My physical media shelf superlatives
The Kudos CD is 'The one that got away'...
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ICYMI, in last week’s letter, I shared a photographic treasure trove of physical media I did not buy! Since then, I found like, a dozen more pictures. My camera roll is a bottomless pit, I swear. It does remind me that I should go back to [redacted] and buy that Kudos compilation CD.
Hope you fared well this week with the snow. I try to look as glamorous as Jennifer Lopez in the “All I Have” music video, but I’m so sick of winter. BRING ON THE SPRING!!!! I’ve still been having fun though:
Got new headshots through Shoott!1
Have been dancing consistently, plus teaching my classes (yay!)
Started vocal technique lessons (so fun, and “natural talent” was how my teacher described my abilities…just saying…)
Did karaoke for the one and only Amethyst at Montero’s (she loved my song choice) and started designing a NYC Karaoke Bingo template just because!
My website is still massively under construction, but I finally finished my virtual physical media collection page! ISN’T IT FABULOUS?!?! I also finally organized the literal shelf in my room, which looks like the one pictured.
⭐️ Physical media shelf superlatives ⭐️
As you know from exploring the Nicstalgia Consumption Rubric, not all CDs I find in the wild are added to my collection. That doesn’t mean that hundreds haven’t made the cut LOL. Here are some of my favorites!
Best deep cut
Eden’s Crush’s Get Over Yourself single out there, but I really wanted the Popstars album! I found it before Eden’s Crush was later put on Spotify, and I will still have it after it inevitably disappears from streaming again. I need to be able to listen to their cover of Sheila E’s “The Glamorous Life” at any given moment.
Best hidden gem
As the Co-President of the Mikaila Fan Club (with Chet), it was imperative that I acquired Mikaila’s album. In my opinion, “Emotional” is the perfect pop song. PERFECT. I now own 3 copies of this CD, because one didn’t have the jacket and another I just felt like having for backup? Anyway, if you are not already acquainted with the actress who was on Wishbone (!!!) and sang some amazing bubblegum pop bangers, I highly recommend you tap in immediately.
Best gift(s)
Matthew Perpetua has an incredible ear, thorough musicality, a deep passion for music, and uncanny ability to pick out a gift for me that reflects his respect for both my kitschy, campy, and melodramatic tastes. This category is a three-way tie between Mariah Carey’s Glitter, Nude on the Moon: The B-52’s Anthology, and Lady Gaga’s The Fame 10 year anniversary edition that comes with a little Lady Gaga flash drive!!!!!!
Best single
Ricky Martin and Christina Aguilera’s “Nobody Wants to Be Lonely”. This song went triple platinum in my house!!!!!! The next time I am in Florida, I kind of desperately need to go to Coral Gables where they filmed the music video. Their chemistry is so unconvincing (for obvious reasons) and it looks like they were CGI’d in the same room, which was a great relationship model for 11-year-old me. (I actively avoided my first boyfriend in the hallways of our middle school.)
Best soundtrack to a movie I have not seen
I have a confession to make, and please don’t hate me for saying this: I have never seen the movie A Walk to Remember. I really don’t like lying, but I think that about 90% of the time I’ve lied in my life was telling people I’d seen A Walk to Remember when I hadn’t. But I DID have the soundtrack, which honestly, is kinda close enough??
Best splurge
Spiceworld was at a flea market for $9, which is now more than I would ever pay for a vintage CD. But it was the first album I had on cassette tape, and it absolutely changed my life, so it had to be done. I spiced up my life in 1997 and haven’t stopped since.
Best “parental advisory” CD
Has to be Missy Elliott’s Miss E…So Addictive. When I saw the “Get Ur Freak On” music video on MTV, I was shocked and awed by how cool, futuristic, and innovative she was. She’s a legend!!! That reminds me I need to print out the tweet of mine that she responded to with a single purple heart emoji. (I don’t care if it was her assistant or Miss Fendi Dior, it was someone with her login info.)
Most nostalgic find
There is a trifecta of CDs that changed my entire life: Celine Dion’s Let’s Talk About Love, Mariah Carey’s Music Box, and Britney Spears’s Britney. These artists (plus Missy Elliott!) are my Mount Rushmore. No further comment needed.
Most satisfying find
Sometimes I buy CDs from this massive warehouse in Connecticut – they used to be a physical store but now only sell online. Tri-State Area people (and readers of Nicstalgia, obviously) may already know about Drew’s. It was a company out of New Jersey that made themed cover CDs of party music. You could get one for Halloween, luau, baby shower, whatever. They sold them at iParty (RIP) and my favorite was Drew’s Famous Smash Party Hits. Though I’d parted from my original childhood copy, I was incredibly satisfied to fulfill my vow that one day, we would reunite again.
Best promotional CD
I collect retail promotional CDs because I have spent about 15% of my life inside of malls. I have CDs from Old Navy, GAP, Urban Outfitters, American Eagle, Victoria’s Secret, Limited Too, and dELiA*s. Even though I can select particular CDs from the warehouse, it’s way more fun to find them in the wild. I was at Goodwill with my mom a couple weeks ago and found the first edition of a dELiA*s CD. I practically sprinted to the register…
Most fated find
When I first got really into CD collecting in 2022, the last CD I found on my first trip was NOW That’s What I Call Music! 7. I almost started crying right then and there. Literally over 100 of these CDs exist, and yet my favorite one – the only one I had as a kid – was NOW 7. At the time, my sister had a car with a CD player and we listened to it on the way home. It really was like hearing Destiny’s Child’s “Survivor” again for the first time.
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I’ve been using Shoott since 2019, but they’re all over the US now. The shoot is free and you only pay for the photos you want. This comes in clutch when you have a tight budget! My referral code is 5CC6473B for 20% off 5+ photos.
the walk to remember soundtrack is iconic omg