Issue Articles — Features
Branford Marsalis: Melody is at the base of all music
“I play music, I love playing music,” tenor and soprano saxophonist Branford Marsalis simply states while talking about his longtime quartet’s latest, impressive release, The Secret Between the Shadow and the […]
Cuba’s Havana Jazz Festival: Divorced in 1960 but still madly in love
Politics divides, but jazz unites. —Ronell Johnson, Preservation Hall Jazz Band trombonist. The Havana Jazz Festival is probably best-known as the place where Dizzy Gillespie first heard Irakere, whose members […]
AF The Naysayer is finally telling his story, in three parts
This month, producer AF The Naysayer will release the first installment of a three-part series of music titled PARTS. Its arrival will mark the culmination of a long waiting period […]
Online Exclusive: A Day In The Life of Monogram Hunters
360 VIDEO PRODUCED BY JULIANE PIECHA & RYAN HODGSON-RIGSBEE
The culture is for everybody, says Monogram Hunters Big Chief Pie
Tambourines ring and sewing needles fly with particular intensity during the weeks leading up to Carnival Day as the Mardi Gras Indians prepare for the holiday. On Sunday evenings, many […]
I Believe in Rock ’n’ Roll: River Gibson of LVVRS is not faking anything
If former “American Idol” contestant River Gibson played Cajun music, he could be gigging in his native Acadiana every day. But waltzes and two-steps never moved him. Green Day did. […]
The One That’s Got the Mojo: The Ric and Ron Records legacy
During the 2018 holiday season, Shirley and Lee’s 1956 hit, “Let the Good Times Roll,” accompanied Walmart’s Christmas-themed TV commercial. In 2016, Professor Longhair’s 1959 recording of “Go to the […]
Going to Get Me Some Dirt: Jourdan Thibodeaux gets everybody’s attention
Barry Ancelet has heard more Cajun musicians than he can remember. A retired professor of French and folklore at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Ancelet hosted “Rendez-Vous des Cajuns,” […]
Open-minded and Picky: Bubble Bath Records brings together a community of artists
Behind every major talent stands some invisible support system—or so the untrue saying goes. In reality, many New Orleans musical acts count only their band’s members as advocates. And most […]
The Nominations: The complete list of nominees for the Best of the Beat
The OffBeat Music and Cultural Arts Foundation’s Best of the Beat Nominations are in. We solicited nominations from musicians and others in the music community. We then gave the […]
