That haunted voice we keep hearing these days belongs to Billie Holiday. More than six decades after her death, the legendary singer is experiencing a moment in the culture: She’s the subject of a recent documentary (director James Erskine’s Billie) and a soon-to-be released biopic (director Lee Daniels’ The United …
Read More »Inside 'The Show,' Blackpink's First-Ever Livestream Concert
Blackpink is an undeniable force right now. And anyone who doesn’t yet understand the hype will have the chance to check it out for themselves when the group hosts its top-of-the-line livestream concert on YouTube this weekend. Since signing with Universal Music Group’s Interscope Records in the United States in …
Read More »Governor Whitmer Declares January 20th 'What's Going on Day' in Michigan
Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On” has long been recognized as one of pop’s most thoughtful and compelling protest songs. Now the song, released 50 years ago this March, will be elevated even further: In Michigan, Governor Gretchen Whitmer has officially proclaimed January 20th as What’s Going On Day in her …
Read More »500 Greatest Albums Podcast: How Missy Elliott and Timbaland Showed Us Hip-Hop's Future with 'Supa Dupa Fly'
In the Nineties, much of the conversation about hip-hop was dominated by the tension between the East and West Coasts. The South was putting out tons of incredible rap records, too, but almost nobody was paying any attention to Portsmouth, Virginia. With 1997’s Supa Dupa Fly, Missy Elliott and Tim …
Read More »House Democrats Ask FBI to Start Criminal Probe Into Trump's Georgia Call
Two members of the House, Reps. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) and Kathleen Rice (D-N.Y.), have requested the FBI open a criminal investigation into the president following his call with Georgia‘s secretary of state. In the call, Trump attempted to get Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to “find 11,780 votes” in order …
Read More »Fiona Apple Talks Grammys Hypocrisy, Says She Considered Boycott Over Dr. Luke Nomination
Fiona Apple highlighted the hypocrisy she sees in the Grammys — especially when it comes to the way the awards show treats women — in a new interview with The Guardian. While Apple wasn’t directly asked about the Grammys, she turned to the subject after applauding Taylor Swift’s efforts to …
Read More »Paul McCartney Delivers a Playful Gem with 'McCartney III'
Every decade should kick off with a Paul McCartney one-man-band album — and this one needs it more than most. McCartney III carries on his tradition of homemade solo records, in the mode of his acoustic 1970 debut and his 1980 synth-pop oddity McCartney II. Like its two predecessors, it’s …
Read More »Year in Review: So, How Was Your 2020, Rufus Wainwright?
So, How Was Your 2020? is a series in which our favorite entertainers answer our questionnaire about the music, culture and memorable moments that shaped their year. We’ll be rolling these pieces out throughout December. Rufus Wainwright, like many artists this year, was forced to reconfigure his plans after the …
Read More »How a Country Song About Getting Drilled Became a Viral NSFW Hit
Back in October, Trey Lewis posted an Instagram video from a songwriters’ round at Nashville’s Listening Room when he was introducing his song “Believer.” The Birmingham, Alabama, native spoke sincerely about how he knew he didn’t have a ton of fans but was grateful for the ones he had made …
Read More »'SNL': See Eminem Cameo in Pete Davidson's 'Stan' Parody 'Stu'
Eminem made a cameo in a Saturday Night Live parody of his hit “Stan,” with Pete Davidson playing a man dangerously obsessed not with Slim Shady but Santa Claus. In the video short that mimics many of the hallmarks from the original song and its 2000 video, Davidson plays a …
Read More »