my june media rewind and news stories you should read this month

a collection of things I read, listened to and watched in June

Hello Tamia Talkers, Happy Sunday! I am returning to your inbox today with another rewind. In June, I revisited a few of my favorite television franchises and films and endeavored to finish some books that I started at the beginning of the year. However, I have to say, that music is what fueled and energized me this month.

I saw a handful of my favorite artists and performers at music festivals including Chappell Roan, Reneé Rapp, SZA (twice!), Faye Webster, MUNA, Maude Latour, Fletcher, and Ethel Cain. I made a 128-song playlist of the month, packed with songs from “brat. And, my friends and I went to the DJ booth and requested “Espresso” dozens of times before scream-singing it from our table at a bar in New York. It was a month of magic music, and for that I am grateful.

Here is my June Rewind <3

in the news

• How 3M Executives Convinced a Scientist the Forever Chemicals She Found in Human Blood Were Safe: In 1997, during her regular shift as a chemist at 3M, Kris Hansen received an unusual assignment. She was asked to test human blood for signs of chemical contamination. Several recent blood tests from 3M factory workers had shown signs of PFOS (perfluorooctane sulfonic acid) contamination and her supervisor wanted her to conduct a similar test with blood samples from people who had never worked for the company. At the time, he told her the chemicals were not harmful. In 2024, PFOS are one of several chemicals that the EPA forces the removal of in drinking water. Read here.

• A Democrat, Siding With the G.O.P., Is Removing Limits on Political Cash at ‘Breathtaking’ Speed: Shane Goldmacher’s reporting for the New York Times examines a recent shift to deregulation in United States campaign finance law. A new bloc of leaders on the Federal Elections Commission, made up of three Republicans and one Democrat, are leading the effort to diminish barriers for politicians, political parties, and super PACs who raise and spend money on elections. Experts say their decision-making could have severe implications for the American political system and the influence of money on politics. Read here.

• Rising pop star Maude Latour talks new album "Sugar Water" and her love for Wisconsin: Ok, so I have never put myself in my media rewind, but on this occasion, it feels entirely appropriate because it serves the dual purpose of celebrating and (potentially) introducing you to another rising pop girl! 25-year-old Maude Latour is a New York native and Columbia University grad whose music career took off during her time on Columbia’s campus. Latour’s music colorfully narrates the ever-confusing, yet blissful experience of growing up and finding your way through love, loss, and self-discovery. At the end of June, I interviewed Latour ahead of her set at Summerfest, a music festival in Milwaukee. I’ve listened to Maude’s music for a couple of years and excitedly flagged the announcement of her new album, “Sugar Water” to our entertainment editors so that I could write this story. She was so kind and passionate about sharing this next project with her fans and such a delight to chat with. Read my story here and watch our interview below.

• Matt and Bowen Enter the Honesty Zone: When I started listening to Las Culturistas in the fall of 2022, I had just made a big move to New York City. I was starting my grad program at Columbia in a few days and was running around town trying to catch as many Broadway shows as I could before classes began. I found great comfort in discovering these two podcast besties (and NYU alums) who would serve as my audio guide to discovering culture and being a young person in the city. Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang in all of their joyful silliness, make my world dazzle every Wednesday when a new episode drops. I listened to approximately 10,752 minutes of the podcast on Spotify in 2023 and have remained a fan ever since. As they step into a new era post-Tina Fey telling them “authenticity is dangerous and expensive” and they are getting too famous to tell all on the internet, the pair chat with Vulture’s Jason P. Frank about where the podcast is headed and tackling the pressure to come. Read here.

• How to survive a heat wave on a fixed income: In this article by Grist reporter Gautama Mehta, a 68-year-old woman named Mone Choy seeks respite from her hot Manhattan apartment after an intense summer heat wave. Every morning, at 4:30 a.m., she wakes up, fills a shopping cart full of supplies and spare food to get herself through the day, then heads to one of the city’s cooling centers. If she is lucky, she secures a spot at a location with a well-functioning bathroom that won’t push her out of the facility before the early evening cool sweeps across the city. In recent years, lawmakers have faced amplified criticism of policy decisions that cut the budget of New York Libraries which served as primary cooling centers for residents hoping to escape the heat. Choy, who lives off of a limited disability income, is afraid that without a clear solution for elderly and disabled individuals like herself, many will be left fighting for safe space to avoid the heat. Read here.

• Chappell Roan Is Taking It: I’ve mentioned it dozens of times, but I am such a fan of Chappell Roan. As a Wisconsin girl, I wholeheartedly consider myself a Midwest Princess, so reading this PAPER magazine interview in June was such a treat. When I realized that the story featured a conversation with fellow Milwaukee native Trixie Mattel, my excitement grew tenfold. In this article, Roan talks about the sometimes frightening reality of being an internationally known pop star and discusses her commitment to providing safe spaces for LGBTQ+ people in small towns like her own in Willard, Missouri. It was really refreshing to read this conversation in which Roan bares all and allows readers a glimpse into her life. From crying on the phone with her therapist after being recognized by a fan in Syracuse to free-bleeding during a performance at an Alabama music festival, she’s just trying to find the balance and is so unapologetically honest in doing so. Read here.

on my screen

• Crazy Rich Asians (2018): I cried at the end! More on this in the books section.

