Music
September 25, 2019
San Antonio Native and Creative Polyglot Noël Wells Seeks Refuge in Music
After breaking out in comedy and film, Wells is telling stories in new ways.
Music
Storytelling and reviews about the artists and trends that define the sounds of the Lone Star State
Music
September 24, 2019
Eric Clapton Makes Dallas the Center of the Guitar Universe Once More
The legendary musician’s two-night Crossroads festival boasted a savvy mix of long-beloved and rising stars.
Music
September 23, 2019
The Valley Comes Alive in Charley Crockett’s Songs
Recorded just before he had two heart surgeries, the singer-songwriter’s new album took him back to his South Texas roots.
Music
September 20, 2019
Dallas Rapper Bobby Sessions Makes Music to Manifest Justice
The artist is advocating for a new investigation into the death of his cousin, which happened at the hands of Dallas Police.
Music
September 17, 2019
Midland Rolls With the Punches
On their second album, the Dripping Springs-based trio doubles down on the classic country sound that made them famous.
Music
September 16, 2019
The Making of An Urbane Cowboy
Both before and after Lee Hazlewood wrote hits for Nancy Sinatra and Duane Eddy, he was a Texas musician.
Music
September 16, 2019
Ken Burns Talks Waylon, Willie, and How Texas Defined Country Music
The ’Country Music’ documentarian on the Outlaws, forgotten forces, and how Texas country music could bring us all together.
Music
September 12, 2019
Paul Cauthen’s ‘Room 41’ Resides In Between Vulnerability and Swagger
A near-two year stint at Dallas's Belmont Hotel almost broke the country musician and gave way to his new album.
Music
September 12, 2019
The Highwomen Are the Best Thing in Country Right Now
The genre has long shut women out, but this supergroup challenges traditional male-dominated narratives.
Music
September 11, 2019
Daniel Johnston Will Live on in Ways Few Artists Get To
The artist’s iconic ”Jeremiah” frog mural in Austin is seemingly indestructible, and so is his musical legacy.
Music
September 11, 2019
Why Lizzo’s “Truth Hurts” Is 100 Percent Deserving of a Grammy Nomination
Two years after its initial release, the song is reaching its popularity peak and potentially up for a belated award.
Music
September 6, 2019
Texas Monthly Recommends: Taylor Swift’s New Song With the Dixie Chicks
Plus, a Houston rapper’s freestyle, a San Antonio native’s bittersweet debut album, and an Austin photographer’s colorful Instagram.
Music
September 6, 2019
How the ‘Yeehaw Agenda’ Disrupted Texas Country Culture for Good
An internet movement has democratized country ephemera through the eyes of black cowboys and cowgirls.
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.
Music
August 30, 2019
Remembering The Texas International Pop Festival, The Lone Star State’s Answer to Woodstock
The Lewisville music festival is celebrating its 50th anniversary this weekend.
Music
August 28, 2019
On Her New Album, Jazzmeia Horn Wants to Embolden Listeners to “Do Something About It”
The Dallas native’s jazz statement ‘Love and Liberation’ is a call to action.
Music
August 27, 2019
The Unlikely Meme-ification of Stevie Ray Vaughan
An aggressively odd Instagram account both celebrates and pokes fun at the legendary Texas blues rocker.
Music
August 26, 2019
Tanya Tucker: “You’re Gonna Love Me, or I’m Gonna Kick Your Ass”
On this week’s National Podcast of Texas, a conversation with the country legend Brandi Carlile calls “the original female outlaw.”…
Music
August 23, 2019
Texas Monthly Recommends: Normani’s Retro Pop Hit ‘Motivation’
Plus, Black Pumas’ debut album, an introspective single by Big Thief, and a shop inspired by the West Texas desert.
Music
August 23, 2019
Why Billy Bob’s, Texas’s Most Famous Honky-Tonk, Isn’t a True Honky-Tonk
A brief history of one of our most beloved (and endangered) cultural institutions.
Music
August 21, 2019
Texas’s Greatest Honky-Tonk Hits
From Ernest Tubb to Bob Wills to Willie, Texas has produced a jukebox worth of classics. Here are the best.
