside other fan favorites including The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and Veep.
This year’s Emmys highlighted not only the star shows but also the most prominent networks. According to Time, “HBO heads into the ceremony with the biggest advantage: a record-breaking 137 nominations for shows like Game of Thrones, Veep, Chernobyl and Barry.” Netflix followed HBO with 117 nominations for their popular shows such as Ozark and House of Cards.
At the end of the night, Amazon’s Fleabag went home with three wins: Outstanding Comedy Series, Lead Actress in a Comedy Series, which went to Phoebe Waller-Bridge, and Casting. Game of Thrones ended the night with two awards: Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for Peter Dinklage and Outstanding Drama Series. Both shows came out at the top of their genre.
Though Fleabag managed to go home with more wins than Game of Thrones at the Emmys, GOT’s 32 nominations broke the record for the most nominations for a show in a single season, according to the Hollywood Reporter. With the eighth, and final, season of Game of Thrones having been released this past spring, it is not surprising that the show was so well represented among the nominations.
Although there was critical backlash when the season aired, these nominations speak to the popularity the show has generated over its past seven seasons. Not everyone found fault with the ending of the final season, whose final episode was viewed by 19.3 million people. Hollywood Reporter’s Tim Goodman says, “It arguably ended just about as well as one unwieldy, sprawling, complicated epic could end.” He went on to say that the writers “at least convincingly and effectively steered a very difficult series to a conclusion that made enough sense, will make enough people happy and was, from this vantage point, more than enough to effectively ‘stick the landing’ as critics often wonder about when pondering these series finales.”
Because the show was so popular throughout its run, particularly during season eight, the Emmy for outstanding drama is well-deserved despite any criticism of the last season. When receiving the award, executive Producer D.B. Weiss told those watching, “We loved every minute we spent with you.”
Another well-deserved award went to Peter Dinklage, who won Best Supporting Actor in a Drama for the fourth time for his role as Tyrion Lannister, setting the record for most wins to a Supporting Actor in a Drama Series. Dinklage told his audience, “I count myself so fortunate to be a member of a community that is all about tolerance and diversity, because nowhere else could I be standing on a stage like this.” The actor went on to say that he “would do it all again in a heartbeat.”
Despite the large amount of nominations compared to the two wins Game of Thrones received at the Emmys, it was the proper send off to a well-loved show that has officially come to an end.
Artists Show Support for Global Climate Strike
by The Cowl Editor on September 26, 2019
Arts & Entertainment
Billie Eilish, Maggie Rogers, Lizzo Advocate for Change
by Anne DeLello ’20 A&E Staff
This past week on Sept. 20 and Sept. 27, 150 countries participated in two global strikes for climate change. Citizens around the world rallied behind 16-year-old Greta Thunberg, the Swedish activist who initiated the strike, banding together to “demand an end to the age of fossil fuels,” according to the Global Climate Strike website.
Thunberg herself has been active on social media regarding the climate strike. In a tweet on Thursday, September 19, the night before the strike, the teen tweeted, “Tomorrow we strike back! Global Climate Strike September 20-27: 5225 events / In 156 countries / On all 7 continents / And counting!” She concluded with, “Spread the word and see you in the streets!” and included the hashtags #fridaysforfuture and #climatestrike at the end of her rallying tweet.
Thunberg and ordinary citizens are not the only ones taking the time to support these issues. They are joined by a group of celebrities who have made their support for this cause very clear as well. Young artist Maggie Rogers spoke up about her views on the climate crisis. Eilish even went so far as to post an Instagram video of herself in an outfit that had the words “tick tock” all over it with the caption, “TICK TOCK! our time is running out. the climate crisis is very real. we need to speak up and demand our leaders take action.” Eilish used the same hashtags present in Thunberg’s tweet.
Eilish is not the only one who spoke up on social media the day of the worldwide stirkes, including. Participants of the strike often used song lyrics to get their message across, some of which were noticed by the artists themselves. Popular “Truth Hurts” singer Lizzo posted one of these to her own Instagram page, a sign that read, “I just took a DNA test turns out I’m 100% freaking terrified for our future,” with the caption “#climatechange.”
