UCLA Radio

[uclaradio]

Interview with Beliz and Henry of the Menu, the UCLA Radio Show of the Month

Interviewed and transcribed by Natalie Benudiz.

UCLA Radio’s Natalie Benudiz caught up with Henry and Beliz of The Menu at Audrey over the weekend to talk good food and the success of their show.  

Tune into UCLA Radio’s Show of the Month, The Menu, Mondays @ 11am 

This past week, I was lucky enough to catch up with Beliz and Henry, the hosts of The Menu! Beliz and Henry are the dream team behind our Show of the Month for March, and they were kind enough to sit down for dinner with me at Audrey, the new restaurant at The Hammer Museum, right in Westwood. After we finished our meal, we decided to talk a little bit about what we had, discuss their foodie-centric radio show, and get some exciting hints about their plans to finish off this season of the show.

Natalie: Well guys, thank you so much for sitting down to dinner with me. I was thinking we could start off the interview by discussing what we just ordered as if we were on an episode of The Menu!

Beliz: We first got the white bean hummus as a starter.

Henry: Which, I don't know if we all agreed we could describe as a hummus.

B: Yeah.

H: And it comes with an herb jam as well. I don't know if I could describe it as a jam, but in my opinion, it's delicious.

B: I am especially a fan of the herb jam because I like herbs anyway, but because white bean is something that can be really overshadowed. So it complimented the subtle taste of white bean really well.

H: So, I agree with you, Beliz that white bean is very light, and it needs that sort of extra highlight, a flavor. And I think the jam did that well and the toast was well toasted and had olive oil on it. I mean, what more can you expect from a, you know, a bread appetizer. What else? What else did we have?

B: I had the eggplant steak, with trumpet mushroom and salsa verde. The salsa verde on top was really good and they had dill on top of the eggplant as well, and the eggplant was charred beautifully. But the thing with eggplant is that they can be really bitter. So I think they needed to soak it in salt water a little bit before cooking because I needed a little bit more zest or like a little bit more salt on top to like balance that bitterness out. But overall I really liked that, it was delicious.

H: Could you taste Miso glaze? Supposedly there was miso glaze on it.

B: Really?

H: I take that as a no. I had the celery root soup, with trout roe toast, and dill; more dill! I love celery root. It's a really good alternative to potatoes. I've seen mashed potatoes made out of it, and this time soup. And it's a very creamy soup. It was, it was very yummy. Hearty, good on a cold night, great portion. I haven't had a trout roe toast served at a restaurant before. only my dad makes that and it's pretty good. And I would never have guessed trout roe with celery root, so I was happy with the combination. And it was, it was yummy, and a really good price too; pretty cheap. And then we also had the magic potatoes.

N: They were pretty fucking magical.

B: They were seasoned to perfection. Like the salt was in its place. The seasoning was like balanced, it was just good and the crunch was good on the outside of the potatoes. I like a good potato.

H: Yeah. And I think it was deep fried. Right. Perfect. Can't go wrong with deep fried potato. I was the only one who got to try the lemon creme fraiche too, which was awesome. Delicious. Yeah. That's what we had! How has the ambiance?

N: Ambience was great! It feels a little.. awkward? I dunno if that's just because I'm sitting with my back to the rest of the museum. I kind of, I'm aware of the fact that the space is very large, but like I'm also seeing a very small part of it. But yeah, I think the outdoor is a very good choice, especially in the summer.

B: I am still currently enjoying myself a lot. This has been a really enjoyable dinner for me.

H: Me Too.

B: I'm just like, I'm having a glass of wine with my friends, enjoying good food. Just talking for like hours and hours and I can go for like two more hours on it. Yeah. It's been pretty nice. And that's what food is about. I like the fact that it brings people together and that we can just enjoy things.

N: So on the subject of food, bringing people together, how did you two come together to do a show?

B: Um, I think it was last year when we discovered that we were both really interested in cooking and like eating foods because Henry like casually told me, he like, he grew like beets.

H: I don't remember that..

B: Yeah. And I was like, so interested. Like, I remember like telling my mom and dad over to somebody, like, “Do you know I have a friend who like, grows beets at school?” And they were like, “Oh wow, honey, that's really nice.”

H: I'll take it.

B: Yeah. And then we just like started talking a lot about food and we started going to these places. And it just kind of grew from that.

H: Yeah, I remember, kind of not being able to get my fix in terms of talking and expressing myself when it came to Los Angeles cuisine and dining. You know, and with my friends at UCLA, because I like talking about this stuff. What's the point If you can't, I don't know, share it with other people? I forget how [Beliz and I] discovered that we were both interested in it, but once we figured that out, it was, you know, it's awesome to have someone you can just.. just as if you're a nerd about video games or about movies and you find someone that, you know, it's interesting to talk with, you kind of want to do it all the time. And so, you know, since we're already a part of this awesome platform that is UCLA Radio, I mean, it was the next logical step, right? We're talking about it outside, so let's share it with other people. And we figured we were pretty good at it too.

B: Yeah. People actually trusted us, our reviews and what we had to say about food.

N: Ever since I saw you guys did a like an Instagram on Elefante, I was like, “I have to go there!” Oh, it was Henry! Thank you, Henry! So when you were first starting to construct the idea for the show, what were your initial goals? What was just format idea for the show?

B: I think we kind of like planned it on being like about one theme or like one neighborhood per episode, but then we kind of realized that we had so much more to talk about, and the food scene changes day to day. So we wanted to also be in the loop. And I think our main goal is just to try to present what LA has to offer to people in terms of the food we have here. And as college students, we don't get to go out as much and spend a lot of money on food, but even knowing what options there are in this really huge city that has, you know, a developing food scene is important. Because we live here! And, you know, food is part of our experience in Los Angeles.

H: You touched on it a little, but yeah, at first this idea of sort of having like a theme do week each week where we do either spotlight on a neighborhood or a spotlight on a certain type of cuisine or spotlight on, like, sandwiches. Like, we're talking about sandwiches or hey, we're talking about Venice. But I think that that's really difficult. You really have to commit to that each week. So, you know, we also, I guess we realized that our lives were already filled with interesting stories and experiences about relating to food already that we didn't have to curate it a theme. And then well, of course, we also want to bring in guests. We were very excited about bringing in guests to talk with them. And I've been so pleasantly surprised with how many guests we've been able to bring in already! Yeah, I'm super scared. I didn't really expect to have many. I thought it was just going to be me and Beliz shooting the shit each week about food. Um, but yeah, we've had a lot more than expected and I think that's become half of our format, is talking with people who are more knowledgeable than us, so that we can learn and so that our listeners can learn. And I think, that kind of was in our heads at the beginning a little bit, but at least for me it has become pretty important, as we've gone through what we, eight weeks, seven weeks. Yeah. Wow. It's a lot of episodes!

N+B: Yeah! Yeah.

N: So to structure a show that's not really dependent on an individual theme that you have to commit to each week, how do you scout out the new places that you're going to talk about on your show?

B: we follow a lot of bloggers on Instagram and we also follow eaterLa and a lot of sources that we can we get our news from, basically. And we just read a lot about food. So, if some restaurant is getting a lot of attention, we obviously want to go there and we always look at the Los Angeles "essential list."

H: I think I curated the show partly after I have the experience. Right. So, I mean it's definitely in my mind I'm like, okay, for sure this whole quarter I've been like, "Okay, I have to go somewhere this week." But I think I less pick something out for that. I kind of decide based on what I'm doing that weekend. So if I'm going out to Pasadena for something for some reason I'm, I'll, I will look really hard. And Eater is a big part of that, you know, they have a lot of like local best or like interesting restaurants and stuff. But yeah, so it's based on my activities, if I'm going down to Torrance or whatever, you know, go to... I know right, ew? You, but like they have some really unique stuff. I was just reading about, you guys know the Big Hawaiian, um, brand of roles? They have restaurants, that are like traditional Hawaiian cuisine. Yeah. And they're like, real Hawaiian, by the factory. There's a factory down in Torrance! And so they have them close there. And so yeah, there's a lot of interesting stuff and so I kind of, you know, unless it's a special occasion, which has happened quite a few times, yeah, I sort of curate what I go to eat based on where I am in the city. And I try to find the best place that's around me. Well, how do we curate our content? I mean we also talked so much that like we only need a few places.

B: Yeah, that's true. Every time we have like 10 topics that we aim to talk about for a show, but then we only go through like five of them, because we have so much to say! And like, you would think that we would do an hour show and then it would be over, but then when we leave the booth we continue talking about food!

N: So speaking of the bloggers that you follow, you guys have your own Instagram. So who is in charge of the Instagram?

H: Beliz is in charge of the Instagram!

B: Um, yeah, I have a lot of photos that I took over the past, like two years. I was in Los Angeles and because you know, I can't always go to places every time. I either use my back catalog of photos or.. Just like infatuationLA, although I don't agree with their reviews all the time, [they] inspire me with their stories a lot. And I just want to give people an honest and genuine review of the foods that I'm eating. I just don't want to be someone who goes somewhere fancy all the time and be like, oh, this is what I ate. And you know, it might be somewhere fancy, but if it's not salted enough, it's not salty enough, you know? Yeah. And it's like the fact is that we are college students, and I don't want to take ourselves too seriously when it comes to food because it's about enjoyment. But I do like taking nice pictures of food!

H: Yeah, so Beliz is being humble. She has lots of experience in social media. She does! And she's also a very good photographer. I have anxiety about taking photos at restaurants still. We talked with food bloggers, Hangry Diary, about how you had to get over that fear. And I don't know, I just get anxious. Um, also, I know I don't take good photos. Like I can't take good photos of people, so I can't take good.. well, food is still, which might make it easier, but I still can't take care of photos of it. Um, so yeah, I leave that to her. I do make appearances every once in a while. I posted that Elefante story. That was my one, but I just copy her! I mean it's straight up like I use like the same sort of font, you know, those Instagram font and so yeah, it Beliz is our social media guru and I kind of follow suit.

N: So I guess this next question is for Beliz then. How is the medium of Instagram different from the medium of Radio when you're talking about food?

B: Well, you have to be really descriptive when you're talking about food on the show because people can't see it. And it has actually given me a new perspective on how I experience my food because I've never actually had to describe food in a more, I guess, official setting. I would like tell it to Henry, but I would always use more casual adjectives for food. But because now I have a radio show, I want people to be able to imagine that food that I experience. So it's definitely different than editing and posting a nice photo of it.

H: I want to talk about like describing food with your voice. I think it's a lot like writing. and I don't do that enough where I write down my thoughts on food, but it's extreme. It's extreme. If you've ever tried it, it's extremely difficult to describe the sensation of eating cause I just, I default to, "Oh, it was tasty. It was good. Yum, wonderful." But to really describe the experience of, of not just the flavor and the texture of the food, but the whole entire experience of dining is something really difficult and it takes a long time to master. You know, you, you just read one Jonathan Gold or article and you know, that's just not, this is not something that a beginner can do. If you compare that to what we're saying or what other new food bloggers.. It's, it's totally different. And it's something that, you know, we're just going to have to learn how to do over time. Um, you know, we were just joking about the wine stuff and those are words that people come up with because it's like hard, you know, cause they want to describe it and interesting way and I don't know, it's, it's silly, yeah, it's difficult to present that whole experience with just words, but we try our best.

N: Well, personally I think you guys do a great job. That's why I'm such an avid listener of the show! So I really want to know, what's the best part about having a show about food?

B: Using that as an excuse to go out and eat food all the time! Because now I like whenever I need to go somewhere like research and development, it's fun! It''s for The Menu.

N: How are you guys not sponsored yet!

B: I don't know. I want to be sponsored by some vegan thing where you can hash out a vegan dessert.

H: Radio. Radio needs to give us money to go out.

B: Come on. We need to be reimbursed! No. Even real bloggers don't get paid for trying out.

H: Okay. Wait, my answer going! Were you going to skip me?! What?! Um, it's being able to express myself, like that's the best part of this medium in general. No matter what you're doing, whether it's music or comedy news. You know, it's all just self-expression. And I, I love it. It's kind of silly, but it's like, it puts us in a position of, like importance, you know, and it feels valid. Our self-expression feels valid in its purpose. Purposeful. Use that word, please. Yeah, exactly. It's not just, we're not just shouting into the void where, where people are listening to us and that's fantastic! That's a wonderful feeling to talk about and express yourself in, you know, something you love and that people listen and care about it.

B: Yeah! And like sometimes my friends text me and they're like, "Hey, I need like a casual spot in downtown. Where should I go?" And like getting those texts make me so, so happy! People coming to me for advice about food just makes me happy because it's my thing! And then it means that I'm being acknowledged for my thing. Actually, if you were like away from Los Angeles for a while, where would you go when you just get back?

N: Is this a me question? Are you turning the tables on this interview? I'm conducting this interview! Um, I think that yeah, Tatsu no question, because well, look. You probably have just come in from a flight, and you have to drive from LAX, whatever. It's going to be fucking late. Like, by the time you get through all that traffic, what's the only thing that's going to be open and close enough to home that it's convenient? Tatsu. What's gonna put you in like a good mood to either go to sleep or start the day? It's Tatsu.

H: That's actually, like, really sound reasoning.

N: Well, it's coming from experience.

B: Yeah. I mean when I get back to la I usually order Blaze Pizza, but I probably wouldn't get that if I was like away from LA and I was missing it so much.

N: I already know. That's what I'm ordering when I come home from anywhere.

B: I think, I might, I might actually go to Lodge Bread Co. They have everything I want! Hummus, really good pizza, really good bread, really good almond butter. Really good coffee! And um, I'm set. I can live there. If they had Wifi, I would be there all the time!

N: How far is it?

B: It's in Culver City, so it's really close.

H: I'd go home. I would go to my mom probably or my dad cooking something. Definitely. I was just thinking about that. I can't believe I didn't answer that one. Yeah. Oh, 100%. Like they're both such great chefs and cooks and I can't believe I didn't take advantage of that when I was young. I told y'all I was picky and yeah, I'd go home.

N: Do you think that potentially impacted why your interests in food now? Having grown up with such excellent cooks?

H: You know, absolutely. And I like, yeah, I wish I had grasped that sooner. But definitely, they'd probably snuck in flavors in dishes early on that I wasn't aware of. And I think they got more adventurous as I grew up. Cause I do definitely remember steamed brussel sprouts, which I still hate, but then they got more adventurous. Yeah. And my mom started roasting her veggies instead of steaming them! And they're delicious. Oh, so good. You know, and yeah, I'd probably ask for like pesto pasta from her garden. Yeah, she has great basil, and that's her specialty. I'd probably ask for that, and my dad makes like wonderful soups and stuff and good lobster. I Dunno. Wonderful. Yeah. And so definitely, yes.

