The Guardian Headline Full font family includes several styles, each with different weights and italics. The light version (weight 300) comes in both regular and italic styles, as does the regular version (weight 400). The medium (weight 500) and semibold (weight 600) styles also have regular and italic variants. Each font file is available in WOFF2, WOFF, and TrueType formats from the Guardian’s servers.@font-face {
font-family: Guardian Headline Full;
src: url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/full-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Bold.woff2) format(“woff2”),
url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/full-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Bold.woff) format(“woff”),
url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/full-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Bold.ttf) format(“truetype”);
font-weight: 700;
font-style: normal;
}
@font-face {
font-family: Guardian Headline Full;
src: url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/full-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BoldItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),
url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/full-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BoldItalic.woff) format(“woff”),
url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/full-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BoldItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);
font-weight: 700;
font-style: italic;
}
@font-face {
font-family: Guardian Headline Full;
src: url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/full-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Black.woff2) format(“woff2”),
url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/full-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Black.woff) format(“woff”),
url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/full-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Black.ttf) format(“truetype”);
font-weight: 900;
font-style: normal;
}
@font-face {
font-family: Guardian Headline Full;
src: url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/full-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BlackItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),
url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/full-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BlackItalic.woff) format(“woff”),
url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/full-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BlackItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);
font-weight: 900;
font-style: italic;
}
@font-face {
font-family: Guardian Titlepiece;
src: url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GTGuardianTitlepiece-Bold.woff2) format(“woff2”),
url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GTGuardianTitlepiece-Bold.woff) format(“woff”),
url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GTGuardianTitlepiece-Bold.ttf) format(“truetype”);
font-weight: 700;
font-style: normal;
}
@media (min-width: 71.25em) {
.content__main-column–interactive {
margin-left: 160px;
}
}
@media (min-width: 81.25em) {
.content__main-column–interactive {
margin-left: 240px;
}
}
.content__main-column–interactive .element-atom {
max-width: 620px;
}
@media (max-width: 46.24em) {
.content__main-column–interactive .element-atom {
max-width: 100%;
}
}
.content__main-column–interactive .element-showcase {
margin-left: 0;
}
@media (min-width: 46.25em) {
.content__main-column–interactive .element-showcase {
max-width: 620px;
}
}
@media (min-width: 71.25em) {
.content__main-column–interactive .element-showcase {
max-width: 860px;
}
}
.content__main-column–interactive .element-immersive {
max-width: 1100px;
}
@media (max-width: 46.24em) {
.content__main-column–interactive .element-immersive {
width: calc(100vw – var(–scrollbar-width, 0px));
position: relative;
left: 50%;
right: 50%;
margin-left: calc(-50vw + var(–half-scrollbar-width, 0px)) !important;
margin-right: calc(-50vw + var(–half-scrollbar-width, 0px)) !important;
}
}
@media (min-width: 46.25em) {
.content__main-column–interactive .element-immersive {
transform: translate(-20px);
