MUSIC

Kanye West left his position of headlining the last day of Coachella without giving a reason early in April, less than two weeks before the first weekend of performances. Here are all the details leading up to this sudden decision.

The 2020s have started off well, at least in terms of music. Not only did we see incredible returning albums from 2010s artists like Dua Lipa and Run The Jewels, but a fair amount of daring debuts highlighted these burdensome years. Here’s a handful of the most exciting debuts of 2020.

Whether intentionally or not, artists produced lots of music in 2020 that was difficult to handle with the onset of the pandemic. Many had already written and recorded most or all of the music on their 2020 record, but the listening experience at the time was undeniably bleak. Since these records are all of substantial quality, it’s time to revisit them!

On BestEverAlbums.com, this over 15-year-old website allows its community to publish “best of” lists of your favorite albums. Starting with a “best ever” list, you can then expand to decade lists and other types as you engage more with the community. The most intriguing part is how these lists then combine to form a massive community “best of” list for every year and decade. From over 50,000 charts, here is the aggregate list of the “best ever albums” of all time!

At Union Park in Chicago, the annual Pitchfork Music Festival returns for another amazing lineup for three days in mid-July. If you’re in the area, don’t miss out on these under-the-radar groups, as well as the heavy hitters like The National, Mitski, and The Roots.

Indie singer/songwriter Courtney Barnett came up with a brilliant tour idea for 2022. Instead of a traditional show using the same opening bands, Barnett culled together 24 amazing acts to perform all over the United States as the Here and There Festival. Every show purports to have a unique lineup, and each choice is remarkably vital to the indie music scene of past and present. Here are some of the highlights from this national tour!

Californian funk-rockers Red Hot Chili Peppers released Unlimited Love on April 1st, 2022, but it was no joke. This twelfth studio album from the band reunited the three core members with classic guitar John Frusciante who has recorded five previous albums with the band but had been absent since 2009. Though Unlimited Love is not a terrible album by any means, it is a massive 73 minutes of relatively low-key funk-rock that doesn’t quite have the quality to support its length. For those who still want an entry point, here is a select group of diverse song choices from the album that makes for a 30-minute representative slice!

For the last decade, Norwegian Jenny Hval has released some of the most forward-thinking music in the indie avant-garde world. Her eighth solo album, Classic Objects, finally draws her sometimes elusive creations into the light, making a clear picture of her musical pathway into self-reflection. With percussive grooves and enticing basslines, this might be the most accessible of Hval’s albums, creating musical familiarity with added intimacy thanks to the thoughtful lyrics.

If you are having trouble getting into the music of Florence + The Machine, you still have time before the 2022 album! The band’s fifth album shows up after four years of absence (except for the occasional non-album single), but as of this year, new music has flooded into streaming services with the usual aplomb. Here are some entry points to Florence Welch’s music!

The votes are in! Here’s a bit of analysis on the biggest awards, examining the 2022 Grammys winners and who missed out this year.

It's hard to keep up with an onslaught of new music, but some new music is essential to check out. While the albums that contain the following songs are all recommended listens, here are the songs that are required listening if you don't have the time at the moment. From ten artists of different genres, here are the ten best songs of the year so far!

Fans of the boyband One Direction have vastly different opinions on the post-breakup solo albums from Harry, Zayn, Louis, Liam, and Niall, but the group’s leader and most popular member, Harry Styles, has always stood out as a favorite. In the lead-up to his new record, Harry’s House, it’s time to re-examine exactly the quality of these nine solo albums. For those listening to the aesthetic qualities of the music, and not just to their love or hatred for each respective singer, there is only one viable option for the best! Scroll down to find out who it is.

As you dig back into the music of the 90s, along with everyone else who’s feeling nostalgic, one album stands out as a record simultaneously tempting to forget about and necessary to remember. Jeff Buckley’s Grace is better known for surrounding details beyond the music itself. Primarily, one of the featured cover songs, “Hallelujah,” brought the simple arpeggiated sound used today in versions to its first commercial peak. Only a couple of years from turning 30, Grace will soon surpass the age of its creator, so we all need to find a copy of this essential album to step past the nostalgia phase into long-overdue recognition for great music.

Mary J. Blige, the nine-time Grammy winner known as the “Queen of Hip-Hop Soul,” has managed to stay casually in the public eye for her entire 30-plus-year career. As a singer, songwriter, rapper, and actress (she notably appeared in the Dee Rees film Mudbound), Blige has found success in every form of media. Even 14 albums in, she is still conquering the music world, with old classics like “Family Affair” still passing around and new songs making the charts. Here are the ways Mary J. Blige took on 2022 with full force.

Olivia Rodrigo, with seven Grammy nominations going into the April 3rd ceremony, is easily the biggest and brightest debuting star of 2021. SOUR has multiple of the most streamed songs in the world, despite being this artist’s first original collection of songs. With co-writing contributions from Taylor Swift, Jack Antonoff, St. Vincent, and Hayley Williams, and help from Conan Gray producer Dan Nigro, SOUR has all the hallmarks of an award-winning album. Here are the categories that Olivia Rodrigo received a nomination in, and if she has a realistic chance of winning any of them.