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Hearing Things

@hearingthingsco.bsky.social
29K followers 8 following 1.1K posts

Independent music journalism. No algorithms. We promise.

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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 6h
If the people behind an album can’t be bothered to invest more than a few seconds into their artwork, how dare they expect us to spend our time listening to it?
hearingthings.co
AI Album Covers Have No Place in Hip-Hop
A visual artist who built his career on creating covers for independent rap records laments how AI is bastardizing his life’s work.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 6h
You play it once and you have to play it again right away, because there’s no way you’ve caught up to everything that’s happening
hearingthings.co
The Most Consequential Southern Rap Verse Ever Recorded
How Bun B’s flawless performance on UGK’s 1996 classic “Murder” changed the parameters for all of rap music.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
A kaleidoscopic multi-genre extravaganza! Intergalactic dance music to throw ass to! Latine country-pop with heaping spoonfuls of rap and fiddle! All this and more in this week's Five Albums.
hearingthings.co
One of the Most Audacious Debuts of the Year
Plus intergalactic dance music to throw ass to.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Baltimore rapper Brian Ennals doesn't just Go There—he drags you several miles away from There from the back of a motorcycle with a license plate that reads “ACAB.” We spoke to him about some of his favorite songs for the latest edition of Words Matter.
hearingthings.co
Rap Bomb-Thrower Brian Ennals on the Lyrics That Changed His Life
The unfiltered Baltimore MC talks about the apocalyptic horniness of the Four Tops, the sociopolitical genius of Stevie Wonder, and why Biggie is the best storyteller in hip-hop history.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
The idea of the Renaissance critic isn’t entirely new. Black critics have always had to carve out space in an industry dominated by white men.
hearingthings.co
What Does It Even Mean to Be a Music Critic Now?
A veteran culture writer surveys the radically transforming journalistic ecosystem.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Among other things, Okayplayer was a place to learn about music from people who knew more about it than you. My degree may be in communication, but I was trained in musicology by OKP. www.hearingthings.co/the-afterliv...
hearingthings.co
The Afterlives of Okayplayer
The story of a message board that changed hip-hop forever
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Where did hip-hop's obsession with lean come from, and why does it seem to have only grown stronger throughout the 2020s? From DJ Screw to Maxo Kream and Lil Uzi Vert, we charted the winding history of rap's drug of choice.
hearingthings.co
A History of Hip-Hop’s Obsession With Lean
An in-depth look into the past and present of rap’s favorite drug.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Thought-proviking IDM! Post-punk and electropop fusion! A musical memorial to a home lost in the Altadena fires! Shoegaze-jazz-rap for the apocalypse! All this and more on this week's Five Albums
hearingthings.co
Rebuilding Your Home Through the Power of Music
Plus avant-garde shoegaze-jazz-rap-soul for the apocalypse.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
"I thought I was creating this hero's journey—but then ended up 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 the hero’s journey.” Get into Halima's delectable, Afropop-inspired, club R&B debut 𝘚𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘵 𝘛𝘰𝘰𝘵𝘩, released a year ago today—and what she learned from making it:
hearingthings.co
Halima’s Hero’s Journey to the Club and Back
The velvet-voiced club songwriter and producer on making her delectable debut album, 2025’s 'Sweet Tooth,' and what comes next.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
The verse had to push against the understood flow of hip-hop’s trajectory, past the ideas of what Southern rap can and can’t be, and ultimately land on what it means to be a Black Southerner altogether
hearingthings.co
The Most Consequential Southern Rap Verse Ever Recorded
How Bun B’s flawless performance on UGK’s 1996 classic “Murder” changed the parameters for all of rap music.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Somehow, it's been two years since we started Hearing Things. Now we’re commemorating our continued existence with a very special show starring two of our favorite current singer-songwriters.
hearingthings.co
Come Celebrate Our 2nd Anniversary!
Join us for a concert featuring two of our favorite singer-songwriters on October 7 in New York City.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
For Gen Z’s aspiring music critics, there’s no real standardized pipeline—and not much of an informal one, either
hearingthings.co
What Does It Even Mean to Be a Music Critic Now?
