Maura Johnston

Recent Articles

How House Music Became the Sound of the Summer

House has been a force since its ascent in the ’80s, but new music from Beyoncé and Drake is giving it a resurgence

By Maura Johnston

The Best Songs of 2022 So Far

Pop music in 2022 is a place of possibility, even if someone’s perfect pop song might be harder to find in the chaos of streaming services than it was in the aisles of record stores....

By Maura Johnston

The Best Albums of 2022 So Far

From Harry Styles' 'Harry’s House' to Rosalía's 'MOTOMAMI'

By Maura Johnston

Britney Spears’ Pop Legacy Goes Way Beyond Her Music

If the Britney Spears catalog turns out to be complete as it stands today, how will we look back on her career?

By Maura Johnston

On Positions, Ariana Grande Is Fully in Her Feelings

Ariana Grande's sixth studio album offers a counterweight to the madness, its effervescent energy providing a saucy, danceable respite from the shouting hordes.

By Maura Johnston

The 10 Best Albums of the 2010s

From Beyoncé's 'Lemonade' to Kendrick Lamar's 'DAMN.,' these are TIME's picks for the best albums of the decade

By Maura Johnston

The 10 Best Songs of the 2010s

From Robyn's 'Dancing On My Own' to Khalid's 'Young Dumb & Broke,' these are TIME's picks for the best songs of the decade

By Maura Johnston

Prince Wrote These Songs for Other Stars. Now Listen to Him Sing Them

Prince's career had milestones in every direction. He released a slew of world-altering singles, from the smoldering "Little Red Corvette" to the lighters-up title track to Purple Rain. His live performances were the stuff of...

By Maura Johnston

Bro Country Is Here to Stay. Just Ask Florida Georgia Line

For a large chunk of the 2010s, country music was defined by the bro. The stadium-rocking, beer-chugging subgenre dominated radio and arenas, thanks to the popularity of artists like Luke Bryan and Jason Aldean. Characterized...

By Maura Johnston

50 Years in, Van Morrison Can’t Stop Making New Music

This November, Van Morrison celebrated the half-centennial of his album Astral Weeks, on which the Irish troubadour added his rousing high baritone to a watercolor landscape awash with genres so thoroughly blended it nearly rendered...

By Maura Johnston

Paul McCartney’s Boundless Curiosity Is on Display on New Album Egypt Station

Paul McCartney's accumulated discography is among the most impressive in pop. But as he's demonstrated in recent years—his collaborations with Dave Grohl as well as Kanye West and Rihanna, his marathon live shows—the former Beatle...

By Maura Johnston

Review: Queen Reasserts Nicki Minaj's Place

In the nearly four years since Nicki Minaj released her third album The Pinkprint, a lot has happened: the U.S. elected a chaos-inducing president, the #MeToo movement took off, Kanye West and Taylor Swift ran...

By Maura Johnston

Beyoncé and Jay-Z Continue to Surprise on Joint Album Everything Is Love

Leave it to Beyoncé and Jay-Z to redefine what "pulling a Beyoncé" can be. Last Saturday, the pair headlined London Stadium as part of their joint On the Run II Tour, and at the end...

By Maura Johnston

Review: Ye Is an Uneasy Look at Kanye West’s Life as a Walking Contradiction

Kanye West's projects since he teamed up with his now-wife Kim Kardashian West in 2012—the abrasive Yeezus, the sprawling The Life of Pablo, the series of personal appearances punctuated by top-of-the-head singles—have had varying stylistic...

By Maura Johnston

Tom Petty’s Wisdom and Will Transformed American Music Forever

Tom Petty, who passed away on Tuesday at 66, felt like part of the rock firmament in a way that was different from your Pauls, your Micks, your Anguses. Both solo and with his storming...

By Maura Johnston

Kendrick Lamar's DAMN. Proves He's the Most Important Rapper in America

Kendrick Lamar has become the most important MC in America over the past few years, and the reasons are apparent on even a glancing listen to his impressive catalog—his verbal dexterity, his capacity for reflection,...

By Maura Johnston

Indie Rock May Be Dislocated, but It's Far from Dead

In the mid-'oos, when a strain of rock known as indie seized America's hipper enclaves, the parameters of the genre were celebrated on the web by the blog Pitchfork and onstage by bands like Spoon,...

By Maura Johnston

Little Big Town Melds Tried-and-True With Utterly New

The vocal quartet Little Big Town has been releasing country-chart-topping albums for 15 years now. But recently its members have been pushing their ambition even further. In 2015, the bruised, sparse single "Girl Crush," which...

By Maura Johnston

Beyoncé's Grammy Snub Isn't Just an Oversight—It's a Real Problem

The singer was overlooked in multiple categories, a fact so startling that even the winner objected

By Maura Johnston

Downcast Brits Brew Up a Quiet Storm

British group the xx were pegged as miserablists when they broke through in the late 2000s. Their beat-heavy mood music was clearly influenced by soul but was best heard on rainy afternoons behind closed doors....

By Maura Johnston
More from TIME
More From TIME