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Beyoncé: Shy Big Sister by Day, Wild Girl by Night

Interview by Pete Paphides, The Times, 14 November 2008

Her partner wowed Glastonbury, her music sells millions and her private life keeps everyone guessing. We talk to an unusually demure superstar. ...

Candi Staton: How tragedy makes the diva

Retrospective and Interview by Pete Paphides, The Times, 13 February 2009

WHAT IS CANDI Staton doing on Valentine's Day? With hindsight, it seems an indiscreet question to ask a single 65-year-old woman. ...

Michael Jackson, Jackson 5, The: Michael Jackson: Thriller was the Masterpiece that Set Tone for Pop's Next Generation

Obituary by Andy Gill, The Independent, 26 June 2009

ROUSED FROM sleep with the shocking, if not entirely surprising, news that Michael Jackson was gone, I was halfway through my bowl of cereal when ...

Beyoncé, Jay-Z: Beyoncé and Jay-Z: America's other first couple

Profile and Interview by Robert Sandall, The Sunday Times, 9 August 2009

Beyoncé and Jay-Z are black America’s second most famous couple: young, rich and with a direct line to the White House. ...

Corinne Bailey Rae : Corinne Bailey Rae: "It happened to me. It could happen to anyone at any time."

Profile and Interview by Sean O'Hagan, The Observer, 4 October 2009

From out of the darkest place, following the sudden death of her husband, Corinne Bailey Rae is re-emerging with an extraordinarily intimate and impassioned album. ...

Chipmunk, Taio Cruz, Dizzee Rascal, N-Dubz, Tinchy Stryder: N-Dubz and The Second Coming of Brit Pop

Overview by Ben Thompson, The Observer, 1 November 2009

It has been a long, rocky road for homegrown urban music in the UK, but this year N-Dubz and a close-knit group of stars have ...

Sam Cooke: Portrait Of A Legend 1951-1964 (ABKCO Records)

Review by Gary Pig Gold, Rock's Backpages, February 2011

MOST EVERY single time the 20th century's greatest singer-songwriters find themselves getting lionized or even litanized, it seems one towering figure is strangely, sorrowfully AWOL. ...

Ashford & Simpson: Nick Ashford, 1941-2011

Obituary by Dave Laing, The Guardian, 23 August 2011

Singer and songwriter who had a string of hits with his wife, Valerie Simpson, during Motown's heyday. ...

Lee Dorsey, Allen Toussaint: Lee Dorsey: The Star in Greasy Overalls

Retrospective by Gavin Martin, Record Collector, October 2011

IT'S 1980; six years before Lee Dorsey's unexpected death, but his recording career is already over. What will prove to be his last album, Night ...

HAIM: New Band of the Week: HAIM

Profile by Paul Lester, The Guardian, 23 March 2012

A band featuring three sisters, who combine the wafty whimsy of folk with R&B beats. It shouldn't really work. It does  ...

Alabama Shakes: Boys & Girls

Review by Martin Aston, bbc.co.uk, 10 April 2012

This Alabama outfit might be the feel-good hit of the summer festival circuit. ...

Janelle Monáe, Gotye, Kimbra: Right on the Monáe: Janelle Monáe, Gotye, Kimbra

Report by Kate Mossman, New Statesman, 18 July 2012

THE FIRST RULE for writers – apply seat of pants to chair – works for musicians, too. Thirty years ago, the hairbrush and the bedroom mirror ...

Seal: Apollo, Manchester

Live Review by Dave Simpson, The Guardian, 10 December 2012

"C'MON," says Seal, holding back the first verse of his signature tune 'Killer' until the audience is clapping from front row to back. Then he leaps ...

Rihanna: Anatomy Of A Pop Goddess

Profile by John Lewis, Populous, Spring 2012

ROBYN RIHANNA Fenty has only just turned 24 but has already established herself as one of the biggest international stars of the 21st century. Of ...

Janelle Monáe: "I'm a time traveller. I have been to lots of different places"

Interview by Kate Mossman, The Guardian, 30 June 2013

She's an android-dating style queen who's been compared to Bowie. Is the R&B singer the saviour of pop? ...

Robin Thicke: The Blurred Lines of Blue-Eyed Soul

Essay by Michael A. Gonzales, Ebony, 21 August 2013

ROBIN THICKE JOINS JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE, GEORGE MICHAEL AND ELVIS ON THE SOULFUL WHITEBOY TIMELINE. BUT IS IT CULTURAL APPRECIATION OR APPROPRIATION? ...

Drake, The Weeknd: Drake/The Weeknd: Manchester Arena

Live Review by Dave Simpson, The Guardian, 12 March 2014

ABEL TESFAYE, aka the Weeknd, is receiving the kind of cheers you rarely hear for what is technically a support act. The fast-rising 22-year-old Toronto ...

Aaliyah's Age Ain't Nothing but a Number Ages 20 Years

Retrospective by Michael A. Gonzales, Ebony, 27 May 2014

THE LATE SONGSTRESS'S DEBUT ALBUM DROPPED IN MAY 1994, LAUNCHING A TOO-BRIEF CAREER THAT'LL NEVER BE FORGOTTEN ...

Shalamar: The Complete Solar Hit Singles Collection

Sleevenotes by Bob Fisher, Sanctuary Records, July 2014

Dick Griffey and Solar Records ...

Gil Scott-Heron: Shut 'em Down: Reflections on Ferguson and Gil Scott-Heron

Essay by Michael A. Gonzales, soulhead, 2 December 2014

AFTER THE Michael Brown decision in Ferguson, Missouri last week, amid the expected disgust about the so-called fairness of a legal system that allowed murderous ...