Smithsonian Acquires Collection Of Classic Hip-Hop Photos
More than 400 classic photographs of hip-hop artists including Foxy Brown, Lil’ Kim, T.I., Black Sheep and N.W.A.’s Eazy-E have been acquired…
Category: Music News
Why This Band Is Fighting For Its Right To Have An ‘Offensive’ Name
Update, Dec. 22, 2015: The Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has ruled in favor of Simon Tam and…
Inspiration Or Appropriation? Behind Music Copyright Lawsuits
Rock superstars Led Zeppelin face a claim that “Stairway to Heaven” was lifted from an earlier instrumental by the band Spirit. But what does it take to prove a song’s ownership?
Babe City Records: The D.C. Label That Started In A Basement And Moved Up To 9:30 Club
On a Saturday night, multicolored balloons bearing the image of cartoon character Tintin sail down from the balconies of D.C.’s…
Animal Collective To Drop An Album Recorded Live At 9:30 Club
In June 2013, big-deal experimental-pop band Animal Collective played a sold-out, three-night run at D.C.’s 9:30 Club. If you’re a…
GEMS Is No Longer A D.C. Band, But We’ll Try Not To Hold That Against Them
Circa 2012, dream-pop duo GEMS sounded refreshing amid D.C.’s somewhat conservative indie-rock scene. With floaty songs like “Pegasus” and “Never…
Desert Music: Burning Man Confronts The Rising Beat
As Electronic Dance Music becomes more and more popular at the world’s most extreme outsider arts festival, the playa’s vibes are a-changing.
Bugging Out: His Dad Is An Entomologist, But Brain Rapp Has Hip-Hop Dreams
One of hip-hop’s most commendable qualities is that it gives voice to a diversity of narratives. In the lyrical tradition…
Good News, Record Labels: A Virginia Company Plans To Open A Vinyl Pressing Plant
This story has been updated to include new information from Furnace MFG president and CEO Eric Astor. Record-making is a specialized…
Yo La Tengo: Morning Edition’s In-House Band For A Day
“This morning thing’s not really working for me,” says guitarist/vocalist Ira Kaplan. Well, too bad. Yo La Tengo played the music you hear between stories live.
Watch Kali Uchis Browse D.C. Record Stores Som And Joint Custody
Soul/R&B singer Kali Uchis abandoned the D.C. area for Los Angeles not long ago, but she shows D.C. record shops some…
Get To Know Chip Py, The Go-Go Photographer With A DIY Talk Show About D.C. Music
While the Corcoran’s 2013 exhibit “Pump Me Up” might have conditioned some to think of the D.C. area’s homegrown funk…
‘8 CDs For A Penny’ Company Files For Bankruptcy
The parent company of Columbia House, the music-subscription king of the ’80s and ’90s, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Two NPR music editors remember the good and the bad.
D.C. Punk Documentary ‘Salad Days’ Has A Piracy Problem
This post has been updated. After making the rounds at film festivals and showings worldwide, D.C. punk-rock documentary Salad Days:…
Sean Price, Well-Loved Brooklyn Rapper, Dies At 43
The death of the highly respected hip-hop figure prompted an outpouring of tribute and personal stories from his community this weekend.
Slayer Is In The Smithsonian, Folks
The newest addition to the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History is called the Lemelson Hall of Invention and Innovation, and…
D.C. Rapper Shy Glizzy Arrested In Maryland
D.C. rapper Shy Glizzy was arrested in downtown Silver Spring, Maryland, Monday evening. The 22-year-old MC legally named Marquis Amonte…
Can You Have An Album On iTunes If You Don’t Exist?
The strange story of a made-up pop star who managed to keep an album on iTunes for six weeks and get 64,000 followers on Twitter, without recording a note of new music.
Carter Barron And Fort Dupont Announce 2015 Summer Concert Schedules
Two popular summer concert series kick off this week in D.C., with Carter Barron Amphitheatre and Fort Dupont Park hosting their first…
The Cruel Truth About Rock And Roll
Recent allegations that one of The Runaways was raped by the band’s manager remind us that sexual exploitation is part of rock’s foundation — and challenge the very idea that it is worth loving.