2021 Wrap Up

2021 is officially coming to a close, and we have made it through another year of this insane pandemic. Honestly, if you had asked me a year ago what I wanted 2021 to look like, it would have not been anything to what 2021 actually was. I think everyone was hoping 2021 would be drastically different and don't get me wrong, getting vaccinated and having the province open up a little bit has been great, but definitely not what I thought it was going to be. The year was filled with ups and downs, from leaving one job to start a new one that has presented a multitude of different opportunities. As much as I might complain about how limiting COVID may be, the year was not too bad and I've definitely finished the year with some favourite's.

This year let me explore the content creator world a little more than usual, I spent a long time trying to find new creators, smaller creators and creators that were creating content that was similar to content I enjoyed making. Some noteable mentions are: @cartersully , @fitbyleigh , @ashnichole , @tksjuicypolls , @colleen and the list could go on and on. The year also allowed me to discover new artists that I learned to love as well as explore new coffee shops that I now love. The year of limited social gatherings and a small social circle also let me dive into a whole bunch of worlds that author's have written in a list of books I made my way through over the course of the year. Some of my favourite's haven't changed (you'll definitely see me rave about Taylor Swift - but when do I not) and some new faces in this year's wrap up. Hopefully it introduces you to some new faces and introduces you to some new book recommendations.

Let's start off with some music that I have been loving this year. If you want to see the playlist at length, you can click on the photo and it'll bring you to a Spotify page with this years favourite's. I will say, I found myself listening to a lot more music this year, my Spotify wrapped was truly fascinating, and threw some curve balls my way. I would have to say some of my favourite artists had to have been: Taylor Swift (obviously), Olivia Rodrigo, Joshua Bassett, Charlotte Cardin, Ed Sheeran, The Band Camino and Barlow & Bear.

First on the list we have Taylor Swift. With her re-recordings slowly being released it's been an INSANE release year for her. As you've seen, I've published a number of other blog posts that cover her new albums for the year, the two re-recordings she's already released and there are plenty more to come. I've gotta say, Red (Taylor's Version) was honestly a huge shock to me as to how much I enjoyed it. I have had it on repeat since it came out a month ago and I think it might be one of my most listened-to albums. The vault tracks were everything and more that they could've been and can we take a second for the 10 minute version of All Too Well?!?! I mean come on, it was PERFECT and met every expectation Swifties had (at least from what I've seen). On top of that, the short film for the song was INCREDIBLE and EVERYTHING anyone could have wanted. Sadie Sink and Dylan O'Brien had incredible chemistry and that single shot scene?! PHENOMENAL.

Next up we have Olivia Rodrigo. I watched her in High School Musical the Musical the Series, and was amazed by her vocal ability and songwriting, but when she released SOUR, I was blown away. Her songwriting is unbelievable for someone who is only 18 years old. The album is set up in such a clever way, it was definitely been on repeat since its' release in May. I would have to say that 'enough for you' was a song that definitely stood out, as did 'traitor'. Despite the controversy it launched towards Joshua Bassett the album could not have been better. The production on the songs are genius and very well chosen. Her interviews show how well spoken she is and how much she cares about the music releasing. Her tour has just sold out many of the venues which is incredible. 10/10 would recommend listening to more than just the singles off this album.

Controversial opinion being thrown your way in...3...2...1...Joshua Bassett's EP was actually amazing. A three track EP that tells his side of the WHOLE Olivia Rodrigo situation (at least this is what people are speculating). If we take away the assumption that the songs are all about Olivia, I think the three songs give a really interesting perspectives on a breakup in general. The three tracks on the EP are: Crisis, Secret and Set Me Free. Set Me Free is definitely a favourite from the release. It's an interesting take on how you can feel pulled down and stuck in circles after a breakup. I would definitely recommend listening to the three songs. I would also highly recommend you watch his Zach Sang interview!

Next on my list is an artist that I had one song of hers on repeat for MONTHS. It was the first song I listened to every time I would start listening to music. The artist that is definitely not talked about enough is Charlotte Cardin. Her album Phoenix (Deluxe) is possibly one of my favourite albums of all time. Her voice is SO unique and she has SUCH an amazing vocal range. Her album Phoenix is a 20 track album with songs about heartbreak and getting over someone. It's also super fucking cool that she's from Montreal. She incorporates French into a few songs and it's really neat to see. The title track 'Phoenix' is definitely a favourite of mine along with 'Romeo' and 'C'est La Vie' are definitely my top three favourite tracks right now. I would highly recommend listening to the album in full, in order. It creates SUCH a vibe.

