2020, you’ve stood firm as the worst year of many peoples lives, some have managed to find some gems in the year. But as we slide into 2021, there are a few things we would like to request: gone are the days that we ask for balance. The new year requires the scales to tip heavily on the side of greatness, abundant joy, BLESSINGS! Here at Sistem, we’re not actually asking – we are DEMANDING it. We all deserve! And we have have decided to dig a lil deeper and get specific in our specific wants. There are so many, too many things that we want to see happen next year, but time is a real concept so we’ve given you two each.
Sorry one more thing now might be a good time to say all points are stated #RESPECTFULLY
Remi’s up first…
I would like to see people retweeting & sharing music they ACTUALLY like not what they think the rest of the world is listening too… Respectfully of course. For example, the topic of R&B. In the last two months alone the topic/question of ‘when will the UK respect R&B?’ has come up more times that a dolphin comes up for air in the Pacific Ocean! Especially on the new beta app (that is only available on iPhones atm) called clubhouse. From what I can see everyone seems to love the R&B genre I mean many of us grew up on it, sitting bang in front of the tv ruining our 2020 vision (little did we know 2020’s vision was to only be seen through the eyes of Rona). My point is if we love this genre so much why ain’t we sharing it? We need to start sharing what we really like… Listen, we the listeners are the music industry, we decide what’s hot or not & I need us to remember that. If we all started streaming what we liked – our hidden gem artists will be getting the recognition they deserve! You like it, share it – Spotify, Youtube, Apple links, thats the shit you should be airdropping to a random person on the train (not that other weird shit you weirdos do).
Lastly, i’d like to Boris overthrown & chucked out of Government. Yes, I’d like to see it & it’s possible. It’s called a ‘Vote of No Confidence’ one of two ways to trigger an early general election. Remember you’re talking to someone who once wanted to be a politician.
Yinka:
Let me start light. One of my biggest want for the new year is for WSTRN to get their flowers. This definitely follows on from Remi’s first point, UK RnB definitely doesn’t get enough recognition as a genre in general but if we look at it specifically WSTRN; our favourite boy-band definitely aren’t as celebrated as they should be. Well at least they haven’t been in the past, and this is something I hope changes in 2021 and beyond. I want to see them going to number1, for the amount of retweets and demands for a new feature from “Captain Hook” Haile to translate into UK chart positions. I am going to need everyone to stream them as much as they deserve, buying tickets to gigs and screaming their names if we are ever allowed to attend festivals again. On the count of three: I’M JUST IN MY ZONE
My second want for 2021 is a little less happy happy joy joy than my first but equally as important. I hope, wish and pray that people ‘find shame’. I am not sure where it has been hiding, maybe under the bed, in the airing cupboard or at the clubs we used to frequent but 2020 was a shameless year and it’s enough. I am tired of cringing every time I check the timeline, of the story-times and The Shadeborough comments, of the Lani’s, the random NBA groupies in podcasts, black stories with text (which is just as bad as changing your BBM pic to a big fat nothing) please. In 2021, let’s take our L’s in private? Thanks x
Leah: As a small disclaimer I would like to say that if 2021 isn’t better than 2020 I will be buying a one way ticket to Jupiter. But alas my hopes are as high as ever as we run like headless chickens in to a new year. The first thing I’d like to see in 2021 is a continued support for small businesses. As much as Rishi Sunak and his literal band of thieves would love to see us pump our hard earned cash in to every conglomerate and chain going we must remember there are real business owners with real bills to pay out here. As much as Capitalism kind of gives us all the ick initiatives like ‘Black Pound Day‘ have made us at least feel like we are redistributing the wealth in a way that might actually be for the greater good. It feels so good knowing that you’re putting money in to pockets of someone that was brave enough to risk it all by starting a business.
For my next trick I would like to make ‘RSVP pressure’ disappear, for good. It took me a couple of months in to lockdown to realise why I felt lighter, less stressed and more at peace. And that was when I coined the term ‘RSVP pressure’. That feeling when you’re invited to something that sounds like a 6/10 way to spend your day/night/weekend but everyone and their Gran is gonna be there and it’s gonna be a ‘brilliant’ networking opportunity AND it’s gonna be all over Instagram. Sorry to get technical but RSVP pressure is slightly different to FOMO. Because the pressure comes directly from the event host who is often disguised as a friend or colleague. Nine times out of ten for me it’s not the fear of missing out it’s the fear of letting the host down. So perhaps especially as we all take baby steps back in to the real world we could all be a bit more understanding if a friend hits us with them ‘I’m not really feeling it tonight xox’ text 15 minutes before doors open.
We can’t forget our pleases and thank you’s,
Lot’s of love,
Sistem Magazine.
Be informed. Be Entertained. Be You. 