Arts

A jewelry company started by veterans gets a boost from Taylor Swift

6:58pm February 08, 2024

by Quil Lawrence

A year ago NPR talked with two former U.S. Army Rangers who want to be the Warby Parker of engagement rings. After a Taylor Swift endorsement, sales have skyrocketed.

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When Usher performs on Sunday evening in Las Vegas' Allegiant Stadium during the city's very first Super Bowl, he'll also be graduating from two years as one of its busiest and most successful working residents.

How the pandemic ushered in a maximalist new era for Las Vegas residencies

3:35pm February 08, 2024

by Bilal Qureshi

In the post-pandemic market for maximalist entertainment, America's "capital of entertainment" has found itself at the center of a cultural revival with A-list residencies at its core.

Employees work on computers in an office building in London.

Arts

Have you had a workplace crush or romance gone wrong? Tell us about it.

2:27pm February 08, 2024

by Claire Murashima

If you've ever had a workplace romance that didn't turn out well, we want to hear about it.

Disney says it will invest $1.5 billion in Epic Games.

Disney gets stock bump after talking Fortnite, Taylor Swift, Moana

12:05pm February 08, 2024

by Elizabeth Blair

At Disney's earnings call, CEO Bob Iger shared plans for a major investment in an Epic Games partnership. Also, a new Moana movie is heading to theaters, and Taylor Swift's concert film to Disney+.

Usher performs at the grand opening his Las Vegas residency, "My Way," on July 15, 2022, at the Dolby Live amphitheater at the Park MGM Hotel and Casino.

The lonely throne of Usher, modern R&B's greatest showman

11:34am February 08, 2024

by Sheldon Pearce

This year's Super Bowl halftime star is a rare species in pop: More entertainer than celebrity, his enduring stage presence has eclipsed his melodramas, and perhaps even his music.

The Spinners member Henry Fambrough speaks at the Motown Museum on May 19, 2023, in Detroit. Fambrough, the last surviving original member of the iconic R&B group, whose hits included "It's a Shame," "Could It Be I'm Falling In Love," and "The Rubberband Man," died on Wednesday at age 85.

Henry Fambrough, the last surviving original member of The Spinners, dies at 85

11:20am February 08, 2024

by The Associated Press

Fambrough was the last surviving original member of the iconic R&B group, whose hits included "It's a Shame," "Could It Be I'm Falling in Love" and "The Rubberband Man."

Book covers of: Like Other Girls; The Dating Playbook; Before the Ever After; Snapped; The Redshirt: A Novel; The Right Swipe: A Novel

Pregame the Super Bowl with our favorite football fiction

10:46am February 08, 2024

by Beth Novey

Of course, leave it to the gigantic nerds at NPR to throw a literary tailgate ... but to thine own self be true, even if it means getting stuffed into your locker later this afternoon.

Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake perform at the Super Bowl halftime show in 2004.

Reexamining the 'upskirt decade' and the public ridicule of female pop stars

8:10am February 08, 2024

The new book Toxic: Women, Fame, and the Tabloid 2000s reassesses a time when popular culture policed, ridiculed and even took down a variety of women in the public eye.

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TikTok Shop launched in the U.S. in September.

TikTok Shop is taking on Amazon — one viral video at a time

7:43am February 08, 2024

by Emma Klein

TikTok has surged into the e-commerce space, positioning itself as a kind of Amazon for the social media age. Analysts say it might work, but users and sellers are asking: At what price?

Covers of You Dreamed of Empires, Confrontations and A Woman of Pleasure.

Books from Mexico, Netherlands, and Japan bring rewrites of history, teen tales

6:01am February 08, 2024

by Lily Meyer

Books from writers Álvaro Enrigue, Simone Atangana Bekono, and Kiyoko Murata may not come from the same place — but they still work in conversation with each other.