SPEAKER_01: 0:40

Welcome back to another Super Awesome Mix. My name is Matt Sidholm, alongside my co-host and co-founder of Super Awesome Mix, Sam Abusalbi. Sam, how are we doing this week?

SPEAKER_00: 0:50

You know, doing real well. Doing real well. We are off to another year of new music. It just it's amazing. Like I I still can't believe that we finished so many years of new music, and here we are doing another one. I was actually thinking that at some point, especially now that we're, you know, over halfway into the decade, right? 2020. Um when we started and now we're in 2026. Maybe we need to do kind of a mid-decade review of new music and rank some of our pages.

SPEAKER_01: 1:21

Oh, that's a great call. I love that. I love that. Yeah. Halfway through the decade. Yeah, this is kind of wild that we're on the back end of this decade, 2026. Um, and our first new music mix, and this one's always weird. You know, we talk about how not a lot of new music comes out in kind of that December-January time frame, but it often leads to sort of discovering you know new things, new new bands that maybe we hadn't discovered before. So this one's always kind of an eclectic one. Um, but we've also got some big names on here. So this is kind of a fun mix.

SPEAKER_00: 1:56

For sure. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 1:58

All right. Well, let's get into it. Your first pick, this is Helicopter by ASAP Rocky.

SPEAKER_00: 2:03

Yeah, speaking of big names, um, he you know has a new album, and uh Helicopter is the second single off of it. At the time of this recording, it has just come out, this album. So um I haven't had a chance to listen to the full track list yet, but I will listen to it ASAP, if you will.

SPEAKER_01: 2:21

Um guys, this isn't scripted. All right, if you're thinking like we're just writing these jokes ahead of time, like it's not. It's all it's all just improv.

SPEAKER_00: 2:34

It is just all improv. We're really that good. Um, yeah, I think, you know, A, the new album title, Don't Be Dumb, is a great album title. Um I love it off of that because I just think that's solid advice. And then um, two, you know, I love the reference to uh the Pete Pablo's like take your shirt off, spin it like a helicopter. He sings about that a lot, and that's a great little deep cut reference from the early 2000s, an amazing party song. I had completely forgotten about that song, to be honest. So this song reminded me of that, which is great. Um, but yeah, uh, I'm excited to listen to it and dive into this album, especially with all the um collaborators on it.

SPEAKER_01: 3:14

Uh, this was a fantastic opening track, right? Like we talk about, I mean, look, this this podcast is all about mixtapes. And when you're making a mixtape for someone, the opening track is so critical. And I feel like just from the opening notes of this one, I was just all in. I was like, yes. And then the energy just keeps going throughout. Uh, it's just three minutes and it's awesome. Uh, he had a great line in there, set the trend, now the trend is set, then they run and forget who did it best.

SPEAKER_00: 3:43

Nice.

SPEAKER_01: 3:43

Uh, which I think is also kind of cool because you do hear about, I mean, there's trends, then like everybody's doing stuff, and then nobody can even tell you where it came from. Right. Right? Or or what the origin was. So so it's great uh because it's true. Because it's true.

SPEAKER_00: 3:58

It is true, yeah. Yeah. We definitely are trendsetters ourselves. Um, so we know. We know all about it.

SPEAKER_01: 4:06

We know all about it. And don't forget who did it best. That's what I want to tell people out there.

SPEAKER_00: 4:12

Yes. Um, we we certainly get high on on our own supply, listening to our own podcast. And that is the next song here, and that is by Band of Heathens.

SPEAKER_01: 4:23

Yeah, Band of Heathens is normally like a rock band. Um, but they have a new album coming out called Country Sides, uh, which is kind of funny because the album cover has like a old cafeteria tray with like little side dishes on it. So it's kind of funny. Country sides. Yeah. Um, and the music definitely sounds more like country music. So kind of threw a curveball at you here because it was like, oh, Band of Heathens, nothing, nothing to fear there. And then boom, it's a country song. Um, but this one's fun because they are talking about how much they love playing music and and how much they get from it, and it's like getting high on their own supply and and what it does to them. So I thought it was just a really, really cool song and and really honest. I mean, obviously these guys tour and play the same songs over and over, but there's there's obviously some love there for it.

