Music

Regina Spektor’s music often involves a strong element of storytelling — think of the underworld journey of “Grand Hotel” or the hospital pep talk in “Firewood.” The singer-songwriter has also enhanced the storytelling of others, her Orange Is the New Black theme song “You’ve Got Time” being maybe the best-known …

Jeff Beck has planned a short U.S. tour around his appearance at Eric Clapton’s Crossroads festival this September. The tour will end with a special gig the guitarist has planned at the Hollywood Bowl where he will reunite with his former Jeff Beck Group singer Rod Stewart. He’s billing it …

Swedish DJ and producer Alesso has teamed with rising Argentine singer Tini for a new bad love anthem, “Sad Song.” The track finds Alesso crafting a compelling club groove that bumps at a steady pace with crisp snares, hand claps and airy synths that buoy Tini’s vocals. “Sad Song,” as …

The Jonas Brothers brought a new vibe to “Sucker” by performing the single with classroom instruments on The Tonight Show. Joined by The Roots and Jimmy Fallon, the trio grabbed a clapper (Nick), a triangle (Kevin) and a banana shaker (Joe). In the clip, Nick takes on vocal lead as …

The crowd at CMA Fest was clearly a bit disappointed. Billy Ray Cyrus had played an early set on Saturday night at Nissan Stadium, blazing through bar-band standards like “Keep Your Hands to Yourself” as well as his own hits like “Some Gave All” and “Achy Breaky Heart” before saying …

Pharrell Williams pays tribute to influential music executive Clarence Avant in the producer-singer’s new track “Letter to My Godfather,” a song from the Netflix documentary The Black Godfather. “Clarence Avant connects us all through his incredible impact since before I was born up until now,” Williams said in a statement. …

Alt-rock/EDM trio ARIZONA have shared a song collaboration with Avicii, featured on the Swedish DJ’s posthumous album Tim, out now. The song, “Hold the Line,” is a powerful confrontation of loss and grief, made all the more poignant with Avicii’s sudden passing last year: “We don’t get to die young/Trouble …

Reggae scion Skip Marley stakes a strong claim for himself on his new song, “Enemy.” The track finds Bob Marley’s grandson living up to his lineage while finding new ways to push the boundaries of the genre, blending a deep dub groove with percussion that drifts seamlessly between sharp trap …

Chris Shiflett unleashes a rocking anthem with “Liar’s Word,” Caylee Hammack bridges Dolly Parton sweetness and alt-rock crunch in “Just Friends,” Riley Green sings of his grandfather’s experience with Alzheimer’s in “Numbers on the Cars” and more songs to hear this week. Riley Green, “Numbers on the Cars” “He ain’t …

An Avengers-style posse cut arrived today, unexpectedly. On it, J. Cole outrapped Young Thug. Merely looking at that sentence is painful. Up until this point, the only person to indisputably best Jeffery Lamar Williams on a song was Rich Homie Quan, about half a decade ago. Then “The London” happened. …