Magazine
For Devonté Hynes, His First Grammy Nom — For Classical Music — ‘Feels Like Doors Opening’
There were times I wondered, “Is this a little too crazy?” I was trying to see what I could get away with. And they were more than able to do it and to add their own thing to it. I’d say to them, “If you want to try this any way you want to do it, go ahead! I’m curious to see what shape it can take.” They’re incredibly intuitive, so in sync with each other. It was very motivating. I was reading recently about Gershwin and his hangup about not necessarily being the most advanced in terms of music theory and education, which is something I definitely relate to. I’m not at conservatory level. The fact that this nomination is within the compositional, classical world — it takes on a different connotation in my mind. It feels like doors opening, whether that’s for me personally or for other peo...
Behind the Rise of Hollywood Composing Teams
Since Reznor and Ross won an Oscar 10 years ago, the pair has also nabbed a Grammy Award for The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (on top of two Grammys Reznor had won previously) and an Emmy Award last September for Watchmen. The rock musicians just need a Tony to achieve EGOT status. Craig Harris and Mark IshamJudah and the Black Messiah (Warner Bros.) Isham is a trumpeter and synthesizer player who has scored dozens of films since 1983, including Nell and Crash. He was nominated in this category 28 years ago for A River Runs Through It. Harris is a jazz trombonist who has worked with such artists as Lena Horne, Sun Ra and The Roots. This is the first film they’ve scored as a pair. Nicolas Becker and Abraham MarderSound of Metal (Amazon Studios) Previously, Becker scored the 2018 documen...
Jazmine Sullivan On Self-Confidence Struggles and Empowering Women In R&B
You followed an earlier three-year recording break with a five-year interlude. Are these breaks intentional or happenstance? As far as length of time, it’s not really intentional. I’ll just chill for a second and then a little break turns into a longer break. But as long as it turns out to be, I do feel breaks are necessary. Taking breaks when you’re younger, it feels different than when you’re older. For one thing, getting yourself back into the swing of things is different, both physically and vocally. I’m starting to understand that now. It’s a different kind of building back up as you get older … even things like getting up earlier and doing interviews. How has the pandemic inspired and challenged your singing and songwriting? I’m amazed people are telling me I sound stronger and...
Yung Bleu Manifested a Drake Feature, Now He’s Ready For a Joint EP
Bleu’s most prominent manifestation came last year when he declared that he would work with Drake. As fate would have it, Bleu’s dream became a reality when NBA star DeMarcus Cousins first listened to his EP Love Scars and fell in love with Bleu’s melodious single “You’re Mines Still.” Cousins texted Bleu and vowed to get Drake on the record. A week later, Bleu received an Instagram DM from the 6 God himself, gushing about the song’s potential and his desire to collaborate. Two weeks after “You’re Mines Still” was released, Bleu and Drake’s remix quickly followed. The love-drunk single swept through social media and ballooned into a massive hit for Bleu. Peaking at No. 52 on the Billboard Hot 100, “You&...
Why 2020’s Protest Songs Aren’t Part of a Passing Trend
The May 25 murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police resulted in the eruption of worldwide protests against racial injustice, as well as an influx of new protest anthems across demographics in the weeks that followed. As superstars like Billie Eilish, The Weeknd, Taylor Swift and Harry Styles vocalized support for the Black Lives Matter movement, artists ranging from country singer-songwriter Mickey Guyton to trap veteran Juicy J to soul-R&B star Leon Bridges rapidly released new songs commenting on systemic discrimination. Protest music soared on the charts, too: “Rockstar,” the DaBaby and Roddy Ricch smash that crowned Billboard’s 2020 Songs of the Summer chart, received an official “BLM remix” in the weeks after Floyd’s death, while “The Bigger Picture,” Lil Baby’s poig...