SPEAKER_00: 5:10

Yeah, that is really cool. Um, this is definitely like a nice kind of folksy country sound, too. Like it's a very chill song. And if I'm not mistaken, you featured Band of Heathens as one of your songs of the day recently, right? That was one of the song of the day. I did.

SPEAKER_01: 5:25

There was there was another one on our song of the day. Okay, so if you're not following us, all right, every day on Instagram, all right, you can get a song of the day. And we're coming out with some fun stuff too, some drink wear to where you can go directly to the song of the day. But yeah, Jen, uh, Sam, and I are rotating, picking a song of the day, and we talk about it each time uh we post a song, but um, it's great because uh what I was able to do is this other offering that they have of which is just real country, right? Like I picked the less country of the two singles they've put out from this album. So I was like, all right, I'm not gonna torture Sam with this one and hear how he doesn't love it, but I will offer it up to the fans because they should check it out.

SPEAKER_00: 6:08

That's awesome. Yeah, thank you for that.

SPEAKER_01: 6:13

All right, uh, your next track, it is In Your Ocean by Iron and Wine.

SPEAKER_00: 6:18

Yeah, keeping with like the the chill vibes for sure between uh your last pick and this one, but Sam Beam, of course, of Iron and Wine. Um every time I listen to his voice, I just instantly feel like I need to be on like a porch somewhere in the south with like a iced tea or a lemonade in hand, you know, like it just he has that way of just transporting you to that kind of setting, at least for me. Like that's what I always associate listening to his music with. Um, and certainly there's some, you know, I I there was a summer one year in college where I stayed in my apartment. The apartment had a really nice pool. I stayed most of that summer poolside listening to bands like Iron and Wine. And so I think I just very much associate like, you know, the lull of summer in college and then just like being poolside, tanning, and uh, college is it's just a real joy. So I think there's a lot of that uh associated with iron and wine. So excited for this new album and and I really like the song. I especially really like the lyrics here praying for dry ground, though I only want to drown when I find myself swimming in your ocean, which I think is a really interesting kind of juxtaposition of like, you know, he wants to, it's almost like he wants to love this person or he's like in love with this person, but because of it, he's drowning in their ocean, which is a very negative thing. But so it's like kind of an interesting um contrast there as he sings for that.

SPEAKER_01: 7:38

Yeah, I I was taking my notes for this and I was like, okay, this is uh kind of a oh, this is kind of a sweet song, you know. Like he he enjoys this, but then I kind of pause for a second. I was like, wait, is this a super toxic relationship? Like, should he be getting out of this ocean that he's stuck in? Right. Um, it's kind of extreme either way, and I feel like this is what's cool about it is that depending on what state of mind you're in, you could get something totally different out of this song.

SPEAKER_00: 8:04

Yeah, exactly. Um, and hopefully you are waiting for the right kind of love uh for this next pick, but this is waiting for love by Anna of the North.

SPEAKER_01: 8:14

Yeah, it was funny how these two kind of ended up pairing up because you know, one is like you're you're certainly in it. And then Anna of the North here just talks about how she thought she had maybe found that person, but instead she's still waiting for love. Um, Anna is a Norwegian singer-songwriter. Um, this is all in English. Um, so no curveballs here. There's one later that is definitely more of a curveball that you picked, but um this is a Norwegian singer singing in English. But she had like kind of a Natasha Beddingfield feel to this, uh, like even vocally, but also it's kind of a dancey song, right? Like she's definitely singing and there's definitely some emotion to it. But I could also see this being remixed and played in like a club setting as well. So I thought that was really cool. And um, she has a new album coming out, and I think it's uh, you know, I had never heard of her before this. And so, you know, like I said, you kind of find these artists in this December-January time frame that maybe you wouldn't have come across otherwise. But um, I thought she was really cool. I mean, she can really sing, but also the way she arranges music, it's not just straight like pop music.

SPEAKER_00: 9:22

Yeah, no, this was a really cool find. I I really enjoyed this song. Um, she sings about basically love bombing, as she said, like the act of like someone just showering you with love all at once and then just disappearing from your life, um, which I think unfortunately we probably have all had an experience like that. Um and so I I think that's highly relatable as well. But I really like this song. Good find.

