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Arts & Entertainment, Pop Rhetoric

Bowen Yang might be the best person to talk about Chappell Roan

by Charlotte Hayes & Yusur Al-Sharqi on

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Season 50 of Saturday Night Live (SNL) premiered on Sept. 28 to the highest ratings it has received since 2020, but the comedic sketch show’s return was not without controversy. Cast member Bowen Yang appeared on Weekend Update dressed as famed internet hippo Moo Deng. In recent years, Yang has become a regular on these segments, frequently portraying animals or inanimate objects, like the absurd personification of the Titanic iceberg. His characters are hilariously melodramatic and serve as cutting cultural commentary on modern celebrities, so naturally, Yang’s baby hippo wasn’t all that different. However, about 30 seconds into the impression, it becomes obvious that Moo Deng is operating as a stand-in for rising pop icon Chappell Roan. This comes shortly after Roan announced that she would be stepping away from the All Things Go Music Festival to take some time for her mental health. 

The morning after the sketch aired, the internet got up in arms, calling it offensive for supposedly mocking Roan, a woman who is already enduring internet hate for calling out obsessive fans. However, this is just a really strong piece of satire; the sketch perfectly toes the line between poking fun at and bringing to light real issues that seem to be plaguing the new generation of pop stars. Yang himself most certainly understands the importance of prioritizing mental health, as he has faced struggles with depersonalization and, like Roan, took a break from his work to recuperate. 

The secret behind Yang’s ability to tap into this unique landscape of the modern celebrity might come from his years of co-hosting the podcast Las Culturistas with friend and comedian Matt Rogers. On the show, Rogers and Yang break down pop and celebrity culture through the lens of what cultures shaped them and who they were made for. Along with a variety of guests, the hosts are often able to pinpoint exactly why something or someone has captured the imagination of the general public. Years of this in-depth analysis prepared Yang to offer a near-perfect satirization of a modern celebrity persona. Casting it through the lens of an inanimate object or an animal simply heightens the eccentricities. 

Following the backlash to his sketch, Yang posted an Instagram story clarifying that his intention was always to support Roan and to emphasize that she should not be treated like a zoo animal. Yet the fact that Yang even had to address this “controversy” raises serious questions about the nature of fandom culture and the often dramatic behaviours that accompany it. 

On social media, audiences are divided; some are making fun of modern audiences’ inability to enjoy a man in a hippo costume impersonating a pop star, while others have gone as far as invoking identity politics, highlighting that Bowen is a “cishet gay man” (have we forgotten that “gay” and “heterosexual” are antonyms?) and is perpetuating misogyny by mocking and belittling women’s mental health struggles. These claims are so outlandish that they only further fuel Yang’s point about crazy fans. 

It’s clear that Yang is trying to illustrate the absurdity of the accusations against Roan rather than shaming her, as he said so explicitly in the skit: “Leave her alone. Let her take as much time as she needs for her mental health.” Just because fans can’t recognize the sketch as satire doesn’t mean it isn’t. It’s interesting how Roan was forced to address obsessive fan behaviour, yet this backlash exemplifies that very issue—fans taking things out of proportion. 

By highlighting characteristics that Roan is often accused of or defamed for having—namely, being rude or ungrateful—Yang can make light of just how ridiculous those complaints really are. If die-hard fans want to counter the “parasocial bestie” allegations, they’re going to have to loosen up a bit. With some critical thinking, it’s obvious that Yang’s message is simply to leave Roan alone. And while you’re at it, give the slippery, bouncing baby hippo some space, too.

McGill, News

“This is a union campus”: AMPL permanently ends its strike

by Fabienne de Cartier, Shani Laskin on

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This is a developing story.

On Oct. 6, the Association of McGill Professors of Law (AMPL) officially ended its strike, after striking periodically since April. A few days prior, on Oct. 1, the union announced that it would suspend its strike and resume classes for law students effective Oct. 3. The initial suspension was pending an agreement on a federated system for collective agreements (CAs) at the university. This system will allow some policies to be applied university-wide and other aspects of CAs to be negotiated by individual faculty unions. 

Under this new framework, AMPL, The Association of McGill Professors of the Faculty of Arts (AMPFA), and the Association of McGill Professors of Education (AMPE) established a “confederation for negotiating university-wide working conditions with the University.” Through this system, AMPL secured McGill’s commitment to halt its judicial review against the union’s certification—a process which had been ongoing since AMPL was certified in November 2022. This agreement was announced in a joint statement from Provost and Executive Vice President (Academic) Christopher Manfredi, AMPL President Evan Fox-Decent, AMPFA Interim President Cathrine Leclerc, and AMPE Interim President Dennis Wendt.

