🤑🎓 Good news: Here's $1,000!

🏆 We have some personal news … WE WON AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNALISM AWARD! B-Side took home FIRST PLACE for best initiative to bolster the next generation of readers at the INMA Awards in NYC last week. Look at our trophy! She’s so cute!

🥹 On an emo note: We seriously couldn’t have done this without all of you. WE LOVE YOU! <3

👀 What’s on tap today:

Up first…

The Monday scaries hit hard this weekend. But we have the perfect antidote: a heaping dose of good news. 

Here are the feel-good local stories you might’ve missed this month:

💸 Bridgewater State grads got the best commencement speech EVER. Yes, better than Jennifer Coolidge. Local billionaire Robert Hale Jr. ended his speech by giving every grad in the 1,400-person class two $500 checks. “One is for you,” he said, “the other is for someone in need.” And this isn’t even the first time he’s done it. Hale did the same thing last year for UMass Dartmouth students. “One of the greatest joys in life has been the joy of giving,” he said.

🎤 A 25-year-old Worcester native dressed Kendrick Lamar. The city doesn’t exactly scream “fashion capital,” but that didn’t stop Antonio Corrales, who learned to sew from his seamstress grandmother, from launching fashion label CorruptKid. Even more impressive: He just had three days' notice to design multiple pairs of pants and shorts for rap megastar Kendrick Lamar and sewed for 14 hours straight to get the job done. And they looked SICK.

🐀 An Allston street-cleaning program is kicking rats and taking names. And fighting homelessness. A new partnership between Allston Village Main Streets and Project Place not only wants to take the “rat” out of “Rat City,” but also “permanently disrupt the cycle of homelessness and poverty.” Twice a week, a team of folks who have experienced homelessness, incarceration, or addiction are paid to clean up the streets, providing them with a transition to full-time employment, and Allston residents with … fewer rats.

⚽ A team of local grannies took the soccer world by storm. What was a group of 50-, 60-, and 70-year-old ladies from Needham doing playing soccer in Tzaneen, South Africa? Crushing in the Grannies International Football Tournament, obviously! Back in 2010, Somerville’s Jean Duffy found out about Tzaneen resident Beka Ntsanwisi’s grannies football team, and invited them to compete in Mass.’ Veteran’s Cup. This year, Ntsanwisi, who now founded her own tournament, returned the favor, and Duffy’s New England Breakers took home the gold.

🏳️‍🌈 Young, queer Bostonians have a new third space. After facing homophobia in high school, Ethan Ide dreamed up a safe space where queer folks and their allies could meet, build community, and have fun. And now, he’s done it! Enter: Boston Queer Club, which has hosted a year of regular meetups so far, impacting over 300 people to date, and disrupting stereotypes and stigmas about the LGBTQ+ community.

😬 Local international students are *rightfully* freaking tf out. President Trump’s move to block Harvard from enrolling international students (and demanding current ones transfer or lose legal status) has others worried they could be next. Particularly those at Northeastern, as it’s one of the most popular U.S. schools for international students. Think: 20,000 international students worldwide and they make up 16% of undergrads. And now, we wait: A federal judge temporarily blocked Trump’s plans with a hearing slated for this week. Stay tuned!

🤑 Boston’s biggest summer blockbuster? Political ads. Thought those were reserved for October? Psych! A super PAC backing Josh Kraft for Boston mayor is dropping over $1.4 million on ads, billboards, and texts attacking incumbent Mayor Michelle Wu. This is a HUGE amount of money for an outside group to dump this early in a citywide race (the highest-spending super PAC in the 2021 mayor’s race spent $1.6 million total). Translation? Political ads might be making an appearance on your TV and FYP sooner than later. Let the mud-slinging begin. 

💰 The millionaire’s tax is definitely earning its keep. State officials announced the surtax on high earners generated over $2.6 billion in revenue this fiscal year (and we’re still waiting on numbers from May and June!). For context: A think tank predicted it’d bring in around $2 billion a year. But don’t get it twisted: A millionaire’s tax surplus doesn’t necessarily = a healthy state fiscal picture, as that $$$ is strictly reserved for education and transportation. Plus, it’s highly responsive to the economy, making it tough to predict how much it’ll bring in the future.

🚗 Uber’s new Halloween costume: the bus. Enter: Uber Route Share, the rideshare app’s new feature allowing passengers to ride together on busy routes during weekday commuting hours, just launched in Boston. Here’s how Uber says it’ll go: You’ll be in the car with up to two other riders, there will be frequent pickup options at pre-determined locations, and rides will run you up to 50% less than an UberX. As many folks have (rightfully) pointed out, it sounds a lot like a more expensive bus, but we suppose it’s technically still an option.

🧠 Put your Boston knowledge to the test. ‘Cause we’re hosting a Boston-themed trivia night on May 28 at Sam Adams Brewery in JP! Even better: There will be $1 wings, and B-Side members get a free beer if you RSVP here. 

🥵 Add a steamy romance to your summer TBR. Ali Hazelwood’s “Problematic Summer” is getting the star treatment TONIGHT at its launch party at Lovestruck Books!

⛴️ Set sail on the high seas (for cheap). Tickets are officially live for the Seaport Summer Cruise Series where you can party on a boat with themes like Y2K and Barbie night. But act fast: Prices go up this week!

🔍 Solve a mystery at the art museum. We’re teaming up with A.R.T. and Harvard Art Museums for a themed scavenger hunt that will take you on an evening adventure through the galleries on May 29.

🥘 Stretch your palate with a supper club. BREAKING: There are still a few spots left in the Drop Clock Club’s dinner featuring Egyptian food from Koshari Mama — and they’re normally sold out!

🧘 Tell your boss you’ve got plans Friday … And by plans, we mean this free midday Stretch In The City yoga class in the Seaport. And yes, it’s happening every Friday this summer.

💃 Pretend you’re on Dancing with the Stars … and head to the Anchor in Charlestown every Monday this summer for FREE salsa and bachata lessons.

🍝 Unlock a new date-night spot. PSA: This is the last week to take advantage of ReelHouse Marina Bay’s date-night deal where you get antipasti, a first and second course, dessert, and sides for just $25 a person!

It wasn’t a picture perfect Boston Calling weekend, but if you ask us, these pictures from the music festival looked pretty perfect.

Some of our favorite moments from the star-studded weekend include:

You can see the rest of the festival’s iconic moments here.

— Written by Emily Schario and Gia Orsino

🎤 Thanks for reading! T-Pain was the headliner for one of Emily’s spring concerts in college and she can confirm her brain chemistry remains altered to this day.

🤘 The results are in: And it looks like we have some emo-pop girlies on our hands! Fall Out Boy took the top spot for the headliner readers were most pumped about, although … “none of them” was a close second. One reader wrote: “T-Pain isn't a headliner per se, but he is headlining the festival of my dreams <3” Retweet!

💃 Keep up with us @BostonBSide on IG, TikTok, and Twitter. Send comments and suggestions to [email protected] or [email protected].