SPEAKER_01: 9:46

All right, this next one um it really made me laugh. I love this one. Uh, it is The Happy Dictator by Gorillas, featuring Sparks.

SPEAKER_00: 9:54

Yeah, shout out to Jen's recent pick of the day um song of the day. She put this one on there. So then I didn't know the gorillas had a new album coming out. So actually I learned something uh from our song of the day. So be sure to follow us on Instagram at Super AwesomeMix. Um but yes, the Happy Dictator is is an amazing song. Obviously, you know, kind of like a political one in nature. Um it's poking fun at people who tend to present themselves as saviors and uh end up just becoming kind of like a dictator or an authoritarian. So um, you know, I think like the lines here, them singing over like, oh, what a happy land we live in, like is just so funny because apparently it was inspired by um his trip to Damon said that he went to Turkmenistan. And apparently there they they did ban bad news from the press because they wanted to make sure that people felt that you know weren't feeling the pressures of the world. And I was like, you know, that's an interesting approach. Um that's that's one way, I guess, of solving the problem of bad news.

SPEAKER_01: 10:57

That's amazing. Yeah, I mean, if you splice together like speeches from dictators over the years and put it together, that's essentially what the lyrics are here. But but I also thought, I mean, this is really any sort of this could be the CEO of a company who won't admit that there's a problem. This could be the head coach of your favorite sports team, or here in Dallas, we have uh a particular owner of a particular NFL team that always likes to tell us we're about to win a Super Bowl.

SPEAKER_00: 11:23

Uh-huh. Yep.

SPEAKER_01: 11:24

And uh we are not in the playoffs. Okay. Spoiler alert, uh, the Cowboys did not make the playoffs. So yeah, it it could be it doesn't even have to be a political take when you listen to this. It's just sort of anyone who's sort of pissing on your leg and telling you it's raining.

SPEAKER_00: 11:42

Um that's so funny. Because actually, the second he started saying that, I hadn't thought about it in any other way than politics. But um, like Aaron Glenn, you know, head coach of the Jets, like the Jets are two and sixteen. They finished the year two and sixteen. And when you listen to that man at the podium, he's like, we've got a plan. Like, we're just following that plan. And I'm like, man, I think your plan sucked.

SPEAKER_01: 12:04

We did a lot of good things out there, okay? Let's not let's not just focus on the bad thing.

SPEAKER_00: 12:11

Like, unless you show me a timestamp photo that your plan was to go two and 16 your first season as the head coach, then I I'm not following that you've got a plan. Uh anyway, anyway, all right. I digress. Um, your next pick. I loved this song. Um, and this was really, really interesting. But this is Wearing That Nightlife Look by Elvis Presley and Jameson Shaw.

SPEAKER_01: 12:35

Yeah, I mean, this for me is an early favorite for my best of this year. Yeah. Like I really thought, I was like, am I gonna find 12 songs better than this? Um, so a couple of years ago, we had like the Elvis uh biopic, right, that came out. And then I guess late last year there was like an IMAX feature by Baz Lerman where he put together some Elvis concert footage. And I'm really kind of interested to see this now, now that I've I've realized it exists. Um, but they came out with an album along with it, and some of it were, you know, some of the live performances they featured. But Lerman, along with uh the music supervisor and he's a music producer, Jameson Shaw, they took four Elvis songs, okay? Uh Wearing That Loved On look, that was the original one, a song called Nightlife, I John, and Let Yourself Go. So they took four Elvis tracks and they just created a new song.

SPEAKER_00: 13:27

Wow.

SPEAKER_01: 13:27

Which it with what they call Elvis DNA.

SPEAKER_00: 13:31

Sure.

SPEAKER_01: 13:31

Um, and so I mean, and it is awesome. Like you've got horns, you've got his voice, like it's kind of sort of prime Elvis voice. Um, the backing vocals, there's this gospel bridge to it that that just brings it all together. Yeah. I it's incredible. Like you, you I'm telling you, go listen to this. You're gonna love this track. I I really want to go see this concert uh movie now. But um, yeah, I mean, what an what an awesome find. And I also love it when we kind of get to say, like, hey, new music mix. Here's something from Elvis who died the year I was born.