width: calc(100% + 60px);
}
}
@media (max-width: 71.24em) {
.content__main-column–interactive .element-immersive {
margin-left: 0;
margin-right: 0;
}
}
@media (min-width: 71.25em) {
.content__main-column–interactive .element-immersive {
transform: translate(0);
width: auto;
}
}
@media (min-width: 81.25em) {
.content__main-column–interactive .element-immersive {
max-width: 1260px;
}
}
.content__main-column–interactive p,
.content__main-column–interactive ul {
max-width: 620px;
}
.content__main-column–interactive:before {
position: absolute;
top: 0;
height: calc(100% + 15px);
min-height: 100px;
content: “”;
}
@media (min-width: 71.25em) {
.content__main-column–interactive:before {
border-left: 1px solid #dcdcdc;
z-index: -1;
left: -10px;
}
}
@media (min-width: 81.25em) {
.content__main-column–interactive:before {
border-left: 1px solid #dcdcdc;
}
}The provided text appears to be a fragment of CSS code, likely from a website’s stylesheet. It defines various visual styles, such as colors, margins, and padding, for different elements like articles, captions, and quotes. The code also includes specific rules for different screen sizes and color schemes, including a dark mode.The CSS code defines styles for various elements on a webpage. It sets specific fonts, sizes, and layouts for drop caps, pullquotes, and immersive elements. The code includes responsive design rules that adjust margins, padding, and grid layouts for different screen sizes, particularly for wider screens above 61.25em. These adjustments ensure proper alignment and spacing for headlines, meta information, and standfirst text.The CSS code defines styles for a layout wrapper, adjusting grid structures, typography, and element visibility across different screen sizes. For larger screens, it sets up a multi-column grid, positions decorative lines, and hides certain elements like comment sections. Headline fonts increase in size on wider screens, while standfirst text remains styled with specific padding and borders. Media elements are configured to span designated grid areas and adjust margins responsively.@media (max-width: 46.24em) {
.furniture-wrapper #main-media,
.furniture-wrapper [data-gu-name=”media”] {
width: calc(100vw – var(–scrollbar-width, 0px));
margin-left: -10px;
}
}
@media (max-width: 46.24em) and (min-width: 30em) {
.furniture-wrapper #main-media,
.furniture-wrapper [data-gu-name=”media”] {
margin-left: -20px;
}
}
.furniture-wrapper figcaption {
position: absolute;
bottom: 0;
padding: 4px 10px 12px;
background-color: var(–captionBackground);
color: var(–captionText);
max-width: unset;
width: 100%;
margin-bottom: 0;
min-height: 46px;
}
.furniture-wrapper figcaption span {
color: var(–headerBorder);
}
.furniture-wrapper figcaption span svg {
fill: var(–headerBorder);
}
.furniture-wrapper figcaption span:nth-of-type(1) {
display: none;
}
.furniture-wrapper figcaption span:nth-of-type(2) {
display: block;
max-width: 90%;
}
@media (min-width: 30em) {
.furniture-wrapper figcaption {
padding: 4px 20px 12px;
}
}
.furniture-wrapper figcaption.hidden {
opacity: 0;
}
.furniture-wrapper #caption-button {
display: block;
position: absolute;
bottom: 10px;
right: 8px;
z-index: 30;
background-color: var(–captionBackground);
border: none;
border-radius: 50%;
padding: 6px 5px 5px;
}
.furniture-wrapper #caption-button svg {
transform: scale(0.85);
}
@media (min-width: 30em) {
.furniture-wrapper #caption-button {
right: 10px;
}
}
@media (min-width: 71.25em) {
.content__main-column–interactive:before {
top: -12px !important;
height: calc(100% + 24px) !important;
}
}
.content__main-column–interactive h2 {
max-width: 620px;
}
:root {
–new-pillar-colour: var(–darkmode-pillar, var(–darkModeFeature)) !important;
–headerBorderColor: #606060;
–darkModeFeature: #ff5943;
}
nav + section {
display: none;
}
nav + aside {
display: none;
}
aside + section {
display: none;
}
.furniture-wrapper {
background-color: var(–darkBackground);
margin: 0 -10px;
padding: 0 10px 4px;
}
@media (min-width: 30em) {
.furniture-wrapper {
margin: 0 -20px;
padding: 0 20px 8px;
}
}
@media (min-width: 61.25em) {
.furniture-wrapper {
padding: 0 20px;
}
}
@media (min-width: 81.25em) {
.furniture-wrapper:before {
content: “”;
