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Music

Frank Ocean Is in a Hotel, Taking Pictures of Towels, Doing Fine, Thanks

In a rare interview with GQ, Ocean talked about the midterm elections, his life in New York, and skincare routines for lazy men.
Frank Ocean Is in a Hotel, Taking Pictures of Towels, Doing Fine, Thanks

You may wake up most mornings and ask when Frank Ocean will release new music. But do you ever wake up and wonder how Frank Ocean is doing today? No, you monster. You just sit there, waiting for Frank Ocean to give you new stuff, plastering the "Judge Judy tapping wrist meme" all over Twitter, demanding another free masterpiece. Well, Frank Ocean is fine, thank you. He's living in New York. Things are good. He said so in a new interview with Emmett Cruddas and Vegyn over at GQ, and you can read it in full right here.

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There's nothing revelatory in the piece—it was conducted by the co-hosts of his Beats 1 show, after all—but there's plenty of gentle musings. Ocean was sitting in a hotel when he did the over-the-phone interview, and apparently he'd been taking pictures of the towels. He's been living in New York, sleeping in a mattress that was recommended to him by Spike Jonze. The interview is the written manifestation of an ASMR video. But when Cruddas asks Ocean about last year's midterm elections, for which Ocean's brought out a brand new blonded radio episode and some of one-off merch to get his fans to the polls, things get a little interesting:

Cruddas: I wanted to ask about bringing Blonded back for the midterm elections and how you perceive your own cultural cachet. Do you think the stakes are higher for artists politicizing their output in 2018, interacting with actual politics?
Ocean: The stakes feel higher now, yes. I was excited about the idea of incentivizing people to vote and to get excited about midterms, because people aren't usually excited about voting at midterms. Getting seven or eight thousand people who might not have otherwise voted to participate like that is a testament to what public figures can do or encourage with their voice. It feels responsible, especially at this time. Maybe also at many times prior, but it feels less like responsibility and more like a great opportunity that I had and still have.

After that, it's straight back into the calm, soothing waters of casual conversation. Want to know a little bit about Frank Ocean's skincare routine? You're in luck. Read the piece in full at GQ.

Alex Robert Ross moisturizes. Follow him on Twitter.