SlateWhy Is This Song No. 1?

Kendrick Lamar’s New No. 1 Proves He’s Not Just Our Greatest Rapper. He’s One of Our Biggest Pop Stars.

He’s now calling himself “Kung Fu Kenny.” But who knew the greatest rapper alive would pull a Carl Douglas and actually hit the top of the pops? It’s not like Kendrick Lamar made it easy on himself—he didn’t rely on the usual performance-enhancing tricks of a dance craze or a viral gimmick to propel “Humble” [...] Read more
Hit Parade

Hit Parade: The Rogue DJ Edition

A new podcast about how that song you love—or hate—became a smash. Neil Diamond performs in 1976. Jessie Eastland/Wikipedia https://megaphone.link/PPY8123266549 In this debut episode, Chris Molanphy tells the story of “Red Red Wine,” a song written in the 1960s by a certain journeyman singer-songwriter who loves a Hot August Night. Improbably, it became a reggae song, [...] Read more