CREATIVITY OR STEELE: THE UNITED CONUNDRUM  - OLA ADETOYE (20/10/2013)

Much has been made of the weaknesses within Manchester 

United’s midfield, it was problem even under the great Sir Alex and now that same problem has been passed down to fellow Scotsman David Moyes. In the league pundits and fans often questioned the physicality of United’s midfield especially through the middle. Which is not really a surprise when the two mainstays of that midfield were Michael Carrick and Tom Cleverley. Both of whom are not really known for their brute strength within the game. A trait that was held by former captain and tough tackling Irishman Roy Keane. However since he left the club and retired from the game, the club as a whole failed to address the issue for several years.

It’s fair to say that even with the lack of such a player within the

 team, Manchester United have continuously picked up silverware, recently grabbing their 20^th league title last season An accomplishment which put them ahead of Liverpool in the most titles won, and sealing their status as the most successful British football team. Yet without even thinking too hard about it, a majority of United’s home and continental rivals have a defensive Midfielder. Take for instance the top English sides Chelsea haveEssien and Mikel, Manchester City have Yaya and Fernandinho, Liverpool have Lucas, and Spurs have Dembele and Paulinho. Before those of you who are Arsenal supporters start shouting, your team doesn’t feature on the list simply because as with United you to lack a physical presence (Mikel Arteta is not a traditional defensive midfielder period).

Since Spain’s national side and Barcelona started dominating the

 footballing world, everyone has been obsessed (including me) with their famous ‘tika taka’ (passing game to the football novices)

 style. Credit where credit is due, it worked for several years culminating in World Cups, European championships, La Liga titles and Champions League trophies for both footballing parties 

respectively. But Barcelona and Real Madrid both losing to German opposition marked a watershed moment in the footballing timeline. 

Tika taka football was countered with German physicality and fast football. What enabled both Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich to win was having a solid midfield consisting of what I have been ranting about ‘physicality’. Yes both teams play good football, however at the same time those foundations are built upon players like Javi Martinez and Bastian Schweinsteiger (Bayern Munich) or Ilkay Gundogan and Sven Bender (Borussia Dortmund). Both are a mix of ball playing midfielders and physical players who specialise in breaking up opposition attacks.

Hence it is with such a deep explanation that I believe David 

Moyes and Manchester United were best served going after a physical presence like Marouane Fellaini, a player who can not only provide cover but score goals. Utilising the Belgian allows Michael Carrick to assume the position of a deep-lying playmaker whole-heartedly. Which can only benefit the entire squad in the long run. Besides creativity is not what united lack, in Shinji Kagawa, Wayne Rooney, and the previously mentioned Michael Carrick are quality players all capable of splitting defences. So if you asked me personally to pick whether United needed creativity or steel, at this moment in time I side with the latter choice.

RIHANNA FOR RIVER ISLAND AW13 COLLECTION - LEAH KARA JOHNSON (10/10/2013)
It's September 2013 and Rihanna is back with a bundle of statement pieces from her Autumn Collection for high street store; River Island. Now, I've never been her biggest fan which is probably why I'm not that excited about the outlandish fashion icons second collection. However, I must say I was probably one of the first to have a browse through her new pieces. (Okay so maybe I was just a teeny weeny bit excited!) What was my initial reaction?..."expensive for nothing". I thought it would never happen, but it did. I actually bought an item from the Rihanna Spring Collection. It was the gorgeous Sheer Tie Dye Pinafore Maxi Dress. Now I can't remember the exact price but it was in the sale so I thought why not!

The AW13 collection is made up of eccentric Rihanna staples. The camouflage and monochrome prints, oversized jerseys, leather garments, crop tops and not to mention the G4LIFE logo printed across nearly every single piece! The new collection channels a 90's vibe which screams tough girl with attitude instantly, taking us back to Rihanna's "Good Girl Gone Bad" days as well as paying homage to her "Rated R" prime!


Now lets talk about a few of my favourite pieces...

1) YELLOW MESH G4LIFE SHIRT DRESS - £40:

The first garment to have caught my eye is this yellow tomboyish shirt dress. (Also available in black) There's something about the sport luxe trend that I absolutely adore at the moment. BUT..there's only one downer and that's the G4LIFE logo stretched across the back. I love this garment so much that I might just have to turn a blind eye to the logo which I doubt I’ll ever come round to liking!

