Welcome to Monday Morning Mixtape, a PoYB Contributor-curated playlist of songs, made just for you at the start of each week.
Just like with the "canceled artists" thing, I don't want to be so strict with the deadlines and the minimum wordcounts that I'm, like, sending shit back or refusing to post or whatever. But I do think that there needs to be a "warning" given, because I don't want the blurbs to start becoming one-sentence affairs, and I really can't spend my Monday mornings blogging anymore. But also... I do love whatever you guys send me, whenever you send it. I'm trying not to be so strict about it anymore. It's more like: finding a balance.
"Troubleman"
Songs from artists who have been arrested and served time
chosen by Nate
"A Milli" by Lil Wayne
from Tha Carter III, 2008
As someone who is constantly getting embarrassed, being embarrassed is one of my great fears. I go to great lengths to avoid embarrassment and/or sticking my foot in my mouth. One easy example is when everyone else is in on some cultural joke or reference and I'm out of the loop, rather than admit this or ask what's going on, I'll just wait and see if I can figure it out from context. I still remember the massive popularity of this song, and my extreme late-to-the-partyness of figuring out where it came from. This track kicks ass in the car, so it's here for Monday. —Sunny
"Eenie Meenie" by Sean Kingston and Justin Bieber
from My World 2.0, 2010
An arrested double whammy and a total bop? You are welcome! This topic is interesting because truly it feels like everyone has had a DUI. Pretty wide net for us to choose from. Sometimes you need the layup, even in casual blogging. As we all sit on Monday a little tired from Daylight Savings, remember it's ok to take the easy path sometimes. —Sara
"Rumors" by Lindsay Lohan
from Speak, 2004
Nostalgic for aughts (naughties, if you will) party girls. Paparazzi photos of Lindsay Lohan, Paris Hilton, and Britney Spears partying. Photos so indecent that "Britney" became a word for vagina around 2007. The rise of Kim Kardashian. The Bling Ring group of teens robbing houses in the Hollywood Hills. What a time. A mugshot was essentially a form of currency at that point. It's different now. Is it post-COVID? Maybe the rise of conservatism? I don't know what the answer is, but I do know we just don't get fun sloppy celebrities like we used to. —Sara
"Cry Baby" by Janis Joplin and the Full Tilt Boogie Band
from Pearl, 1971
Imagine if Janis Joplin were still alive today. Who would be more famous—her or Reba McEntire? I feel like somehow Reba would be, because Reba has more business savvy. She's capitalized on her pure Americanness and easy-to-read mediocrity. Janis, on the other hand, might have faded into obscurity. Dying early isn't good for those left behind, but it helps a legacy out. —Zach
"Informer" by Snow
from 12 Inches of Snow, 1993
Fun fact: I always thought this song was called "Father" and was by UB40. How enjoyable to find out I was wrong! This was a staple of car rides with the parents on Washington DC's own Mix 107.3, also home of the Jack Diamond Morning Show. Now I think it's a Christian rock station. I miss the radio sometimes. —Zach
"Sour Girl" by Stone Temple Pilots
"Sour Girl" by Stone Temple Pilots
from № 4, 1999
Not into Stone Temple Pilots, but I always liked this song. It's soft and sensitive, which is at odds with Scott Weiland's whole thing. He was a tortured soul. This week, I've talked with people who have enjoyed telling me that God doesn't exist. But Scott Weiland, for all his faults, is still part of the rich tapestry. —Zach
"Make It Rain" by Pop Smoke ft. Rowdy Rebel
from Shoot for the Stars, Aim for the Moon, 2020
Rowdy Rebel sure does sound excited when his verse drops. I get it. Prison is designed to keep you from your source of life, whatever that looks like. I think if I ever got sent to prison (laugh now, but this blog is gonna be quite the liability once those Woke Camps get set up), they'd keep me from my family and they'd keep me from my blog and they'd keep me from my music. How often is Rowdy Rebel able to rap in prison? Probably not too often. So I'm happy for him that he gets to do what he loves, even behind bars.