A veteran culture writer surveys the radically transforming journalistic ecosystem.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
Hip-hop for the revolution and for the streets! Down to earth country-rock! Conservatory-grade electronic prog! All this and more in this week's edition of Five Albums
hearingthings.co
An ICE Agent's Least Favorite Rap Duo
Plus down-to-earth country-rock
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
The verse became a measuring stick for all other rappers: Can you get on this level? If not, why are you even doing this? 
hearingthings.co
The Most Consequential Southern Rap Verse Ever Recorded
How Bun B’s flawless performance on UGK’s 1996 classic “Murder” changed the parameters for all of rap music.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
The most mind-boggling grooves ever laid down by a septuagenarian and more
hearingthings.co
Drake Musical Theater, But Somehow Good
Plus: Are those samples having sex?
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
"I think some songwriters tend to write bad songs because they’re trying to be too literary. There’s a weird trend of that in indie music, where they write, like, tone poems, I guess, instead of songs with hooks and stuff."
hearingthings.co
The Tubs’ Owen Williams on the Lyrics That Changed His Life
The hilarious and big-hearted guitar-pop songwriter talks about balancing irony and sincerity, roasting your friends on record, and the genius of “Fast Car.”
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
A new Erykah Badu album! Gauzy shoegaze mixed with outré Latin trap! Ambient tunes from a Norwegian-Mexican clarinetist and a Swedish electronic producer! Mod revival covers by an ambitious Gen Z guitarist! All this and more in Five Albums
hearingthings.co
A Love Letter for The End of the World
Plus gauzy shoegaze meets outré Latin trap and a Swedish ambient musician's hauntological field recordings
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
The concept of “the music critic” has never felt more nebulous
hearingthings.co
What Does It Even Mean to Be a Music Critic Now?
A veteran culture writer surveys the radically transforming journalistic ecosystem.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
And two songs that had us wondering: Was the whole thinga dream? www.hearingthings.co/gen-z-rock-p...
hearingthings.co
Gen-Z Rock Philosophy and Psychedelic Onomatopoeia
Plus bubbly Japanese synth-funk and more
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Supergroups making villainous hip-hop and astral ambient jazz! The 11-years-later return of the Alabama Shakes! Improvisational post-punk/pop/emo fusion! AM pop radio joints straight from Montreal! All this and more in this week's Five Albums
hearingthings.co
Did Someone Say "Supergroups"?
Plus the 11-years-later return of the Alabama Shakes.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
In 1978, when Dolly was promoting her 20th (!) album, Heartbreaker, she was booked for a blockbuster night by the Cheyenne Frontier Days committee—which used my dad's motorhome as the artists' green room.
hearingthings.co
That Time Dolly Came to My Little Wyoming Hometown
Honoring the late country icon with a story about her appearance at a rodeo in 1978.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
A dancefloor heater about firing your therapist, a yacht-rap song about mom, and more www.hearingthings.co/a-fiddlin-fu...
hearingthings.co
A Fiddlin’ Funk Fantasy Called “Froggy”
Plus synth music that will make you want to go rodent mode
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
Two Must Hear albums from Manchester rockers fostering real community and a prolific ambient-rap stalwart! A lovelorn tribute to UK funky house! Weezer's latest nostalgia grab! All this and more in this week's edition of Five Albums
hearingthings.co
Real Rockers Fostering Real Community (Seriously)
Plus a Must Hear album from a prolific ambient-rap stalwart, a lovelorn tribute to UK funky house, a frenetic hip-hop reunion, and Weezer's latest nostalgia grab.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
New York hip-hop producer Blockhead has (very good!) thoughts about beats made by Prince Paul, RJD2, Fiona Apple, and more in the latest edition of The Producers
hearingthings.co
Blockhead Breaks Down Seven Perfectly Produced Records
The legendary New York hip-hop producer dissects tracks by Black Sheep, Prince Paul, Fiona Apple, and more.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
Troye does his version of Lou Reed talk-singing a la “Walk on the Wild Side” over a ’90s-ass beat that brings me back to the days of Primitive Radio Gods
hearingthings.co
The Twink Robin to Charli's Batman
Presenting one of the year's best pop singles
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
Must Hear experimental pop/jazz/indie rock fusion! Emotive música Mexicana for the club! A follow up to a hardcore New Jersey hip-hop cult classic! A personal essay about the new Phoebe Bridgers! All this and more in this week's Five Albums
hearingthings.co
Pummeling Art Punk Straight From Detroit
Plus Must Hear experimental pop, emotive música Mexicana for the club, emo-pop to bring you out of your shell, and a follow up to an 11-year-old New Jersey hardcore hip-hop cult classic.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 15/08/2026
One of Hana Stretton's ambient-folk odes to aloneness has been used to soundtrack more than 40,000 TikToks. Stretton is aware of this, but not deeply—she’s never been on TikTok.