2) BLACK OCCULT PRINT BODYCON DRESS - £40

Unfortunately this head turning monochrome dress is out of stock online (boohoo!)..but I guess i would have preferred this dress if it was a midi not mini!

3) BURGUNDY STRIPE MESH T-SHIRT - £30

I basically live in oversized tees. The most comfiest clothing ever! It's burgundy, it's mesh, it has boxy sleeves and a longline fit. What more could I ask for? But yes this lovely piece is also currently out of stock..how unfortunate!

Nothing beats my top 3 selected pieces above but heres a few others that have stood out just a little:

The Black Perforated Leather Crop Top LIMITED EDITION

Burgundy Stripe Hoodie Maxi Dress

Burgundy Leather Trousers LIMITED EDITION -

Just before I go, remember I mentioned my initial reaction was the collection being "expensive for nothing" now let me explain why!. Maybe it's coz I'm a bargain hunter and I'd prefer to shop for cheaper alternatives but I couldn't help notice the Black Cold Shoulder Turtle Neck Dress. Now I'm the type of girl to browse eBay 24hrs a day making sure I'm the winning bidder on every item on my watch list. A few weeks ago I came across this beauty. The EXACT same Rihanna dress for £39.41 cheaper: http://item.mobileweb.ebay.co.uk/viewitem?itemId=121019500411
Yes its all the way on the other side of the globe but bargain or what?

Final Thoughts

• What's your favourite piece in the current AW13 Collection?

• Spring Collection Vs Autumn Collection? What do you prefer?

• Would you want to see Rihanna team up with Topshop rather than River island?

Check out the full collection here: http://www.riverisland.com/women/rihanna-for-river-island-collection

AUDIO PUSH MIXTAPE REVIEW- KELLY WHYBROW (1/10/13)

The Cali duo Audio Push releases their latest mixtape ‘Come As You Are’. The 15 track project makes a statement and shows a promising future for them. The mixtape is carefully crafted, close to album quality with impressive production and features. Features include new-comers like Joey Bada$, Vic Mensa, IamSu! and of course, HS87 affiliate Hit-Boy. The project also boasts features from veterans Lil Wayne, Wale and T.I.

The producers on ‘Come As You Are’ include Hit-Boy, Hazebaangaa, Matt Burnet, Swiff D and others. The project has a 90s feel with a mix of 90s rap and also club records. Known for their catchy dance songs this makes a statement that they can spit addressing this in ‘come as you are’; “I hate when people bring up, teach me how to jerk 'Cause now my lyrics merk and they just salty I'm amazing at it.” Most groups release mix-tapes with either good lyrics or good club songs but they balance the two nicely. The songs are well put together, great concepts and shifts well between the two styles of 90s rap and club records.

Producers Hit Boy and Key Wane work amazing in producing old school quality beats with still a fresh and up to date feel and described as could be an old Busta Rhymes record. On the other hand, ‘Space Jam’ featuring Lil Wayne sounds as though it could be a single or could be a part of most hip-hop dance albums.

The songs that stood out the most were ‘Brown Bag’ produced by Swiff D with a strong beat and deep lyrics, a definite pull up track. ‘Anything Goes’ featuring Wale is a laid back track filled with good vibes and a good flow. On ‘Turn Down’ it’s filled with soulful sounds matching the lyricism of not wasting your life. ‘Come As You Are’ also name of the mix-tape is like a statement track of the project although without a doubt the strongest track is ‘Theme Song’, containing strong, fierce lyrics and incorporation of some singing with their rhymes. Every verse is strong including a T.I. feature and makes it a stand out track.

All in all, ‘Come As You Are’ has a solid production, conceptual songs and clever word play; proving they have good bars up their sleeve and good chemistry between Octane and Price Tag in the studio resulting in well put together tracks and is undoubtedly worth a download. This is a contender for one of their best mix-tapes so far this and could change a lot of people’s opinions on Audio Push.

