Music Articles archive
Read The Year In Pop Charts: Return Of The Monoculture
December 25, 2012 – Two things make for great years in pop: variety and shared pleasure. 2012 had both.
Watch The Best Rap Of 2012: A Conversation
December 25, 2012 – Microphone Check hosts Ali Shaheed Muhammad and Frannie Kelley remember the year in hip-hop.
Watch 2 Chainz: A Pop Star For All Of Us
December 25, 2012 – He laces his bouncy, terse rhymes with a charisma reminiscent of another musician — Ringo Starr.
Listen No Sugar Plums Here: The Dark, Romantic Roots Of 'The Nutcracker'
December 25, 2012 – Few people remember E.T.A. Hoffmann, but many are aware of his famous creation: The Nutcracker.
Watch Whatever Happened To The Classical Christmas Album?
December 25, 2012 – The flow of classical Christmas albums has slowed, triggering a longing for past recordings.
Watch Another Year, Another 'Christmas With The Chipmunks'
December 24, 2012 – Some of the most frequently reissued holiday music of all time comes from three animated rodents.
Read The Week In Music: What To Stay In From The Cold And Read Now
December 23, 2012 – A video, a year-end essay and one piece of local reporting that say more than their headlines imply.
Watch Ne-Yo On A Career Made Stronger By Missteps
December 23, 2012 – The singer says his transition from songwriter to performer was clumsy, but instructive.
Listen The Rise, Fall And Redemption Of New Orleans' 'R&B Emperor'
December 23, 2012 – Ernie K-Doe pierced the national consciousness in 1961 with the song "Mother-in-Law."
Listen This Is What It Sounds Like When Two Women Cover Prince
December 22, 2012 – SNL alumna Maya Rudolph and musician Gretchen Liberum co-lead the cover band Princess.
Listen NPR Music's 50 Favorite Albums Of 2012
December 22, 2012 – The albums that sum up our year span genres and borders while making life better all around.
Read NPR Music's 100 Favorite Songs Of 2012
December 22, 2012 – This is what 2012 sounded like: the songs that made us laugh and the ones that cried with us.
Read Staff Picks: Our Favorite Music Books Of 2012
December 22, 2012 – On subjects familiar and obscure, our favorite music books brought songs to new life.
Listen Marin Alsop: A Utopian Musical Dream From South America
December 22, 2012 – The conductor of the Sao Paulo Symphony is inspired by Brazil's commitment to classical music.
Watch 'Kuduro,' The Dance That Keeps Angola Going
December 22, 2012 – Exuberant, fast-paced electronic dance music from southwest Africa is traveling around the world.