Lockdown! at the Disco #8: The Happiness Episode

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Wherever you’re listening to this right now – be it your bedroom, your garden, the park, your kitchen, or heck – maybe even your bathroom – make sure you give yourself some room to thrash around, be happy and take up some necessary space for yourself!

Today’s episode is all about Happiness. And I don’t know about you, but my happy place is wherever I can dance. So let’s freak out, shall we?

TRACK 1: “Banana Splits” – The Dickies

Hello and welcome to episode 8 of Comics Youth Radio presents Lockdown! at the Disco. I am your twinkle toed show host Amy Roberts broadcasting live from the raucous streets of Fairfield and Kensington and that was The Dickies with their cover of the Banana Splits theme tune and it makes me very happy. I hope it made you very happy too.

As I said at the start of the show, today’s episode is all about happiness. And with everything that’s going on right now, it felt more important than ever to dedicate an entire episode to things that make us happy. Obviously, all of us have a lot going on right now and in terms of society and politics there is still a great deal that we need to remain vigilant about and to fight for.

But just as you need to maintain a healthy diet to give your body the energy to get up and do stuff, your mind also needs little banquets of joy on a daily basis with which to stay strong enough to keep fighting those injustices and to make sure we’re functioning on a healthy level every day.

So this whole episode is basically going to be a veritable buffet of happiness. It’s full of songs to bring you joy and to inspire you to stay strong, be resilient, and flex your best selves.

As ever, you can always write to me with general notes, messages, song requests, or thoughts that I’d be more than happy to share on the show. So please feel free to email me via amy@comicsyouth.co.uk.

Now, someone light a candle for me cos I’m about to get up on my wonky living room table here and do a jig cos this is “Groove is in the Heart” by Dee-Lite.

TRACK 2: “Groove is in the Heart” – Deee-Lite
TRACK 3: “Rock Lobster” – The B52’s

That was the unparalleled “Groove is in the Heart” by 90’s queer icons Deee-lite followed by fellow queer punk icons The B52’s with weirdo surf anthem “Rock Lobster”.

And I’m playing those two songs primarily because they both make me hugely happy. But also because they’re two songs that always manage to find me whenever I’m feeling a little bit low.

You know, that thing where you’re at a party or you’re out somewhere in a café, or a shop, or even just walking along the street – and out of nowhere your jam comes on, blaring out of a speaker or a car radio or whatever else.

And for me those two songs have always been these. And I bring that up because in our Safe Spaces meetings at the moment we keep having the conversation about what a safe space entails. And that brings up an important question: How do we find and nurture a safe space when our usual haunts aren’t available and we’re stuck at home most of the time right now?

So I just wanted to offer a reminder of what a safe space actually is and how you can find it for yourself. Here at Comics Youth, our definition of a safe space can be absolutely anything that makes you feel safe and protected – something, someone or somewhere that allows you the freedom to be yourself without discrimination or fear.

And that can be a physical location like Comics Youth or the places where you hang out with your pals. Or it can even be a person or a group of people who love and support and cherish you for everything you are.

But it can also be something more abstract: A song, musician, film, TV show, or book that gives you that reminder that you’re in the right place, you’re exactly who you’re supposed to be, and that you are loved and supported and cherished.

And for me two of those things are “Rock Lobster” and “Groove is in the Heart”. They’re happy songs, sure. But they also remind me of the people and places who have made me feel most at home in this life. And every time I hear them I feel safe and protected and remember that I’m on the right track, I’m exactly who I’m supposed to be, and that I’m loved and supported and cherished by the people that count.

If you’re feeling a little lost at the moment as to what or who or where your safe spaces are, then I urge you to simply jot down a list right now of all the things that make you feel that way. Keep them close to you, stuff them inside your heart, and I promise you that they’ll always figure out a way to find you at exactly the right moments that you need them to.

Incidentally, I’d like to also give a huge shoutout to Tom, Lucy, and Raf from our Safe Spaces group as well as my Safe Spaces project co-lead Emily for helping to curate this playlist with me today. This is “Electric Feel” by MGMT as chosen by our Lucy.

TRACK 4: “Electric Feel” – MGMT
TRACK 5: “I Think We’re Alone Now” – Tiffany

That was MGMT with “Electric Feel” followed by “I Think We’re Alone Now” by Tiffany, which was part of a playlist of feelgood songs put together by Emily’s lovely girlfriend Cay.

