Sprezzatura – “a certain nonchalance, so as to conceal all art and make whatever one does or says appear to be without effort and almost without any thought about it.”

A term coined in 1528 termed by the Italian count Baldassare Castiglione in The Book of the Courtier. Fascinating concept, innit? Nowadays people seem to love shouting about how much they work and all the good shit they’ve done but really, it’s the ones who appear to move forward effortlessly that are fascinating. Less talk, more action is the key.

Read more:

Seth Godin on Sprezzatura

Nick Southgate on Being Effortless

I’m one of those annoying people who can pretty much only work in complete silence but recently I’ve discovered that I can sort-of concentrate when I listen to music that has no lyrics. Wild, I know. Anyway, Gonzales ‘Solo Piano’ is on heavy rotation right now. You might recognise his track ‘The Tourist’ from the Outro of Drake’s ‘So Far Gone’. And if you liked that, you’ll like this.

Spotify it.

Avid readers (!) of this blog may have noticed that I’ve been pretty slack about updating it recently. In fact, very slack. I could launch into another rant about all the books I have to read right now (soooooo many books), my severely compromised attention span and the degree that I’m certain will kill me in the end, but you probably don’t care. Instead, here’s a selection of five blogs that I like and thought I’d share whilst I get organised enough to start blogging regularly again. Some you may be aware of, some you may not. Either way, I suggest you read them. But obviously still read mine too, please.

1. Jezebel

For intelligent, witty feminist commentary on contemporary news and media. Sister site of Gawker. Aimed at women, obvz, but I think men would appreciate it, too. Or at least, non-chauvinistic ones would.

2.Louise Haynes

Somehow the simultaneous antithesis and embodiment of Jezebel’s feminist ethos. Absolutely fucking hilarious. Resolutely NSFW.

3. Gwarizm

Crooked Tongues writer Gary Warnett seems to know a lot of stuff. How does he have time to hold down a job whilst simultaneously absorbing vast amounts of information about/writing indepth commentaries on streetwear, media, film and music? Who knows. He’ll definitely teach you some shit you didn’t know, though.

4. Award Tour

If you don’t know about Phillip Annand, his clothing label, and his ‘Good Times’ blog, then maybe you should. Award Tour is a streetwear brand with an inspiring ethos, and this translates into a well-written blog that is infused with the energy of its author. It’s not often that a blog makes you wanna get up and do shit, but somehow this one does.

5. Garance Doré

Often referenced (no doubt to her great annoyance) as the girlfriend of The Sartorialist. I love The Sartorialist as much as the next girl but there’s only so many photos of old Italian men in immaculately cut suits that I can take. I think the fashion on Doré’s site is much more accessible for young women. Nice illustrations and more words, too, for those who appreciate them – albeit slightly nonsensical, translated-from-French ones.

What happened to hip hop was the use of capitalism in hip hop. I was listening to EPMD the other day, and Parrish said—I don’t want to misquote him—but he said, “And I still don’t see one rapper living comfortably.” Things have changed since that time. We have found artists who have developed the capitalist mold into their way of thinking. Artists have even shifted from the artistry to how well you can make money. That really shows how good of an MC you can be. So if you come on the scene, and you are seen as someone who can be influential and knows how to turn capital over, then generally you can speak the language of hip hop. That’s why Jay-Z has found affluence, and Young Jeezy, the moneymaking aspect of it. To me, that’s the poison. That’s the poison in it, is the indoctrination of capitalism. Not to say we don’t need people to understand the business of making money; but the model wasn’t Marcus Garvey—the model became people like Rockefeller. And Scarface. And all them.

M-1 of Dead Prez on the influence of Capitalism on Hip Hop. Via Gawker.

On the ‘Monkey-Minded’ post below, I realised that I forgot to provide a link to the origins of Alain de Botton’s article and then I thought that I probably should, ’cause it came from somewhere pretty interesting (depending on what you find interesting, of course.)

The School of Life a self-described ‘new social entreprise offering good ideas for everyday living.’ That translates into a small shop in Central London offering programmes, lectures and services focusing on new ideas and solutions of how to deal with modern life. I live near the shop and walk past it often and it’s presence seems to give out good energy to the street on which it’s situated (Marchmont Street, in Bloomsbury.) I’m yet to partake in any of the classes but am definitely going to do so in the near future (Sample talks include: ‘How To Find A Job You Love’, ‘How To Fill The God-Shaped Hole’, ‘How To Make a Difference’). ‘The School of Life’ is such a genius concept and, like all the best ideas, such a perfectly simple one.

In the meantime, here’s a link to the shop’s blog, which is fast becoming my new favourite. With writers, philosophers and staff members writing on topics like style, gratitude and mutuality, it’s a million times more mentally stimulating than all the other fraff I seem to spend my time absorbing from the net. Happy reading.