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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo

@theapolloreview.bsky.social
23 followers 23 following 117 posts

Speaking on everything and nothing for 15+ years. NYC. Mid-40s. Neurodivergent. I know way too much about millennial pop. He/him/his. 🌈

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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Hearing from other SA survivors following the #Cornell7 case, I realized now is the best time to share my story again. To everyone who needs to hear this: Your strength matters. Your truth matters. You are not alone. 💜 @medium.com #LGBTQ #WritingCommunity medium.com/the-memoiris...
medium.com
I Just Wanted to Be Jonathan: A Story of Abuse, Shame, and Survival
Protecting one secret led to a darker one I’ve kept hidden for years.
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Dived back into this to tidy it up somewhat. Never write on little sleep and high emotion. 😄 If you missed this #ShortStory on @medium.com the first time around, feel free to check it out now. Still very proud of this one. 💜 #WritingCommunity #LGBTQ #Heartbreak medium.com/@TheApolloRe...
medium.com
Until You Come Around Again
A place we’ve been before and will be again… and likely again.
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Hey all. So... this one' s a bit different. No celebrity or pop angle. No ranting about the world we're in -- just something on my heart. Something I finally put into words. I hope you'll enjoy it. 💜 #WritingCommunity #LGBTQ #ShortStory @medium.com medium.com/@TheApolloRe...
medium.com
Until You Come Around Again
A place we’ve been before and will be again… and likely again.
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
The music and theater worlds are mourning the loss of Duncan Sheik. The singer-songwriter and Tony-winning composer behind the 1996 hit "Barely Breathing" and Broadway's 𝑆𝑝𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝐴𝑤𝑎𝑘𝑒𝑛𝑖𝑛𝑔 passed away Friday at the age of 56. Thank you for sharing your gifts with the world, Duncan. 🕊️
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
⭐️NEW⭐️ It's not really about OF content creators #JakeAndrich & #TimothyChampagne. Now on #TheApolloReview -- why do queer men keep rewarding those who profit from us while showing little respect for the #LGBTQ community? Read it for FREE on @medium.com. #OnlyFans medium.com/counterarts/...
medium.com
The Queer Male Community Needs to Stop Worshipping Straight Men
Men like Jake Andrich and Timothy Champagne prove that our obsession with straight validation keeps rewarding people who don’t respect us.
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
⏳ Coming to #TheApolloReview: ⏳ My next essay contains the following: ✔️ #JakeAndrich & #TimothyChampagne criticism ✔️ Me asking why some queer men keep chasing straight validation ✔️ A conversation about internalized homophobia We need to talk. 🌈 Tomorrow on @medium.com #LGBTQ #WritingCommunity
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
👀 TMZ says MTV’s Davis Mallory (of #TheChallenge) has gone public with his first girlfriend, one year after claiming God “pulled him from" the #LGBTQ "lifestyle." Why do I care? There's always a story... Read more at #TheApolloReview (on @medium.com). #MTV medium.com/prismnpen/th...
Davis Mallory of MTV's 'The Challenge' poses with his new girlfriend.
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Back in May, I wrote about #RavenSymone and her solo music era at #Disney, and how failing to acknowledge her Black fan base likely had a hand in things never taking off. Read it now (for free!) on @medium.com. #WritingCommunity #ThatsSoRaven #TheApolloReview www.medium.com/counterarts/...
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
⭐️NEW POST⭐️ Didn't plan on a 2nd post this week, Reviewers -- but this latest #Smosh "controversy" involving Amanda is beyond f***ing ridiculous. Let's talk about the importance of context, now on #TheApolloReview #LGBTQ #WritingCommunity #TwoDykesandaMic @medium.com medium.com/another-fuck...
medium.com
Smosh’s Amanda Lehan-Canto Said ‘Dyke’ on A Podcast With ‘Dyke’ In the Title — And Everyone Lost…
The biggest nothing-burger I’ve come across in some time.
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
Hey Reviewers! My latest piece on @medium.com isn't getting the traction I hoped it would -- so I've retooled the title a bit in hopes of giving it a nudge. Give it a read if you haven't and share it around, too. Much love to all! 💜 #Aging #Mortality #WritingCommunity medium.com/counterarts/...
medium.com
Who Will Hear My Songs When I Die? The Fear of Forgetting and Being Forgotten
As life goes on, I try to secure the experiences and people who made me who I am.
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
A 30-year-old song made me confront how much time has passed, and how terrified I am of forgetting the people and experiences that filled it. "Who Will Hear My Songs When I Die?," now on @medium.com. medium.com/counterarts/... #Grief #WritingCommunity #TheApolloReview #BlackWriters
medium.com
Who Will Hear My Songs When I Die?
On grief, nostalgia, mortality, and the fear of forgetting the people who made us who we are.
