Cooper Phillip releases new single "Not Perfect"

Los Angeles-based pop artist Cooper Phillip is known for her empowering anthems that highlight everything from strength and gratitude to self-love.

Her latest single, "Not Perfect," is yet another example of her ability to craft uplifting tunes, encouraging listeners to start putting themselves before others in order to fulfill your own desires. The Russian-born singer has just dropped a new music video, and it's everything we expected from this flamboyant artist and more.

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Billie Eilish

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Certain musicians are blessed with the ability to hear, see, feel, or taste music, a variant of the neurological condition known as synesthesia.

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CULTURE

2011 Time Capsule: The Year of the Pop Diva and the Queer Anthem

2011 saw the release of an extraordinary number of legendary pop songs.

Photo by: Aron Visuals / Unsplash

2011 was a turbulent year, a year of the Arab Spring and Occupy Wall Street, of murdered dictators and earthquakes.

In terms of American pop culture, it was a time of great exuberance and energy. Female pop stars dominated the airwaves, as did the British Royal Wedding, as political unrest tangled with the public's desire for flashy distraction. Here are the pop culture highlights of 2011.

Music: Fridays and Queer Anthems

2011 was the year of the pop diva, and an almost unfathomable number of iconic hits by women hit the airwaves that year. Katy Perry and Adele dominated the charts, Lady Gaga's "Born This Way" became a queer anthem, Britney Spears' "Hold It Against Me" played perpetually, and Rihanna dropped her scandalous "S&M," the absolutely legendary "Man Down," and another song about Friday, "Cheers (Drink to That)".

Lady Gaga - Born This Waywww.youtube.com


Rihanna - Man Downwww.youtube.com

Avril Lavigne had us bopping along to "What the Hell" and Nicki Minaj had everyone learning the words to "Super Bass." Beyonce released "Love On Top" and "Who Run the World? (Girls)" and Jessie J. put out "Domino." Carly Rae, of course, dropped "Call Me Maybe."

Nicki Minaj - Super Basswww.youtube.com


Beyoncé - Run the World (Girls) (Video - Main Version)www.youtube.com

There were some sad bangers in the midst of all the girl power; Demi Lovato put out "Skyscraper" and Lana Del Rey dropped her mysterious amalgamation of found footage for "Video Games."

Lana Del Rey - Video Games (Official Music Video)www.youtube.com

And last but not least, Rebecca Black's "Friday" went super-viral and lodged itself in everyone's brains for eternity.

Rebecca Black - Fridaywww.youtube.com

Folky boys Conor Oberst, Wilco, and Jeff Magnum of Neutral Milk Hotel all had big years—the first two dropped great albums and the third reemerged from obscurity with a flood of unreleased gems. The ukulele also grew in popularity, taking center stage on the hit album w h o k i l l by tUnE-yArDs.

That year, we also tragically lost Amy Winehouse, who passed away at 27.

Movies: Franchises Come to a Close

2011's greatest hit was Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2, which smashed box office records. It was also a good year for the Twilight franchise; in Breaking Dawn, Part I, Jacob the werewolf imprinted (or fell eternally, irrevocably in love) with his former love interest's, Bella's, baby daughter.

Twilight 4 Breaking Dawn Part 1 Jacob imprints on Renesmee, the Cullens and the werewolves fight Ywww.youtube.com

Overall, it was a strange year for film. The Artist had everyone falling in love with an adorable dog; Drive polarized audiences, and so did The Descendants; and the heart-wrenching Like Crazy had everyone sobbing.

Las mejores escenas de Uggie ''The artist''www.youtube.com

TV: Escaping to Sweeter Times

Like the movies, television favored escapism, with shows like The Great British Bake-Off and Downton Abbey transporting viewers to other, sweeter times. Game of Thrones promised that "winter is coming," and South Park gave us "tween wave."

Breaking Bad, Sons of Anarchy, Fringe, and other dramas gained continued success.

Entertainment: Kate and Pippa Middleton Make History

2011's biggest entertainment event may have been the Royal Wedding, which dominated America's hearts. Kate Middleton's dress went down in history.

