AROUSE saw a lot of change this last year. We’re recording from a whole new studio, we’ve got a spiffy new website, and, of course, we’ve got a brand-new executive board — and a whole new crop of members! We’re happy to have you with us.
In years past, we’ve typically done an end-of-year list showcasing our top picks. This year, however, we’re shaking things up a little with the AROUSE Phonies: AROUSE’s own end-of-year awards.
We had a great time putting these together, and we here at the Magazine Board hope you enjoy the experience of the AROUSE Phonies as much as we did. Without further ado: the awards!
Nominees
For Breakthrough Artist: Sabrina Carpenter, Chappell Roan, Charli XCX
For Freak Of The Year: NLE Choppa, Dave Grohl, Kevin Gates
For Best Country: Orville Peck, Kacey Musgraves, Mexico
For Fell Off: Vultures II, 143, Radical Optimism
For Best Bar: “I’ll air this bitch out like a queef,” “You think you the sh*t/You not even the fart”, Uno
For Most Aura: Carti, Nick Cheo, Timothee Chalamet
For Best Collab: Black & Tan, Girl So Confusing, Sticky
For Who Gaf: Morgan Wallen, Eminem, Lil Uzi Vert
For White Boy Of The Year: Hozier, 2hollis, mk.gee
For Alpha Rho Omega Pick: Not Like Us, Fein, Carnival
For Best Performance: Childish Gambino, JPEGMAFIA, Weezer
For Album Of The Year: The New Sound, Chromakopia, Hit Me Hard And Soft
And the winners are, as decided by the polls…
Awards
Breakthrough Artist – Chappell Roan
blurb by Raven Kline
Artist Chappell Roan set the bar quite high for pop stars after the runaway success of her debut album in 2023. In 2024, however, she kicked it into full gear with her Billboard Hot 100 hit “Good Luck, Babe”. Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve seen her drag-inspired costuming in performances at Lollapalooza, the Governor’s Ball, and on Saturday Night Live. Her “girly-pop” sparkle has captured the hearts of the nation, and a place on this year’s list as our top Breakthrough Artist.
Freak Of The Year – Dave Grohl
blurb by Trishna Chettiar
Noted Nirvana alum and Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl revealed in September 2024 that he fathered a child outside his marriage to Jordyn Blum, tarnishing his hitherto “nice guy” image. He had maintained a reputation as a devoted family man, with ventures as wholesome as a line of supposedly “killer” whole-grain bread. While he has so far expressed a commitment to regaining his family’s trust, the revelation has left his 21-year marriage hanging by a thread. We here at AROUSE think that qualifies him as Freak Of The Year.
Best Country – Kacey Musgraves
blurb by Agora Wank
While Kacey Musgraves finds herself no stranger to the country-pop genre, the unmissable woodsy nature-fest Deeper Well proved itself unmissable with its number-two debut on the Billboard 200. From the dance beat of ‘Cardinal’ to the descending calm chorus of the title track, it gives the yeehaw girlies everything they needed this year. Kacey strays from the average top 40 country singers by avoiding the cliches of the red solo party scene, with the focus of the album resting on losing loved ones and bettering herself. The pleading line in the tenth track’s chorus “do we have any say in this mess? / is it too late to make some more space? / can i speak to the architect?” talks about how life doesn’t always happen as planned. No matter how prepared one can be, it can all change in an instant. This heartfelt album, paired with a show stopping tour chock-full of gorgeous sets, incredible lighting and her canine guest star, has cemented Kacey as our pick for Best Country.
Fell Off – Vultures II
by Kanye West (a.k.a Ye)
blurb by Jackson Reider
Vultures II, somehow, manages to disappoint. The album feels like little more than a collection of scattered ideas surrounding money, women, and his recent run-ins with cancel culture. Instead of returning to the heartfelt narratives of The College Dropout or The Life of Pablo, West uses the album to strike out in anger and hatred at those who hurt him. The absence of the passion for his craft that once suffused West’s work makes the tracks difficult to listen to. Ultimately, Vultures II was a tragic release for many. As someone who grew up listening to Kanye, I really hope his next release brings him back to at least some of his former self — from before he fell off.
Best Bar – “I’ll Air This Bitch Out Like A Queef,”
from “Balloon” off Tyler, The Creator’s Chromakopia
blurb by Raven Kline
Rap artist Jaylah Ji’mya Hickmon, known professionally as Doechii, has risen in popularity since the viral success of her song “Yucky Bucky Fruitcake” in 2021. Doechii, known for her distinct hooks and intense delivery, wastes no time distinguishing her feature in Tyler, The Creator’s song “Balloon” with her usual creative wordplay. This incredible verse has firmly earned a spot on this year’s Phonies list.
