My World 2.0

There have been reported outbreaks all over the country inducing mass hysteria in malls and outside of television studios. The disease can be transmitted by MTV or Radio Disney, but is most frequently contracted by usage of the website Youtube.com, where over one-hundred-fifty million have been infected. Most susceptible to the disease are young females ages nine to sixteen. The medical name for the disease is Liefgarretitus, however it is commonly referred to as "Bieber Fever"

Though not an actual physical disease, Bieber Fever is quite the cultural phenomenon. Justin Bieber grew up lower-middle class in Stratford Canada. He was raised by his mother whose own ambitions of stardom were crushed when she became pregnant at eighteen. He began posting Youtube videos online when he was twelve and was serendipitously discovered by Scooter Braun. At age thirteen Justin Timberlake and Usher were fighting to sign him- Usher eventually triumphed. At fifteen he had his first platinum song, booked Madison Square Garden and played for President and Mrs. Obama at the Whitehouse.

Now sixteen years old, Bieber is well on his way to becoming a real pop icon. His sophomore album (though it's really more like a second-semester-freshman-year album) My World 2.0 has already surpassed the success of his debut My World. The new album is a sort of compilation of the best of Bieber's pop heartthrob predecessors. The first single off the album, “Baby”, is like a golden oldie that has been processed and digitized and features a charming rap by Ludacris who is an odd yet fitting collaboration for Bieber. “Runaway Love” pairs Justin’s prepubescent vocals with a mature synth-pop composition that is very reminiscent of an Off The Wall era Michael Jackson tune. “Overboard” is a high pitched version of Chris Brown and Jordin Spark’s recent chart topping duet “No Air” but without the taint of domestic abuse charges. He is mid-nineties R&B Usher on “Up” and FutureSexLoveSounds Justin Timberlake Jr. on “That Should be Me”. All of these songs have been done before and that is the point. You’re supposed to draw those comparisons; it is all part of a masterfully crafted equation.

It takes a village to raise a pop star and Justin Bieber is no different. He is constantly surrounded by adults whose primary job is to cultivate him into a specific and calculated image. He even has a “Swagger Coach”, Ryan Good, who taught him how to dress like P Diddy and tactfully flirt with Barbra Walters and other woman more then half his age. Bieber’s mentor Usher told the New York Times, “Scooter, Ryan and myself tag team him”- a statement made in reference to a sixteen year old boy that would usually require police investigation.

More interesting are the ways Bieber’s team has utilized and manipulated technology to such fantastic results. Justin made headlines for unruly fan behavior before his first album was even released thanks to a genius Youtube campaign. On the topic Braun revealed to the New York Times, “I said: Justin, sing like there’s no one in the room. But let’s not use expensive cameras. We’ll give it to the kids; let them do the work, so they feel like it’s theirs.” By marketing Bieber as a homemade talent, his main demographic of little girls feel they can know and be known by their idol.

Unfortunately it doesn’t matter whether or not you like Justin Bieber now, you eventually will. He is going to work with the best producers and musicians in the business making songs with annoyingly catchy beats and excellent hooks you wish wouldn’t get stuck in your head. Such is the nature of a carefully crafted pop star. As of now anyway, there is no known cure for Bieber Fever.

Guys and Dolls

By all means 1955's Guys and Dolls is not a critically acclaimed masterpiece.  But it is colorful, it is fun and Marlon Brando is young and beautiful in technicolor.  The cast is really something too; Viviane Blaine, Frank Sinatra, Jean Simmons and of corse the aforementioned Brando.  Guys and Dolls is a rare example of Brando in a musical- interesting for any fan of film to experience.  The movie is not mind blowing, but it is pleasant to watch.  It is a film that one cannot watch too many times, it is always simply enjoyable- which is sometimes all a movie has to be. 