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 22/08/2026
⭐️NOW LIVE⭐️ “Who Will Hear My Songs When I Die?” is now yours on @medium.com. A piece about aging and my need to preserve the people and moments I’m terrified of forgetting. Coincidentally, today happens to be Momma’s birthday. I won't share her age -- she'd haunt me for life. 🤣🤣
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
⏲️COMING SOON⏲️ 3 a.m. Back pain. Restless. Sitting groggily at my computer, I came across an 30th anniversary post for "Virtual Insanity" by Jamiroquai. And that was the tipping point. I broke down entirely... but it wasn't just about the song. #WritingCommunity #Aging #Life
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Virtual
ALT: Virtual
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
So, along with being handsome, (mostly) modest, inspiring, and kind... @dogthatbecameaguy.bsky.social is also a great writer. And y'all keep telling me G*d doesn't have favorites... Anyway, check out his recent @medium.com post on the last 6 months of his life. 💜 medium.com/@mgrote4/6-m...
medium.com
6 months later
It’s 6 months to the day that I woke up from surgery. To the hour, as I type this, should be around when they finally took the tube out of…
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 18/07/2026
⭐NEW⭐ Most people remember Adina Howard for #FreakLikeMe. I remember the artist who taught me what freedom looked like. My latest @medium.com essay revisits her music, her lost album, and the legacy she always deserved. 🔗 medium.com/counterarts/... #AdinaHoward #MusicHistory #WritingCommunity
medium.com
The Music World Saw Adina Howard as a “Freak” — But I Saw Freedom
How the singer’s unapologetic sexuality and fight for creative agency inspired me to find my own way out of society’s box.
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 16/07/2026
Coming to #TheApolloReview: Singer #AdinaHoward fit perfectly among the pack of bold, sex-positive female entertainers of the early 90s -- and her introduction to the world, #FreakLikeMe, was top-notch in both its delivery and dope AF melody. So, why is she largely forgotten today?
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 01/07/2026
⭐️NOW LIVE⭐️ Trying something a bit different this time around. @medium.com #ADHD #RejectionSensitiveDysphoria #RSD #Neurodiversity #MentalHealth #AdultADHD #LateDiagnosis #PersonalEssay #WritingCommunity #Medium #TheApolloReview
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
🌟NOW LIVE🌟 Some of you have convinced yourselves that holding #HudsonWilliams accountable is the same thing as attacking him. It isn't -- and he doesn't need your "protection" or "saving." #HeatedRivalry #WritingCommunity #Television #Accountability @medium.com medium.com/counterarts/...
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
🌟NEW🌟 The last time I spoke on #HudsonWilliams race-themed controversies, I was called everything but a child of God. Good. Y'all are listening. Now on #TheApolloReview (via @medium.com), my uncensored thoughts on the #HeatedRivalry actor. #WritingCommunity #LGBTQ medium.com/counterarts/...
medium.com
Hudson Williams of ‘Heated Rivalry’ Doesn’t Need You to Save Him
The popular actor of the hit queer TV series isn’t the victim that his die-hard fans make him out to be.
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 21/06/2026
Got flamed to hell and back recently for sharing my take on the controversies surrounding #HudsonWilliams. To no one's surprise, I was mostly misunderstood -- but what else is new? Well... a new @medium.com post. Turns out I had *lots* more to say on the matter. #WritingCommunity #HeatedRivalry
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Hudson Williams Smirk
ALT: Hudson Williams Smirk
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 07/06/2026
🌟NOW LIVE🌟 What began as a fun look back at O-Town's "horny" lyrics turned into something a lot heavier -- and it starts with #MakingtheBand. Get into my latest on #TheApolloReview (via @medium.com) now. #2000sPop #OTown #PopCulture #WritingCommunity medium.com/counterarts/...
medium.com
ABC’s ‘Making the Band’ Made O-Town Pop Stars — The Music Industry Almost Made Them Victims
Revisiting the grim reality of one of the early 2000s most infamous music competitions.
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 07/06/2026
Next up on #TheApolloReview: Most of us remember #OTown for their horny hits, "Liquid Dreams" and "We Fit Together." You might also remember #MakingtheBand, the show where O-Town formed and built their craft. But... that's not all I remember.
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 05/06/2026
And now, his "watch" has ended. Thank you, Anthony Stewart Head, for channeling your immense talent into one of the most beloved father figures of the modern television era. We will miss you so very much. 💜
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
I'm not going to pretend that I was a hardcore fan of #PeaboBryson, but I still mourn what we've all lost. Mr. Bryson was magical. His voice made two great films even greater for us as kids. Those songs locked into our hearts and minds, and connected us in an era before socials and the internet.
