Hey Y'all
Welcome back! How’s 2023 going for y’all so far? It’s been hella busy around TROY HQ this month. We just dropped our first episode of the year last week, check it out if you haven’t already!
We’ve got 2 new episodes coming later in the month. Make sure to get into it. And now…
What We’re Watching
Kaleidoscope
This is a very unique way to present a television show. It’s kind of a choose your own adventure, but unlike those stories where you make a decision and move on, with Kaleidoscope, you eventually get to see everything, not just the options that you chose.
The show is structured in a non-linear storytelling way, meaning that you can choose the order of how you want to watch the first seven episodes, and it still works. Without giving anything away, in each episode, you pop into the story at a different point in time, either before or after the heist, that goes across 25 years. What this means is, depending on the viewing order that you choose, most of us are all going to have a different experience leading up to the finale. There are 5,040 different viewing combinations:
Episode 1: "Yellow: 6 Weeks Before The Heist"
Episode 2: "Green: 7 Years Before the Heist"
Episode 3: "Blue: 5 Days Before the Heist"
Episode 4: "Violet: 24 Years Before the Heist"
Episode 5: "Orange: 3 Weeks Before the Heist"
Episode 6: "Red: The Morning After the Heist"
Episode 7: "Pink: 6 Months After"
Episode 8: "White: The Heist"
Even without knowing exactly how this was gonna play out, we were sold on this as soon as we found out that Giancarlo Esposito was starring in it. He’s the subject of one of our future episodes, so this coming out was good timing for us.
Have you watched Kaleidoscope yet? Hit us up on socials and let us know what you thought.
What We’re Reading
According to this article on Andscape, hockey jerseys have made a comeback! I might have to dig out my LA Kings jersey next time I visit my mom.
Check out this Washington Post profile on Robert Townsend. This man has been a part of our favorite moments on TV as well as the big screen. Who else remembers his Partners In Crime specials on HBO?
Dr. Dre’s album, The Chronic is back on streaming services.
What We’re Listening To
This month, we’ll be participating in a Twitter challenge, the #MWE that was started by writer Gary Suarez in 2014. Here’s what it is, in Gary’s own words:
If you happen to follow a fair amount of music lovers or journalists on Twitter, you might have seen the vague hashtag #MWE on your timeline. That’s my fault.
To clear up any confusion you might have, the premise behind #MWE, social media shorthand for Music Writer Exercise, is pretty straightforward. For each of the twenty-eight days in February, participants select an album they’ve never heard before, listen to it start-to-finish, and write one tweet about the record. It’s precisely the sort of activity that works well on a text-based platform like Twitter. I should know, seeing as I came up with #MWE four years ago and have been more or less chaperoning this annual virtual writers’ workshop there ever since.
I did it last year, and although there were a couple of missed days, it was still a fun exercise and allowed me to check out some music that I’d never listened to before. Since it was last minute, I just chose albums that I’d heard of, but never listened to front to back. This year, instead of doing that, there’s gonna be a theme for the albums. Since we are a nostalgia/throwback based podcast, why not stick with that? So for 2023, here are some albums that we’ve never heard in full, outside of a song or two. Here’s the list, in no particular order:
You can follow along or take part by using the #MWE hashtag, and let us know if you decide to participate on IG or the bird!
You Down With O.P.P? (Other Peoples Podcasts)
We’re using this section to spotlight some podcasts that we enjoy, and the first one up is the homies over at Queue Points. Just yesterday, it was announced that they have been nominated for an Ambie award in the Best Entertainment Podcast category! If you haven’t listened to the show, here’s what it’s about:
Queue Points is a video podcast with the intent to inform and celebrate Black Music creatives through meaningful dialogue. The show is hosted by DJ Sir Daniel and Jay Ray, who are as good as it gets when it comes to podcasting. We were guests on the show in 2022 and we’re recording an episode of They Reminisce Over You with them tonight, to be released by the time the next newsletter hits your inbox. Go ahead and click those links and give them a follow. You won’t be disappointed.
Shameless Plugs
If you enjoy the content that we're making and you're looking for ways to support our independent podcast, here’s a little something that you can do:
Please leave us a 5 star rating or review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Podchaser or Goodpods.
You can also drop a few coins in our tip jar here: https://ko-fi.com/troypodcast if you're feeling generous.
If it’s merch that you’re looking for, check out our store, Nuthin’ But A Tee Thang.
Spreading the word about the show to your friends and family helps too.
However you choose to support, know that it is greatly appreciated as always. 🫡
Closing Time
Time for us to head out until next month.
P.S. Shoutout to our listeners holding us down in Nigeria🇳🇬 and Greece🇬🇷. We see you!