This summer, three women at the peak of their powers lead a spectacular pop culture revival. Barbie, Beyoncé and Taylor Swift shattered records and created a communal economy of irrational exuberance.

Alan Paul’s most recent book on the Allman Brothers Band, published last month, explores the album “Brothers and Sisters” in the context of what was happening in the band and across the United States at the time of its release 50 years ago.

Clarence Avant boosted the careers of a vast array of influential figures, including Michael Jackson, Jim Brown and Barack Obama. He came back into the news after his wife was murdered in 2021.

An eight-hour concert Friday night was a procession of generations of hip-hop royalty, from the Sugar Hill Gang to current stars like Lil Wayne. Run-DMC gave what was billed as their last performance.

NPR's Scott Simon reflects on two years since the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan, including the recent burning of musical instruments and equipment.

In 2003, T.I. and other Atlanta rappers created new subgenre of rap: trap music. Twenty years later, its influence is everywhere.

Female rappers have been a part of hip-hop since its debut. At hip-hop's 50th anniversary, female rappers are taking their moment to shine – while still demanding respect and facing decades-old challenges.

To mark hip-hop's 50th anniversary, NPR's All Things Considered explores five moments that are integral to how the culture grew and evolved.

O'Shae Sibley was stabbed for voguing to Beyoncé at a New York City gas station. His death, which is being prosecuted as a hate crime, comes as anti-LGBTQ bills and incidents surge across the U.S.

The boundary-pushing dance pop group delivers a performance awash in upbeat and optimistic melody.

There may be no better case for the power of hip-hop's geographic diversity than Los Angeles, whose sprawl of distinct creative microclimates is a genre unto itself.

The rapper was convicted of shooting Megan Thee Stallion in July 2020 as they left a party in Los Angeles. Prosecutors argued that Tory Lanez had tried to turn public opinion against the victim.

The Rock and Roll Hall of Famer helped write the blueprint for Americana music, with songwriting credits including "The Weight" and "Up on Cripple Creek."

The MTV show Yo! MTV Raps helped bring hip-hop into mainstream American culture in the 1980s and was made by a scrappy team in the face of a skeptical corporate network.

In 1989, 2 Live Crew's As Nasty As They Wanna Be became the first album declared legally obscene, and the group's legal battles set a precedent for the rappers that followed.