N: So for your last couple of shows for The Menu this quarter, are you gonna have any special finale or anything like really big plans for the end? Oh wait, did I touch on something like, okay to be continued. So I guess I'll have to find out! Well, you don't have to divulge any industry secrets.

H: Okay. We're going to have a few more interviews. We have interviews set up at least two more for the quarter. We're gonna bring in our first, or, well, I guess Evan Kleinman is a chef, but our first current chef who owns a restaurant, active chef, um, as well as the cookbook librarian at UCLA. So there's a two coming up.. And we might have a special event planned.

N: Whoa!!

H: For our friends, the general public.

N: I love that. That's so exciting. Okay, well I will keep an eye out for that on Facebook. Everyone keep an eye on, we will all keep an eye out. Awesome

[uclaradio]

Interview on 1/21 with Hangry Diary on UCLA Radio’s The Menu

Interviewed by Beliz Urkmez and Henry Haprov. Transcribed by Adrianna Fuji. 

*Some responses were edited for grammar and clarity.

Hello you're listening to UCLAradio.com, and these are your co-hosts Beliz and Henry with UCLA Radio's The Menu, online right now. We have two very special guests for you today... Jocelyn and Justine from Hangry Diary. Would you guys like to introduce yourselves?

Jocelyn: Yes... I'm the younger one, Jocelyn. For all of the people who have seen me on Instagram stories if they ever follow Hangry Diary. And I study at USC, but I love UCLA... just in case you need to know [laughs].

Justine: And I'm the older one, Justine. I graduated from UCLA, but now I'm working at USC [laughs].

Henry: Oh no. [laughs]

Beliz: Yeah, rival schools. So before we get into our interview, we wanted to start off with a light-hearted question. What did you have this week? What food did you eat that you really really liked?

Jocelyn: Dumplings

B: Where?

Jocelyn: Din Tai Fung

H: Oh, no way. Love Din Tai Fung.

Jocelyn: I think they have the best in LA

B: Oh, I still haven't tried that place yet.

H: Me too. I am a huge fan of Din Tai Fung.

Jocelyn: It's very juicy. It tastes amazing.

H: Big fan. They have a really good pork and crab, I believe.

Jocelyn: Yeah, they have pork with crab. Or even like pork... they also have fried rice and other stuff which tastes amazing, as well.

H: I think they're not originally from here, right? They're like an import?

Jocelyn: They're from Taiwan.

H: Taiwan, okay. Lovely. Do they have like a Michelin Star dumpling? Let's see... We're having a little technical difficulties...

B: Let's play one more song and then we'll get back to our interview once we solve our technical issues. Thank you!

[song break]

B: Okay, we're back! We solved our technical issues, and everything is good. But yeah, you were saying about Din Tai Fung...

H: Just that it's wonderful. It's my favorite too. Anything else that you tried this week?

Justine: I went to Nightshade in the Art District. So it's like Mei Len from Top Chef and the sous-chef is Max. I really liked it.

B: Really? Wow.

H: We've heard a lot about it. Very excited to try.

B: Would you recommend it?

Justine: Yeah yeah, it's like fusion food. Like... because Mei Lin is from China, so she makes a lot of Asian food but with a little bit from American. So I really love the spring toast and the conjee.

H: Can you explain what those two are, a little bit?

Justine: So the conjee, she puts a lot of XO sauce and a lot of special ingredients on it, on top. And then it's a very small portion. Like, it's a little bit different than Asian sizes because like, when we go to Asian restaurants for conjee it's usually a big bowl. But it's very special; in her restaurant, everything is one-bite sized. So if you're going to share with like four to five people, every dish is very small portioned but you get to try all dishes.

H: Wonderful. Din Tai Fung and Nightshade. What about you, Beliz? Really quick, what did you have?

B: I went to Elephante yesterday at Santa Monica, and it is a great lounge seaside restaurant with a lot of outdoor space. And we loved the food. I got the aglio e olio spaghetti, and it was really nice. And I also got the broccolini which I highly, highly recommend. It tasted even better than the spaghetti itself. It had this really nice roasted onions and garlic on top as well as a cashew pesto. So it was a great blend of vegetables with Italian cuisine, and I loved it.

H: Nice. I already briefed some our listeners earlier... I went to Pasta Sisters in Culver City. [Jocelyn and Justine react] Fans of that?

Jocelyn: Yeah, both of those are great, Elephante and Pasta Sisters.

H: Mhm, I had a wonderful time. I wasn't expecting to love the pasta as much as I did because it's counter service, right? And you know, it's not all fancy, but it was delicious. Fantastic pasta.

B: Yeah, I love Pasta Sisters so much.

Jocelyn: And it's very budget friendly.

H: Yes, absolutely !

Jocelyn: I think that's the point as well. Like, there are a lot of Italian restaurants but if you were on budget, then Pasta Sisters is the place that I always go.

H: Absolutely. I went to Roso Blue recently, and it was delicious, but yeah the pasta is twice as much than Pasta Sisters. So yeah, it was nice to have change.

B: Do you want to start with your questions?

H: Yeah, you ready to begin? So you were born in Hong Kong, and you came here for higher education. Why did you choose to move away from home and come to LA?

Jocelyn: I think it's actually better for us to go somewhere else to study and then know the culture. And LA is definitely the place with like, California sunshine where you can also do like snowboarding in Winter. So it's like the combination of both. And I think in LA, there are a lot of good schools, especially like UCLA and USC, as well. Yeah, that's why we just wanted to come over and then further study.

H: Wonderful. Do you ever miss home at all?

Jocelyn: Yes, especially the food. [pause] And the Dim Sum.

B: I was wondering, is there a difference between Hong Kong food and Chinese food?

Jocelyn: I think Chinese food includes a lot of different types of cuisine as well. Like in China, they have like Sichuan food which is so popular in LA right now. It's so big. And then there's also Beijing food. They have like Shanghai-nese. There are different types because it's all over in China. So it's not only like... Hong Kong food is more towards like locals, so it's totally different. Like there are a lot of types of Chinese food actually.

B: Oh, I see.

H: Are there any restaurants here that remind you of food back home?

Jocelyn: Dim Sum

H: Do you have any Dim Sum restaurants in particular?

Jocelyn: Lunaisa in Alhambra. I think that's the best Dim Sum place in LA. And I think it was also written in the LA Times... so it's all over social media and news outlets as well.

Justine: And I think Delicious Food Corner.

Jocelyn: Yeah, that place is pretty good, as well.

B: Where is that?

Jocelyn: It's in Monterey Park.

H: Most good Dim Sum is out East, right? East LA.

Justine: Yeah, East LA. Where we actually live, San Gabriel Valley has the most Dim Sum restaurants so whenever you want to get a Dim Sum fix, then head over to San Gabriel.

B: Okay, I'll keep that in mind. I don't think I've ever actually had really good Dim Sum or dumplings because I'm from Istanbul, and we don't really have a lot of Chinese, Hong Kong kitchens there. We have a lot of Japanese and Asian fusion, but not particularly Dim Sum or dumplings. So the only time that I've ever actually tasted these foods was when I moved to LA. So, LA is also a great place to taste different cuisines from all around the world because there is so much diversity here.

Justine: Totally agreed.

H: So when did you decide that you wanted to be food bloggers?

Jocelyn: We started Hangrydiary three and a half years ago, and at that time we were taking pictures. We didn't even know that we should start an account, not until a friend asked us like "Hey why don't you just share the pictures on Instagram?" And then that's how we started Hangrydiary... "Hangry" was quite a popular word back in like three and a half years ago, so Hangry Diary actually is something that... because we get angry whenever we are hungry. So that's perfect for us to start an Instagram account with that name.

B: Wow, and around what time did you notice that your account was gaining popularity?

Jocelyn: I think around two years ago. Then, when Instagram hadn't changed the algorithm actually, so it wasn't that competitive. Back at least like two years ago. So we could get like 2,000 followers a day back in two and a half years ago, and because we focus on new restaurants as well. And cute restaurants. So that's why people always see new, cute things on our Instagram which kind of differentiates us from other bloggers as well. So that's how we started getting a lot of followers.

H: I noticed that you often frame your nails in your pictures. Does that help with the cute factor?

Jocelyn: Yes, we have over 75% female followers. And I think they enjoy looking at accounts with nails, so we do actually like... Justine and I do nails like every two weeks so that we have different styles every time. And sometimes when we go to Paris, then we will have a Paris theme. If we go to Japan, then you will see like sushi on our hands. All those cute stuff. So I think people actually enjoy looking at that as well.

H: Do you do your nails yourselves? Jocelyn: No [laughs] That one is very difficult. But that actually took us three hours sitting there, to finish like a Paris theme. With the buses, with all those historical buildings on our fingers, as well as food. So that was crazy.

H: That's very fun. Do you get it on all 10 fingers? Or just two?

Jocelyn: Ten [laughter]

B: Wow, that's a lot of work.

H: Yeah, dedicated.

B: Yeah. I guess we can move on to more blogging questions because this is a really interesting topic for us right now about Instagram and how to be food bloggers because we both like taking pictures of food as well. So it's really nice to have you guys here to tell us more about it. What kind of cameras do you use? Or do you use your iPhones to take pictures?

Jocelyn: I have a Canon 5D Mark III. So it's actually a professional camera, but I think the key thing with taking pictures is always to take it under the sunlight. And then, the better camera that you have is always better for the picture. But also, I think if you just have an iPhone, then always think about... never do it at night because it doesn't look good in that light. But also, you can always turn the dishes to the way that you think looks the best, and find the best angle. Like even for girls who take pictures, you always find your best angle, right? [laughter]

Justine: Exactly

Jocelyn: Like the selfies and all that. You can also do the same thing with your food. So that's why we try to create other elements like our hands in it to be more interactive as well.

H: So what happens if you want to go eat dinner at a place and it's night time? What do you do?

Jocelyn: We have lights, but we don't do that very often--to take pictures at night. So we try to avoid that because unless we bring like our umbrellas--we have a huge set up--but restaurants do not really allow us to do that. So we just don't usually take pictures at night.

B: I was going to ask do restaurants allow you to take pictures with your professional camera?

Justine: Yes

H: And I was curious, I get... nervous, I guess, taking photos in restaurants. How do you get the courage to... go and do it? Just stand up and take the photos.

Justine: I think that... for example, three years ago people found it very weird. But I think nowadays because they always see people taking pictures, they don't see us as weirdos anymore. 'Cause everyone is trying to take pictures and post it on Instagram to get engagement, to get likes. But back in three years ago, people actually would come over and ask us what we are doing. [laughs]

Jocelyn: And yeah, sometimes we actually ask for permission before we stand up on the sofa to get the best angles.

H: I think I did notice that at Pasta Sisters. I was hesitant to take the photo and then I looked around, and there were all these other people taking photos so I'm like "I'm just doing the same thing as everybody else." [laughs]

B: Yeah, my parents and my friends are really used to me taking a lot of pictures so they just like wait for ten minutes until I'm done taking pictures from all angles, standing up, you know. I think they just want to eat, but photos come first. [laughter] We actually have a question from one of our listeners, and they want to ask you "How has growing up in Hong Kong influenced how you approach food here in the U.S.?"

Jocelyn: I think growing up in Hong Kong, we definitely have a lot of Chinese food, a lot of Dim Sum. So we actually have higher standards of what people serve in the U.S. And especially when I talk about dumplings, why Din Tai Fung is always top of the list is because they actually have a very-- because I interviewed the owner myself before. So actually Din Tai Fung has a very high standard of how to fold a dumpling. As I remember, I think the standard is 16 to 18 folds of each dumpling. So it's like everyone inside the kitchen that makes dumplings needs to fold at least-- I think 16 to 18. If not, they won't take that dumpling. So they have a very high standard, and they used the best ingredients to make that, with a very secret recipe that only one people [sic] at Din Tai Fung knows.

Beliz and Henry: Wow

Jocelyn: That's what I heard. So we have a very high standard of what good Chinese food is in LA.

H: It's interesting too because you see at Din Tai Fung, they always have the glass, and you see the people making it, and how it's like... a line. One person is doing one thing--they have it down to a science, basically.

Justine: Yeah, I totally agree. I think they probably already have a very good way of training people and all that because it's worldwide. It's a Michelin Star restaurant in Taiwan. So everything is in very high standards. That's why there's always a line. Because back in the day, there was only one Din Tai Fung, and this is located in Arcadia. They still have that, but they start expanding it. So there should be one in Century City.

H: That's the one that I just went to. And then I went to one in Carson? Or Torrance? Down South in like Long Beach area too, as well.

Jocelyn: I think maybe in Irvine.

H: Yeah, they're all over now [laughs] But they're delicious, they're worth it. Regarding Instagram, how do you think that Instagram has changed the way we eat and look at food?

Jocelyn: I think people love burgers, people love fries, people love fried chicken. So whenever you post a picture about burgers, fries, fried chicken, you always get higher likes than just a regular fried rice. Always with an egg. And there was an egg picture previously--

Justine: And then with a lot of cheese [laughter] And all that, that always get-- I think people always take pictures before they eat now, as well. That's why I believe your parents or even your friends have to be very patient with you. If not, they will just leave. Like our parents, our parents can't stand us taking pictures [laughter] They will just order their own sets and just let us do our own... because they can no longer stand waiting for us-- they were so mad. [laughter]

B: That's a good idea. I should tell them that. Just be like "Okay, you guys can order your own food. I'll do my own thing here." [laughs]

H: Speaking of those high-calorie foods, I see you two very much like Howlin' Rays.

Justine: We love Howlin' Rays [laughter]

H: I waited in their line once, and I got the sandwich. And it was delicious, and I love how they all say "Yes chef", and it was a fun experience. But how do--and for listeners that don't know, Howlin' Rays is a fried chicken place, very popular in Chinatown, but the line is like three hours long, often, unless you go at the right time. I see you two go often--how do you wait in that line a lot? Or do you get passes to go to the front? [laughter]

Jocelyn: Yes, we do actually get them.

Justine: Yeah, we’ve known the owner since day one.

H: What? Really?

Jocelyn: 'Cause we always discover new restaurants. That's why before they became so popular, we actually met them since they opened. So we actually waited in line before ourselves, and then actually became friends with them. So that's why we still promote for them because we really love them. And when we promote for them, sometimes we get like a skip the line thing and then do our own pictures and post them up. But I think another thing is that we always run giveaways with it. So we really want our followers to actually get a chance to skip the line at Howlin' Rays.

