Music

Music & Culture

How 'Dixie' Became And Endured As An Anthem

7:44am January 06, 2019

by Bilal Qureshi

Despite its origins in the popular music of the North, the song "Dixie" became the unofficial anthem of the Confederacy during the Civil War and still endures as a divisive symbol in modern America.

Music & Culture

'Surviving R. Kelly' Documentary Details Decades Of Sexual Abuse Accusations

5:35pm January 05, 2019

NPR's Michel Martin speaks with filmmaker dream hampton about her new six-part docuseries on Lifetime.

Dom Flemons' Black Cowboys retells the settling of America's West through a new lens.

Music & Culture

Dom Flemons Presents A New Image Of The American Cowboy

5:11pm January 05, 2019

by Ryan Heinsius

The singer-songwriter's latest album, Black Cowboys, chronicles the role played by African-Americans in settling the West after the Civil War. The album has been nominated for a Grammy.

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#HUNNUROCK via YouTube/Screengrab by NPR

How A Mongolian Heavy Metal Band Got Millions Of YouTube Views

3:34pm January 05, 2019

by Katya Cengel

All it took for The Hu to have an Internet breakthrough was a dramatic video and screaming guitars — plus a horsehead fiddle and throat singing.

Wayne Shorter, whose album Emanon was crowned the winner of the 2018 NPR Music Jazz Poll.

Music & Culture

Wayne Shorter Travels The Spaceways

1:08pm January 05, 2019

by Francis Davis

A new album by the octogenarian saxophonist is always a big deal, but his latest — and the winner of the 2018 Jazz Critics Poll — is also just plain big: 3 discs and an 84-page graphic novel.

Wayne Shorter's Emanon, a three-disc album accompanied by a 84-page graphic novel, was voted the No. 1 new album of 2018 by over 130 jazz critics.

Music & Culture

The 2018 NPR Music Jazz Critics Poll

1:05pm January 05, 2019

by Francis Davis

Over 130 critics voted on the best jazz albums of 2018 — celebrated elders dominated the top of the results, but a class of younger musicians is rising.

Music & Culture

Jen Cloher, Live In Concert: Newport Folk 2018

8:02am January 05, 2019

by Bob Boilen

Jen Cloher came to Newport with a fervor matched only by her volume.

Music & Culture

American Anthem: 'Dancing In The Street'

7:56am January 05, 2019

by Scott Simon

"Dancing In The Street" is a Motown party song made famous by Martha and the Vandellas, but the song took on a political connotation during the race riots of the 1960s.

Music & Culture

'Overload' Will Take Georgia Anne Muldrow From L.A.'s Underground To The Mainstream

5:07pm January 04, 2019

by Tom Moon

Georgia Anne Muldrow's newest album Overload, sees the hip-hop artist moving from the L.A. underground into the mainstream spotlight.

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Music & Culture

Lizzo Serves Up Some Fresh-Pressed, '80s-Inspired 'Juice'

2:35pm January 04, 2019

by Joshua Bote

In her latest video, Lizzo takes cues from assorted bits of nostalgia — Jane Fonda workout tapes, Coming to America, QVC infomercials — and shades them with her singular, life-affirming zeal.