Music

Subterms

    More stories

    • 150 Shares199 Views

      in Music

      Frankie Beverly, Frontman of the Soul Group Maze, Is Dead at 77

      by

      A consistent hitmaker on the R&B charts for almost 50 years, he had announced just this year that he would be retiring.Frankie Beverly, the lead singer and songwriter of the soul and funk band Maze, whose songs, including “Golden Time of Day,” “Joy and Pain” and “Happy Feelin’s,” provided the soundtrack to countless summer cookouts and family reunions for more than five decades, died on Tuesday. He was 77.His death was announced in a statement by his family on his Instagram account. The statement did not say where he died or cite a cause.“He lived his life with pure soul, as one would say, and for us, no one did it better,” the statement said. “He lived for his music, family and friends.”Mr. Beverly had announced a farewell tour this year with a handful of dates. He had said that he would retire after going on the road one last time.Mr. Beverly with Maze in 2023. He announced this year that he would retire after a brief tour.Gary Miller/Getty Images“Thank you so much for the support given to me for over 50 years as I pass on the lead vocalist torch to Tony Lindsay,” Mr. Beverly said in a statement to Billboard at the time. “The band will continue on as Maze Honoring Frankie Beverly. It’s been a great ride through the decades. Let the music of my legacy continue.”We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

    • 113 Shares189 Views

      in Music

      Dawn Richard Sues Sean Combs, Alleging Threats and Groping

      by

      The lawsuit was filed by Dawn Richard, a member of groups assembled by Mr. Combs. A lawyer for Mr. Combs called the suit “manufactured” to get a “payday.”Dawn Richard, a singer who came to prominence on the MTV reality show “Making the Band,” filed a lawsuit on Tuesday against the music mogul Sean Combs, accusing him of threatening her, groping her and flying into “frenzied, unpredictable rages” while he oversaw her career.A former member of the now-defunct groups Danity Kane and Diddy — Dirty Money, which were both assembled by Mr. Combs, Ms. Richard detailed a litany of complaints from her time working with him, alleging a culture in which her boss would order her to strip down to her underwear, smack her behind, throw objects such as laptops and food, and at times fail to pay her for her work.In response to the lawsuit, a lawyer for Mr. Combs, Erica Wolff, said in a statement that Ms. Richard had “manufactured a series of false claims all in the hopes of trying to get a payday,” noting that the lawsuit came shortly before Ms. Richard is slated to release a new album.In the lawsuit, filed in federal court in Manhattan, Ms. Richard detailed several occasions from as far back as 2009 in which she said she witnessed Mr. Combs physically abuse his former girlfriend Cassie, whose lawsuit last year prompted a cascade of civil claims against Mr. Combs. Once, the lawsuit said, Ms. Richard saw Mr. Combs push Cassie, whose full name is Casandra Ventura, against a wall and choke her, then throw a hot pan of eggs at her.“On many occasions, Ms. Richard tried to intervene, offering Ms. Ventura support and encouragement to leave Mr. Combs,” the lawsuit says. The court papers accuse Mr. Combs of responding with threats such as “you want to die today” and “I end people.”This is the eighth sexual misconduct lawsuit that Mr. Combs has faced since Ms. Ventura sued last November; the two sides settled in one day. Mr. Combs, who is also facing a federal investigation into his conduct, has described the civil suits as “sickening allegations” from people looking for “a quick payday,” and his lawyers have been fighting them in court.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

    • 138 Shares119 Views

      in Music

      Popcast: Kendrick Lamar at the Super Bowl, Sabrina Carpenter on Top

      by

      Subscribe to Popcast!Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Amazon MusicOn this week’s episode of Popcast, the pop music critic Jon Caramanica and the pop music reporter Joe Coscarelli discuss the week in music:The announcement that Kendrick Lamar will headline the halftime show at Super Bowl LIX, to be held in February in New Orleans, and how it extends his year of tension and musical beef with Drake.Sabrina Carpenter’s sixth album, “Short n’ Sweet,” which is No. 1 on the Billboard album chart, and has helped her break into pop’s top tier.The career of the Atlanta rapper Rich Homie Quan, who died last week at 34.Connect With Popcast. Become a part of the Popcast community: Join the show’s Facebook group and Discord channel. We want to hear from you! Tune in, and tell us what you think at popcast@nytimes.com. Follow our host, Jon Caramanica, on Twitter: @joncaramanica. More