width: calc((100vw – 1298px) / 2);
height: 100%;
position: absolute;
left: calc((100vw – 1298px) / -2);
background-color: var(–darkBackground);
border-right: 1px solid var(–headerBorderColor);
}
.furniture-wrapper:after {
content: “”;
width: calc((100vw – 1298px) / 2);
height: 100%;
position: absolute;
right: calc((100vw – 1298px) / -2);
background-color: var(–darkBackground);
}
}
.furniture-wrapper .article-header,
.furniture-wrapper [data-gu-name=”title”] a,
.furniture-wrapper [data-gu-name=”title”] span {
color: var(–new-pillar-colour, –darkModeFeature);
}
@media (min-width: 61.25em) {
.furniture-wrapper #headline > div:first-child,
.furniture-wrapper [data-gu-name=”headline”] > div:first-child,
.furniture-wrapper .headline > div:first-child {
border-top: 1px solid var(–headerBorderColor);
}
}
.furniture-wrapper #headline h1,
.furniture-wrapper [data-gu-name=”headline”] h1,
.furniture-wrapper .headline h1 {
font-weight: 700;
color: #dcdcdc;
}
.furniture-wrapper #headline figure,
.furniture-wrapper [data-gu-name=”headline”] figure,
.furniture-wrapper .headline figure {
margin-top: 0;
margin-bottom: 2px;
}
@media (min-width: 71.25em) {
.furniture-wrapper #meta:before,
.furniture-wrapper [data-gu-name=”meta”]:before {
background-color: var(–headerBorderColor);
}
}
.furniture-wrapper #meta details,
.furniture-wrapper #meta summary,
.furniture-wrapper #meta summary span,
.furniture-wrapper [data-gu-name=”meta”] details,
.furniture-wrapper [data-gu-name=”meta”] summary,
.furniture-wrapper [data-gu-name=”meta”] summary span {
color: #dcdcdc;
}
.furniture-wrapper #meta .meta__social a,
.furniture-wrapper #meta .meta__social button,
.furniture-wrapper [data-gu-name=”meta”] .meta__social a,
.furniture-wrapper [data-gu-name=”meta”] .meta__social button {
border-color: var(–headerBorderColor);
color: var(–new-pillar-colour, –darkModeFeature);
}
.furniture-wrapper #meta .meta__social a svg,
.furniture-wrapper #meta .meta__social button svg,
.furniture-wrapper [data-gu-name=”meta”] .meta__social a svg,
.furniture-wrapper [data-gu-name=”meta”] .meta__social button svg {
fill: var(–new-pillar-colour, –darkModeFeature);
}
.furniture-wrapper #meta .meta__social a:hover,
.furniture-wrapper #meta .meta__social button:hover,
.furniture-wrapper [data-gu-name=”meta”] .meta__socialWhen hovering over links or social media buttons, the text color changes to a dark background, and the background becomes a new pillar color or dark mode feature. Icons within these elements also fill with the dark background color.
Text within meta sections appears in a light gray (#dcdcdc), while links use the new pillar color or dark mode feature. On hover, these links maintain the same color and underline with it as well.
In standfirst sections, links have no bottom border, use the new pillar color or dark mode feature, and display an underline with an offset, colored by a header border or light gray. Hovering changes the underline color to the new pillar color or dark mode feature. Paragraphs and list items in standfirst are also light gray.
For larger screens (over 61.25em), the first paragraph in standfirst gets a top border matching the header border color, which is removed on even larger screens (over 71.25em). At that same breakpoint, a background line appears before the standfirst using the header border color.
The furniture wrapper adds side backgrounds on medium screens (over 46.25em) and adjusts their width at various breakpoints (61.25em, 71.25em, and 81.25em) to create bordered side panels that expand with the viewport.For screens wider than 1298px, the right position is calculated as half the difference between the viewport width (minus any scrollbar) and 1298px, applied as a negative value. In the furniture wrapper, the stroke color for SVGs within elements with the class ‘keyline-4’ or the attribute ‘data-gu-name’ set to ‘lines’ uses the CSS variable ‘–headerBorderColor’. Similarly, border colors for social and comment elements within the meta section, whether selected by ID or attribute, also use this variable.
Within the article body, level-two headings have a font weight of 200. However, if such a heading contains a ‘strong’ element, its font weight increases to 700.
