~wired | Bookmarks (14)

Nas’ critically revered Illmatic hit record store shelves 30 years ago today. The digital age has ensured that there will never be another album like it.

Taylor Swift has seemingly reached a deal with TikTok to get her music back on the platform, just in time for the release of The Tortured Poets Department.

A new study found that song lyrics are now angrier, more repetitive, and vain. Consensus wavers, but what remains incontestable is social media’s impact on the music we hear most.

The release of Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter exposes the tenor of online fandom today—and the fiction of a shared internet.

More Universal Music songs are disappearing from TikTok as the two companies fail to reach new agreements. Sound clips are ready for their big break.

The “Yeah!” singer will take the stage at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas to cram 30 years of hits into 13 minutes of performing in the middle of the Super Bowl.

Swifties, conspiracy theorists, and sports fans alike will be watching the Super Bowl this year just waiting to see what Taylor Swift does—even if she does nothing at all.

Songs previously licensed from Universal Music Group artists are disappearing from TikTok. #SwiftTok may never be the same.

Some prominent right-wing commentators say the relationship between Taylor Swift and Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce is a ploy to keep President Biden in power. Psyop experts think otherwise.

Visits to music piracy websites went up more than 13 percent last year, a new report says. The majority of those visits were to sites that allow users to download the audio from YouTube URLs.

Music from Taylor Swift, Drake, Bad Bunny, and numerous other artists has been pulled from TikTok following a licensing dispute with Universal Music Group.

Deepfake porn is prolific. The explicit, AI-generated images of Taylor Swift that circulated on X this week are taking the issue to new heights.

News broke this week that SoundCloud was looking to be bought. Even in the hands of different owners, its legacy—from Kehlani to “Old Town Road”—remains.

The ARChive of Contemporary Music has one of the largest collections of vinyl records in the world and is in danger of losing its home. Its champions are making a case for the future of physical media.