Music Features

When Swamp Dogg first began work on his latest album, he had only one guiding principle. “I just didn’t want it to sound like Swamp Dogg,” says Jerry Williams, who for close to a half-century has recorded his singular blend of eccentric soul under that name. “This time,” says the …

Like any great supergroup, Boygenius exists because of the qualities its three members share, but draws its creative spark from the subtle differences between them. The hushed power of Julien Baker’s voice and the pinpoint accuracy of a Lucy Dacus lyric are complementary factors, each one putting the other’s strengths …

Aretha Franklin, who died on August 16th at age 76, recorded more than 40 full-length albums in her six-decade career. It’s a deep catalog, crowded with indisputable classics and hidden gems. Rolling Stone’s music staff is paying its R.E.S.P.E.C.T.s to the Queen with tributes to our favorite Aretha LPs. Next …

Yung Miami is readjusting. She’s only been rapping for 11 months, but is already signed to a major label as half of the duo City Girls, released a critically acclaimed mixtape (Period) and is currently featured on a Number One song (Drake‘s “In My Feelings“). Just as everything began to …

Earlier this year, sibling pop trio AJR released “Burn the House Down,” their first single since their hit 2017 album The Click.Little did members Adam, Jack and Ryan Met know that the song would end up becoming part of a greater cause. The energetic track, meant to reflect the current …

Mike Shinoda is painting differently these days. In the months since the death of his foil in Linkin Park, singer Chester Bennington, the rapper, producer and visual artist has found himself approaching all of his creative pursuits differently. But it’s most evident when he puts a brush to a canvas. …

Twenty years ago, Madonna was at a crossroads. After launching her Maverick entertainment company in 1992 with her widely but not wisely panned Erotica album and Sex book, the star entered a period of relative caution. The exuberant queerness of those works gave way to muted ballads, followed byEvita, which …

One month after Sharon Jones died of pancreatic cancer in 2016, her closest friends and family gathered at the Universal Church of God in Queens, New York, to celebrate and mourn the exuberant, Grammy-nominated soul and funk vocalist. As a teenager, Jones had written a song titled “Call on God” …

In the past few months, Kevin Shields nearly went bankrupt, as he pursued the seemingly Sisyphean task of making new, completely analog vinyl remasters of My Bloody Valentine‘s generation-defining albums, 1988’s Isn’t Anything?and 1991’s Loveless. “When we started, I was borrowing money from myself when I should have been paying …

Not long after the sad news of Fats Domino‘s death hit yesterday, we put in an interview request for Little Richard. They may have risen out of different scenes and approached their craft a bit differently, but both pianists are inarguably two of the most important figures in rock history. …