Melissa Kacar

"Stateside" blends such a fun, infectious mix of Euro‑dance and electronic influences. PinkPantheress worked with The Dare for the first time on the production, and I love seeing her collaborate with artists who push her sound in new directions like this. The energy of the song is incredible, and the lyrics are just so cute and playful. She has such a distinct voice in pop music that is so unique and instantly recognizable, and "Stateside" really highlights that. The song itself is a cheeky recollection of falling for an American guy, and all the longing and excitement that comes with it. "You could be my American, ha, ha, ha, ha," she sings in the chorus. She has talked many times about how this is her personal favorite track from her sophomore mixtape, Fancy That , feeling like it really explored her growth as an artist. It is overall such a clever piece of pop writing, infused with garage and Y2K influences from some of the great UK pop stars who cam...

"What Was That" by Lorde Lorde summer is officially here! The lead single from her forthcoming album, "What Was That", feels like a true rebirth for Lorde as an artist. Collaborating with Jim-E Stack and Dan Nigro for the first time, she's brought a fresh yet deeply emotional energy with this new song, and I couldn’t be happier that she's back. Listening to this gave me the same joy and euphoria I felt when I first heard Melodrama at 17 years old. It's hard to put into words right now, but this is such an exciting time for pop music and Lorde is one of the key voices that are really shaping this transformative and exciting new era for the culture.  "Egg" by Djo An early contender for my favorite album of the year is absolutely The Crux by Djo . Every song is incredible, and I can't recommend checking out the entire album enough, but one that really struck me is "Egg". It is such a profound and thought-provoking exploration of ide...

Hey Billie, you there? Happy Record Store Day! To celebrate one of the biggest events of the year for independent record stores, Charli xcx and Billie Eilish released a special 7" vinyl single for their iconic 2024 collaboration "Guess". It was one of my most anticipated releases for this year and I'm so happy to have it in my collection! There were only 10,000 copies of this vinyl pressed worldwide and sold exclusively at independent record stores in April 2025. It is a classic black pressing with the iconic shade of brat green as the center label. The disc itself is overall very minimalist, with no markings at all on either side of the center label. Like all of the vinyl from the BRAT era , there is a sticker closing the record that needs to be cut open very carefully. This is one of two special releases Charli released this year to celebrate independent record stores.  It is housed in a cardboard sleeve, which is so different than any other record sleeve I'...

brat and it's completely differe nt but also still brat totally redefined the concept of a remix album. To top off the massive year Charli xcx had following the release BRAT , she took the concept of that album and every single song and completely transformed it into something brand new. It takes the idea that every song's concept, or even just song title, can have so many different lives that can be (and should be) explored further than just the original version of it. Many of the songs don't even feature a single lyric or melody from the original versions, but still find a way to expand and evolve the meaning behind each. Charli's approach to this project is as artful as it is groundbreaking and its long overdue for her to finally get her flowers. By embracing the reworking of concepts, Charli showcases the dynamic potential that exists within her music. "I think what's interesting about the remix album... is I was writing the original record when I was in ...