SPEAKER_00: 14:07

Yeah, totally. That was like when we had a new Beatles track. I think it was last year. That's right. Yeah. Yeah. Um, which is pretty wild. No, this was so cool. This is um, it has almost like a big band feel to it. You know, you mentioned like the horns and everything, and I think that it just works so well. And I loved this song, it's great energy. This is definitely my favorite off of um out of all your picks this uh this month.

SPEAKER_01: 14:29

Um, well, this one might have been my favorite off of your picks. I don't know. I kind of went back and forth between this and helicopter, but your next pick is With Your Love by Elenium and Ryan Tedder.

SPEAKER_00: 14:39

Yeah, so Elenium is um, you know, like a EDM group or uh DJ who like I used a lot of their music as a spin instructor, and so like it makes a lot of sense that anytime that they have like something new, I I find it. Um this one in particular caught my eye because Ryan Tetter, of course, is from One Republic, but he's also just a prolific like music writer and producer, um, which I didn't really know until I kind of I went to a One Republic concert and I realized uh he kind of alluded to that and I did some research to it. I'm like, wow, yeah, he's written a lot of music. Uh so he's just like a very talented human being in the music world. So um click play on this one, not you know, not totally knowing what to expect, but just absolutely love it. I mean, just a classic EDM track. Um I really like the the lines here of like laid down my weapons through my past away because you showed up with your love. And I think that that's a really cool way of kind of talking about how sometimes you meet people and they can kind of smooth you over and make you just kind of like be like, okay, like I'm I'm ready to move on from my past because like someone is showing me their love. And like now you're you just you feel safer and you feel more comfortable, and I think that's really cool. So that's something I've always really liked about OneRepublic is I think that their lyrics are very honest. Um, and so this is just like a cool, even though it's like you could just listen to it for like the beat and kind of lose yourself to that and that and it has good drops, but I think the lyrics also are really nice, they're not like nonsensical like they often are with a lot of other EDM music.

SPEAKER_01: 16:06

Yeah, I thought they did a really good job, like having Ryan Tetter sort of come along and and write this because now this becomes it it honestly sounds more like a pop song, and I can actually see this getting a lot of radio play and and popularity more so than you know, you hear EDM and some people are like, Yeah, I'm not into that. It's like, no, just listen to this. I think you're gonna like it. And um, I think a lot of that credit to to Tedder and his songwriting. Um, it's funny you mention how pervasive he is in the music industry, because that's I remember years ago, um, Rob Thomas of Matchbox 20, right? Like he's another guy where um obviously Matchbox 20 was was very popular, like in their time, um, and and probably still popular to a lot of people, but you if you search Rob Thomas and like songwriting, he's written so many songs that you're like, wait a minute, what? No, I do like that song, or or it was just a hit, like you've heard of it, right? Um, so it is funny how some of these guys get in there and just become just the those guys where it's like that's who we're going to to fart to to write a song.

SPEAKER_00: 17:08

Absolutely, yeah. I know on the show we talked about it, um, and we don't need to digress too far, but the Bee Gees were the same way. I learned that about the Bee Gees, right? Like you think of them as just like a disco band, but then you found out that they had this whole like Beatles-esque era, and then you find out that they remained in the industry writing a ton of songs um for other artists. So I thought that was really cool.

SPEAKER_01: 17:27

Barry Gibb. And then before that, I mean, Neil Diamond's another guy who obviously is mega famous, but he there's a ton of songs out there that you'd be surprised to find out Neil Diamond wrote.

SPEAKER_00: 17:37

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01: 17:39

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SPEAKER_00: 18:24

All right, track number eight. Um, this one is No No Yeah Yeah by Chinese American Bear.