H: Right, that's awesome. I just saw that. I'm gonna comment next time because I want to skip the line.

Jocelyn: Yeah, each month we do that, and a lot of our friends will call us like the night after like "Hey, is there any way..." [laughter]. I'm like "no..." because they pick the winner. It's Howlin' Rays, they pick the winner.

Justine: So before we picked the winner, but then we got a lot of message[s] from followers saying "How do you pick the winner?" like "Why'd you pick her and not pick me?" and I'm like "just randomly." And then they'd ask me "How randomly?" [laughter] And then I said like "You know, use the program." "Like how? You have to show us." And then at the end, I'm like oh I'll just ask Mario, one of the staff, and I said like "Mario, can you help me to pick it every time?" So you know it's fair. It's more fair. And people won't ask me how. I said, "If you want to ask, ask Mario." [laughter]

Jocelyn: Yeah, I think we keep it very fair when we run giveaways. Like, our friends... I just told them like "well, everyone has the same chance of winning. It's just because we randomly pick someone." Or sometimes we just let the owners themselves pick the winner to make sure that it's a fair game.

B: Yeah, that makes so much sense. We actually have another question from one of our listeners. They're asking "Are your travels influenced by restaurants and food choices? If so, which was the best trip you went on?"

Justine: Tokyo

Jocelyn: Yeah, Japan.

H: What'd you have there?

Jocelyn: So Japan has the most Michelin rated restaurants in the world. And I think why we love Japan so much is because Japan is very safe... and they have the best foods that we've had in our life, especially even in the convenience store. So I don't know if you have heard of--even the egg sandwich at the convenience store tastes so much better than anything else outside.

Justine: Like cup of noodles, too [laughter]

Jocelyn: Everything is so exquisite. And they're very nice, and also as well as like exceptional service over there. So I think that's why we always go back to Japan.

H: How often have you been?

Jocelyn: At least every--last year it was like, at least every four months.

H: Wow

Justine: Two times per year.

Jocelyn: Yeah, at least two times

Justine: And then I'm going to Tokyo in April.

H: Is it always Tokyo, or do you go to different cities as well?

Jocelyn: Osaka, Kyoto, yeah.. but we always want to go back to the restaurants that we really like. But we try to explore more as well because there are too many restaurants. And sometimes we actually--so people ask us "oh you get a lot of benefits or even great things from being a food blogger." But on the side, we actually felt so uncomfortable of eating a lot of food every single day. So when we first started, we actually went to eight restaurants a day.

Beliz and Henry: Wow!

Jocelyn: So that we have enough content to build Hangrydiary. So back in like, three and half years ago we actually went to eight restaurants a day during the weekend. So we have like 16 contents to line it up for the following week.

B: Oh wow

Jocelyn: Yeah that was crazy, back in the day.

B: It is

H: How did you get from restaurant to restaurant. Did you walk? Are they close? Did you have to go far across the city for all these places in a day?

Justine: So we would make an arrangement and then, you know, map out all the restaurants' address. And then you know...

Jocelyn: We would check the time

Justine: Yeah, we need to check the opening time, close time, you know. Is it for breakfast, lunch, dessert... [laughter]

B: Oh wow. Was it hard to maintain a healthy lifestyle while doing that?

Jocelyn: Yes. I would say definitely yes. At least back in the days that sometimes I got food poisoning from eating too much or from eating something that wasn't very clean, then yeah. Back in the days it was actually pretty tough for us to start Hangrydiary. But now, we don't go to restaurants that often as before because we pull less content now. But actually, I think we are trying to build better content. More like focused on new and good restaurants.

H: So a listener says that they heard the 7-Elevens are amazing in Japan.

Jocelyn: Yeah, the convenience store. It's so amazing. I think you can just try to have breakfast there, lunch there, even dinner. Like you won't be disappointed at all.

Justine: The ice cream is amazing too.

Jocelyn: Everything is so good there

Justine: They have the mochi ice cream.

H: Do you ever go to Sawtelle? Right over here on the West side.

Jocelyn: Yes, I used to live at Sawtelle and even worked at the supermarket. So yeah, I had a few jobs like at the supermarket and Beard Papa’s, and all that. And even know how to make milk tea, and all that. So I know it becomes like a ramen street now, at Sawtelle.

H: Yes, Tsujita.

Jocelyn: The empire. It's all over there, but I think it's a good thing because whenever you think about ramen, the people know where to go. And I actually love that the street is getting more and more ramen places. The more competitive it is, the better food we can get.

B: Yeah, do you have a favorite place on that strip?

Jocelyn: Hmmm...

Justine: Tsujita is pretty good.

Jocelyn: Yeah, I think that one is pretty good, but uh--

Justine: The line is not that good though [laughs]

H: Which one? Because there's like the regular one, the Annex...

Justine: Tonkatsu

B: Yeah, we actually are getting a lot of questions from our listeners for you. One guest asks "Do you have a favorite dessert place in LA?"

Jocelyn: Dominique Ansel in Alhambra. Have you ever tried that place?

B: No, because I'm vegan. But I went to New York, and my friend and I wanted to wait in line at 5 a.m. in the morning for the cronuts when they first came out. We were really excited, but then we couldn't get up in the morning. [laughs] So that was my whole journey with Dominique Ansel, and then I went vegan so I never had the chance to try it.

Jocelyn: I don't know if they have vegan dessert as well.

B: I don't think so.

Jocelyn: I don't think so, but they actually... Dominique Ansel, the bottom part is actually a dessert place, but the upper level is actually a restaurant. And they serve really good pasta, but I think there [are vegan] items as well but on the dinner menu. So it's still a very good experience over there. They definitely serve one of the best desserts in LA.

H: What about you?

Justine: This is a very challenging question.

H: Mine... I think I like Salt and Straw, honestly. I'm basic.

Justine: Oh, I love Salt and Straw, too.

Jocelyn: Wanderlust Creamery!

H: Oh, Wanderlust is very good, too. Oh yes, fantastic. I love Wanderlust.

B: For me, I really love Donut Friend. I don't know if you've ever tried it. They have a stall in Smorgasburg as well, on Sundays. And they have great donuts. I'm a huge donut fan, but other than that, I also really, really like the brownie at Gracias Madre. It's a really good dessert. And it's like so chocolatey, but they also put the coconut ice cream on top with maple syruped coconut shreds. It's really good. [laughs]

Justine: It tastes so good that I want it right now. [laughter]

Jocelyn: Yeah, I've been dreaming about food sometimes, actually. And when I woke up, I was like "oh my god, I have to go over there and make reservations." [laughter] And we have to make reservations as well. A lot of people ask us like "Oh do you get privilege of getting in the restaurant right away?" I was like "No, I still make reservations."

Justine: Sometimes

Jocelyn: Well, yeah. But I still wait in line. Like when I really want the food that we want to try immediately.

H: You can't say "I have all these followers, let me in!" [laughter]

Jocelyn: I think there are too many food bloggers in LA that owners cannot differentiate, and they can't tell you are. So our privilege is that we just go by ourselves, and then if they know us well, then they will actually invite us another time.

H: Nice. Speaking of reservations, I saw in another short interview that you did that you went to n/naka and Bavel, which are two very hard to get reservations. Can you tell us about that experience?

Justine: So for Bavel, I just walk in. [laughs] Yeah, if you go earlier, like 6 p.m., you don't need a reservation. They will just let you in. But then you kind of need to sit at a counter, not a table. So if you can't make a reservation, I recommend you just walk in--like earlier, not at like 8 p.m. And I really love Bavel. I think I went there like three times, four times already.

Henry and Beliz: Wow!

Justine: And my favorite dish is the oyster mushrooms. Yeah, and so the oyster mushroom is a little bit chewy. And then with a little touch of--you can taste the fire, the wood fire. And then they put a little bit of salt and mint. So, you know the whole combination is so simple, but everything is so balanced. So it's like excellent. It's my favorite dishes.

B: Wow, that sounds really yummy.

Justine: Of course, the hummus is really good. You know, the flatbread is excellent. Because they are the same group as Bestia. I love Bestia too. Bestia, the same thing--it's really hard to make a reservation. So what I do, I would just walk in at like 5:30, 6.

H: That's smart.

Justine: And you know, you don't want to go with a big group. Like only two people, three people is easier.

B: Yeah, I assume so. How about n/naka?

Jocelyn: So n/naka, I went there I think... two years ago. Um, I think she is the queen of kaiseki in LA Yeah, so the whole process of kaiseki dinner is kind of a storytelling element. So from the first dishes to the end, so it's like a floor, it's like music. And I think I really loved the service at n/naka, they were like super, super, super attentive. So, I remember even though we ordered wine, right? Like I got alcohol. And then we couldn't finish it--the wine. So at the end, they just told us "Oh the wine is already at your car." Like you know, they put it in your car and then they would tell you like "left side." It's done. Usually, you know, if you go to restaurants, they're like "Oh leftovers, okay here's your leftovers." You have to take it out and then put it in your car by yourself. So they remember which car you drive, where they park... they marked out every single thing. And you don't need to ask them to do anything. They are there already. So when like, your cup is almost empty of water, they would just pour it. And then they would remember everything you don't eat, and every dish they explain. And then sometimes you might forget what's inside, and they would just come and "Oh yeah, yeah, don't worry. I will just explain again" until you get it. And I really loved the experience. And when you return to n/naka again, the second time, nothing will be repeated. So they mark down everything. Yeah, and they mark down "oh you love these dishes." So they would give you these dishes again, but then the other dishes would be different.

Jocelyn: They're just very, very detail minded.

B: Oh wow. That sounds amazing.

Justine: And the chef came out by herself to introduce and you can take photos. It's very friendly and welcoming.

B: Wow, that sounds really nice.

H: That was n/naka sushi omakase place in Palms and Bavel Mediterranean in downtown. Do they have sort of that all over Tokyo? Is that a thing? Or is n/naka still special or do they have that in Tokyo as well?

Jocelyn: They have a lot of that in Tokyo actually [laughter] 'Cause I think it's just the Japanese culture. They always have the best service. We already experience the best service in Japanese restaurants, as well. They explain things very well, they take notes of things that you eat, they ask you of dietary restrictions in advance, and they always remember like--if there's a second visit, they always give you something new or remember what you like and what you don't like. So I think overall, it's an exceptional dining experience that people really have to try once in life.

H: Okay, I'll have to go. I want to go.

Justine: I think Tokyo is kind of beyond traditional, like we went to Den.

Jocelyn: Yeah, that was like another kaiseki restaurant

Justine: It's so fun

Jocelyn: Yeah, it's like a Michelin two star. It was so difficult to make a reservation. It took us six months, and you also need referrals from chefs or like really renowned editors or editors to recommend you to eat there. So that is one of the difficult restaurants to get into in the world.

H: What is it called?

Jocelyn: Den, D-E-N.

H: Wow, in Tokyo?

Jocelyn: Yeah

H: Wow, well I probably won't be eating there any time soon [laughs] Jocelyn: I want to go a second time, but I don't know if that will ever happen, too.

B: I took a note of that, and I want to go. Now, especially after you talked about Tokyo, I've always wanted to go to Japan. But now after hearing all about the food, I am going to make an effort to go there sometime soon.

Jocelyn: Definitely! We'll send you the best list, don't worry. [laughter]

H: What do you think--you know, the Michelin stars are very prevalent in Tokyo and other places. What do you think about LA not having any of that guide?

Jocelyn: We heard about that actually, coming back every year. And then I see a lot of editors writing that "We hope the Michelin Guide will come back." And that might actually happen in one or two years. Because it will be more renowned restaurants coming into Los Angeles this year. Or even in Asia, there will be some new restaurants coming in with Michelin stars as well. And there is like one Dim Sum place opening up in Irvine. There's another dumpling empire coming in as well. And there is another restaurant in Chicago it's called...

Justine: Girl & The Goat

Jocelyn: Yeah, coming in to LA So people always hope that Michelin Guide will come back for all of these.

Justine: And then we have a lot of you know, top chef restaurants in LA

B: Do you think it will come back?

Jocelyn: I think they will come back, but maybe not this year. Maybe next? Also because of the Olympic Games and all those, they said that there will be more restaurants coming back in LA.

H: Very exciting.

B: I was wondering, why do you think, especially right now, there's such a boom in Los Angeles restaurants--especially quality restaurants. Because when I first came to LA, you know, Catch and Ysabel, they just opened. We didn't have a lot of really great chef-centric restaurants, but now there are new openings every day. It's an exciting scene. Why do you think it increased all of the sudden?

Jocelyn: I think people actually love eating food, and maybe also because of a social media wave as well. People love taking a picture to share about it, and they get more likes, more engagement, so people actually go to new places every time. I think it's also because of the trend, but also maybe... the sense that Michelin Guide will be coming back so restaurants actually are moving to LA I think it's a combination of all the elements and that shapes the LA food scene.

H: That's very exciting. Can I ask you what are some of your favorite Dim Sum dishes? Just some of your favorite.

Jocelyn: Steamed barbeque buns.

H: Oh, my favorite too.

Jocelyn: They're so amazing. And that's actually one of the most difficult Dim Sum dishes that a chef can make. So I ask the chef "What is actually one of the most difficult Dim Sum dishes that you ever..." Then he said, "it's the barbeque bun." But it's actually, at the price point, it's pretty cheap as well compared to all the other items on the list. And it's always my favorite. And I have my secret list as well that I haven't shared on Hangrydiary, and the best barbeque bun that I've ever had, in Hong Kong. It's very exciting. But there is still other Dim Sum... like steamed dumplings. There are like, rice rolls and all other dishes. You can just eat a lot when you go to Dim Sum, and just come with a lot of friends. And it is not expensive at all.

H: Do you like Dim Sum places that have the cart or do you like the menu? Jocelyn: I like cart. But I get why they can no longer actually serve in carts because of the size as well. And even in Hong Kong, there aren't a lot of cart Dim Sum style restaurants anymore as well. It's because of the land, because of the size, it's kind of expensive to have someone to actually pull out the carts every single time. So I don't get to see a lot in Hong Kong as well. But it's fun.

H: I agree

B: We have another question from one of our listeners, and they ask "What is everyone's favorite comfort food?"

Jocelyn: Hm... chicken noodle soup. Whenever I get sick or I'm like so sick of having too many burgers, greasy food, then I go for that. That's my comfort food. But also, Chinese food also because we grow with that. We grew up with that.

