THAT'S TODAY!

September 21, 2021 9:58 AM

For the sixth year in a row, comedy writer Demi Adejuyigbe has released a video in honor of the 21st day of September. Previously
posted by pxe2000 (47 comments total)

I literally just went looking for this and was about to post it. Beat me to it!
posted by Ben Trismegistus at 10:01 AM on September 21, 2021 [2 favorites]

Today happens to be a friend's birthday. This annual video has made it even more of an event :D
posted by May Kasahara at 10:06 AM on September 21, 2021 [2 favorites]

Not even up an hour yet, and his charity raffle blew by the goal, and is now at $151,000. So they raised the goal to $250K!
posted by Miss Cellania at 10:14 AM on September 21, 2021 [2 favorites]

♫ BA-DEE-YA ♫
posted by DirtyOldTown at 10:15 AM on September 21, 2021 [5 favorites]

Love these. Demi's a gem. And every year he gets better and better as a dancer.
posted by PhineasGage at 10:18 AM on September 21, 2021 [3 favorites]

Scuttlebutt says that this will be his last one. I think taking a page from Fred Astaire and ending with a thank-you from Earth Wind and Fire is a high note to end on.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 10:22 AM on September 21, 2021 [11 favorites]

Every year I freak out a little more and every year there are people I know who get to see all of these for the first time.

Demi is the best.
posted by fifteen schnitzengruben is my limit at 10:32 AM on September 21, 2021

Is he really stopping now? That makes me sad (while I'm obviously happy to see this year's video). Happy-sad. Please don't stop, Demi.
posted by mumimor at 10:36 AM on September 21, 2021 [4 favorites]

I cannot imagine how he tops this, short of blowing up a city block Michael Bay style. Nor would I want him to. What an excellent note to go out on.
posted by fifteen schnitzengruben is my limit at 10:43 AM on September 21, 2021 [6 favorites]

In the video he says this is the last year.
posted by PhineasGage at 10:45 AM on September 21, 2021 [3 favorites]

This is one of my favorite internet things, ever. (I say that every year.) I'm sad that this is the last one BUT the guy is super talented so there won't be a shortage of Demi content. He's been pretty open in the past about how much effort these are and GODDAMN this one is an amazing one to go out on.
posted by fluffy battle kitten at 10:46 AM on September 21, 2021 [4 favorites]

The Library of Congress interviewed Allee Willis, who was living on food stamps when she got this phone call:

my phone rang and this—this is the whole conversation:

[I say,] “Hello?” and he said, “This is Maurice White and I want to know if you want to write the entire next Earth, Wind & Fire album with me?”

American Songwriter has a piece about the song:

“It was one of those mornings,” McKay told Spotify in 2018. “I came downstairs feeling really good. (I) went to my studio, set up a groove, and it just came piece by piece by piece. I brought it to Maurice, and he liked it right away. Then he said, ‘Play it again.’ And I kept playing it for him. The last time, he looked at me and he sang, ‘Do you remember …’”

NPR has a piece about it too:

"There's four chords in the chorus that just keep moving forward and never seem to land anywhere — much like the four seasons," he says. "It's the end of summer, it's the beginning of fall, it's that Indian summertime, it's the transition from warm to cool."

Willis has a line quoted in all three pieces (and in the 2019 thread here), of the lesson she learned from Maurice White: "Never let the lyrics get in the way of the groove."
posted by fedward at 10:48 AM on September 21, 2021 [11 favorites]

Allee Willis actually led a pretty interesting life! Someone should do a documentary.
posted by praemunire at 10:52 AM on September 21, 2021 [2 favorites]

Bwah - just noticed my prediction from two years ago came true!
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 10:52 AM on September 21, 2021 [4 favorites]

"Do you like art don't answer that I can't hear you" is a perfect sentence.
posted by hanov3r at 10:53 AM on September 21, 2021 [23 favorites]

I love this man.
posted by aramaic at 10:59 AM on September 21, 2021 [1 favorite]

I'm pretty sure in last year's video he said 5 was a perfect year to stop, so I'm just going to "la la la, I can't hear you" when he says this is his last.

Ok, no. I'm going to "Ba Dee Ya, I can't hear you." Fingers crossed.
posted by librarianamy at 11:01 AM on September 21, 2021 [4 favorites]

I'm sad that this is the last one BUT the guy is super talented so there won't be a shortage of Demi content.