I think? I don't know. I haven't thought about it too hard. Because, ya know, when this song dropped, Pop Smoke wasn't in prison. He was already dead. Murdered. A dude named Corey Walker received a 29-year prison sentence. Would I be happy if Walker was recording music in prison? I don't know. Probably not. It's complicated. —Joe
I think? I don't know. I haven't thought about it too hard. Because, ya know, when this song dropped, Pop Smoke wasn't in prison. He was already dead. Murdered. A dude named Corey Walker received a 29-year prison sentence. Would I be happy if Walker was recording music in prison? I don't know. Probably not. It's complicated. —Joe
"Sacred Love" by Bad Brains
from I Against I, 1986
This quick oral history of "Sacred Love" is a pretty good four-minute read, if you have time while listening to "Sacred Love." I love the idea of the vocalist (H.R., which stands for "Human Rights") trying to record thirteen tracks in one night before he goes to prison, only getting twelve of them, and then being like, "oh well, I'll just record the last one while I'm locked up." I also like the idea of using a page from the bible as a joint wrap... also while in prison. Good songs have good stories behind them. This is a good song. —Joe
"The Jump Off" by Lil' Kim ft. Mr. Cheeks
"The Jump Off" by Lil' Kim ft. Mr. Cheeks
from La Bella Mafia, 2003
When I post, I am wearing the Lil' Kim titty suspenders. I cannot believe they put her in that horrible Philly detention center, perjury isn't even a "crime"!!! All prisons are evil. —Brian
"Uptown Vibes" by Meek Mill ft. Fabolous and Anuel AA
"Uptown Vibes" by Meek Mill ft. Fabolous and Anuel AA
from Championships, 2018
Does Philly have pride in Meek Mill? What is Meek Mill's cultural cache right now? I know almost nothing about his story. This song is fun to listen to. And now I'm going to say that I'm struggling with writing the blurbs for MMM in general. Other places on this blog have been easier for me. There's something about knowing that I have a word limit and knowing that writing inane unrelated things doesn't connect as well here. I'm still in this, though. I'm trying, but not as hard as I could. —Zach
"Feel Alright" by Steve Earle
from I Feel Alright, 1996
Before 1994, Steve Earle had a very troubled past and career to that point. Drugs were hindering his rise to stardom, and arguably affecting him creatively, and his sound changed album to album early on, which was not always allowing his fanbase to continue to grow. In 1994, however, he was arrested and served 60 days in prison for cocaine and weapons possession. According to my extensive research, it was after this prison term that Earle was ordered to attend and complete an Intense Outpatient Program geared towards achieving and maintaining sobriety. He successfully completed this program and, according to all reports, he has stayed sober since.
IOPs are not super fun. They are anywhere from nine to twelve hours a week, generally after work, and focus heavily on group work, which can be very intimidating when you begin it. But they are effective, and I'm endlessly glad that Earle got sober, stayed sober, and continued to make what I believe is his best music. —Gilson
"Maybe I'm Amazed" by Paul McCartney
"Maybe I'm Amazed" by Paul McCartney
from McCartney, 1970
In 1980, punk rock icon and international rebel Paul McCartney was arrested going into Tokyo because he was holding some kind bud. Obviously, this was before my time, but this feels like a real Brittney Griner type situation. Though marijuana was obviously still illegal in the UK and the United States of America at the time, there was more of a public acceptance of it, and combined with his celebrity, Japan's arrest was genuinely shocking. Add to that the general image that McCartney had cultivated due to a decade post-Beatles of writing candy-ass love songs, and we have a period of McCartney's life that tends to get glossed over a bit. —Gilson
"I'll Be Seeing You" by Billie Holliday
"I'll Be Seeing You" by Billie Holliday
a single, 1944
This prompt feels like real JMK ban-hammer bait. Just flipping through the pages of arrested and jailed artists is a trip. Being too far left of center, I find the concept of prison abhorrent, but then I read some of these names and say lock-em-up. Lindsay Lohan's on here for jewelry theft? Still, plenty of unjust jailings for drugs or whatever, like Billie. I most recently heard this song on Severance; how about that latest season? —Sunny
"Give It to Me Baby" by Rick James
from Street Songs, 1981
Music fans of a certain age cannot properly explain how much of an amazing experience Behind the Music on VH1 was back in the late '90s / early 2000s. The Mötley Crüe episode was a banger, as was the Poison episode. Metallica was an interesting hour as well. But man, as a kid, knowing nothing about him, the Rick James hour was a complete and total mindfuck.
I'm not going to get in to all the specifics of his prison term and what he did to very rightly deserve all the time he served and more, and I'll leave that to you to look that up. I don't think that the Chappelle's Show skit, if taken at face value, has content that should have rehabilitated James, but I think the effect of the show was a certain kind of rehabilitation nonetheless.
It's a fine line to walk. Rick James is a human being, so there is a point to humanizing him. But to be kind of flippant with his past and what his drug use led to is to make it just another funny foible of his personality, the way that Prince eating pancakes after basketball is a foible of his. —Gilson
"Instant Karma!" by Lennon/Ono
"Instant Karma!" by Lennon/Ono
a single, 1970
In the late 1960s and '70s, John Lennon faced several legal battles, including a famous arrest for marijuana possession.
