This year may have been filled with fewer unprecedented events than the previous one, but there was still a lot to adjust to. Little by little, cities across the world began reopening after nearly a ...

While 2020 felt like the year that didn’t happen, 2021 has felt like the year that just… kinda did. As the calendar pages flipped by, we cautiously began searching for a semblance of a familiar life, ...

“Lover” is reminiscent of Swift’s early songwriting after enjoying a decade full of massive pop hits. Appearing on her 2019 album of the same name, the song seems to take a step back, reflecting over ...

Like in any other year, K-pop in 2021 can’t be defined by a single sound or message. Soloists and groups continued pushing the bounds of genre within Korean pop music as they experimented with ...

This year, the pop-music world felt more wide open than ever. Our list of 2021’s best songs includes a beautiful indie-pop celebration of queer love, a reggaeton star tucking into some sweet Eighties ...

A pair of rappers pulling off the best Tom Tom Club sample since Mariah Carey’s “Fantasy” (G Perico & Rucci), an iconic New Wave band trafficking in tongue-in-cheek nostalgia (Duran Duran), a ...

Albums are the traditional measure by which great artists earn that title. Somewhere along the line, we all agreed that full-length LPs were the gold standard by which musicians should be ...

You're currently following this author! Want to unfollow? Unsubscribe via the link in your email. Follow Callie Ahlgrim Every time Callie publishes a story, you’ll get an alert straight to your inbox!

Sixty-six tracks that tell the story of the year: a posthumous political statement, a hyperpop star finding his footing, an emerging force’s debut smash and a superstar’s 10-minute redo. By Jon ...