Bringing it back to some classic heart throbbing music, Ed Sheeran released his latest album '='. This is another album that has been on repeat for a while since its' release in October. With catchy songs like 'Graffiti Overpass' and 'Shivers' to absolutely heartbreaking songs like 'Visiting Hours' and 'The Joker And The Queen'. There are even cute lovey-dovey songs like 'Sandman' and 'First Times' which are classic Ed Sheeran love songs. This album is one that I had playing over and over again at work and is one that I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of.

The Band Camino is next on my list and holy shit how did I not know about these guys sooner. Their self-titled album was released earlier this year and oh my god it’s incredible! The songs are SO catchy, and the lyrics are so unbelievably relatable. I would highly recommend adding this to your workout playlist, or any playlist you need to hype yourself up with because the songs are upbeat and could probably be on blast around my house all day.

Switching genre’s completely to musical theatre, the next artist that has a place on this list is Barlow and Bear. For those of you who are living under a rock and haven’t seen Bridgerton, I HIGHLY suggest you do. It’s a Netflix original series based on a book series. Emily Bear and Abigail Barlow took the series and wrote an unofficial musical soundtrack for the story line and oh my god its a work of art. Nominated now for a grammy, the album tells the story with incredible production, and lyrics that are so well written. The idea started on Tiktok, and as a result, Barlow and Bear gave their audience the opportunity to see the album be created from start to finish.

Now that we’ve talked about music, let’s talk a little bit about some movie and tv shows that have made 2021 more tolerable. From ‘The Hating Game’ to re-watching tv shows I’ve already seen, it has been a pretty great year for film and television.

One tv show that I have been raving about to anyone I talk to is ‘The Sex Lives of College Girls’. It follows four girls who are navigating their first year of college and it was created by Mindy Kaling. It’s probably one of the funniest and well written shows I’ve ever seen. The cast is incredible and it gives a really interesting perspective on freshman year of college. Would 100% give this show a 10/10. They’re already renewed for a second season, I have no idea when it’s coming out but I guarantee you will not regret watching it.

‘The Hating Game’ only came out a couple weeks ago but it has quickly become a favourite. It is possibly one of the best romantic comedy’s that has been made in a really long time. It is definitely going to be a re-watch movie for me for sure! It’s based on the book by: Sally Thorne and according to many reviews, it’s one of the best book to movie adaptations. It follows the story line of two co-workers who hate each other...predictable story line? Yes, 100% but I promise you it is worth the watch, Lucy Hale and Austin Stowell make a pretty incredible Lucy and Josh. The soundtrack to the film is also incredible!

Something I did this year that I have’t done in a very long time is read a book for enjoyment. I think I probably read 10 books this year (some amazing, some terrible) and I realized how much I actually missed reading. One author I read a lot of was Colleen Hoover, you’ve probably seen her on tiktok if you’re on booktok, but she writes A LOT of YA romance novels. Some of them were incredible and some of them were ones that had me hating some of the characters.

The first book I read of hers was ‘It Ends With Us’, this book made me cry like four times but it also made me hate one of the characters. So I definitely loved and hated the book at the same time. I would definitely recommend it if you’re willing to hate a character, but I will give the warning that there should have been a content disclaimer at the beginning of the book. The novel covers a pretty scary topic for a lot of people and readers should be aware of this before starting the novel. It throws you for a bit of a loop at the end and it definitely makes you appreciate the author for not taking the classic approach to this kind of story. I don’t want to say too much because I think if you want to know more, you should just read the book.

The second book that I read was ‘November 9’, this book was one that I may have disliked slightly more because the characters just made me furious with how annoying they were. The story line was really good and really well done, but some of the decisions the characters made had me yelling at the book because there were SO many things they could have done instead.

Mixing the two categories from above brings me to the next story. ‘The Queen’s Gambit’ was probably my favourite show and book of the year. The story was so well written, gave the game of chess a whole new perspective and was overall just incredible. I would highly recommend watching this if you haven’t and if you haven’t are you living under a rock?! Even if you don’t know how to play chess, or understand the game, the story line is worth watching, it’ll give you a basic understanding of the game while taking you through the story of Beth Harmon.

And that brings me to the end of my favourite’s...for now...Overall, 2021 has been a pretty okay year. 2022 will hopefully be 10x better and full of self-care and new opportunities :) I am so excited to keep working on this brand, and growing with you guys. There will be new content out every other week on the website and new Instagram content almost every day! I’m so excited to spend 2022 with you, let’s make it incredible!

-K