I have a secret to admit. I’m not a Texas native. Luckily, I’m not a Californian who moved to the Lone Star State. I’m a Nebraskan who fell in love with the Dallas Fort-Worth area. But my introduction to Texas was not the metroplex. Nor was it Southern Methodist University, where I attended college. It […]
Category: Music
Posted inMusic
The Bootlegging, Blues Singing Star of 1930s Prison Radio
This essay, originally written by Maurice Chammah, is an edition of Redemption Songs, a limited-run newsletter from The Marshall Project that dives into the music produced in prisons over the last century. Sign up now to get a song by incarcerated artists delivered to your inbox each Sunday through September. My favorite song on the […]
Posted inBig & Bright
Everybody Say ‘Thank You, Khalid!’ for Reviving the Male Pop Star
Today is a good day to say, “thank you, Khalid!” for saving male pop music. His latest album, “after the sun goes down,” which dropped at midnight on Friday, Oct. 10, has earned him the crown of least problematic favorite in a genre populated with headline-grabbing “this is going to ruin the tour” DUIs, monkeys […]
Posted inNews
Ozzy Osbourne Once Urinated On the Alamo. Texas Forgave Him (But Didn’t Forget).
Forty-three years ago, rockstar Ozzy Osbourne drunkenly urinated on the Alamo. What ensued afterward was a strained, decades-long relationship between the Grammy Award winner and the sacred Texas landmark — including an arrest, a 10-year ban, two apologies, a tenuous reconciliation, and, now, a tribute in light of Osbourne’s death. “At the Alamo, we honor […]
Posted inCulture
Sequins, Feathers, and Bolo Ties: The Best Fan Fits From Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter Houston Homecoming
The energy shifts when Beyoncé is back in Houston. Her hometown showed up and showed out for the Texas dates on her Cowboy Carter and the Rodeo Chitlin’ Circuit Tour: nightclubs and bars hosted Beyoncé-themed dance parties and drag shows, the airports welcomed fans with “Cowboy Carter Corners,” and eager Beyhive members braved the heat […]
Posted inCulture
Few Did Tortured Male Genius As Well as Texas’ Townes Van Zandt
Texas hasn’t gotten its due as a major piece in the complex puzzle of American art. We’re here to rectify that. Every three weeks, H. Drew Blackburn will conduct a thoroughly scientific analysis of the 254 integral (one for every county) books, movies, tv shows, albums, podcasts, songs, and magazine articles — you name it […]
Posted inCulture
ACL Fest Lineup Is Here: Sabrina Carpenter, Hozier, Doja Cat, More
The Austin City Limits Music Festival released its official lineup today, and headliners include Sabrina Carpenter, Hozier, Doja Cat, Luke Combs, The Strokes, John Summit, and Doechii. Three-day tickets go on sale today at 12 p.m. CT on the festival’s website. General admission prices for both weekends start at $360. Fans had a lot of […]
Posted inCulture
Meet the Dallas DJ Behind (Maybe) the Longest Running Hip Hop Show On Air
If you want to understand the casual celebrity of EZ Eddie D, sit with him on a porch. Preferably on a Saturday evening, and preferably at the busiest intersection of the Bishop Arts District in the rapidly gentrified Oak Cliff neighborhood of Dallas. Less than two minutes into my conversation with him on such a […]
Posted inCulture
The Beyoncé Cowboy Carter Act Two Tour is Putting Texas Where it Belongs: Everywhere
Thanks to Beyoncé, now the rest of the world knows what it really means to be Texan and country. We know some outsiders looking into our state think that we’re all a bunch of racist, transphobic, ignorant people, but Beyoncé (intentionally or not) is using Cowboy Carter to show what most of us know to […]
Posted inCulture
After 15 Years and a Criminal Charge, Erykah Badu’s ‘Window Seat’ Is Still Texas’ Best Music Video
Texas hasn’t gotten its due as a major piece in the complex puzzle of American art. We’re here to rectify that. Every three weeks, H. Drew Blackburn will conduct a thoroughly scientific analysis of the 254 integral (one for every county) books, movies, tv shows, albums, podcasts, songs, and magazine articles — you name it […]