That’s one of those proper immortal feelgood tracks from the 80s which I absolutely adore. Right before lockdown happened I was staying in Manchester with my fella and we were wandering through Stretford mall together and it was really bleak.

The heaviness and the reality of the pandemic had started to sink in and you could feel it in the atmosphere of the mall and all the people shuffling through it. And I was holding my boyfriend’s hand a little too tightly that day because we knew it would be our final day together for potentially many, many months.

And out of nowhere one of the shops started playing “I Think We’re Alone Now” and – on the one hand, it felt ludicrously and painfully relevant for the oncoming lockdown, but on the other it gave me so much happiness to hear it and even a little bit of hope.

It still makes me happy now, a little over three months later. I think sometimes, in all of this, it can feel good to engage with and to face some sad emotions and difficult things in a way that’s uplifting and positive. And that’s exactly what Tiffany serves up.

TRACK 6: “Ca Plane Pour Moi” – Sonic Youth
TRACK 7: “We Got the Beat” – The Go-Go’s

That was The Go-Go’s with “We Got the Beat” followed by Sonic Youth with their raucous cover of Plastic Bertrand’s “Ca Plane Pour Moi” – which is a terrific French pop song made up of absolute nonsense lyrics so I love that Sonic Youth really make that cover their own with some a new revised take on that nonsense.

I realised when I was putting this playlist together that I’ve perhaps unconsciously chosen two songs there that tie in to two books that have been on my reading list during lockdown. “We Got the Beat” is a really important part of one of my favourite books called My Best Friend’s Exorcism by Grady Hendrix.

And that’s definitely a book that I’d say is only suitable for older listeners, but it’s a really tender horror novel set in the 1980s about a girl who’s tasked with saving her best friend from a brutal possession.

It’s a really beautifully written book which terrified me at some parts and at others made me absolutely sob with how gorgeous and relatable its depiction of friendship is and also laugh out loud at others. And “We Got the Beat” is kind of the song that brings these two friends together and it fills my heart with joy every time I hear it.

I’ve also been reading the autobiography of Sonic Youth bass player Kim Gordon called Girl in a Band which is full of salacious titbits regarding the art and music scene of the 1990s but it also features some interesting feminist hot takes on the roles that women are forced into within the music industry which gives some food for thought for any young marginalised artist up against such structures.

Having said that, Kim Gordon is very bougie and at some points I was also like, ‘Damn, this is the whitest, most middle class complaint I think I’ve ever heard about being a struggling artist’ but hey ho…I still love Sonic Youth and always will. And Kim remains my girl.

Books are an important part of what makes us happy here at Comics Youth so please: Create perfect uncluttered spaces for you to enjoy books in. String lights up like Winona in Stranger Things and build blanket forts – make a reading nook that truly brings you serenity and happiness.

And if all else fails, just blast some music and whip your hair back and forth.

This is a triple-decker of songs about the importance of refusing to assimilate to other people’s norms, dismissing the dumb things that people might have to say about you, and just living your truth and loving that truth and to heck with everyone else.

TRACK 8: “Whip My Hair” – Willow Smith
TRACK 9: “Part Of Me” – Katy Perry
TRACK 10: “Let ‘em Say” – Lizzo feat. Caroline Smith

I hope that triple-decker left you feeling seriously hyped about who you are! That was “Whip My Hair” by Willow Smith, followed by “Part Of Me” by Katy Perry as chosen by Tom, and we finished it with “Let ‘em Say” by Lizzo and Caroline Smith, which it was requested by Kay.
 
And that sentiment of just owning and loving who you are is really at the heart of all happiness, isn’t it? It can be a really difficult thing to say To heck with the noise, I’m amazing, my people are amazing, and none of us need to change who we are or how we feel in order to make those other bozos happy. But it’s also an important thing to learn how to say.

It’s all about making yourself happy first and foremost. And that’s a crucial thing to remember in all aspects of life. Sure, there are things and people that can bring you happiness and that’s always terrific. But you aren’t going to truly appreciate that happiness the way you deserve until you can figure out how to make yourself happy first.

Be your own hero. Be someone that your younger self would look at and be inspired by. Surround yourself with joy and positivity and don’t be afraid to just bin off the people or influences that make you feel otherwise.

