The 20 Essential Texas Rap Tracks
The East Coast may have invented rap, but today the Lone Star State rules the hip-hop world. Here’s a song-by-song history of how that happened.
Music
November 24, 2020
On ‘Good News,’ Megan Thee Stallion Owns Her Well-Deserved Fame—and Gets Down to Brass Tacks
The Grammy-nominated Houston rapper’s confrontational, irreverent debut album feels like an apt fit for the year we’ve had.
Art
August 17, 2020
At UT and A&M, Visionary Takes on Yearbooks Celebrate the Beauty of Blackness
These distinct initiatives embody something I long wished for while studying at a predominantly white Texas university: a community of color connected through creativity.
Music
August 4, 2020
How Beyoncé’s ‘Black Is King’ Reimagines Family Histories
The new visual album features a potent through-line of ancestral guidance—one that caused me to reflect on my own relationship with forebears.
Music
July 18, 2020
The Success of BeatKing’s Hit ‘Then Leave’ Is a Moment for Texas Rap
A viral smash on TikTok, the song is part of a club music lineage that exists for the sole purpose of getting people moving.
Music
April 30, 2020
Megan Thee Stallion and Beyoncé’s Electrifyingly Fun ‘Savage’ Remix Is for Texans, by Texans
When the Houston artists released the song, a benefit for COVID-19 relief efforts in their hometown, social media came to a near-standstill.
Music
March 25, 2020
With ‘Heaven or Hell,’ Don Toliver—Travis Scott’s Protégé—Has Arrived
The 25-year-old singer hails from Houston, yet doesn’t borrow influences from a city that oozes a distinctive musical legacy.
Music
March 9, 2020
Megan Thee Stallion’s New EP ‘Suga’ Is Hurried but Potent
Coming off the heels of a recent label contract dispute, the Houston rapper’s latest effort is both varied and evocative.
Music
September 3, 2019
Travis Scott’s Documentary Situates Astroworld, and Houston, Front and Center
‘Look Mom I Can Fly’ traces the rapper’s ascent and his efforts to elevate Third Coast hip-hop.