Justine: Me too. Chinese food. You know, porridge, chicken soup. [laughs]

B: How about you?

H: I think my mom's pesto pasta. That's simple, easy. I love pesto, it's my favorite thing.

B: Yeah, I think mine is Turkish lentil soup. It's basically a bunch of vegetables and red lentils boiled, and then you blend them in a blender, and it's a soup. And it's always whenever I'm sick, whenever I feel nauseous, whenever I don't feel well, I just--and it's so easy to make--I just make myself a batch of that soup and have that with some bread, and it's really good. It reminds me of home.

H: So you've been doing Hangrydiary for three and a half years. And you have other positions? Occupations? Or is this a full-time job, Hangrydiary?

Jocelyn: Hangrydiary is just a hobby. We still have our own full-time jobs. So I used to work at hotels, actually as a PR person. That actually brought us a lot of good networks in the community as well. And then, through Hangrydiary, we meet a lot of other talented bloggers, YouTubers, and all of them. So it's a great community since we started that.

Justine: Hangrydiary is my hobby. I work at USC as an accountant, actually. So this kind of balances my life. You know, accountants are like a lot of men, and you just sit there the whole day... In the weekend, we just go out taking photos, chatting with the chefs, enjoying the food. I think it's kind of a life balance. [laughter]

B: I completely understand because we're both students, and we study all day. We have finals and a lot of readings to do. But then when you're out in Los Angeles trying out new food, being a part of that culture, it's a really nice feeling. And one question I had was, you talked about balance, but does it ever get hard for you guys to maintain the Instagram account and also go on with your daily lives?

Jocelyn: Before, yes. Because we had to do our own research, and then after going to restaurants, coming back we have to edit the image and definitely write a caption and all that. But because we do it more and more often, it becomes an easier job for us. And we still enjoy it a lot, like trying out new restaurants. We can never get tired of it, as long as the restaurants are good. [laughter] That's the point.

Justine: Yeah, I still get excited every time I try something new and good.

B: Have you recently had an experience where you were like "I really don't like this food"?

Jocelyn: Yeah, and we started doing more reviews on our stories.

B: Yeah! I noticed.

Jocelyn: And we actually waited in line and then we paid on our own and then we started doing reviews on what's actually good on the menu. Because a lot of times people said that it's good on Yelp, but that isn't really the case when we go to the restaurants ourselves. So we did a few reviews where people say it's like five stars, but it turns out to be only like two for us. So we put it on Hangrydiary. [laughter]

H: Yeah, Yelp isn't so trustworthy. It's just people, other people, you know.

B: Yeah, and I guess when you're not really interested in the industry and you... have more of an understanding, you look at different things when you eat food. Like price, how convenient it is. Especially for a lot of American citizens, I think convenience is really important. Like, sometimes I look at a restaurant on Yelp, and the only reason that is is because the service was kind of slow or their delivery wasn't that good. And yeah, I don't think that's really fair to the restaurants. But service is also really important. You always have to judge for yourself, I guess. I actually had another question. Do you have a trend that you think will become popular in Los Angeles or in general this year?

Jocelyn: We see more Filipino restaurants getting more popular in Los Angeles right now. And also Mexican restaurants. Because before it used to always be a truck, but we see they're actually turned into restaurants now in the food scene. And one of the best tacos... well I really like Guisado's. What is your favorite? I need to know. [laughs] Guerilla Tacos in downtown LA. I really like that as well.

H: Yeah, I was going to say Guerilla. Guerilla, Guisado's, and Kogi's settled down in a permanent location too which was delicious. So yeah, I love those. Hm, favorite taco? Oh... maybe not favorite, but Tacos Tu Madre right here on Westwood is really good.

B: Yeah, I like that too.

Justine: For a midnight taco, I think King Tacos. [laughs]

B: I've never been there.

Jocelyn: They're very famous like for when you crave tacos at night.

Justine: Yeah, 1 a.m. and you're craving tacos. [laughter] You go to King Tacos.

B: Where is it? Is it a food truck?

Justine: Oh no, they have a restaurant, and they also have a truck, too.

H: How far are you willing to drive for food? Especially if you're going at night, and you're in East LA, how far do you come in to go for food?

Jocelyn: Well, an hour to two is fine. It depends on the restaurant as well. If this is like my favorite restaurants, then it doesn't really matter much.

Justine: Yeah, it's like if I want to try a restaurant in Tokyo and I have a reservation, I would just buy a ticket, you know... [laughter] and fly there. Because in April the only reason I'm going to Tokyo is because I got a reservation at Sushi Saito... the top sushi place in the world. So it's like kind of impossible to make a reservation unless some regular customer brings you in, and in Japan, the regular customer means that they have to go once a month.

B: Oh wow

Justine: Ever since the restaurant opened. So those are called "regular customers." It's like they will go there more than 80 times, 100 times.

B: Oh my god

Justine: So you know, Tokyo restaurants are very small. It's only for six to eight people. So this restaurant, they only allow regular customers to bring you in. Usually people would just make the next reservation at the moment. So the next reservation would be one year later. So, you know? They won't serve any new visitors. [laughter]

H: How much does that menu cost?

Justine: So usually all around $300. I mean, it's okay because if you eat at a fancy sushi restaurant here, like omakase, it's around $300-$400 per person.

B: Yeah. Someone asks "Is that the sushi place that's in Jiro Dreams of Sushi?"

Justine: Oh no, it's different. But Jiro is in Tokyo too.

H: Have you been to that one?

Justine: Oh no [laughter]

B: Well, I think we're coming to an end of our show. Before we close off, one final question. Are you guys excited to try anything new this week?

H: Or this year

Justine: This coming year...

Jocelyn: Well we are hoping that the Dim Sum place will open in Irvine, because it was very good in Hong Kong. But we heard different mixed reviews when it opened in New York. So that's actually one of the places that I will line up for like an hour for the Dim Sum. So that's a place that I'm looking forward to.

Justine: And I'm waiting for Girl & The Goat [laughter] because I used to work in Chicago for nine months, and this is my favorite restaurant.

H: What sort of food?

Justine: New American and a little bit Asian fusion. So, the price is very reasonable. So if you finish the whole meal, it's only $50 per person. But then, every time I go it's so good. So I'm waiting for it to come [laughter]

B: Yeah

H: I'll be excited too

B: Do you have anything?

H: Oh, anything I'm excited to try this week. I haven't thought of it. Maybe Uovo pasta.

Justine: Oh I love Uovo. [laughter]

H: Oh you do? Okay. [laughs] Good. I haven't made reservations yet, but I'm probably going to Elephante later this month.

Jocelyn: Yeah, I love Elephante--the view, and the servers look amazing. Like very handsome, the guys, and the girls look like they're from Hollywood. [laughter]

B: Yeah, everyone looks really cool.

H: Everyone's beautiful. [laughter] How about you?

B: I actually have reservations for Majordomo tomorrow

Everyone: [gasps] ohhh!

H: Tomorrow! Are you kidding me. That's no fair.

B: [laughs] Yeah, tomorrow night.

Justine: I love Majordomo, too.

B: Yeah, I got reservations for my whole family while they were visiting my dad wanted to go to a good restaurant, and I heard great reviews. So I have a lot of expectations. I'm really excited. I wanted to go there since it opened. So we'll see. I'll let you guys know.

Jocelyn: It's really good [laughs]

H: Well, thank you so much for joining us. Is there anything else you'd like to say before...

Jocelyn: If people ever need recommendations, they can just direct message us and we will give you our secret list. Because we always have a new updated list, but it's also pretty long as well. So whenever people ask us, we will just give them the best list--the most updated one.

B: Oh, that sounds great.

H: You can message them at @hangrydiary on Instagram.

B: Yes, and make sure to follow them as well. They have great food pictures.

H: And giveaways

Jocelyn and Justine: Thank you!

B: Well, this was The Menu on UCLAradio.com. Thank you for tuning in and listening to our interview with the lovely ladies from Hangrydiary. Want to close off?

H: Thank you very much. Have a great week.

[uclaradio]

On Protecting Life in Global Health Assistance

article by Alysun Littlefield

On February 7th, the US State Department released a six-month review of the policy that Trump has dubbed “Protecting Life in Global Health Assistance.” The name might be different, but we know this policy well; originally dubbed the “Mexico City Policy” by Reagan in 1984, it is now more widely known by feminists and women’s rights advocates as the global gag rule.

So what does this policy do? While the US already banned foreign aid from being used for abortion services in 1973 (which is insane in and of itself), the global gag rule takes this further and says that any NGOs that use their own, non-US funds for providing abortion access will have their aid cut off. As the United States is the largest development aid funding country in the world, cutting off this kind of assistance can have significant impacts. These NGOs must certify they none of their funding goes to:

Providing abortion services

Counseling patients about the option of abortion or providing referrals for abortions

Training abortion providers

Advocating for the liberalization of abortion laws

Multiple studies show that this policy does not reduce the overall abortion rates, but instead just the number of unsafe abortions.

Trump’s reinstatement of this law is not surprising. Since it’s first conception, every Democrat that’s been elected has repealed it and every Republican has reinstated it, which is a huge problem for NGOs working on these issues because changing US politics can hinder any kind of growth they achieve and make long term projects hard to justify investing in. Trump’s version of this policy, however, is particularly heinous. Under previous Republican administrations, this policy rescinded around $575 million, while Trump’s more strict policy has taken away an estimated $8.8 billion as it has been applied to funding support for family planning and reproductive health, maternal and child health, nutrition, HIV/AIDS—including The President’s Plan for Emergency Relief for AIDS (PEPFAR), prevention and treatment of tuberculosis, malaria (including the President’s Malaria Initiative), infectious diseases, neglected tropical diseases, and even to water, sanitation, and hygiene programs.

The February 7th review of this policy in no way took into account the actual impact that it is having on women’s health around the world and instead focused solely on how effectively the policy has been implemented. As this policy has only been fully implemented for six months, many NGOs have not yet renewed their grants, so it’s likely that even more money will be denied to these institutions in the coming months.

So what do these impacts actually look like? If an NGO uses half of its funding for reproductive health and referrals for abortion but uses the other half for vaccinations, nutritional supplements and HIV/AIDS treatment, the group now has to choose between shutting down half of their programs or losing all of their US funding. Complications from pregnancy and childbirth are the second leading cause of death in the world for ages 15-19 and the World Health Organization estimates that at least 22,000 women die from abortion-related complications every year. Those rates will only get worse. The US provides nearly 50% of the world’s HIV/AIDS funding and this policy will impact the quality and availability of screenings and care.  Thousands of people now do not have access to care and Trump’s review doesn’t even take this into account because he doesn’t care about the lives of woman around the world. Hell, he doesn’t care about the lives of woman here. Until there’s another Democrat in office, this won’t be changing soon.

[uclaradio]

Why the Oscar’s Don’t Mean Sh*t

article by Adrian Tapia

That golden statue. That 13.5 inches tall award that almost every actor wishes to be handed. That 8.5-pound gold-plated object that gets so much attention.

The Academy Awards, or the Oscars, is a prestigious night watched worldwide by millions of fans and thousands in the film industry. This special afternoon honors those working in film, congratulating them on their artistic merit and technical achievements. It is a night to celebrate all things Hollywood.

But if the Academy Awards are really meant to award cinematic accomplishments, then how did Suicide Squad beat Star Trek Beyond in Best Make-Up and Hairstyling. Was Jared Leto’s poorly designed, face-tatted, hipster looking Joker really better than Star Trek Beyond’s heavily researched, carefully molded, beautifully crafted characters?? How about Brave? Was Pixar’s generic, slow-paced Brave really a better-animated film than Laika’s stop-motion, creative, unique film Paranorman? And finally, how in god’s name did Shakespeare in Love beat Steven Spielberg’s incredibly realistic, emotionally driven Saving Private Ryan??? I’ll tell you how. Money and campaigning. I will be providing the links to where I got this information if y’all doubt me and shit.

Studios do this thing called “For your consideration campaigns.” In this tactic, studios spend millions of dollars, even up to 10 million dollars, pushing their films to Academy members through free screenings of the films, meet and greets with the actors and directors, and even smear campaigns against other films. Studios will track where Academy members live or even vacation, and throw free screenings by there. Denzel Washington even admitted to and made fun of this tactic in his acceptance speech for a Golden Globe, stating, “Freddy Fields invited me to my first Hollywood Foreign Press luncheon. He said, 'You're gonna take pictures with everybody, you're gonna hold up the magazines, take the pictures, and you're gonna win the award... I won that year.’” To put the cherry on top of this ridiculous and infamous strategy, Harvey Weinstein came up with it. Yeesshhhh.

See, receiving an Oscar doesn’t truly reflect one’s achievements. It demonstrates the amount of money the studio put in, for one to get that gold-plated statue. As the “For your consideration campaigns” get more expensive, the value and worth of the Academy Awards will go down. This way it doesn’t mean shit.

No one has said this better than the show “Adam Ruins Everything” with the line:

“Money can’t act!”

“No, but it can make voters act differently.”

[uclaradio]

Noname @ The Wiltern (02/21/2019) // Show Review

articla and photographs by Baolinh Nguyen

Room 25 is an album that is very close to my heart. When it came out last September, it immediately became one of my favorite albums of 2018 and for a few days afterward, it was the only thing I would listen to. Room 25 became strongly associated with home and with the end of summer; when I listen to tracks like “self”, I’m immediately brought back home and am reminded of the days I spent laying around just listening to “self” on repeat. That being said, I was looking forward to seeing Noname live.

My friend and I arrived a bit late and the floor was quite crowded but we were able to meet up with some other people and get an OK spot. After waiting for a bit, the opener, Elton, came on. I had never heard anything from Elton before and after the first few tracks, I realized it was not something I would typically listen to. His performances were quite funky or jazzy, in a style similar to but still very different from Noname. He also brought out a few people, including Phoelix, who is featured in a lot of Noname tracks as well. One notable moment in Elton’s performance was his cover of an Andre 3000 song but otherwise, once his performance ended, I was looking forward to Noname coming on.

After around 30-40 minutes of waiting, the lights dimmed and a bright neon “ROOM 25″ sign lit up. She opened with “self”. She continued with other favorites like “Blaxploitation” and “Prayer Song”. Other memorable moments were when she performed “Ace” and some of her tracks from Telefone like “Bye Bye Baby”. Overall, the instrumentation was superb, probably one of my favorite parts; her band and backup singers were the highlights of the night. Noname herself was amazing live; her flow, like on the studio versions, is incredible and just hearing the tracks themselves live was powerful and moving.