I'm currently in grad school and have a paper due Tuesday at midnight. I just finished the first draft. It's 20 pages with another 43 pages of footnotes—honestly, at this point, just call me David Foster Wallace. There is basically an additional paper just in the footnotes of this paper. All of that is to say, I don't have it in me to write a good blurb for this song. I did, however, see someone get pulled over by a cop on 76 after they drove on the shoulder to pass a bunch of traffic, and that felt like instant karma. —Gloria
"For the Record" by Shyne
from Godfather Buried Alive, 2004
Moses Barrow is a member of the Belizean House of Representatives, and is a member of the center-right Belize United Democratic Party. He was elected four years ago. Eight years before that, he lived in Jerusalem, where he spent his time studying the Torah up to twelve hours a day. Three years before that, he was deported to Belize from the U.S. (and three years after that, he would support Mitt Romney in the Presidential election, because he felt like Barack Obama hadn't done enough to prevent his deportation). Ten years before that, he was involved in some way in a fight outside of a NYC nightclub. Gunshots were involved. Two years after that, he started a ten-year bit. Three years after that, he was recording a song through the prison phone. Six years after that, Shyne officially changed his name to Moses Michael Levi Barrow. —Joe
"Off to the Races" by Lana Del Rey
"Off to the Races" by Lana Del Rey
from Born to Die, 2012
Lana Del Rey was arrested in 2012 for disturbing the peace in a public place after an altercation during a performance.
I volunteered at a film theater from 2010-2013. It was mainly arthouse films, but we'd also have Silent Sundays, where we'd show a silent movie, and a piano player would do the soundtrack live. My shifts were usually scheduled with the same guy, a film student named Danny. We'd make popcorn, sell tickets, and then project the film. Between unboxing, benching, threading, running, rewinding, debenching, and reboxing the film, he and I had time to talk and became friends.
We even wrote and tried to make an independent film together called Tunnel Face, which involved wearing a green screen mask and driving around to locations like Centralia and the Abandoned Pennsylvania Turnpike. We never finished it. He actually quit film school and joined a circus. Anyway, he is the one who introduced me to Lana Del Rey, the soundtrack of driving to abandoned places trying to make a movie. —Gloria
"What's the Dillio?" by Mest
"What's the Dillio?" by Mest
a single, 2000
(not available on Spotify!)
Awful song, among the worst one can expect to find in the late '90s / early 2000s, and that's saying some shit. Crazy Town was astride the landscape at this time, do not forget. And yet, this here photocopy-of-a-photocopy of a Goldfinger song deserves its rightful place among anyone's list of the most awful dreck of that given time period. Get your Sublime out of my Good Charlotte. No, really, get it the fuck out of here. Jesus, what a self-own.
Anyway, the band's lead singer was jailed on suspicion of murder. Charges were eventually dropped because it turns out the whole thing was done in self-defense (or, as Wikipedia puts it in lawyer speak, "there was insufficient evidence to show that it was not a justifiable use of reasonable force in self-defense." Lawyers: get 'em outta here! Apologies to my father). So, uh, in the interest of not receiving an ass-kicking, "What's the Dillio?" is actually great. —Nate
"Whiskey Glasses" by Morgan Wallen
from If You Know Me, 2018
Testing the waters here to see if I can get another artist banned from MMM. I don't have any other Morgan Wallen songs that I like, so I am using my one shot here. I know it'll cause an eyeroll somewhere along the way, and that is where I like to stay here on the blog. Just a bit annoying to everyone, keeping up my middle sister energy. —Sara
"Tell You the Truth" by Drakeo the Ruler
from Thank You for Using GTL, 2020
I was hoping that "jail rap" was a real genre, but I'm not seeing any hard evidence that this is an accepted genre name. Maybe it's too circumstantial to be an actual thing. Drakeo makes gangsta rap, and it doesn't become something else just because he's pushing that gangsta rap through the prison's phone instead of directly into the studio's mic. But I dunno, man, I also want the genre label to give credit where it's due—there are bigger stakes here. I don't know if the music is actually essential, but it certainly does feel that way, in this context. Drakeo the Ruler has something to say, and not even the concrete walls of the penitentiary are going to keep him from saying it. —Joe
"All We Need Is Another Chance" by the Escorts
from All We Need Is Another Chance, 1973
But, like, what are the logistics of recording an album in prison? We've heard a few artists singing or rapping their verses through the phone, and you can tell, based on the quality of the recording, that it's through the phone. Which is cool with me—gives it a lived-in quality, gives the song mystique. And so what, the Escorts just had some dudes from the record label waltz into Trenton State Prison with recording equipment? That was okay with the warden? I'm not seeing anything about having to "sneak in" the microphones, so I guess so. Which is also cool. Locking a human up for a crime is complicated, but music shouldn't be complicated too. Music should be free. —Joe