John Legend joined Eilish, Lizzo, and many other artists in their attempts to raise awareness for the climate strike. He tweeted, ”Young artists are challenging us to confront the realities of the climate crisis. Join me as I stand with @amnestyusa and @GretaThunberg today as we strike for climate. Strikewithus.org #ClimateStrike #StrikeWithUs #AmbassadorOfConscience.” His tweet was coupled with a graphic that stated, “Act On Your Conscience pointing towards a sign that read, “Strike for Climate.”
Artists are using their influence to help Thunberg and the people around the world who are actively trying to create change regarding the climate crisis. Their followers on social media spread their messages even further, and the amount of influence that celebrities like Legend, Lizzo, and Eilish have significantly increased awareness for the climate change movement.
Elizabeth Banks Adapts Charlie’s Angels Series
by The Cowl Editor on September 19, 2019
Film and Television
Highlights Modern Female Empowerment
by Anne DeLello ’20 A&E Staff
It is well known that Elizabeth Banks is directing and starring in a remake of the classic Charlie’s Angels that will come out on Nov. 15. The cast features actresses including Kristen Stewart as Sabina Wilson, Naomi Scott as Elena Houghlin, and Ella Balinska as Jane Kano.
This is the third remake of Charlie’s Angels following the 2000 remake, Charlie’s Angels, and its 2003 sequel, Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle, which features performances by Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore, and Lucy Lui.
According to Variety, Banks has stated, “Charlie’s Angels, for me, is one of the original brands to celebrate the empowered woman since its debut in the 70s.” Both the plot of the movie and the strong females that Banks has cast in it celebrate empowered women in the 21st century. Banks confirms this in a Variety article when she says, “This film honors the legacy of Charles Townsend and his agency while introducing a new era of modern and global Angels.”
Not only does the movie have an all-star female cast, but female vocalists will be represented throughout the movie as well. The song featured in the trailer was released by three pop powerhouses: Miley Cyrus, Ariana Grande, and Lana Del Rey.
The song, “Don’t Call Me Angel,” marks the first collaboration between the three artists. The music video shows all three artists showcasing their talents, and the impression given in the visual goes against the common angel stereotype.
Rolling Stone reiterates this fact when it writes, “In the Hannah Lux Davis-directed clip, the trio is seen sultrily strutting around clad in all-black with black angels wings signifying they’re not the archetypical angel versions.”
This antithesis of the classic white-clad angels is in line with Banks’ vision of the movie, which continues the Charlie’s Angels tradition of showcasing empowered women who do not submit to the men around them. Banks herself is even featured at the end of the trailer and references the three popstars who perfectly fit the description of Charlie’s Angels.
The rest of the soundtrack for the movie is expected to be just as powerful and will come out on Nov. 1. Grande herself co-executive produced the soundtrack.
From a stellar female cast, to a new hit single by three women who are dominating the music scene, Charlie’s Angels is all about showing female strength. Banks chose a cast and music crew to do exactly that.
Seasonal Update: The September Streaming Schedule
by The Cowl Editor on September 12, 2019
Film and Television
Netflix and Hulu Battle for Streaming Supremacy
by Anne DeLello ’20 A&E Staff
With every new season comes a new set of shows and movies to be added to the various streaming sites; Netflix and Hulu are the main competitors once again. In a world where cable is slowly dying and the entertainment competition is fierce, streaming services must keep their material fresh, both with their own original productions and with older movies and shows from different networks.
Netflix, a pioneer in the industry, is adding a variety of movies and shows to its site throughout September. Some classics that will be added are Superbad on Sept. 1, along with The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, and The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.
Forty-one of the new additions to Netflix will be originals. Some notable originals, according to Vulture, are Surviving R. Kelly, which will delve into the allegations of sexual assault against American singer R. Kelly, as well as The Spy. The Spy is a six-hour miniseries based off the work of a real Mossad agent named Eli Cohen, a man who went undercover in Syria in the early 1960s. The Hollywood Reporter describes the series as “shocking and unfathomable,” particularly since it is based on true events.
Though Netflix seems to be releasing the most originals this September, Hulu is also releasing a great variety of movies. The new titles range from the rom-com classics 50 First Dates and 27 Dresses, to the Lethal Weapon franchise.
