Bessie Smith: Empress of the Blues, the Klan and Her Train
Bessie Smith toured in her own railway carriage, loved women and men and died in a 1937 crash. Plus the family's Klan story and Janis Joplin's gravestone.
music
A Place Among the Fiddlers - Longreads
In a southwest Virginia fairground, thousands of musicians gather every August to keep a centuries-old tradition from flickering out.
James McMurtry Is Your Favorite Songwriter’s Favorite Songwriter
The Americana music icon has had his razor-sharp lyricism seasoned by decades on the road
7 music websites you’ve never heard of (but absolutely should know)
from discovery to curation to the healing sounds of nature, i attempt you to introduce you to independent platforms you may never have heard of.
An introduction to Jazz in 25 records
The following list offers an excellent starting point for any music enthusiast seeking exploration
Spotify Just Hit 300 Million Subscribers. Here’s What We’ve Learned.
Gustav Gyllenhammar, Spotify’s Senior Vice President, Markets & Subscriptions, reflects on the journey.
Why music is a powerful tool to quiet stress in the brain
Music doesn’t just mask stress, it guides our brain back to a calm state
What makes a song flop?
Sometimes a song just doesn’t hit.
Lead Belly: The Convicted Killer Who Changed American Music
Huddie Ledbetter served two prison terms for violent crimes and still became one of the most influential musicians America ever produced. The full story of Lead Belly.
A 1932 Illustrated Map of Harlem's Night Clubs: From the Cotton Club to the Savoy Ballroom
Harlem’s undergoing another Renaissance, and has been for years now. Crime’s down, real estate prices are up, and throngs of pale-faced hipsters are descending to check the area out. Sure, something’s gained, but something’s lost, too.
Could Rocky’s musical language in Project Hail Mary actually work?
Linguists explain how a language built from musical notes could convey complex meaning and even support conversation
The 4 Music Habits That Instantly Give Someone the Ick
If you have any of these four music habits, there's a chance you're causing instant secondhand embarrassment; here's how to address that.
Music’s Most Mysterious Profession
What conductors actually do
4 of the Greatest Hip-Hop Movie Soundtracks of the 90s
Noisey selects four of the greatest hip-hop movie soundtracks of the 90s, arguably the golden age for Black cinema and rap alike.
Jack Johnson
Artist · 13.1M monthly listeners.
Gen Z Is Buying Old iPods to Quit Spotify. Fiio’s $50 Hi-Fi MP3 Player Does It Better. - Yanko Design
I tried to listen to an album last week. The whole thing, start to finish, like a functioning adult in the 90s. I made it four tracks before a Slack ping, a WhatsApp text, and a push notification from Hinge. By track six I was scrolling through IG. I started with conscientiously…
Summer Sounds—Being & Staying Cool — AMERICAN ROUTES
Trigger: The Life of Willie Nelson's Guitar – Texas Monthly
Most guitars don’t have names. This one has a voice and a personality, and bears a striking resemblance to his owner.
Personal Jesus (DEPECHE MODE) - 500 musicians -CITYROCKS The biggest rock flashmob in Central Europe
CITYROCKS - The biggest rock band in Central Europe - KECSKEMÉT (Hungary) 2019 500 musicians rock flashmob videos ▶ • 500 musicians - CITYROCKS 2019 - Kecskemét... 🔔 Subscribe and turn on notifications so you won’t miss the next epic moment! WEB ▶ https://www.cityrocks.eu/…
‘People say they’ve conceived to my music’: Tricky’s honest playlist
The trip-hop star doesn’t believe in getting jiggy to songs and would choose Cyndi Lauper at karaoke. But which classic reminds him of his mum?
How the Beach Vacation Became a Country-Music Trope
Kelefa Sanneh on the song “It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere,” by Alan Jackson and Jimmy Buffett, which was a diversion from a genre that extolls the virtue of staying close to your home town.
Amusing CD Covers That Really Exist
Real album covers that are so bad they're funny
Blue Dot Fever: What the Industry Isn't Saying Out Loud
The concert business has a trust problem. The economics are just where it shows up first.
The man who invented American popular music turns 200
Stephen Foster wrote some of the most enduring American songs, invented the role of songwriter, and served as a cautionary tale for his successors.
