music

Loving for Labor Day: Return of a 20 Year-Old Obscure R&B Remix

For LDW, I'm loving a now-streaming obscure R&B remix, grown & sexy fudge pops, bike shorts, dirtbag do-gooding, and the only 4-hr pro-wrestling event worth your day off on Monday.

Leigh Hoopes

Sep 3, 2022 • 7 min read

Hug a local union worker before you blaze up those hot dogs, babes.

Welcome to The Enthusiast, a new newsletter thats all yum, no yuck! Every weekend, I'll be sharing five things I'm loving right now. The challenge for me is keeping it to just five...

Heading into this lovely long Labor Day weekend, I'm loving an obscure R&B bhangra mashup that's now finally available on streaming, grown & sexy frozen treats, bike shorts (with pockets!), charities that let you do as as little as possible to do something good for others, and an 4+ hour pro wrestling event on Sunday that gives you a full day to recover before it's back to work on Tuesday. Let's do this!

What I'm Loving this LDW - September 2, 2022

Mark Morrison ft. Daz Dilling, "Blackstabbers"(Panjabi MC Remix)

Honestly, discovering that this all-time great early-aughts remix is now on streaming platforms instead of a single static YouTube video is the best thing that happened to me this week. The original track has a mellow, hazy, West Coast hyphy vibe that is all very well and good, but Panjabi's addition of a glitchy tuned-up Hindi vocal and orchestrally complex sitar & tabla arrangement, along with some of most masterfully beat drops ever laid down turn it into a full-scale, joyously defiant clap-back track that begs to be played at top volume with full bass.

I've long been a fan of the chipmunk sample (apparently thats just what its called?!) and this is one of the finest instances of the technique perfected. Sneak it into your Labor Day BBQ playlists and watch your Elder Millennials unconsciously bop—the fact its Our Mack of Perpetual Returning Mark Morrison's track, singing within in an inch of his life, adds a delightfully glossy vintage R&B swag to the whole affair.

Listen if You Love: "Return of the Mack" by Mark Morrison and all hip-hop songs with South Asian or Middle Eastern samples (Missy Elliott's "Get Ur Freak On"; "Addicted" by Truth Hurts; all of Madlib's Beat Conducta India; and yes, "Toxic" by Ms. Spears herself)

*You don't NEED to eat all four at once, but you totally could. Trader Joe's*

Trader Joe's Vegan Chocolate Oat Pops

Dig if you will, a fudge pop. Except now it is grown & sexy, dairy-free, less than 120 calories yet somehow still creamy and chocolatey, and very budget-friendly. I feel myself regressing recently, and these lovely frozen popsicles are really helping me nurture my sweet tooth and inner child, which imparts more importance on a Non-Dairy Frozen Dessert Chocolate Fudge Bar than is probably healthy, but that is where I am right now. You can get four bars for $3.49 and 100 cal each at your local Trader Joe's.

*One short to rule them all. (Universal Standard)*

Universal Standard Next-to-Naked Bike Shorts

I bought a pair in black a couple years ago, then navy and gray several months later. This year I got two more in black and navy, so I now have 5 pairs of these soft, supportive bike shorts with deep side pockets. These are my favorite WFH / casual weekend shorts, obviously—comfy enough to wear at my desk or on the couch, opaque enough to run errands in (bonus: no need for a purse!), and supportive enough for a workout. And like all Universal Standard clothes, they come in size 00 to 40, as all clothing should. They're a bit pricy at $78 retail, but they go on sale frequently, take it from someone whose thighs have destroyed many a pair of flimsy pants, these hold up.Seriously, US makes up more than half of my casual and professional wardobe at this point, and as long as they keep making sophisticated staples in the biggest size range on the market, I'll keep buying them.

