‘Misadventures of Doomscroller’ Finds Dawes Finally Embracing a Latent Jam-Band Sensibility: Album Review

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music CriticBilly Joe Shaver, one of the figureheads of the “outlaw country” movement that came out of Texas and flourished in the 1970s, is the subject of a forthcoming tribute album that sees some of the top names in country and Americana saluting the late legend, including Willie Nelson, Miranda Lambert, George Strait, Nathaniel Rateliff, Rodney Crowell and Margo Price. The project, “Live Forever: A Tribute to Billy Joe Shaver,” comes out on New West Nov.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music CriticNo one has to wait till December for a holiday squabble. Mariah Carey’s attempt to register the term “Queen of Christmas” as a trademark only she can use is meeting fierce resistance from two singers who have also been associated with that term over the years, Darlene Love and Elizabeth Chan.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music CriticSinger-songwriter Joseph Arthur has filed a lawsuit against the Los Angeles Times, saying the newspaper’s use of the term “anti-vax” in a headline a year ago was defamatory, because the artist has strongly crusaded against COVID shots but has not expressed a position opposing all kinds of vaccines.Arthur is represented in the suit by Steven S. Biss.

A.D. Amorosi Megan Thee Stallion has had eeeenough to last her a rap lifetime, judging from the tone of “Traumazine,” her best, most fully realized recorded work to date.Megan records usually drop with spirited, humorous displays of sensuality, assuredness and empowerment, with the twists in their sobriety coming exclusively as the Houston rapper takes time-outs to come down on those who’ve made life hard for her or bad for her #Hotties.“Traumazine,” however, is made of sterner, more serious stuff — a sound of release, of letting go, of dealing with rage – with its callouts coming quicker, often subtly and ringed with tinges of sadness and disgust. On this, her official sophomore album release, Megan lets loose the tension built up from having been in a forever-seeming contract struggle with her longtime label, 1501 Certified Entertainment, to say nothing of the ongoing court case with her alleged assailant, Tory Lanez.

Lady Gaga attempted to go incognito in a black trench coat, matching baseball cap and a pair of oversized shades while visiting her pal Tony Bennett in New York City. As she prepared to catch up with her frequent collaborator, who recently turned 96, the 36-year-old pop star kept a low profile as she kept her head down while strolling down the sidewalk in a pair of sky-high black leather booties and light-wash jeans. For the occasion, she also sported a hot pink lipstick and kept her platinum blonde pulled back in a sleek ponytail.

African American history often gets buried in the bowels of the past. I am always embarrassed when I learn about moments from Black history that I feel I should already know. The subject of Margaret Brown’s documentary Descendant is the slave ship Clotilda, found off the coast of Plateau, Alabama (labeled Africatown). Having premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, then screened at SXSW, it is the first film to open the Martha’s Vineyard African American Film Festival. Descendant is also produced by Barack and Michelle Obama’s Higher Ground.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music CriticBeyoncé’s “Renaissance” album rode in on a steed of its own to register the second-best first-week numbers so far this year. It trails only Harry Styles’ latest, as 2022 album premieres go.The debut figure for “Renaissance” was 332,000 equivalent album units, per Luminate Data, as reported Sunday in Billboard — a tally that represents the best first week for a female artist this year.“Renaissance” came in short of supplanting Styles’ “Harry’s House” as the top-debuting album of the year; Styles’ collection bowed with 521,000 units in June.

Girls’ Generation have returned on their 15th anniversary with highly anticipated comeback album ‘Forever 1’. Today, the veteran K-pop group’s leader Taeyeon revealed that the group’s future beyond the record is still up in the air.The ‘Forever 1′ album, which got its digital release today (August 5) at 6pm KST, marks the first time in five years all eight members of the group have come together to release new music together.

Not here for hypocrites. Katie Thurston stood up for fellow Bachelor alum Madison Prewett after her whirlwind engagement to Grant Michael Troutt.

SPOILER ALERT: This article contains details of tonight’s Better Call Saul‘s “Breaking Bad” episode. Let’s just say, the title is a bit of a giveaway.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music CriticThat pose that Amanda Shires strikes on the cover of “Take It Like a Man” — is it the look of allure, or alarm? Even after some time spent with the record therein, it still seems like it could be either. The singer-songwriter-violinist kicks off her seventh solo release with “Hawk for the Dove,” about as broodingly carnal a track as you’re going to hear this year.

Ilana Kaplan Six years after the release of Beyoncé’s magnum opus “Lemonade,” the pop icon has come through again: giving us all something to talk about. The long-anticipated “Renaissance” (volume one of three) is sticky, sweaty, hedonistic art — flanked by a pastiche of genres that never lingers on long enough for the listener to get too comfortable.It’s what makes the collection its own kind of masterpiece: beauty in the chaos.

The story may be Wicked, but this friendship looks good as can be! Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, stars of the upcoming feature film adaptation of the Broadway classic, Wicked, are sharing a look at their comradery behind the scenes.

The story may be , but this friendship looks good as can be! Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, stars of the upcoming feature film adaptation of the Broadway classic, , are sharing a look at their comradery behind the scenes. Taking to Instagram this weekend, Grande posted a carousel of photos and included a black-and-white photo of her laughing with Erivo at what appears to be a table-read for the film. The co-stars look quite close as Grande is covering her face with paper and Erivo is looking over at her warmly.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music CriticBruce Springsteen fans have been asking to hear from the artist or his camp directly in the wake of a firestorm over extremely variable ticket costs for a 2023 U.S. tour that has gone on sale last week and this week.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music CriticThe release of Lizzo’s “Special” album finally gave her “About Damn Time” single the surge it needed to conquer the Billboard Hot 100, after the song had bided its time for weeks in the No. 2 spot on that chart, waiting to knock Harry Styles’ long-standing “As It Was” out of the top spot.The Lizzo album itself had to settle for a No. 2 entry on the Billboard 200, since Bad Bunny’s “Un Verano Sin Ti” album — now in its sixth non-consecutive week on top — is proving even harder to push out of the way than Styles’ single was.The second-place finish for “Special” did represent Lizzo’s high mark on the album chart to date.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music CriticFor Nicolle Galyon — a BMI songwriter of the year honoree and co-writer of nine No. 1 country songs, including Miranda Lambert’s “Automatic,” Blake Shelton’s “Minimum Wage” and Dan + Shay’s “Tequila” — there was nothing automatic about making the shift from hit tunesmith to (basically) first-time recording artist.

No Time To Die star Ana De Armas has said “there’s no need” for a female actor to play James Bond.The actor – who starred alongside Daniel Craig in the most recent 007 film – explained she would like the female roles in Bond films to be “brought to life in a different way”.“There’s no need for a female Bond,” de Armas recently told The Sun. “There shouldn’t be any need to steal someone else’s character, you know, to take over.“This is a novel, and it leads into this James Bond world and this fantasy of that universe where he’s at.”She continued: “What I would like is that the female roles in the Bond films, even though Bond will continue to be a man, are brought to life in a different way.“That they’re given a more substantial part and recognition.