F is for friends.

A week-long celebration of the family we choose for ourselves. - This year, to thrive and survive in a world that rarely makes sense, we've needed our best friends more than ever. [This is The FADER's #BFFWEEK.]( - Best friends come around every-so-often, but when you feel that musical click — locking eyes and screaming lyrics to each other across the party, driving around all night listening to that one album and spilling your guts — you know it’s really real. [Here're are a few of our favorite artists talking about their very best pals, and the music that soundtracks their friendships.]( - Two pairs of best pals are making waves in comedy and R&B. [First, meet Nick and Dan, the "We live, baby!" best friends]( from Baton Rouge whose tag-team antics have made them Instagram stars. Then, get to know label-mates Girl Ultra and Jesse Baez, as they explain [how their friendship helped them breathe new life into Mexico's R&B scene.]( - Friends are important. So important, in fact, that it’s been proven that friendship can extend life expectancy and lower chances of heart disease. Friendship helps us survive. For BFF week, [we had a scientist explain to us why we need, and yearn for, friends.]( - Sometimes, friendship is bigger than a bracelet or broken heart necklace. For that reason, [we've compiled 11 really rad and sentimental items, ranging from sunset pipes to cool plant hangars, that just might capture the magic of your unique best friendship.]( - Girlfriends supported the idea that there was nothing shameful about taking the extra step to gain more understanding in order to be a better friend to our sisters. These are staff writer Lakin Starling's thoughts about [how Girlfriends made black women feel good about themselves, and the timeless lessons that sisterhood’s definitive show taught us.]( - In a fake world, pictures of friends feel the most real. For BFF week, [33 photographers shared portraits of their favorite muses: their best friends.]( - Separated by an ocean, two artist besties keep in touch with memes, tweets, and DMs. We asked Toronto illustrator Hatecopy to [share what a day's worth of WhatsApps, DMs, and other social media communication looks like]( between her and her best friend, Babbu the Painter. THE SEX ISSUE Feb/March 2017 [ORDER NOW]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Instagram]( [Youtube]( [Tumblr]( [Snapchat]( © 2016 The FADER | All rights reserved. [Unsubscribe]( | [Update Preferences](