Whether fleeing the eye of a hurricane, trapped passively in one’s own home or awaiting the end of war, it seems to me that once basic needs (safety, sustenance and shelter) are met, there is an emptiness that the arts can fill. And as time passes, they fill that emptiness in fresh, idiosyncratic ways.

Pot has quickly cemented itself as one of the most used motifs in music today, and it’s not really that surprising to see why.

As someone who grew up in the 2000s, listening to every R&B album I could get my hands on — “The Emancipation of Mimi,” “B’Day,” “Trey Day” and the list goes on — I know that there are two men (among others) who most certainly have the formula for a hit record: Ne-Yo and Johntá Austin.

The double-feature is a practice long abandoned by movie theaters.

As evident by the emails rolling in from the Office of the Provost, USC Housing, professors and club presidents, the second semester of my first year here at USC has taken a 180 degree turn.