World Cafe's Best Of 2015
Hear highlights of concerts and studio sessions recorded live for World Cafe this year.
Music & Culture
A Rational Conversation: Sadie Dupuis Of Speedy Ortiz Looks Back On Music In 2015
The lead singer of the rock band Speedy Ortiz talks the albums that lingered in her memory. Plus: the power of controlling the means of production and making rock clubs into safe spaces.
DJ Earworm's Year-End Mashup Hits A Nostalgic Groove
"I knew I needed to get the vibe that was a lot more emotional than it was a few years ago," the mashup artist says of 2015's pop concoction.
Kendrick Lamar: 'I Can't Change The World Until I Change Myself First'
Even with To Pimp A Butterfly's success, Lamar is still conflicted about his place in music. "How am I influencing so many people on this stage rather than influencing the ones that I have back home?"
Viking's Choice 2015: The Year In The Loud And The Weird
In 2015, Iron Maiden reigned, a once-mysterious sacred music collective returned after 20 years away, and some Olympia punks smashed the patriarchy with a boot to the head.
Life's Many Codas: Maya Shankar's Path From Juilliard To The White House
Shankar was well on her way to an extraordinary career as a violinist when an injury closed that door. This week, we look at how she wound up at the top of another field: the social sciences.
20 Feet From DJ
Remembering one of dance music's secret stars, Diane Charlemagne, amidst the plight of the genre's featured vocalists.
Rock Icon Lemmy Of Motörhead Dies At Age 70
The frontman of the heavy metal band died Monday from an aggressive form of cancer. He learned of the diagnosis just two days ago.
What Artist Did You Fall In Love With In 2015?
Three staffers from NPR Music tell Audie Cornish about a futurist Congolese band, a couple of house-music Kiwis in London and the unreleased recordings of a pianist who dated Doris Duke.
Metropolis: 12/26/15
KCRW's Jason Bentley spins EDM tracks by Purple Disco Machine, ATTLAS and more in this two-hour mix.