“Following this agreement McGill University undertakes to discontinue its judicial review of AMPL’s certification by the Tribunal administrative du travail by October 8, 2024, as well as its challenges to AMPE and AMPFA as appropriate bargaining units on a Faculty basis,” the statement wrote. 

In an interview with The Tribune on Oct. 1,  AMPL Vice President (VP) Kirsten Anker highlighted that her union sees this federated system as a step towards securing their CA. Anker explained that part of McGill’s rationale for its de-certification efforts was that it believed that policies should be applied across faculties instead of negotiated with individual faculty unions. Hoping to standardize policies across faculties, AMPL said that the university had been unwilling to give up its unilateral authority to change the terms of AMPL’s CA after it had been signed. Over the course of negotiations, AMPL maintained that McGill’s position had been contradictory to the nature of a contract. According to Anker, this new system represents a compromise that will help both parties move forward. McGill and AMPL will now continue their CA bargaining with an arbitrator.

Despite over a month of delay to the start of the term for Law students, the announcement of the agreement stated that students will complete Law classes on time.

The Law Students Association (LSA) organized a rally in solidarity with AMPL on Oct. 2. Carina Cutillo, 1L, attended the event and told The Tribune that she believes the strike has strengthened bonds between students and professors.

“I think the students have come together in a lot of ways, and I think that hopefully we come out of this with an even stronger alliance between the students and the profs, and can make this year even better than previous years because of that,” Cutillo said

The rally hosted representatives from unions across campus who called on the university to bargain in good faith. 

“McGill’s realized the ship of having no faculty unions has sailed,” McGill University Non-Academic Certified Association VP Communications, James Newman, told the crowd. “This is a union campus!”

In a speech to the crowd, Fox-Decent expressed his appreciation for the support that students and other unions have shown to AMPL during its strike.

“The best things we do in life, we seldom do for money, and the best things we do in life, we never do alone,” Fox-Decent said. “And that could not be more true of what we have done over the past several months.”

Anker underlined that McGill’s strength comes from the collective contributions of its staff and students.

“To students: Thank you for your solidarity. I hope we can show up for each other in the future, because this is our community [….] We are McGill. McGill is nothing without its professors. It’s nothing without its support staff. It’s nothing without its students [….] We should think of ourselves as in this together.”

McGill, News

Indigenous speakers discuss reconciliation at sixth annual We Will Walk Together event

by Fabienne de Cartier on

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McGill’s Faculty of Education held its sixth annual We Will Walk Together / Skátne Entewathahíta event at the McTavish Terrace on Sept. 30 in recognition of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. The ceremony featured speeches from members of the Faculty of Education, Office of Indigenous Initiatives, and Indigenous students and elders, who recalled stories of residential school survivors and reflected on what reconciliation means for McGill and across Canada. Indigenous student organizers then led the crowd on a Critical Campus Tour, which aimed to spark conversations about McGill’s institutional history. 

Associate Professor Jordan Koch, who was the co-master of ceremonies of the event alongside Assistant Professor Michelle Kennedy, offered a land acknowledgement before welcoming former Akwesasne Grand Chief Michael Kanentakeron Mitchell to the mic to open the event. 

Mitchell shared a song and highlighted the importance of learning to care for the planet and each other in the wake of Canada’s genocide against Indigenous peoples. 

“It’s our ancient way of life that they took away from us and replaced it with something that didn’t belong to us,” Mitchell said. “And so we are now returning. You are all returning to what all Indigenous people have always carried and that’s the respect for Mother Earth and everything that lives.”

Kennedy then returned to the mic to introduce Ojibwe scholar and Associate Provost (Indigenous Initiatives) Celeste Pedri-Spade, who supervises the university’s progress on the 52 Calls to Action outlined by the Provost’s Task Force on Indigenous Studies and Indigenous Education. Pedri-Spade told the crowd that McGill needs to “stick to the plan” laid out by the 52 Calls to Action. These include concrete goals the university has been working towards since the plan was created in 2017, two years after the Truth and Reconciliation Commission issued its 94 calls to action for the Canadian government. Pedri-Spade underlined that reconciliation requires tangible action.

