Jingle Bars: How two Billboard journalists and echoes of Chic’s ‘Good Times’ merged to create the first Christmas rap
The unlikely story of how two Billboard journalists left their job to create the first Christmas rap record for Kurtis Blow
Spinning Nicki Minaj’s Return to No. 1 as a Win for Hip-Hop Is Dubious… but Doable (for her)
Nicki Minaj’s latest No. 1 triumph (Pink Friday 2) highlights the good, the bad and the ugly of hip-hop, particularly for its women.
2023 Faves: How the Pointer Sisters Stole the Show on My Spotify Wrapped
(December 2, 2023). How did this happen? I like the Pointer Sisters. No, in fact, I love the Pointer Sisters. But I certainly wasn’t prepared for the results of this…
Eternal Groove: Honoring the Late Jean Knight, the Queen of Stax Records’ Epic Rebound Year!
(November 30, 2023). By most accounts, Stax Records, the label founded by two white siblings whose original focus was country and rockabilly music, already had its Queen. That was Carla…
Tuning Into a Festive Upset: Will Another Christmas Hit (finally) Eclipse Mariah Next Week?
(November 28, 2023). The top of the Billboard Hot 100 has been so weak recently — that assessment based on the songs’ chart point totals, not a quality judgment about…