music

black-and-white photo of woman with short dark hair smiling

Culture

Steve Albini Was Proof You Can Change

Jeremy Gordon

May 8, 2024

A black-and-white photo of Steve Albini in glasses and a hat, sitting in a recording studio

Culture

The Diminishing Returns of Having Good Taste

W. David Marx

May 1, 2024

Culture

Bad Bunny Has It All—And That’s the Problem

Valerie Trapp

April 26, 2024

A black-and-white photo of Bad Bunny standing alone onstage in a suit and backward cap

Culture

Why Does Taylor Swift See Herself as an Albatross?

James Parker

April 25, 2024

Taylor Swift singing into a microphone above an albatross, both in white, over a bright red background

Culture

The Story That’s Holding Taylor Swift Back

Sophie Gilbert

April 24, 2024

Refracted image of Taylor Swift against a pink background dotted with lyric fragments

The Atlantic Daily

How to Look at the World With More Wonder

Stephanie Bai

April 21, 2024

An aerial view of Bad Water, Death Valley, California

Culture

Taylor Swift Is Having Quality-Control Issues

Spencer Kornhaber

April 19, 2024

Ideas

The Rock Never Blinks

Robin Sloan

April 6, 2024

Illustration showing different facial expressions of the Rock, the background radiating colors

The Atlantic Daily

Why Beyoncé Keeps Reinventing Herself

Lora Kelley

April 5, 2024

Beyonce wearing a black cowboy hat at the 2024 iHeartRadio Music Awards

Science

A Secret Code May Have Been Hiding in Classical Music for 200 Years

S. I. Rosenbaum

April 4, 2024

Collage of a portrait of Beethoven and his handwritten manuscripts, including unusual dynamic markings

Culture

This Is What an Album Needs to Do Right Now

Spencer Kornhaber

April 2, 2024

Culture

Beyoncé Stands Her Ground

Spencer Kornhaber

March 29, 2024

Books

The Rick Rubin Guide to Creativity

James Parker

March 25, 2024

A sketch of Rick Rubin in black ink, with green, blue, yellow, and red in the background

Culture

Kanye’s Creepy Comeback

Spencer Kornhaber

March 18, 2024

Rapper Kanye West performs onstage during the "Vultures 1" playback concert during Rolling Loud 2024 the at Hollywood Park Grounds on March 14, 2024 in Inglewood, California.

Culture

A Seriously Silly Oscars Moment

Spencer Kornhaber

March 11, 2024

Ryan Gosling, dressed as Ken in a pink suit and gloves, sings into a microphone on the Oscars stage as several dozen men in black tuxedos dance behind him.

Culture

The Haunting of Modern Pop Music

Spencer Kornhaber

March 8, 2024

Jack Antonoff in a yellow shirt and sunglasses standing in a parking lot

Culture

A Kind of Timeless Jazz Masterpiece

James Kaplan

March 6, 2024

A vinyl copy of Miles Davis’ “Kind of Blue”

The Wonder Reader

Can Anyone Learn to Sing?

Isabel Fattal

March 2, 2024

Culture

Why the Best Singers Can’t Always Sing Their Own Songs

Marc Hogan

March 1, 2024

Culture

The Missing Piece of the Bob Marley Biopic

Hannah Giorgis

February 17, 2024

Kingsley Ben-Adir as Bob Marley in “Bob Marley: One Love”

Culture

The Fabulous Desperation of Our Celebrities

Spencer Kornhaber

February 16, 2024

Close-up shot of Jennifer Lopez lying down and looking serious

Ideas

Taylor Swift Is Just the Latest Subject in a Long History of Pop Conspiracy Theories

Jesse Walker

February 9, 2024

Time-Travel Thursdays

How The Atlantic First Made Sense of Jazz

David A. Graham

February 8, 2024

An orange-tinted photo of Louis Armstrong playing the trumpet in front of a microphone

Culture

Toby Keith Had More to Talk About Than His Politics

Brad Shoup

February 8, 2024

Ideas

A Rare Moment Americans Could All Share

Peter Wehner

February 6, 2024

Tracy Chapman performing with a guitar at the Grammys, backdropped by stage lights

Culture

What Joni Mitchell Proved at the Grammys

Spencer Kornhaber

February 5, 2024

Culture

Justin Timberlake’s Air of Desperation

Esther Zuckerman

January 28, 2024

Still of Justin Timberlake and Dakota Johnson

Culture

Mary Weiss, the Flinty Voice of Heartbreak

Paula Mejía

January 27, 2024

The three members of the Shangri-Las standing in front of a wall

Culture

The Band That’s Been Charting America’s Burnout for Decades

Spencer Kornhaber

January 25, 2024

the three members of green day lying on white lawn chairs

Culture

A Dark Omen for the Future of Music

Spencer Kornhaber

January 18, 2024

An illustration of a pair of headphones, crying

The Atlantic Daily

The Secret Joys of Geriatric Rock

Tom Nichols

December 31, 2023

The Tubes vocalist Fee Waybill supporting Hollywood Vampires at Birmingham Utilita Arena, July 11th, 2023

Music

Madonna Dances With Death

Spencer Kornhaber

December 15, 2023

Madonna dressed in black robes with light beams framing her

Culture

The 10 Best Albums of 2023

Spencer Kornhaber

December 13, 2023

Newsletters

The Dark Side of Christmas Music

Lora Kelley

December 8, 2023

Vinyl record player next to a Christmas tree and lights

Culture

A Spiritual Manifesto for the Dispossessed

James Parker

December 4, 2023

Shane MacGowan standing against a cream and green wall wearing a Pogues black shirt and sunglasses

Sections

The Print Edition

The Art of Survival

Steve Albini Was Proof You Can Change

The Diminishing Returns of Having Good Taste

Bad Bunny Has It All—And That’s the Problem

Why Does Taylor Swift See Herself as an Albatross?

The Story That’s Holding Taylor Swift Back

How to Look at the World With More Wonder

Taylor Swift Is Having Quality-Control Issues

The Rock Never Blinks

Why Beyoncé Keeps Reinventing Herself

A Secret Code May Have Been Hiding in Classical Music for 200 Years

This Is What an Album Needs to Do Right Now

Beyoncé Stands Her Ground

The Rick Rubin Guide to Creativity

Kanye’s Creepy Comeback

A Seriously Silly Oscars Moment

The Haunting of Modern Pop Music

A Kind of Timeless Jazz Masterpiece

Can Anyone Learn to Sing?

Why the Best Singers Can’t Always Sing Their Own Songs

The Missing Piece of the Bob Marley Biopic

The Fabulous Desperation of Our Celebrities

Taylor Swift Is Just the Latest Subject in a Long History of Pop Conspiracy Theories

How The Atlantic First Made Sense of Jazz

Toby Keith Had More to Talk About Than His Politics

A Rare Moment Americans Could All Share

What Joni Mitchell Proved at the Grammys

Justin Timberlake’s Air of Desperation

Mary Weiss, the Flinty Voice of Heartbreak

The Band That’s Been Charting America’s Burnout for Decades

A Dark Omen for the Future of Music

The Secret Joys of Geriatric Rock

Madonna Dances With Death

The 10 Best Albums of 2023

The Dark Side of Christmas Music

A Spiritual Manifesto for the Dispossessed