hot take: spilt milk 2025 was allll about the non-headliners !!
This year’s takeover of the capital was pits, ponchos, and a Rebecca Black renaissance.
pov of the week
Last weekend was a HUGE one for music (and for me, hehe x). I trotted from the Gaga pit with my fellow lil monsters to the Canberra stomping grounds of Spilt Milk and I have zero regrets.
When it comes to concerts and live music events, my motto is always: ‘finna be in the pit!’ And I was. 😌
Spilt Milk was honestly a highlight of 2025 for me, simply bc there were SO many artists I was absolutely gagged by. Maybe I just romanticise seeing artists perform live, but omg I can’t fully encapsulate in words how incredible every single set I saw was. Ofc the headliners were talented, brilliant, incredible, amazing, show-stopping, spectacular — as expected — but I swear there was smth in the water this year bc it was the artists that I wasn’t that familiar with that rly stole the show for me!!
So,I must shout out three of my personal highlights (spoiler: yes, miss Rebecca Black is one of them). And before anyone goes all Lemongrab on me to say rankings are unacceptable, my silly, cutesy fun criteria for these are as follows: being taken utterly by surprise with sheer talent n artistry, the pit vibes (FIRE), and leaving with every intention to listen to their music afterwards (and you should, too).
Okay, okay, onto the new fandoms I shall be joining shortly 🫡:
Don West: I went into Don West’s set having no idea what I was getting myself into. And boy, was I grateful when I realised, because he did not disappoint. I was literally starstruck.
His music?? Jazz energy with a lil bit of pizzazz (I see you!), and omg the tone of his voice??? So different and so soothing lowkey, it was defs giving powerhouse vocals. And guys, the band??? They were so cute and fun. Plus, the brass boys (aka a trio of his trumpet, trombone and saxophone guys) even did a lil dance-y dance together bc they were having sm fun??!! The vibes were groovy and immaculate.
Rebecca Black: If you look up cunty, you WILL find vids of Rebecca Black onstage. Or, at least, you should, because this serve was truly insane. My only prior knowledge of her was the ICONIC hit, ‘Friday’ (2011 mention?!) and having watched her INCREDIBLE Boiler Room set, so I was half expecting a full DJ set (whoopsie).
Buuuut I was met with a performance that gave Mother Monster meets Von Dutch icon. I guess Lady Gaga and Charli XCX were pregnant with 2025 Rebecca Black when they dropped the ‘911’ remix with A.G. Cook back in 2021. And the SATIRE??? Ugh I was living for it. I genuinely had the exact same reaction (aka pure joy) to her set as I did for Confidence Man @ Laneway back in 2024 (and I’m now a huge fan of theirs x).
Genesis Owusu: Okay, okay, this is on me for not expecting Genesis Owusu to be a standout. My previous context was that he was an extremely cool artist I’d heard of, and Junkee chatted with him previously, which cemented his cool status in my mind. Plus, there’s that one song from the KFC commercial which I had no idea was him until 2 min before he performed????
The second he came onstage, though, his energy was so infectious. I was having the time of my life!! Not only is my guy incredibly talented (a literal hip-hop revolutionary), he’s also just so much fun to watch bc he genuinely loves his craft. In summary: everyone WILL be hearing from me after I’ve listened to his entire discography this week xx.
P.S. Special shoutout to Doechii, aka my fave headliner (Kendrick fans, pls don’t come for me). This pit popped off in a way I wasn’t expecting bc I’m silly. That’s MY swamp princess !!
Anyways, I’m done yapping now! Just needed to put you onto these artists bc they made it all SO worth it: the trek, the rain, the mud, the ponchos, and everything in between. I fear my Spotify Wrapped for 2026 is going to look heaps different thanks to the discovery of my new fixations for the foreseeable future.
— Nish.
Hello! I’m Natasha! I feel like it’s me and my busted reusable water bottle against the world sometimes. And I think that at some point, the corporations need to take accountability for their much more sizable impact on the planet (which literally started before I was born btw!!). Check back here weekly for more about how plastic is being repurposed for good and how you can make more conscious choices. Inspired by Bank Australia’s Aquarium of Tomorrow installation, we know there’s LIFE in plastic!! We’re all just girls in a plastic world, after all.
Did you know that earlier this year, major gas corporation Woodside spilled 16,000 litres of petroleum into the Indian Ocean. As if a girl like me could ever do that… that’s on them to figure out how to repair what they’re actively messing up.
It’s so easy to feel like a little fish in a big ocean. While it may seem that some billion-dollar corporations seem to be able to do heinous damage to our planet without consequences, I refuse to accept that as canon. The secret they don’t want us to know is that we actually do have power. And the best way to leverage it is by making sure that we’re using our money as a force for good. Customer-owned banking is a way for us to do more together than we could alone, especially with a bank that cares about people and our planet as well as profit.
