Beyoncé Drops Live Coachella Album; Gary Clark Jr. At The Tiny Desk

Plus, the curse of Drake.

Larry Busacca/Getty Images for Coachella Earlier this week, Homecoming: A Film By Beyoncé arrived. (If you haven’t seen it, cancel your weekend plans.) The film chronicles Bey’s historic performance at Coachella last year, including intimate, black-and-white rehearsal clips that took place four months before the April 2018 set. She also surprise-released a live album showcasing more than 90 minutes of the more than two-hour performance. It got our colleague Lars Gotrich wondering about what makes a standout live album. (He says his favorites are ones that “contextualize the history of an artist,” including Daft Punk's Alive 1997 and Alive 2007 and Heron Oblivion's The Chapel.) As for your newsletter editors, Lyndsey says the August 1978 Bruce Springsteen recording at the Agora is a revelation. Let us know your favorites by using the email option at the end of this week’s newsletter. Destiny’s Child was our college, Marissa Lorusso and Lyndsey McKenna New Music We’ve been anticipating Lizzo’s major-label debut since she dominated our South by Southwest showcase in 2017. It dropped this week — as did a new album of acoustic affirmations from The Tallest Man On Earth and a set of infectious anthems from Johnnyswim. Hear about those albums and more on this week’s episode of New Music Friday. "Medellín," the first single from Madonna's upcoming album, suggests she’s making canny decisions in her 60th year, pairing coolly narcotic dance-pop and energetic reggaetón. April 26 is shaping up to be a stacked release day: Hear the massive metallic drones of Sunn O))), the final installment of Craig Finn’s solo trilogy and the 10th studio album from Josh Ritter (featuring some high-profile assists on production) ahead of their release in our First Listen series. Featuring At the height of the big-band era during World War II, all-women big bands reigned. But the stories of these groups have been largely erased or minimized in jazz history. Earlier this week, Ellen Reid won this year's Pulitzer Prize for Music for her opera p r i s m. The piece was inspired by her own experience as a survivor of sexual assault. In 2018, vocalist Angélique Kidjo covered the Talking Heads' 1980 album Remain in Light in full. Now she’s released Celia, a tribute to Cuban vocalist Celia Cruz that brings the African roots of Cruz’s music to the forefront. Tiny Desk Amr Alfilky/NPR Gary Clark Jr. brought his young son on his most recent tour with him, so when he came to NPR, the blues-rock singer and guitarist had to deal with a typical parenting dilemma: How do you bring your kid to the office and still get work done? We think he pulled it off: His performance behind the Tiny Desk roared with the assurance and force of a showman at the top of his game.   One More Thing Keep your team’s playoff hopes alive: Keep Drake away. What do you think of today's email? We'd love to hear your thoughts, questions and feedback: nprmusic@npr.org Enjoying this newsletter? Forward to a friend! They can sign up here. Looking for more great content? Check out all of our newsletter offerings — including Books, Pop Culture, Health and more! Need a new playlist? Follow NPR Music on Spotify! You received this message because you're subscribed to our NPR Music emails. |  Unsubscribe  |  Privacy Policy | NPR 1111 N. CAPITOL ST. NE WASHINGTON DC 20002