Brandi Carlile and the 2019 Grammy Awards

Brandi Carlile might be one of the most naturally gifted singer/songwriters to come around in a long time. That is not to say that she is a new artist; 2018’s By the Way, I Forgive You is her sixth studio album. Her breakthrough came in 2007 with the release of The Story and she has steadily been creating new music since then.

The Masked Singer Review (TV Show, 2019)

I’m no stranger to singing reality shows. I’ve watched everything from your smash hits (American Idol, The Voice) to shows people might remember as if part of a fever dream (The Road to Stardom with Missy Elliott, The One: Making a Musical Star). It’s just hard to know what’s going to make it or not with so many reality shows produced each year. It’s not a matter of having talent, but having an audience to watch.

Best Films of 2018

2018 was a wonderful year for films across multiple genres, languages, and styles. I did the best I could with this list to present a list I felt comfortable celebrating this year. Even though I appreciated many films released this year, I’m growing increasingly impatient with films that are negative just to be negative. I’m tired. I’m tired of films that don’t reflect the real world (meaning: we’re not all white, we’re not all straight, we’re not all mentally well, we’re not all rich, and we’re not all satisfied by default). I’m tired of films that present themselves as serious cinema that is meant to be so relatable that I can’t relate to. There are films that don’t even make my long list for “Best” because as technically well made as they are, I got nothing out of them.