• Brooklyn Nine-Nine (2017): 2024 is my year of catching up on culture that I am about one decade behind the general public in appreciating. So, Brooklyn Nine-Nine was a blindspot that I enthusiastically sought to address this month. I can happily say that I’ve become addicted and watch at least one episode of the show a day as if it’s a vitamin that will sustain my health. It’s exactly what I needed in my television consumption diet: humor, a frenemies-to-lovers subplot, a character named Gina, an overeager, people-pleasing character that I (unfortunately) relate to, and a man with weird comedic rizz for me to have a crush on (Jake Peralta if this wasn’t clear). It’s the perfect show, so far, and I look forward to binging all eight seasons.

• Glee, Season 4 (2012): I made it to episode 15. I am currently on a Glee hiatus because I’m not ready to tackle seasons five and six.

• Mean Girls (2004): Perfect film, no notes, read the original screenplay after.

• Boomerang (1992): Many storylines happening here, and among the most peculiar is falling in love with a man you’ve known for like a month and have seen repeatedly degrade women. Lots of heavy hitters in the cast though and that was delightful to see!

  

in my ears

music

• Genesis, Raye (2024): My appreciation for Raye as an artist and musician grows exponentially every time she releases a project. Her musical versatility and ability to blend genres is so wildly impressive. “Genesis” is an exhibition of that skill combined with a grounding sense of vulnerability that she weaves into the lyrics of this seven-minute audio masterpiece. The song discusses its central character’s journey through crisis of faith, addiction, insecurity heartbreak, and depression and their plea for light to guide them. Though Raye released three singles for the song, splitting its higher energy sections from jazzy, scat-infused verses, I think the full-length listen is always worth the time.

• Please Please Please, Sabrina Carpenter (2024): This is my sister! If you don’t get it and haven’t grasped it by now, you’ve lost the plot!

• the 360 remix with robyn and yung lean (2024): More Robyn in 2024, please! I miss her! Also, IT’S BRAT SUMMER!

• HEAT, Tove Lo and SG Lewis

• Caught Up, Flo (2024)

• Any Way (ft. Maggie Rogers), L’Impératrice (2024)

• No Idea, MUNA (2022): I saw MUNA live this month, so I had to revisit all of my favorite songs. “No Idea” will remain a Tamia staple in perpetuity for many reasons, but especially the opening line, “I think you think I’m like a virgin, not in a biblical sense. You think I’m nervous and uncertain because I’m waiting.” That is a masterwork. I need to know who wrote it.

• Leaving, Kilo Kish (2024)

• Swim, Reneé Rapp (2023): I saw Reneé Rapp at Gov Ball in June and when she performed “Swim” she said, “This is my favorite song to perform,” and though it initially was not a favorite of mine on a first spin of “Snow Angel,” I completely get it now that I’ve seen her dance and vibe to it on stage.

• Pluto, Raveena (2024)

• Still, Normani (2024)

podcasts

• But We Loved (2024): I have been listening to the iHeartMedia podcast “But We Loved” since it debuted in May. The podcast tells the stories of LGBTQ+ elders through interviews and narrative retellings of some of the most critical moments of queer history. Jordan Gonsalves, a journalist and classmate of mine at Columbia Journalism School hosts the show and every week offers thoughtful and compelling episodes for listeners. He was also a guest on the last June episode of Tamia Talks! Listen to “But We Loved” here.

on my shelf

• Crazy Rich Asians (2013): I finally finished my five-year-long read of Crazy Rich Asians in June. I mentioned in one of my early rewinds that this was a book that felt like it needed to be read on vacation. As a result, I only read it when I was on planes and almost always fell asleep in the process. I thoroughly enjoyed the book each time though.

• Handmaid’s Tale (1985): Two-thirds of this list are books that I started in January that I am attempting to pick back up again and finish. I wish I could say that I finished The Handmaid’s Tale in June, but I did not. I started reading it in January and lost the book sometime between then and now. Every time I pick up this book, I become enraptured by Offred’s story and the value that dystopian fiction carries for its readers in 2024. I am fairly certain that July will be the month in which I reach the end and maybe start the Hulu show as well.

• Lessons In Chemistry (2022): I read “Lessons In Chemistry” on a whim at the end of June. I wanted to check another book off of my to-be-read list, and, every time I saw the trailer for the Apple TV+ series, I felt the urge to press play. But I am a book-first loyalist! This story was soul-crushing in the best way and a captivating spin on portraying sexism in the scientific world.