I love that four different people on my feed scheduled this joyous person to reblog by 8am on June 1. I look forward to seeing this a dozen more times today.
HEY DID YOU KNOW THIS SONG IS ABOUT DISGRACED SEXOLOGIST AND MYSTIC WILHELM REICH AND THE PROCESS BY WHICH CONCENTRATING LIFE ENERGY ( THROUGH MECHANISMS INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO MASTURBATING IN SPECIALLY CONSTRUCTED SHEDS ) CAN BE USED TO CHANGE THE WEATHER. AND DID YOU KNOW THAT ITS REALLY GOOD. THE SONG NOT THE GUY BUT HE'S REALLY GOOD TOO.
when two musicians sing into the same microphone and lean in very close to each other… like omg are you guys gonna kiss now to relieve the homoerotic tension?😳
Okay, but this is really important: Bruce Springsteen occupied this really weird place in music history. His songs were all from this pessimistic, nihilistic view of an America that had let him down:
Just like the anti-Vietnam War protest songs that we associate with the 1960s, or the early nihilism that spawned punk music in the 1970s. But he didn’t *sound* like a punk anarchist; he sounded like a country rock singer. When he released Born in the U.S.A. people completely misinterpreted (or possibly ignored) the lyrics in favor of the tone of the music.
Politicians used his music to promote their ‘Murica Yes! brand, and he had to literally explain that that was not what he was about. He’s over here asking when we’re going to have jobs and heathcare, not stanning the politicians who weren’t helping the people.
It was also kind of a big deal that he had an integrated band, because even as late as the 1980s music was still kind of segregated and MTV was straight up racist. They refused to play and promote black artists and then claimed that were no black artists in the first place. Michael Jackson’s record company had to threaten a boycott of their white artists to get MTV to play his Thriller video.
Plus, the first black/white interracial kiss on TV was in 1968 (OG Star Trek). Also it took us until the 70s to get sympathetic gay characters on screen, and the 90s to get gay characters to kiss onscreen. And all of those firsts were met with outrage.
So keep that in mind when you see Bruce Springsteen not just playing with an interracial band, but engaging in an interracial, gay kiss on stage repeatedly.
Passages from American Popular Music by Larry Starr and Christopher Waterman
I used to think that Bruce and Clarence kissing onstage was exuberance, showmanship, and telling racist homophobes to fuck off. Like, they picked up a certain kind of audience and went “Racist homophobes? Not in our house!” And started the kissing then but then I actually looked it up and
It was a story where… we remade the city. We remade the city, shaping it into the kind of place where our friendship and our love for one another wouldn’t have been such an exceptional thing. - Bruce Springsteen
It wasn’t about showmanship or rejecting bigots or anything it was just. Damn right that was one of the loves of his life and damn right he was going to kiss him onstage
It gets me a little that Bruce has had a divorce, that he’s been married twice, but he loved Clarence for the rest of Clarence’s life and will presumably love him the rest of his own
Clemons said in one interview. “Bruce and I looked at each other and didn’t say anything, we just knew. We knew we were the missing links in each other’s lives. He was what I’d been searching for.” In another version of the story, Clemons says “He looked at me, and I looked at him, and we fell in love.”
I’m having some emotions about it!
“He was elemental in my life,“ Springsteen adds, “and losing him was like losing the rain.”
Not just! I love you pure and deep and true but! I am going to love you like that in front of the whole damn world!
We have fewer narratives about taking risks and making statements for platonic love rather than romantic and supposedly it would be easier to downplay this onstage than romance and! They refused! They fucking refused! In front of hundreds of thousands of people, over the course of years! In the spotlight, in word and deed, I love you!
Welcome to Stoncy Week 2026! This event runs from July 19th – 25th and is dedicated to Steve, Nancy, and Jonathan from Stranger Things. Acceptable fanworks include fanfiction, gifs, graphics, video edits, fan art, podfics, playlists, and more. Tag #stoncyweek2026 and/or @stoncyweek2026 when posting your creations. An AO3 collection is on the way and will be shared closer to the event.
You can find the text version of the prompts (and bonus prompts!!!) under the cut. If you have any other questions, send an ask or check out the FAQ.
Thank you and happy creating!!! So excited to see what everyone comes up with!
There are three prompts per day, with a Free Choice day at the end of the week. The prompts were designed so that each day would have at least one prompt aimed toward gif and/or edit makers, but of course, you may create your work based on whichever prompt inspires you.
The prompts are:
Day One (July 19): Summer | Forced proximity | Favorite moment(s)
Day Two (July 20): Second chances | Philly | Nail bat
Day Three (July 21): Long distance | Secret relationship | Jealousy
Day Four (July 22): Alternate Universe | Time loop | Parallels
Day Five (July 23): Road trip | Radio station | Song lyrics
Day Six (July 24): Reunions | Fix-it | Monster hunting
Day Seven (July 25): Free Choice!
BONUS PROMPTS:
Stonathan → Stoncy: Most Stoncy dynamics start with Steve and Nancy as an already established couple, Jonathan and Nancy as an already established couple, or all three of them single. This prompt goes a different direction and poses Steve and Jonathan as the already established couple, instead. Could be set in an alternate universe, in canon, post-canon, or whatever direction you want to take it!
“Three person poly relationship made up of two people who are already dating trying to coax someone with horrific self worth issues into a loving relationship. Stray cat style.”: Inspired by this Tumblr post. Is Steve, Nancy, or Jonathan the stray cat? You get to decide!
The wind from Challengers that makes you cheat: Featured in Chappell Roan’s music video for The Subway and made famous by the scene in Challengers (2024) in which Tashi kisses Patrick in an empty parking lot while powerful gusts of wind surround them, this prompt poses the question, “What if ‘the wind that makes you cheat’ was a trope in the same vein as the sex pollen trope?” Who’s doing the cheating, who’s being cheated on, and how does it get resolved? The world is your oyster!
been thinking abt like early pearl and garnet because they have such a funny dynamic to me. Like garnet’s the leader and we see especially in s1 how high of a pedestal pearl holds her on and she’s like constantly clinging onto her but garnet Wasn’t always like that. When we see her rejuvenated shes very naive and innocent and has no clue whats going on ever and she was GENUINELY terrified of pearl when they first met. I feel like for a while they had this dynamic that was like the scene from tangled w eugene and rapunzel right after raps left the tower
blakekathryn
kaledo-art
prguitarman
annaxmalina
turnnoffyourmind
baratheonpilled