"The Problem vs. the Hustla" by Cassidy
from I'm a Hustla, 2005
This is what it's all about. Battle rapping yourself in your head. Cassidy is the greatest of all time, and when I would scurry down Olney Ave. trying to catch the train, I would pass Central High and whisper to myself "that's where Cassidy went... and also where they filmed da Marky Mark Eagles Movie..." That's what they should put on the little blue historical sign that eventually goes up. You know the one. —Brian
"Give Ireland Back to the Irish" by Wings
"Give Ireland Back to the Irish" by Wings
a single, 1972
Oh you didn't know Paul was the absolute lad?? I love the way he says "pot" 😀 When you split the G, think about me, Up the RA. —Brian
NEXT WEEK: "Beware the Ides of March" — Songs that are about getting stabbed in the back (figuratively) or about getting stabbed (literally) or that just casually mention Julius Caesar in some way (chosen by Joe)
25 comments:
SONG ORDER: number of consonants from least to most (first tiebreaker is number of vowels, second tiebreaker is artist's name in alphabetical order)
I just started listening to the playlist so this isn't a comment about the music. And I think the music is the important thing here, not "adherence to the theme," so this doesn't really matter all that much, but: there's no fucking way all of these jabronis SERVED TIME. Though I guess it's all a matter of interpretation. Is a few hours in a holding cell considered "serving time"? Maybe you say yes and I say no. And who the fuck am I?
Sunny called this "JMK bait," but surprisingly, y'all didn't choose too many artists that should be cancelled (if cancel culture actually existed). Artists who are henceforth banned from Monday Morning Mixtape:
Rick James — who was a rapist, among other pretty terrible acts. Pretty sure this was Gilson's attempt at fishing for me to link to the time that he informed me of the fact that Rick James was a rapist after I wrote a loving blog post about Street Songs. I obviously no longer listen to Street Songs.
Morgan Wallen — who is a documented racist, and MMM is not gonna tolerate racism, even if it's for "funsies" to tick off a bedraggled editor-in-chief who feels extremely uncomfortable linking to a song from a documented racist on the blog that he edits.
For the record: Banning artists from Monday Morning Mixtape is not an attempt at being holier-than-thou, and it's not me saying that you can't make your own personal decision on what to listen to. It's more logistical than anything else: I'm putting in the time to take your suggestions and blurbs and make a playlist and blog post out of 'em, and it annoys me when I have to skip over a song for personal reasons. If you sincerely want to write lovingly about the musical output of someone who abuses women or children, there are plenty of other corners of the blog that will have you. Just let me do this for MMM.
Haven't listened yet but comments:
Janis Joplin did "serve time" - as in, a few hours in a jail after a concert once. If that happened to me I'd milk the story for all it was worth in the right situation (writing on the blog, for example). So to me a few hours in jail counts for this.
Lana Del Rey is the perfect "driving to the middle of nowhere" music, totally agree.
Steve Earle was great in The Wire.
I've never heard of Shyne before today but I learned two things about him today:
1. He studied in Ohr Someyach yeshiva in Jerusalem. I've never studied there as a student but I have a bunch of friends that did and I've been to the building 2-3 times for meetings and such. It's not unrealistic that I could have run into him at some point. Amare Stoudemire also studied there (and I think still goes there when he visits Israel).
2. Former Olympic silver medalist figure skater Michelle Kwan was the US Ambassador to Belize until just a few months ago, appointed by Biden, a bizarre fact if I ever heard one.
The three Beatles picks made me look up whether George and Ringo were ever arrested. Here is the final count for legal trouble for the Fab Four:
Paul - arrested for marijuana possession
John - arrested for marijuana possession
George - arrested for marijuana possession
Ringo - car impounded in 1965 for parking in front of the British Embassy in D.C.; arrested in 1995 for being belligerent in a restaurant in Texas
Fifth Beatle Pete Best was arrested in 1960 for lighting a condom on fire.
How are we all feeling about the act of writing blurbs? A couple self-reflexive blurbs today about how much writing blurbs sucks. Hopefully y'all aren't putting too much pressure on yourself. Here's what you can do: 1) pick the song you want to include, 2) what does that song make you think about, 3) write the first thing that comes to your mind. There is no pressure for any blurb to be IMPORTANT or to MEAN SOMETHING. Write enough of 'em, and you find that some of them end up feeling important anyway, almost by accident.