Several ‘@font-face’ rules define the ‘Guardian Headline Full’ font family with different weights and styles (light, light italic, regular, regular italic, medium, medium italic, semibold), each specifying source files in WOFF2, WOFF, and TTF formats from the Guardian’s asset domain.@font-face {
font-family: Guardian Headline Full;
src: url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/full-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Semibold.ttf) format(“truetype”);
font-weight: 600;
font-style: normal;
}
@font-face {
font-family: Guardian Headline Full;
src: url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/full-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-SemiboldItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),
url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/full-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-SemiboldItalic.woff) format(“woff”),
url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/full-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-SemiboldItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);
font-weight: 600;
font-style: italic;
}
@font-face {
font-family: Guardian Headline Full;
src: url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/full-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Bold.woff2) format(“woff2”),
url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/full-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Bold.woff) format(“woff”),
url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/full-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Bold.ttf) format(“truetype”);
font-weight: 700;
font-style: normal;
}
@font-face {
font-family: Guardian Headline Full;
src: url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/full-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BoldItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),
url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/full-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BoldItalic.woff) format(“woff”),
url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/full-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BoldItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);
font-weight: 700;
font-style: italic;
}
@font-face {
font-family: Guardian Headline Full;
src: url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/full-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Black.woff2) format(“woff2”),
url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/full-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Black.woff) format(“woff”),
url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/full-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-Black.ttf) format(“truetype”);
font-weight: 900;
font-style: normal;
}
@font-face {
font-family: Guardian Headline Full;
src: url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/full-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BlackItalic.woff2) format(“woff2”),
url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/full-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BlackItalic.woff) format(“woff”),
url(https://assets.guim.co.uk/static/frontend/fonts/guardian-headline/full-not-hinted/GHGuardianHeadline-BlackItalic.ttf) format(“truetype”);
font-weight: 900;
font-style: italic;
}
@font-face {
font-family: Guardian Titlepiece;
src: url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GTGuardianTitlepiece-Bold.woff2) format(“woff2”),
url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GTGuardianTitlepiece-Bold.woff) format(“woff”),
url(https://interactive.guim.co.uk/fonts/garnett/GTGuardianTitlepiece-Bold.ttf) format(“truetype”);
font-weight: 700;
font-style: normal;
}
:root:has(.ios, .android) {
–darkBackground: #1a1a1a;
–feature: #c70000;
–darkmodeFeature: #ff5943;
–new-pillar-colour: var(–primary-pillar, var(–feature));
}
@media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) {
:root:has(.ios, .android) {
–new-pillar-colour: var(–darkmode-pillar, var(–darkmodeFeature));
}
}
body.ios #feature-article-container .element-atom:first-of-type + p:first-of-type:first-letter,
body.ios #feature-article-container .element-atom:first-of-type + .sign-in-gate + p:first-of-type:first-letter,
body.ios #feature-article-container .element-atom:first-of-type + #sign-in-gate + p:first-of-type:first-letter,
body.ios #standard-article-container .element-atom:first-of-type + p:first-of-type:first-letter,
body.ios #standard-article-container .element-atom:first-of-type + .sign-in-gate + p:first-of-type:first-letter,
body.ios #standard-article-container .element-atom:first-of-type + #sign-in-gate + p:first-of-type:first-letter,
body.ios #comment-article-container .element-atom:first-of-type + p:first-of-type:first-letter,
body.ios #comment-article-container .element-atom:first-of-type + .sign-in-gate + p:first-of-type:first-letter,
body.ioThis CSS code sets styles for article containers on Android and iOS devices. It adjusts the color of the first letter in certain paragraphs, hides article headers, and modifies the layout and appearance of elements like labels, headlines, and images within the article furniture wrapper.For images within the furniture wrapper, set the background to transparent and the width to the full viewport minus the scrollbar width, with the height adjusting automatically.
For the standfirst section in feature, standard, and comment articles on both iOS and Android, add 4 pixels of padding to the top, 24 pixels to the bottom, and a negative 10-pixel margin on the right.
Within the standfirst section, set paragraph text to use the Guardian Headline font family.
For links inside the standfirst section, including those within list items, set the color to the new pillar color, remove any background image, underline the text with an offset of 6 pixels using the header border color, and remove any bottom border. Apply the same styles to these links when hovered over.When links within the standfirst are hovered over, the underline color changes to match the new pillar color. On iOS and Android devices, the meta section in feature, standard, and comment articles has no margin. Within this meta section, elements like the byline, author name, and links are also set to the new pillar color. The meta__misc area has no padding, and any SVG icons inside it use the new pillar color for their strokes. For showcase elements, the caption button is displayed as a flex container, centered with specific dimensions and positioning.For iOS and Android devices, the article body in feature, standard, and comment containers has no side padding. Non-thumbnail, non-immersive images within these articles are set to full viewport width (minus margins and scrollbar) with automatic height and no caption padding. Immersive images span the full viewport width. Quoted text uses a custom color variable, while links are styled with an underline that changes color on hover. These styles also apply in dark mode.On iOS and Android devices, the furniture wrapper for feature, standard, and comment articles has a dark background. Within these wrappers, labels use the pillar color, while headlines and standfirst text adopt the header border color. Links in the standfirst and author bylines also use the pillar color. Icons in the meta section are styled with the pillar color as well. Additionally, captions for showcase images within these article types follow the same styling rules.For iOS and Android devices, the text color of captions in showcase images within feature, standard, and comment articles is set to the dateline color.
