Music Features

DaBaby understands his brand, even if you do not. His most recent album is titled Baby on Baby. The project’s artwork features a big DaBaby smiling as a miniature DaBaby sits on the brim of his hat. The third song on that album is “Goin Baby.” In years past, he’s …

Steven Van Zandt knows what you’re thinking, especially when the topic is his music and not his acting. You hear his name and immediately imagine a bandana-clad rock gypsy who sings and plays heated, self-righteous diatribes about politics and life in a justice-challenged America. And he doesn’t disagree with you. …

After Mötley Crüe played what they say was their last-ever concert, on New Year’s Eve 2015, things got weird — even for them. The band had signed a “cessation of touring agreement” in 2014, swearing never to reunite onstage and, as Tommy Lee told Rolling Stone after the gig, it …

On Stage 12 on the Universal Studios backlot, a young heartthrob is handed a hollow-bodied electric guitar. Shawn Mendes has admitted to an Elvis fixation in the past, even posting Instagram video of himself singing Presley hits, and now he was about to live out a crucial moment in the …

On the morning of January 27th, 1970, John Lennon glimpsed his future. He and Yoko Ono had just returned from a nearly month-long trip to Denmark, where Ono was visiting her daughter with her second husband, Tony Cox, and his new wife, Melinda Kendall. During one of many conversations there, …

‘How I Wrote This‘ is a regular performance video series in which musicians describe the creative process and inspiration of their songs. “I said I wasn’t going to get into this because it makes me emotional,” Gary Clark Jr. said on a recent evening at Austin’s Arlyn Studios. His voice …

With an acoustic guitar flourish suggesting a Tommy outtake and a snaky Mars Hotel groove, Cass McCombs steps into the great 20th century tradition of the train song, paying tribute to a railroad heist that actually occurred a century ago in Middle-of-Fucking-Nowhere, California. McCombs narrates it as a written confession by a man hoping …

It is generally bad news whenever a pop star decides to bless us with an earthy, strummed version of their new club anthem. So here’s a surprise: Rita Ora’s electropop song “Let You Love Me” set to acoustic guitar is a delight. Without all the clutter, it’s a folk-pop song …

From Elvis’ “Blue Christmas” to Diamond Rings’ “Christmas in a Chinese Restaurant” to Merle Haggard’s “If We Make it Through December,” the holiday season has long served as a perfectly-fitting template for songs of the sad-sack variety. “I don’t mean to hate December,” Haggard sang on the latter, “it’s meant …

The old-school album rollout involved a pre-announced street date and a lead single or two released over a couple of months. The anticipation was supposed to stoke fan fervor and a popular single would encourage them to buy a full-length. For years, the rules were simple: If one or both …