Britney Spears' appearance in Los Angeles Superior Court on Wednesday points to a broader history of how women in entertainment and the music business have been treated.
NPR's Noel King talks to musician Amythyst Kiah, who deals with tough subjects, like being "othered" as a Black woman on the bluegrass and folk circuit.
A visionary who died young and alone in 1990, Eastman is making a slow but richly deserved comeback thanks to a curious younger generation. A new interpretation of his 1974 work Femenine is out now.
How do we understand Blue in the 21st century? Can we think of Mitchell's 1971 album, long considered the apex of confessional songwriting, as a paradigm not of raw emotion, but of care and craft?
Lincoln Center observes Juneteenth, now a federal holiday, with "I Dream a Dream That Dreams Back at Me," an ambulatory experience conceived by Carl Hancock Rux.
Maverick jazz composer Anthony Braxton was set to spend his 75th birthday performing at events around the world, but then... well, you know. He has two new boxed sets out this month.
The band has been sampled by Drake and Beyoncé, and its genre-hopping sound is hard to pin down. But as its latest release proves, trying to fit the band into a box misses how it makes its magic.
As part of an ongoing series, NPR's Rachel Martin talks to pianist Lara Downes about classical recordings of "Lift Every Voice" and "A Change Is Gonna Come," to mark Black Music Month and Juneteenth.
For the final entry in Morning Edition's Song Project series, Vijay Iyer wrote a rhizomatic, inviting — and not entirely placating — instrumental piece to encapsulate his past year.
For most artists, 2020 was a year of forced isolation and few opportunities. But Dan Tepfer, a jazz pianist and composer, had a busy year, partly thanks to his technological acumen.
A look inside the dreamlike new album Jubilee and the rare partnership of Michelle Zauner and producer Craig Hendrix — equals in the studio, with battle-tested chemistry.
Fiery singer-songwriter Sinéad O'Connor became a star in the MTV era, rewriting the rules while courting controversy. Now, she reclaims an influential legacy with a new memoir, Rememberings.
"Time Traveler," Nnenna Freelon's first new album in more than a decade, is a passionate expression of love enduring as she grieves the loss of her husband and other family members.
Allisson Russell has spent her career collaborating – but for Outside Child, her first solo record, she is stepping boldly out in front, sharing her tales of healing.
The 50th birthday of What's Going On is an opportunity to listen — not just to Marvin Gaye but to his peers, the tumult around them and the moment Black music made its politics explicit.