SPEAKER_01: 18:31

So I clicked on this one simply based on the name of the group, right? I was like, okay, Chinese American Bear. And when I hit play, I'm like, this is either going to be the most off-the-wall track I've ever heard, or I don't know, something else. It ended up being something else. So this is a married pop duo from Seattle, Anna Tong and Bryce Barston. And their music is just really fun, right? And uh it, they're kind of melodic and and poppy, and it's just a really light, bubbly song. So it's like uh you're not listening to this, and obviously, just based on the title, it's no, no, yeah, yeah. This is not super deep, right? Like we're not saying, I'm not asking you to interpret anything, but I think these guys are a really fun duo, and it's and it's kind of perfect. You know, I mentioned this earlier with Anna the North. Like, this is not a group that I would necessarily go to in six months when, you know, probably 20 of the biggest music stars in the world have new albums out, right? Like you just wouldn't get to this. So I I love this time of year and discovering uh groups like this. But yeah, they're worth a they're worth a listen. Even the whole album was really it I went back into their old stuff and it was really pretty cool.

SPEAKER_00: 19:40

That's awesome. Um, no, I really enjoyed this one. I similar to you, had no idea what I was gonna get when I clicked into this. Um, especially because there's Chinese characters in the title. So I thought, like, is this, you know, is this gonna be Chinese? Like, this is um very interesting. So I I really liked it super, super ear-wormy. Like when they just sing like, no, no, no, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. They can just get stuck in your head for a really long time. So that's kind of fun.

SPEAKER_01: 20:04

All right, your next pick, track nine. This is The Wreckage by Silver Sun Pickups.

SPEAKER_00: 20:09

Yeah, I hadn't heard from Silver Sun Pickups in some time. And this was like one of those cases where I definitely listened to them around like 2008, nine, you know, something around that. Um, and I thought I just kind of thought they had gone away, you know. Like I didn't know they they've been producing music this whole time.

SPEAKER_01: 20:28

Um I felt the same way, like when when I saw them on the mix. I'm like, oh, are they back together? Like, what happened? And I'm like, nope, they just just missed them. Yeah. Just missed them.

SPEAKER_00: 20:41

Exactly. I have missed them for like what 15 years. Um, but you know, I'm reunited and it feels so good. They um they have not really changed their sound, and I don't mean that in a negative way at all, right? We talk about that all the time, but it they sound like how I remember them, which is great, because I remember really enjoying them. Uh just has like this kind of classic all-rock sound to them. Um, and you can, you know, it's an easy song and a band to kind of just turn the music up, enjoy the sound, um, and not so much care about what's being sung about because that's pretty much like how I used to listen to them, and I can still do that, which is great. Um, so yeah, they their last album was 2022, so it has been at least, you know, obviously a handful of years since they came out with new music. So I get a little bit of credit for that, but no, they've been releasing a lot of albums um for some time. So apologies to them.

SPEAKER_01: 21:33

I like how you tried to justify losing track of a band. There's like three million bands out there, and you're like, I'm sorry, I I lost track of one. Yeah. Uh I, you know, you said earlier, like, this is just kind of throwback alt rock music. And that's that was kind of a note I had where we talk a lot about, man, this is just a great pop song, right? We talk about pop music a lot, but that was what I wrote down. I was like, this is just great alt rock. Like, right, this is just right in that genre. Um, and really like the lyrics here, and it was interesting. He's just kind of pointing out the mess that's been created, but then also saying he connects to it. And I don't know if it's like in an empathetic way or not. It was almost like a see what you did, or I knew this would happen, or you know, like I it was really, I don't know. It's just kind of an interesting song. I just kept thinking about what the situation is. That is sort of like what he's describing. But um, but I liked it. I mean, like I said, it's it's great alt rock. So if you're into that genre, I think you're gonna love this. So I'm excited. And now that I've known I've missed a few albums, like just jump back into Silver Sun pickups.

SPEAKER_00: 22:39

Yeah, that's right. Um, I don't know why I'm acting like I can't go and listen to their other albums now. Like I've it's gone forever. They're gone. It's gone forever. It's like the Disney vault. Like that I can't get back in there. All right. Um, rounding out the mix here, track number 10. This is Harmonizing with Myself by Juliana Hatfield.

