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Something New - Single by Ollie Gabriel
Something New - Single by Ollie Gabriel
7
7.0 (1 Ratings)
Album Rating
Ollie Gabriel is a talented soul singer and songwriter based in Los Angeles, California. Not too long ago, he released an adorable music video for his “Something New (From “Songland”)” single.

“We’re living in a world so fast. Not a lot of things that last. But there’s one thing that’s gon stay. I still got that old kind of loving. The kind that don’t leave, that don’t bend, that don’t break. I still got that old kinda loving.” – lyrics

‘Something New’ tells an evergreen tale of a young guy who cherishes an idealistic moment shared between him and his significant other.

While looking into her beautiful eyes, he reveals that his love for her will remain until they are old and grey. Therefore, they should close their eyes, take their time, and hang on to every second like it’s their last.
Later, he admits that a love like theirs doesn’t come around every day, so that’s why they should try something new and bring back that old thing again.

‘Something New’ contains a timeless love story and ear-welcoming vocals. Also, the lovable tune possesses lush instrumentation flavored with R&B and classic soul ingredients.

Ollie Gabriel, a Louisiana native, was introduced to the American public by way of NBC’s new groundbreaking series, entitled, Songland.

During the show, five songwriters competed and performed their original song for the chance to have it recorded by a celebrity artist.

Long-story-short, Gabriel performed and pitched his original song to John Legend, and the rest is history.

Ollie Gabriel’s inspirational debut single, “Running Man”, has over 22M streams online via Spotify.

He has performed around the world, televised to millions and to concert audiences of 40,000+ fans. Also, he’s a talented producer with over 500 sync placements in film and tv since 2009.

His music has been featured on Grey’s Anatomy, Ray Donovan, Shameless, and Deadliest Catch to name a few.

“In 2017, Ollie Gabriel married his longtime girlfriend who inspired the song he performed on NBC’s Songland.”
  
Red State (2011)
Red State (2011)
2011 | Action, Horror, Thriller
Kevin Smith cult film
I had always meaned to watch this film since I'm a big Kevin Smith fan, but just had never gotten around to until now. If you go in thinking you will be watching Clerks or Chasing Amy you would be mistaken. Maybe more like his follow up movie, Tusk, than anything else.

It's kind of the story of three high school friends. One of them meets and lines up a "hook up" with a mysterious woman on a dating phone app so the hormone-filled teens race to score. Their initial meeting at the woman's trailer seems to be going well until the boys realize the woman has drugged their beers and the boys drop to the floor.

When they awaken, they realize they have been abducted, bound and gagged and are now going to have something bad happen to them courtesy of a crazy cult-like religious leader in front of his "flock" complete with women and children.

All doesn't go according to plan when the boys try and escape and then the feds show up outside to try and handle the situation. Tensions escalate quickly and the bullets start flying.

The movie started promising with kind of a Hostel meets Wicker Man vibe. I enjoyed the tension built as the teens try and assess their situation and figure a way out. You definitely quickly grow to hate the cult leader and his disciples as they do nasty things to others and blindly follow their leader to carry out his every order. I feel the movie falls apart in the last act.

Without giving anything away, the resolution wasn't satisfactory and a lot of things are explained at the end instead of being shown which was disappointing. Not sure if this was meant to be this way or they ran out of money and/or time so that's the way thing ended up.

Overall, I was entertained, but felt it lacked something to make the experience completely fulfilling.

  
Centaur Rift (Warrior Hearts Academy #1)
Centaur Rift (Warrior Hearts Academy #1)
Ellie Horn | 2023 | Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
CENTAUR RIFT is the first book in the Warrior Hearts Academy series BUT it appears to be a spin-off of either one or two previous series, so it did feel as though you were dropped into the middle of the action to begin with. On the cover, there is a IV but I only saw that once I had the book on my Paperwhite, as it didn't show up clearly on the book cover online.

That being said, I quickly became invested in Riley, Marcus, Rafael, and Havoc. Riley is awesome. She grew up as a foster kid and has dealt with horrible situations. This allows her to understand when Marcus swings back and forth with his moods, instead of throwing her own temper tantrum - even if she wants to! Marcus - oh, man! This poor male has had so much taken away and given so much sh!t in return, he breaks my heart. Rafael - I could see his storyline a mile away but the fun was in waiting for him to find out. He has been tormented in ways he doesn't even know about yet. I want to get him out of there! And speaking of getting out, poor Havoc! I want to wrap him up in the warm fuzzies, even if he does grumble about it. These four are brilliant and I can't wait for them to meet up.

I was thankful for Riley's ignorance as it meant I got explanations about the world and the different species in it, along with her. I can't wait to find out more about her!

Although I started off wondering what I'd let myself in for, I was in for a thoroughly enjoyable ride through this story, and can't wait to read more. Definitely recommended by me.

** same worded review will appear elsewhere **

* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book; the comments here are my honest opinion. *

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Nov 25, 2023
  
Get On Up (2014)
Get On Up (2014)
2014 | Drama
7
5.0 (3 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Thoughts on Get on Up
 
Characters – James Brown is one of the most influential musicians of the last century, there is no doubt what he did will live on forever. We get to see how James started with nothing, in an abusive childhood with no education, before learning to take the chances thrown his way, trying to make a difference to the world in the spotlight, even if he doesn’t always keep the crowd around him, not always as loyal as he should be. This doesn’t make James look like the most integral person behind the spotlight. Bobby Byrd is the man that gave James a chance to get out of prison, to start something with his singing in gospel, he will stand by James through all the troubles he faces, the bands he goes through, knowing James is the main talent and just being part of this would make him remembered. Ben Bart makes everything happen for James, he tries to help him navigate difficult moments in history, but will help him make the right choices which sees the friendship grow as the success does. Susie is the mother of James, she is forced to leave because of her partner and once he becomes famous wants to come back into his life, while James isn’t willing to let this happen.
Performances – Chadwick Boseman is fantastic in the leading role, he shows that his biopic man, he can bring James Brown to life on stage and in his personal life with ease. Nelsan Ellis is great in his role, showing us that he could provide excellent supporting performances in the film. Dan Aykroyd is strong too, with Viola Davis making a big impact in her scenes in the film.
Story – The story here follows the life of James Brown, from his poverty like childhood, to his international success in the music industry, we see his ideas on wanting to make a change and just what it will do to the people that helped him get to the top. One of the biggest weaknesses in the film here comes from the early time jumps, we are constantly jumping between moments, which doesn’t help the story telling process. This story also doesn’t paint James as a nice person away from the spotlight, even if he was always trying to achieve something more from his career. The story does try to ram too much into the film, which does make it hard to understand each moment of his life.
Biopic/Music – This does show a lot of his life, it doesn’t help us get invested in just how much of an impact each moment was. The music can’t be questioned with his hits playing through the film with every beat we know.
Settings – The film creates some of the biggest stages of James career, never looking like we aren’t in the correct time period.

Scene of the Movie – The performances.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – The time jumps.
Final Thoughts – This is a by the book biopic, it has wonderful performances and the music you would expect to see, though we do cram too much in for everything to run smoothly.

Overall: By the Books Biopic.