-
![]()
Paul Spella / The Atlantic* A Year of Miseducation
From Lauryn Hill to Cameron Post to Tara Westover, 2018 repeatedly asked the question, What does it mean to teach a person to surrender?
-
![]()
New York Public Library The 1950s Holiday Classic You Won't Hear at the Mall This Year
Sixty years ago, Stan Freberg’s satirical song “Green Christmas” angered advertisers for partaking in an age-old American tradition: criticizing the commercialism of the season.
-
-
![]()
Katie Martin / The Atlantic The 27 Best Music Moments of 2018
The cultural effects of Nicki Minaj’s “Chun-Li,” Ariana Grande’s “No Tears Left to Cry,” Mitski’s “Nobody,” and more
-
![]()
Annapurna Pictures How If Beale Street Could Talk Translates Joy and Terror Into Sound
The composer Nicholas Britell discusses the organic process of collaborating with the director Barry Jenkins on the film’s lush and evocative score.
-
![]()
Vantage News / AP Offset Has Trapped Cardi B
In a plea for his estranged wife’s forgiveness at her own concert, the Migos rapper is taking advantage of the cultural weight that’s on his side.
-
![]()
Kevin Mazur / Netflix Bruce Springsteen Explains It All
As his wildly successful one-man Broadway show comes to Netflix, one thing is clear: Under his tutelage, everything makes sense.
-
![]()
Allison Joyce / Reuters The Rap War in Calabasas
Kanye West’s ugly feud with Drake touches on important topics—but it mostly started as neighborhood drama.
-
-
![]()
Jeenah Moon / Reuters Janet Jackson’s Overdue Inclusion in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
The pop idol is part of a refreshingly forward-thinking class that includes Radiohead, Roxy Music, Stevie Nicks, The Cure, and Def Leppard.
-
![]()
Katie Martin / The Atlantic The 23 Best Albums of 2018
Selections from Megan Thee Stallion, Florence + the Machine, Metallica, and more
-
![]()
Mike Blake / Reuters The Grammy Nominations: A New Generation Arrives
The hip-hop boom and the talent of women are finally being recognized with more nods. But will the trophies follow?
-
![]()
Kevin Mazu / Getty The Deeper Meaning Behind Ed Sheeran and Beyoncé’s Clothing Clash
Sure, they’re pop stars playing parts. Yes, sexism allows him to dress down. But isn’t his schlumpy outfit also saying something about her spectacular one?
-
![]()
Steven Taylor Listening in Between Earl Sweatshirt’s Words
Revealing its meaning in fragments, the album Some Rap Songs asks when to speak and when to be silent.
-
-
![]()
Mary Evans / UNITED ARTISTS / Ronald Grant … The Untold Labor That Helped Make Charlie Chaplin’s Film Scores
A new book shows that many of the director’s musical achievements were the result of unrecognized collaboration.
-
![]()
Whitten Sabbatani Jeff Tweedy Says It’s Okay to Be Okay
In a new memoir and solo album, the Wilco bandleader supplants the “tortured artist” trope with the universality of suffering.
-
![]()
Ints Kalnins / Reuters The Tragedy of Electronic Music
Future Sounds, a new book on the history of machine-made pop and classical songs, suggests that the radical power of the synthetic has largely been forgotten.
-
![]()
Steve Molina Contreras / NBC SNL’s New Rap Parodies Tell the Same Old Joke
The show’s been linking trending topics in the news with trending songs in hip-hop. Why do the results feel staler than Weird Al?
-
![]()
Prince Williams / Getty The Miami Rap Duo Celebrating Female Pleasure Without Apology
City Girls, out with a new record, have rapidly risen to success with cheeky, libidinous tracks that gleefully resist the industry’s ubiquitous misogyny.
-
-
![]()
Mario Anzuoni / Reuters Mariah Carey on the Warpath
Caution, the singer’s first album in four years, is both silky and sharp.
-
![]()
Tim Mosenfelder / Getty Smino’s Funky Raps Soothe the Soul
On his masterly sophomore album, NØIR, the St. Louis–born rapper incorporates gospel, R&B, and jazz influences with an inventive flourish.
-
![]()
Ringo Chiu / Reuters ‘People Are Entrenched’: Rosanne Cash on Thousand Oaks, Country Music, and Gun Control
The attack on a bar in California follows an attack on some of the very same music fans in Las Vegas.