SPEAKER_01: 23:00

Yeah, Juliana Hatfield has been around for a long time. Uh, she was part of the Lemonheads at one point. Um, she had a song on the reality bite soundtrack. So if you're a big 90s you know movie fan, you know that one. Um, so it's cool to see new music from her. I mean, this sounds like a Cheryl Crow song. And if I just played this for someone out there and just didn't tell you who it was, I'm guessing your first first name would be Cheryl Crow. Um, so maybe that's why I liked it because I've also been a big Cheryl Crow fan, but her voice sounds great, and and I like the message here. She's kind of just leaning into the loneliness that that she's sort of feeling or experiencing. And so I thought it was great for like, you know, we're into the new year, and maybe you either are by yourself, okay, or trying to break free from a bad relationship. And I feel like Juliana's got some inspiration here for just harmonizing with yourself, like being by yourself for a little bit. And so I thought that was really positive too.

SPEAKER_00: 23:57

Yeah, I really like that. It's like just vibing to yourself, finding joy in your own headspace. You know, I like the lyrics. I cruise around the kitchen island, I pretend the floor is an ocean. It's one of the many ways I'm reframing pain, um, which I really like. That I think you know, we our headspace is is a very powerful tool either against us or with us. And so it's like trying to learn how to how to deal with all that stuff can can be a very powerful ally if you are unhappy in the headspace that you're in, and maybe you can find a way to reframe things and and find joy in it. So I really, really like the song, and this was a a cool pick to round out um your last two picks.

SPEAKER_01: 24:33

All right. Well, your last pick, and this was if I was a batter at the plate, like this is both a fastball and a curveball, all the same. This is a 95 mile an hour curveball. I don't know what to do with this. Uh it's it's dictionaires, and it's by Nino and Freeze Corleone.

SPEAKER_00: 24:51

Yeah, this is definitely a curveball at the very least. Um, so what's happened over the last like I'd say three or four months is obviously I've been really into Apache, who's a Belgian um DJ. And then I got introduced from my trainer to this DJ group called Trinix. Uh, I believe they're French, and they just had a bunch of like mashups that you can find actually on Apple Music and Spotify, but certainly on YouTube. And their mashups are excellent. And so then I started to look into more of like what you know, their own music and stuff, and they obviously do a lot of like French music, and they will integrate in like French rap too, in addition to like Apache also using some French rappers into some of his songs, which makes sense. He's Belgian. Um, all that to say is I realized French rap is actually like a pretty awesome category of music that I had no idea existed. And once I started listening to it, I was like, I can't get enough. It it checks the box of me not needing to care about the lyrics, right? Like I've never been someone who like dies over lyrics, you know. Like, yeah, I'm happy to just listen to a song and kind of go with it with its melody and and its beat. So that check, right? That's awesome. Number two, I think French is a is a very beautiful language, it's a very melodic language, you know. Like just listening to people speak French sometimes can sound like poetry just in a normal conversation. And so it's it's actually kind of a really natural bridge for it to be amazing, like rap music. Um, and so this is just and then third, like this song in particular just hits really hard, right? I mean, it just has that kind of walk-tall, strut, confidence, like boost to it. And so all those things together has just made me fall in love with French rap as as a category. Um, so this might not be the last time that I put something on here like that.

SPEAKER_01: 26:39

Um, yeah, I mean, I know it said it threw me for a curveball, but like I I actually enjoyed it. And so I was like, what is but it was there was definitely a what is happening, like they're not switching to English at any point. Like, I don't understand a word. I love the energy. And you're right, French is such a melodic language, but it's sung so aggressively here. So it's also there's a little bit of dissonance from that. Um, and then I I was like, all right, let me go translate the lyrics. Still didn't understand what they were talking about.

unknown: 27:09

Right.

SPEAKER_01: 27:10

So and you guys know, you listen to the show, I'm kind of a square, all right? Like this isn't something that should shock anybody, but I'm reading these lyrics and I'm like, yeah, I still don't get it. But you know what? I'm into it.

SPEAKER_00: 27:21

Yeah, you know, just listen to it for the beat. That's all, that's all I'm saying. That's fine. That's awesome. I will say too that sometimes like um listening to French people argue, or you think they're arguing and they're just like talking about what they want for lunch, you know, but it can also be like a language that sounds very emphatic.