How to Take Diva Collaborations to ‘Another Level of Badass’
Long-standing assumptions about female artists competing with one another have also dissolved, says Wassim “Sal” Slaiby, CEO/owner of management firm SALXCO, whose roster includes Doja Cat and Bebe Rexha. The idea that there’s room for only one chart-topping female at a time is “very unrealistic,” he says. “When artists come together and have healthy competition, everyone wins.” But executives aren’t suddenly having epiphanies dispelling sexist myths, notes Calhoun — audiences are voicing demand for female collaborations through their listening habits. “The fans are hungry for it and the fans are playing it, so there’s a business there,” she says. “Male artists have held the throne for a minute now, and I think women want to hear women artists.” Perhaps no fan spends more time thinking abo...
What Does ‘Alternative’ Mean in 2020?
Laura Ohls, senior editor, folk and AAA, Spotify: I’ve always thought of “alternative” as referring to any artist creating music that challenges what’s being popularized in the mainstream, across all genres. In the ’90s, rock music was still very much at the core of popular music culture, and as a result, “alternative” [was more] guitar-driven in sound. Fast forward to 2020, where hip-hop, pop and Latin are the titans of genre, and you’ll find that the class of artists defying what’s expected are doing so within these genre spaces. As a result, there is an amalgamation of genres that make up modern “alternative” sounds. We launched our Alternative Hub earlier this year in order to unite all of our alternative programming into one dedicated space. The idea was to have a destination that enc...
Pastor Adigun: I went against sexual purity I preach
Pastor Timi Adigun of The Ark Church and the coordinator of MINE Teenage Ministry has admitted being involved in ‘inappropriate behaviour’ with females in his church over a couple of years. Adigun who apologized on his social media page 48 hours after the sexual allegations went viral, however, said he had ‘no sexual intercourse’ with any of the ladies and none of them was underaged. Mr Adigun, 35, is the editor of MINE Magazine – a free Christian teenage magazine that preaches sexual purity. Several posts surfaced online accusing Mr Adigun of sexcapades with teenage girls under his mentorship and tutelage. In his apology, the clergyman admitted that he behaved in an appropriate manner with some of the females whom he has apologized to. He wrote: “My name is Timi Adigun. I have been called...
Joe Biden and Kamala Harris jointly named TIME’s ‘Person of the Year’
U.S. President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris were jointly named Time magazine’s 2020 “Person of the Year” on Thursday, chosen from a list of finalists that included the man Biden vanquished at the polls – President Donald Trump. The Democratic former vice president and his running mate, a California senator whose election broke gender and racial barriers, together “offered restoration and renewal in a single ticket,” Time said in a profile of the pair, published online with its announcement. Following the most tumultuous U.S. presidential campaign in modern times, waged in the throes of a deadly pandemic, economic devastation and a strife-torn national reckoning with racism, Biden and Harris prevailed in an election that drew the highest voter turnout in a century....
Nigerians embrace British Council digital library
As part of efforts to restore and encourage a reading culture among Nigerians, the UK embassy’s British Council in Nigeria has launched a globally renowned digital library following temporary closure of its physical libraries. The newly launched digital library is to facilitate self-paced convenient learning, make educational and entertainment resources available and also provide access to numerous IELTS preparation content to support a large number of Nigerian youth and test takers. According to the British Council Country Director, Nigeria and West Africa Lead, Lucy Pearson, for many years, the British Council has been renowned all over the world for its libraries and the closure of its physical libraries in Nigeria was a sad one. Lucy said she is delighted to see the launch of the new B...
ASCAB: President Buhari’s speech underestimate Sani Abacha’s $5 billion loot
Alliance for Surviving COVID-19 and Beyond, (ASCAB), a group led by prominent Nigerian human rights lawyer, Femi Falana has said that President Muhammadu Buhari’s claim that late dictator, Sani Abacha, stole $1 billion contradicts the figures earlier released by his own officials. The group described as inconsistent the President’s statement contained in an article he wrote for the international magazine, Newsweek adding that the $1bn quoted by Buhari is barely one fifth of the total amount top officials of the same government claimed to have recovered from the late military henchman. In a statement signed by ASCAB Secretary for Publicity, Adewale Adeoye and made available to newsmen on Monday said that the President’s article falls short of reflecting the stark realities of corrupti...
