Welcome to the Monday Memo — your pop culture snapshot from Manifesto.
Hey friends, Mondays can be tough. Here are 7 things to make November 27th, 2023, a bit better.
Back to work after televised dog shows, turkey, laughter, and family conflict! Sounds like the perfect time for some retail therapy—just in time for Cyber Monday...
1. Artist of the Week: Simone Bryant
Simone Bryant is a self-taught illustrator, printmaker, and the all-around crafter behind the brand Barneby Fox. While Byrant sells a variety of products, she has gained popularity on social media for her block prints and rubber stamp art. This gets our stamp of approval!
2. What we're listening to: Lonesome Dove by Aly & AJ
While we love the Christmas classics, it's always fun to hear a new take. Aly & AJ's new EP, Lonesome Dove, gives us one new song and two incredible covers to add to our Christmas rotation. "Lonesome Dove," the title track, is a new song with a "Blue Christmas" vibe. The other two are a slowed-down cover of the pair's hit single, "The Greatest Time of Year," and the popular "Sisters" number from White Christmas. How appropriate, as Aly & AJ are in fact, sisters themselves.
3. What we're watching: A Murder At The End Of The World
Re-entering our Hunger Games era! Now, the blockbuster series is back with a prequel to the trilogy, The Hunger Games: A Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. The film follows the origin story of the original film's antagonist, Coriolanus Snow, as he goes from struggling youth to president of Panem.
Snoop Dogg is known for two things; his rap career and his love of recreational marijuana. Imagine the internet's shock then, when Snoop announced that he was giving up smoke after "much consideration & conversation" with his family. Multiple news outlets covered the announcement, and fans were in disbelief. In subsequent posts, Snoop referred to – but didn't clarify – his vow to quit smoke, implying he was giving up smoking. A couple of hours after his initial post, he posted a selfie with the caption "Respect my privacy " followed by another selfie post the next day that simply included a gust of air emoji in the caption. In the slightly blurry photo, Snoop is looking off to the side. Well, last Monday it was revealed that this announcement was all a part of a collaboration with the smokeless firepit, Solo Stove. “I love a good fire outside but the smoke was too much. Solo Stove fixed fire and took out the smoke. They changed the game and now I’m excited to spread the love and stay warm with my friends and family,” Snoop said in a press release. This is one of our favorite PR stunts of the year! It was brilliant of Solo Stove to take a figure so closely associated with "smoke" and turn it on its head. Also, we love that Snoop played along so well and gave time to let the earned media build. Where there is (no) smoke, there is (a) fire (advertising campaign).
5. Cognitive Bias of the Week: False-uniqueness Effect
The false-uniqueness effect describes how people tend to view their qualities, traits, and personal attributes as unique when in reality they are not. This bias is often measured by looking at the difference between estimates that people make about how many of their peers share a certain trait or behavior and the actual number of peers who report these traits and behaviors. Now before you get down of yourself, allow us to explain! People often think that they are more unique than others regarding desirable traits. This has been shown in a variety of studies, where, for example, people believe that they are better drivers and take fewer risks than the average driver. We all are human, and it's important to be realistic about where our strengths lie, and honest about our own shortcomings. You are still special, but you are not better than anyone. We still love you, even though you are a really bad driver...
High school student Sam Crowe and his friends made a weekly tradition of having breakfast with Crowe's grandmother, Peggy. The “breakfast club” continues this year, but with a deeply felt absence: Sam was killed in an accident in July when the moped he was riding was struck by another vehicle. His friends continue the tradition every Wednesday, keeping his memory alive with stories and smiles.
6. Good News of the Week:
A high school senior is empowering other immigrant youth by founding nonprofits to bridge educational gaps, offer free tutoring sessions, and teach coding (WHY)
How a weekly breakfast at Grandma's helped students heal from the grief of losing a classmate (CBS News)
Scientists at the University of Tokyo have developed an eco-friendly plastic that’s partially biodegradable, self-healing, and nutritionally beneficial for marine life (Green Matters)
Scientists and volunteers in Guam are using drones to dow seeds over barren landscapes to aid in reforestation efforts (Washington Post)
What do Kacey Musgraves, Zach Bryan, and Post Malone have in common? They have all collaborated with Best New Artist nominee, Noah Kahan. Fresh off this new nomination, Kahan has released a new version of his single, "Northern Attitude," featuring everyone's favorite Irish crooner, Hozier. These two long-haired, bearded men sure know how to make us cry.
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