Most Aura – Timothee Chalamet
blurb by Luca Hartman
Fresh from big-screen success, with his image bolstered by the recent releases of Wonka, Dune: Part Two, and A Complete Unknown, Timothee Chalamet has had a banner year. This October, Youtuber Anthony Po famously hosted a Timothee Chalamet lookalike contest in NYC, drawing in a large crowd with hundreds of New York’s lankiest dressed in their best chocolate factory attire. Although the festivities were broken up by the NYPD, it was not before Chalamet himself made a brief surprise appearance. The competition cost Po a $500 fine, but Chalamet took care of the bill. This, alongside his cinematic success, earns him the Most Aura award.
Best Collab – “Girl So Confusing,”
by Charli XCX and Lorde
blurb by Agora Wank
“Girl So Confusing” gives us, essentially, a dream collab between two incredible popstars. When Charli first dropped the track, she hinted at it being about a specific celeb before exposing in high fidelity her side of the silent yet legendary feud between her and Lorde. Lorde delivers in this club classic hit. The huge genre shift from her from her typical sad girl melancholic pop fazes her little: in her lyrics, she gives her all. The song inspires us to air out grievances that have gone unshared and hopefully learn to ride for each-other like these two insatiable pop divas. It’s personal, deep, and relatable, yet manages to keep audiences strutting — which earns it our Best Collab award by a wide margin.
Who Gaf – Morgan Wallen
blurb by Brady Virtue
Who gaf about Morgan Wallen? Well, the award’s rhetorical, but I’ll answer. In 2021, Morgan Wallen said the N-word, and his album sales spiked immediately following the backlash. That’s who gaf about Morgan Wallen. In 2024 he got drunk and chucked a chair from the roof of a 6 story building. Seemingly due to the much less deplorable nature of this act, his album sales did not spike. In 2021, Morgan Wallen was a drunk jerk that racist people cared about. In 2024, Morgan Wallen is a drunk jerk that no one cares about. Who gaf.
White Boy Of The Year – Hozier
blurb by Agora Wank
Irish sensation Andrew John Hozier-Byrne braved the craziest storm of the summer to make it to Cleveland. I struggle to name an artist more dedicated to his fans. On top of his sold-out shows, 2024 granted him his first #1 hit with the track “Too Sweet.” The haunting vocals of the hit carry throughout every track on his latest album Unreal Unearth. It glows with the classic Hozier charm, but still manages to deliver a whole new sound compared to his previous projects. He continues to blend folk and pop in a soulful, poetic manner that keeps us all swooning with every lyric. He deftly meditates on his themes of religion and folklore without ever sinking to corny lines and cheap hits to the heart. Mr. Hozier is just too sweet for his own good, which is why we’ve decided to name him our White Boy of the Year.
Alpha Rho Omega Pick – “Not Like Us,”
by Kendrick Lamar
blurb by Owen Carty
Brat summer may have defined summer, but the legendary Kendrick Lamar vs Drake feud defined 2024. The beef saw two of the biggest rappers in the world exchanging diss tracks, with “Not Like Us” serving as the final contribution from Lamar. Here, Kendrick intensifies the allegations of pedophilia he previously leveled against Drake in his previous diss, “Meet the Grahams,” which was released just a few days earlier. Set against a West Coast style beat, Lamar’s electric rapping and bold lyrics paired with an infectious chorus and extremely danceable beat crystallized into an instant classic. “Not Like Us” will be remembered for years to come, and certainly deserves the Alpha Rho Omega Pick award — as no frat party is complete without a group of rowdy college students screaming “Tryna strike a chord and it’s probably A minorrr…”
Best Performance – Childish Gambino
blurb by Luca Hartman
Childish Gambino officially returned to concert venues around the world with his Bando Stone and the New World tour. The legendary live performer Gambino brought the special effects and energy to captivate an entire stadium, capturing audiences with the raw magnitude of his voice. The show closely depicted the narrative of his animalistic and creepy journey through the New World, featuring a suit that turned Gambino into a robotic creature bound to the stage by wires. The culmination of the sonic bliss and the trippy visual experience gave Gambino a clear victory for best performance of 2024.
Best Album – Chromakopia
blurb by AROUSE Editors
True story: on a trip to Philadelphia earlier this year I saw a lime-green CHROMAKOPIA brick in the pavement somewhere around 11th. Tyler’s undisguised hit lingers in your ears (and under your feet.) Okonma might shield his lips with an almost funerary mask, but Chromakopia’s anxious lyricism spares nothing in revealing its vision of a harassed and plainly terrified Tyler. He darts between the shadows on his breakout hit “Noid,” and in the album’s titular “St. Chroma” he whispers to us his hope that he will “make it out.” Topped with frenetic guitar riffs, luminescent funk nods, and eclectic yet forceful sampling, Chromakopia explodes like a bloody fistful of cherry bombs. The record of fear and force, an unfortunate sign for our times and our pick for Album of the Year.
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