In Slate’s annual Music Club, Slate critic Carl Wilson emails about the year in music with fellow critics — featuring New York Times contributor Lindsay Zoladz, freelance writer Briana Younger, NPR music critic Ann Powers, Glitter Up the Dark author Sasha Geffen, Pitchfork contributing editor Jenn Pelly, WXNP Nashville editorial director Jewly Hight, Penguin Books author Julianne [...] Read more

Entry 4: America spent 2020 retreating into the sounds of the past. In Slate’s annual Music Club, Slate music critic Carl Wilson emails with fellow critics—this year, Rolling Stone staff writer Brittany Spanos, New York Times contributor Lindsay Zoladz, and four special guests—about the year in music. Greetings, fellow music freaks, seven days a week: [...] Read more

The 2019 Music Club features critics Carl Wilson, Lindsay Zoladz, and Ann Powers, with additional entries from Jack Hamilton, Julianne Escobedo-Shepherd, Jewly Hight, and Chris Molanphy. My friends in the salon chairs: Like Lindsay, I’m leading off with a “Truth Hurts” allusion, because back in September when it went to No. 1, my esteemed but abstemious [...] Read more

Entry 6: Will Drake’s reign ever end? Happy Festivus, my Kikis who will never, ever leave me: As part of its year-in-review package, Billboard published a calendar of everything Drake did every day of 2018. When I saw this a few days ago, I plaintively—desperately?—asked my social media feed: This is it, right? This means [...] Read more

Entry 12: This year’s Latin pop boomlet might not last—but white pop stars probably aren’t about to take back the charts either. Happy holidays, my Molly Percocets: As I’ve been reading your entries in this year’s Music Club, I am struck that you all seem to have had the same sort of year I’ve had, [...] Read more

This was a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad year on the pop charts. But streaming gives some hope. Blessings, my Ultralight Beams: I appreciate this opportunity to emerge from my perpetual fetal-ball crouch with you all. To the punch list of 2016 bereavement and dread that Carl, Julianne, and Ann have already run down, [...] Read more

Entry 4: The bad news: Artist “loyalty” is over. The good news: Hits are as varied as ever. Hey Carl, Lindsay, and Ann, Happy holidays—another round of shots for us all! Thanks for letting me run this lap with you. I’m hoping to be the Nicki Minaj to your collective Queen Bey—maybe not flawless but [...] Read more

Entry 4: In 2015, black artists took back the pop charts. Hello my straight masterpieces— stylin’, wilin’ livin’ it up in the city: Has it actually been 12 months since we last chatted? That’s impossible—I’ve only written about eight No. 1 hits in all that time. (Nine if you count that Dad-dancing dude who got [...] Read more

Sky Ferreira. Photo by Abby Gillardi/Flickr via Wikimedia Commons Dear Accidental Poptimists: You know the phrase, “I don’t just love you, I like you”? I’m not just bringing up this bit of romantic-comedy doggerel now because we’re about to wrap up here, and I … well, very much like all of you. It’s also how [...] Read more

Entry 6: Number of black acts that have topped the Billboard Hot 100 this year: 0. Rappers MC Ren, DJ Yella, Eazy-E and Dr. Dre of the rap group NWA pose for a portrait in 1991 in New York, New York. Photo by Al Pereira/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images My fellow Picasso Babies: We keep trying [...] Read more