Our top picks of the year, all in one place.
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Posted inBooks, Nonfiction, Story, Unapologetic Women, Writing
Lyrical Ladies, Writing Women, and the Legend of Lauryn Hill
Joan Morgan’s “She Begat This” looks back at how Lauryn Hill crashed through hip-hop’s glass ceiling, while our critic looks at how the author and a cadre of black women writers did the same for hip-hop music journalism.
Posted inArts & Culture, Nonfiction, Quote Posts, Quotes
‘Rhyming Was No Longer a Symptom, But a Cure’: From Stroke Survivor to Rap Legend
For stroke survivor Sherman Hershfield, rapping and rhyming kept his seizures under control.
Posted inNonfiction
Bracing for the Silence of an Empty Nest
As her son finishes high school and prepares to leave for college, Michelle Cruz Gonzales looks back on his early years as a pianist and anticipates a future without the sound of his playing filling the house.
Posted inEditor's Pick
Deep River
Before anyone could write a comprehensive discography of golden age gospel recordings, upwards of 75 percent of this uniquely American music got destroyed or lost. Music historian Robert Darden runs the Black Gospel Music Restoration Project to protect and share what’s left.
Posted inNonfiction
Records on Bone
One young Ukrainian-American struggles to piece together a clear portrait of her parents’ difficult Soviet past, once they quit erasing, and began embracing, their legacy.
Posted inArts & Culture, Author Notes, Nonfiction, Profiles & Interviews, Story
Selling Vintage Records in Tokyo
Listening to music with a Tokyo record store owner forges a deeper bond than any shared language.
Posted inArts & Culture, Current Events, Essays & Criticism, Story
Wait, What?
It’s surprising when stodgy institutions award progressive artists, and surprises, even good ones, are alarming — so we immediately burden the winners with the weight of symbolism.
Posted inArts & Culture, Current Events, Nonfiction, Story
Remembering Ken Nordine
The ambitious radio personality created his own form of expression, called “word jazz,” to properly accomodate his musical voice and artistic ambitions.
Posted inArts & Culture, Highlight, Profiles & Interviews, Quotes, Unapologetic Women
She’s Not Just a Girl in the World
She’s a rock star, and a mom, and a tomboy, and a wife, and a study in contradictions.