 UNIVERSITY: A LIFE OF BALANCE - Rachel Shodipe (23/09/2013)

Think about the word university…Now what’s the first thing that comes to your mind?

If it’s anything other than getting that degree, you may need to re-order your priorities.

Home away from home and getting caught up

The pots and the plates, TVs (TV licence anyone?), the 

clothes for the girls, the trainers for the guys or vice versa. Whatever you are buying, you are buying something. With the realisation for some that moving out is just around the corner, the anticipation of a lifestyle change is always expected.

Whether or not you are used to the freedom already, uni life never fails to offer that much more.

So fresher’s week, is truly the week of the year, with something happening 24/7. The raves, the fairs, bargain offers, and free food, doesn't make it too bad for a first week. To be fair the whole of first year can seem like fresher’s week, but responsibility kicks in when you have that first assignment due at midnight and that 10pm rave…can you do it? Obviously, if you do it right.

Prioritise

It’s easy to get caught up in the uni life and forget what you

 are there for, until you have your alarm clock singing at 7am the morning after a night out. Simple solution? Do the work when you get it.

Easier said than done, but organisation is key. You only 

really find yourself fighting for time if you haven’t planned ahead. Excluding fresher’s week, most events happen on set days or at times of the year, when most people can afford to party and plan ahead.

So why start your week old assignment the day of that foam party, when you could be picking your outfit or having a drink.

Lecturers understand the uni life, and are usually fair when

 setting deadlines and offering help. But let’s be real, emailing your lecturer/tutor at 11:47pm for help on deadline day? Don’t set yourself up to fail.

Balance & enjoy

Three key things;

Don’t bite of more than you can chew: Most times people sign up for events, clubs and societies they never take part in or attend. It’s all part of the fresher’s buzz, but remember there’s only one of you. Join what you can afford to join (literally not everything is free) and what you can make time for.

Remember what you came for: whether you are a gym freak, choirmaster, cheerleader, hard-core raver or even a baker. Everything comes second to getting that degree. Once that’s securely the top priority, start filling the list with other things important to you and allocate your time to work with the order.

Organisation: This brings together prioritising, organisation  

 and all the above. It’s the difference to having some free time, and panicking at the night time. Fresher packs usually provide you with calendars amongst other stuff. Utilise it and start marking down dates as you get them (raves and deadlines included) not detailed enough? Start a weekly to-do list, or download wunderlist or evernote, apps that can easily help you to organise your time.

Heard it all before? 

Then put it into practice and watch the results in the end

  TWERKING SKINHEAD - JAHMILA LEWIS 19/09/2013

    

Now I am pretty sure all of you are incredibly informed about Miley Cyrus’s latest shenanigans. It’s been literally impossible to avoid her name in the Media over the last couple of months. Even more so since her ‘lively’ performance at the VMA’s.

Although it does seem like that memorable VMA performance did actually attract some of the right attention. Reportedly after the awards show Kanye was hypnotised by Mileys moves and decided that he needed to have her on a remix to one of his tracks on Yeezus.

Miley and Kanye allegedly skipped any after parties and headed straight for the studio to record, yup, wait for it…the ‘Black Skinhead’ remix. Although there were a few rumours about this peculiar collaboration beforehand, it appears that Mike Will Made It, who is actually a producer, yet also a close friend and collaborator of Miley Cyrus, officially confirmed with MTV RapFix that Miley will indeed be featured on the remix to the "Yeezus" track. "We went right back to work," Williams said, adding of the remix, "It's about done, just touching the beat up a little bit. It sound crazy too."

Now interestingly even though it seems like Miley is going through some sort of rebellious stage, or perhaps ‘finding herself’ as some people may want to put it, she has still not actually wavered that far away from the typical music she has always made. Her new song ‘Wrecking Ball’ which has also caused quite a lot of controversy because she was nude (God forbid, a naked body!! Shocker!) was actually a typical Miley Cyrus pop song. So to hear her on an actual Hip Hop track with a Hip Hop legend should be very interesting.

