Erykah Badu

This Week in Hip Hop

Friday Rap-Up: D.O. The Fabulous Drifter, 50 Cent, Grandmaster Flash, Foxy Brown

Friday Rap-Up: Apostle, Lil Wayne, The Game, Prodigy

Q&A with Ahmir ?uestlove Thompson of the Roots

Q&A With Erykah Badu

Delegating Denver #48 of 56: Texas

Club Scout

?uestlove

Common

Electric Circus (MCA)

The Sugar Water Festival

Tuesday, August 2, Coors Amphitheatre, 303-830-8497.

Erykah Badu

Tuesday, August 2, Coors Amphitheatre, 303-830-8497.

Erykah Badu

This Amerykahn chanteuse makes statements, not singles.

Get Down With Dave

Chappelle returns with a raucous Block Party.

Zap Mama

Monday, September 26, Boulder Theater, Boulder, 303-786-7030.

Critic's Choice

Meshell Ndegeocello

Musiq Maker

On his latest album, the Soulchild grows up.

Critic's Choice

Erykah Badu

On the Records

Backbeat contributors reflect on the releases that helped them survive the year 2000.

Angie Stone

Black Diamond
(Arista)

And the Winners Are ...

Handing out the trophies for 1997's best albums.

Thrills for the week

Handing out the trophies for 1997's best albums.

Top Ten Cover Songs of the Decade

Arcade Fire goes undercover.​There have been billions of songs written in the last decade but sometimes it's not the new ones that matter, it's the reimaginings. Some people argue a great cover song is decided by it's accuracy to the original, others want something new to be brought into the m ... More >>

Heavy Rotation: Pretty Lights, Liars, Gorillaz top our weekly playlists

Pretty Lights. Photo by Aaron Thackeray​ ​As people who think about, talk about, listen to and make music, the most common question we encounter is, "What are you listening to right now?" So whether you're looking for recommendations, trying to get a feel for our individual sensibilities, o ... More >>

Who'd have thought Justin Bieber's My World 2.0 would prove an accurate title?

There you have it: Fourteen-year-old Bieber's debut full-length is on top of the Billboard album chart. His debut EP, meanwhile, is at number five. That one's called My World (get it?) -- can't argue with either title. This makes him the youngest chart-topper since Stevie Wonder, yet something te ... More >>

Erykah Badu, She & Him top sellers at local record stores

​Erykah Badu's New Amerykah Part Two: Return of the Ankh, released last week on Motown, took the top spots at Albums on the Hill and Twist & Shout, while claiming the number four slot at Independent Records. Meth, Ghost & Rae's Wu Massacre , meanwhile, released last week on Def Jam, and She & ... More >>

Lollapalooza lineup revealed. Soundgarden, Green Day, Lady Gaga among the headliners

This year's Lollapalooza lineup has been revealed. Bold face names this time around: Soundgarden, Green Day, Lady Gaga, Arcade Fire and Erykah Badu, alongside nearly ninety of the brightest emerging acts, including MGMT, Grizzly Bear, the National, Yeasayer, Phoenix, Frightened Rabbit and Edward S ... More >>

Heavy Rotation, our top spins for the week of April 5, 2010

​As people who think about, talk about, listen to and make music, the most common question we encounter is, "What are you listening to right now?" So whether you're looking for recommendations, trying to get a feel for our individual sensibilities, or are just curious, we've compiled a list of ... More >>

Sharon Jones, Erykah Badu top sellers at local record stores

​While there were no clear winners across the board at local record stores, Erykah Badu took the top spot at Albums on the Hill, while Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings' latest effort, I Learned the Hard Way, claimed the top slot at Twist & Shout for the week ending April 11. Dr. Dog's Shame, Sham ... More >>

B.o.B., Bop Skizzum, Tommy Metz and The Pirate Signal top our weekly playlists

​As people who think about, talk about, listen to and make music, the most common question we encounter is, "What are you listening to right now?" So whether you're looking for recommendations, trying to get a feel for our individual sensibilities, or are just curious, we've compiled a list of ... More >>

Flaming Lips, Rolling Stones top sellers at local record stores

​While the Flaming Lips and Stardeath & the White Dwarfs' fascinating interpretation of the Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon has been available on iTunes since December, the colored vinyl version, released on Record Store Day, took the top spot at Twist & Shout and came in third at Independe ... More >>

The Chain Gang of 1974, Jónsi, Wire Faces and more top our weekly playlists

​As people who think about, talk about, listen to and make music, the most common question we encounter is, "What are you listening to right now?" So whether you're looking for recommendations, trying to get a feel for our individual sensibilities, or are just curious, we've compiled a list of ... More >>

10 Most WTF Music Videos of 2010 (NSFW)

​ Above is a screen grab from Lady Gaga's video for her latest single, "Alejandro." Her official website says the full video is "coming soon," and if this Gagapedia entry is to be believed, it will involve deaths, surprise twists, vampire fangs and was directed by fashion photographer Stephen ... More >>

Win an unbelievably rad Erykah Badu prize pack that includes tickets to tonight's show

​ In case you haven't heard, Erykah Badu's in town tonight at the Fillmore with Janelle Monáe, whom we caught at Red Rocks this past weekend with MGMT. Not only do we have tickets to the show tonight, but they're part of a rad prize pack that includes a T-shirt, two CDs, stickers and -- for ... More >>