For both iOS and Android, quoted text blocks in the article body of feature, standard, and comment articles use the new pillar color.
The main content areas (like article body, feature body, comment body, and interactive content) in feature, standard, and comment articles for iOS and Android have a dark background.
For iOS devices, the first letter of a paragraph following specific elements in these content areas is styled as a drop cap.This appears to be a CSS selector targeting the first letter of paragraphs in various article containers on iOS and Android devices, specifically when they follow certain elements like `.element-atom` or sign-in gates. The selector applies styling rules to drop caps or initial letter formatting across different sections of a website, such as standard articles, comment sections, and feature articles.The provided text appears to be a fragment of CSS code, likely from a website’s stylesheet. It contains various selectors and style rules, including some for specific article containers, comment sections, and dark mode preferences. The code sets properties like colors, padding, and font sizes for different elements and device types (iOS and Android).On iOS and Android devices, hide the article header in comment sections by setting its opacity to zero. For feature, standard, and comment articles, remove margins from the furniture wrapper. Set the color of content labels to a custom CSS variable, and make all main headlines light gray. Style links within article headers or title sections with the same custom color. Use a repeating linear gradient for meta section borders. Apply these styles consistently across both operating systems and all article types.This CSS code sets styles for different article types on iOS and Android devices. It defines colors for bylines, links, icons, and labels within the article metadata sections. The colors vary based on the device type and article container, using specific hex values and CSS variables for consistency.This CSS code sets styles for different article containers on iOS and Android devices. It defines colors for icons in meta sections using custom properties, and adjusts layout for wider screens. On larger screens, it displays meta sections with a colored top border and adjusts margins. It also applies styles to paragraphs and lists within article bodies.It is an overcast Thursday afternoon at the end of January, and Thundercat is telling me about the time he tried to interest Snoop Dogg in the mid-70s work of Frank Zappa. He wasn’t Thundercat then, he explains. He was still Stephen Bruner, a bass player for hire, who had ended up in what he calls a “stupid-as-hell, Rick James-level band” back then.The band backing the legendary rapper Snoop Dogg was filled with Los Angeles jazz stars who would later play on Kendrick Lamar’s To Pimp a Butterfly, including Kamasi Washington, Josef Leimberg, and Terrace Martin. However, their jazz skills weren’t always needed. Once, while bassist Thundercat (Stephen Bruner) was playing an extended solo on stage, Snoop walked up to him and bluntly said, “Ain’t nobody told you to play all that.”
Maybe it was to broaden Snoop’s horizons that Bruner decided to play him “St. Alfonzo’s Pancake Breakfast,” a complex, marimba-driven jazz-rock track from Frank Zappa’s 1974 album Apostrophe. The song changes time signatures three times in under two minutes and has lyrics about a man stealing margarine and urinating on a bingo card. “Yeah, I hit him with the rollercoaster,” Bruner laughs. “He was smoking and almost choked on his blunt, saying, ‘What the hell is going on?’ I said, ‘My sentiments exactly.’ I think I did a cartwheel after that and left the band. I played Snoop Dogg ‘St. Alfonzo’s Breakfast’—my job is done here, I have no more work to do.” He pauses. “Or maybe I got fired: ‘Get out of here, dude, you’re too weird.’ I forget. It was a great moment.”
This story is classic Thundercat, featuring one of the many eclectic musicians he’s worked with over his career. He might be the only person who has played with both Ariana Grande and Herbie Hancock, and been in an early-2000s boyband (No Curfew, briefly popular in Germany) as well as the intense thrash metal band Suicidal Tendencies. He didn’t seem very happy in the boyband: “I’m a working-class musician, man, and that was what it meant for me at the age of 14.” But he spent nine years with Suicidal Tendencies, playing aggressive songs like “Widespread Bloodshed” and “We’re F’n Evil.” (Notably, he was also working with Erykah Badu at the same time.)
When asked if there’s any musical situation where he’d feel out of place, he looks confused. “Whatever instinct tells you you’re in a dangerous situation, I don’t think I have that,” he says with a shrug. “Constantly performing has made that not such a problem for me. You know that saying, ‘Luck is just preparation meeting opportunity’?”
