“I have the perfect opener for your article,” said Josh, fellow Daily Arts writer. “ ‘Funnily enough, at a Standing Room Only event, everyone was seated.’ ” Truer words have never been spoken.  I had never been to a Standing Room Only concert before, much less been in the newsroom this late at night, so I took a while to soak everything in: the cohorts of Daily staffers seated and huddled around their tables like middle school students during lunch period, the clamor of the setup crew building up equipment and the band noodling on their instruments, my fellow music beatmates throwing out ..read more

The Michigan Daily Arts section presents Arts Talks, a series where The Daily Arts writers gather to discuss their opinions on and reactions to the latest and major releases in the arts world. In this segment of Arts Talks, four Daily Arts writers discuss 1989 (Taylor’s Version) and their thoughts on re-recording albums. This conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity. What did you think of the re-recording in general? Serena Irani, Daily Arts Writer: Overall, I really liked the re-recording. I felt like the sound and the essence of 1989 was truly captured and just love her energy ..read more

Being a soprano in a theatre industry dominated by young belters and modern pop musicals can suck. But Kelli O’Hara proves that’s not always the case. The Tony Award winner and Broadway star has had a deservedly long career on the stage and screen. Starring in musicals like “The King and I” and “The Light in the Piazza,” she is truly a soprano superstar. Her upcoming projects include season two of HBO’s “The Gilded Age” and the new Broadway musical “Days of Wine and Roses.” O’Hara performed at the Michigan Theater on Nov. 12, 2023. Opening the show with “Pure Imagination” from “Willy Wonka an ..read more

On Oct. 29, Alabama native Tamia Monique Carter, better known as Flo Milli, parked her modest black bus in front of Saint Andrew’s Hall for the Detroit leg of her “Thanks For Coming Here, Ho” tour. Relocated from The Fillmore Detroit, which is relatively larger (though not by much), the young rapper amassed a smaller crowd than initially anticipated. While at first glance, we might expect this to be a devastating blow to an artist’s self-esteem or a commentary on the quality of her music, the silver lining scintillates too blindingly not to notice: Flo needed all the extra space she could get ..read more

Hear me out! It doesn’t have to be Weezer. If you’d prefer, you can swap in AJR, or Imagine Dragons or — if you’re old enough to remember — Nickelback. Weezer (and, by extension, their fans) are the butt of at least 40% of the music jokes you hear online. Why? Weezer lovers don’t love everything about Weezer; Weezer haters don’t hate everything about Weezer. Both groups tend to have pretty similar opinions on Weezer:  The band peaked with the Blue Album and Pinkerton. Matt Sharp’s departure was their shark jump.  Subsequent albums have been spotty, but better than you’d expect.&nbs ..read more

Genre is a subjective term used to describe music, and contrary to what most think, it is fluid, ever-evolving and can only be an accurate descriptor when identified by the musicians themselves. Artists need the freedom to experiment and evolve. Without those opportunities, subgenres slowly disappear and music becomes less inspired. Listeners see less of a musician’s truth in their new music, and blandness and mediocrity begin to color the emerging discography.  Maybe in some attempt to circumvent this artistic death, contemporary metal tends to borrow from synth-heavy music as it ages ..read more

Jeremy Weine/Daily. Buy this photo. Jeremy Weine/Daily. Buy this photo. Jeremy Weine/Daily. Buy this photo. Jeremy Weine/Daily. Buy this photo. It’s hard to say who had more fun night at Detroit’s historic Fillmore theater on Sunday, November 5th: Lil Yachty or his die-hard fans. The famed pop-rapper surprised the audience, bringing five Detroit-based rappers to the stage — including Tee Grizzley — and performing an extra hour of Michigan-specific tracks.  Everybody got what they wanted Sunday night. Yachty reunited with old friends. The audience got six shows for the price of one.&n ..read more

The Spotify versus Apple Music debate has become one of the fiercest music discourses of the 2010s. The battle between the two streaming giants is a battle of tradeoffs. Apple Music currently has music videos and album write-ups. Spotify answers back with better UI performance, a full toolkit for finding new music, nearly 400 million more users and full support for music sharing through features such as blends and shared playlists, making both finding and sharing new music with friends easier than ever. Despite being the more popular choice, the ethics of Spotify’s practices are becoming incr ..read more

Gia Woods has a knack for bold statements. The Persian American pop star’s 2015 debut single, “Only a Girl” — a moody, Lorde-esque tune driven by sparse pops of synth and a shuddering bass — was a coming out anthem to the world, not to mention her socially-conservative parents. As fate would have it, the track instantly went viral, racking up more than 11 million streams on YouTube alongside 10 million on Spotify to date. Her confidence continues to shape her music, featuring dense, militant basslines and high-flying choruses in its most recent iterations. Her Heartbreak County EP series was ..read more

Sampha is an artist that doesn’t need much fanfare. Most recognized for his features on Kendrick Lamar’s “Father Time” and Kanye West’s “St. Pablo,” Sampha’s powerful voice does not need dense instrumental support, catchy hooks, layered harmonies or vibrant production. Instead, Sampha opts for concise lyricism from a neo-soul lens. For Sampha, less has always been more.  That was certainly the case for his 2016 critically-acclaimed LP, Process, but since the release of the now seven-year-old album, Sampha hasn’t been heard save for his features on Kendrick Lamar’s Mr. Morale & the Bi ..read more