Music Features

Music & Culture

The South Got Something To Say: A Celebration Of Southern Rap (2015-2019)

3:00pm August 03, 2020

Our list of the best songs, albums and mixtapes by Southern rappers is a celebration that recenters the South as a creative center of hip-hop and honors the region for all that it has given to us.

Music & Culture

The South Got Something To Say: A Celebration Of Southern Rap (1995-1999)

2:59pm August 03, 2020

Our list of the best songs, albums and mixtapes by Southern rappers is a celebration that recenters the South as a creative center of hip-hop and honors the region for all that it has given to us.

Music & Culture

The South Got Something To Say: A Celebration Of Southern Rap

2:58pm August 03, 2020

Our list of the best songs, albums and mixtapes by Southern rappers is a celebration that recenters the South as a creative center of hip-hop and honors the region for all that it has given to us.

The NPR Ed team analyzed more than 100 pages of data from old issues of Dramatics magazine.

The Most Popular High School Plays And Musicals

12:47pm July 30, 2020

by Elissa Nadworny

Mary Poppins is out and Matilda is in, according to the new high school theater rankings from the Educational Theatre Association. The organization has been publishing its list since 1938.

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A portrait of Peter Green, guitarist and co-founder of rock band Fleetwood Mac, c. 1968.

Remembering Fleetwood Mac Founder Peter Green, The Soulful Voice Of British Blues

11:38am July 29, 2020

by Tom Cole

The guitarist and singer, whose distinctive guitar and soulful voice propelled the band's early success, died over the weekend at the age of 73.

Taylor Swift's eighth album, Folklore, was surprise-released Friday. The record features production by The National's Aaron Dessner and a new set of songwriting tools.

Music & Culture

Let's Talk About Taylor Swift's 'Folklore'

4:26pm July 28, 2020

Three critics dive into a new album full of surprises — released on a day's notice, co-produced by The National's Aaron Dessner — and ask how it fits into an arguably unprecedented career.

Jake Blount, a 24-year-old banjoist and fiddler, is one of the people in the traditional music community working to educate others on the genre's Black roots.

Music & Culture

Breaking Down The Legacy Of Race In Traditional Music In America

9:27pm July 25, 2020

by Sophia Alvarez Boyd

The symbols of America's racist past have been under intense scrutiny since the protests against police brutality erupted nationwide. Now, the traditional music community is having its own reckoning.

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Music & Culture

Composer Maria Schneider Returns, With A Reckoning, On 'Data Lords'

6:00am July 24, 2020

by Nate Chinen

After collaborating with David Bowie in 2014, the multiple Grammy-winning composer found her artistic process had been recombobulated a bit — much like our ever-more digital world.

One Direction didn't win The X Factor in 2010, but filled stadiums, broke records and our hearts.

One Direction's Big Bang

5:00am July 23, 2020

by Maria Sherman

Ten years ago today, July 23, One Direction created the universe. Read an excerpt from Maria Sherman's new book on boy bands, Larger Than Life, about 1D's formation and meteoric rise.

Charles Turner & Uptown Swing entered the Tiny Desk Contest with the song "Harlem Harlem Harlem."

Music & Culture

Tiny Desk Contest 2020: Entries Public Radio Loves

4:28pm July 21, 2020

Each year, the Tiny Desk Contest receives entries from all 50 states, thanks to help from NPR Member stations across the country. Here are some of the 2020 entries that Member stations love.