Personally I feel that this act Hannah Mont…. I mean Miley Cyrus, is putting up is all premeditated. A simple marketing strategy that was probably pushed by her label. This feature with Kanye will do her massive favours, especially if executed correctly. Although this does all seem abit to familiar to me. Is this just another Rihanna, Good Girl Gone Bad type thing? After all Rihanna is the perfect example of how this formula can work in ones favour. Regardless, as they say, any publicity is good publicity and Miley definitely has the people talking right about now, so good on her. I just hope she throws down in the studio with Kanye so that she can prove to everyone she is really about this life.

WHAT DOES FASHION MEAN TO YOU - TRACEY WINU LANDU 15/09/2013

 (15/09/2013)




If I asked you all what fashion meant to you, what would your response be?
The latest trends or ‘high end’ collections?


The dictionary defines Fashion as:


1 The prevailing style or custom, as in dress or behaviour: out of fashion.


2 Something, such as a garment, that is in the current mode: a swimsuit that is the latest fashion.


The style characteristic of the social elite: a man of fashion.
Although all three definitions are true, for some of us it can mean being independent or a form of freedom and expression. What we wear depends on how we feel and varies according to our personalities…

Nowadays people are so fashion conscious.
Everyone is concerned with what others are wearing and what is in the magazines, OOTD’S, A/W and summer trends and creating wish lists for outfits they aspire to wear and items they want to possess. What we see in Vogue Magazine is ‘High end fashion’ which usually grasps media attention and is not necessarily suited for the average person. The pressures from celebrities, peers, posters and magazines gets to us females and we feel as if we have to conform and dress as everyone else is.


If you are comfortable in a long sleeve top and jeans, then go ahead wear it and be proud. Your clothing says a lot about you, but it doesn’t define you.
Therefore fashion means whatever you want it to mean to you – because, it means something different to us all and the message we want to portray to others about ourselves. It is your own style and how you enjoy dressing up whether you are a minimalist or love to sport designer brands.
As long as you know what looks good on your body, know your pockets and love who you are then be comfortable in what you are wearing because there are no rules when it comes to expressing who you are!


5 ways to be confident in what you wear and looking your best

Buy one trendy item and mix and match with other clothes you have in your wardrobe so you don’t have to constantly splash out on new outfits

Customise your clothing and invest in some sewing materials to create clothes that are unique to your style

Try different online stores such Ebay, Amazon and Ali express to find brands and clothing items that are cheap and affordable

Shop around in different shops where you see similar clothing items and compare prices (don’t forget quality over quantity though!). Also visit thrift shops or charity shops if you really want to!

Don’t pay too much notice to what is on Tv, billboards or magazines. Of course you want to be in the know of what is ‘a la mode’ but make sure know what looks good on you and fits well on you!

"Don’t be into trends. Don’t make fashion own you, but you decide what you are, what you want to express by the way you dress and the way you live."


— Gianni Versace

Ukraine vs. England Post Match Reaction-  Ola Adeotoye (12/09/2013)

Roy Hodgson and his England went to Ukraine’s capital Kiev in need of a result, with a draw being the bare minimum, and yes they succeeded albeit with a rather tame second half display. Having watched England for many years now it rarely comes as a surprise when the national team make hard work of their qualifying group. This coincides with the fact that this group of players haven’t beaten any of their main rivals in the group (Poland, Ukraine, and Montenegro). But we’ll put that to the side for the meantime, things started rather positively for the three Lions in the first half as they searched for that breakthrough goal. They were somewhat fortunate not to concede a very early penalty after Joe Hart appeared to make contact with Ukrainian forward Roman Zozulya.

I am writing this not just from a journalistic aspect but also as a fan of the England team. Hand on my heart the second half was the most tragic I have seen an England team play for a while. No creativity, borderline average passing, and so on and so forth. Yet the team on the opposite side of the pitch for a large portion of the half outplayed the men in red. But as we will be reminded and reminded by Roy Hodgson ‘only a point was needed’, nevertheless come on Roy the best players in England looked like a Conference South outfit. But doom mongering aside they got the job done and just have to take four points from the Poland match and the tie versus Montenegro.

Both taking place next month at Wembley and with the likes of Rooney, Sturridge and Welbeck available (barring injuries) it should be a straightforward task. Yet I almost forgot nothing as we’ve seen over the years is straightforward with any England side.