Music
The University of Tennessee Nearly Expelled a Student for Racy Tweets, Now Agrees To Pay Her $250,000
The settlement vindicates Kimberly Diei's First Amendment right to comment on sexually explicit rap songs without suffering government retaliation.
Review: Laura Marling Mixes Songs With Snippets of Life as a Mom
The album Patterns in Repeat portrays motherhood in an almost exclusively positive light.
Review: Cabaret's Broadway Revival
It's a story about vulnerable people, powerless against the rise of a sweeping authoritarian regime, each seeking a way to cope with the unprecedented times in which they live.
Wicked and the Importance of the Public Domain
Movies like Wicked draw on classic works no longer under copyright protection.
Jeffrey Edward Green: Why Bob Dylan's Prophecies Continue To Fascinate
Jeffrey Edward Green, author of Bob Dylan: Prophet Without God, discusses Dylan’s fraught relationship with political activism, Christianity, and self-mythology.
A San Francisco Coder Built a Musical Surveillance System
With a name inspired by a controversial police surveillance technology, Bop Spotter scans the streets for ambient tunes.
Review: Why Did MTV Stop Playing Music?
Former VJ Dave Holmes explores the channel's history on his podcast, Who Killed the Video Star.
Elton John Condemns Marijuana Legalization, but Doesn't Mention Prohibition's Harms
Using force to make people give up drugs is both dangerous and morally wrong.
Review: Like Friday Night Lights, But For High School Mariachi
A documentary on Netflix follows a team of young musicians vying for competition wins in Texas.
Review: A Rap Trio Fights the Power In Gaelic
Kneecap is a semi-dramatized biopic of the Belfast music group of the same name.
Why Do People Care That Chappell Roan Won't Endorse Kamala Harris?
Not everything is about politics.
What's More Popular Than Taylor Swift? Capitalism.
Other things less popular with American voters than capitalism: Donald Trump, Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, J.D. Vance, and socialism.
Nick Cave: I See the World as 'Systemically Beautiful'
Legendary musician and writer Nick Cave discusses his forthcoming album Wild God, Roger Waters and the BDS movement, and the role of freedom in seeking transcendence.
America Is Ready To Party
Which is not the same as party politics at all.
Kamala's Fabricated Gen Z Appeal
Plus: French arson, Sinaloa cartel update, and more...
Biden and Trump Are Both Disastrously Wrong About Tariffs
Yes, cheap imports hurt some American companies. But protectionist trade policy harms many more Americans than it helps.
This New York Charter School Is Helping Low-Income Students. But the City Is Holding It Back.
Government school advocates say competition "takes money away" from government schools. That is a lie.
Rock and Roll!
Two wonderful and highly recommended treatments of the early history of rock-and-roll.
New Federal Rules for Independent Contractors Will Destroy Freelancers' Livelihoods
A similar law in California had disastrous consequences.
Congress Continues To Make the Tax Code Ridiculously Hard To Understand
I shouldn't have to spend so much money on an accountant every year. But I don't really have a choice.
Review: Photographic Glimpses at 20th Century Roots Music
Arhoolie Records founder Chris Strachwitz's photos document blues, country, and Cajun music.
Jimmy Buffett, Bard of the Florida Man
Buffett realized that what the consumer thought of him was ultimately more important than what he was.
This Year's Libertarian Gift Guide: 23 Ideas for 2023
In today's innovative economy, there's no excuse for sending a gift card. The staff at Reason is here with some inspiration.
Review: The Album That Helped Make Florida the Epicenter of Death Metal
Death's 1990 Spiritual Healing paints a right-wing culture warrior’s nightmare vision of America.
Prosecutors Use Lyrics, Diary Entries as Evidence in Georgia RICO Cases
In separate criminal racketeering cases, prosecutors are using rap lyrics and the personal diary of a protester shot and killed by police as evidence.
Priscilla Is an Elvis Movie That Isn't About Elvis
Sophia Coppola's superb drama tackles an age-gap romance with nuance.
Is It Time To Trust-Bust Taylor Swift?
The pop singer's new concert film inadvertently makes the case for big businesses with sweeping market power.
Remy: Look What You Made Me Do (Taylor Swift Looting Parody)
Stop enabling thieves by owning stuff.
Taylor Swift, Junk Fees, and the 'Happy Meal Fallacy'
Thank Swifties, not Joe Biden, for Ticketmaster's consumer-friendly pricing policy.
The Best of Reason: The Pirate Preservationists
When keeping cultural archives safe means stepping outside the law.
The Pirate Preservationists
When keeping cultural archives safe means stepping outside the law
How Rage Against the Machine Used Capitalism To Sell Communism
A calculated corporate deal propelled these radical rockers all the way to the Hall of Fame.
Fun, Silly Anti-Tax Ballad 'Rich Men North of Richmond' Goes Viral for Some Online Reasons
If you don't take Oliver Anthony's surprise hit song too seriously, it's a lot of fun. Regrettably, a lot of people are taking the song much too seriously indeed.
Review: The Peculiar Politics of Killer Mike
The rapper is a Bernie Sanders supporter who speaks out about gun rights and free speech.
