Saul Williams Discusses Teaching the Next Generation of Activists
Multi-hyphenate Saul Williams’ current project Leap Life is a years-in-the-making journey designed to move your body and mind.
spoken word
Dead Pioneers Seek to Unite and Fight on ‘Wagon Burner’
The performance-art punks Dead Pioneers create protest music that unites and inspires, just in time for the United States’ birthday.
Punching Nazi Teeth with Gregg Deal of Dead Pioneers
Performance artist-turned-punk Gregg Deal of Dead Pioneers talks about his band’s new record and opening for Pearl Jam.
Laurie Anderson Helps Us Face Catastrophe on Live LP
Laurie Anderson has created a rare live album worth listening to from start to finish, both for the music and all the interstices.
Jill Scott’s New Music Is As Vibrant As Ever
Jill Scott’s new album fits seamlessly with pop’s retro-futuristic fascination with the 1980s. Her signature mix of poetry, hip-hop, jazz, and soul is as vibrant as ever.
Tom Waits’ Perfect Performance 50 Years Later
Nighthawks at the Diner has received a 50th anniversary reissue. It remains a jazzy, captivating portrait of a young Tom Waits deep in character.
15 Albums to Help You Fall in Love With Poetry
Whether you’ve been a poetry lover for decades or never read a stanza in your life, you’re likely to find something to make you fall in love with poetry among the batch.
One Pioneer to Another: Laurie Anderson Meets ‘Amelia’
Trailblazing avant-garde artist Laurie Anderson tells the story of Amelia Earhart in a wonderful, engaging musical documentary.
Jaboukie Young-White Shows Off Music Chops on Debut
Jaboukie Young-White’s clever wordplay, creative use of metaphor, and engaging storytelling prove he’s adept at applying his perceptive talents to music.
Jim Morrison’s Spoken-Word Effect
Jim Morrison, a startlingly seductive figure, was at once impish and grandiose, the sly trickster enemy of all the straight moralists and self-righteous prigs, a confident voice ready to be summoned to your side of the argument.
Theodore Witcher’s Paean to Hip-Hop ‘Love Jones’ Charms and Seduces
In 1997, you could call Love Jones a small, curious drama that won many critics over. Today, it stands as a cornerstone of Black narrative in cinema.
On ‘Gratitude’ Abiodun Oyewole Weaves a Sacred Journey in Verse
A founding member of the influential Last Poets, Abiodun Oyewole gives voice to wisdom on life and sacred quests on his new solo album, Gratitude.