Arts

Country music tops the Billboard Hot 100, but it's complicated

9:50am July 08, 2023

NPR's Scott Detrow talks to NPR's Ann Powers and Marcus Dowling of The Tennessean about how two country songs sit atop the Billboard Hot 100, and the context for this moment.

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Arts

'Wait Wait' for July 8, 2023: 25th Anniversary Spectacular, Part IV!

8:40am July 08, 2023

This week, we're diving back into the archives for Part IV of our 25th Year Spectacular! We've got interviews with George Takei, Martha Stewart, Mariska Hargitay, and more!

A woman holds a picture of Victoria Amelina, as pallbearers carry the writer's coffin at the end of her funeral ceremony in Mykhaylo Gold Domes in Kyiv on July 4, 2023.

Opinion: Remembering Ukrainian poet Victoria Amelina

8:29am July 08, 2023

by Scott Simon

NPR's Scott Simon remembers Ukrainian writer and poet Victoria Amelina, who was among those killed in a Russian strike at a pizza restaurant last month.

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Cheryl Dunye's 1996 debut, The Watermelon Woman, is being added to the Criterion Collection. It's a long overdue honor for the filmmaker who shaped how Black LGBTQ+ stories are told.

Arts

Some advice from filmmaker Cheryl Dunye: 'Keep putting yourself out where you belong'

5:00am July 08, 2023

by Allyson McCabe

Dunye's 1996 debut, The Watermelon Woman, is being added to the Criterion Collection. It's a long overdue honor for the filmmaker who shaped how Black LGBTQ+ stories are told.

Intersex activists Sean Saifa Wall, left, River Gallo and Alicia Roth Weigel in the film Every Body.

Arts

What's Making Us Happy: A guide to your weekend viewing and listening

5:00pm July 07, 2023

Each week, guests and hosts on NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour share what's bringing them joy. This week: the Mystery Menu series, The Alarmist podcast, Every Body and Two Can Play That Game.

The Tachi Yokut Tribe reconnects with the long-dry Tulare Lake, back after wet winter

4:49pm July 07, 2023

by Soreath Hok

After massive precipitation, the long-dry Tulare Lake is back. That's been hard on crops and homes, but has allowed the Tachi Yokut Tribe to reconnect with the lake they once built their lives around.

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Macron is far from the first leader to blame violence on debunked video game theory

4:40pm July 07, 2023

by Vanessa Romo

Violence erupted in France following the fatal police shooting of a teen. President Macron has, in part, blamed video games for the clashes. Other world leaders have used this widely debunked theory.

CoCo Lee poses on the red carpet at the 53rd Golden Horse Awards in Taipei, Taiwan, on Nov. 26, 2016.

'Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon' singer CoCo Lee dies at 48

4:23pm July 07, 2023

by Chloe Veltman

The Hong Kong-born vocalist and songwriter became the first person of Chinese descent to perform at the Oscars with a nominated song from the popular martial arts film.

Arts

Remembering Alan Arkin, an Oscar- and Tony-winning actor/filmmaker

1:49pm July 07, 2023

by Terry Gross

Arkin, who died June 29, got his start creating characters with the comedy troupe Second City and later won an Oscar for his role in Little Miss Sunshine. Originally broadcast Sept. 29, 1989.

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Deadeye (Sabrina Wu), left, Audrey (Ashley Park), Lolo (Sherry Cola) and Kat (Stephanie Hsu) in Joy Ride.

Arts

Buckle up: This mile-a-minute 'Joy Ride' across China is a raunchy romp

1:49pm July 07, 2023

by Justin Chang

It's hard not to get swept up in this journey — full of filthy one-liners and priceless sight gags. And the film pulls it off with a level of savvy about Asian culture still rarely seen in Hollywood.

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