Music

When I got downstairs to greet Obongjayar and his bandmates at NPR headquarters, they had already found their way over to some stationary bikes near the lobby to get the adrenaline pumping. OB and crew seemed shy but ready for this moment. During the show, I witnessed my colleagues go from wiping away tears to bouncing and clapping within a matter of minutes. That emotional balance is Obongjayar's Tiny Desk […]

Noname, Chief Keef, Kanye West, and Dreezy. Collage by Jackie Lay / NPR. Daniel DeSlover / Frazer Harrison / Dimitrios Kambouris / Xavier Collin/Getty Images / AP Images As it celebrates its 50th birthday, we are mapping hip-hop's story on a local level, with more than a dozen city-specific histories of the music and culture. Click here to see the entire list. A city for poets, brawlers and hustlers — […]

photo credit: Maya Fuhr Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org. Transcript : AYESHA RASCOE, HOST: Being the only Black professional in an office can be draining. Electronic music artist Aluna has similar feelings about her workplace - studios and stages. And in the arena of dance music, where it feels like there is little minority representation, she is raising her voice. (SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "KILLING ME") ALUNA: (Singing) […]

Credit: Photo: Elizabeth Gillis The first thing I noticed as Cypress Hill strolled into NPR headquarters was Sen Dog cradling his signature bucket hat. I asked him if my assumptions were correct; it was indeed the original hat seen in all the videos from the early '90s. Before I could process that confirmation, B Real asked me, "Yo, is your greenroom a greenroom?" We got everything we expected and more […]

Migos, Baby Tate, Outkast & Jeezy. Collage by Jackie Lay / NPR. Alberto E. Rodriguez / Josh Brasted / Scott Gries / Paras Griffin/Getty Images As it celebrates its 50th birthday, we are mapping hip-hop's story on a local level, with more than a dozen city-specific histories of the music and culture. Click here to see the entire list. For evidence of Atlanta's continued ability to produce music that feeds […]

A section of Sedgwick Avenue in the Bronx, N.Y. was renamed Hip Hop Boulevard in 2016, in recognition of the apartment building where the music is said to have been born. José A. Alvarado Jr. for NPR When Jerry Leader was growing up, he made himself a toy set of DJ equipment. Two empty cereal boxes were the turntables. For the records, he cut circles out of cardboard. The needle, […]