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 21/05/2026
🌟NEW ESSAY🌟 “Not everything is black and white -- except for when it actually is.” My newest essay on #RavenSymone, #Disney, Black identity, and her overlooked music career is now live on @medium.com. #WritingCommunity #BlackCulture #ThatsSoRaven medium.com/counterarts/...
medium.com
That’s Just Raven: How Disney Derailed Raven-Symoné’s Music Career — With Help from Raven Herself
She had a hit show and a major entertainment company backing her play. How did Raven-Symoné’s music career never take off?
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 21/05/2026
[1] Next up on The Apollo Review: Before Disney, #RavenSymone was already widely famous -- specifically, Black-famous. She starred on two hit sitcoms, became the youngest artist ever signed to a major music label, and opened for *NSYNC, all before she was old enough to drive.
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 20/05/2026
Hey, readers! You don’t need to see the future to know a new Medium post is on the way! Tease coming within the hour. Any guesses on the topic?
static.klipy.com
Jagyasini Singh: Fortune Teller with Crystal Ball
ALT: Jagyasini Singh: Fortune Teller with Crystal Ball
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 17/05/2026
Straight people are a cancer.
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 17/05/2026
A day for legendary people and works! - Janet Jackson turns 60 today. - New Edition vocalist Ralph Tresvant is 58. - Buffy/Angel star David Boreanaz turns 57. - Britney Spears' 'Oops!... I Did It Again' album dropped on this date, 26 years ago. 🥳🥳🥳🥳 #TheApolloReview
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 16/05/2026
It didn’t feel right for me to keep this one behind a paywall. A free link can now be accessed within the one shared here. 💜 ‘I Just Wanted to Be Jonathan: A Story of Secrets, Shame, and Survival’ medium.com/the-memoiris...
medium.com
I Just Wanted to Be Jonathan: A Story of Secrets, Shame, and Survival
Protecting one of my secrets led to a darker one I’ve kept hidden for years. I’m ready to let it go now.
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 16/05/2026
It didn’t feel right for me to keep this one behind a paywall. A free link can now be accessed within the one shared here. 💜
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 16/05/2026
I wasn't expecting my latest @medium.com piece to go live so quickly... but maybe there's a reason for that. I wrote about growing up gay, shame, and surviving abuse while trying desperately to appear “fine.” May this help to break the silence. #LGBTQ #WritingCommunity medium.com/the-memoiris...
medium.com
I Just Wanted to Be Jonathan: A Story of Secrets, Shame, and Survival
Protecting one of my secrets led to a darker one I’ve kept hidden for years. I’m ready to let it go now.
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 15/05/2026
My essay on Lane V. Rogers (a.k.a. #BlakeMitchell), queer visibility, and selective queer mourning can now be read for free on @medium.com. A piece about respectability, remembrance, and the real people behind the headlines. #LGBTQ #Media #Culture #WritingCommunity medium.com/counterarts/...
medium.com
Who Gets Remembered? Lane Rogers and the Queer Lives Media Chooses to Mourn
How respectability, celebrity culture, and selective grief now shapes who is worthy of memorializing.
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
The song "Somebody's Daughter" by queer singer John Duff has two different versions with slightly different lyrics. As I prefer the OG mix over the "XXX Mix," I recently extracted the vocal from the latter and inserted it into the former. And now, I have an "alternate edit" of a total bop! 💜
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
"Unlike [some], I don’t have the privilege of shrinking my identity for protection or social acceptance. Whether I like it or not, I am gay, and I have been forced to own that with everything I am." #LGBTQ #GayRights #WritingCommunity medium.com/counterarts/...
medium.com
Scared Silent: When LGBTQ+ Icons Vanish During the Fight for Our Lives
As we continue to face erasure in the face of conservatism and ignorance, I revisit an old post, now with full honesty.
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 07/05/2026
🌟NEW🌟 Singer Donavan Green was a standout in #2000s pop group #Scene23 -- yet cast aside when it came to their big moment. Now on @medium.com, I offer him what he's been owed for more than 20 years: His flowers. 💐 #Music #WritingCommunity #PopCulture #PopMusic medium.com/counterarts/...
medium.com
Honoring Donavan Green, the Lost Voice of Scene 23
How the silencing of a verse from a largely-forgotten millennial pop group’s minor hit still resounds within me.
