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Tuesday

The Contenders, Vol. 14: Upchuck, Just Mustard, Brandon Woody, more

Just Mustard's "Pollyanna" is one of the songs we can't stop playing this week. Kate Lawlor hide caption

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Kate Lawlor

All Songs Considered

The Contenders, Vol. 14: Upchuck, Just Mustard, Brandon Woody, more

This week's update to our running list of the year's best songs includes some scorchers from Atlanta's Upchuck, the shoegaze group Just Mustard, jazz trumpeter Brandon Woody and more.

The Contenders, Vol. 14: Upchuck, Just Mustard, Brandon Woody, more

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Friday

Thursday

Thursday

Andy Bey at the Charlie Parker Jazz Festival in 2015.

Andy Bey at the Charlie Parker Jazz Festival in 2015. Jonathan Chimene hide caption

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Jonathan Chimene

Jazz Night In America

Remembering Andy Bey: A love letter to a jazz legend

WBGO

A master of vocal jazz, Andy Bey left behind a singular legacy. This tribute revisits his life, music and a rare, reflective interview recorded near his 80th birthday.

Andy Bey: A Love Letter To A Jazz Legend

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Monday

The 2025 class of the NEA's Jazz Masters included (from left to right) saxophonist Marshall Allen, pianists Chucho Valdés and Marilyn Crispell and the critic Gary Giddins.

The 2025 class of the NEA's Jazz Masters was celebrated at a concert at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., on Saturday. This year's fellows included (from left to right) saxophonist Marshall Allen, pianists Chucho Valdés and Marilyn Crispell and the critic Gary Giddins. Jati Lindsay hide caption

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Jati Lindsay

Music

At the Kennedy Center, a concert honors the 2025 NEA Jazz Masters amid turbulence

WRTI

In a fraught moment for two institutions behind the awards, this year's NEA Jazz Masters ceremony celebrated musicians who have upheld the genre's legacy while looking anxiously toward an uncertain future.

Friday

Wednesday

Thursday

Wadada Leo Smith (left) and Vijay Iyer have known and collaborated with each other for decades. They have just released their second album as a duo, Defiant Life, with Smith on trumpet and Iyer on piano.

Wadada Leo Smith (left) and Vijay Iyer have known and collaborated with each other for decades. They have just released their second album as a duo, Defiant Life, with Smith on trumpet and Iyer on piano. @ogata_photo hide caption

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@ogata_photo

Music

Wadada Leo Smith and Vijay Iyer on what it takes to lead a defiant life

WRTI

On their new album, two of the most celebrated composers and players in the jazz world pay homage to the pursuit of purpose and joy found in the struggle for liberation.

Friday

New Music Friday: The best albums out Feb. 14

Bartees Strange's Horror is one of our favorite albums out Feb. 14. Elizabeth De La Piedra/Courtesy of 4AD hide caption

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Elizabeth De La Piedra/Courtesy of 4AD

All Songs Considered

New Music Friday: The best albums out Feb. 14

Bartees Strange. Denison Witmer. The Sun Ra Arkestra's Marshall Allen. NPR Music's Stephen Thompson welcomes Nate Chinen of Philadelphia's WRTI to discuss the best new releases out on Valentine's Day.

New Music Friday: The best albums out Feb. 14

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Friday

New Music Friday: The best albums you missed from December

British soul collective SAULT officially released its latest album, Acts of Faith, on Christmas. SAULT hide caption

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SAULT

All Songs Considered

New Music Friday: The best albums you missed from December

There's been some great music released since the last New Music Friday episode in late November. So, on this slow January release day, NPR Music's Stephen Thompson and WRTI's Nate Chinen catch you up on the best albums we heard in December in between "All I Want For Christmas Is You" and "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer."

New Music Friday: The best albums you missed from December

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Thursday

Saxophonist Devin Daniels and trumpeter Julien Knowles distinguished themselves on breakthrough releases this year — Daniels on the star-making LesGo! and Knowles on his solo debut, As Many, As One, each of which features the other as a band member.

Saxophonist Devin Daniels and trumpeter Julien Knowles distinguished themselves on breakthrough releases this year — Daniels on the star-making LesGo! and Knowles on his solo debut, As Many, As One, each of which features the other as a band member. Craig Allyn hide caption

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Craig Allyn

Best Music of 2024

The Essential Jazz Discoveries of 2024

This year's unmissable jazz releases came in two flavors: breakthrough releases by driven young newcomers, and a heap of unearthed treasures from the vault.

