Vincent Poag‘s latest album, The Unknown, marks a significant evolution in the veteran songwriter’s career, presenting a collection that feels remarkably self-assured and unpretentious. Unlike artists who chase relevance or reinvent themselves to stay current, Vincent Poag has settled comfortably into his musical identity, delivering songs that resonate with earned wisdom rather than manufactured profundity. […]
AKTHEPRODâs Personal is a standout project that showcases his growth as an artist. The Woodbury, New York native blends hip-hop, R&B, and electronic elements to create a sound thatâs both fresh and emotionally charged. With this album, AKTHEPROD moves beyond his roots as a producer, stepping into his role as a fully realized artist who […]
Calgary-based musician Ace Love, born Asher Azeem, is crafting a sonic universe where funk, pop, R&B, and disco collide in an electrifying mixture. With his debut album, Valor & Honor, he delivers a project that is as personal as it is infectious, a testament to his relentless drive and artistic evolution. From the very first […]
Times get tough, and country music gets tougher. The tumult of the late 1920s is the backdrop for songs of solace by early stars like the Carter Family. Peaceniks and hippies responding to the unrest of the â60s assumed the trappings of country music to vent in tunes like the Bandâs âThe Weightâ and Crosby, […]
For over a decade, Hayley Williams sold gale-force emotional reckoning as the lead singer of Paramore, one of the most successful bands on the forefront of the mainstream emo revolution of the middle aughts. Hard-charging riffs carried her sweeping vocals and incisive lyrics across the country, building the bandâs profile through endless touring. Paramore stayed […]
Drake is the patron saint of passive aggression. You burn his candle when youâve been wronged, when youâve been dumped, when you feel like you get more attention for mistakes than accomplishments. In exchange for your devotion, he gives you protection against the hordes of doubters and haters, real or imagined, that stand in the […]
TRL was always a war. Fans of *NSYNC and Backstreet Boys battled for the run of the MTV music video countdown show in its early years, as did fans on opposing sides of the long-simmering (and overhyped) beef between Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera. Hip-hop heads and nu-metal outcasts rejected the neatness of the mass-marketed […]
It is possible to be born too early for the world to develop a language to understand the way that you move, and to be made to feel, throughout your formative years, like the difference between you and everyone else is a crime that warrants punitive action, an errant behavior or belief system you must […]
Talk to a person of a certain age about the state of R&B for long enough, and youâre likely to hear them say the genreâs changed. It isnât what it used to be. The singers are getting more and more reckless and raunchy. Theyâre right and wrong. The era thatâs spawned songs like JhenĂ© Aikoâs […]
The Grammy for Best New Artist is something of a curse. Itâs keen on capturing artists in a breakout year but not so good at guessing what happens next. For every good call â like the Beatles winning in 1965, or Mariah Carey in 1991, or Adele in 2009 â thereâs another that veers left. […]
So, Donald Glover did ⊠something this weekend ⊠maybe? At around 4 a.m. on Sunday morning, an hourâs worth of new music appeared on a website called âDonald Glover Presents,â using the same font and titling that accompanied the release of the musician and actorâs Adidas sneaker collaboration last spring. The music streamed on […]
A lot of rappers say they love anime, but Lil Uzi Vert is the rare artist who deserves a series of his own. The Philly star is short in stature with a massive personality, a shit talker whoâs also in touch with his feelings, a sharp dresser with a flair for colorful hair. Like a […]
In a week, the ongoing contract dispute between Houston rapper Megan Thee Stallion and 1501 Certified Entertainment, the Texas indie record label that signed her in 2018, has rapidly devolved into one of the most lurid rap-label tiffs in recent memory. On Sunday, Megan told fans that 1501 was attempting to block the release of […]
Bad Bunny is cruising down lanes that not too long ago didnât quite exist. The Puerto Rican singer/rapper has done American late night, Coachellaâs main stage, the Super Bowl halftime show, and collaborations with the likes of Drake, Nicki Minaj, and Cardi B without singing in English. Bunnyâs 2018 debut X100Pre is a landmark Latin […]
Grimes is the archetypal modern internet citizen. Sheâs heard all the right records. Sheâs seen all the right films. She has great taste in video games and anime. She reads a lot and studies language and history. She has lofty ideas about where tech is headed. She got serious about wokeness and poptimism early on, […]
Five years is an eternity. In the fictional Earth of David Bowieâs The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars, it was enough time for the entire planet to die. Here on Earth Prime, it has been enough time for everything to go kind of awry, for hurricanes, wildfires, diseases, and […]
Fuck with Kesha, and youâre in for the fight of a lifetime. Thatâs the message of âTik Tok,â âDie Young,â âWarrior,â and âWe R Who We Râ â hits about going to war with the night and coming out the victor â and of many of the singer-songwriterâs endeavors since then, including her protracted battle […]
Over the last year or so, through chance or subconscious ambition or some cosmic provenance, Iâve gotten to speak with a number of people who knew and worked with Mac Miller in his lifetime. They all give a similar account. Earl Sweatshirt compared his friend to a pirate ship on the go: âHe was moving […]
The path to Selena Gomezâs third album has been beset on all sides by hardships. Gomez has fought a battle with lupus that led to intensive therapy, kidney transplant surgery, and cruel internet speculation about fluctuations in her weight. There were makeups and breakups with high-profile exes Justin Bieber and the Weeknd, whose Purpose and […]