Yeah, I get to September every year having forgotten why I followed Adejuyigbe on the Twitter in the first place. It's always been a great surprise to be reminded what day it is.
posted by straight at 11:08 AM on September 21, 2021

"Do you like art don't answer that I can't hear you" is a perfect sentence.

I just wanted to quote that entire perfect, self-referential sentence in full.
posted by straight at 11:08 AM on September 21, 2021 [2 favorites]

I'd like to highlight the charity drive Adejuyigbe is doing this year. It's very thoughtful; a Texas fund to support abortion access, a relief and assistance fund in New Orleans, and a political organization that is working to fight climate change.

I needed this for my own purposes so I'll share it here. It's the name of the non-profit organization attached to each cause along with their tax ID. Useful for research and making donations. You don't need any of this if you just donate directly through the donation site. It's a little complicated because all three of these organizations don't exist as a 501c3 charity under the common name but are rather funded via an umbrella or related organization.

West Fund: 46-4153283 (National Network Of Abortion Funds)
Imagine Water Works: 58-1956686 (Project South: umbrella)
Sunrise Movement: 46-4773036 (Education Fund)
posted by Nelson at 11:12 AM on September 21, 2021 [21 favorites]

Today happens to be a friend's birthday. This annual video has made it even more of an event :D

Who's your friend? Steven King or Bill Murray? Hmm?!?!?!
posted by Nanukthedog at 11:25 AM on September 21, 2021

Today happens to be a friend's birthday. This annual video has made it even more of an event :D

My niece is 13 today as well!
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 11:43 AM on September 21, 2021 [2 favorites]

I was having a lousy day and forgot all about this, and I'm so pleased this is up for the nth year in a row. ♥
posted by Ms. Moonlight at 12:23 PM on September 21, 2021 [2 favorites]

Thank you so much for posting, pxe2000.
Goal updated again, to $450,000.00; current amount raised is $405,282.06
posted by Iris Gambol at 12:36 PM on September 21, 2021 [4 favorites]

Who's your friend? Steven King or Bill Murray? Hmm?!?!?!

Jason Derulo, obviously.
posted by mykescipark at 12:58 PM on September 21, 2021 [10 favorites]

There's four chords in the chorus that just keep moving forward and never seem to land anywhere

This is 100% true. For you music theory nerds out there, the chord progression in the chorus is ii - V - iii - iv. It repeats throughout the chorus, and when it finally resolves, it goes to VII instead of I.

Actually, now that I'm thinking about it, there may not be a I chord in the entire song. The only other song I can think of that does that is "Dreams" by Fleetwood Mac.
posted by Ben Trismegistus at 1:26 PM on September 21, 2021 [5 favorites]

The Strong Songs podcast did an episode on this song: https://strongsongspodcast.com/episode/september-by-earth-wind-fire
posted by wenestvedt at 1:27 PM on September 21, 2021 [2 favorites]

Per the stepping-back-from-volunteering thread elsewhere on MeFi recently -- how good that he has been able to grow and make and share these delightful pieces of art, and how lucky we are that he shared them with us, and how good that he is finding a way to gracefully step away on his own schedule instead of burning out. And this will make room for him to make and share new delightful things!
posted by brainwane at 1:41 PM on September 21, 2021 [8 favorites]

I watched to this, walked out of my office, and a dude was driving down the street in a convertible blasting the song. I thought about yelling "that's today!!!" at him but chickened out.
posted by damayanti at 2:36 PM on September 21, 2021 [7 favorites]

Feels worth a mention that Adejuyigbe’s last musical outing was a brief riff on Trinidadian cousingate.
posted by Going To Maine at 2:39 PM on September 21, 2021 [1 favorite]

Library of Congress interviewed Allee Willis

Did you find the WE LUV YOU ALLEE hidden in the video?
posted by JoeZydeco at 2:39 PM on September 21, 2021 [4 favorites]

That's what I get for just reading the transcript.
posted by fedward at 2:43 PM on September 21, 2021

Every year I'm frankly impressed with just how quickly it raises money for good charities - does anyone know what the final tallies for previous years was? I remember Demi kind of losing his shit on twitter once when he realized how quickly it was adding up.
posted by Kyol at 2:51 PM on September 21, 2021 [1 favorite]

Actually, now that I'm thinking about it, there may not be a I chord in the entire song. The only other song I can think of that does that is "Dreams" by Fleetwood Mac.

