Spencer Kornhaber
Before joining The Atlantic as an editor in 2011, he was a staff writer at OC Weekly, an editor at Patch, and a freelancer for Spin and The A.V. Club. In 2019, he won the Excellence in Column Writing Award from NLGJA: The Association of LGBTQ Journalists. At The Atlantic, he covers pop culture and music.
Björk Is Building a Matriarchy
On her fascinating 10th album, the artist takes stock of the world she helped create—and, once again, conjures a new one.
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Kevin Mazur / Getty for TAS What Made Taylor Swift’s Concert Unbelievable
At her epic opening show, the pop star played 44 songs and conjured actual magic.
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Kevin Winter / Getty The Most Surprising Performance of the Oscars
Lady Gaga’s minimalist rendition of “Hold My Hand” stood out even in a night of unpredictable musical moments.
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Peacock What Makes Poker Face a Triumph
We don’t quite live in the country the show depicts. But, in an odd way, we should wish to.
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Illustration by Gabriela Pesqueira / The Atlantic. Sources: … The Pulse of Pop Music Is Changing
Welcome to the age of lo-fi beats to take stimulants to.
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Matthew Baker/Getty When New-Age Music Gets Real
Caroline Polachek’s Pure Moods is pure magic.
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Kevin Mazur / Getty for Roc Nation The Sleek Truth in Rihanna’s Halftime Show
Her performance was all heat, no-nonsense.
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Zachary Gray When Emo Grows Up
Paramore’s old sound has become trendy again—but the Nashville trio is chasing “new versions of ourselves.”
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JC Olivera / WireImage / Getty The Grammys Are Built on a Delusion
Even the highlights of last night’s ceremony couldn’t fully distract from its problems.
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Derek White / Getty Sam Smith’s Radical Centrism
One of the world’s most prominent queer entertainers thrives at playing to the middle.
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Tommaso Ottomano This Is the Band That’s Supposedly Saving Rock and Roll?
Måneskin looks a lot cooler than it sounds.
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Joanne Imperio / The Atlantic; Getty; Amazon Studios; … How the Lessons of Game of Thrones Were Lost
A new generation of fantasy TV is here. Why is it so bleak?
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Julia Schimautz The 10 Best Albums of 2022
The year in music was a party.
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RCA Records What Gives SZA Her Edge
The singer’s highly anticipated new album, SOS, is a reminder of how fun fatalism can be.
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Matthew Murphy Decoding the Most Important Songwriter of Our Time
What’s the secret to making great pop music? A Max Martin–inspired musical has some answers.
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Ronald Martinez / Getty Kanye West Finally Says What He Means
The swastika that the rapper tweeted ties a nasty little bow on his ever-expanding collection of disturbing ideas.
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Pictorial Press / Alamy Christine McVie’s Most Miraculous Song
“You Make Loving Fun” showed that the late Fleetwood Mac member was a titan in her own right.
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Courtesy of Focus Features Tár Has an Answer to Art’s Toughest Question
Todd Field’s film spells out why creator and creation usually can’t be separated.
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Christopher Polk / TAS / Getty How Taylor Swift Broke Ticketmaster
Live music is a mess right now.
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Amy Sussman / Getty For Drake, the Misogyny Is the Message
The rapper’s brand is now pointless, profitable cruelty.
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Getty; The Atlantic Brian Eno Has Some Actual Good News
The master of calming music has recorded a wake-up call.