Some comments about the 21 songs I listened to.
The Lohan thing wasn't as bad as I expected. The Bieber thing was worse than I expected.
I laughed at "Father" by UB40. Figured I'd recognize "Sour Girl" when I heard it, and totally did, and totally would not have guessed that STP did this song.
I also did not know that McCartney is responsible for this particular Irish song, of which I've heard 1000 covers in my lifetime. I very purposefully did not choose any Irish themes for next Monday, but that doesn't mean I won't write some blurbs about St. Patrick's Day and the fake Irish losers who will surround me on that day.
"Instant Karma!" might be my favorite Lennon song. Every Lana Del Rey song is my least favorite Lana Del Rey song.
"What's the Dillio?" was rough! Mainly because I watched the video too! Holy moly, if I were on the jury I would have been like the dude in 12 Angry Men who cried when he finally had to admit that the dude was probably innocent. Because I want him to be guilty.
No Johnny Cash, thankfully. The dude's music STINKS. Google tells me that he never spent any time in prison, so that was helpful for the purposes of today's theme.
Favorite song was "A Milli," which should say something about the specificity of "banned MMM artists." Lil Wayne is a stupid ignorant MAGA loser, but I'm still bumping "A Milli." If I banned everyone who had any views that I disagreed with, then we'd run out artists pretty quickly.
I knew basically none of the songs that I chose today before I chose them, so it's tempting to say that those are the albums I'm downloading this week. Is that cheating? I was familiar with most of the other albums today already, and there are a few good songs that aren't even on albums. I'll guess I'll see what's up with that Escorts album.
I deleted my other comment because of a grammar error
I didn’t finish listening yet and might post another comment when I do but wanted to say that I read the theme as arrested or served time, so apologies if it is not on theme. I also hope my Instant Karma! blurb didn’t come off as a self reflective bulb on how much writing sucks. That wasn’t the intention and I like writing blurbs
I met Dr. Know from Bad Brains in like 2010ish? He was managing a farm/produce market in Woodstock, NY called Sunfrost. He was super nice, he took a picture with me, and the vegetables we got were great, haha
1) "Father" is excellent shit.
2) Meek Mill is Philadelphia royalty and will never pay for a drink in the city ever again.
3) If you see Shyne, see if you can get him to confirm that Jennifer Lopez hid a gun on Diddy's behalf.
I wish I had thought to include this rap, from Dipset c-list member Hell Rell, which is alleged preformed via prion phone.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ACQqar3vCwA
Dipset Celebrity Tiers:
A-list: Cam'ron, Jim Jones
B-list: Juelz Santana
C-list: Hell Rell, JR Writer
D-list: Stack Bundles, Freaky Zeeky, Un Casa
@ Gloria — Nah, and I think "writing blurbs sucks" was too strong of a way to put it anyway. I think what I should have said was that there was a range of feelings expressed today about having time or the emotional energy to commit to writing for a silly little mixtape project. Which is cool, and normal, and, like, what an honor to have people care about this dumb shit even though everyone is very busy in their lives! For real. I think it's pretty common for one's first though when tasked with writing something is "I should write about not wanting to write this," and even that can be fun when done in good faith.
@ Nate — I wonder if "songs at least partially recorded in prison" could have made for a good mixtape.
Also, I was gonna include the first Diplomats album in one of those polls for the RC summer albums, but it's 107 minutes long!
Zach, I’m glad you put on a Janis Joplin song. I wanted to and then got decision paralysis trying to pick one.
And yes, that exact context worked for Lana Del Ray, haha. When he would be in charge of music he’d only put on her and Vashti Bunyan. I have not really listened to either artist since
After finishing the playlist, one of the things that struck me is how many of these songs are sampled by Girl Talk on the album All Day— which is an extremely fun listen and the album I usually put on to start parties when I threw them in college. It honestly might not even be that many of the songs, but that’s the context I’ve heard them the most so it feels that way and brought me back
Big update from PoYB fan favorite Haim. They posted a story on IG using Lindsay Logan’s “Rumors” so I am a clairvoyant and I am excited for a new song from Haim on Wednesday.
Also @Zach - Reba would still be more famous than Janis Joplin because she would not have stared in Grannies Gone Wild
Danielle Haim should be arrested for being so fucking cool.
I'm finding that this format is just more challenging for me than the long form. But I think it can be good to hone a certain style of writing. To be continued.
This is sound logic.
the BEST album and yes i know exactly which songs you're referring to including the lil kim one i submitted myself hehe
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