NPR Music has always been about championing what’s next. One of the new ways we’re looking ahead is a weekly playlist called Heat Check.
Heat Check is for realigning chakras as much as it is for perfecting twerks. It’s a R&B and hip-hop-leaning, guilt-free form of sonic escapism that puts quality first and doesn’t worry about adhering to one singular “vibe.”
This playlist loves the newcomers (Santi, Baby Rose, Mariah the Scientist) just as much as the established hitmakers (Kendrick Lamar, Migos, Nicki Minaj). I update this cross-genre concoction each Monday with new music. So click and follow if you want to beat your friends to the “I put you on” punch or, more importantly, enjoy the type of curation that comes from actually listening.
Here’s to you finding your new favorite song,
Sidney Madden |
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| - Ending a summer of speculation, Taylor Swift confirmed this week that she's planning to record new versions of her self-titled album, Fearless, Speak Now, Red and 1989 in order to regain artistic and financial control of her material. (Swift’s latest album, Lover, came out Friday.)
- With a brooding pout, movie star looks and a high-powered record deal, Ivo Pogorelich was an instant celebrity at 22. Now the polarizing classical pianist is back with his first album in 21 years. We asked a trio of critics to discuss the mercurial musician’s personal take on Beethoven and Rachmaninoff and what it means to color outside the lines in classical music.
- This week, Turning the Tables honored Billie Holiday. We have a deep dive into her stint at a Catholic convent, original work from a collective of young Nashville poets inspired by Holiday, an episode of NPR’s history podcast Throughline about Lady Day’s performances of “Strange Fruit,” a playlist of some of her greatest songs and more.
- Recently, Jay-Z announced a partnership between his Roc Nation entertainment company and the NFL. But, as our hip-hop critic Rodney Carmichael writes, the deal feels like the NFL attempting to invalidate Colin Kaepernick's sacrifice, without extending him the courtesy of a seat at the table.
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- It’s been a while since Bob Boilen and Robin Hilton were together in the studio, co-hosting All Songs Considered. (We blame summer vacations.) This week, they’re back, with new music from Brittany Howard, Big Thief and more.
- Sonic Youth’s Kim Gordon announced No Home Record, her first album under her own name. Its first single, “Sketch Artist,” reinforces Gordon as a malleable artist who, nonetheless, sounds only like Kim Gordon.
- In September, Sturgill Simpson will simultaneously release a new album and an anime film on Netflix, both titled Sound & Fury. Each promises to showcase the Kentuckian's louder, looser side. “Sing Along,” the first single, is a dizzying and compact rock-and-roll jam.
- Now that the '90s country revival has gone mainstream, Midland's new album, Let It Roll, showcases the subtle arts that distinguish the band.
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- We like to think that the Tiny Desk is a place that brings families together, but Houston rapper Tobe Nwigwe took it to a new level: His Tiny Desk debut was a true family affair with an entourage that included his 7-week-old daughter.
- At the Tiny Desk, Andrew Marlin and Emily Frantz — who perform as Mandolin Orange — made everything seem so easy, with just a few acoustic instruments and a single microphone, performing songs full of joy and thoughtfulness.
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