Kate and William offer a wave from the balcony to the masses gathered at Buckingham Palace. Not visible: a handful of revelers who decided to splash around in a nearby fountain Britain Royal Wedding PicturesPhoto by Matt Dunham/AP/Shutterstock

In terms of viral trends, honey badgers and planking were huge. The year's top Twitter trends were:

Egypt

Tigerblood

Threewordstoliveby

Idontunderstandwhy

Japan

Improudtosay

Superbowl

jan25

It wasn't a great year for Charlie Sheen and Lindsay Lohan, whose hard-partying habits (and lawsuits) made headlines constantly. Lady Gaga arrived to the Grammys in a giant egg. Kim K. and Kris Humphries married and got divorced. Beyonce announced she was pregnant. Justin Bieber debuted his relationship with Selena Gomez–and was also slammed with a paternity suit. Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher broke up. Anne Hathaway and James Franco hosted what was called "the worst Oscars ever."

That was 2011... A year of divas and distraction, chaos and comedy, and of course, the only 11/11/11 any of us will be alive for.

MUSIC

Harper Grae Takes on Country Music's Inclusivity Problem

With her new video for "Wanna Wear a Dress," the singer-songwriter is gently bridging a long held generational gap in the country music scene.

Harper Grae has always been starkly different from the typical Nashville recording artist.

She has regularly used her music as a tool to deal with the grief that stems from having key family members absent due to addiction, as she did in early life. She started the Look Up Foundation to further address that concern, providing children living in difficult circumstances with artistic tools to process their feelings. She has consistently been a vivacious and socially conscious singer-songwriter, but her latest project ups the ante. The video for her latest single, "Wanna Wear a Dress," is an ode to youth struggling to find their identity and live their truth.

Harper Grae - "Wanna Wear a Dress" (Official Music Video)youtu.be

Grae sings against a stark background, isolated in the ether. At a dinner table, we see a daughter announce to her parents that she is going on a date. Wordlessly, the dad hands her a VHS. She places it in a player and watches the story of her parents' courting two decades prior. We then see the girl getting ready for her romantic evening, at first alone, then aided by her mother. When her date arrives, it's a girl. The parents watch with pride as their daughter leaves. The activities of the date mirror those of the mother and father on theirs; those first embers of love are the same.

A video and a story like this are refreshing, particularly in the world of country music, which skews towards a more conservative set of values. What Grae is doing here is very gently bridging that gap, sending out a message of love that says, "We all belong in this world. Country music is for everyone." This inclusivity is going to be essential for the medium to grow and stay relevant. Harper Grae deserves all the praise for this video and what it represents for her and the industry.

Follow Harper Grae Online: Web | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Spotify

MUSIC

Lana Del Rey Premieres Videos for "F**k It I Love You" and "The Greatest"

The Norman F**king Rockwell era has been a long time coming, but at 3 PM today, LDR finally dropped two brand new songs and a double video.

Press Photo

Lana Del Rey's new album seems like it'll be worth the wait.

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MUSIC

Brooke Alexx Is "Bored" of Men in Her New Video

The synth-pop singer's latest release gets chromatic as she expresses her frustration with a stagnant relationship.

The message in Brooke Alexx's "Bored" is clear: She deserves a lot more than you're giving her.

The Nashville synth-pop singer's new video for her latest single sees Alexx decked out in vibrant colors against lush backgrounds, contrasting with the blank white canvas of the guy she's been dating—a guy with an impressively chiseled jawline but little else to offer. The song itself, released back in March, flows from calm electronic melodies in the verses to the climactic drop of the hook, while Alexx's silky vocals make her frustration plain. The video, directed by Alexx and collaborator Kenneth Herron, makes the most of the song's fluctuating pace, adding a visual playfulness to the sound of Alexx's weary dissatisfaction.

"I want what I want / and I want you to work for it," Alexx croons—as her man blends into the couch next to her while playing video games. The use of color in the video reads as both metaphorical and instructive: Alexx is seen in bright orange, yellow, pink, and red, while her love interest remains vacant in the same all-white ensemble. Not only is he not interesting or invested enough in their relationship, but Alexx's palette makes clear that she is worth the attention she's not getting. Even on the hook, as Alexx dances in her own all-white outfit with a group of friends, their dancing's synchronicity is more striking and palpable than the guy she's singing to. "Bored" demands to be seen, but it still manages to remain aloof in its insistence. Alexx values herself more than the need for validation, and the video for "Bored" communicates that with coy confidence.



Matthew Apadula is a writer and music critic from New York. His work has previously appeared on GIGsoup Music and in Drunk in a Midnight Choir. Find him on Twitter @imdoingmybest.


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