Edie: American Girl

Reading Edie: American Girl is something like eaves dropping on the muffled conversation about the good old days your parent's friends have at three in the morning after a dinner party has dispersed.  Except your parent's friends are Truman Capote, Gerard Malanga and Richie Berlin and the good old days are the Warhol 60s and they all have these stories about this beautiful twisted chick, Edie.  An essential read for any fan of Pop Art,  American Girl is an authentic portrayal of the New York scene of the time as told by the people who created it.  

Britney

Carole King is always there for me when my heart is breaking.  When I'm having trouble relating I turn to Lou Reed.  I listen to Joni Mitchell when the world is feeling heavy (man).  Certain albums transcend the boundaries of certain moods, Britney Spears' self titled 2001 release is one of these emotional catchalls.   There is female empowerment in the tracks "Cinderella" and "Stronger".  "Overprotected" and "Not a Girl Not Yet a Woman" are coming of age anthems.  And the ultimate Spearstastic experience that is "I'm a Slave 4 U."  Nine years after it's release the album has somehow maintained it's pop-ripeness.  Still able to get me through the heartbreak, dissociation and weight of the world.  

nymag.com/fashion

The internet is home to a plethora of different fashion blogs and bloggers who have unbridled opinions and ideas on current trends and styles. The range of different tastes and styles is vast with blogger’s own personal preferences being the most prevalent content. Where does one turn for an unbiased view?

New York Magazine’s online fashion site is the answer. The site has already won the American Society of Magazine Editors 2010 Digital “Ellie” Award for Multimedia Feature or Package, which according to ASME, “recognizes the imaginative use of interactivity and multimedia in the presentation of a single story or editorial package.” www.nymag.com/fashion is the ultimate online fashion content filter, providing reliable fashion news daily.

There are many different facets of the site. There is the popular “Daily Cut” which posts interesting and relevant news stories from the world of fashion. The “Look Finder” is a comprehensive feature from which you can browse for outfit ideas based on designer, model, styles and trends (Are you going for equestrian or more of a nautical look today?), color, season and material. The website has the most extensive and well organized collection of photos and videos from every society party and runway show you were not invited to. If you’re a New Yorker you can use the fashion calendar to check out different events and sales in the area. The best part about all of the above content is that it is easy to use and well organized- something many independent fashion blogs lack.

The fashion blogging revolution is fabulous and I highly recommend spending some time checking out all of the different Tavi’s and Bryanboy’s on the interweb today. It is spectacular that so many different perspectives are available with the click of a button. To be a fashion snob used to require subscription to Vogue. In the digital age all you need is Google, and thank god because who wants to have to rely on Anna Wintour and that steel helmet of hair for fashion advice anyway?

Late Night with Jimmy Fallon

Many people will tell you Jimmy Fallon was the bane of Saturday Night Live in the 2000s. He laughed during sketches and seemed to just be there for his “boyish charm” and sex appeal instead of any real comedic talent. He sucked in movies too. Why should you watch Late Night with Jimmy Fallon?

Getting hired as a late night network talk show host is like getting tenure at an Ivy League institute. And as is such with tenured professors, being fired from Princeton doesn't mean you couldn't get a good gig going at Cornell, or at least NYU. The dust has settled with Jay Leno back at The Tonight Show, Conan on basic cable and Carson Daily still on Mars. Late Night with Jimmy Fallon managed to get through its first year on air, surviving Chevy Chase syndrome. Jimmy Fallon is not Craig Ferguson or Chevy Chase or Conan O’Brian or Jay Leno or Letterman and that is why Late Night is a success.

Unlike other the other late night hosts, Jimmy Fallon’s strength is not primarily his persona, but instead the production surrounding it. Fallon is the opposite of what a late night host should be according to the standardly followed Johnny Carson precedent. His monologue is usually weak (and smartly kept short) and he is usually too star-struck by his guests to ask any seriously investigatory questions. Though the interviews and monologues have both improved over the past year, the highlights of Late Night are the fantastically absurd comedy creations by Fallon’s writers and producers.