“Reconciliation is not a metaphor. It’s not a metaphor for Indigenization. It’s not a metaphor for any other kind of social justice issue that’s equally as important,” Pedri-Spade said. “We need to think about who fought for those 94 calls to action [….][The people] who fought for those calls were survivors […] and their families [….] They fought for compensation. They fought to hold institutions accountable [….] We’re here to remember [and] to center those people, their experiences, and their stories.”

Dean of Education Vivek Venkatesh came to the mic next and echoed Pedri-Spade’s call for university action. Venkatesh underscored the importance of listening to Indigenous voices and urged allies to educate themselves and others.

“To be effective allies, we must take the lessons we’re learning today and share them,” Venkatesh said.

Finally, Kennedy invited Ryder Cody, a Kitigan Zibi U3 Education student from Rapid Lake First Nation to speak to the crowd. Cody explained that the first step towards reconciliation is reckoning with Canada’s colonial legacy.

“Your government failed you. The real truth was swept under the rug, was buried. Well, little did they know they were burying seeds of hope, seeds of truth that are now blossoming,” Cody said. “Now it’s your duty to go out of your way and learn about the true history of Canada, the dark history. It’s not a dark chapter in Canada’s history, it’s the whole book.”

Cody ended his speech with a prayer. 

“Today, on this walk, let every step be a prayer for those who didn’t make it home. Let every step be a prayer for the children who did make it home. Let every step be a prayer for the children who have yet to come.”
Koch then introduced the students leading the Critical Campus Tour, who noted that they would be leading the crowd to the First People’s House, Hochelaga Rock, and the McLennan Library Building. The student organizers urged participants to reflect on how McGill has erased, misrepresented, and harmed Indigenous communities and how the university can do better.

Arts & Entertainment, Books

Sally Rooney’s latest masterpiece: ‘Intermezzo’

by Elisa Gunawardana on

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Since the release of the wildly popular television adaptation of her novel Normal People in 2020, author Sally Rooney’s books have been garnering obsessive attention from young people everywhere. Her three poignant past novels—two of which have been adapted into TV shows—captivated both international fans and those from Rooney’s home country of Ireland. Her latest novel, Intermezzo, was published on Sept. 24 and is already the fastest-selling book in Ireland this year, also reaching similar heights on U.K. and U.S. charts.

The story follows two brothers, Peter and Ivan, as they deal with the recent loss of their father and their complicated relationships with both women and each other. Peter is a successful lawyer who is emotionally detached from seemingly everyone in his life besides his ex-girlfriend, Sylvia, who remains a close friend despite breaking up with him after a tragic accident. He struggles to balance this relationship with his new, chaotic younger lover, Naomi. 

Ivan is a socially awkward chess prodigy who fears that his talents are declining until he meets an older woman named Margaret at a chess tournament. They fall into a thorny relationship, plagued by Margaret’s age, marriage, and past. The tension between the women, the age gaps, the brothers, their careers, and the finishing touch of their father’s death make for a messy and evocative story. 

As in her previous work, Rooney demonstrates her talent for balancing such complicated characters and plotlines with immense grace. For many authors, the act of writing can seem like a limiting form of media, as it necessitates simplifying the intricacies of real life into a digestible story. It is a near-impossible task to thoroughly explore every angle of every character needed to understand their complete reality, which is typically far more multidimensional than stories allow. However, Rooney has always masterfully fought against this; she allows her characters to be flawed and elaborate, without making her writing too decorative or wordy. This level of honesty and realism is what resonates with so many readers and is the common thread running through all of Rooney’s work. 

Unlike her previous novels, however, Intermezzo prominently features the theme of existentialism. Peter’s troubles with drug use and sleeping echo the nihilism of Ottessa Moshfegh’s My Year of Rest and Relaxation, which attracted a similar fanbase of young people grappling to find meaning in a cynical world. Nearly every other character in Intermezzo has a moment in which they seem to question their entire existence. Rooney’s trademark choppy sentences, which are even more exaggerated in Intermezzo than in her previous works, add to this feeling of a fast-paced and almost hollow reality. This existential tone is more intense than it has been in her past books, potentially reflecting a society that is becoming increasingly hard to navigate and extract meaning from. However, it is carefully balanced with comforting moments of peace and strong emotion, usually occurring in intimate scenes between lovers. 

This stark contrast between existentialism and sentimentality pushes readers through scenes that deal with difficult topics in hopes that there will be another moment of joy and love. Rooney never disappoints; although her work can be described as existential and painfully realistic, it is nevertheless hopeful and ultimately optimistic. 

