Music Features

DJ Premier is a purist at heart. He picks samples based on feeling and the beats he creates from them are all about honoring that vibe. That lineage has played out from his parents record collection growing up in Houston to his own expansive discography o

Music & Culture

Behind The Beats: DJ Premier's Sonic Inspiration In Three Samples

9:01am April 25, 2020

DJ Premier is a purist at heart. Watch the producer unpack samples inspired by the feelings he got from his parents' record collection that led to classic beats for Gang Starr and Biggie.

Screamin' Jay Hawkins performs in Spain in 1989.

Music & Culture

Because You're Mine: Searching For The Children Of Screamin' Jay Hawkins

8:58am April 25, 2020

by Hanif Abdurraqib

His signature song, "I Put A Spell On You," has a long legacy on its own and in songs that sample it. But Hawkins' dying wish for his dozens of children to meet created a new chapter in his story.

To pass the time during the pandemic, Billy Porter has been reading, writing and working on music.

Music & Culture

Hear A New Song From Billy Porter, Plus His Quarantine Recommendations

10:00am April 24, 2020

by Billy Porter

In Our Daily Breather, we ask artists to recommend ways to find calm in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis. Actor and singer Billy Porter has been reading, writing and working on music.

Allison Moorer has been reading poetry to stay sane during the pandemic.

Music & Culture

Allison Moorer On The Poetry And Podcasts That Put Things In Perspective

10:00am April 23, 2020

by Allison Moorer

In Our Daily Breather, we ask artists to recommend ways to find calm in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis. Allison Moorer shares the poetry, podcasts and book that are helping her.

A second line in the Treme neighborhood of New Orleans, photographed on April 15, 2018. The parades, along with much else in the city, have been suspended amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Music & Culture

NOLA Amidst COVID: Learning From A Tough Past To Cope With An Uncertain Future

12:48pm April 22, 2020

by Alison Fensterstock

The city has recovered from its fair share of disasters and displacements, but the situation it currently finds itself in is unprecedented.

Lately, Paul Burch has been making hot chicken while stuck inside.

Music & Culture

Our Daily Breather: Paul Burch's Recipe For Nashville-Style 'Hot Chicken Quarantine'

10:05am April 22, 2020

by Paul Burch

In Our Daily Breather, we ask artists to recommend ways to find calm in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis. Paul Burch and his wife have spent their time perfecting a recipe for Nashville hot chicken.

Music & Culture

Our Daily Breather: Liza Anne On Learning To Draw During A Pandemic

10:04am April 21, 2020

by Liza Anne

In Our Daily Breather, we ask writers and artists to recommend ways to find calm in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis. Singer and songwriter Liza Anne recommends trying your hand at drawing.

Music & Culture

Our Daily Breather: Alice Bag Gets Fit For The Apocalypse

10:00am April 20, 2020

by Alice Bag

In Our Daily Breather, we ask artists how to find calm in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis. Alice Bag has been making home workout videos.

Kendrick Lamar in 2013. "Money Trees," from Lamar's 2012 album, good kid, m.A.A.d city, is a song "that consumes the oxygen and alters the ultra-violet," writes Jeff Weiss.

Music & Culture

Kendrick Lamar's 'Money Trees' Is A Time Machine

10:35pm April 18, 2020

by Jeff Weiss

A song from the rapper's landmark album good kid, m.A.A.d city, produced by DJ Dahi, is built around an atmospheric sample. For one writer, it's a portal back to a night out in L.A. in 2015.

View of the Holzmarkt 25 bar area, close to the Kater Blau club in Berlin last month. All Berlin nightclubs have been closed since March 13, causing employees and artists to lose their livelihoods.

Clubbing In The Time Of COVID-19: Berlin Clubs Are Closed, So DJs Are Livestreaming

8:01am April 18, 2020

by Rob Schmitz

People are dancing at home to livestreamed sets. "I think this is probably the most difficult time since World War II," says Lutz Leichsenring of the Berlin Club Commission. "Everything is shut down."

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