In Rolling Stone‘s series At Work, we go behind the curtain with decision-makers across the fast-changing music business — exploring a range of responsibilities, burgeoning ideas, advice for industry newcomers, and more. Read earlier interviews here. Eight years ago, Tunde Balogun and Sean Famoso were Georgia State students frustrated by …
Read More »Leo Kottke, Reluctant Guitar Hero
For the last several decades, Leo Kottke has perfected the way he likes to tour. Instead of using a tour bus, the guitarist drives himself, piling his guitars into the back of a rental car. He deals with venue staff directly, settling up on his own. And he doesn’t bring …
Read More »How the Streaming Exclusive Died and Came Back to Life
“I said no quickly, brashly, abrasively. Do me a favor — don’t present that to me again.” Rap expert and podcast host Joe Budden doesn’t mince words in describing the crumbling relationship between his show and Spotify. According to Budden, who ran through a list of candid grievances in a …
Read More »Toots and the Maytals: 15 Essential Songs
Frederick “Toots” Hibbert, who died Friday at age 77, wasn’t just a pioneer and key popularizer of Jamaican music; he was also an essential bridge between the worlds of ska, rocksteady, reggae, and the great American R&B tradition. His vocal delivery, raspy yet gorgeously supple, and poignant way of writing …
Read More »Hear Doves' Kinks-Inspired New Song 'Broken Eyes'
Ahead of the September 11th release of the first Doves album in 11 years, the reunited trio has shared one more single from The Universal Want, “Broken Eyes.” The guitar-driven track was among the first Doves worked on upon getting back together in the studio in 2017. “We nailed it …
Read More »U2 Announce 'All That You Can't Leave Behind' 20th Anniversary Box Set
U2 will celebrate the 20th anniversary of All That You Can’t Leave Behind on October 30th with the release of a super deluxe edition of the album. It will be available both as single disc remaster of the original LP and a 51-track Super Deluxe box set packed with B-sides, …
Read More »Joe Keery's Djo Shares Disco-Tinged Single 'Keep Your Head Up'
Stranger Things”Joe Keery has shared a new single, “Keep Your Head Up,” released under the moniker Djo. Influenced by psych-rock, the track kicks off with a dizzying electro-drum beat. “Got to love yourself/go ahead touch yourself,” he sings in a Bee Gees-esque register. “Take that time alone before your heart …
Read More »How USPS Pandemonium Threatens Indie Musicians and Labels
Mississippi indie label Fat Possum Records was deep into shipping copies of veteran punk band X’s first album in 27 years, Alphabetland, when they were faced with an unprecedented problem: How do you fit 1,000 vinyl records into a postal worker’s Jeep Cherokee? Shipping records in the past hasn’t really …
Read More »Music at Home: The Witching Hour
This week’s full moon in Pisces may have left you feeling a bit tender. But that’s all right: these songs are meant to revitalize, empower, and mobilize as you let go of the parts of your life that no longer serve you — or reaffirm those that do. From Stevie …
Read More »John DiMaggio Teaches 'Voice Acting 101'
John DiMaggio is the famed voice actor behind Bender in Futurama, Jake the Dog in Adventure Timeand dozens of other iconic animated roles. Most recently, he starred in the Audible fiction podcast Vroom Vroom, in which he plays a ruthless car salesman looking to put his rivals in upstate New …
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