The Medley 011
Making up for lost time through beats and rhymes
What’s new, music friends?!?
I hope that you’re embracing the seasonal transition wherever you are. I’ve missed connecting with you all—please forgive me for skipping last month’s Medley. This is my way of making up for lost time.
While I was away, I proudly put on my music scholar hat. At the time of publication, I’m working on my final project for an online course I took titled Rhythmanalytics, courtesy of The School for Poetic Computation. I was also involved with a weekly self-guided study hall where I focused on the book The Motherlode: 100+ Women Who Made Hip-Hop by Clover Hope. Both of the aforementioned experiences have proven fruitful to my music listening, writing, and analysis. I’m excited to continue sharing what I’ve learned—more to come on that soon.
As always, the directory submission forms remain open for anyone who wants to be featured or needs to amend their existing entries. I caught up on the listings at the beginning of May, so I plan to pick back up with any new submissions within the next couple of weeks.
And now, let’s proceed with highlighting moments from the directory chat, recapping the recent chordinnate album club meeting I hosted, and more.
Memos from the chat
Soundtracks, scores, and needle drops
My passion project, a filmless score, aligns with my goal of being a music supervisor for film & TV. As I roll out installments, I get closer to fulfilling this dream and realizing a narrative for a coming-of-age film. I recently prompted the chat to share favorite soundtracks, scores, and needle drops.
You all provided so many fabulous answers, so here’s a sample of what was shared:
amy blake mentioned that her favorite soundtracks are (500) Days of Summer (2009) and Garden State (2004)! Her explanation: “The music still holds up on both of those films to this day. Both films are instrumental in defining my music taste and getting me into indie bands!”
A few people named specific composers for their brilliant scores. Dionigi Faccenda gave a shoutout to Trent Reznor, Eric Fahey mentioned Thomas Newman, and Mike cited Bruce Hornsby (specifically for his work with Spike Lee).
CLEARLY MUSIC offered two movies with great soundtracks: Grosse Point Blank (1997) and Angus (1995)—the latter of which was notably referred to as “very slept on.”
Jazz Appreciation Month
Though many of us honor jazz 24/7/365, April is the official Jazz Appreciation Month.
In my eyes, Alex Lester is a resident jazz advisor, so of course he came through with the heat. He introduced me to multi-instrumentalist Aaron Shaw, who also performs in a duo called Black Nile with his brother Lawrence Shaw.
Yana Dessev mentioned the latest album by Work Money Death titled A Portal To Here. The song titles alone piqued my interest!
Recap: The chordinnate album club
I had a phenomenal time leading the latest chordinnate album club meeting on Bewilderment by Pale Jay. It brought me much joy to share one of my favorite albums in recent years with other music fans. If you missed the meeting, my listening guide remains a great resource to dive further into the music. I also recommend checking out the presentation I provided during the live chat.
Resources, Reads, and Recommendations
(listed in no specific order)
It’s no surprise that the RSVP list for Alex Lewis’ upcoming album club meeting is full. But if you’re local to the Columbus, Ohio area, I suggest signing up for the waitlist for an opportunity to join the discussion about When I Get Home by Solange. And even if you can’t attend, the listening guide is worth exploring.
NYC folks: join Natelegé Whaley for a Black Music Month celebration on June 4th. Check out her announcement for all the crucial details.
little door recently launched a beautiful offering called The Letter. This is a monthly mail club where she will send out “demo versions, field recordings, and acoustic explorations of songs” that will eventually shape her debut album. I received the first installment and really appreciate the care and intention that went into this curation. Visit the link below for more details and sign up to receive June’s letter!
The talented folks at Shatter the Standards compiled the ultimate handguide to ‘90s hip-hop/R&B soundtracks. Just about every movie from the decade that you’d expect to see is listed in this wonderful resource.
Singer India Shawn has always been one to watch for me, so it’s amazing to see her shine in a recent cover story for YAMS Magazine.
Gabbie looks ahead to warmer weather in the northern hemisphere with her latest scenic playlist titled “All Your Summer Songs.”
Emily White recently announced RIYL.fm, a project that profiles what a selection of college radio stations had in rotation this past semester. As a former college radio DJ (whose taste in music was heavily shaped by this season of my life), this initiative means a lot to me!
Dusty Henry guides us on various ways to find new music. As someone who has used all of the highlighted methods, I concur!
Gino Sorcinelli compiled a masterful playlist of “100 Beats by 100 Different Producers.” Frankly, he had me at Georgia Anne Muldrow being the first artist on the playlist.
The Wax Museum is one of my favorite resources for music lists, and the latest one is all about the best album debuts of 2026 (so far). Required reading if you ask me!
Courtesy of This Song Changed My Life: a sentimental autobiographical read by writer José Luis Ruiz regarding the impact of “It’s Too Late” by Carole King.
Throughout June, I have some exciting collaborations to share for this newsletter and beyond. Like last year, we’re honoring Pride Month and Black Music Month. Stay tuned. As always, I’ll leave you with some music to explore.
Melodically yours,
Shanté
Thank you for the shoutout! 🎶
Thanks for the love, this is a goldmine as usual :)