Throughout the novel, Rooney develops a sense that life, even one that is subpar in most aspects, is still worth living because of its special moments. She boldly trumpets that love, be it romantic, platonic, or familial, is what gives meaning to a nonsensical world. Her characters agree; after sharing an intimate moment with Sylvia, the cynical Peter thinks to himself that “To love just these few people, to know myself capable of that, I would suffer every day of my life.” This powerful theme alone makes Intermezzo worth the read. 


Intermezzo was published on Sept. 24 and is now available for purchase.

Arts & Entertainment

Arts & Entertainment Hot Takes

by Charlotte Hayes, Kellie Elrick, Yusur Al-Sharqi on

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Abolish the pop star ad-lib

By Charlotte Hayes, Staff Writer

After discovering Sabriana Carpenter through the song of the summer, “Espresso,” it suddenly dawned on me: A lot of young pop stars love an ad-lib. Singers often tack these cheeky improvised quips onto the beginning or end of a song to show off a little personality. For Carpenter, ad-libbing at the end of her hit song “Nonsense” helped the track go viral months after its release. Olivia Rodrigo also makes liberal use of them, with ad-libs appearing on songs like “brutal” off of 2021’s SOUR and “get him back” off of 2023’s GUTS. Here’s the thing: They’ve got to stop. I’ve heard way too many and I simply don’t care about how funny you thought a line was. It’s less a charming addition than it is an annoyance crowding the space at the end of the song. Sure, it can be fun once in a while, but if everyone starts doing them, it begins to feel manufactured. These ad-libs are an attempt at adding personality that ends up working as a veneer of insincerity, ultimately cheapening the final product. 

Téléfrançais! is nightmare fuel 

By Kellie Elrick, Arts & Entertainment Editor

I recently re-discovered a relic of my school days: Monsieur Ananas. Téléfrançais, a 1984-1986 French-Canadian children’s show, was once popular viewing in French Immersion classrooms. I remembered a merry pineapple man who sat on a fence and taught me French when my teachers got tired; a talking pineapple seemed well within the bounds of reason, and I remember thinking he was very polite. Upon seeing a clip algorithmically recommended to me, I thought it would be comforting to be transported back to childhood memories in this time of midterms and rain and chaos. But Good Lord! Monsieur Ananas was horrifying. I now saw him for the anthropomorphic, bulgy-eyed, tropical being he always was. I also did not remember that he lived in a junkyard. Or that he had human hands. His sentience distressed me. Sophie and Jacques, the two children, repeatedly insist that “les ananas ne parlent pas,” as Monsieur Ananas slow-blinks and makes gurgling sounds. The skeleton band, Les Squelettes, were mostly as I remembered them, though now, I am unsure of their location in relation to the junkyard. They play their music in a netherworld, against a dark background, but the possessed fruit puppet and the two French children can hear the music. Monsieur Ananas does the splits during the number (he has legs). Distressing as it is, the puppetry holds a certain absurd appeal to me, and I hope that future generations will be able to ride the trip that is Téléfrançais. I only regret that I have not been given the opportunity to use the phrase “les ananas ne parlent pas” more often.

‘Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story’ represents everything that true-crime haters hate

By Yusur Al-Sharqi, Managing Editor

Exploitation abounds in true crime media, and Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story/ is no exception. The nine-episode season delves into the notorious case of the Menendez brothers who, in 1989, murdered their parents in their Beverly Hills home. The brothers, played by Nicholas Alexander Chavez and Cooper Koch, were sentenced to life in prison after a highly publicized trial in which they argued that years of psychological and physical abuse at the hands of their father, a prominent Hollywood music producer, motivated their actions.Feedback on the show has been overwhelmingly negative and for good reason. While audiences acknowledge the cast’s stellar performances, they feel it can’t compensate for the confused narrative. Furthermore, the brothers and their family members have publicly denounced the show, claiming it is riddled with harmful misinformation and exploits their story. While shedding light on the boys’ trauma is an important step, placing it within a series titled Monsters, especially following a season centred on Jeffrey Dahmer—a serial rapist and killer who inflicted suffering on countless innocent boys and men—marks a serious miscalculation. It doesn’t help that producer Ryan Murphy responded to the criticism by asserting that the brothers should be thankful for the attention his show has given them. He noted that he intended to explore the various theories surrounding the murders rather than deliver a straightforward, factual account of the case, but the approach feels haphazard, resulting in an insensitive, sensationalist, and ultimately unsatisfying series. As scrutiny around the ethics of true crime continues to grow, Murphy cannot escape the backlash—and honestly, I can’t argue with it. This show made me feel disturbed not by its depiction of the crimes, but by the undeniable reality that it was crafted sensationally and without consent, exploiting real trauma for entertainment’s sake.

