The Fans http://www.npr.org Listeners connect with music in countless ways. Essays and interviews about why we love the music we love and questions about what our choices as fans mean. en Copyright 2013 NPR - For Personal Use Only NPR API RSS Generator 0.94 Wed, 17 Apr 2013 12:00:00 -0400 http://media.npr.org/images/npr_news_123x20.gif The Fans http://www.npr.org This Was 1993: 20 Years Ago I Heard The Perfect Rap Song Writer Kiese Laymon says back then he would have sworn on everything he loved that hip-hop would never be the same after The Coup's "Not Yet Free." Wed, 17 Apr 2013 12:00:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/04/17/177326079/this-was-1993-20-years-ago-i-heard-the-perfect-rap-song?ft=1&f=133772505 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/04/17/177326079/this-was-1993-20-years-ago-i-heard-the-perfect-rap-song?ft=1&f=133772505 Writer Kiese Laymon says back then he would have sworn on everything he loved that hip-hop would never be the same after The Coup's "Not Yet Free."

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]]> The Music Of The Venezuelan Presidential Campaigns In Caracas, emotions run high and there's noise to match. Supporters of both major candidates for Venezuela's president have created soundtracks that are a constant presence on the city's streets. Fri, 12 Apr 2013 16:17:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/04/12/177066497/the-music-of-the-venezuelan-presidential-campaigns?ft=1&f=133772505 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/04/12/177066497/the-music-of-the-venezuelan-presidential-campaigns?ft=1&f=133772505 In Caracas, emotions run high and there's noise to match. Supporters of both major candidates for Venezuela's president have created soundtracks that are a constant presence on the city's streets.

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]]> Justin Timberlake And The AC/DC Rule A lesson from the career of the Australian classic rockers explains why the pop star's newest album, which hasn't generated glowing reviews or massive radio hits, still had an explosive opening sales week. Fri, 05 Apr 2013 13:50:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/04/04/176269938/justin-timberlake-and-the-ac-dc-rule?ft=1&f=133772505 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/04/04/176269938/justin-timberlake-and-the-ac-dc-rule?ft=1&f=133772505 A lesson from the career of the Australian classic rockers explains why the pop star's newest album, which hasn't generated glowing reviews or massive radio hits, still had an explosive opening sales week.

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]]> Remembering Paul Williams, Founder Of Rock Magazine 'Crawdaddy!' Paul Williams started the first American rock magazine as a college student in 1966, and pioneered a style of intelligent music writing from a fan's perspective. Sat, 30 Mar 2013 11:40:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/03/30/175775627/remembering-paul-williams-founder-of-rock-magazine-crawdaddy?ft=1&f=133772505 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/03/30/175775627/remembering-paul-williams-founder-of-rock-magazine-crawdaddy?ft=1&f=133772505 Paul Williams started the first American rock magazine as a college student in 1966, and pioneered a style of intelligent music writing from a fan's perspective.

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]]> Why I'm Not Going To SXSW This Year In the annual Texas showdown between fledgling bands and crushing industry excess, one longtime SXSW attendee has started feeling like she's coming out behind. Tue, 05 Mar 2013 12:00:00 -0500 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/03/05/173097673/why-im-not-going-to-sxsw-this-year?ft=1&f=133772505 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/03/05/173097673/why-im-not-going-to-sxsw-this-year?ft=1&f=133772505 In the annual Texas showdown between fledgling bands and crushing industry excess, one longtime SXSW attendee has started feeling like she's coming out behind.

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]]> Music, The Food Of 'Amour' The Best Picture nominee about two musicians nearing the end of life uses music sparingly but crushingly. Sat, 23 Feb 2013 07:00:00 -0500 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/02/23/172688809/music-the-food-of-amour?ft=1&f=133772505 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/02/23/172688809/music-the-food-of-amour?ft=1&f=133772505 The Best Picture nominee about two musicians nearing the end of life uses music sparingly but crushingly.

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]]> After 30 Years, I Finally Went To A Barry Manilow Concert The night wasn't about kitsch for her. Writer Danyel Smith fulfilled the real dreams of her 13-year-old self when she saw the pop singer live on Broadway. Thu, 21 Feb 2013 06:00:00 -0500 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/02/21/172506252/after-30-years-i-finally-went-to-a-barry-manilow-concert?ft=1&f=133772505 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/02/21/172506252/after-30-years-i-finally-went-to-a-barry-manilow-concert?ft=1&f=133772505 The night wasn't about kitsch for her. Writer Danyel Smith fulfilled the real dreams of her 13-year-old self when she saw the pop singer live on Broadway.

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]]> Saving The Sounds Of America It's not easy, even for audio recorded in the last 10 years. The Library of Congress has released a plan for preserving the country's long but fragile archive of recorded audio. Wed, 13 Feb 2013 17:20:00 -0500 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/02/13/171916723/saving-the-sounds-of-america?ft=1&f=133772505 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/02/13/171916723/saving-the-sounds-of-america?ft=1&f=133772505 It's not easy, even for audio recorded in the last 10 years. The Library of Congress has released a plan for preserving the country's long but fragile archive of recorded audio.