Friday

New Music Friday: The best albums out Nov. 8

Ab-Soul, seen here on stage at Coachella, released a new mixtape titled Soul Burger on Friday. Karl Walter/Getty Images for Coachella hide caption

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Karl Walter/Getty Images for Coachella

All Songs Considered

New Music Friday: The best albums out Nov. 8

NPR Music's Ann Powers and Daoud Tyler-Ameen are your guides to the most compelling albums released this Friday.

New Music Friday: The best albums out Nov. 8

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Friday

New Music Friday: The best albums out Oct. 11

Jelly Roll's new album, Beautifully Broken, is out today. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Courtesy of the artist

All Songs Considered

New Music Friday: The best albums out Oct. 11

The rapper-turned-country star Jelly Roll, who has had a major breakthrough in Nashville in the last couple of years, leads the pack of the most exciting albums out on Friday, October 11.

New Music Friday: The best albums out Oct. 11

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Friday

Singers on stage with background projections in Missy Mazzoli and Royce Vavrek's opera 'The Listeners.'

Missy Mazzoli and Royce Vavrek's opera The Listeners premiered Wednesday night in Philadelphia. Steven Pisano/Courtesy of Opera Philadelphia hide caption

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Steven Pisano/Courtesy of Opera Philadelphia

Music

A mysterious hum and a charismatic leader stoke chaos in Missy Mazzoli's opera

WRTI

In The Listeners, a seductive cult leader and an unexplainable noise divides an innocent community and warps reality. Mazzoli's opera receives its U.S. premiere in Philadelphia.

The Listeners Opera U.S. Premiere

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Tuesday

Marshall Allen performs at the 2024 A Great Night In Harlem Gala at The Apollo Theater in New York City in March 2024

Marshall Allen, who will be included in the class of Jazz Masters awarded by the NEA next year, performs onstage at the 2024 A Great Night In Harlem Gala at the Apollo Theater in New York City in March. Arturo Holmes/Getty Images hide caption

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Arturo Holmes/Getty Images

Music

Marshall Allen and Chucho Valdés included in 2025 class of NEA Jazz Masters

A saxophonist of otherworldly gusto, two pianists of impulsive eloquence and a critic with a pen nearly as sharp as his ears are the latest selections for the the nation's highest honor for jazz.

Friday

New Music Friday: The best albums out May 24

Carlos Nino Todd Weaver/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Todd Weaver/Courtesy of the artist

All Songs Considered

New Music Friday: The best albums out May 24

On our survey of the week's most exciting new albums, WRTI's Nate Chinen and NPR Music's Sheldon Pearce get all wrapped up in the amniotic embrace of a new album by a guru of the L.A. ambient-jazz scene.

New Music Friday: The best albums out May 24

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Monday

Tuesday

Friday

New Music Friday: The best albums out May 3

You could call Dua Lipa's third album, Radical Optimism, the further adventures in the pop music time machine. Tyrone Lebon/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Tyrone Lebon/Courtesy of the artist

All Songs Considered

New Music Friday: The best albums out May 3

On the May 3 episode of New Music Friday, NPR Music's Hazel Cills and WRTI's Nate Chinen discuss the week's essential new albums, including Radical Optimism, from the dance-pop superstar Dua Lipa.

New Music Friday: The best albums out May 3

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Friday

New Music Friday: The best albums out April 12

Shabaka Hutchings has released a fantastic new album under his first name titled Perceive its Beauty, Acknowledge its Grace. Atiba Jefferson/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Atiba Jefferson/Courtesy of the artist

All Songs Considered

New Music Friday: The best albums out April 12

NPR Music's Sheldon Pearce and WRTI's Nate Chinen take you through the biggest new releases of the week, including Maggie Rogers, Shabaka Hutchings and more.

New Music Friday: The best albums out April 12

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Friday

New Music Friday: 5 albums out Feb. 16, plus 'Rhapsody in Blue' still thrills at 100

Our hosts are digging the new album by Gaby Moreno. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Courtesy of the artist

All Songs Considered

New Music Friday: 5 albums out Feb. 16, plus 'Rhapsody in Blue' still thrills at 100

NPR Music's Felix Contreras and WRTI's Nate Chinen run down new albums by Gaby Mareno, Les Amazones d'Afrique and more. Then, Nate Chinen is joined by NPR Music's Tom Huizenga to discuss the legacy and controversy around George Gershwin's masterpiece, "Rhapsody in Blue," which celebrated its centennial this week.

New Music Friday: 5 albums out Feb. 16, plus 'Rhapsody in Blue' still thrills at 100

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Friday

Music News

The Grammy's newest categories acknowledge a boom for African music and modern jazz

Two of the new Grammy categories reflect trends that are booming among musicians and the industry.

The Grammy's newest categories acknowledge a boom for African music and modern jazz

Listen · 8:00
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