September 21, 2018

Friday’s Find Is a Familiar Narrative Told by Unfamiliar Artists

Cry, dance, and be moved by this track that hits all your music cravings.

Nicole Mago

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It’s Friday! That means it’s time for this week’s “Friday Find,” our new weekly Instagram series where we spotlight a song, record, or artist worth blasting all weekend long. 

This week: Melt by Shaed (Melt, PhotoFinish Records, 2018)

Why we’re into it: Part ballad, part dance track, part anthem, this will hit all your music cravings in one track.

Who they are: Composed of three members—lead singer Chelsea Lee and twins Max and Spencer Ernst—the DC-based trio hits hard with their second EP. But it’s the delicate balance between Lee’s powerful vocals and the twins’ melodic composition that makes Melt‘s title track shine. Lee’s gradually building voice starts the track off strong, and as the chorus comes around the hook, it transitions straight into something that simply forces you to get up and dance—even when you’re all worn out on a Friday.  

The lyrics tell a familiar story—”small artist has bad experience with big label”—but what’s bracingly original is the way Lee visualizes this struggle. Through her lyrics, the sense of capped creativity shines through in a unique manner. “Now you’re dressing me in chains/Callin’ every move I make/Now you’re beggin’ me to smile/But I can’t fake/Thought the point was to create,” she belts as the twins’ symphony creates a unique dimension in the background.

And that’s just the tip before the iceberg that is Melt. The rest of the EP flourishes with songs about love between best friends, a track that utilizes the sounds of wind chimes, and many more. Released today, this is a collection of music you’ll want to blast all weekend long.

We also want to hear from you! Give us suggestions for next week’s pick, or shoot us an emoji or two about how this song makes you feel.

Happy Friday and go dance the weekend away.

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“This could be the first time a corporation would be held criminally liable for forced labor in their own supply chains,” according to a retired special agent we talked to.

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WHO DOESN’T LOVE A POSITIVE STORY—OR TWO?

“Great journalism really does make a difference in this world: it can even save kids.”

That’s what a civil rights lawyer wrote to Julia Lurie, the day after her major investigation into a psychiatric hospital chain that uses foster children as “cash cows” published, letting her know he was using her findings that same day in a hearing to keep a child out of one of the facilities we investigated.

That’s awesome. As is the fact that Julia, who spent a full year reporting this challenging story, promptly heard from a Senate committee that will use her work in their own investigation of Universal Health Services. There’s no doubt her revelations will continue to have a big impact in the months and years to come.

Like another story about Mother Jones’ real-world impact.

This one, a multiyear investigation, published in 2021, exposed conditions in sugar work camps in the Dominican Republic owned by Central Romana—the conglomerate behind brands like C&H and Domino, whose product ends up in our Hershey bars and other sweets. A year ago, the Biden administration banned sugar imports from Central Romana. And just recently, we learned of a previously undisclosed investigation from the Department of Homeland Security, looking into working conditions at Central Romana. How big of a deal is this?

“This could be the first time a corporation would be held criminally liable for forced labor in their own supply chains,” according to a retired special agent we talked to.

Wow.

And it is only because Mother Jones is funded primarily by donations from readers that we can mount ambitious, yearlong—or more—investigations like these two stories that are making waves.

About that: It’s unfathomably hard in the news business right now, and we came up about $28,000 short during our recent fall fundraising campaign. We simply have to make that up soon to avoid falling further behind than can be made up for, or needing to somehow trim $1 million from our budget, like happened last year.

If you can, please support the reporting you get from Mother Jones—that exists to make a difference, not a profit—with a donation of any amount today. We need more donations than normal to come in from this specific blurb to help close our funding gap before it gets any bigger.

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