Music

Bernie and the Believers Featuring essence perform a Tiny Desk Concert on Oct. 16, 2018 (Cameron Pollack/NPR).

Music & Culture

Tiny Desk Contest Contestant Bernie Dalton Dies After Battling ALS

3:43pm May 07, 2019

by Bob Boilen

The musician won our hearts with his deeply moving 2018 Tiny Desk contest entry as Bernie and The Believers. He'd been fighting bulbar-onset ALS, an aggressive form of Lou Gehrig's disease.

Michael Lang in New York City this March, at a press event announcing the planned artist lineup for the Woodstock 50 music festival.

Music & Culture

Woodstock 50 Promoter Claims Former Funders Drained $17 Million From Festival

2:59pm May 07, 2019

by Anastasia Tsioulcas

Michael Lang, one of the founders of the original Woodstock and the promoter behind the tentative 2019 event, accused his former investor, Dentsu Aegis Network, of taking the money improperly.

Music & Culture

Decades Later, Nat Turner Rebellion Makes Its Debut With 'Laugh To Keep From Crying'

2:24pm May 07, 2019

by Ken Tucker

The R&B group recorded in Philadelphia in the early '70s, but their debut is only just being released. The album is all over the map, but its passion and bristling intelligence is noteworthy.

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Pussy Riot performs during a show as part of the Festival Ceremonia 2019 at Foro Pegaso on April 6 in Toluca, Mexico.

'Revenge Of The She-Punks' Sets Out To Rectify A Gender Imbalance

11:26am May 07, 2019

by Marissa Lorusso

In a new book, punk scholar Vivien Goldman traces the formation, rise and global reach of punk rock — demonstrating women's central place within it.

Music & Culture

Foals Makes Changes In Pursuit Of Ultimate Creative Freedom

10:41am May 07, 2019

The members of Foals produced the last two albums themselves. The British band left its lead singer alone to finish lyrics in a dark studio in South London.

"Youth is a powerful drug, you know? I was on a mission. So, yeah, I wasn't gonna let anything stop me," Ani DiFranco says.

Ani DiFranco Relives Her Indie Rock Rise: 'I Wanted A Different Kind Of Power'

9:47am May 07, 2019

After spending decades as a musician with her own label, Ani DiFranco reflects on how it all got started in her new memoir, No Walls and the Recurring Dream.

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Clockwise from upper left: mxmtoon, closeup of 75 Dollar Bill performing live, Faye Webster, cover art for Khiis

Music & Culture

New Mix: Faye Webster, Khiis, The Quiet Temple, mxmtoon, More

9:37am May 07, 2019

This week's All Songs Considered explores the more drastic ends of the song spectrum, from cotton-candy pop to raging punk sung in Farsi.

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Who's got the best pet? Clockwise from top left: American Forrest, Erin Rae & The Heartbeets, The Grackles, The Brothers Reed, TWINKIDS, Ano Bank$.

Music & Culture

Vote For Your Favorite Animal Friend Of The 2019 Tiny Desk Contest

10:03am May 06, 2019

by Clara Maurer

From howling dogs to purring cats, the Tiny Desk Contest team has heard it all. Now we're asking you: Who's your favorite pet from this year's entries?

Kix Brooks (left) and Ronnie Dunn (right) of Brooks & Dunn perform with Luke Combs (center) during the Academy Of Country Music Awards in April. Combs appears on Brooks & Dunn's new album, Reboot, which features contemporary country stars collaborating wi

Music & Culture

Brooks & Dunn's Excellent Adventure

8:47am May 06, 2019

by Jewly Hight

In the '90s, Brooks & Dunn helped to broaden country music's audience with its embrace of a wide range of sounds and on-stage spectacle. 25 years later, their influence is everywhere in Nashville.

"I feel like there's no Venezuelan that doesn't know depression, doesn't know oppression," singer-songwriter Lolita De Sola says.

Music & Culture

Lolita De Sola On Making Music Amid Venezuela's Political Crisis

8:09am May 06, 2019

A recent performer at the 2019 SXSW Music Festival, emerging artist Lolita De Sola opens up about the circumstances there and how the situation has influenced her music.

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