Silver Jews' David Berman Remembered By His Peers, In His Own Words
Beauty Pill's Chad Clark and Wooden Wand's James Toth examine the legacy of David Berman with their favorite lyrics.
Music Features
With 'Eve,' Rapsody Wields The Legacies Of Legendary Black Women, From Nina To Serena
The forthcoming album, her third, honors 16 queens from the far past and the immediate present, using them to power her best and baddest musical clapback yet.
Empress Of The Stage
How do we understand the music of the early 20th Century if we consider Bessie Smith — seriously — as an actress?
Bessie Smith At The Crossroads
Clarksdale, Miss. is home to both the crossroads where Robert Johnson allegedly sold his soul and the site of Bessie Smith's death. But in the legend of the genre, not every tale gets the same care.
The Thistle & Shamrock: From The Archives, Part 1
Host Fiona Ritchie discovers hidden gems in her archives that bring memorable moments from over a decade of episodes.
An Immortal Reflection Of Bessie Smith, In Feeling And Form
Precision isn't the word most associated with the blues, but Romare Bearden's 1974 collage depicts Bessie Smith in a way that illuminates her expressiveness and her high level of artistic control.
How Bessie Smith Influenced A Century Of Popular Music
Bessie Smith's songs are tales of liberated women who are not afraid to speak openly about what they want, what they need and what they are tired of.
From The Tent Show To The Parlor: Bessie Smith's Travels In Her Time
Bessie Smith could wrap the blues around anything. She was the voice of freedom and of dislocation, heard by black audiences on the vaudeville circuit and white ones at Manhattan parties.
Spacebase Was The Place: The Life Of Ras G, Blunted Saint Of The L.A. Beat Scene
The prolific and beloved musician, born Gregory Shorter Jr., died last week at the age of 40 — but not before helping found a musical movement in his hometown that has since spread worldwide.
'We're A Winner' Married Black Pride To An Irresistible Beat
Curtis Mayfield's previous songs for The Impressions had often been broadly inspirational — but here, he aimed his pen directly at black listeners, pledging that better times were ahead.