Music

For decades, a major piece of counter-culture history was wedged behind a bed in Merl Saunders’ San Francisco house.  The crude pipe looks like something a teen may have cobbled together at summer camp, but according to art historian Steve Cabella, it’s basically a religious object. A so-called “spirit pipe,” this particular pot implement was made by LSD pioneer Augustus Owsley Stanley for Grateful Dead frontman Jerry Garcia, and it’s been MIA for decades. “I’ve bought party pipes from rock people before,” Cabella — owner of California antiquities shop The...

Celebrated singer-songwriter Sierra Ferrell will embark on a lengthy headlining tour this spring. The West Virginia native will start her nearly two-month-long trek with a stop at Sheldon Concert Hall in St. Louis, Mo., on March 2. She'll take the stage at cities across the U.S., including Chicago, New Orleans and San Francisco, before wrapping things up with a performance at Seattle's Neptune Theatre on May 7."Performing live music in front of our fans is everything to me," Ferrell says in a statement. "That free flow of energy, back and forth,...

Manuel Turizo was in Madrid when Chris Martin called. Coldplay was on tour in South America and the band wanted the Colombian star to join the band in Bogotá to perform his smash hit “La Bachata.” Turizo immediately agreed and caught a flight to his native Colombia for the show. He’s still windblown: “I was in shock,” Turizo tells Rolling Stone over Zoom from Miami. “The fact that they invited me to perform was insane. It’s like a bucket list moment for sure. I did that!” “Chris kept thanking me...

Parker McCollum is making his debut on Austin City Limits on Saturday (Oct. 29), and Taste of Country and The Boot are sharing two songs from his performance ahead of the episode in this exclusive premiere.The upcoming episode focuses on Lone Star Country, which showcases McCollum's roots in Conroe, Texas. McCollum has made a huge splash with his major-label debut album, 2021's Gold Chain Cowboy, which earned him two No. singles with "Pretty Heart" and "To Be Loved by You."The ACM New Male Artist of the Year and CMA New...

I T’S NO LONGER the mid-Nineties, but Shania Twain is still the reigning queen of country pop. Just look at the over-the-top reaction from the Gen Z crowd when Harry Styles brought her onstage at Coachella this year, or check out Post Malone rocking out during Twain’s AMAs appearance a few years back. Or take a listen to Rina Sawayama’s glittery banger “This Hell,” which kicks off with Twain’s iconic “Let’s go girls!” For Sawayama, Twain has been a lifelong influence. The British Japanese star incorporates Twain’s country anthems into...

To get to the heart of Lainey Wilson's new Bell Bottom Country album, skip ahead to track No. 6, "Me, You and Jesus." The soft-spoken, mid-tempo, acoustic lyrical showcase doesn't scream radio hit, and it might go unnoticed on the first listen through these 14 songs, but ..."The only things that get me through hard times are my faith and my people," she tells Taste of Country, exhaling after one heck of a year.Wilson — whose "Heart Like a Truck" is one of her two songs approaching the country Top 20 — has...

Recovery Mode "I'm feeling great!" the artist wrote on Instagram, saying he's expected to recover by Billie Eilish's shows in December Finneas is on the mend — and being an Optimist — after undergoing surgery following an electric bike crash that “demolished” his collarbone and fractured his right elbow. On Thursday, he shared an update with fans about his health, saying he’s “feeling great” after the crash. “Last Friday, I had the pleasure of crashing my electric bike, flying over the handlebars and absolutely demolishing my collarbone as well as...

Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman have never been the couple to shy away from public displays of affection — they have been spotted kissing on red carpets and stages across the globe! So, of course, Kidman would share another spicy smooch for her husband's birthday.The country singer turned 55 on Oct. 26 ,and per usual, his wife honored the occasion with a social media post."Happy Birthday my love," she writes next to a photo of the two sharing a romantic kiss, with Urban cradling her face.Some would argue that the post is a...

R OGER DALTREY WALKS through Kore Studios near London’s Shepherd’s Bush, opening doors and looking for Yungblud. “Is he here?” the Who frontman asks. Yes, he is. “A young musician on time! Unheard of,” Daltrey booms. Everyone within earshot laughs. This location was chosen for its familiarity (Daltrey has recorded here) and for ease — the 78-year-old lives not too far from Kore, just outside of London. On the contrary, the much younger star he’s meeting has flown in from Paris, where he played a show last night, and will...

Wynonna Judd has been out on the road since the end of September, performing the scheduled shows for the Judds' Final Tour, and while the concerts have been going remarkably well, the veteran country belter admits the experience has been emotionally draining.Speaking to a group of journalists at a press event just outside of Nashville on Wednesday (Oct. 26), Judd says that she's been enormously gratified by the fans' reactions to the shows so far."I feel like I'm just the messenger," she says of the concerts, pausing before adding, "But...

Can't Stop, Won't Stop The Midnights artists nearly stole the show when she and Iver sang Folklore's hit song for the crowd Taylor Swift made a surprise visit to Bon Iver’s concert in London on Wednesday, Oct. 26, at the OVO Arena in Wembley. As Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon, began the first few verses of “Exile” from Swift’s eighth album, Folklore, the Midnights artist walked on stage. Immediately, the crowd lost it. “Bon Iver bringing out Taylor Swift and playing Exile has fucking ended me honestly jesus christ” one audience...

The Horizon Award was introduced at the 1981 CMA Awards, to recognize fresh and emerging country artists. Terri Gibbs, the hitmaker behind "Somebody's Knocking," was the first-ever artist to be awarded the trophy in this specific category, and many of the Horizon Award winners who followed Gibbs are artists whose stars continued to rise: the Judds, Randy Travis, Garth Brooks, Alison Krauss, Brad Paisley, Carrie Underwood, Taylor Swift and other notable singers.In 2007, Swift became the final artist to receive the Horizon Award. The honor's title was changed to New Artist of...

Poetic Pairing Track pairs Dickinson's verses from 1861 with a tender, albeit occasionally chilling folk arrangement Andrew Bird has enlisted the help of Phoebe Bridgers to create a tender folk interpretation of Emily Dickinson’s 1861 poem, “I Felt a Funeral, in My Brain.” Bird and Bridgers recorded the song this fall, and the interpretation pairs Dickinson’s verses with soft guitar, light whistling, and drum patter, as well as strings that can feel rich and grand one moment, then cool and steely the next. Bird and Bridgers share vocal duties, trading...

Coaches are beginning to downsize their Season 22 teams on The Voice as several artists have already gone home, which meant the nerves were high heading into the fifth night of the battle rounds on Tuesday's (Oct. 25) episode.The nerves were even higher for 22-year-old Bryce Leatherwood, who had to go up against not one, but two singers on the latest edition of the reality TV competition series.Leatherwood went up against Nashville-based country music duo the Dryes on a version of Brooks & Dunn’s “Red Dirt Road.” What made his challenge...