By: Ilana Michelle Rubin

There’s a lot to be said about Generation Y. We don’t look up, we’re self-centered, and we’re ignorant to the worldwide issues affecting us everyday. Amongst all the tired assumptions of us is one truth that light is rarely shed on. We are a generation of dreamers and achievers. Of course, we have one key instrument at our disposal that previous generations didn’t: the Internet. Duh, right? If you’re familiar with this black hole of information that I speak of – which if you are a millennial then you are, you know who Hoodie Allen is.

But let’s say you’re not obsessed with music and you randomly found this site because you were researching a good place to find low-priced kids toys for your stepbrother. Hoodie Allen is not a dude who puts up one-man shows of Woody Allen films. He’s actually a 26-year-old hardworking and talented rapper from New York City named Steven Markowitz. Surprise!!!

Hailing from New York City, Hoodie aka Steven Markowitz, is seemingly a nice Jewish boy who went to a good college and was on track to be a head honcho at Google. But here’s the interesting thing about a good job and lots of money. It doesn’t fucking matter if it’s not what you enjoy doing. Staying true to that is something so prevalent in this generation. We’re good at using our resources  to make doing what we are passionate about into our “real jobs” and that’s what Hoodie did and has been doing since 2009.

Since 2009, Hoodie’s released five mixtapes, two EP’s, and finally a debut album, “People Keep Talking”. You have to imagine that working for five years towards a dream can leave you feeling frustrated, exhausted, and questionable.  All three emotions can be felt on the slowed down track,  “Overtime”, which anyone working towards making your passion become your career can relate to.  On the track, he even slyly asks, “Are you putting in work?” Who knows if he’s asking the listener or if it’s a question he’s posing to himself.

But if you do even the slightest bit of research you can see Hoodie’s put in his 10,000 hours. He’s a professional. This debut album shows he has what it takes to be a mainstream artist. Aside from the released singles, it’s packed with other could be radio hits like “Act My Age”, “Get It On The Low”, and “All About It” featuring alternative music king, Ed Sheeran. It’s like that saying that I saw on some stupid Instagram quote account, “be aware of the company you keep for they are a reflection of who you are or who you want to be.”

But I digress. Anyone who’s working towards a goal that seems unattainable whether it be acting, singing, photography, coal mining should listen to Hoodie’s album. It’s a reminder of what can come of determination, practice, and dedication. Also, it’s really well produced; his lyricism is relatable and packed with references that any pop-culture aficionado can pick up on. So if you’re not a hoodie-head now (ha, see what I did there*) you definitely will be after giving this album a listen.

*Alliteration is what I did there.