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In the latest round of what are often called "Genius" grants, the MacArthur Foundation has just named 25 new fellows (each receiving a $500,000 award), including violinist Leila Josefowicz, writer Alex Ross, saxophonist Miguel Zenon, and sound artist and instrument inventor Walter Kitundu.

In the last few months, DJ AM died of an apparent drug overdose, while a heart attack took the life of New York radio pioneer Mr. Magic. But the least publicized in a tragic and eerily timed trilogy of DJ deaths was that of Anthony Williams, better known as Grandmaster Roc Raida.

M. Ward's seventh album Hold Time was released Feb. 17. The singer-songwriter is known for his largely acoustic and usually spare arrangements. Ken Tucker has a review.

George Tillman Jr.'s sketch of the life and death of the Notorious B.I.G. looks at how the Brooklyn rapper changed hip-hop. Corey Takahashi takes a look back at the man who would become Biggie Smalls.

When Detroit milliner Luke Song made Aretha Franklin's now-iconic 2009 inaugural hat — you know, the one with the big bow? — he had no idea he'd be making thousands more.

Twenty-five years after his death, it's still difficult to get many people not to think of Keith Moon as just a hard-drinking, lunatic rock star who would smash his drum set on stage or destroy a hotel room. But his biographer, Tony Fletcher, says The Who's legendary drummer should be remembered as the man who forever changed the sound of rock 'n' roll. On Weekend Edition Sunday, NPR's Liane Hansen talks to the author and bandmate Roger Daltrey about Moon's legacy.

Lead vocalists have gotten quieter over the decades, compared with the rest of the band, according to a new study. Beck says it's part of the "volume wars."

How did an Australian band with no hits, modest media coverage and a ridiculous name find a massive audience? The group's metal-forward new album is a perfect example of how it weaponizes niche.

Music festivals like Coachella are a spectrum of taste and discovery, allowing fans to experience their favorite artists and introducing them to new ones.

When the album came out, an interesting thing happened: Everyone seemed to have a different favorite track. We enlisted five notable critics to argue for the songs they think are the most indelible.