Music Features

Music & Culture

Chicago Rapper G Herbo Pivots To Vulnerability — And Scores A Hit

5:57pm April 02, 2020

by Frannie Kelley

G Herbo came up in Chicago's drill scene — a style of music praised for its lack of affect and criticized for its portrayal of violence. But on his new album PTSD, he drops the mask and cries.

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Rachel Bloom and Adam Schlesinger perform together in New York City in 2016.

Music & Culture

Remembering Adam Schlesinger, One Of Pop's Great Collaborators

1:51pm April 02, 2020

by Stephen Thompson

Schlesinger's creative tendrils extended into the catalogs of many other brilliant artists.

Pianist and educator Ellis Marsalis, photographed in 2008.

Music & Culture

Ellis Marsalis: Pianist, Teacher And New Orleans Jazz Patriarch

1:32pm April 02, 2020

by Molly Murphy

The patriarch of the famous musical Marsalis family, Ellis Marsalis was not only a performer but a teacher, a mentor and a coach.

Music & Culture

Ruston Kelly On Reading Ralph Waldo Emerson During The Pandemic

10:33am April 02, 2020

by Ruston Kelly

In Our Daily Breather, we ask artists to recommend ways to find calm and comfort during the COVID-19 crisis. Ruston Kelly recommends Emerson's "Self-Reliance" and believing in the power of art.

Music & Culture

Sadie Dupuis (Speedy Ortiz, Sad13) On Reading And Writing Poetry During A Pandemic

10:00am April 01, 2020

by Sadie Dupuis

In Our Daily Breather, we ask writers and artists how to find calm in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis. Dupuis recommends poetry: "Even if you write something stupid, you'll at least kill some time."

Nicholas Payton, photographed during the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Music Festival on May 3, 2013. Amid the global pandemic that began in early 2020, artists have seen gigs cancelled and releases postponed.

Music & Culture

With Gigs Gone, Nicholas Payton Used The Time To Record And Release A New Album

7:00am April 01, 2020

by Nate Chinen

With plans scuppered thanks to the coronavirus, New Orleans trumpeter Nicholas Payton invited two collaborators, Cliff Hines and Sasha Masakowski, to his home studio for two days of collaboration.

Whether Just Blaze is tapping out sampled drums or utilizing live drummers in the studio, his ability to harness energy is what makes his beats so dynamic.

Music & Culture

Just Blaze Unpacks His Samples for Beyoncé And Jay-Z

1:32pm March 31, 2020

Whether Just Blaze is tapping out sampled drums or utilizing live drummers in the studio, his ability to harness energy is what makes his beats so dynamic.

Questlove, The Roots' drummer and Tonight Show bandleader, says fellow producer Just Blaze's talent is both inspiring and infuriating.

Music & Culture

'I Hate You, Man': Questlove On Just Blaze's Maddening Genius

12:35pm March 31, 2020

by Questlove

The Roots drummer and Tonight Show bandleader picks apart exactly why fellow producer Just Blaze's talent for finding and flipping samples in unexpected combinations is both inspiring and infuriating.

Hanif Abdurraqib and a Bundt cake he made.

Music & Culture

Our Daily Breather: Hanif Abdurraqib On Finding Comfort In Baking

10:02am March 31, 2020

by Hanif Abdurraqib

In Our Daily Breather, we ask writers and artists how to find calm and comfort in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis. Writer Hanif Abdurraqib recommends baking Bundt cakes — and lots of other things.

In the midst of the COVID-19 crisis, Angelica Garcia is looking to the ancestral guidance of ranchera music.

Music & Culture

Our Daily Breather: Angelica Garcia Finds Sanctuary In Ranchera Music

10:00am March 30, 2020

by Angelica Garcia

In Our Daily Breather, we ask writers and artists to recommend ways to find calm and comfort in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis. For Angelica Garcia, ranchera music provides a release.