hearingthings.co
Hana Stretton Makes Ambient Folk Music for an Overstimulated Era
How the Australian artist broke all the rules en route to becoming an unlikely cult sensation.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
Scuzzed-out rock'n'roll poetry from New Orleans, a well-earned note of triumph from one of the most exciting rappers of the last few years, and more
hearingthings.co
A Hot New Rock Band That Actually Deserves the Hype
And a king of sad raps gets happy
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
The dream is dead but we didn’t kill it
hearingthings.co
The Latest Elegy for Music Journalism and Middle-Class Musicianhood
Sometimes professional failure isn’t your fault.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 11/08/2026
Juicy J's spoken word jazz album! Bubbly nonchalant California rap! Empowering UK R&B made for the club! North Indian classical singing mixed with jazz and post-rock! All this and more In this week's Five Albums
hearingthings.co
Juicy J's Spoken Word Jazz Album (Yes, You Read That Right)
Plus bubbly nonchalant California rap, empowering UK R&B, North Indian classical singing mixed with space-jazz and post-rock, and an icy electronic debut from a new Cambridge duo
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
What's on Rico Nasty's credit card statement? The Maryland rapper spoke to us about her love of cherry cola Celsius, products for her natural hair journey, and the one time she spend hundreds of dollars on tacos at Nobu
hearingthings.co
Rico Nasty Explains Her Credit Card Statement
The Maryland rapper talks through recent purchases, including her favorite energy drink, hair products, and a recent splurge on Nobu tacos.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 06/08/2026
Plus a worthy heir to Aaliyah, a perfect power-pop song for mid-summer doldrums, and more
hearingthings.co
Tom Waits Just Released the Most Withering Diss Track of the Year
Houseflies, beware.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
Did you know Hearing Things members who sign up for our Audiophile tier receive an exclusive piece of merch every year? It’s true! Subscribe now at a discounted rate to get some sweet HT swag (cat not included).
hearingthings.co
New Hearing Things Merch Alert
Upgrade your membership at an exclusive discount to secure your custom HT slipmat and receive a playlist just for you.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 04/08/2026
45 years worth of dub and reggae rarities! Gritty instrumental boom-bap straight from the Motor City! Dembow-Afropop-baile funk fusion! All this and more in this week's edition of Five Albums.
hearingthings.co
A Legend's Technicolor Dub Extravaganza
Plus a Detroit veteran's velour instrumental album, a Ghanaian-American pop star's kaleidoscopic mixtape, a digicore wunderkind's groovy new EP, and an indie rock stalwart's rage against the industry's little boxes
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 03/08/2026
The only way you can get your hands on one of our exclusive new Hearing Things slipmats is by becoming a yearly Audiophile subscriber—which, for a limited time, we are offering at a discounted rate
hearingthings.co
New Hearing Things Merch Alert
Upgrade your membership at an exclusive discount to secure your custom HT slipmat and receive a playlist just for you.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
Make choices about what you want to hear and when you want to hear it. Resist the idea that your every mood and action require a soundtrack, an idea that Spotify is invested in pushing for a reason. www.hearingthings.co/stop-listeni...
hearingthings.co
Stop Listening to Music
...at least from time to time.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 30/07/2026
Polyrhythmic Mellotron flute riffs, piano runs that sound like 16-bit video game power-ups, live drums that sound like micro-sliced breakbeats, a bass line that might as well have been played on Chapman Stick
hearingthings.co
Sci-Fi Prog-Pop for Alien Dance Clubs
Plus regret-soaked Americana and haunting Irish folk.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 30/07/2026
The Vampire Lestat is the perfect avatar for an old-school rocker who’s delusional about his importance but also in mourning over rock’s fading cultural hegemony (which is to say, his own)
hearingthings.co
The Last Immortal Rock Star
How ‘The Vampire Lestat’ is resurrecting the archetype of the sexy, sweaty rock frontman.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
Come to this week's Five Albums for Jill's thoughts on Charli's rock-soundtracked struggles between music, fashion, and film stardom; stay for albums powered by cello compositions, hi-fi field recordings, deconstructed footwork, and new-age Memphis hip-hop.