Commentary, Opinion

McGill is leading in research but lagging in workers’ rights

by Helene Saleska on

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McGill is continually ranked as a top research university in Canada, recently coming in second for medical research. Despite this status, the school consistently fails to adequately recognize the rights of its workers. From pushing its teaching assistants (TAs) to a hard strike for livable wages to undermining its law professors’ union, McGill has time and again resisted progress that would lead to fair labour practices. 

How can a university be leading in research while lagging so severely in workers’ rights? Does top-ranked research come at the expense of workers’ rights, or even worse, in spite of them?

If McGill aims to maintain its prestigious ranking, it must prioritize the needs of its TAs and professors—the driving force behind its research output. This became especially clear after the Association of Graduate Students Employed at McGill (AGSEM) strike in March 2024. After nearly a year of McGill disregarding AGSEM’s demands, the TA strike began. Even as the work stoppage unfolded, the university resisted reasonable requests for a month before finally conceding to a deal. Some of these included a wage increase, demands for more say in Teaching Support budgets and the working hours of TAs, as well as special protection for transgender TAs and support for mental health. 

Some might argue that because of McGill’s high ranking and reputation, it is justified in having high demands of workers, or that these demands contribute towards McGill’s prestige. But many TAs have said that, under these conditions, they have been forced to sacrifice their quality of work to get by. If graduate students are struggling with mental health, overloaded with extra hours, working a second job, or worried about paying rent, they will not be able to produce the cutting-edge research that McGill boasts, or the high-quality education necessary to remain in the undergraduate rankings. 

McGill faces a stark choice: Support its workers or forfeit the benefits of their labour. The university cannot expect excellence while its staff struggles to make ends meet.

A study by Northwestern University shows that productivity increases with minimum wage—that higher pay will lead to better output. So what is standing in the way of McGill prioritizing its workers when it is likely to benefit the TAs and the university alike? 

While the AGSEM strike was significant progress—offering TAs a 15.5 per cent raise over four years—for McGill Law professors, things are different.

Before temporarily suspending their strike on Oct. 1, the Association of McGill Professors of Law (AMPL) was striking for better pay, for more of a say in the governance of the faculty, and for their right to unionize. McGill resisted their demands for months, taking actions to undermine the legitimacy of the union by legally challenging its certification, which was granted by Quebec in 2022. 

McGill’s actions were ruled illegal by the Quebec labour tribunal after two administrators attempted to undermine the union in communications to Law professors just before a critical strike vote. On Oct. 1, AMPL agreed to go back to teaching for now, after McGill threatened to cancel the semester if the strike continued.

Progress has been made since then, but not because of McGill’s support for unions—rather, because of AMPL’s tireless work for months on end. AMPL reached an agreement with McGill on Oct. 7, with McGill agreeing to drop its legal challenge of the union in exchange for AMPL negotiating collective agreements with two other unions in the Arts and Education faculties. Still, this decision took far too long to reach and shouldn’t have been challenged in the first place; it reflects McGill’s stubbornness and reluctance to prioritize constructive dialogue with its faculty and staff. 

So, can McGill balance its high rankings with low workers’ rights? Worker rights are non-negotiable, and McGill can no longer afford to ignore them. Silencing dissent only transforms isolated grievances into a unified call for change. The more the university resists, the stronger its workers’ resolve grows.

News, PGSS

PGSS Council votes on McGill-amended motion, removes mentions of Gaza and genocide

by Auxane Bussac on

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The Post-Graduate Students’ Society (PGSS) met on Oct. 2 for its second Council meeting of the Fall semester. Thirty-six voting members attended the meeting, surpassing quorum—one per cent of regular members, as laid out in PGSS’s Bylaws—for the first time since February of this year. As the previous Council meeting on Sept. 10 had failed to meet quorum and attendees were unable to vote on the motions discussed, this month’s meeting had a particularly long agenda. 

