Being the band known for being from Iraq, I doubt that we'll be able to freely tour everywhere [in 2017]... It doesn't matter to some people if I've become a citizen or not. Unfortunately, some people still think, 'You're brown.' Or, 'You're from the Middle East.' Or, 'You're Iraqi.' | | | | | Dancing to Iraqi metal band Acrassicauda in Baghdad, 2004. (Chris Hondros/Getty Images) | | | | |  | “Being the band known for being from Iraq, I doubt that we'll be able to freely tour everywhere [in 2017]... It doesn't matter to some people if I've become a citizen or not. Unfortunately, some people still think, 'You're brown.' Or, 'You're from the Middle East.' Or, 'You're Iraqi.'”
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| | rantnrave:// On the afternoon of the WOMEN'S MARCH, TAYLOR SWIFT tweeted her "love, pride, and respect for those who marched." She's tweeted five times since then, all five promoting her and ZAYN MALIK's song from the FIFTY SHADES DARKER soundtrack. This has not gone unnoticed. "Please use your voice. Please use your platform," indie rock singer-songwriter TORRES tweeted back at her on Friday. A day later, 15-year-old GIRL MEETS WORLD actress ROWAN BLANCHARD subtweeted Swift with a critique of celebs who "present yr world as entirely ur own self promotion, pretending nothing else exists outside." Does Taylor Swift have a choice here? Does any pop star? Is it incumbent upon all celebrities to take sides in the divided world of 2017? Is it extra-incumbent upon a singer like Swift who has embraced feminism and girl power as part of her identity? Can pop and politics exist apart from each other? NOISEY's GRACE MEDFORD, while acknowledging the risk of any celebrity wading into presidential politics (and while noting that Malik, a Muslim, has remained publicly silent), answers that last question with a resounding no. "To ignore," she writes, "is to not merely be 'unwoke' but to be embarrassingly out of touch with public conversation." But must pop stars be part of any conversation that doesn't contain a beat and a melody? In a searing longread on Swift's public persona, BUZZFEED's ELLIE WOODWARD argues she has spent her entire career inserting herself into the public conversation to the betterment of her career. I feel neither inclined nor qualified to weigh in on Woodward's thesis that Swift has contrived to play the victim both onstage and off for a decade, but it's a well-researched, well-argued thinkpiece that has something to say about the uses of pop stardom. Take it in as you check out this new (and quite affecting) GRAMMY ad campaign, in which the RECORDING ACADEMY has turned Swift's 2016 Album of the Year speech into a female-empowerment promo for this year's Grammys. "We need feminism more than ever," Woodward writes. "But slumber parties, girl-power platitudes, and personal victimhood is not enough"... The conductor's view at CARNEGIE HALL (technically, it's either a second violinist's or violist's view, but cool either way)... You of course know JOHN WETTON as the singer of one of the most '80s songs of the '80s, but you may also know him as a prog-rock singer and bassist whose long, twisty career took him through the likes of KING CRIMSON, ROXY MUSIC and, for god's sake, he played bass on this. Wetton succumbed to cancer Tuesday. Rest in prog... Curatorial help wanted: Looking for seriously talented fill-in curators familiar with media, technology, pop culture and more for MediaREDEF. CVs to jobs@redefgroup.com. | | | - Matty Karas, curator |
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 | BuzzFeed |
| Taylor Swift’s embrace of victimhood doesn’t begin and end with Kanye West – it can be traced back to the start of her decade-long career in both her music and her manipulation of the media. But until Kim Kardashian stepped in with proof, it had largely gone unnoticed. | | |
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 | Perfect Sound Forever |
| What is the music of the Make America Great Again movement? | | |
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 | WSJ |
| Chic’s 1979 song ‘Good Times’ paid tribute to Kool & the Gang, but wound up popularizing hip-hop. | | |
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 | Getintothis |
| Trying not to hang on to the music of her youth, Getintothis’ Laura Brown found that Eagulls rekindled the lost enthusiasm for new music from her formative years. | | |
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 | Esquire |
| The duo brings all the worst cliches of the genre, and just might destroy it. | | |
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 | The New Yorker |
| The soulful Londoner combines ambience with songwriting heft on “Process,” and the Atlanta trio’s flow oozes with self-assurance on “Culture.” | | |
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 | Billboard |
| The country’s biggest music retail chain will close all 102 HMV stores on or before April 30. | | |
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 | Saving Country Music |
| "When there is music, nobody thinks of fighting. That's why I came to the United States---not only to study country music in its homeland, but also to travel to the country which had been introduced to me by the media in Iran as 'the enemy' and 'the great Satan' and see the people, talk to them, and learn about their culture through them." | | |
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 | Noisey |
| "You feel an invisible hand pulling you back from progress," says founder Kubilay Yigit, but that hasn't stopped him from creating an international roster. Listen to the premiere of Astronautica's "Reasons" from the label's debut compilation now. | | |
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 | Los Angeles Times |
| Stepping to the front of the stage before a large crowd, the young woman introduced herself simply as “Boo.” Dressed in a colorful bomber jacket, jeans and glasses, Boo is short with a soft, high-pitched voice. | | |
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 | The Undefeated |
| Behind Marvin Gaye’s NFL tryout. | | |
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 | The Mary Sue |
| I was supposed to get my car fixed this morning. At 8am, I should have woken up, driven to the mechanic, and taken a bus home, so that my “check tire” light would go away. But I didn’t. Instead I stayed in bed and checked my email. Tickets for an upcoming concert are selling at a slower rate than any other show we’ve done. I consider promoting the event, and head to social media. | | |
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 | Glamour |
| The world needs a woman like Alicia Keys right now. | | |
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 | The New York Times |
| Does it matter if you saw the show? An obsessive’s guide to finding old concert shirts (Led Zeppelin, Joan Jett, The Clash, et. al.). | | |
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 | i-D Magazine |
| Pantsula -- an ecstatic dance form that interfaces with American music and Apartheid struggle -- has developed in South African townships for over 50 years. But there has been no comprehensive documentation of its style and culture. | | |
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 | Forbes |
| The royalty lawsuit filed by the surviving member of The Carpenters is the latest as artists fight for income in the digital age. | | |
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 | DJ Mag |
| From new ventures in live performance to reunions with Digweed, fresh collaborations to the birth of a baby, the godfather of progressive is busy building a new future in what he says is his most productive era yet. | | |
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 | Rolling Stone |
| Derek Trucks offers a poignant remembrance of his late uncle and musical mentor Butch Trucks. | | |
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 | The Fader |
| Interpolations are a quick way to get to the top of the charts. Kehlani is doing it smarter than her peers and taking steps to ensure her legacy. | | |
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| Rolling Stone |
| Drummer Marwan Hussein of the Iraqi metal band Accrassicauda parses President Trump's executive order, barring travel from Middle Eastern countries. | | |
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 | YouTube |
| | | | | | Iraqi metal band, now based in Brooklyn. |
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