While there are a limited amount of Hulu originals compared to Netflix, Hulu stands out in the number of new seasons it has of preexisting shows. The premiere of the final season of the popular ABC show Modern Family can be seen on Hulu starting on Sept. 26. Some other fan favorites premiering on Hulu include season four of This is Us, and season three of The Good Doctor, both on Sept. 24.
For Hulu customers who also have an HBO premium account or a STARZ premium account, there is exclusive access to additional movies each month. These additional movies include the thriller Fast and Furious for HBO subscribers and the classic Moneyball for STARZ subscribers.
The battle between streaming services will continue as cable becomes less and less popular among viewers, and companies like Netflix and Hulu gain more competitors. As the competition increases, the sites will have to keep adding new content for their viewers, so fans of the streaming sites can remain confident that they will keep gaining new shows to watch in the months to come.
A Lover and a Fighter: Taylor Swift’s Battle for Ownership
by The Cowl Editor on August 29, 2019
Arts & Entertainment
Pop Star Celebrates Freedom Amidst Label Issues
by Anne DeLello ’20 A&E Staff
Taylor Swift has returned to the music scene with a vengeance with the release of her new album, Lover. Only a year after the pop star sold out stadiums across the country for her Reputation Tour, she is back and better than ever with an album that Rolling Stone has called “evolutionary, rather than revolutionary.” Rolling Stone also noted that it features “Swift at her most liberated.”
Swift’s liberation follows her change in record labels. Prompted by recent controversy involving the master recordings of her previous work, Swift will own all her music that she makes moving forward. She is even planning on re-recording all her previous music. According to The Washington Post, Swift can re-record albums one through five beginning in November of 2020, essentially producing covers of her own songs.
Interestingly, the release of such a freeing album follows the sale of Big Machine Records, and therefore all of Swift’s master recordings, to record magnate Scooter Braun, with whom Swift has notably clashed with in the past. Swift was not given the option to purchase her own music and spoke out saying, “Instead I was given an opportunity to sign back up to Big Machine Records and ‘earn’ one album back at a time, one for every new one I turned in. I walked away because I knew once I signed that contract, Scott Borchetta would sell the label, thereby selling me and my future.”
This begs the question of who truly holds the power in the music industry. In Swift’s case, a woman who has spent her entire life making hit albums, has two men controlling everything that she has produced. In another statement following the purchase, Swift noted, “Essentially, my musical legacy is about to lie in the hands of someone who tried to dismantle it.” As evidenced in this statement, she is an advocate for artists having ownership of their own music.
Swift’s growth is clear both in the album Lover and how she has begun advocating for herself and women in music. In an interview with CBS Sunday Morning, Swift spoke out about the differences between how men and women are treated in the music industry. She said, “A man does something, it’s strategic. A woman does something, it’s calculated. A man is allowed to react, a woman can only over-react.” This further highlights Swift’s choice to bring attention to the gender disparity within the music industry.
Moving forward, the conversation about the different vocabulary used for men and women in the industry is something that Swift believes must be addressed. She has received support from other women and men in the industry, such as Halsey and Ed Sheeran, following the sale of her masters and the release of Lover.
As Swift’s album gains popularity, this conversation regarding women in the music industry is brought to light.
Beyoncé Releases Netflix Documentary Homecoming
by The Cowl Editor on May 2, 2019
Film and Television
Celebrates Black Pride Looking Back at Coachella 2018
by Anne DeLello ’20 A&E Staff
In between the two weekends of Coachella 2019, fans of the festival were pleasantly surprised by the reveal of Beyoncé’s Homecoming documentary, which details the road to her 2018 Coachella performance. Not only does Beyoncé’s documentary feature segments of her journey from giving birth to her twins in 2017 to her performance in 2018, but fans can experience her entire Coachella show while watching this documentary.
When she performed at Coachella, Beyoncé became the first black woman to ever headline the festival. She took this to heart when creating her show, saying that, “I wanted every person that has ever been dismissed because of the way they look to feel like they were on the stage killing ‘em.” The singer also goes on to say that, “It was more important that I brought our culture to Coachella.” In the performance, Beyoncé achieved this when she sang the Black National Anthem after the performance of her song “Freedom.”