    • 125 Shares199 Views

      in Music

      Juilliard Receives $20 Million to Unite Disciplines and Support Jazz

      by

      The donations, from John and Jody Arnhold, will expand creative work across disciplines, help pay for an annual fall festival and support the jazz program.The Juilliard School is home to some of the best young musicians, dancers and actors in the world. But they rarely come together to create and perform across disciplines.Now the renowned conservatory hopes to change that: Juilliard announced on Wednesday that it had received a $15 million gift to help expand creative work across music, dance and drama. An additional $5 million gift will go to the school’s jazz program to support scholarships, performances and teaching.The gifts are from the investor John Arnhold and his wife, Jody, a dance educator; the $15 million will support the Creative Enterprise program, started in 2018 by Juilliard’s president, Damian Woetzel, to break down barriers between disciplines. That donation will also help pay for an annual fall festival, whose inaugural edition opens on Thursday.“We want to connect students tangibly with the changing professional world,” Woetzel said in an interview, “and to give them an innovative edge.”In the Creative Enterprise program, acclaimed artists, or creative associates, as they are known — including the musician Rhiannon Giddens, the actor Bill Irwin and the dancer Lil Buck — come to Juilliard for residencies. The school also produces interdisciplinary projects, like “Bolero Juilliard,” a video filmed during the pandemic that featured a variety of students and alumni performing to Ravel’s score.This year’s fall festival will feature an array of artists affiliated with the Creative Enterprise program. The composer Nico Muhly and the violist Nadia Sirota are helping shape an outdoor performance of an excerpt from Philip Glass’s opera “Satyagraha.” The flutist Claire Chase and the choreographer Pam Tanowitz are taking part in a performance exploring American experimentalism.“This is not a one-way street,” Woetzel said. “These artists get to work with each other. They get to try things that ordinarily they would not get to try.”John Arnhold said in an interview that he was inspired by Woetzel’s vision for strengthening interdisciplinary work.“When Damian has something in mind,” Arnhold said, “generally speaking it’s something that I want to get behind.”He added that he hoped the gifts would “bring further vibrancy to a school that has all of the tools to create the next generation of arts performers, arts educators, arts leaders.” More

    • 150 Shares139 Views

      in Music

      They Said Her Music Was Too Exotic. Now She’s a Classical Star.

      by

      In a bustling public square in Mexico City on a summer day, as hummingbirds feasted on honeysuckle and candle sellers hawked remedies for broken hearts and anxious minds, the composer Gabriela Ortiz stood in the shadow of the San Juan Bautista church and closed her eyes.Around her in Plaza Hidalgo in the Coyoacán neighborhood, there was cacophony. In one corner, a man in a beret cranked out a fun-house tune on a barrel organ. In another, two young men performed a song in son huasteco style, their falsetto voices rising above the lunchtime chatter. Near a park bench, a woman with long flaxen hair and a karaoke machine sang “Yesterday Once More” by the Carpenters: Every sha-la-la-la.Ortiz, who grew up in Mexico City playing Haydn on the piano and Latin American folk music on the charango, a mandolinlike instrument, opened her eyes and smiled. Then, after offering a few pesos to the organist, she headed down a cobblestone street in search of a cappuccino.“There is no quiet place in Mexico City,” she said. “Everyone has something to say. And music is how we say it.”Ortiz, 59, who will be Carnegie Hall’s composer in residence this season, has spent her life channeling the sounds and sensibilities of Latin America into classical music. For most of the past 40 years, this has been a lonely pursuit. Teachers said her works were too exotic. Critics bristled at her sprawling sonorities. Top orchestras passed her over in doling out commissions.But now, after a series of big breaks, Ortiz is thriving.Ortiz, center, with the star conductor Gustavo Dudamel at Alice Tully Hall in New York after the world premiere of her piece “Clara” in 2022. Dudamel has premiered seven Ortiz works.Caitlin Ochs for The New York TimesWe are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