*Definitely not one one of those non-profits wasting dollars on splashy websites or fancy campaigns, that's for sure. (Pickups For Vets)*

PickupsForVets.org

The patient people of this nonprofit probably hate me but I do not even care. You want to clean out and declutter your closets? Put it all in one of their big yellow bags and out on your porch by 7:30 am and they will come pick it up for you. The only schlep you need to do is from your closet to your porch. We've been decluttering, and our most recent donation was three bags of linens, towels, and at least 10lbs of clothes. I have multiple relatives who are veterans or active duty, so I feel good about donating to in support of Vietnam Veterans of America (my uncle served in Vietnam and was profoundly impacted, and not in a good way). One of these days I will actually do better and not buy so much shit, but until then, P4V will be there to save the day.

*Not pictured: The Acclaimed, Jungle Boy vs. Christian, Ricky Stars vs. Powerhouse Hobbes. CM Punk will probably show up to whine and bloviate, if you're into that. (AEW)*

All Elite Wrestling All Out Chicago, Sunday 9/4

When I tell people I like pro-wrestling, they gasp and giggle in disbelief. And I get it—me, the gender-nonconforming fine arts lover, hybrid vehicle driver, unapologetic cat lady and lifelong bookworm? Into professional wrestling? Absolutely. I should say I'm a fan of All-Elite Wrestling, a three year-old indie promotion that is giving WWE a run for its money, talent, and audience. My husband was a wrestling fan as a kid, but I was never allowed to watch it—now after almost a year of watching at least 2-3 AEW shows (approx. 126 episodes so far) a week, plus 3 PPV specials, I can say with absolute certainty that yeah, I'm a fan. (Working on a longer piece about my wrestling fandom journey coming soon!)

And Sunday's All-Out Pay-Per-View Event is going to SLAP: a four-way match for the women's world title, previously held by a heel who also just happens to be a dentist in real life; a tag team match between two of my favorite teams (I legit can't decide who to root for!); and not one but TWO grudge matches, a young star taking on his now-dastardly mentor and a former champion duo now facing off against each other. If you dont feel like investing in Sunday Night's PPV, you can watch free at 7PM Mondays & Tuesdays on YouTube, Dynamite Wednesdays at 8PM on TBS, or Rampage on TNT Fridays at 10.

Watch if you love: Any and all kinds of camp; hot folks of all genders, orientations, ethnicities, shapes and sizes backflippin' and bodyslammin'; martial arts movies; telenovelas; old-school 80's Saturday morning programming like OG American Gladiators; the Olympics.

*God, they're both just so cute and even cuter together. (source: Peacock)*

A Bit More To Love This Weekend

🌴 Streaming: Limited series The Resort just wrapped up on Peacock, and what started as a cute little mystery romp with equally large-eyed hotties Christin Miloti and William Jackson Harper ended up being a surreal meditation on time travel, fate, memory, regret, and marriage with a dash of dry humor and strong Romancing the Stone/Jewel of the Nile vibes. If you're looking for acerbic and uncomfortable, stick with The White Lotus (which got a second season but it's a completely different story/location/cast?)–The Resort is ultimately a relationship dramedy wrapped in an adventure show, and it's a good end of summer long weekend watch for sure.

👖 Mobile Apps: I started using the Cladwell capsule wardobe app as part of the past month of decluttering to get a better sense of what I own vs. what I actually wear, and it's been enlightening, to say the least. My style personality (lol) is: "Low-key. Comfy. Tomboy." Which is correct, obviously, given that I don't think I've worn a skirt, a dress, or a heel this year, and my life is truly all the better for it. As I'm (still) trying to re-enter the world, it's a good way to track and make sure I don't wear the same style or look or colors two times in a row. Because yes, that matters.

👟 Fitness: First you should read this excellent Vox article about fitness fads, and then rejoice with me because step aerobics are back, baby! Streaming fitness platform Obé Fitness now has more than two dozen step classes available on demand, from 10-minute express explainers to 50-min full body burns.

And that wraps it up for the week of September 2—it's feeling like back to school season even if it is 85° and humid today, and the true first day of fall is just a couple weeks away. Thank you for reading The Enthusiast and have a safe, relaxing Labor Day, my babes. Remember: Unions are the reason for the season!

Wishing you more yum for your yuck,
LKH