More specifically, Beyoncé wanted to emphasize the importance of historically black colleges, and how they educate students to become both “culturally aware” and “intellectually sound.” She does this by including clips from influential black Americans throughout history, including Malcolm X.
Homecoming does not simply feature a typical documentary style setup with interviews of people involved in setting up the performance. Instead, the Netflix film shows her entire performance, with clips from both shows. During the performance, there are intermittent tapes placed between sets. However, the only person who really speaks during these clips is Beyoncé herself.
Fans of Beyoncé who have not already seen her Homecoming performance, and even those who have, will love watching her performance in the documentary. It features fan favorites like “Drunk in Love” and “Run the World.” She even goes so far as to bring former members of her group Destiny’s Child, Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams, onto the stage to sing “Say My Name.” Her sister Solange Knowles also comes on stage at one point.
Alongside these special guests, Beyoncé, as the architect of the show, managed to weave together an electric group. It includes backup singers, dancers, and performers who join her on stage. The tribe of performers alongside her only enhances the performance and give black individuals the opportunity to showcase their talent on a major stage alongside Beyoncé herself.
This groundbreaking performance of the first black woman to headline the Coachella stage did not come without hard work on behalf of the singer and mother of three. Having just had her twins, she cites her struggle getting back into performing, saying that, “I definitely pushed myself further than I knew I could, and I learned a very valuable lesson, I will never, never push myself that far again.” Not only did she have three months of performance rehearsals before the show, but she also had four months of singing rehearsals before that. Her dedication paid off. Both the show itself and this film are widely praised.
At the end of the film, Beyoncé states her gratitude at being “able to take these crazy ideas and actually make it into something that heals people and that may spark vision in people that shows them to dream big.” She certainly achieves this in her performance and this documentary. The film allows the performance to live on for years to come in an effort to celebrate black culture.
Spring Concert 2019: Cheat Codes Rains Cash
by The Cowl Editor on April 11, 2019
On-Campus
Board of Programmers Continues EDM Theme to Satisfy the Masses
by Anne DeLello ’20 A&E Staff
Cheat Codes is a name that has recently become more and more well-known, particularly on college campuses. The EDM group is made up of three members, KEVI, Trevor Dahl, and Matthew Russel, and is taking the pop world by storm.
This past Saturday, students flocked to the Peterson Recreation Center to watch Cheat Codes perform live. The event was organized by the Board of Programmers (BOP), who never disappoint when it comes to a spring concert.
Cheat Codes was predated by the EDM group Galantis at last year’s spring concert and The Chainsmokers two years ago. BOP seems to have found a genre that satisfies the majority.
EDM music has been gaining popularity in recent years, and Cheat Codes has certainly benefitted from this since their debut in 2015. According to Billboard, the group has had over “414.7 million total on-demand streams,” as well as “13 appearances on the Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart, including three top 10’s.”
As the group has gained popularity, they have started to perform at larger venues such as Billboard’s Hot 100 music festival this past August. The band has continued to make appearances at colleges too, performing at schools such as Boston College and the University of New Hampshire.
Kathleen Garvey ‘20 called the performance “short and sweet.” The band performed their hits to the crowd of 2,000 students, some of which included the songs, “No Promises,” “Sex,” and “Feels Great.” All three of these songs have been featured in the top 10 on Billboard’s Hot Dance/Electronic chart, with “No Promises” getting as high up as number two in its prime.
The group hyped up the crowd with a light show, big screen graphics, and lots of smoke. At one point, they even shot $1,000 in single dollar bills into the hyped-up crowd, something that the band is notoriously known for doing. In Billboard reported that the group is said to have shot over $100,000 into the crowds at their concerts in 2018 alone. The show was complete when Trevor Dahl entered the mass of students by crowd surfing, causing a mad dash of students to go to the front of the arena to get closer to the action.
The Spring Concert usually signals the beginning of the end of the school year and is always a great way to get students to come together and do something fun as a community. Cheat Codes was a great choice to excite the students and made for a memorable event.
BOP has outdone themselves yet again with a fun Spring Concert to bring the PC community together. The tradition of EDM performers for Spring Concert has lived to see another year.