There were some qualms I had about the show, specifically the length. Noname’s set was around 40-45 minutes, including her encore (an acapella version of “Shadow Man”) but this was to be expected since Room 25 itself is only around 35 minutes long. A lot of the tracks on her albums also have incredible features but she only was able to bring out Phoelix. I was disappointed that Saba and Smino didn’t come out to perform “Ace” since Saba’s verse in “Ace” was one of my favorites in the entire album, but since they were both touring, it was expected. Also, she was pretty high throughout the entire show and the audience could tell but honestly, it added to her show, which was overall, really amazing. Noname herself was charming, likable, and most of all, very genuine.

Room 25 was such a monumental album for me in 2018 and seeing it live was incredible, regardless of the small hiccups and I’ll be listening to Room 25 on repeat (again) for the next few days.

[uclaradio]

Interview with TK, Artistic Director of the Kind Music Festival

interviewed and transcribed by Mahala Herron-Rutland

Hey there we are here interviewing my friend TK on UCLA Radio.

TK : How is going Mahala?

Everything is great apart from the fact it’s raining outside like crazy. Is it raining where you are? 

TK : Actually, I am in Palm Springs so it’s nice and clear right now but I think it’s meant to be raining this weekend. 

Oh I am so jealous. So to be clear you are the creative director for the “Be Kind” festival? 

TK: That is correct I am the artistic director and creative marketing director of the “Be Kind” festival. 

Wow, and how old are you? I know that you recently celebrated a birthday. 

TK: Yeh, I just turned 20.

How were you able to get this opportunity at such a young age? What was your backstory for such a deal for you? 

TK: I’ve been doing music my whole life and went to school for jazz and piano performance. I play about thirteen different instruments and I got into NYU after graduating but decided to dropped out after six months because I didn’t like it too much. Then, I started interning. At the internship, I learned about producing which led me to link up with other artists in the LA area. This made me move back to LA where I started producing, making money, and getting placements on records. Somehow I end up meeting Mike Tyson on a boat with a family friend. Mike mentioned his son who is sixteen is an aspiring musician so we linked up and had a great vibe.

That’s interesting, and what led from that point? 

TK: It turns out Mike wanted to throw a music festival to launch his cannabis company called “Tyson Ranch.” Next thing you know I am in the Tyson ranch office and they wanted my input because I was experienced with social media and well connected in LA. I guess they needed a millennial opinion on the festival since the audience they wanted was within our age and college kids. [laughs] After that moment I got full fledged involved and worked my way up to the artistic director of the whole thing. 

All this before the age of 20, congratulations. To my knowledge, this going to be the first all-ages CBD festival am I right?

TK:  Yeah, we are saluting California’s progressive stance on cannabis and how it is used for recreational and medicinal. The brand of the festival is not to do with cannabis or CBD but more to do with kindness, that's why it is called kind music festival. We want to focus on unity, kindness, and bringing people together. 

I hear that. So when is the festival?

TK: It’s going to be down here in Palm Springs, CA and that’s why I am down here. We are getting football fields of astro turf laid down to do this festival, but the event is going to be on February 23rd. It’s a one day opening pop-up event that can be considered a micro-festival. We have A$AP Ferg and Miguel headlining it's going to be a good time and we have plenty of activities at the festival. There will be a surprise at the festival that will mark the opening of our brand and Kind music festival. 

Sounds like a great time. How has it been working with Mike and the whole crew, what can you tell us about your experiences?

TK: Mike Tyson is a legend, everyone always says you can go anywhere in the world and people will know three names Mickey Mouse, Michael Jackson, and Mike Tyson.  He’s really the face of boxing ever since Muhammad Ali passed. Its crazy every day being surrounded by these people who come into the office, like we had Diplo last week. It's a crazy experience getting all this at such a young age and being around this caliber of people. 

Do you see yourself in the future being someone like Tariq? Rolling Louds co-founder?

TK: This festival in a couple of years is going to be another Rolling Loud or hopefully down the road turn into something as large as Coachella. So I definitely think I will hopefully be one of those names in the future. 

How much of a reference did you use of Rolling Loud for the Kind Fest?

TK: What we're doing is very different but it's still a music festival, so it is obviously going to be inherent things that are similar to other music festivals. I grew up going to Coachella as a local of the Coachella Valley so that's one of my really big influences. Everyone knows that Coachella is probably one of the craziest music festivals in the world. They do an insanely good job doing the marketing to millennials and influencers and kids who are apart of our generation, so that's obviously apart of my inspiration but what we're doing is next level. Nothing that we’re doing has been done before. 

What kind of treats can we expect at the Kind Festival?

TK: There's a lot that you can expect. We do have some fortune 500 companies that will be involved as far as sponsorships and stuff so you will see a lot of cool brands. A lot of stuff that is not normal for a music festival as far as creating an experience as opposed to just a festival. There’s going to be a ton of activities to do around the grounds such as theme park kind of feels and a lot of interactive stuff that you can do. And we have a huge surprise that's going to be a part of it, so you gotta see for yourself or wait till the footage to come out because we’re selling out pretty quick. 

Talk about the lineup, how did that work out? 

TK: There are so many hip hop and EDM festivals nowadays so we wanted to tune it pack and make it a relaxed vibe at least for this first one. We do have that hip hop representative, with ASAP Ferg, a hip hop legend, but we wanted to make the headline vibe relaxed which is why we have Miguel. October we’re going have the full festival so as soon as this pop-up event ends February 23rd, we're going to start working a week after for the one in October multiple days, multiple stages. It’s going to be huge. 

How is this February fest going to differ from the one in October?

TK: It's going to be bigger and better. Every year it’s just going to get bigger and better. Longer, more acts, and crazy headliners for the one in October. 

So how do you think having more festivals besides Coachella is going to affect the community?

TK: Well I feel like we’re going to have a lot more kids running around, and I feel like that’s good for the valley, progressive. It’s good to have stuff that kids do because all these people come and retire here and they have kids and grandkids. Kids growing up don’t have a lot to do out here besides throwing house parties or… that’s pretty much it, you know? Other than Coachella every year, they really have nothing to do. Mike is building an entertainment complex so there’s going to be a lot of stuff that’s going to start catering to the younger audience. Hopefully, we see a shift to a community that revolves more around the future.

Yeah, ok so when you say ‘entertainment complex’ what does that mean exactly?

TK: Yeah, the Tyson Ranch is building an entertainment complex, CDB research facility, an arena for concerts year-round in the desert, a luxury glamping site--

Luxury glamping? I love it!

TK: Yeah, a waterpark, lazy river, pool, all types of stuff, so it’s gonna be insane.

Alright, so give us a re-cap again about what we can expect at the festival

TK: Alright yeah, so at the festival, it’s gonna be a really great time, you can expect ASAP Ferg, Ric La Flare, Miguel will be there, a bunch of other acts and a bunch of other entertainment and activities that you’re gonna be able to do. It’s February 23rd, it’s a pop-up concert, it’s gonna be a good time down in Palm Springs 2-11pm, all ages, bring friends, bring family. I have a discount code for you guys it’s BEKIND, all caps, you get thirty dollars off your ticket and it goes down to like fifty dollars. Fifty dollars for all that good time, it’s a no-brainer.

Yeah, it’s a no-brainer. So, how can we put that in? What website?

TK: it’s www.kindmusicfestival.com you scroll down to a pink button it says ‘tickets’, it’ll take you to Front Gate tickets site, that’s by Ticketmaster and there’s a discount option at the bottom, put in BEKIND, all caps, and just proceed to checkout and it’ll apply that discount in for you.

Perfect, well I know I’ll be there.

TK: Well I’ll be there too! I’m actually performing with one of the acts there, so I’ll see you guys on the main stage.

You’re performing?!

TK: Yeahhh

What will you be doing?

TK: I’ll be performing with Yonnie, he’s an artist that I produced for, so I’ll be back there doing a bunch of the background instruments so, it’s gonna be a good time.

Oh tight, congrats! Break a leg.

TK: [laughs] Hopefully not, it can get real serious on that stage.

Ok, well we’ll see you on that stage at the Be Kind Festival. Thank you for tuning in, thank you TK for calling in.

TK: Thanks Mahala, you’re the best!

Yeah, alright. UCLA Radio, we’re here every Wednesday, Monster Mash is the show, I’m just filling in for them. See ya!

[uclaradio]

Jussie Smollett @ The Troubadour (02/02/2019) // Show Review

article and photograph by Mahala Herron-Rutland

In the light of the rumors that Jussie allegedly faked his own attack, and in the name of Valentines Day,  I want to start out by saying that love is love no matter the gender, ethnicity, or sexuality. No one deserves to be ridiculed, nevertheless, physically abused or tormented because of who they love. In the same light, it would be unfortunate if Jussie did actually fake this attack, being that it would denote the severance real hate crimes. My personal stance is that the show was far too passionate and the energy was way too real in the Troubadour for this to be a faked attack.

Jussie was allegedly attacked in Chicago a week prior to his performance where his attackers threw an unknown chemical substance on him and wrapped a rope around his neck. He is literally the strongest person for not canceling his already sold out Los Angeles show. Before the performance he made a powerful statement, “I’m not fully healed yet, but I’m going to. And I’m going to stand strong with yall. I had to be here tonight y’all, and it sounds bad but I couldn’t let those MF’s win. So I will always stand for love, I will never stand for anything other than that. Regardless of what anyone else says I will only stand for love, and I hope you all will stand with me. So thank you so much.”

He put so much energy into his performance, and the energy that he dispelled was nothing but powerful. Jussie is an example of how music and doing what you love can truly heal any hurt.

The Troubadour a super intimate concert venue with two levels that each allow you to see the artist in a personal light. Because of this intimate setting, his family got a super close view of the performance. Even his significant other was standing on the balcony and got a special shout out from Jussie for being so attentive during his recovery and helping him realize how lucky he is to be in love.

Songs such as “You’re so beautiful,” and “Good Enough” were the highlights of the performance. Opening singing group, June’s Diary, had a beautiful harmony and array of voices in the group. They truly set a colorful tone for the performance. His dancers were so high energy and precise in their movements, that it made me want to bust a move! Finally, Jussie has the most silky smooth and genuine voice. He deserves all the love and praise that he got for his performance.

Life is too short not to love who you want and life is too long not to love who you want! So love whoever you want!” -Jussie Smollett (The Gay Tupac).

[uclaradio]

Joji @ the El Rey (2/1/2019) // Show Review

article and photographs by Baolinh Nguyen

A few months ago, my cousin, my roommate and I all tried to get tickets to see Joji together and surprisingly, I was the only successful one. I bought our three tickets and the show ended up selling out within minutes. If anything, this is a testament to the mainstream success that JOJI - real name George Miller and formerly Filthy Frank - and the rest of the 88 Rising, a collective of Asian artists, have attained.

Honestly, I wasn’t sure what to expect the days leading up to the show. I knew who Filthy Frank was and I knew the types of fans he had. I had also heard stories of Joji coming on stage performing drunk with a red Solo cup in hand. Knowing this, I prepared myself for an intense concert experience.

When our Uber dropped us off, I saw a sizable line wrapping around the El Rey. I was relieved to see that there was nobody wearing any pink guy suits or any other esoteric Filthy Frank related gear. We headed to the end of the line and waited outside for around 15-20 minutes before the doors opened and we began trickling in. As we walked in the staff handed us all electronic wristbands with the 88 Rising logo on them to be used later in the show.

The opener was a small artist named Rei Brown. His set was chill; his lo-fi aesthetic and ethereal-sounding vocals reminded me of Joji. (I even overheard someone new to me say “Wait, I thought this was Joji”) His performance, however, wasn’t very dynamic and at times, a lot of his songs sort of melded together and sounded like a single song that lasted 30 minutes.

The crowd became unengaged part of the way through Rei Brown’s set — you could hear a lot of talking and people were on their phones — but when Joji came on, the atmosphere completely changed.

He opened with “Will He” and the audience immediately began screaming as soon as the song began. It seemed like everyone knew the lyrics and compared to the studio version, the live version was much more exciting. One thing I noticed was the Joji was so good live. A lot of times, his studio versions were very lo-fi and the vocals sounded a bit muddy. But that night, I just kept thinking that his singing was so much better in person.

Some memorable moments were when he performed “Head in the Clouds” and his encore “Slow Dancing in the Dark”.

During “Head in the Clouds”, the wristbands we were initially given lit up in unison for the first time to accompany the song and the lights he had on stage. And honestly, even if it’s a bit cheesy, it really enhanced the concert experience.

During his encore, he performed two versions of “Slow Dancing in the Dark”, first an acoustic version and the original version. Both were incredible and really ended the night on a high note.

Overall, some of my favorite moments were those two, and also when he performed one of my favorite songs, “Yeah Right.”

Still, I was left a bit unsatisfied; his set was only around 45 minutes, which is not very long at all. I felt like there could have been more but at the same time, his discography is not very expansive and the songs he does have are already quite short. I guess one good thing that comes from that is that the songs are easy to remember and most people can sing along to at least parts of all the song. Despite that, it was a really enjoyable experience; when my roommate and I got back to our room, we just sat there and listened to the entire album over again. In the end, seeing Joji live gave me a greater appreciation for him as an artist and especially as a singer.

[uclaradio]

Climate change, system change, and… education change?

article by Sophia Donskoi

What do schools, climate change, and all 50 states have in common? Nothing, inherently. That’s surprising, considering the United States is one of the world’s main contributors to climate change. Fortunately, the country is beginning to adopt policies that work toward more sustainable goals, such as sourcing renewable energy and banning single-use plastics. Scientists, politicians, and both the public and private sectors recognize the unavoidable impacts of climate change, but many districts around the country refuse to teach climate science to the generations that will be most affected by it. Education is vital to the understanding of climate change, and we must arm students with the necessary knowledge to help continue the United States’ progress toward sustainability.

Education policy is under the jurisdiction of the state, not federal, governments. Various national policies such as the bipartisan No Child Left Behind Act have attempted to remedy discrepancies among varying state educational standards. Both teachers’ unions and educational reform advocates agree that these standards should be uniform to make the jobs of teachers more manageable and benefit students.

Forty-six percent of Americans believe their country’s education in science, technology, engineering, and math is “below average,” according to a Pew Report. These Americans wouldn’t be far from correct, considering 20% of American 15 year-olds had low proficiency in science, falling short of international standards. It’s unfortunate that we haven’t yet found a solution that will push students ahead in one of the most important fields of their time. Unsurprisingly, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the two fastest-growing jobs in the U.S. are both science and climate-related: solar panel installers and wind turbine technicians. Clearly, students could benefit from not just science education, but climate education in particular. 