    • 100 Shares99 Views

      in Music

      Taylor Swift Endorses Kamala Harris After Presidential Debate

      by

      Look what they made her do.Taylor Swift, who is one of America’s most celebrated pop-culture icons and has an enormous following across the world, endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris late Tuesday after Ms. Harris’s debate against former President Donald J. Trump.The endorsement by Ms. Swift, delivered minutes after Ms. Harris and Mr. Trump had stepped off the debate stage in Philadelphia, offers Ms. Harris an unrivaled celebrity backer and a tremendous shot of adrenaline to her campaign, especially with the younger voters she has been trying to attract.“Like many of you, I watched the debate tonight,” Ms. Swift wrote on Instagram to her 283 million followers. “I will be casting my vote for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in the 2024 Presidential Election. I’m voting for @kamalaharris because she fights for the rights and causes I believe need a warrior to champion them.”She signed her post as “Childless Cat Lady,” a reference to comments made by Mr. Trump’s running mate, Senator JD Vance of Ohio, about women without children. The photo that accompanied her post showed her holding a furry feline, Benjamin Button, her pet Ragdoll.Ms. Swift’s endorsement was much anticipated among Democrats. The singer has expressed regret for not having done more to speak out about her opposition to Mr. Trump during his first run in 2016. Since then, she has embraced a more political posture while speaking out on issues such as abortion access. But the precise timing of Tuesday’s endorsement was something of a surprise: Ms. Swift endorsed Joe Biden on Oct. 7, 2020, closer to the election.The impact of Ms. Swift’s endorsement may be hard to quantify, but her ability to get supporters to register to vote came into sharp relief just last year. In a brief post on her Instagram account in 2023, Ms. Swift encouraged her 272 million supporters at the time to vote and included a link to the website Vote.org.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

    • 88 Shares169 Views

      in Music

      Readers Pick Their Song of the Summer

      by

      You sent in an eclectic mix of tracks from Chappell Roan, Bad Bunny, Lawrence and more.A lot of you got into Chappell Roan this summer.Chona Kasinger for The New York TimesDear listeners,A few weeks ago, I asked you to share your 2024 song of the summer. Not necessarily your favorite of the pop smashes that defined the balmiest months of this year — because I’ve already compiled a playlist of those — but the song that served as your personal soundtrack to the season. The song that will conjure a montaged rush of summer of ’24 memories when you hear it years from now.As usual, Amplifier readers delivered, sending me an eclectic mix of songs and some of your lively personal stories.Over and over, it occurred to me while reading your submissions that a song of the summer does not need to be the kind of frothily fun, carefree tune that we usually associate with that phrase. Sure, there are quite a few tracks on this playlist that fit the bill, from artists like the New York-bred sibling duo Lawrence, the ’60s pop singer Keith and the French icon Zizi Jeanmaire. But quite a few of you recommended more subdued songs that had inspired reflection (like a ballad from Zach Bryan’s latest album) or that provided the soundtrack to a challenging moment (like one reader’s selection of a Mississippi John Hurt classic).I wish I could have selected every single song you submitted — but that would have been a very, very long playlist. It was difficult to pare it down to just 13 tracks, but these selections reflect the range of what you recommended: Some new and some old, some familiar and some so obscure I’d never even heard of them. Thanks to each and every one of you who shared your song and your story.Also, reading through these submissions gave me concrete proof of something I’d suspected: A lot of you got into Chappell Roan this summer. Femininomenon indeed.Ouch! Mi corazón,LindsayWe are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

    • 138 Shares169 Views

      in Music

      The N.Y. Law That Underpins Several Lawsuits Against Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs

      by

      The law, which underpins several civil suits against Sean Combs, is the only remaining tool for reviving older claims in New York.In New York, where state laws that extended the time to file sex abuse suits have lapsed, plaintiffs have found one remaining tool: Section 10-1105 of New York City’s administrative code.The provision, known as the Victims of Gender-Motivated Violence Protection Law, has provided the basis for recent lawsuits against the Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler; the luxury real estate agents Tal and Oren Alexander; New York City’s Department of Correction; and the hip-hop mogul Sean Combs, who is a defendant in four.“This statute continues to provide an avenue of relief for survivors,” said Douglas Wigdor, a lawyer for a woman who sued Mr. Combs under the gender-motivated violence law, accusing him and two other men of gang-raping her in a New York recording studio in 2003. He has vehemently denied the allegations.Lawyers say they have been increasingly using the law, first passed by the City Council in 2000, since the expiration last year of the New York state law that had allowed for the filing of lawsuits over sexual abuse allegations even after the statute of limitations had passed. The state law, one of many adopted around the country in the wake of a surge in #MeToo complaints, led to more than 3,000 state court filings relating to claims that often dated back decades — in addition to thousands more filed under an earlier law for people who said they were sexually abused as children.Now plaintiffs are often relying on the city law that — because of a 2022 amendment — established a two-year window in which plaintiffs can sue over older allegations. That window closes at the start of March 2025, and the claims have to be related to events said to have occurred in New York City.In recent months, though, defense lawyers have mounted significant legal challenges to the city’s amendment. They have argued that the City Council infringed on the jurisdiction of state lawmakers, and in several cases, judges have issued decisions limiting the amendment’s scope.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More