The hybrid meeting was held in Thomson House and on Zoom. The discussion primarily centred on three motions—5.4, 5.5, and 5.6—from the December 2023 Council meeting, which expressed solidarity with Palestine. After PGSS and McGill received a legal notice from an anonymous member on June 20 that asked both parties to abide by an interlocutory injunction, the McGill administration proposed modifications to the motions, which would uphold PGSS’ Memoranda of Understanding with the university. These amendments included changing the name of motion 5.4 from “Council stand in solidarity with Palestine” to “Motion on Divestment from Armaments and Efforts to Promote Peace,” and removing words such as “Gaza,” and amending mentions of “genocide” to say “war.” 

Many members abstained from voting on Motion 5.4. During the discussion, Member Services Officer Ambre Lambert offered insight on the importance for PGSS members to be familiar with the motions before voting as approving or rejecting them is their choice. She also added nuance to a previous discourse she held about advising voters to oppose Motion 5.4.

“I was encouraging students not to agree with the motion that was done last month [because the wording] was extremely restrictive and was losing the sense of the motions,” Ambre said.  “I do think they are still losing some of their original meanings but I also think that I don’t know if we’ll reach an agreement with McGill [if we keep on debating].”

Some attendees voiced concerns that abstaining could lead to commissioners reentering negotiations—and even arbitration—with McGill over the wording of these motions. Councillors also raised questions throughout the discussion about adding context around McGill’s “watered-down” wording as Lambert put it. 

The conversation turned to motion 5.6, originally called ‘Motion to support and encourage [Post-graduate Student Associations] PGSAs to address the ongoing genocide in Gaza and investigate their ties to settler-colonial violence and genocide against the Palestinian people.’ It was amended to be called ‘Motion to support and uphold the academic freedom and rights of freedom of expression, conscience, and assembly of PGSS members.’ Brenagh Rapoport from the Organization of Urban Planning Students highlighted the aspect of the motion that ensures PGSAs cannot condemn, penalize, or restrict students’ discussions or actions.

“Protecting our students from backlash from the university for [engaging in meaningful] action is really important [and] a material commitment to students not receiving [sanctions] for expressing opinions and engaging in political action […] is a concern for people in my department,” Rapoport said. 

Councillors stressed that work still needs to be done to ensure students know their rights to freedom of expression. In response, University Affairs Officer Racchana Ramamurthy suggested adding shorter versions of the Code of Student Conduct with important points on myCourses.

In the end, abstention was disregarded, and Motions 5.4, 5.5, and 5.6, all passed—with 24 votes in favour of 5.4 and 5.6, and 17 votes for 5.5. 

For the last part of the meeting, Shona Watt, Associate Director of Sustainability Projects Fund (SPF) presented the SPF, which funds environmental projects on campus. Since its founding in 2010, the initiative has allocated over $12.6 million CAD in funding to 370 sustainability-related projects. According to Watt, the SPF is the largest dedicated campus sustainability fund of its kind in Canada.

Moment of the meeting: 

With the meeting’s extended agenda, the Council put forth a vote to extend the meeting to 8:30 p.m.. While 10 members voted in favour of continuing, 15 voted against. As a result, the meeting was not prolonged and the remaining agenda items will be postponed to future meetings.

Soundbite: 

“It is 100 per cent your choice as a councillor and you have absolutely that option, to not accept those changes that are basically a compromise between us and McGill.” — Ambre Lambert, Member Services Officer, on voting members’ right to abstain on approving Motion 5.4.

Arts & Entertainment, Music

The stories and sounds of Montreal’s Black women DJs

by Monique Kasonga on

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Montreal’s cultural fabric is shaped by its artists. From writers and sculptors to fashion designers and chefs, there is a scene for everyone. When it comes to musical history, the city’s Black communities hold great significance. The music scene extends to DJing, with events like Igloofest and Aire Commune, along with collectives like Boiler Room, showcasing its vibrancy and diversity. Given this cultural backdrop, I sought to explore the experiences of Black women DJs whose perspectives are underrepresented despite their significant contributions. I interviewed three Black women DJs to understand what the art means to them—and how their identities influence their artistry. 

Drawing on her Cameroonian heritage and upbringing in France, Inès, who performs under the name Ms Baby, skillfully blends traditional and contemporary African and European electronic influences with the richness of popular African American music. The result is a sound that resonates beautifully within Montreal’s diverse landscape. Playing African music, especially traditional tunes, holds immense significance, as countless African artists have shaped music globally while going unrecognized for it. For Inès, it’s not just about playing songs; it’s her mission to give those artists their flowers, honouring and celebrating their contributions to the music world. 

Another voice in the scene is Asha, a Toronto-born DJ with Guyanese parents who entered the electronic music scene after living in Berlin. Like Inès, she noted that many DJs draw from diverse global influences, but the creators behind the sounds are often overlooked. She emphasized that DJing involves much more than playing music; it requires research and proper crediting of the artists.