Some states like Wyoming (the state with the most carbon emissions per capita, surprise!) refuse to mandate climate change education— likely because informing students could lead to downfalls in the states’ oil and coal industries. But a downfall in those industries is exactly what America needs. By educating all students in this country on the foundations of climate change, we can effectively prepare them for what lies ahead: a climate-conscious economy and workforce. The journey to organized climate education isn’t long or arduous, considering a team of 40 scientists has already developed a system that’s been adopted in 26 states. Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) set standards for science courses that emphasize the human contributions to climate change and its effects on the Earth.

We need a national movement toward the NGSS so we can implement standards across state borders as soon as possible. Climate change is inevitable, so why can’t climate education be? Students have a right to know what lies ahead for them and their posterity as much as they have a right to learn in school, regardless of which polluting companies monopolize their individual states. When we adopt Next Generation Science Standards nationwide, we can leave the country united against the biggest problem facing humanity.

[uclaradio]

Interview with Tritonal @ the Hollywood Palladium

Interviewed by Jenny Tong (On behalf of Deep End Theory)

We were able to catch Chad and David from Tritonal during their show at the Hollywood Palladium.

Hey everyone, I’m Jenny. And who are we with today?

Chad: My name is Chad. David: And I’m David and we’re Tritonal!

So there’s a debate about how to pronounce that.

Chad: Right, it’s “Tri-tone-al”. So a tritone is a diminished fifth and augmented fourth. It’s a chord.

Got it. What excites you the most about the “U&Me” Tour?

Chad: We have developed a completely new show that is projection mapping. We’re running time-coded visuals onto a structure, so every video has lightings with pixelated strobes. It’s a new experience for our fans, essentially. It’s a ton of work setting up and taking down, a big undertaking with a large crew. I feel like most DJ shows and festivals you go to always have LED walls, like a big square wall or wall arrangements, and we’ve been playing on festivals and done a lot of hard ticket tours, buses etc., and have done LED walls for 6-7 years. So we were like, let’s do something new, let’s bring it back to how it used to be, go back to darker, lights, lasers, people moving dancing and enjoying themselves. We are just trying to do something different for us and for the fans.

We know it’s been a while since you’ve last released an album. What was the rationale of putting it out this year and what was the creative process behind the album?

David: Honestly we like making music all the time. The funny thing is, we were making so much music, we thought we could put out an album.

Chad: And then we doubled it. The album now comes to around 20 tracks. We keep making music and they’re like “well, there’s another album”. With Painting with Dreams, there was a story, and this one has one too like Dave was saying, we were really got into a rhythm of doing what we were trying to do. We would love it if we could release a track every three to four weeks, but we constantly get kickback from the label we own. We have a 20-person team in London that runs in, and we’ve got Ahmed and Joe, and managers think it’s good to release music but it’s also good for people to sit with the music and marinate for a while. We’ve been highly prolific with “track, remix, album, track, remix, mashup”. We love making tracks and we’re just like done, next! And sometimes it is too much. So an album is a great way to release a big body of work that you’ve been working on for a while. And this one, in particular, has a lot of music.

Is there any reason why it’s called “U & ME”?

Chad: Yes, because we feel like there is massive divisiveness in our culture right now in the United States between everyone. It’s your race versus mine, your political agenda versus mine, your beliefs versus mine … Everyone is using their false sense of self to propagate the idea of “me and the other”, the otherness of others … but there isn’t that much otherness of others. We’re more connected and unified than we think. The media propagates this all the time, and what we see at our shows is that people at all walks of life come to enjoy the music in the same way, and care about each other in the same way. So really it is a message pointing towards unity.

Absolutely. That’s what house music’s origin was all about being inclusive and everyone being together. So who are some of these people you have looked up to all the time?

Chad: When I was a rave bunny - I was listening to the old-school Josh Wink, Carl Cox, Sasha, Digweed, you know, the deep European progressive guys. and then there was a big trance movement when guys like Tiesto, Armand Van Helden, and Armin Van Buuren and the Dutch superstar was born. Dave and I religiously listened to trance around the world at that point, probably 10 or 11 years ago. The OceanLab Project was still a thing at the time, and we connected with Anjunabeats the most in terms of emotions. We did that record shopping thing for a while, but going back to when you are making a lot of music, you are sending A&R a ton of different things, and they just tried to cherry pick on top. So we had multiple labels pissed at each other, so we decided to start our own team, our own brand.

David: Right. Those were definitely good ones. I’m a little younger too, so I came up with Tiesto and Armin, and even some non-EDM acts like Coldplay and the sound design of Pink Floyd. I really like the oddity of it, and I’m kind of all over the map right now, but these different influences all kind of come hand in hand.

Chad: Definitely. We still listen to really eclectic music now. We don’t really listen to the music we make now. We have this other side that people don’t really know about. Specifically, we love listening to Jon Hopkins, and anything piano-based, weird sound designs, deep progressive trance stuff, and chill, cinematic orchestra. So we’re going to figure that out. Maybe it’ll be another project that we’ll make. For instance, the first album we had a track called “Only Mortals”, which was a pointer towards Hopkins. This album has two or three, one of them is called “Sapphire” … which are way different and way far away from “Out My Mind”. But we are humans, and humans can have multiple interests, so who cares.

That’s for sure, many people have different stage names too.

Chad: Yeah, and I think we should do that. Tritonal is so prolific and it has such momentum with what that needs to do, like sure you can have outliers, but we don’t want to just do an entire album Jon Hopkin style. I used to not think that, but I do now. There should be consistency within lanes. You could jump around a little here and there, but there needs to be a medium. When we make a future bass track, it’s usually a little sexy and emotional, very much the same way as “Now or Never” and progressive house tracks. So even if we do different rhythm sets, tempos, the melodic structure and chord progressions and types of melodies, whether it is broken-beaten at 140 or 128 on the floor. Fans may not see it that way, but that’s how I see it as a person who writes them.

Speaking of your label, how do you manage your time between that and touring?

Chad: Will, as well as our managers Ahmed and Joe try to offset as much as they can. Ultimately, there is no right answer for that. I have twin boys who are 18-months, and a 3-year-old daughter, and David a 2.5-year-old son. When I go home on Sunday they’ll tackle me and I have to be ready for that. But we do know one way that doesn’t help is if you’re drinking, eating bad food, not having a spiritual discipline whether that’s meditation, yoga, exercise, and you’re just living in chaos. I love working out, I meditate, I don’t drink ever; he doesn’t drink when he is on the road. We love doing this, it’s creative and it’s fun, but it’s a business too. We do treat this as a career.

Dave: We get up every single day and this is what we do, this is what we love. And we will cater to that. If you’re drinking or doing drugs, they’re getting in the way. It gets in your way when you have three little ones at home who If you are single, and that’s how you want to roll, then do your thing. No judgment, for real.

Was just about to ask what advice would you have for college students?  

Dave: THAT. And I was one in college. If you really want to do anything great in life, it takes a certain amount of discipline and focus. Even if you’re good. The best people you will find are disciplined. The great always are. They’re good, they have natural talent, but they couple it with consistency. And what we’ve done is consistently putting out music.

Alright. So that’s the mantra of the year, thank you so much for your time.

[uclaradio]

Ranking the Songs Nominated for Best Original Song at the 2019 Oscars

article by Mark McGreal

With the 91st Academy Awards fast approaching the movie world is abuzz. Questions are being posed such as “What will the awards looks like without a host?” and “Which film is going to win best picture?” and “Is the person who wins for sound editing REALLY going to talk for 5 minutes?!?!?”. While we won’t know the answer to any of these question until February 24, it’s always fun to do a little guessing, ranking, and arguing.

The Best Original Song category has five nominees that each have a shot at the little golden man, and, since it takes about 20 minutes to listen to all of them versus the approximately 20 hours it takes to watch all of the Best Picture nominees, I’ve decided to give you my prediction on which song will be taking home Oscar gold later in the month.

It should be noted that none of these songs are bad. Even the worst Oscar-nominated song is better than a fair amount of songs released in any particular year. Its like ice cream. Vanilla is no one’s favorite ice cream flavor, but it beats garlic flavored ice cream by a mile. It should also be noted that I’m ranking these songs based on my own opinion, tastes, and gut feelings after listening to the songs. You might have a different opinion, I just happen to be a writer for a blog. So, without further ado, coming in at number five is.....

5. The Place Where Lost Things Go (Mary Poppins Returns)

I’d like to start by saying that I absolutely adore Emily Blunt. She’s a terrific actress, funny in interviews, and her husband was on The Office. Oh yeah, and she’s an excellent singer. She previously appeared in Into the Woods (2014) where she showed off her pipes as The Baker’s Wife. She does a great job with this song as well, showing off her range and ability to carry a show tune. Overall, her performance was good. The song itself is the problem. It’s slow, methodical, and a little boring to be honest. Blunt does her best with it, but unless you have children or an unbridled passion for musicals, you probably won’t be bumping this song on your car’s stereo anytime soon.

4. When a Cowboy Trades His Spurs for Wings (The Ballad of Buster Scruggs)

Full disclosure, I fully expected to hate this song. I can’t stand country music (apologies to any of you country fans reading this). I don’t like the genre and I’m not a big fan of westerns in general. This, of course, is not your ordinary western. The newest Coen Brothers film is a Netflix original and has been getting rave reviews. The film itself is built like a six-part anthology, following different stories in the old west. The song is very country. It's slow, the singers have the trademark twang to their voices, and the acoustic guitar is prevalent, but the lyrics are poignant and the song has a certain intrigue to it. Extra points were given for Tim Blake Nelson’s performance on the song. Nelson plays the eponymous character and is probably best known for his role Dr. Pendanski in the Disney classic Holes.

3. I’ll Fight (RBG)

Academy Award winner Jennifer Hudson collaborated with ten-time Academy Award nominee Diane Warren to create the theme for the documentary about Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the second woman ever elected to the Supreme Court. The song is an anthem for those people who feel oppressed or overlooked, and Hudson’s performance gives the song so much power and nuance. In another year, it might have won Warren her first Oscar. Unfortunately, the category is just too strong this year, and it appears Warren will be 0 for 10 in the Oscar Category.

2. All the Stars (Black Panther)

First off, I’d like to say that it’s good to see a comic book movie receiving nominations for major awards that don’t have to do with visual effects. As a proud nerd and comic book geek, I appreciate the representation. The song has received a decent amount of radio play, SZA’s voice is excellent and Kendrick lays down another top-notch verse. The song does get a bit repetitive as it goes on, and the beat can be a bit annoying as it continues over and over, but it is one of only two songs being played at the awards this year so that has to count for something.

And that brings us to number one. And the Oscar (probably) goes to....

1. Shallow (A Star is Born)

Bradley Cooper’s directorial debut and Lady Gaga’s first lead role in a film coincided to deliver an above average remake of a classic film. Yes, I say above average. The movie isn’t great. The characters are semi one dimensional and if you pay close attention to the background for the first 5-8 minutes of the movie, you can guess the ending. It’s an okay film that is nominated for best picture because of its song. Shallow is great. Bradley Cooper is a surprisingly decent singer, and his performance should be commended. But Lady Gaga. Wow. Of course, I knew that she had singing talent, but the things she does with her voice are unbelievable. She and Mark Ronson put together a spectacular song that played into both her and Cooper’s strengths. Her vibrato is unmatched, and I think she deserves this award more than any other candidate in the field. (Side Note: bet anyone and everyone you know that she is going to burst into tears when she wins. She does it every time without fail. It’s like she doesn’t realize she’s talented.)

And that wraps up the list. Tune in ABC to watch the Academy Awards on February 24th at 5 pm.  

[uclaradio]

Jacquees @ The NOVO (1/1/2019) // Show Review

article and photographs by Mahala Herron-Rutland

I just rewatched my video footage from the Jacquees concert, and I have to say I feel concert high all over again. Jacquees really puts on an excellent performance. The only other performer who’s show I left with such feeling is H.E.R. I just love when artists are multi-talented. Jacquees is an excellent singer even when he’s tired, and he even inspired me to get in the gym and work on my Cardio because of it. He, his DJ, and background dancers are all power players, down to the Choreography. I then realized why he calls himself “The King of R&B.” After seeing him perform, I’m sure that if he keeps working toward that goal, he will achieve it!

Jacquees was about 40 minutes late to the stage, and fans were in major anticipation of his act. The crowd was diverse and not the demographic I expected. Lucky for him, his charm definitely made up for his tardiness. Jacquees has a whole production going on during the 4275 tour, and his background dancers only made the man candy more surreal.

Back stage was Jacquees’s family and friends enjoying the performance. Reginae Carter was there, Keke Palmer did a pop-up performance with opener TK Kravitz, and at the end of the performance, he invited the whole family on stage during his song.

My favorite songs from his set were “BED” and “You.” The energy throughout the whole show was literally unmatched and reminded me of the energy at a Chris Brown concert I had attended years prior. There were about three clothing changes and the show knew how to keep your attention captive. It was truly an excellent performance where he engaged and made eye contact with everyone he could. He hosted a meet and greet after the performance and he also had plenty of merch for sale.

Thank you Jacquees for the excellent performance!

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Good Charlotte @ The Wiltern (11/21/18) // Show Review

article and photographs by Gomi Zhou

I hopped in an Uber super early that day and arrived about 2 hours before the doors would even open at the Wiltern, considering that it was the day before Thanksgiving and everyone was trying to rush out of the LA traffic jam. Once I saw the line that was wrapping around the venue I knew I’ve committed a crime. How could I possibly wear COLORS to a Good Charlotte show? This is just pure disrespect. The ONE day oh my god, I generally don’t even wear colors on a daily basis. I tried my hardest to not feel ashamed as I walked through the monochromatic crowd in my bright blue sweater, but the stares were definitely there. 

After camping out at the boba place across the street for two whole hours waiting for the doors to open, I got to Will Call with the hope that I can just get a balcony ticket. Of course, I got floor instead. It was a very guilty wish to have for me, since Alt Rock is indeed my favorite genre and tonight I was going to see both Good Charlotte and Sleeping With Sirens; but at this point I’ve already gone through another lecture on top of my 8am major class (for reference I was supposed to have three but I just had to skip one or else it would’ve been inhumane towards myself), few more hours being stuck in the LA traffic, all using the non-existed fuel I’ve got from my 5 hours of sleep from the night before. I had my camera, a prism, a jacket and guess what--a John Green book--stuffed in my backpack. I really should be excited for this, I thought to myself, but in reality, I was just exhausted from weeks of hard work and the resulting breakdowns. This better be a good night, I needed it. 

