Happy Friday! I’m riding solo today, and I have a few pop culture recommendations for y’all. Scroll to Lorde for your regularly scheduled check-in and to Too Many Tabs for a ton of good reads for the weekend!

<3

Daysia

This Week's Fixations

Daysia: Renaissance has been everything this past week. Beyoncé has been everything for the past three months! Those closest to me know that prior to Renaissance, I’ve been revisiting B’Day nonstop (a perfect album, by the way) and playing a lot of Destiny’s Child. So, I think we can all assume who’s going to be in my Spotify Wrapped.

Beyoncé is such an expert builder—of her own legacy, of the greater legacy of pop music, of her sound. Renaissance can be tied so perfectly to the rest of Bey’s discography, and it builds on so many of the themes and sonic elements she has consistently produced over the course of over 20 years. Highly recommend reading Craig Jenkin’s review in Vulture, checking out this playlist of referenced tracks, and listening to Pop Pantheon’s four-part deep dive into Beyoncé’s career—all of which provide context for the foundation that Bey is building on.

Two other recommendations I have for the weekend:

• Only Murders in the Building season two: I binged it very quickly last night, and it’s more unpredictable this time around! I adored season one and this season I feel like I’m being kept more on my toes.

• af94: I’ve been enticed to try about-face, Halsey’s first beauty brand, for a while now. They’ve just launched a lower cost, beginner-oriented, vibrant makeup line called af94. I decided to try since it’s a more low stakes price point. I’ve only swatched my items so far—the *69 gel liners are a standout—but I’m excited to play with everything! I’m usually really hesitant about celeb beauty brands—unless it’s Rare Beauty, which I LOVE—but I definitely think this one is worth trying, especially if you want to experiment with bold colors without investing too much.

Has Lorde Dropped a New Album?

No real news… but this made me choke:

ICYMI: Charli XCX dropped the literal “Hot Girl” anthem. Also, Miss Carly Rae is coming back with her upcoming album, The Loneliest Time. Her new single, “Beach House,” laments modern dating.

Too Many Tabs

A new report from Insider’s Melkorka Licea and Katie Warren gave a little more insight on Ezra Miller’s erratic behavior, what their loved ones think, and how they’ve influenced the people around them.

Variety’s Daniel D'Addario spoke to Jennifer Coolidge about White Lotus, her gift for “deflating her characters’ delusions,” and finding freedom in losing out.

D'Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai told GQ’s Gabriella Paiella about Reservation Dogs, working on an exclusively Indigenous production, his love of history, and his aspirations as an actor.

Plus… John Boyega is trying to kill me with this cover shoot!, Hari Nef’s new role, a Working Girl reboot, Maria Bakalova never thought she’d do comedy, the Flash is ending, and Jennette McCurdy is looking forward.