It's a long weekend. No, not because it's Valentine's Day and that in itself can be tiresome as hell.
Monday is President's Day. It's a federal holiday. Banks are closed. Anything governmental is even less reliable. DMV's will be less of an inconvenience by virtue of not being open. We could go on and on about federal holidays, but instead, we'll use the time a little more wisely.
Now, we've already come at you with things to occupy your time with. Yes, it's freezing cold. You could do anything this weekend, Valentine's Day be damned! Or you could always just watch something we believe is really great.
On the other hand, if you're looking for a good read this weekend, we've put together a brief list of things worth a good read just in time for the long weekend.
Some might be recent, and others might be oldies-but-goodies.
So, read on. The internet is dark and full of terror. Sometimes you just don't come across things as easily as you'd hope, so if you're looking for an interesting long-form read this weekend, on the web or otherwise, we've got you.
We've got sports, TV, politics, culture, music-- anything and everything, but all of it is worth a read. Check out these 5 long reads for the long weekend. Hell, we might do this every weekend. Who knows?
1. Abbi Jacobson & Ilana Glazer - Interview Magazine
Conducted by Ellen Page (Juno, Whip It, Inception, Hard Candy), this interview from Interview Magazine is enlightening and entertaining for a number of reasons, not least of which is that it features the two lead talents in Comedy Central's agreeably dope comedy, Broad City.
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Interviews are always fun to read, but there never seems like a good time to say, "Oh, man. I should catch up on all of these interviews I never read." Like, who actually does that? Is there anybody that just goes around looking for interviews to read? If that's you, great. We got you.
Check out the Abbi & Ilana interview here.
2. J Dilla: The Essentials - Complex
If you're looking to get lost for a while, this is definitely the way to go. Complex assembled an insanely comprehensive guide to a singular, iconic talent in hip-hop music: J Dilla.
February marks the 10-year anniversary of his last album, Donuts. Donuts is a painful memory for fans everywhere because almost exactly like David Bowie's Blackstar, Donuts was released a mere three days before Dilla's death (complications from lupus).
Donuts is a game-changer for hip-hop. It's arguably the best collection of beats and instrumentals ever produced. If you like Kanye for his music rather than the way he attempts to keep his name in everybody's mouths, you likely have Jay Dee to thank for it.
Complex's Rob Kenner went crazy on this. When we say comprehensive, we mean comprehensive. It's one of the best ways to celebrate the life and music of J Dilla. Check it out here.
3. Kanye West Is Going to Drop a Brick and It's Going to Hurt - Pitchfork
This Jayson Greene think-piece on Kanye West, published June 2015, is an important one considering the events of this week. Kanye posted up in Madison Square Garden for something incredibly weird, yet possibly brilliant: fashion show/The Life of Pablo (formerly known as SWISH) listening party.
Why is it weird? Why does this piece matter? What the hell is going on with Kanye? Does Kanye matter? What is the point here? The point is Kanye might have dropped a brick, but he might not have. He gave us what we wanted, what we didn't want, what we expected, and the unexpected, all in one, single day.
Except we still don't know what he gave us. He has since added 6 tracks to the album, but we don't know when, how, where, and what will actually be released. Is it a brick? Who knows? Does it hurt, and if so, how much? Check out the Jayson Greene Kanye piece here.
4. The Wow Factor - ESPN the Magazine & Outside the Lines
peterreadmiller Site of the Los Angeles Rams stadium circa 2019. #losangelesrams #nfllosangeles #inglewood
This is sports, so if you don't care about sports, you definitely won't care about this. But let's talk about sports narratives in a context of significance: the NFL can be a shady organization off the field. Sure, football's fun to watch, but there are things that involve us all in one way or another that are ignored.
Without going too much into detail, grandstanding, or climbing atop a soapbox nobody gives a damn about, let us just say that you need to look into how stadiums are funded and compare that to how much money NFL franchises are worth, how much money the NFL as a whole makes, and how much individual owners are worth.
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Last thing before you go read this: St. Louis (now Los Angeles) Rams owner Sam Kroenke is worth $7.6 billion. The cost of the L.A. stadium could be upwards of $2.7 billion, privately financed. This piece follows the years' long saga of NFL teams trying to relocate to L.A.
This is definitely a long read, but if Season 2 of True Detective had been about these stadium developments, it would have made more sense than whatever they were actually talking about in that show. Read it here.
5. On "Formation" and These "Think Pieces" That Are Reaching for the Coasts of Africa - Sublime Zoo
Before you read this, you need to read what it's in response to, "Dear Beyoncé, Katrina Is Not Your Story" by Maris Jones at Black Girl Dangerous.
After Bey's halftime show during Super Bowl 50, a torrent of reactionary think pieces flooded the internet. These two are the most interesting because they engage with one another. It's a conversation, one on blackness, triggers, shared experiences vs. individual, appropriation-- all of it.
It's an important conversation to have considering Black History Month, the environmental terrorism rampant in Flint, Michigan, Beyoncé, sports, identity-- racial or otherwise... you know, all of the essentials.
So rather than skew context, issue an unwarranted privileged perspective on something we have no place in, or flat-out fail, we thought we'd present a whole conversation that touches on all of these issues and the problem with reactionary think pieces. Read the Sublime Zoo response piece here.
Check out 6 Things We're Watching This Weekend.
[Feature Image Courtesy SenselessScrutiny]