The Snoop story also highlights a dramatic clash of genres, which is Thundercat’s specialty. He says moving from a versatile session musician to a solo artist in the early 2010s felt natural, perhaps because his own music was as unique and varied as the artists he’d worked with. His solo albums have zigzagged between funk, jazz-fusion, electronic pop, yacht rock, hip-hop, psychedelia, punk, and chiptune, among other styles, all featuring the kind of elaborate bass solos that annoyed Snoop Dogg.
Surprisingly, it works, likely because the genre blends never feel forced but instead reflect his incredibly broad tastes. During our conversation, he enthusiastically praises Leon Ware’s mid-’70s soul masterpiece Musical Massage, explains the Lydian mode, shows deep knowledge of Chick Corea’s work, and sincerely discusses the “really innovative” output of Limp Bizkit. He believes his eclectic musical taste comes from his parents, who were…Thundercat grew up surrounded by musicians—his father drummed for the Temptations—and with the firm belief that categorizing music was merely a marketing tool, an idea that clearly took deep root. By his teens, he was as captivated by Slipknot and Korn as he was by the Billy Cobham and George Duke albums his parents played, or the jazz artists he and his friend Washington would sneak into LA clubs to see underage.
Thundercat is undoubtedly a pop star like no other, though you don’t need his backstory to realize that—just one look at him tells you. Today in London, fresh off a flight from LA, he’s dressed in his typically eye-catching style: baggy corduroy trousers, a shirt with 19th-century military brocade, trainers adorned with metallic skeleton toes, and dip-dyed dreadlocks pulled back by enormous silver clips shaped like snarling tigers. As if that weren’t striking enough, he’s also wearing a large metallic breastplate featuring the logo of the cartoon alien cats from which he took his name. An avid fan of cartoons, comics, and sci-fi, he sprinkles his conversation with references to manga and video games, some so niche I have to look them up later.
He describes his cameo as a man with a robotic hand in the Star Wars series The Book of Boba Fett as his “greatest moment ever.” “I can use that in an argument anytime someone gets too high and mighty: ‘Hey, you can’t talk to me like that—I was in Star Wars!’” he says with a smile. “It wasn’t one of those ‘never meet your heroes’ moments. You can’t ruin Star Wars for me. Certain characters and the principles it was built on are timeless. The struggle between dark and light, what’s considered dark and what’s considered light; the Force, which is basically like flatulence.” Noticing my puzzled look, he grins. “It’s all about how you choose to use it, man. Maybe as a weapon.”
But he isn’t in London to talk about Star Wars. Bruner has a new album, Distracted, which seems to be his usual mind-bending fare: smooth soft-rock piano ballads sit alongside house tracks, A$AP Rocky raps over a beat that draws as much from shoegaze as hip-hop, and both Lil Yachty and the defiantly retro indie duo the Lemon Twigs make appearances.
As often in his career, the eclecticism is so engaging that it’s easy at first to miss how troubled and melancholic many of the songs are. His 2011 album The Golden Age of Apocalypse mourned the drug-related death of his friend and collaborator Austin Peralta; his 2017 breakthrough Drunk explored his complicated relationship with alcohol; and Distracted’s predecessor, It Is What It Is, was steeped in grief over the loss of his “best friend,” rapper Mac Miller.
He says making It Is What It Is was especially hard—“There was a lot of trauma linked to it, a lot of pain”—made worse by its release during the peak of lockdown. “I’ve heard putting out an album compared to postpartum depression—you’re so attached to this thing you’ve obsessed over, then you release it and there’s this strange feeling of loneliness. And because of Covid, It Is What It Is came out to complete silence. Like: drop the album and go sit in the dark, see if you can amplify the pain even more.
“There was so much going on when that album came out, and just having to sit with it… I couldn’t… I’d almost feel sick thinking about it. But ultimately…”Looking back, I’m really grateful for the chance to have taken a break. Having to go on stage night after night, saying goodbye to my friends over and over, would have been another traumatic experience.
Instead of touring, Bruner took time to reflect. He quit drinking and threw himself into boxing training so intensely that even his trainers sometimes wonder what he’s up to: “Hey, are you training for a fight or something?” He lets out a dry chuckle. “I tell them, ‘You mean World War Three? Because that seems to be on.'”
