Welcome Back

FAVORITE PHOTOS OF 2016

5-year-old Omran Daqneesh sits in an ambulance with a bloodied and dusty face after an airstrike. One of the most infamous photos of the decade, this image finally let people know what's going on outside of America.

World-famous multi-talented musician Kanye West stands atop a floating platform as he performs on his long-anticipated Saint Pablo Tour. The first performance was met with extremely positive reviews. Considering the kind of year Kanye West had, what with releasing his long-awaited album The Life of Pablo, his battles with Taylor Swift, Wiz Khalifa, Amber Rose, KiD CuDi, and Chance the rapper, his wife Kim Kardashian being robbed in Paris, publicly admitting that he would have voted for Donald Trump, had he have voted, and taking a trip to a hospital in an attempt to calm his mental state, this picture perfectly sums it all up.

Here, lonely orangutans are cared for and fed by a keeper in a rehabilitation center. As an animal lover myself, it's quite saddening to see the poor little carefree apes treated so cruelly.  Here, they are seen taking care of each other in a place where nobody will hurt them again.

BEST SONG OF 2016

I decided to put together a little top 15 of my favorite songs that were released in 2016.

15. Future - "Fly **** Only"

14. TRAVI$ SCOTT - "way back" feat. KiD CuDi

13. ScHoolboy Q - "Black THougHts" feat. Kendrick Lamar

12. Kendrick Lamar - "untitled 02 | 06.23.2014."

11. YG - "F.D.T. (F*** Donald Trump)" feat. Nipsey Hu$$le

10. KiD CuDi - "Frequency"
9. Chance the Rapper - "Finish Line/Drown" feat. T-Pain & Noname

8. Drake - "Keep the Family Close"

7. Childish Gambino - "Me and Your Mama"

6. The Weeknd - "STARBOY" feat. Daft Punk

5. Beyonce - "FREEDOM" feat. Kendrick Lamar

4. David Bowie - "Lazarus"

3. Nick Cave - "Skeleton Tree"

2. Frank Ocean - "Nikes"

1. Kanye West - "Saint Pablo" feat. Sampha

I'm gonna do short little summaries on why I love these songs. "Fly **** Only" is surprisingly one of Future's best songs to date. "way back" is a fantastic throwback to TRAVI$ SCOTT's old style. "TorcH" is a frightening intro to ScHoolboy Q's fantastic "Blank Face LP". "untitled 02 / 06.23.2014" is a weird, yet frantic anthem of panic due to fame. "Same Drugs" is a heartbreaking story of a young girl who completely changed due to depression. "F.D.T." is one of the best protest songs I have EVER heard. "Frequency" is a haunting return-to-form from KiD CuDi. "Keep the Family Close" sounds like something out of a James Bond movie. "Me and Your Mama" gave me chills on my first listen, being a loud, abrasive indie rock song. "STARBOY" is a tight, upbeat funk tune in which The Weeknd silences his own fans. "FREEDOM" is Beyonce's best song to date. "Lazarus" is one of the saddest songs of the decade, being Bowie's final goodbye before he died in early January. "Distant" Sky" is just as touching, as, following the sudden death of his son, Nick Cave brings in some beautiful female vocals from Else Torp on a heartfelt ballad about loss and regret. "Nikes" is Frank Ocean's first song in 4 years, and it doesn't disappoint in the slightest. "Saint Pablo" is a song that's indescribable. It makes me contemplate the universe every time I hear it.

The album artwork for Kanye West's The Life of Pablo, which featured "Saint Pablo" as its final track.

BEST MOVIE OF 2016

Honestly, the best movie of 2016 in my opinion was one that is a quite popular choice: Disney's Zootopia. 

The official cover for the film

Being Disney's best movie in YEARS, Zootopia is the perfect example of how I want all movies aimed at kids to be like. Fun, enjoyable characters for young audiences, but containing interesting and occasionally heavy themes which are usually subtle. The entire plot of this movie is one big metaphor for racism, discrimination, prejudice, and exclusion. The fox character is treated as an outcast by the other characters simply because foxes are known to be predators. However, they learn to accept him in the end. It's a heavy moral, but it's presented in a way that kids can understand.

MOST IMPORTANT NEWS STORY OF 2016

As much as it pains me to event mention this travesty, I believe that the most important news story of 2016 was the tragic Pulse nightclub massacre in Orlando. Omar Mateen worked as a security guard at the Pulse gay nightclub, until he pulled out a gun and shot up the entire place, leaving 49 dead and 53 wounded. All of this was fueled by nothing but hatred and prejudice. Rightfully so, Mateen was shot to death by the Orlando Police Department who breached the place. As an avid support of the LGBT community, I was disgusted and appalled when I heard the news. Various celebrities were also deeply affected by it. Barack Obama gave an intense speech, actress Ellen Page broke down into tears during an interview involving the subject, singer Sia Furler also broke down crying during a performance dedicated to the victims, and even rapper/singer KiD CuDi went on a surprising furious rant on his Twitter account, brutally and rightfully attacking anyone who is against the LGBT community.

The subject of the LGBT community has always been a controversial one. But it's disgraceful actions like this that show the world the true horrors of prejudice.

MOST IMPORTANT PERSON OF 2016

Honestly, despite the fact that he's been around for so long, I think the most important person of 2016 was President Barack Obama.

2016 was a hard year for many due to the various tragedies. But even in the hardest of times, Obama was there to support us and speak on behalf of us.

BIGGEST ENTERTAINER STORY OF 2016

By FAR the biggest celebrity drama that happened in 2016 revolved entirely around Dr. Kanye West. He's always been a controversial figure, whether it be for calling at-the-time president George W. Bush out for racism, objecting to Taylor Swift's VMA award in 2009, or his series of infamous interviews in 2013, but this year took a whole new leap in controversy due to the many things that happened to him. (These were mentioned in what I wrote about him in an above comment.)

West wearing his signature "I FEEL LIKE PABLO" sweater at the release party for The Life of Pablo. Around him stand fellow rappers and good friends KiD CuDi putting his hand on West's shoulder, Pusha T on the far left, and TRAVI$ SCOTT on the far right.

MY HOLIDAY

I didn't do much over the break. I mainly sat at home and listened to music. On Christmas Day, my mom's parents came over and celebrated with us. One day during the break, I went to my good friend Maeve's house, and we had fun. My main resolution for 2017 is to improve my social life. In 2017, I look forward to simply having a great year.