“If there’s one thing I wish people understood better, it’s how much weight the music you play carries,” Asha explained. “When you take on the role of a DJ, you’re not just spinning tracks; you’re also a curator of culture and history.” 

Asha noted that this awareness is not only about respecting artistry but also about recognizing the political implications of music selection. “In my opinion, DJing is political,” she asserted. “It’s about acknowledging the producers you support and the cultural energies you’re promoting.”

For Janelle (IAMNOTMYHISTORY), the music she chooses to play is largely influenced by her Trinidadian background. When asked about her DJ name, Janelle shared that it reflects her awareness of how Black history is often simplified or distorted in educational contexts. She pointed to the importance of recognizing the depth and complexity of her heritage beyond a single narrative. 

Janelle emphasized that her name is also a personal declaration. “I don’t want to be defined by my past,” she explained. “I am not just my history; I am so much more.” Her perspective embodies her desire to remain present and open to growth, allowing her to evolve as an artist and an individual. “While my background informs my music, I want to continue creating and exploring new avenues without being confined by what I’ve already accomplished,” she said. 

All three women highlighted the unique challenges of being Black women DJs in a male-dominated industry. Inès emphasized the importance of representation, noting that seeing other Black women DJing fostered a sense of belonging. She described the frustrating expectation for Black women DJs to simply be grateful to be given opportunities, which often results in low performance expectations and relegation to less prestigious slots. Despite these obstacles, the three women expressed empowerment in their journeys, citing the joy of sharing music in the city as a key source of their success.

As Black women artists like Inès, Asha, and Janelle navigate the complexities of being minorities in the DJ scene, they are carving out spaces that honour their heritage while also embracing their multifaceted identities. In a city where a shared love of music fosters creativity and collaboration, these DJs remind us that the past does not define one’s future; instead, it serves as a foundation to build limitless possibilities. As they continue to break barriers and inspire the next generation, the unique contributions of Black women DJs enrich Montreal’s artistic landscape, ensuring that their voices are heard in the sound of the city.

Science & Technology

Exploring galactic evolution from the Big Bang to the Milky Way

by Samathar Senso on

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On Oct. 3, McGill’s Trottier Space Institute presented a public talk titled “From Clouds to Cosmic Giants: The formation and evolution of galaxies.” This event featured Tracy Webb, associate professor in McGill’s Department of Physics and observational astronomer, who discussed the development of galaxies from the Big Bang to the present day. The talk also highlighted current innovations aimed at demystifying our understanding of these complex systems. 

Webb began her talk by discussing the galaxy we call home: The Milky Way. Amongst the whopping hundreds of billions of galaxies in our observable universe, Webb emphasized that the Milky Way is just one of many. 

“[The Milky Way] is sort of a regular galaxy in a regular group of galaxies, nothing really special […] except that it is home to us,” Webb stated in her talk. 

The composition of galaxies 

Galaxies are primarily composed of a large oval called the dark matter halo, which forms the body of a galaxy and accounts for most of its mass. At the center of the halo lies the bulge and disk—made up of stars and surrounded by what’s called the “interstellar medium.” At the very centre of the galaxy resides a supermassive black hole. 

“A galaxy has a total mass of [around] 1 to 2 trillion times the mass of our own sun, and that mass is made up of dark matter, which makes up about 90 per cent of the galaxy. Then we have gas and dust making up the next component, around seven per cent, and stars […] only make up about three per cent,” Webb explained. 

Galaxy classification 

After focusing on the components of a galaxy, Webb shifted to a broader topic: How galaxies are classified. Edward Hubble, astronomer and namesake of the Hubble Space Telescope, came up with a simple classification of galaxies based solely on their shape, known as the Hubble Tuning Fork. The first type of galaxy is elliptical galaxies, and the second is spiral galaxies. 

“There’s a whole bunch of galaxies that don’t fit into the Hubble Tuning Fork, [which we] call irregular galaxies,” Webb clarified. 

Galaxy formation and growth mechanisms

According to the Big Bang Theory—which is the idea that the universe began as a single point and has been perpetually expanding ever since—galaxies formed approximately one billion years after the beginning of the universe. Galaxies first coalesce as dense packs of gas and grow larger over time by merging with other galaxies. The Milky Way is on a collision course with our neighbouring galaxy, Andromeda, although the impact is still a few billion years away. 

