These are simply photos of the things and people around me. It was just for fun. So I decided to step out of my comfort zone and stay with that same flow of fun.

?

AURORA has been my favorite artist since I discovered her in 2015 as a freshman in high school. Messing around in one of my classes, I found a tweet by Katy Perry praising Aurora’s first single, “Runaway.” Watching the music video, I wondered who this pale, winter-fairy-like, Norweigan girl was. Her dark-pop genre of music was like a call from nature, like a viking song of discovery and exploration of a world where one's truest self can run wild and free.

?

Hosted for the first time at the Pomona Fairplex last month, the third-annual Tropicália Music & Taco Festival has grown to be one of the biggest Latinx-centered festivals in the country. Combined with local taco spots, 80 degree weather, and artists from all over Latin America, this intergenerational festival brings together classic “Rock en Espanol” groups with new-wave indie and hard rock.

?

In the final installment of the Music Beat’s top ten albums of the 2010s listicle, Timothy Dai (‘23) reviews Lorde’s sophomore musical opus and Lana del Rey’s latest sad-core hits, Kamilah Arteaga (‘22) reflects on Tame Impala’s lyrical exploration of humanity and Volume 256 Executive Editor Holden Foreman (‘20) reviews the chart-topping queen Billie Eilish:

?

In the second installment of the Music Beat’s top ten albums of the 2010s listicle, Timothy Dai ’23 reflects upon the emotional valences of SZA, Kamilah Arteaga ’22 considers the vulnerability of Tyler the Creator and Natalie Francis ’22 reviews the “Truth Hurts” flute-playing, twerk and rap queen Lizzo: No. 4 SZA’s “Ctrl” (2017)? It’s…

?