Jenessa Williams
Jenessa is a freelance music journalist, fandom academic and the writer of Subtweets, our weekly column that dissects the trending topics setting Music Twitter alight. She likes millennial hip-hop, noughties emo and advocating for a new era of diversity and representation in both.
45s Of The Week: boygenius, Arlo Parks, Nieve Ella and more!
boygenius - 'Not Strong Enough'
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bIX_ouNJsTs
Having announced UK shows in London and Halifax, boygenius are keeping the previews for upcoming debut album, 'The Record', coming...
Beatz, Grime & Life: 20 Years of Channel U
Picture the scene: it’s 2005, secondary school has just let out, and I’m ensconced on my mate Georgie’s sofa, off-brand cheese string in one...
Aespa Synk Hyper Line Live: a showcase of new songs and diverse talents from...
When a group has you up at 8 am, light stick in hand, parked in front of your laptop ready to stream their first-ever...
Hype Girls! How K-pop rookies NewJeans caught the world’s attention
When you think of K-pop record breakers, BTS or BlackPink will probably spring to mind; two cultural behemoths that have infiltrated their world with...
Gouge away: when will the Ticketmaster trauma end?
Humble readers, I come to you as a sad Beyoncé fan. Like seemingly half of the UK’s entire population, I found myself in the...
45s Of The Week: Alex Lahey, Girl Ray, Petite Noir and more!
Alex Lahey - ‘Good Time’
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MsRafjwS8Fc
“I just want a good time/don’t care how/but I know everybody needs it.’’ So sings Alex Lahey, summing up the...
There is nothing condemnable about Sam Smith’s expression of queer, body-positive joy
Content warning: Mentions of misgendering, queerphobia, fatphobia
A staple of mainstream UK pop, the idea of Sam Smith being a particularly controversial or debatable figure...
Critiquing Beyoncé is not the same as calling for her cancellation
At this point, everybody knows that an era-opening performance from Beyoncé is going to go down in history. Shrouded in secrecy, Knowles-Carter returned to...
BBC Introducing is an institution we can’t afford to lose
How do you find your new music? It might be TikTok, YouTube, copping a look at Spotify’s latest ‘trending’ playlist or taking a recommendation...
Coachella’s 2023 world focus is a shrewd sign of the times
Coachella is an event that has always seemed to do its own thing. Negative connotations persist — the flower crowns, the endless dust, the...