The more people who get involved, the more impact we can create together. I remember being a stressed lil 15-year-old organising climate marches but when thousands of other people would show up, I realised that we could actually all make a difference — and that I’m not doing it all on my own.
I’m not really gonna give up my sustainability efforts. That was just a silly joke. I’m never gonna stop doing little things for the planet because this is our house. We live here. It’s kinda wild to me how often we forget that our collective purpose is to look out for each other and preserve our planet for future generations. So, I’ll never stop. But companies need to step up.
Tell us how you really feel: are you kinda exhausted trying to be sustainable when corporations don’t seem to be pulling their weight? Vent, rant, tell us all your opinions: here.
some things on my radar this week:
The Krypto cinematic universe continues with the new teaser trailer for Supergirl! After her cameo at the end of James Gunn’s Superman, House of the Dragon star Milly Alcock is returning as the hungover Kara Zor-El in 2026. The upcoming DCU film is adapting the comic book miniseries Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow, although there’s still plenty of surprises like the extremely brief look at Jason Momoa as Lobo!!
Watch party is further down but One Battle After Another is hitting HBO Max in Australia this Friday and I highlyyy recommend. Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Sean Penn, Teyana Taylor, Regina Hall, Benicio del Toro and Chase Infiniti, One Battle After Another is kinda everything at once and in the best way possible. I went into this movie thinking it would be a lot more grandiose in scale and the themes it tackles, but ultimately, the intimacy of the story and its character is greater than the sum of its parts. Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, the film is projected to be an Oscar frontrunner after already sweeping up nine Golden Globe nominations.
Whoever organised the recent Actors on Actors episode with Michael B. Jordan and Jesse Plemons knows exactly what they’re doing to Friday Night Lights fans!! The stars behind two of my favourite films this year chat about their role in Sinners and Bugonia respectively, the technicality behind their performances, and the TV show that launched their careers.
aux
songs to add to your playlist rn:
More Fire More Flamez - Wretch 32, Avelino
This feels like a fun music trivia q: what’s been the longest wait between an album and a deluxe edition? bc 10 years later and Wretch32 and Avelino are backkk with the deluxe version of Young Flame, Old Fire. This album went triple platinum in my headphones during maths class.
When The Dust Settles (Reimagined) - Skem
Skem is one of the most vulnerable voices in Aus rap, painfully honest and earnest with every bar. The Sydney artist dropped two versions of ‘When The Dust Settles’ last week, but this reimagined version is damn near perfect.
After a quiet 2024, MUNGMUNG shows up (extremely) fashionably late to the 2025 party with her new EP Fēi produced by Taka Perry!! A perfect fit for club dancefloors or your bedroom mirror, MUNGMUNG’s confidence and coolness knows no boundaries!!
(Save this playlist btw, updating every week!!)
Fallout Season 2 (2025) | okey dokey!
If I had a nickel for every time Ella Purnell played a wide-eyed, occasionally misguided but ultimately well-meaning lead character in a TV adaptation of a wildly popular gaming franchise, I’d have two nickels. Which isn’t a lot, but it’s weird that it happened twice. And we thank her for it. After already claiming her place in one of the best gaming adaptations of all time as the voice of Jinx in Arcane, Ella continues her generational run as the plucky protagonist of Fallout, Lucy. Her earnest depiction of this vault-dweller is by far my favourite part of the series, which has resonated with both TV and gaming audiences by expanding upon the extensive Fallout lore with original characters, and Season 2 is already off to a great start. Watch our interview with the cast here.
Anaconda (1997) | the craziest thing about this movie is probably the cast rather than the 7m monster snake hunting them down
This gem of a ‘90s cult-classic is a prime reason why anacondas join my list of irrational fears that my childhood self was convinced would be a real threat in my future, like quicksand and log trucks. It wasn’t until those videos of real anacondas taking 2-5 business days to eat a deer that I was finally convinced that the chances of that fate were low (but never zero). When I finally faced my fear and rewatched Anaconda, the real shocker was the cast. Jennifer Lopez, Ice Cube, Owen Wilson, and Jon Voight in a movie about a giant snake simply sounds made up. Plus, an appearance from Danny Trejo, and The Mummy and Jumanji diva Johnathon Hyde! It doesn’t get any better…. Unless?
Anaconda (2025) | it just got better
This 2025 instalment brings you Jack Black and Paul Rudd — a duo that I can’t believe hasn’t happened yet — plus Steve Zahn and Thandiwe Newton for some extra razzle dazzle. Could it really be enough to catch the lightning in a bottle of the original? Fear not, this film is well aware of the original’s cult status; so much so that it is, in fact, about two pals remaking the 1997 film. A cheeky meta take on the whole Anaconda legacy that screams cinema date with your mates because you know it’s going to be a bit of fun. Watch the trailer here to prep the crew for a Boxing Day release.
Junkee Media acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the land where this newsletter was produced, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation.
