13 October 2025 - Addison Rae - Diet Pepsi

Today, we're up to Louisiana in #AmericanAutumn.

And yep. Addison Rae (Easterling. It's her real name) is from Lafayette, Louisiana.   She turned 25 last Monday.  She started off as a social media content creator, so when she started making music, no one expected much.

What they got (eventually.  This wasn't her first single but it was a breakthrough) was a song - co-written by the artist and producers Luka Kloser and Elvira Anderfjärd - called "Backseat" - until, and this is true, Charli XCX heard it and thought "Diet Pepsi" was a better title. 

The song got a lot of high year-end rankings - Pitchfork named it the 13th best song of the year; The New York Times put it 4th on their list; Dazed ranked it #1 - and for good reason. This song is cool and mature and the vocals are reminiscent of a younger Lana Del Rey. 

Even Lana Del Rey hears it.

But, also, I know what you're thinking - "she's a social media influencer.  This is manufactured pop and her voice is super enhanced."

Well, that's where you're wrong, bucko - she performed the song live and stripped down in August of this year at the Grammy Museum in Mississippi.  The woman has pipes!!!

(Edit: 23 October 2025):  I somehow missed her very recent Tonight Show performance, featuring perhaps the greatest use of the desk by a musical guest ever.

10 October 2025 - Taylor Swift - The Fate of Ophelia

Surprise!  

Taylor Swift was born in West Reading, PA, and spent a large part of her childhood in Montgomery and Berks Counties.   So yeah, Pennsylvania has a fair claim to the future Ms. Kelce. 

And also, Ms. Swift released a new album last Friday called The Life Of A Showgirl, along with an accompanying movie that was the biggest movie at the box office last week.  Included as part of the release party movie was this video, the first from the album, as well as some behind-the-scenes footage.  

No.  I did not see it.  

But this song - destined as of this writing to knock "Golden" off the top of the US charts - is very much about her relationship with Travis Kelce, comparing herself to the tragic character of Ophelia in Shakespeare's Hamlet - her grief and loneliness led directly to her suicide. 

Is it heavy-handed?  A little.  But also, it's a great song.   And the video is straight fire. 

10 October 2025 - Live - Operation Spirit (The Tyranny of Tradition)

Pennsylvania might have been the most difficult state to make a choice of artist.  

Why did I choose Live, one of the ironically worst live bands I've ever seen?

Because I know they had an off night.  Everyone has that.  

But also, this single - which is one of my favorite by the band - was their first as Live - they had previously been known as Physical Affection and were a popular local band in York, PA, and the surrounding area.  From the album Mental Jewelry, released on December 31, 1991, it was a 1992 MTV hit.

If your band's name is Live, you better not suck live.   

And on most nights, they did not. 

Woodstock '99 sucked in general, so they were actually a bright spot there. 

9 October 2025 - George Thorogood & The Destroyers - I Drink Alone

His backing band is not really just the Destroyers.

They are the Delaware Destroyers.  

And indeed, born in Wilmington, Delaware in 1950, Thorogood is still touring as of this writing - which is pretty impressive.   His original songs and gravelly voice blend nicely with the American music landscape. 

This 1985 rock radio hit - his biggest to that date, although he'd have bigger later - was originally written by Thorogood as a country song for George Jones, but EMI insisted that the Delaware Destroyers record it as a rock song.... and it paid off huge.  It remains a live staple to this day, forty years later. 

I mentioned that it remained a live staple to this day.

That's because it is.  This recording is from last month, in Albany, NY.  And he still sounds truly great. 

8 October 2025 - Bon Jovi - In And Out Of Love

A lot of people assume that I don't like Bon Jovi.

This is NOT true.  The first album by the New Jersey icons is actually a pretty solid pop/metal classic.  And this song - one of the singles from that album - is the first song I heard by them.  Written by Jon Bongiovi (yep.  I used his Christian name), it was a Hot 100 hit in 1985.   

And yes, they were destined to be much bigger.   

Is this a song they still play? Not sure about that, but they sure did in 1986.  Again, they were pop/rock, not metal, and as soon as you come to that conclusion, this is a solid song. 

7 October 2025 - Sabyu & Chief Javi - 20670

The Northern Mariana Islands was always going to be the hardest day for me.

You see, not a lot of popular music has come from there.

Thankfully, we had American Song Contest, and the 670 had a representative in Sabyu, who had moved to the 206 from the 670 - 20-6-70.... get it? - with Chief Javi, and together they performed love letters to their home island of Saipan.

I'd do a live version of this song, but c'mon - this is already live.  And pretty fun.  

6 October 2025 - Pia Mia - Bitter Love

I've kind of been looking forward to Guam day.  

Because Pia Mia was clearly the only artist I could choose, and I have been wanting to post about this real outlier of a single of hers.   

She was discovered by Babyface on YouTube.... who helped her get a real record deal and even a hot 100 hit.  

What she lost was her creative control, so she left Interscope Records and started self-releasing music.  This song was less hip-hop and more country.... and I gotta say, it suits her.  Her voice is huge.  

When I say her voice is huge, perhaps it's better if I feature a live version of the song....