This was one of those nights that had to start off early because there were just so many opening acts. The Dose and Knuckle Puck took the stage for a good hour. Although it was clear that most people came for the other two bands performing that night, the crowd was actively trying to pump up the spirit by being supportive and energetic. From screamo to pop rock, everyone was aware that the first two bands were just the pre-gaming for the night; but the quality of the performances had sure kept everyone’s interest.

Because of how exhausted I was, I sat down behind the soundboard area in between different acts. Thus, I was completely oblivious of the flow of the crowd until the lights went off once again for Sleeping With Sirens. The size of the audience had at least doubled its size since Knuckle Puck had left the stage. Everyone was cheering and screaming nonsense off their lungs--just how one would expect at a rock show. Shortly after, the long-awaited band went on with one of their classic numbers, “Do It Now Remember It Later”. I had very basic knowledge of Sleeping With Sirens prior to the show. Knowing that they are one of the most noticeable figures for the emo community, I always have massive respect for the band. Although their music is really not something I would casually listen to while I’m skateboarding to class, this performance they were putting on tonight was everything a rock fan could ever ask for. It was the first time in a good while where I felt like my beloved passion in photography was becoming a chore, all I wanted was to put my camera away and devote all my attention to the performance. From “Empire of Ashes” to “Congratulations”, the crowd and I gave our all. There’s something very unique to the genre of rock, no matter what the particular branch is, rock music never fails to make someone feel more alive. Of course, this wasn’t just any rock show, it was literally Sleeping With Sirens on stage opening up for Good Charlotte. I was mostly immersed in the atmosphere throughout the band’s 10-song set, but the speech on mental health made by the lead singer Kellin Quinn really stuck with me. He mentioned his own struggle with depression, and how even though he is the lead singer who was currently standing in front of a crowd performing, depression is something that can get to anybody. “This one is for all of you who’s struggling,” he said as the band latched onto “Better Off Dead”. I could only compare the crowd to Panic! At The Disco’s crowd during “Girls/Girls/Boys” and Fall Out Boy’s crowd during “Thnks fr th Mmrs”. It was obvious that this song was particularly special for both the band and its fanbase, that it carries a meaning connecting the artists and their supporters. When it comes to Emo and Rock bands, there is always the stigma attached to them saying that this is depression music and people who listen to Emo are a group of sad losers. But to me, it is moments like this that are able to prove that Rock only connects people and brings life back for them.

By this point, I’ve forgotten about how I was severely sleep deprived. Despite the fact that Sleeping With Sirens was potentially the best opening act one can ever get, Good Charlotte was extraordinarily legendary. Though the crowd at the Wiltern that night was huge, Joel Madden, the lead singer of Good Charlotte tried his best to sneak in as much conversation as possible. He went from talking about how the band started back when they were still teenagers and how many fans were probably listening to them back in middle school, to his perspectives on the political and social climate today. Specifically, Joel even talked about how many of their songs were written from a different time when things were different from today’s context. For example, even though the song “Girls & Boys” is obviously written as a satire in my perspective, the band still took their time to explain how the stereotypical and materialistic approach mentioned in the song is not valid in today’s society. It was obvious that these genuine talks brought the crowd closer and everyone was experiencing some kind of nostalgia in their own ways. For me, it was the song “Life Changes” that brought back the nostalgia for me. Despite the fact that my roommate and I really don’t have the most sentimental friendship, we have been friends for almost 6 years and have only gotten closer even with all the changes that had happened in our lives. Even though most members of different rock bands tend to keep their own lives private, most bands want their songs to be open for interpretations and want their fans to be able to relate to their life stories. With a band like Good Charlotte, everyone has their own journey with their music, and a night like this one serves to bring the pieces back.

[uclaradio]

The Much Much How How and I - Cosmo Sheldrake // Album Review

article by Mark McGreal

The Much Much How How and I is the most recent album by Cosmo Sheldrake, a British instrumentalist. The album came out in April of 2018, so it isn’t exactly new, but I only recently became aware of it due to a new Apple commercial for the iPhone XR. In the commercial, hundreds of people dressed in different monochromatic jumpsuits run through city streets while Sheldrake’s “Come Along” plays in the background. Personally, it’s a very rare occasion for a commercial to catch my attention at all, but I enjoyed the song so much, that I found the song and discovered my new favorite artist.

First, a little background on the artist. Cosmo Sheldrake (yes that is his real name), was born in December, either in 1989 or 1991 depending on which website you use to look it up. He can play keyboard, guitar, drums, the banjo, and the sousaphone. He is the son of a renowned parapsychologist and a voice coach, and his brother Merlin (once again, that is his real name) is a biologist. His songs fall into the electronica and folkloric genres. His first single, titled “The Moss” was released in 2014, and he released an EP in 2015, but this album is his first full-length album.

An important thing about Sheldrake is that he is an independent currently. He is signed to no label, and he puts the music out himself. Without corporate intervention, Sheldrake can make any music that he wishes exactly the way he wants to make it. He should be commended for such a brave move.

The Much Much How How and I is a fantastical album. The song “Linger Longer”, the first song on the album, uses the instruments in such a way that conjures up images of a circus or a ballet. The tempo is quick, each instrument plays its notes quickly and then moves on to the next almost as if the songs are in constant motion. The drums are the strongest instrument; they create a consistent beat that keeps the songs moving. It keeps the albums from becoming bogged down. The sousaphone is used extensively in the album. It gives each song a nice beautiful and rich tone. It can also be used to create a beat like the drums, but it is not as harsh to the ear.  

The lyrics in the songs are arguably their most important aspects. The songs are each chock-full of references and allusions to literature. The name of 17th-century literary character Tom Thumb is in expressly said in “Wriggle”, and “Eggs and Soldier”make some not so subtle references to both Jack from Jack and the Beanstalk and Jack from Jack and Jill. These references to fairy tale characters further the whimsical nature of the album. It’s hard to discern a theme from the album because of the nonsense poem nature of each song. They all feel so disjointed, but Sheldrake’s style binds the songs together to create songs that flow, one right into the next.

At 14 songs, the album makes for an easy listen. The songs tempos are almost universal. Personally, I have listened to the songs while going on contemplative walks, while working out at the gym, and while doing schoolwork. I’m even listening to it as I write this piece at this moment. I would recommend this album to any and all people who are looking for a talented musician. To paraphrase Sheldrake’s song “Come Along” run away from the humdrum and listen to this talented and interesting young artist.

[uclaradio]

The God Himself, Omar Apollo // Show Review

article by Adrian Tapia

There were two lines: one for the smart people who reserved tickets and the other for the idiots waiting in standby. I was one of those idiots.

Both lines shared something in common though. The two were both eager and desperate to see the Indiana born and raised god himself, Omar Apollo.

I had only listened to Omar a couple of times, with most of them being with my die-hard fan girlfriend. I found his songs to be lovely in having the ability to get the listener in a very lustful mood. So, when I saw that he was going to be at UCLA, and FOR FREE, I knew I had to go. I just ended up waiting in a line with my fellow Bruins, unsure if we were going to get in.

After the reserved ticketholders all got in, taking all the good seats in the small Northwest Auditorium, us in standby practically ran in trying to get the seats closest to the sunken stage.

Alms was first to the stage. The 4-person band just walked on, announced themselves, and started playing. Right away the drummer took the lead. His quick and loud pounding took me in. He switched from rhythm to rhythm throughout individual songs. Changing his speed and aggression constantly. His drumming was different and not the same consistent repetitive drumming in songs that we have come to expect from those who play this instrument.

The other members, however, did not take me in. The singer had this no fucks attitude when singing, sort of like Kurt Cobain. The guitarist and bassist played well, but there was nothing unique or different in their style strumming or play.

Overall, was the band bad? No.

I did enjoy them actually. Alms’ mellow songs that slowly picked up speed and got louder were pleasant. It got me in a dancing mood. After their set was over, I pulled out my phone, looked them on Apple Music, the superior streaming service, and found that they weren’t there. So, then I went on Spotify, found them, and followed them. They have a new EP coming soon, so please check it out and support this band. You know I will.

After a short 15-minute intermission, the guitarist, bassist, and drummer of Omar’s band appeared on stage. They pick up their instruments and just started playing. Immediately, they started off with this synchronized hard, aggressive, fast-paced playing of their instruments that brought some fans to their feet. It hyped us up and got us instantly engaged. THEN HE RUSHED OUT. OMAR JUST RAN ON STAGE JUMPING AND SWERVING AND TURNING. Everyone just got up from their seats and started screaming. His stage presence was strong and filled with fun energy. He constantly encouraged the crowd to sing along and dance. He would talk to us between songs and respond to our “I LOVE YOU” comments. He told us stories, introduced us to parents, and brought forth Latinx pride. He wanted us to feel as if we were friends and I loved that.

And this man can sing. Omar was able to reach falsetto with ease numerous times, turning on everyone in that auditorium. No struggling, no croaking, this man is a straight fucking god. His low, rich, and beautiful voice, that accompanied the slow beats was something I had never heard live before. And it’s something that not everyone can so easily replicate.  

His band also deserves equal recognition too. They had this chemistry that made every song louder, more riveting, and straight sexy bro. The guitarist, who also doubled as the pianist, was an astonishing musician. I wished I hit the gardening club up before because he played these psychedelic guitar riffs that had me going.

I believe that Omar Apollo’s best attribute is his relationship with the audience. His dancing, moments of messing around, and engagement with the crowd make him an amazing, entertaining performer. Fans screamed for him to play his bass-heavy song “Heart” and Omar attempted to. He was going to alter his planned setlist just for the fans. But because of some technical difficulties, he couldn’t. But still, his attempt at it shows how much he loves and appreciates his fans.

Then in his final song, fans rushed the stage and jumped and danced with him. And you could see that he loved it. He enjoyed being with them in celebrating an amazing set with the people that love him. We love Omar Apollo and he loves us.

Well, the heads of the show freaked and ended it right there. The lights were turned on and people were being pulled off, BUT HIS BAND KEPT GOING. THEY STRAIGHT KEPT PLAYING WITH BEING EVEN LOUNDER AND MORE AGGRESSIVE THAN BEFORE. God, I fucking love them.

I wasn’t able to stay for the post-show meet-and-greet with Omar, but from what I heard, it was wholesome. He hugged and smiled at and with every single fan that approached him. He truly does care, and it is not a gimmick he pulls. He genuinely loves us.

[uclaradio]

Interview with Together Pangea

interview and photographs by Megan Hullander

Non Stop Paranoia matches the energy consistent throughout your discography, but feels distinctly different mostly as a result of the synth - what inspired this addition and what did it bring to the EP that was missing without it?

TP: I was hearing a lot of 80's rock on the radio while I was driving and decided it would be fun to try and emulate that a little bit. The songs really wouldn't be that different without the synths they just add some aesthetic character. It was fun to search for the right sounds. I kind of wish that we had gone for it a little more. Maybe had some songs without any guitar, just synths.

How does the change in sound affect the way the live show feels, if at all?

TP: We only have synth on a few songs that we play live. I think that it's cool to add new sounds into a live set. It livens things up a little. People seem to enjoy it.

The EP closes with a cover of DEVO’s “Gates of Steel.” DEVO was founded on the concept of de-evolution and took off in a time of political stress. The choice to cover DEVO seems pointed in that the entirety of the EP feels largely a reflection of the current political climate. Do you feel parallels between the time in which DEVO erupted and now? Do you feel that man as a whole is in a state of de-evolution and how does this affect your perception of yourself? Do you see this as escapable or just as something that can be delayed?

TP: Yeah, I suppose so. DEVO started out during the Nixon administration and it wouldn't be hard to find some parallels between him and Trump. That was also during a kind of hangover from the hippie generation but that's not something we have in common. I do feel like people are de-evolving. At least public discourse is. Our president was trying to convince people that he had a big dick during a nationally televised debate. People still voted for him. We're certainly not getting more enlightened.

During the last election, you performed a show that was free on entry with the “I Voted” sticker. What do you see the role of music in the political sphere being? Is there an intimacy that extends beyond politics that music creates or is it a necessity to make use of your platform?

TP: I don't want to write political music. I just like writing about whatever is on my mind. I don't think that anyone is obligated to express their political beliefs through their art. I also think that it's stupid to boycott an artist because you disagree with them politically.

In the age of media, it is much easier for fans to develop a relationship with the artists that they listen to meaning that their influence often bleeds beyond their music. Do you believe that art can be separated from the artist or that the two are intrinsically intertwined?

TP: I wish that I could say that we should be able to separate the art from the artist and judge a person’s work on its own merits but I don't think that's possible. For example, I think that Woody Allen has made movies that say some really interesting things about relationships and the human experience but I can't watch his stuff without thinking about what a creep he is. It ruins the movies. That’s just how it is. I guess it's a good thing that people now know more about the artist's they idolize. Frankly, I'd rather not know anything about an artist I like and just like the art.

What can we expect from your next release that you’ve teased as having a “completely different sound” from the last?

TP: You'll just have to listen and find out!

[uclaradio]

Interview with Nyallah Transcription (12/1/18)

Interview and transcription by Princess Amugo

Princess: Discussing her career and her new single. But would you like to introduce yourself to the people?

Nyallah: Yes hey friends my name's Nyallah I am a vocalist, songwriter, from Los Angeles, I don't go to yalls school. I'm actually from rival territory, but I don't have beef with y'all. I think yall cool, so it's all good. If you have beef that's fine, throw hands.

P: Post up *laughter*

N: right, what's good. But yeah my name is Nyallah, I'm 20, I'm a vocalist, writer, I do like R&B, soul, hip-hop music, influenced music. I've been working on a project called 'Reflections' that is scheduled to drop in December. I am super excited as Princess said earlier, I have a single called 'Growing Pains' that I wrote ages ago but is still relatable content til this day. Omg there's a jam playing...