He describes the new album as a kind of diary, capturing his thought process, and it seems to stem from the soul-searching he did after releasing It Is What It Is. The songs touch on his tendency for self-sabotage, failed relationships, and his suspicion that some of his more erratic behavior might be linked to ADHD—though he’s never been diagnosed. “I think it’s a byproduct of our environment, like most illnesses are,” he says. “We have cell phones, microtransactions; we use our brains in 30-second bursts, and you adapt to that whether you want to or not. Even if it’s something you could get diagnosed, I’m 40 years old and I haven’t died yet. And I don’t know a single creative person whose mind isn’t wired that way. It comes with the territory. So in a way, I guess it’s like a superpower.”
The album also revisits the late Mac Miller, who appears on “She Knows Too Much,” a track they recorded in Malibu years before Miller’s death. Bruner says it wasn’t strange returning to the recording and hearing his friend’s voice fill the studio again. The songs addressing Miller’s death on It Is What It Is were steeped in a paralyzing grief: “So hard to get over it, I tried to get under it, I’m stuck in between,” he sang on the title track.
But “She Knows Too Much”—a buoyant, funk-driven track that captures Miller at the peak of his early fame, reflecting on celebrity with wit and earthiness—brought back memories of when they made it. “It was the funniest thing ever,” says Bruner. “I remember it vividly. Mac was like a one-man Rat Pack. Whenever I saw him, I felt like we should have been wearing suits, just doing highbrow nonsense and messing around. That’s who we were.”
Bruner says “Distracted” is “the sound of me choosing happy.” If it sometimes sounds troubled or downcast, well, “choosing happy is a hell of a process.”
And he does seem happy—joking about his album having to compete with Cardi B (“I need to get a fatter ass, I need a BBL”), and excited about an upcoming trip to Paris Fashion Week.
It’s strange, he says: despite all the changes in his career, it doesn’t feel that different from his early days playing weddings or later with Suicidal Tendencies. “My main memory is thinking if I stood still too long, I’d get hit with a beer can. I think the same principle applies now. Actually, I think it applies to every stage of life: stand still too long, and someone’s going to hit you with something.”
With that, he shakes my hand and heads off.Stephen Bruner, known as Thundercat, walks into the London dusk, his breastplate clanking softly with each step, drawing understandable glances from passersby. His new album, “Distracted,” will be released on April 3 via Brainfeeder. The single “I Did This to Myself,” featuring Lil Yachty, is available now. Thundercat’s UK tour kicks off on March 25 at Brixton Academy.
Frequently Asked Questions
Of course Here is a list of FAQs about the Thundercat interview Choosing happiness is a hell of a process designed to sound like questions from real readers
General Beginner Questions
Q What is this interviewarticle about
A Its a candid conversation with musician Thundercat about his personal journey through grief friendship career upsanddowns and his conscious effort to find happiness all while discussing his unique approach to funk music
Q Who is Thundercat
A Thundercat is an acclaimed bassist singer and songwriter known for his virtuosic bass playing highpitched vocals and contributions to albums by Kendrick Lamar Erykah Badu and his own solo projects
Q What does the title Choosing happiness is a hell of a process mean
A It means that actively working toward happiness isnt easy or passive For Thundercat it involves confronting painful memories loss and professional setbacks rather than just waiting to feel happy
Q Why did Snoop Dogg fire him
A Thundercat was briefly a touring bassist for Snoop Dogg He humorously recounts being fired for playing bass lines that were too complex and weird for Snoops classic Gfunk sound which prefers simpler iconic grooves
Deeper Themes Music Questions
Q How does Thundercat define funk
A He sees funk not just as a genre but as a raw spiritual feeling and a foundation He describes it as the DNA of his music which he then layers with elements of jazz soul and psychedelia
Q Who are the lost friends he talks about
A Primarily hes referring to two close friends and collaborators rapper Mac Miller and producer Austin Peralta Their deaths deeply affected him and his music leading to albums like Drunk and It Is What It Is which process that grief
Q How does his music relate to his personal struggles
A His music is directly autobiographical He uses songwriting as therapy embedding his feelings about loss nostalgia and existential thoughts into his lyrics and the emotional tone of his complex bass melodies