The Fallon writing staff includes A.D. Miles of Wet Hot American Summer and Tim and Eric Show fame; fellow Wet Hot writer with credits including Strangers with Candy and the gone to soon Stella, David Wain; Morgan Murphy, who recently won the ECNY award (the New York City comedian’s Oscar) for best female standup; and Jon Friedman, creator of the cult hit Upright Citizen’s Brigade Theatre Rejection Show, who may or may not be responsible for Late Night’s distinct New-York-underground-comedy-scene feel. Put all these writers in a room and you have material not even Jimmy Fallon could screw up.

One consistently risible segment of the show that is a prime example of the Late Night writer’s skills is “Thank You Notes.” Root’s pianist Jamal plays a melodramatic lifetime movie esque tune while Jimmy reads aloud in as sincere a tone as he can manage his weekly thank you notes. For example, “Thank you crutches, for letting me know how people would walk if our legs came out of our armpits.” or “Thank you ponytails, for making the backs of girls heads look like horse butts.”

The production quality of Jimmy Fallon has to be the most creative if not best in late night. The visuals are practically as aesthetically intriguing as they are funny. “Ultimate Moustache Fighter” involves two giant sized famous moustaches (the most recent match up: Santana vs. 80’s John Oates) fighting in a UFC style octagon competition enclosure complete with authentically ridiculous commentary by Jimmy and sidekick/announcer Steve Higgins.

Consistent with its hip humor is Late Night’s outstanding online content which is the key to retaining a television audience in this day and age of YouTube and DVR. Late night talk shows traditionally have to compete with sleep- Jimmy Fallon does not.

If you’re still not convinced, did I mention The Roots are the house band?

Aqua

Taking a walk through the city on a sunny day, one may find there are as many masterpieces in the infrastructure surrounding the Chicago Art Institute as there are housed inside. Inside the Institute hangs Georges-Pierre Seurat’s impressively meticulous painting “Sunday Afternoon on the Island of LaGrande Jatte”. Outside, on the corner of State St. and Madison stands Louis Sullivan’s “Carson, Pirie, Scott and Company Building” romantically dripping cast iron. Inside, Edward Hopper’s cool and iconic “Nighthawks”. Outside, Miles van der Rohe’s tall, dark and handsome “IBM Building”. And then, as pure and ethereal as Georgia O’Keeffe’s “Sky Above Clouds IV”, there is Jeanne Gang’s “Aqua”.

Completed in 2010, the award winning skyscraper stands 82 storey’s tall and houses retail and office space as well as 18 floors of hotel rooms, 476 rental units and 263 condominiums. “Aqua” echoes the breezy waves of nearby Lake Michigan with curved concrete balconies that wrap around the structure creating a soft sculptural facade. The structure is a visual relief in (as described on Studio Gang’s website) “an increasingly dense city like Chicago.” The building somehow captures innocence and purity, a rare feat for a mass of concrete and steal.

As impressive as its aesthetics is the building’s simplicity, efficiency and use of green technology. The wavy face of “Aqua” is not only beautiful, but actually disperses high winds allowing for balconies on even the top floors of the building with minimal enclosure. The architecture is technologically advanced without the convoluted mess of materials that exemplifies some contemporary skyscrapers. It seamlessly integrates into its environment, coexisting instead of imposing.

Perhaps “Aqua” is so invigorating because Jeanne Gang’s studio doesn’t primarily build skyscrapers. Studio Gang’s structures come from a fresh perspective with strong principals of both sustainability and creativity. “The Feeder” is a proposal to build suspended hothouses above the Ohio Feeder ramp on I-90. These hothouses would act as an urban farm, producing fresh and local food for downtown Chicago. Locally grown produce in the middle of a city? Brilliant! Then there is “Eco Casino” where gamblers would be entertained and educated with environmentally themed games such as betting on the weather. All profits would go directly to the State’s green initiative. The City Chicago is lucky to have a daughter as talented as Gang and her team of innovators.

Urban architecture such as “Aqua” in its practicality and inspiration is art for the common man. Gang’s work is an invaluable addition to Chicago’s collection that will forever be enjoyed by its passerby’s.