hearingthings.co
Charli XCX Wants to Run With the Big Dogs
Plus an ultra-rare hi-fi audio collage, a dispatch from a rising Memphis rap star, and deconstructed footwork meant to approximate the chaos of the timeline
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
Gatekeeping for taste and quality is a more sound approach than for whether or not someone figured out how to re-create specific hi-hat patterns or what button to press to add the vinyl crackle.
hearingthings.co
How I Became A Beatmaker (By Watching Other People Make Beats)
A first-time beatmaker’s case for the nuances of developing style and gatekeeping within rap production.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 25/07/2026
A first-time beatmaker’s case for the nuances of developing style and a counter to Kenneth Blume's (fka Kenny Beats) recent comments about gatekeeping within rap production.
hearingthings.co
How I Became A Beatmaker (By Watching Other People Make Beats)
A first-time beatmaker’s case for the nuances of developing style and gatekeeping within rap production.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
Finding your own style as a beatmaker is important, but gatekeeping knowledge on the process isn't the answer you think it is. Just ask Dylan--or read his blog about his first 10 months of being a producer
hearingthings.co
How I Became A Beatmaker (By Watching Other People Make Beats)
A first-time beatmaker’s case for the nuances of developing style and gatekeeping within rap production.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
A legend of underground rap and one of the best new MCs out team up for an album that feels like a friend spitting truths outside the bar after doing a line of coke and a shot of tequila. Its name? 𝘉𝘰𝘢𝘵𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘦𝘴, of course.
hearingthings.co
Nia Archives Has the Range
Plus Four Tet’s un-Googleable new album, Syd’s grown-woman swagger, and a high-wire act of underground rap
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
On the latest ep of our podcast Waste or Taste, we go in on our controversial fav songs of 2026, from Drake to Ella Langley www.hearingthings.co/debating-our...
hearingthings.co
Debating Our Most Controversial Faves of 2026 So Far
The whole HT crew reconvenes for a podcast episode about songs that just might piss some people off.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
A great Four Tet record is hiding under his new and very un-Googleable alias ⣎⡇ꉺლ༽இ•̛)ྀ◞ ༎ຶ ༽ৣৢ؞ৢ؞ؖ ꉺლ
hearingthings.co
Nia Archives Has the Range
Plus Four Tet’s un-Googleable new album, Syd’s grown-woman swagger, and a high-wire act of underground rap
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
Syd made an album worthy of all her grown-woman swagger. Read our review of 𝘉𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘥:
hearingthings.co
Nia Archives Has the Range
Plus Four Tet’s un-Googleable new album, Syd’s grown-woman swagger, and a high-wire act of underground rap
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
𝘌𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘑𝘶𝘯𝘨𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘵 is Nia Archives’ main pop girlie record, done in her own edgy way. Read our review:
hearingthings.co
Nia Archives Has the Range
Plus Four Tet’s un-Googleable new album, Syd’s grown-woman swagger, and a high-wire act of underground rap
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 18/07/2026
"People protesting the use of generative AI isn’t going to end it. It’s here. We’re under control."
hearingthings.co
Alt-Pop Trickster 1010Benja Is Not Scared to Admit He’s Using Generative AI
“If you have it broken down as organic versus AI, the AI is gonna win our world. The good guy doesn’t win this one.”
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
Kelela made a future classic with 𝘕𝘦𝘸 𝘈𝘷𝘢𝘵𝘢𝘳, read our Must Hear review
hearingthings.co
A Future Classic for Alt Black Queer Folks
Plus: Cain Culto shredding on the fiddle like the devil went down to Lexington, and vocals that sound like a gremlin suffocating inside a steel box.
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Hearing Things @hearingthingsco.bsky.social · 16/07/2026
This week we've got a "Drunk in Love"-era throwback from the queen, the newest signee to one of the world's coolest labels, "a list of problems longer than The Irishman," and more. www.hearingthings.co/post-punk-wi...
hearingthings.co
Post-Punk With a Touch of Steely Dan
Plus sepia-toned sample loops and a Beyoncé loosie.
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