SPEAKER_01: 27:38

And uh I mean, Sam, you and I are both Middle Eastern. I mean, if there's anything Middle Eastern people do, it's everything sounds super aggressive and angry. Exactly. Right? Like Arabic is not a language that is described as melodic.

SPEAKER_00: 27:53

No, everything is shouting at each other, even when it's just like, oh, how was your day today? It's really great.

SPEAKER_01: 27:59

Right, right. Yes, it's immediately contentious, and you may have something stuck in your throat.

SPEAKER_00: 28:08

Oh, that's awesome. All right, your last pick. This one is really good. Um, and features, I think, one of the longest intros to a song um that I can think of. But this is the ballad of Rooster Jenkins by Logic.

SPEAKER_01: 28:23

Yeah, and uh he's not listed on here, but let's call it featuring Morgan Freeman because this is a this is a nine-minute, I'm gonna use air quote song. The first seven minutes are Morgan Freeman telling the story of Rooster Jenkins.

SPEAKER_00: 28:37

Yes.

SPEAKER_01: 28:38

And then you get two minutes of Logic rapping. Uh and so I just thought that was incredible to put something out like this, right? Yeah. In sort of a short attention span era, to be like, I'm gonna get like one of the greatest voices ever to tell this story. And it's yeah, actually, let me just remend this. It was either Morgan Freeman or Frank Calliendo. Right. Okay, I can't verify it was definitely Morgan Freeman. No, I think it is. I'm just assuming it was, yeah. Um, but he uh but yeah, he tells the story of this main character, Rooster Jenkins, and it's not a pleasant story, it's a child born of two slaves, um, and later in in the song, like manages to break away from his situation, and and that's when you get Logic coming in and uh with his lyrics. And so I'm excited because I I think this may be sort of a concept album that Logic's coming out with here, um, which I'm a big fan of concept albums, where they kind of put it all together. And I think that's a lost art. Like, I don't think you see nowadays, I think a lot of times people are putting out just singles and and trying to get um trying to get plays on on Spotify or album music or whatever. And so I think this is cool because this is not one that is necessarily designed to just get a lot of plays, but I think it's gonna draw you in. It's really interesting.

SPEAKER_00: 29:56

Yeah, I agree. I think you know, we talked about um in our season opener about the sixth album from a lot of bands where they kind of feel maybe more comfortable experimenting. And I think, you know, logic is certainly easily on that list because he's produced a lot of music um and put a lot of stuff. And so it's kind of fun to see him just try a bunch of different things. I also recently learned uh he wrote a horror story. I haven't read it yet, though, but he has like a novel out there and it was it's like literally he wrote a horror story. Um very multi-talented guy, super, super talented. I don't know if the book is good, you know, it might it might not be good, but the fact that he wrote a novel and has it published, you know, that's something.

SPEAKER_01: 30:33

You know, writing is hard, right? And that's why so many people just rely on AI now. I think that's the biggest thing you get from people is is sort of AI generated emails or whatever.

SPEAKER_00: 30:42

Yeah, um or just go on LinkedIn for two minutes, everything.

SPEAKER_01: 30:45

Oh my gosh. Yeah, don't get me started on LinkedIn, all right. We we may need them as a sponsor at some point. I'm just saying, like, boy, some of the posts on there. But yeah, I mean, uh so it's always cool. You know, we talk about lyrics and songwriting a lot on this show, but then yeah, it it's such an art and such a talent to just go, well, I'm gonna write a whole story around this. Yeah. And so um, yeah, it's no surprise that there's some crossover there.

SPEAKER_00: 31:16

For sure.

SPEAKER_01: 31:18

All right. Well, there you have it, another super awesome mix for your collection. Remember, in 2026, we're gonna hit episode 200 and we want to be the number one music podcast out there. So share this with a friend at Super AwesomeMix on Instagram and Threads and on YouTube. So get the word out there. Let's keep boosting up our downloads and let's become all together the number one music podcast out there. Also, check out our song of the day. So if you follow us, you can uh figure that out and uh see what picks we're making. So you could just get introduced to new music on a daily basis. But that's your new music for late uh 2025 and early 2026. We've got plenty of mixes to work on. So for Sam, this is Matt, and we'll see you next time.