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 06/05/2026
[1] Calling all pop-loving millennials! Tomorrow on @medium.com, I'm revisiting and paying tribute to #Scene23 -- a pop group w/ a short shelf life and an "almost" hit. But also, a voice I've never been able to forget. His name was Donavan Green... and he was truly special. #Pop #2000sMusic 🧵
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Admirable Women @admirablewomen.bsky.social · 26/04/2026
Lucille Ball--actress, comedian, producer & film-studio executiver--died #OTD in 1989. In 1962, she bought out Desi Arnaz's interest in Desilu Productions & became the 1st woman to own & run a major TV studio. Desilu produced many popular TV series including Mission: Impossible & #StarTrek. #legend
This classic black-and-white studio portrait captures the legendary Lucille Ball (1911–1989), an American actress, comedian, and pioneering studio executive. Best known for her iconic role in I Love Lucy, Ball was the first woman to lead a major television studio, Desilu Productions. In this elegant, close-up composition, Ball looks directly at the camera with a calm and poised expression. Her light-colored hair is styled in elaborate, high-volume rolls that sweep upward from her forehead, typical of the sophisticated 1940s glamour. She wears a shimmering, light-toned jacket with a subtle grid pattern that catches the light. Her ensemble is accented by large, round, sparkling cluster earrings that draw attention to her face. The lighting is soft yet focused, highlighting her perfectly applied makeup—defined brows, dark mascara, and a polished, dark lip color. The background is softly out of focus, featuring a neutral, textured wall with organic, leaf-like shadows that create a sense of depth.
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 27/04/2026
Raven-Symoné may not remember her old songs, but I've never forgotten tracks like "Alice" -- a standout from her This Is My Time album. The entire LP is a total vibe, but this one? It hits something deeper as an adult. If only things were different... www.youtube.com/watch?v=oiEd...
youtube.com
Alice
YouTube video by Raven-Symoné - Topic
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
⭐NEW ESSAY IS LIVE⭐ OF star Lane V. Rogers became a headline in death while other queer sex workers with greater public visibility barely did. Why? A look at celebrity culture, #Media bias, and the selective grief for #LGBTQ lives, now on @medium.com. #Culture medium.com/counterarts/...
medium.com
Who Gets Remembered? Lane Rogers and the Queer Lives Media Chooses to Mourn
How respectability, celebrity culture, and selective grief now shapes who is worthy of memorializing.
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 21/04/2026
[1] Tomorrow on @medium.com, a new essay drops -- one I've been sitting on for *weeks* (for proper reasons, but I'm impatient AF). A young man named Lane V. Rogers chased mainstream fame from a non-conventional angle. 🧵
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 13/04/2026
⭐NEW ESSAY⭐ For Black millennials, watching certain icons fall hits differently. My new essay on Chilli, accountability, and the emotional cost of Black fandom is live now on @medium.com. #BlackTwitter #BlackMillennials #Chilli #TLC #WritingCommunity #BlackCulture medium.com/counterarts/...
medium.com
We Elevated Them as the Best of Black Culture — When Exactly Did We Lose Them?
The price Black fans pay witnessing their icons fall out of favor with the very community that brought them fame.
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 13/04/2026
New @medium.com essay dropping in about 90 minutes. ✍️🏿 I explore why disappointment over certain Black media figures hits differently -- especially for Black millennials who saw them as proof we could rise, too. Stay tuned. #BlackTwitter #BlackCulture #TLC #WritingCommunity
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 12/04/2026
[1] Happy Sunday, readers! 👋🏿 Tomorrow afternoon, I’m publishing a new @Medium.com piece. It highlights the recent controversy with TLC's Chilli, Black fandom, and the emotional toll of holding our icons accountable when they stop representing the people who helped lift them up. 🧵
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 01/04/2026
Decided not to spend the entire day indoors for once.
A overhead selfie. Overlooking the river.Fly-by. The blue of day.
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 23/03/2026
From my latest @medium.com piece. Feel free to check it out if you haven't already. ⬇️⬇️⬇️ medium.com/counterarts/... #Pink #AleciaMoore #90sMusic #BlackMusic #BlackCulture #Culture #Trustfall #MediumWriters #WritingCommunity
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Dom Ervolina @dominicervolina.com · 20/03/2026
Happy Birthday to Sister Rosetta Tharpe, and a massive thank you to her for inventing rock and roll She was born on March 20th, 1915
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 20/03/2026
🌟NEW🌟 P!nk’s first fans were Black — and revisiting that era says a lot about memory, music, and who gets remembered in an artist’s story. Let's get into it, now on @medium.com. #Pink #MusicWriting #BlackMusic #PopMusic #WritingCommunity medium.com/counterarts/...
medium.com
Pink’s First Fans Were Black. That Part of Her Story Is Rarely Acknowledged Now.
A look back at the ‘Can’t Take Me Home’ era, the Black audience that embraced it, and the quiet distance that followed.
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 19/03/2026
[1] Coming to @medium.com: Before the pop-rock reinvention and the “authentic” Pink (or P!nk) we know today… there was the 'Can’t Take Me Home' era — an R&B-pop debut that lived squarely in Black musical spaces. #2000sMusic #Pink #WritingCommunity 🧵
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The Apollo Review | Jonathan Apollo @theapolloreview.bsky.social · 19/03/2026
A more definitive teaser (with a reveal!) will drop today -- but most girls, gays, and theys likely know who this one's about. If you don't, read that first bit again. A hint is closer than you think. 😉
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