Kendrick Lamar and SZA, courtesy Andre D. Wagner. Hot on the heels of releasing a new new album, Kendrick Lamar has announced a stadium tour with SZA for next spring that will see the all-world rapper performing at Oracle Park in San Francisco the week after Memorial Day. Tickets…

Kendrick Lamar, “GNX.” Kendrick Lamar became one of the world’s most acclaimed rappers for his conscious, intricate penmanship. In the last year, he’s found success in a somewhat different lane: diss tracks against Drake. The most popular from the now infamous rap battle is “Not Like Us,” a punchy…

Zayn Malik performs at the iHeartRadio Theater in New York City on March 25, 2016. Photo courtesy iHeartRadio. It is currently Ramadan. I’m far from a religious scholar so I’m not going to embarrass myself by getting into too much detail, but I do know that it’s the ninth…

SZA performs at Oakland Arena in Oakland on March 14, 2023. Matt Pang/STAFF. OAKLAND — When SZA headlined Outside Lands last summer, more than five months before she released her smash second album SOS, she already had the nautical concept of her current tour. As with that festival set,…

Sza performs at Outside Lands in San Francisco on Aug. 5, 2022. Onome Uyovbievbo and Matt Pang/STAFF. SAN FRANCISCO — SZA is an excellent musician and performer, and she showed how excellent as the Friday headliner, but first we have to talk about her stage production. Even by Outside Lands…

It’s been some time since we last saw Isaiah Rashad; since his critically acclaimed 2016 album, The Sun’s Tirade. The Top Dawg affiliate has been vocal about his struggles with mental health in his art and in interviews, expressing how it has at times derailed his focus. But the wait is…

Doja Cat has followed a rare, strictly upward trajectory career since her debut with viral single “Mooo!” and wacky “Go To Town,” off 2018 debut Amala. On her third album, she launches herself into unexplored galaxies above, creating the world of Planet Her. She channels the vibrant energy and various…

Megan Thee Stallion, “Good News.” Megan Thee Stallion comes bearing Good News amid her chaotic year. Between legal issues with her record label, being shot and dropping the monumentally viral “WAP” with Cardi B, she seems to be burning the candle at both ends. Her artistic vision with this album was…

SZA performs at Blurry Vision Fest at Middle Harbor Shoreline Park in Oakland on May 12, 2018. OAKLAND — The two-day Blurry Vision Fest made its debut at Middle Harbor Shoreline Park with a predominantly hip-hop and R&B lineup to rival any major festival. With the Bay Bridge, Port of Oakland…

Kyle Kohner’s five-part series ranking the 50 best albums of 2017 continues with numbers 40 to 31. Missed the first entry? Start at the beginning. 40. Ariel Pink – Dedicated to Baby Jameson Dedicated to Bobby Jameson signals a return to Ariel Pink’s roots with a lo-fi approach, thus making this project feel less manufactured…