Apart from collisions, galaxies also grow by absorbing the cosmic material around them. A more obscure growth mechanism of galaxies has to do with the supermassive black holes at their center, which are suspected of regulating galaxy growth during this process.

The future of telescopes 

Webb then moved on to talking about the use of telescopes in studying galaxies. When observing galaxies, telescopes behave as time machines. The images we see of galaxies actually show how they appeared billions of years ago since the further away they are, the longer it takes for light to travel to us. This means that when observing the Andromeda galaxy, we’re observing it 2.5 million years ago, and when observing the furthest galaxies visible through the Hubble Telescope, we’re actually observing them 13 billion years in the past.

The James Webb Telescope is a recent telescope project launched into space that surpasses the Hubble Space Telescope in terms of its observational capabilities. Another upcoming project is the Square Kilometer Array—an international effort to build the world’s largest radio telescope array, which is a network of separate telescopes located across the globe that operate as one. 

While many advancements are underway to deepen our understanding of the galaxy, much is left uncertain. The more knowledge we gain on galaxy formation, the better we will understand how the world we live in came to be.

Arts & Entertainment, Film and TV

Spike Lee inspires at Montreal International Black Film Festival’s Opening Night Gala

by Mia Zdrale on

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The Montreal International Black Film Festival (MIBFF) celebrated its 20th edition from Sept. 25 to 29, shining a powerful spotlight on the richness of Black cinema and emphasizing the importance of diversifying the cinematic landscape. MIBFF is the largest film event dedicated to Black cinema in Canada as well as the only bilingual Black film festival in North America. This year’s festival aimed to inspire attendees by illuminating Black filmmakers and offering a platform to advocate for Black storytelling within the industry. Academy Award-winning director Spike Lee was named the Honourary President of this year’s festival and took part in an intimate interview for the Opening Night Gala. 

Founded by Fabienne Colas, a director and producer who presides over 12 other arts and film festivals, MIBFF amplifies Black filmmakers and honours diverse narratives. The festival serves as a beacon for the importance of representation and inclusion on and off the screen. At the Opening Night Gala, Colas urged the industry and audiences to continue fighting for equal funding and grants for Black and BIPOC organizations. 

The crowd eagerly welcomed Spike Lee, a renowned filmmaker in the industry for over 45 years, upon his fourth appearance at MIBFF. Known for his thought-provoking body of work, the energy in the audience was palpable as Lee provided insight into the filmmaking process and industry. Lee’s approach is reflected in his unwavering passion to tackle social injustice, an aspect of filmmaking that is often overlooked.

Through his inspiring and stimulating conversation with Colas, Lee highlighted the persistent challenges that Black filmmakers face in gaining visibility for their projects as well as the need for increased representation behind the camera. Lee addressed the systematic obstacles faced by Black filmmakers, drawing parallels between the 35th anniversary of his radical film Do The Right Thing and the ongoing prevalence of racial injustice and police brutality, notably in regard to recent events such as the murder of George Floyd. While Lee’s filmography is distinguished by his urge to confront and raise awareness of social injustices, he also acknowledged the need for contemporary filmmakers to portray what resonates with their personal journey. When asked if he believed filmmakers today have a mission to raise awareness, Lee said that everybody has “different stories to tell.” 

There was a tangible sense of community and a shared purpose felt amongst the audience, with Lee’s candid nature serving as a refreshing view of the current film landscape. Having spent decades pushing the boundaries of storytelling within the industry, Lee shared invaluable advice to aspiring filmmakers, discussing the modern-day tools available to budding creatives as well as the importance of physical screenings. Proclaiming that “you have the tools,” Lee emphasized collaboration, maintaining that community and perseverance lead to success. Furthermore, he honed in on the need for Black creatives to occupy positions of authority behind the screen, rather than being outside the ‘room where it happens’. 

Lee’s personal anecdotes provided a glimpse into his journey, starting from watching classic Hollywood movies with his mother as a child to his current status as a legendary filmmaker. He also shared his most influential movies—highlighting Crooklyn as a personally significant project due to the family effort involved in the writing process and his own upbringing in Brooklyn; Lee confidently proclaimed that “Crooklyn beats everything”.

The festival serves as a testament to the importance of upholding Black cinema and the need to continue pushing for greater inclusion and representation within the film industry. As noted by Lee, events like MIBFF create crucial spaces for celebrating individual voices and serve as a call to action to both filmmakers and audiences to embrace their unique narratives.

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