2024 Favorites
2024 is done! This was a memorable year for pop culture, good, bad and weird. I’m not going to get too into that though. I’m here to talk about my favorite things this year, things new and new to me. There were some great movies, music, books, cosmetics, and fragrances I just couldn’t keep to myself.
Movies
The Substance
The Substance is a commentary on society’s, or specifically Hollywood’s, obsession with youth, beauty and the dangerous lengths people will go to to preserve those things. It’s become impossible for me to not reference this movie on the regular, what random person I encounter with a strange and targeted injury isn’t respecting the balance. It’s a thrilling watch with zero dull moments. Whether you’re watching with intrigue or horror, it’s impossible to look away. I go back and forth deciding if the titular substance is supposed to be fillers/botox or semaglutide, either way, people go dangerous lengths for “beauty.” Is it worth it?
Moonstruck
Moonstruck is hilarious, and untraditionally thrilling and sweet. I don’t even know how to summarize this movie because so much happens. Cher and Nic Cage make a great couple and if you don’t believe me, just watch the movie.
Wicked
I’m a theater kid. You already know what this movie is about. You saw the promo everywhere. You probably saw the movie too. In case you haven’t, Wicked is a spinoff of The Wizard of Oz and the untold story of the deep friendship between Glinda, The Good Witch, and Elphaba, The Wicked Witch of the West. It’s deeply emotional with moving vocal and acting performances from Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande. There’s no one else doing it like them. If you haven’t held space for this film yet, consider it.
The Point
The Point is a movie based on the album of the same name by Harry Nilsson. It’s about Oblio, a boy with a round head, who lives in a world where everyone (and everything) has a point on their head. Oblio gets banished to The Pointless Forest, where he learns that there’s more to life than just having a point. The music is incredible and heartfelt. Visually, the movie is very psychedelic and vibrant. I watched this projected on my ceiling while feeling delirious right after being double vaxxed, which I imagine is a pretty close feeling to being on a low level psychedelic drug. I highly recommend it, regardless of your level of intoxication.
Honorable TV mention: I don’t watch a lot of TV. I’m more of a movie person. However, Ann Rice’s Interview with the Vampire is amazing. I like it more than any of the movies I spoke about. I love everything about it, the acting, the actors, the costuming, the writing, everything. It’s the most well thought out show I’ve ever seen and I can’t wait for season three
Music
Eternal Sunshine by Ariana Grande
What an album! If you know me personally, you’ve heard me talk about this record ad nauseam, and for good reason. Eternal Sunshine is based on the film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, one of my favorites, specifically the experience of reliving through all of your memories with a former partner. It’s heartbreaking to watch a relationship build up and then fall apart all in one film. It’s even more heartbreaking to experience it in album form because it’s much more personal. In the film, characters participate in a medical procedure to have memories of their past lovers erased, in real life though time eventually does that for you, until you listen to this album and everything rushes back. Deep melancholy washed over me while listening to this album because I started remembering failed relationships that I thought I forgot and was over. Ariana Grande bared her soul releasing this record, and made me oversentimental as a result.
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I Got Heaven by Mannequin Pussy
Mannequin Pussy is an awesome band because half of their songs are pure sonic rage directed towards people in power being the worst and the other half are soft songs about vulnerability, wanting to feel seen and loved. Both are good, I personally like the softer stuff more. I Got Heaven is a perfect dichotomy of hard and soft, yin and yang. Lyrically, Mannequin Pussy has a crazy way of putting words to feelings I didn’t know there were words for. They love to rummage their hands around my soul specifically and expose the deepest parts for me to only be shocked because I forgot where those feelings were. I Don’t Know You exemplifies this best, sonically and lyrically, the feeling of adoring someone from afar, sitting in those feelings, and ultimately making yourself sad over it.
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brat by Charli xcx
Imagine being Charli xcx and coming out with an album that represents the sound of summer 2024, the soundtrack to a failed presidential campaign, and when that’s over, spring breakers becomes the unofficial theme song for Luigi Mangione. I truly wonder if Charli xcx knew the insane impact this album would have on society. brat has lived so many lives. It has a mind of its own. Everyone listened to brat so I’m not going to sit here and say what everyone else has already said, but it’s a fantastic album that’s sonically unique and lyrically brutally honest. It’s truly one to rave or cry in the club to, depending on the track.
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Alligator Bites Never Heal by Doechii
Doechii has had a huge year as an artist and she’s only going up. Not only has she released a strong debut album, but has featured on Tyler, The Creator’s CHROMAKOPIA and Katy Perry’s 143, making I’M HIS, HE’S MINE actually listenable (in tandem with the Crystal Waters sample). Doechii on Alligator Bites Never Heal is high energy, confident, honest, and focused. Before this album, she was releasing pop music which was good, but now it’s clear she’s not going anywhere especially in terms of hip hop. The charts need her!
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Jesse Welles
I didn’t include an album, because I listen to his music in no particular order. Jesse Welles is a folk artist who sings protest songs with a 60s-70s aesthetic and 2024 lyrics. His lyrics are brutally honest and with minimal instrumentals, you have no choice but to listen. My favorite song of his currently is War Isn’t Murder which protests the current genocide against Palestinians. It's a great example of how he takes pro-war talking points and propaganda and parodizes it. Welles’s lyrics are also very accessible, which I appreciate.
