Music
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The Weeknd Says Goodbye to the Grammys With a Boycott; Beyoncé Could Make Triple History at the Ceremony
“The biggest night in music” may come with some setbacks this year. In addition to having to reschedule the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards ceremony due to the global pandemic, there’s been some controversy about this year’s nominees—specifically, who isn’t among that esteemed list of musicians and artists. Following the 2021 Grammys nomination announcement, The Weeknd…
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If It’s Up Then It’s Stuck in History: Cardi B Is the 1st Ever Female Rapper With a Certified Diamond Single for ‘Bodak Yellow’
Cardi B burst into the hip-hop scene letting us know that she made “money moves” and she made “bloody moves.” She tried to tell us! Cut to a few years later and Cardi is making history. According to Billboard, Cardi’s breakout hit “Bodak Yellow” has been officially certified diamond by the Recording Industry Association of…
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'I Was Quite Literally Fighting for My Life': Solange Reflects on New Criterion Collection Pick, When I Get Home
Solange Knowles is reflecting on the past two years—specifically, the day she released her fourth studio album, When I Get Home. On Tuesday, The Criterion Channel announced that the remastered director’s cut of the interdisciplinary performance art film for When I Get Home has been added to its esteemed collection. From the press release sent…
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Jhené Aiko to Host the 2021 Grammys Pre-Show, Which Will Open With a Marvin Gaye Tribute
Jhené Aiko has a song on her latest album Chilombo titled “Magic Hour”—and it looks like she’ll be the MC of several “magic hours” as the 32-year-old songstress has been confirmed as the host of the 63rd Annual Grammys Premiere Ceremony. The premiere ceremony serves as a pre-show event leading up to the Grammy Awards…
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Mic Drop: Soul as a Whole—and How it Continues to Grow
Soul, man it’s what drives music as a whole. As with all things, music adapts to what’s current, already going on. In recent years, the concept of the genre has transformed into whatever a specific artist identifies with, whether that’s the backing tracks, lyrics or melodies, soul has become a much more approachable genre. Neo-soul,…
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The Black Messiah (aka D’Angelo) Made His Verzuz Debut to Close Out Black History Month and I’m Still Not Over It
Y’all. I’m still not over it. No, seriously—I’m not. It’s been nearly 48 hours since the ever-elusive artist D’Angelo blessed us all with his “D’Angelo and Friends” Verzuz battle at the legendary Apollo Theater and I have yet to come down from that high (not a literal high, but you know what I’m saying). The…
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Recap: 28 Days of Album Cover Blackness with VSB
Another year, another Black History Month coming to a close. For the past 28 days, The Root has been celebrating Black Joy and how that looks—whether it’s through art, family, food or music. Panama Jackson, senior editor of Very Smart Brothas, has brought us all the joy through the most iconic and Blackest album covers…
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28 Days of Album Cover Blackness With VSB, Day 28: Wilson Pickett's Pickett In The Pocket (1974)
I mean, bruh. If this ain’t one of the Blackest album covers of all time then I don’t know what is. Wilson Pickett is out here rocking a red pleather suit with gold or green shimmery accents. He has beautiful Black women by his side who are clearly about to ruin his shot, or would…
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28 Days of Album Music Blackness With VSB, Day 27: Public Enemy's It Takes A Nation of Millions To Hold Us Back (1988)
I don’t need a ton of words to describe the way I feel about the cover for Public Enemy’s sophomore album, 1988’s It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back. Mostly, I just need to say how bad ass it is. And especially how bad ass it was to a 9-year-old whose big…
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From Uptown to World Wide Funk: Bruno Mars, Anderson .Paak and Bootsy Collins Made an Album, Y'all
It’s Friday and I’m at work (from home), but I’d “rather be with you.” Actually, I kind of am! Hey, readers of The Root, I have some great news to end the week on. There is an actual body of work featuring Bruno Mars, Anderson .Paak and Bootsy Collins (the latter of whom is listed…