Amusing CD Covers That Really Exist
Real album covers that are so bad they're funny
Sampling Famous TV Theme Songs
Nic C is a musician who samples music from classic television programs. He takes short slices--just a few notes each--of these famous songs and uses them to compose new music that is simulatenously original and familiar.If you're a fellow Gen Xer, you'll appreciate Nic C's…
https://www.tokyoweekender.com/food-and-drink/restaurants-and-bars/kompakt-record-bar-tokyo/
Map of Metal
An interactive map of Metal history and the influential bands that helped shaped the genres we know today
The Death of Spotify: Why Streaming is Minutes Away From Being Obsolete
Jimmy Iovine just called the Death of Spotify. He might be right.
The Scientific Reason Some People Literally Hear Colors
Some people move through the world with a completely different sensory experience than everyone else, and most of them have no idea it’s unusual. As ScienceAlert reports, somewhere between 1 and 4 percent of people have a neurological trait called synaesthesia, where activating…
How The Heck Does Shazam Work? (An Interactive Exploration)
Explore how Shazam and song identification work through interactive visualizations — spectrograms, constellation maps, hash fingerprints, and time-offset matching.
Connie Converse was a folk-music genius. Then she vanished
She made stunning, forward-thinking songs in the 1950s, but was barely known – and aged 50, she disappeared. Now, with a new re-release of her music, she's recognised as a trailblazer.
The next generation of independent music tastemakers
Music streaming has an echo chamber problem. Curators with distinctive taste and compelling visual stories are filling the void.
10 Albums in Rotation on College Radio in 2026 (So Far)
Recommended if you like: music discovery, human curation, independent artists and the "random brilliance" of college radio
This Musical Instrument Sounds Like Unearthly Horrors Breaking into the Human Realm
Alan Lomax's Massive Music Archive Is Online: Features 20,000 Historic Blues & Folk Recordings
A huge treasure trove of songs and interviews recorded by the legendary folklorist Alan Lomax from the 1940s into the 1990s has been digitized and made available online for free listening.
DelFest
How the blues brought musical journeyman Raphael Saadiq to the Oscars
The singer-songwriter and producer has had one of the more distinguished and multifaceted careers in modern music. He talks about following an unconventional path from Tony! Toni! Toné! to Sinners.
Prince Live - Play that funky Music - Hollywood Swinging - Fantastic Voyage 4/28/11
From the Welcome 2 America Deluxe Edition Blu Ray - Live at the Forum 4/28/11Available at prince.com or your local Wrecka Stow“Ain't nothing like a Purple Pa...
Why people are buying iPods again
Nostalgia and digital burnout are driving a new rush for Apple's retired iPods.
The Mount Rushmore of 90s West Coast Rap Songs
West Coast rap during the 90's had dozens of classic songs. Noisey selects 4 of the greatest songs from hip-hop's golden age in California.
Why Do We Like Music?
People with musical anhedonia don’t get any enjoyment from music. Shayla Love writes about scientists studying this condition to learn about how music affects listeners’ minds and moods.
musical anhedonia
expectations
Will we ever… understand why music makes us feel good?
No one knows why music has such a potent effect on our emotions. But thanks to some recent studies we have a few intriguing clues.
The House That Dizzy Built—And the City That Kept It - KOLUMN Magazine
Hidden behind Georgetown storefronts, a candlelit room has spent 60 years turning dinner service into American music history—and fighting to keep the lights on
▪️1965: "Shotgun," by Jr. Walker and the All-Stars. This hit single reached No. 1 on the R&B charts and No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100…
6th Annual John Prine Night | Marathon, TX | Oct 11, 2025
John Prine Night is an annual gathering at The French Co. Grocer in Marathon, TX to celebrate the life, music, and spirit of John Prine. Hosted by Sam Stavinoha, the owner and proprietor of The French Co. Grocer, and emceed by Austin-based artist, writer and musician M. Walker…
19 One-Hit Wonders That Rank Among the Catchiest Songs Ever
It only takes one hit song to etch your name in history.
With Spotify’s Library Plundered, the Door Is Open for Music Preservation, but Also for AI Companies
Spotify's library was scraped in the name of music preservation, but will this make illegally training AI even easier?
How Willie Nelson Sees America
On the road with the musician, his band, and his family.
Ain't It a Cold, Cold World?
David Ramsey shares a collection of nineteen stories about country music singer-songwriter Blaze Foley.