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Books
The Orange by Wendy Cope
I lowkey hated reading this year, but this poetry book was awesome. All of Wendy Cope’s poems are heartfelt yet simple, but not so simple where you feel stupider after reading. Cope’s title poem The Orange recirculates the web every so often, but the trend that really made me aware of it was the TikTok “orange peel theory” which by the way, can you believe that was this year? Anyway there was a tweet saying this is the only orange I’m concerned about or something with the poem attached. The poem is very sweet, much like an orange!
Cosmetics
Bag Balm Skin Moisturizer
I admittedly did not buy many cosmetics, beauty or skincare related, this year. I love makeup, but after working in beauty for the past two years, I’m a bit fatigued. Bag Balm is great though. It’s the only lip balm you’ll never lose, that is if you get the big tin (but why would you get any other size?). It’s basically a family heirloom with how long it lasts. It’s like Vaseline but elevated, less gloppy and aggressive. I sleep with it on and still feel moisturized in the morning. The tin implies that this product is for cows, but I promise you humans could and should use it.
Eucerin Original Healing Cream
My cosmetics theme is unpretentious, unglamorous, accessible, and goo. I frequently get dry patches on my face, especially around my mouth, and Eucerin has been the only thing to take care of it. This product was called healing ointment before it was called healing cream, and no one told me about the name change so I was confused when I couldn’t find the ointment anymore. Just make sure you get the richest one according to the packaging. It should be so thick that you struggle to get it out of the tube. The reason it’s so thick is so it’ll stay on your skin better than something slippery like vaseline, which also makes it a great makeup primer. Aquaphor has had a bit of a rebrand where everyone accepts it as stylish. I wish that for Eucerin.
Fragrances
Commodity Milk
2024 was the year of smelling like toasted vanilla, whipped cream, cappuccino foam, and straight up milk. Commodity Milk is an exemplary gourmand in that respect. It’s cappuccino foam with cinnamon sprinkled on top, with some woody earthy notes so the smell doesn’t completely float away. It’s a warm, cozy, and a comforting crowd pleaser.
Other lactonic honorable mentions are Le Monde Gourmand Fraise Fouettée, Phlur Vanilla Skin, and Philosophy Fresh Cream.
Clue Perfumery The Point
This wonderfully whimsical fragrance is inspired by the album of the same name by Harry Nilsson released in 1970, specifically the song Think About Your Troubles. The Point also has a great movie I already spoke about. Upon reading the notes, the sand, seawater, and patchouli in particular, I thought this was going to be really funky and fishy (in a good way?), but it’s surprisingly wearable while maintaining those elements. It reminds me of walking on an empty beach on a windy morning. If you’re wondering what occasion is best for this fragrance, I wore it while dressed as the Bed-Stuy Aquarium for a costume party. It has signature potential though as it smells like a fresh, earthy, windy, salty floral and not low tide.
Good Chemistry Coffee Cloud
I always smell the Good Chemisty perfumes when I’m in Target and I’ve always missed this one for some reason, maybe it’s because the display is too high for me to experience all of it. I received this fragrance as a gift from my boyfriend’s mom and I adore it. It reminds me of Ariana Grande Cloud with freshly brewed coffee. It’s a combination I didn’t know I needed. The name for it is perfect, every spritz feels like being enveloped in a sweet foamy latte. It satisfies my need to get another Ariana Grande Cloud (or flanker) and also my need for a coffee fragrance.
Amphora Parfum Primal Yell
I met Noah Virgirle, the creator of Amphora Parfum, at a fragrance swap, just thinking he was a cool charismatic person, then I learned he makes perfume. I smelled some of them and wow. The creations from Amphora are unlike anything else. Primal Yell’s smell is red wine, slight blood, and loud rage. Virgirle said his inspiration was eating zinc supplements as a kid. The feeling evoked for me is very specific, stay with me. I saw Mannequin Pussy in concert May of this year, and during the show, for a few minutes the lead singer Missy Dabice requests the audience to yell, rage, let out all your pent up anger that you’ve been bottling from day to day, let out all that anger towards people who’ve wronged you or treated you like you were less, and just scream. Participating in that scream was the most free I’ve ever felt. Anyway, the fragrance Primal Yell evokes that feeling that I felt while participating in a primal yell.
Maison D’Etto Noisette
I already wrote a detailed review of this fragrance on Parfumo, but it’s a beautiful ozonic magnolia. Here’s a link if you have a spare $375 laying around and you want to buy it for me!
Fragrance honorable mentions: Phlur Strawberry Letter, Tauer Perfumes No. 6 Incense Rosé, Boy Smells Tantrum, Tsu Lange Yor TLY 5755, Mugler Angel Nova, and Dolce & Gabbana Devotion.
Resolutions for 2025
Because what New Year-ish list would be complete without them!
Write more
Write more interesting things
Read better
Exercise in different ways than my usual go-to routines
Make more money
Move out
Go to more fragrance events
Expand my fragrance collection
Expand my fragrance knowledge
If you made it to the end, thank you for reading. I will see you in the new year. Have an amazing 2025!
Best movie ever mentioned
Love the use of Luigi for the brat album, and Jesse Welles rules! A great read, and good resolutions