(It’s not super common but it happens occasionally… “Get Lucky” is ii-IV-vi -V, and “The Hills” is the same chord progression as that Daft Punk song, just starting on the vi)
posted by donatella at 3:15 PM on September 21, 2021 [1 favorite]

Kyol, totals in 2018: 17,820 (selling t-shirts identical to the ones he wears in the video), proceeds went to RAINN, RAICES, and the National Center for Transgender Equality; &
2020: 333,638.60 (Texas Monthly: Demi Adejuyigbe Will Keep Celebrating the 21st of September if People Donate $50,000 to Good Causes; by the third sentence, he's "the Dallas-raised University of Texas at Austin grad"), proceeds to Street Watch LA, Trans United Fund, BlackRoots Alliance, National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum, and SELAH Neighborhood Homeless Coalition.

The article has a Twitter embed of Adejuyigbe's reaction last year, when the internet's enthusiasm crashed the vid link.
posted by Iris Gambol at 3:36 PM on September 21, 2021 [4 favorites]

$543,000 raised on 366,000 views as of right now. That's incredible.
posted by JoeZydeco at 3:38 PM on September 21, 2021 [3 favorites]

These are always great and if this is the last one I think it's a fine end for the series. One weird thing: I had my volume cranked up all the way on Youtube and my laptop, and it was still really quiet. I feel like I only got about 75% of the dialogue up front and the thank you's and stuff at the end.
posted by Ursula Hitler at 4:31 PM on September 21, 2021 [5 favorites]

Just a reminder that Demi is one of the absurdly talented writers for The Amber Ruffin Show. I will stan for that show as often as I can and I am not sorry.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 8:23 PM on September 21, 2021 [3 favorites]

Just donated, it felt good to give money to these worthy charities, but the West Fund most of all. Current donation level: $706,383.89.
posted by jessamyn at 8:23 PM on September 21, 2021 [4 favorites]

This is so great, and at the same time he makes it clear how much dread (etc) comes from the ratcheting up of expectations around this; I'm glad he's getting to say this is the last one.
posted by LobsterMitten at 7:38 AM on September 22, 2021 [2 favorites]

I love Demi. It was my birthday yesterday but I haven’t had a chance to watch this year’s edition. Doing so now!
posted by sucre at 10:58 AM on September 22, 2021

I searched yesterday for a new video, but too early, apparently. Thanks for posting. Love the heck out of these. Now north of $815K.
posted by the sobsister at 11:06 AM on September 22, 2021 [1 favorite]

I love Demi's videos, they're beautiful and pure. I just rewatched the first one, from 2016, and I'd be happy if he scaled back to that, too.
posted by Pronoiac at 10:53 AM on September 23, 2021

I agree it's good for this to come to an end. All due love for his work and charitable contributions ($900k so far this year!). But this is a joke that doesn't get better with expectations or scaling up. That first video is so simple and silly, exactly what it needed to be. The next two were a nice surprise. This year I saw a lot of winky-wink comments on Sep 20 saying "remember what tomorrow is?" and a bunch of commentary that all just reminded me of the build up to the stupidest years of April Fools corporate Internet pranks.

So here I am saying humpf, I hate fun. Congrats to him for making this last video fun and exciting and a wonderful charitable event. But also respect for him realizing it's best to go out on a high note, before the joke is completely tired out.

BTW there's a credit on the video that it was filmed at Willis Wonderland, Allee Willis' house "the down payment of which was made from the first royalty check I received from my 1979 Earth, Wind & Fire hit, “Boogie Wonderland”". Lots of photos on the site, the decor is amazing, she was quite a collector. Her and her house could definitely use their own Metafilter post.
posted by Nelson at 11:18 AM on September 23, 2021 [3 favorites]

A week later, amount raised: $950,792.88
posted by Iris Gambol at 5:39 PM on September 28, 2021 [1 favorite]

Demi has been posting behind the scenes vids to his twitter today in a push to hit one million in donations to sept21st.com (currently at $984183.97).
posted by rodlymight at 5:23 PM on October 1, 2021 [2 favorites]

...and he's done it, amount raised: $1,015,429.39
posted by Iris Gambol at 9:41 AM on October 2, 2021 [5 favorites]