Music & Culture

Music & Culture

83-Year-Old Scottish Composer Janet Beat Releases Her First Album

6:14am August 18, 2021

Janet Beat is known for her trailblazing work in electronic music. The album, Pioneering Knob Twiddler, features compositions she made on synthesizers, tape machines and other acoustic instruments.

The Isley Brothers perform a Tiny Desk (home) concert.

Music & Culture

The Isley Brothers: Tiny Desk (Home) Concert

5:00am August 18, 2021

by Bobby Carter

Ronald and Ernie Isley broadcast from their St. Louis, Mo. studio to share four classics from the Isley Brothers' legendary catalog.

Music & Culture

Kowloon Walled City, 'Oxygen Tent'

4:55pm August 17, 2021

by Lars Gotrich

On this new one, the Oakland-based band's battering noise-rock graduates into a beautiful, but still brute-forced, groove.

Music & Culture

Watchhouse, 'New Star'

12:27pm August 17, 2021

by Brian Burns

The duo formerly known as Mandolin Orange return with a new name and new, typically lovely song about setting a good example for the next generation.

A still from Circuit Des Yeux's "Dogma" video.

Music & Culture

Circuit Des Yeux, 'Dogma'

10:17am August 17, 2021

by Lars Gotrich

On "Dogma," Haley Fohr collects and redistributes the sounds of a few cult genres – spaghetti western, avant-garde funk – and projects a modern mysticism for an uncertain age.

Lawsuit Alleges Sexual Abuse By Bob Dylan

9:06pm August 16, 2021

by Elizabeth Blair

Bob Dylan is accused of drugging and sexually abusing a minor in 1965, according to a complaint filed in Manhattan Supreme Court on Friday. A Dylan spokesperson denies the claims.

Artwork for the Italians Do It Better compilation.

Music & Culture

Bark Bark Disco, 'Borderline'

3:10pm August 16, 2021

by Reanna Cruz

For Madonna's 63rd birthday, Bark Bark Disco slows down her early hit "Borderline" and invokes the personal whisper of a moonlight tryst.

R. Kelly, arriving for a court hearing in Chicago in May 2019.

Opinion: 13 Years After The Last R. Kelly Trial, The Culture Has Changed

5:00am August 15, 2021

by Anastasia Tsioulcas

The first federal trial against disgraced R&B superstar R. Kelly is underway. Tenacious reporting has explicitly centered the mostly Black girls and women who have accused him.

Music & Culture

Rodney Crowell Talks New Album 'Triage'

6:06pm August 14, 2021

NPR's Don Gonyea speaks with singer-songwriter Rodney Crowell about his latest album.

Saweetie speaks at Sprite's Live from the Label Virtual Concert Series in Los Angeles. The best-selling rapper recently became the latest celebrity to have her own branded meal at McDonald's.

As Brands Reach For Diverse Customers, McDonald's Launches A Saweetie Celebrity Meal

8:00am August 14, 2021

by Jonathan Franklin

Big companies are becoming more inclusive and featuring more Blacks and other minorities in their ads and marketing materials as a way to take a stand against racism, analysts say.