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]]> Mumford & Sons Take Home Album Of The Year Grammy Call it diversity or a lack of consensus, but no single act dominated this year's awards. Instead, the Grammys spread the love, though rock bands — including The Black Keys and fun. — fared well. Mon, 11 Feb 2013 03:00:00 -0500 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/02/11/171660578/mumford-sons-take-home-album-of-the-year-grammy?ft=1&f=133772505 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/02/11/171660578/mumford-sons-take-home-album-of-the-year-grammy?ft=1&f=133772505 Call it diversity or a lack of consensus, but no single act dominated this year's awards. Instead, the Grammys spread the love, though rock bands — including The Black Keys and fun. — fared well.

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]]> Listening To My Bloody Valentine Three Ways On Saturday night the band unexpectedly released its first album in 22 years. Ann Powers, Lars Gotrich and Otis Hart spent Sunday soaking in the band's new wall of sound and gave us their first impressions. Mon, 04 Feb 2013 15:45:00 -0500 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/02/04/171069034/listening-to-my-bloody-valentine-three-ways?ft=1&f=133772505 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/02/04/171069034/listening-to-my-bloody-valentine-three-ways?ft=1&f=133772505 On Saturday night the band unexpectedly released its first album in 22 years. Ann Powers, Lars Gotrich and Otis Hart spent Sunday soaking in the band's new wall of sound and gave us their first impressions.

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]]> The Drummer Queen Who Runs Nairobi Dancefloors She's formidable in both Swahili and English, lunging and stalking over a smeary, funky-drummer, triphoppin' groove, jazzed with psychedelic synthesizer stabs. Mon, 14 Jan 2013 09:00:00 -0500 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/01/14/169150921/the-drummer-queen-who-runs-nairobi-dancefloors?ft=1&f=133772505 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2013/01/14/169150921/the-drummer-queen-who-runs-nairobi-dancefloors?ft=1&f=133772505 She's formidable in both Swahili and English, lunging and stalking over a smeary, funky-drummer, triphoppin' groove, jazzed with psychedelic synthesizer stabs.

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]]> Who Should Be In The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame? The annual list of inductees to the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame spurs debate among fans and industry insiders alike. Tue, 11 Dec 2012 03:15:00 -0500 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2012/12/11/166921310/who-should-be-in-the-rock-and-roll-hall-of-fame?ft=1&f=133772505 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2012/12/11/166921310/who-should-be-in-the-rock-and-roll-hall-of-fame?ft=1&f=133772505 The annual list of inductees to the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame spurs debate among fans and industry insiders alike.

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]]> 'Mellon Collie' Mystery Girl: The Story Behind An Iconic Album Cover The visual icon of the Smashing Pumpkins' landmark 1995 album is a woman of multiple personalities. On the occasion of a deluxe reissue, illustrator John Craig, who created the visual world of <em>Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, </em>explains the history of the girl in the star. Fri, 07 Dec 2012 11:00:00 -0500 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2012/12/07/166414108/mellon-collie-mystery-girl-the-story-behind-an-iconic-album-cover?ft=1&f=133772505 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2012/12/07/166414108/mellon-collie-mystery-girl-the-story-behind-an-iconic-album-cover?ft=1&f=133772505 The visual icon of the Smashing Pumpkins' landmark 1995 album is a woman of multiple personalities. On the occasion of a deluxe reissue, illustrator John Craig, who created the visual world of Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, explains the history of the girl in the star.

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]]> This Is My Jam: Jaden Smith's 'The Coolest' Why we like what we like is sometimes a mystery. Kwasi Ansu says the Fresh Prince 2.0 surprised him. Fri, 05 Oct 2012 16:00:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2012/09/28/161961523/this-is-my-jam-jaden-smiths-the-coolest?ft=1&f=133772505 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2012/09/28/161961523/this-is-my-jam-jaden-smiths-the-coolest?ft=1&f=133772505 Why we like what we like is sometimes a mystery. Kwasi Ansu says the Fresh Prince 2.0 surprised him.

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]]> The Purple Tape: Only Built 4 Collectors How the purple-tinted cassette version of Raekwon's classic 1995 album Only<em> Built 4 Cuban Linx...</em> became a classic hip-hop artifact, and why its deluxe reissue actually makes sense. Thu, 20 Sep 2012 10:45:00 -0400 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2012/09/19/161403938/the-purple-tape-only-built-4-collectors?ft=1&f=133772505 http://www.npr.org/blogs/therecord/2012/09/19/161403938/the-purple-tape-only-built-4-collectors?ft=1&f=133772505 How the purple-tinted cassette version of Raekwon's classic 1995 album Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... became a classic hip-hop artifact, and why its deluxe reissue actually makes sense.

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