Leikeli47 (left) speaks with NPR's Sidney Madden about how Shape Up tracks the rapper's learning process to embody the confidence she so often preaches onstage to others. NPR hide caption
Music Features In-depth storytelling from the NPR Music team.
Music Features
Margo Price, performing on the roof of Third Man Records on Sept. 13, 2018 in Nashville. Jason Kempin/Getty Images hide caption
Skylar Tang, a 16-year-old from the San Francisco Bay area, is the winner of the Dr. J. Douglas White Composing & Arranging Contest. John Clayton/ Skylar Tang hide caption
Who says big band jazz is for old people? Not this teenage composer.
Naomi Judd (right) and Wynonna Judd perform during the 2008 Stagecoach Country Music Festival in Indio, Calif. Kevin Winter/Getty Images hide caption
Talib Kweli of the rap duo Black Star, photographed performing in New York City on July 22, 2017. Bryan Bedder/Getty Images hide caption
Talib Kweli on Black Star's return: 'We stand tall on the shoulders of our ancestors'
Mazel Tov Cocktail Party's influences are global, but the sound they create is uniquely their own. Laura Carbone/Kathleen Tagg hide caption
Mazel Tov Cocktail Party: Take an ounce of hip hop, dash of polka, then square dance
Jean Baylor pointing to the next song on the list, for the Baylor Project album "Generations", 2020, at Bunker Studio, Brooklyn, NY, 2018. Deneka Peniston hide caption
A freshly painted street mural outside Liuzza's by the Track in New Orleans on Tuesday, April 26, 2022, celebrates the impending return of the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. Kevin McGill/AP hide caption
Donald Harrison 1504/1504 hide caption
The nouveau swing of Donald Harrison Jr., Big Chief and NEA Jazz Master
Jessie Montgomery's new work Hymn for Everyone receives its world premiere with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra on April 28. Jiyang Chen/Courtesy of the artist hide caption
Dua Lipa Hugo Comte hide caption
In Dua Lipa's ever-expanding world, 'there's no time limit and there's no what-ifs'
Tomberlin's sophomore album, i don't know who needs to hear this..., is a beautiful patchwork of expansive sounds that explores a wide spectrum of emotions. Michelle Yoon/Courtesy of the artist hide caption
The Beastie Boys, circa 1990 Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images hide caption
Culture Corner: The Beasite Boys
Mariah Parker in Athens City Hall Raphaela Aleman hide caption
Rapper-activist Linqua Franqa is on a mission to change both music and politics
Flora Purim's If You Will is the first album by the influential jazz fusion artist in 15 years and, she says, her last. Mel Gabardo/Courtesy of the artist hide caption
Rosalía's music, persona and visuals are gripping in a way that's distinct from your typical pop star. Daniel Sannwald hide caption
Since the start of her career, Bonnie Raitt's performance of roadhouse rockers, pop ballads, funky sophistication and plenty else has evidenced a deep understanding of mutuality and its absence. Her new album, Just Like That..., is out April 22. Ken Friedman/Courtesy of the artist hide caption
John Foster, Charles Mingus, Roy Brooks, Charles McPherson performs live. Aout 1972. Photo : Christian Rose/Fastimage Christian Rose/Fastimage/Christian Rose/Fastimage hide caption
Charles Mingus, photographed performing in Germany in 1972. Ullstein Bild/Getty Images hide caption
Elizabeth King Bill Reynolds/Courtesy of the artist hide caption
Maureen Mahon's Black Diamond Queens, Danyel Smith's Shine Bright and Daphne Brooks' Liner Notes for the Revolution celebrate Black women's role in popular music. NPR hide caption
2022 NEA Jazz Master Billy Hart Jonathan Chimene hide caption