And remember: Nothing and nobody has the right to make you feel anything less than pure joy about who you are.

And now to one of my personal heroes – because yes, even spooky goth girls like me need the occasional pop superstar to hang their hearts on – this is Britney Spears with “Circus”.

TRACK 11: “Circus” – Britney Spears
TRACK 12: “I’m Still Standing” – Elton John

Let me tell you a little story about one Britney Jean Spears: Former childhood member of The Mickey Mouse club, full-time adult member of the mental-ill-health-but-still-a-badass-boss club.

I love Britney Spears. When I was growing up as a young teen I really fought hard against my love for this teeny-bopper and then in about 2006 through to 2007, she went through a horrifying public meltdown where it seemed like the media were baiting for her to perish.

And she just clicked with me. And I remember reading news items about her and this breakdown and thinking, ‘damn, this could be me. This could be any one of my friends and this is horrible what is happening to this young woman who is clearly ill and about whom an entire industry was built just to make fun of and belittle her’.

Now, obviously there are more important people and icons in the world. There are more important people to look up to and to celebrate. But, in terms of basic comforts for staying alive, I take a lot of strength and happiness from one Britney Spears.

You might have seen the meme that has been recirculating during this hellscape of a year that says ‘if Britney can get through 2007, then you can get through 2020’ because AMEN to that, lovelies.

Cos she’s still going. She’s hanging tough. And she brought out a couple of albums following those difficult times which I think are two of the best of her career – Blackout and Circus – both of which kind of delve into ideas about owning who you are – even the messy, difficult parts – and living that truth without disclaimer or apology.

And following Britney we played “I’m Still Standing” by Elton John which offers similar sentiments about holding your head up proud and emerging strong and resilient from a difficult or traumatic situation.

Elton John similarly had a lot of demons he fought at the beginning of his life and career and he got past it and he fought hard to feel comfortable enough with who he is and happy about who he is, that he could tell everyone else to get in the bin.

And you know what? That’s what we all need to do. Fight for your happiness. Fight for your freedom to own and enjoy that happiness without judgement or discrimination. And enjoy the peace and calm that comes with just enjoying the present moment and who you are within it.

If you have a glowstick, you might want to give it a snap and shake right about now cos we’re delving into a 90’s dance classic here. These next two tracks were requested by Raf.

TRACK 13: “The Rhythm of the Night” – Corona
TRACK 14: “The Magic Spider” – Nekrogoblikon

That was “the Rhythm of the Night” by Corona followed by the wonderfully eccentric Nekro-gob-likon with “The Magic Spider”.

We’re coming close to the end of the show here so I just wanted to check in and see how you’re all feeling. Are we feeling good with this show today? Are we dancing? Are we smiling? Are we shaking some serious tush while launching Maltesers into our mouths? And if not, why not?!

Your challenge for today, if you choose to accept it, is to take even just one or two hours out of your day and dedicate them to doing things that make you – and nobody else – happy. Seek out those safe spaces and those banquets of joy and gorge yourself on their positive sustenance.

And in fact – don’t just do that today. Practice that every day. Go hunting for joy, catch it with a net, stuff it in your pockets, hold it in your mouth like the finest teat, circle it around your body like a hula hoop, wear it like a fine garment, devour it like a snack.

Just make it yours. And remember that you deserve it. This is “Mamma Mia” by ABBA and it was requested by Tom.

TRACK 15: “Mamma Mia” – ABBA
TRACK 16: “Apeman” – The Kinks

ABBA there followed by The Kinks with “Apeman” which was requested by Lucy and which is also one of my happy songs. In fact, that entire Kinks album Lola Versus Powerman is just pure happiness and such a comfort and that about wraps us up for another week, folks!

Next week’s episode is our Pride special where we’ll be celebrating LGBTQIA+ musical artists and sharing some work by the talented writers from our Safe Spaces group so you best believe that we’re excited for that one!

Until then, remember everything is not cool, but it can be. Stay safe, stay sassy, and my goodness – FIND AND HOLD ONTO YOUR HAPPINESS. And if all else fails, just think of David Bowie in Labyrinth. But keep it clean, alright? This is a family show.

So long, farewell, auf weidersein, and byeeeeeeeeee!

TRACK 17” “Magic Dance” – David Bowie