*Nyallah gets super flustered because my roommate started playing her song during the interview lol,*

But yeah I'm from LA, I study music at SC, I also curate events. I love culture, stuff pertaining to black culture, stuff pertaining to advancing Black culture and advancing knowledge and all that beautiful to black folks and accessibility and things. I think its important as artists that we do that shit and that take the time to give back to our communities that are less fortunate, not less fortunate, but in the terms of white people, yeah less fortunate to everyone else. Y'all should run us some coin lol

P: Right off the back, I, idk I could feel it through text. I loved her energy and I could tell through text that she was a genuine person. Just to start off, we can first talk about your single and then we can branch out. I just wanted to know what was one of your inspirations for writing this song (i.e Growing Pains)

N: So yeah, Growing Pains I started writing in 2017. It's the 3rd song that I wrote that I then put on the project. I wrote it during a time when I was just really sad and really depressed and just really going through it. I had just gotten out of a relationship and I had a whole 360 with my friend group. Spending time with folks that I thought I was gonna be with forever and then that changing. It was just a really tough time, there were also just things at my personal level, like it was a lot of growth and a lot of difficulty. Growing Pains was the song that I wrote kind of thinking 'oh ok so like imagining' Me imaging myself 6 months from now like being healed and fine, I was like ok 'what would I tell myself right now'. And so I kind of wrote it in that sense. And its kind of funny, because for a while Growing Pains felt sad because I'm talking about myself not falling back to the past but it's hard for you to be like 'don't do that`if I'm literally actively doing that. Now I am in a place where I can sing the song or I can listen to the song and its so light and its so happy and its a lot more different because the intention and the meaning behind it has shifted due to my own growth as a person and my own growth in terms of the relationship with the song. But yeah pretty much that is the premise behind it, it was me writing affirmations to myself to remind myself that everything would be good. That's like kind of how all my music is like honestly, it all kind of sounds like affirmations or conversations with self. They kind of feel like journal entries like poetic journal entries that rhyme, that have some riffs and have some really cool background shit. But yeah that's the premise behind 'Growing Pains'.

P: Sounds like Growing Pains acted like a time capsule of emotion that you opened up later on as you grew

N: Yeah, I think the emotion behind it changed, because the first time it me crying out to myself like 'don't fall back to the past' 'don't do this' beating myself, you can't do that, you can't do this you know like a little kid, slapping them on the wrist and then as time passed and as I started writing more of the project growing into myself and just really embracing everything about my identity, about me as a person, not surface level but me as Nyallah and then me as Nyallah black, queer femme. And then me as black queer femme who is a vocalist and an artist and a content creator and all these different things and yeah. I was in a place where I was at the beginning of that journey and now I am a little bit further along that journey, I don't think I'm done, I don't think the journey is ever done but I am very much further along in that journey. I have a very different perspective on things now and I needed to go through that really dark time of feeling straight up alone even though I wasn't really alone. There were people in my life that still cared about me, I had to go through that process of 'dang nobody gives a fuck about me' and feeling like 'so many people who were close to me you just turned on me' people who I known for years...there are certain situations that you think its not going to go that way but it does and that's life. With this project, Reflections, the whole reason that it is called reflections is because it’s like me looking at the mirror and being like this is all the shit that I have learned and experienced within the last year, this is where I am at. It's like me being like, hey guys hows it going my name is Nyallah. Here is where I have been for the last 2 years and I know you've all been curious, I'm a Capricorn I don't say shit so yall don't know what really is going on. But here enjoy. That is what the intention of it is was. I wasn't the writing the project to write a project, like I was just writing to write and then eventually I was like 'oh I have enough stuff where I could make a project like I could tell a story, I could really go into some stuff and unpack my shit.

P: Speak your truth and things.

N: Exactly because that's really what music is for me. Its healing and unpacking and releasing. If I'm able to do that for myself and then do that for other people through my music like me get that therapy and then also be able to inspire others and get people through tough times like that is a blessing cause it's not all about me or any of us, its just all about the collective. And I think that the more we recognize that and the more that we actively work with that in mind things are a lot easier. I learned that, and I'm learning that now because of all that I have experienced you know. Like I said I had to go through times of feeling like dang I'm really alone, I don't think this will ever get better like oh I'm black and queer and femme and the whole world is essentially out to get me like I am not the norm. I am the polar opposite of what is the norm which is upper-middle class, cis-hetero white male total opposite. This world, in America, but the world at large the world at large is built to not support me, to not allow me to exist but me learning to be like with that all in mind still choosing love, still choosing to focus what I can do for my people, in the moment....I had to experience all of that in order to understand that...

P: Wow I loved your answer. I guess you already answered this question in a way but I was going to ask now that you have this mindset, how do you now navigate through the world as an artist as a black queer femme.

N: Just unapologetically as fuck. I've gone through the process of 'omg I'm going to silence myself, omg I'm going to do this, oh I need to make it so I'm palatable, omg I'm super femme but I'm not here for the male gaze but I think I need to do this for the male gaze so that I can get---I don't give a fuck. Like I don't care anymore because the fact of the matter is, this whole thing is not made for me so I'm not supposed to succeed in it anyway even if I do do all that stuff so I'm just gonna do what I need to do, what feels comfortable, what feels safe, what feels rational for me. In order for me to get through and like that's not playing into these norms or these stereotypes and these expectations `and all this fuckshit that has been put on us by white supremacist society. I think that it's really interesting because people ask me this all the time "how do you navigate spaces" and I'm just like I come in with my bright colored hair I'm dressed however I'm dressed and I do what I have to do. I mean, I always feel that because I'm black and because I'm a woman I just deal with hella sexism and hella racism and then the intersectionality of that. Dealing with white men not acknowledging your existence and like your voice being silenced by white men, by black men, by white women, by this by that until they need something from you. I have always dealt with high expectations. I have really high expectations, that's why I have anxiety. A lot of my anxiety is because of shit I've normalized that's really just something that society has taught me like....being in these spaces where you're doing that work you are doing above and beyond but yet you're seeing your white counterparts doing a quarter of the work and getting triple the praise for shitty work...I think knowing that we did all of this, I'm not an egomaniac. I think its really easy as black people to get trapped up in the cycle of white supremacy and of capitalism and all that shit. Where we think that we need to have all these cars and all that stuff on the class level but also in the terms of 'I need to look a certain way, I need to detach from my blackness' I'm not going to use any examples 'I'm going to detach from what feels comfortable to me' because blackness is so fluid. It's the gang bangers, its the crips and bloods doing ay and z but its also the Afrocentric folxs doing drum circles its all these different things. Its the black folks going to school and trying to be doctors and lawyers, it's the black folxs that are change makers in public policy, it's the black people doing curation and creative work. WE are so fluid and I think as much as they have tried to shove my blackness in my face, it's just helped me loved my blackness more. It makes me realize, I have something that y'all don't have and it makes you mad and I don't know why you're perfect just the way you are, you don't need any of this just like I don't need any of your shit, but that's your battle that you have to fight um and if you keep trying to project on me you can but I'm going to keep being unfazed and just doing what I need to do and focusing on myself..What I have learned going to a PWI in the music program, especially being black and queer you experience people wanting to pimp you out but they also want you to sit down and take their shit and to be shat on over and over again...Its interesting to see the dichotomies...its crazy because you're in the middle of this intersection and you have people constantly telling you that you need to ignore this part of you, this is what you are and its so fucking annoying and I've just learned how to just silence most of [the bullshit] but I think I've gotten good at being like that's how yall feel but this is where I'm at, this is what I'm feeling, this is like what I stand for and that's like made it a lot easier. Remembering this is all us, like we did this, that always makes me feel really good...Being in the music program I've dealt with [violence, manipulation, the most malicious shit], but I can't sit and be malicious too because its a dumbass cycle and that is what you want, you want me to vibrate lower, be bitter, to step out of my zone and step out of focusing on myself and focusing on putting the people forward to focusing on your petty shit, I don't give a fuck. I've learned so much about detachment within my program, I navigate spaces and relationships differently....learning how to do the work even when that person doesn't fuck with you and makes it point to make it difficult. I've matured so much. Its eye opening because as a black, queer woman you see damn yall all made childish, you have to mature so quickly....I've learned to love myself more and grown into myself more...cause I've tried conforming and not conforming and I'm like you don't like that still because there will always be something wrong with me [in their eyes] because at the end of the day I still look the way I look, I still have the history I have and at the end of the day you don't like what you see because of your own personal things...that's why I don't care about white people...because I have encyclopedia of receipts of yall. My identity, in relation to my program, has taught me how to focus on myself at the end of the day I just have to focus on myself....

P:...You just hit the mark on everything...I wanted to ask what other mediums do you do?

N: Music is my main thing that I have done the longest to go back to prior to college, I did musical theatre all of high school. I started doing theatre in 8th grade and then I just started doing musical theatre and stuff. I did my first straight play Senior year, I did Joe Turner's 'Come and Gone' by August Wilson. Black, black, plays. It's really good, it talks about the slave trade, it actually talks about intergenerational stuff. Like that's literally my whole thing. I feel like the universe brought me here in part do intergenerational work and shit. So I've always done music and I joined a choir in the fourth grade and I started learning how to play piano around the same time. In elementary school, I played violin for a little bit, clarinet for a little bit. Violin for like 2 years, Clarinet for like a year.  Then in middle school, I did choir still, I was given awards in talent shows and shit. Then I did a play in the 8th grade and then I could write. That's when I realized I could write like I could write plays because I always wrote poetry in like stories and tried to write a song but I just didn't. For some reason it was really hard, I was a good detailed writer but I couldn't put it with the music, it was always really hard, it would always be too many words, not enough melody or something. It was always something. I honestly just needed to refine it. It was always in the back of my head. Then I went to high school, I went to Hollywood High for 2 years and did show choir there and choir and plays and stuff, musicals. Then I started my first musical In the Heights my sophomore year and Abuela Claudia that shit was hard, she be sanging lol. I did a musical twice, I did it my sophomore year, junior year, when I switched schools we did it again. So I've just always done chamber choir, show choir, musical theatre, plays, I did photography. Like I was always writing. Writing and music is what I've done the longest and photography. Photography I started in 9th grade, summer of 9th grade. I was doing that and then stop. I always would stop and go with cause I feel like with photography, I loved the visual, I think it's important, I love the snapshot of just a moment and being able to curate that moment exactly how you wanted it to be or capturing what is. I'm always dating visual artists because I just love how their minds work. I love how they can see the world and they see it completely different from how everyone views it but they can still merge their shit into another thing that's dope. But yeah I was doing all those different things and then I did Grammy Camp the summer before my senior year of high school and that's when I was like 'oh dang I can study music' because for the longest time, I was like 'I'm just gonna be a writer, I'm going to study English, I'm going to study film and its fine and it's fine because people kept telling me that you can't do music, everyone wants to do music. But then when I went to Grammy Camp at USC I was like 'oh there is a contemporary music program that is not just Jazz or Classical' because I knew that I wouldn't be able to get into any of those programs because I wasn't classically trained and I wasn't jazz trained, I hadn't been doing that for years. So I just knew that and I was like 'damn how the fuck was this gon work' and yeah I applied to USC I also had really good grades. They always knew that I would get into any school I applied to, they were just like 'you need to figure out what you want to do' you're smart, but you don't need to read for the rest of your life. That's already going to be something to do. I applied to USC got in the first time, didn't get into the Music Program but I got in for English and then after that, I got into the School to transfer. So I've been doing the program for three years and not four which means I have to take more classes at once and it's jam-packed. Its kind of hard, but I'm almost done yknow I have one more semester after this, I'm thankful I've gotten through this one. I'm literally like damn I'm almost finished....I was always just doing different things. But now I do music mostly I write as well. So I sing and I write but I also take photos still. I'm trying to add more photos onto my feed but I keep having a conflict of interest with it because its like oh I'm an artist, I'm a musician so all my stuff on my feed should be my music but then its like naw if I wanna post all that---its just kind of hard, I keep going back and forth with stuff. I'm gonna just starting being more fluid with it. I do photography, I write poetry but I put that on the same line as the music, but I write. Poetry helps me how I write out lyrically...I do content curation. I started this series called the loft sessions my sophomore year of college, I'm a senior now. We've been on a hiatus because I needed to finish my EP Reflections. But now that's almost done, I want to regroup and figure something out. I want to do some stuff and what else. I love doing events. Loft Sessions was kind of cool because it was a quarterly event series centered around black artists, for black artists, by black artists. I started it because I was tired of going to all these events that were school funded and there were no black artists, we weren't at the center. Or feeling like damn ok if my music isn't this, this or this, it's not gonna work, it’s not gonna sell. So I started Loft Session, it was actually in collab with some UCLA folxs so a lot of my friends at UCLA and USC came together and they helped me put everything together. I would curate everything like the lineup and do it in my loft, in the loft I lived in. We would sell drinks and whatnot and showcase so many different types of artists. We'll have black visual artists, photographers, I wanted to do filmmakers at one point. I wanted to live painting and different stuff like that, they would showcase like that and then we would have live DJs, bands, rappers, singers etc come in and perform. I was really cool because it was just a space where everybody black was able to behold space, have fun...supporting black artists and meeting new people. Just having a good ass fucking time. But I want to focus more marginalized voices in the black community because we had a lot of men and I had different rules that were disrespected...now that I have more time I understand how to navigate that differently. We didn't turn away anyone who wasn't black...it was nice that we were at the center. I want to plan some things over winter break and over the next year. I want to plan shows, collaborative things, identity focused-caused focused events because those are important...I want everyone to get that representation because it's long overdue. Other than singing, writing songs poetry stories, event curation and photography. I want to do more creative direction. Like with my project I want to more directing but I'm scared. I want to find a filmmaker that I can vibe and we can collaborate and ....I want to be as active in my process as possible I'm not tryna be idle. I like to cook. Spirituality, holistic healing. I'm a crystal wearer...

P: You've already answered this, but I was going to ask, what should we be looking for in terms of like what you're going to be putting out in terms of projects. You've already answered this with curating, creative curation, all of that and of course your EP coming out "Reflections"

N: I can reiterate

P: Yeah for sure

N: Well Growing Pains is out right now, that is on all streaming platforms, Spotify, Apple Music Tidal, Youtube, SoundCloud, Amazon Prime, etc Listen to it add it to your playlist, share it with your mommy your aunty your grandma everybody. Share it with your cousin the girl that you were into, send it to your friends like they were going to get through these finals yall need to get through these finals, we going to get these degrees. We're going to get this bread, whatever that bag is for you were going to get this bag. Number 2  Reflections is set to be dropping this month. Keep an eye out for that. Honestly, y'all should follow me on Instagram, I should activate my Twitter. I have to figure what worlds I would be in twitter..but yeah follow me on Instagram. I post all my updates there, I also post a lot of good informational stuff about spirit and yknow numerology in addition to blackness, everyday news, queerness, and other marginalized communities. We just discuss shit, we like to talk about shit lol. Follow me there like I said n.yallah on Instagram.