Music Features

Country artists like Miko Marks, Rissi Palmer, Mickey Guyton and Willie Jones are making standout music despite the confines of an industry that privileges whiteness.

Music & Culture

With All Eyes On Country Music, Will Black Nashville Get The Reckoning It Deserves?

10:00am February 19, 2021

Country music's race problem became a hot topic in early February, but the roots of racial injustice in the industry go much deeper. Two Nashville writers unpack the history and recent responses.

Thor Harris performs as part of Dumpster Fire, a socially distant musical performance held at dadaLab event space in Austin.

Music & Culture

City Scenes: The Fight to Save Live Music in Austin

11:51am February 18, 2021

by Jeff McCord

KUTX in Austin shares stories of survival from the live music community.

Pauline Anna Strom, who expanded synth music's color palette in the 1980s, died in December at 74. The posthumous album Angel Tears in Sunlight, out Feb. 19, is her first in over 30 years.

Music & Culture

Music From The Mind's Eye

11:02am February 18, 2021

by Lewis Gordon

The reclusive Bay Area artist awakened new possibilities for synth music in the 1980s. Angel Tears in Sunlight, Pauline Anna Strom's first album in 30 years, was intended to be a creative rebirth.

Singer and instrumentalist Flory Jagoda (left) performing with viola da gamba player Heather Spence at an event in Potomac, Md. in 2012. Jagoda died on Jan. 29.

Remembering Flory Jagoda, Who Preserved Sephardic Jewish Music And Language

4:31pm February 12, 2021

by Anastasia Tsioulcas

Born in Sarajevo, Flory Jagoda celebrated the music and language of her ancestors who had been expelled from Spain in 1492. She died Jan. 29 at age 97.

From the album's imagery to her lyrical prowess, Hayley Williams' Flowers for Vases / descansos recalls folk tales from Clarissa Pinkola Estés' 1992 book Women Who Run With the Wolves.

Music & Culture

Hayley Williams Sings Herself Back To Life

2:49pm February 11, 2021

by Clarissa Brooks

On Flowers for Vases / descansos, recorded at home during quarantine, Hayley Williams blurs the lines between mythology and reality to offer a new language to cope with grief.

A variety of artists remember acclaimed composer Armando Manzanero.

Music & Culture

Remembering The Legacy Of Maestro Armando Manzanero

11:53am February 11, 2021

Latin artists across generations and genres revered Armando Manzanero, who died in December due to COVID-19. We asked a few of our favorite musicians to pay tribute to the acclaimed Mexican composer.

A mural honoring George Floyd and the larger Black Lives Matter movement is pictured on a wall of Native Hostel. It was created by local artist Chris Rogers.

Music & Culture

City Scenes: The Truth Reflects, And Austin Doesn't Like What It Sees

4:39pm February 10, 2021

KUTX examines the impact of Austin's racial justice protests inspired by George Floyd's death.

Kayhan Kalhor is an Iranian kamancheh virtuoso and composer whose work has been celebrated around the globe.

After U.S. Immigration Battle, Musician Kayhan Kalhor Returns To Iran

2:55pm February 10, 2021

by Anastasia Tsioulcas

Grammy-winning Iranian musician Kayhan Kalhor called the U.S. home for decades, until chaotic encounters with the immigration system caused him to leave the country permanently.

The Pointer Sisters performing in New York City in 1983, the year the group released its album Break Out, which included four top 10 hits.

Music & Culture

The Hidden Legacy Of The Pointer Sisters, Genre-Busting Pioneers Of Message Music

7:00am February 10, 2021

by Tammy Kernodle

With roots in gospel and a radical spirit of resistance, The Pointer Sisters reformulated the girl group for an era of self-actualization and Black power, scoring a massive run of hits along the way.

Maryanne Amacher, an artist and composer, is one of the women featured in the new documentary Sisters with Transistors.

'Sisters With Transistors': Pioneers Of Electronic Music

4:27pm February 09, 2021

by Allyson McCabe

The new documentary tells the story of the roles women played — and continue to play — in the creation and development of electronic music, from theremin virtuoso Clara Rockmore to today.