Erykah Badu offers a window seat to her soul at the Fillmore

​ Erykah Badu • Janelle Monae 06.16.10 | Fillmore Auditorium Before Erykah Badu's set, a DJ was spinning and doing live mixes of pop hits of yesteryear, stopping or slowing down the music every now and then to let the crowd enthusiastically fill in the blanks. During "Poison" by Bell Biv D ... More >>

Erykah Badu, Brian Eno on our playlists this week

​As people who think about, talk about, listen to and make music, the most common question we encounter is, "What are you listening to right now?" So whether you're looking for recommendations, trying to get a feel for our individual sensibilities, or are just curious, we've compiled a list of ... More >>

Big Boi, the Roots, Rick Ross, FOE & Whygee dominate our playlists this week

Jason StoffBig Boi, shown here at this past weekend's Pitchfork Festival, dominated our playlists.​ As people who think about, talk about, listen to and make music, the most common question we encounter is, "What are you listening to right now?" So whether you're looking for recommendations, ... More >>

Nofrendo on being funkier than a mosquito's tweeter and taking listeners on a journey through sound

​ Nofrendo (aka Joseph Meezy) is the beat making equivalent of Nina Simone. Built on his love for soul and all things raw and gritty, his production style begets welcoming anachronistic melodies. Quite different from the sped up soul sample moves of many producers, he takes the properties of ... More >>

Air Dubai, Lil Wayne and DJ Krush fill our playlists this week

​As people who think about, talk about, listen to and make music, the most common question we encounter is, "What are you listening to right now?" Whether you're looking for recommendations, trying to get a feel for our individual sensibilities, or are just curious, we've compiled a list of al ... More >>

The National, Bassnectar, Sleigh Bells, the Slits filled our playlists this past week

​As people who think about, talk about, listen to and make music, the most common question we encounter is, "What are you listening to right now?" Whether you're looking for recommendations, trying to get a feel for our individual sensibilities, or are just curious, we've compiled a list of al ... More >>

Pretty Lights, Ween and Jay-Z filled our playlists this week

​As people who think about, talk about, listen to and make music, the most common question we encounter is, "What are you listening to right now?" Whether you're looking for recommendations, trying to get a feel for our individual sensibilities, or are just curious, we've compiled a list of al ... More >>

Our 55 favorite musical releases of 2010

​As people who think about, talk about, listen to and make music, the most common question we encounter is, "What are you listening to right now?" Whether you're looking for recommendations, trying to get a feel for our individual sensibilities, or are just curious, we've compiled a list of al ... More >>

Five reasons Dilla's still missed five years later

​ The hip-hop purists among us are very familiar with the story and legacy of James Dewitt Yancy, better known as J. Dilla. Having come up in the hip-hop underground scene in Detroit and later emerging as one of the most influential producers in hip-hop, it was Dilla's death at the height of ... More >>

Village Voice Media and Frank 151 throw down at SxSW with Wu-Tang Clan and Yelawolf

​WU-hah! If you're going to SXSW this year, be sure to mark Thursday, March 17 on your calendar with a big fat red circle. Austin Music Hall is the place to be from 5 p.m. to 2 a.m. for our annual Village Voice Showdown, being co-produced by Frank 151. This year, Wu-Tang Clan is headlining the ... More >>

FanTrail app aims to mobilize fans. Take to the Oars one of the first acts on board for launch.

​It's no secret that smartphones have changed the way we experience music, but most of the apps we've seen thus far have been spotty, poorly realized cash grabs that have little or nothing to do with the artists in question.

Wu-Tang, Erykah Badu, Yelawolf and more at the Village Voice/Frank 151 SXSW Showdown

Photo: Nate "Igor" SmithGZA the Genius of Wu-Tang Clan. See the full slideshow from last night.​Last night at the the Austin Music Hall, we helped music fans and industry nerds cross a few groups off their bucket lists, as well as see another singer-as-DJ and hear the ear-ringing guitars of a ... More >>

Five rap albums to take on the mothership when the government shuts down at midnight

​Tonight when the clock strikes midnight, you should expect calamity, destruction, and famine to sweep the nation, because word on the street says the government is shutting down. Word to Chicken Little: A bunch of awful things are supposed to happen...we think. They don't pay us the big bucks ... More >>

Janelle MonÁe

Sunday, May 29, 1STBANK Center, 303-830-8497.

Win free tickets to Dinner at the Thompson's at Cervantes tomorrow night

​What do you get when a New York-born, California-bred songstress and a French-born producer with influences ranging from J. Dilla and DJ Shadow combine forces? The duo known as Dinner at the Thompson's. An electro-funk-soul outfit with enough talent to fill a room twice between them, vocalist ... More >>

Lizzie Huffman is a Pretty Old Soul

​What do you get when a New York-born, California-bred songstress and a French-born producer with influences ranging from J. Dilla and DJ Shadow combine forces? The duo known as Dinner at the Thompson's. An electro-funk-soul outfit with enough talent to fill a room twice between them, vocalist ... More >>

Sounds of Blackness: J Dilla

Happy birthday, J Dilla!​Ah, J Dilla. His influence and production style brought forth beatmakers carrying their backpacks filled with treasures from the basement into the mainstream. Even more so after his death. A cult-like following surrounds his legacy. Born James Dewitt Yancey in February ... More >>

Chaka Khan remains one of the most prominent figures in funk and R&B music

​Born Yvette Marie Stevens in March 1953, Chaka Khan sang songs written by Stevie Wonder and Prince as though they were crafted from her own pen. The Queen of Funk has a fiery soul about her and an undeniable rhythm that oozes from her pores. With hits from her collaborative years with Rufus a ... More >>