Music
August 21, 2019
Beto O’Rourke and Julián Castro’s Campaign Playlists Are Meaningless (But One Is Clearly Better)
An analysis of the two Texan presidential candidates’ rally songs.
Music
August 12, 2019
Delbert McClinton: “I’ve Always Been a Fugitive From the Law of Averages”
On this week’s National Podcast of Texas, the legendary musician surveys the highs and lows and wears and tears of a sixty-year career.
Music
August 9, 2019
Texas Monthly Recommends: Driving and Listening to ‘Dallas’ by Silver Jews
Plus, a North Texas photographer’s Instagram and Brockhampton’s new music video.
Art
July 30, 2019
The Texas Gulf Coast Gets a Rock Orchestra Soundtrack
Austin rockers Montopolis will premiere The Living Coast—an audiovisual homage to the Texas Gulf Coast—on August 2 in Austin.
Music
July 26, 2019
Texas Monthly Recommends: Dayglow’s Whimsical ‘Hot Rod’ Music Video
Plus, more under-the-radar hits, a carefree indie-pop music video, and a surrealist rock opera.
Music
July 23, 2019
George Strait Comparisons Aside, Cody Johnson Is 100 Percent Cody Johnson
The East Texas native got to the top of the country music charts by doing everything his way.
Music
July 22, 2019
Beyoncé’s “Lion King” Album is Delightful, But Limited
“The Lion King: The Gift” features fun collaborations with West and South African artists, but fails to include other African regions.
Music
July 16, 2019
Premiere: Robert Ellis is ‘Gone to the Moon’ in New Video
For those of us born decades after Apollo 11 returned from its mission, the imprint of astronaut boots on the lunar surface has always been historical fact. We can’t conjure personal memories of that voyage, of families huddled around the TV or radio, anxiously waiting for news of that one small…
Film & TV
July 15, 2019
Willie Nelson & Friends: Live From Luck, Texas
On this week’s National Podcast of Texas, the music legend details his lifelong love for westerns and his family’s golden rules.
The Culture
July 12, 2019
Texas Monthly Recommends: Megan Thee Stallion’s First Late-Night Television Appearance
Plus, a fashion blogger’s inspiring posts, a must-see fireworks scene, and a podcast on contemporary poetry.
Music
July 9, 2019
The “Red Headed Stranger” Rides Again: Here’s What We Learned
We watched the recently restored 1986 film with Willie Nelson and fans in Luck, where it all happened.
Music
July 1, 2019
Lee Ann Womack: “Huge Country Music Success Didn’t Feed My Soul”
On this week’s National Podcast of Texas, the East Texas native discusses the joys of leaving Nashville’s machinery behind and coming home.
Art
June 28, 2019
Texas Monthly Recommends: Eugene Lee Yang Comes Out in New Music Video
Plus, an immersive art experience, a song nostalgic for hometowns, and a Southern Gothic rom-com.
Music
June 27, 2019
The Story Behind Guy Clark’s “My Favorite Picture of You”
I spoke to the man who shot the photo that inspired the song covered on Willie Nelson’s new album. (He’s my dad.)…
Music
June 24, 2019
Aaron Watson: “I Relate More to Johnny Cash Than to Billy Graham, But They Both Loved Them Some Jesus”
On this week’s National Podcast of Texas, the fiercely independent musician discusses his new album, spirituality, and his country music heroes.
Best Thing In Texas
June 21, 2019
The Best Thing in Texas: Willie Nelson Performs a Guy Clark Tune on the ‘Tonight Show’
The Red Headed Stranger honors his fellow Texas troubadour with two tracks on his new album.
Music
June 14, 2019
Texas Monthly Recommends: Kevin Abstract’s Sophomore Album, ‘Arizona Baby’
Plus, more summer jams, an essay about coming of age in Houston, and an Instagram account where sneaker culture and preachers collide.
Music
June 10, 2019
Bushwick Bill: “I’m Not Going to Allow People to Love Me for Who I’m Not”
On a special National Podcast of Texas, a never-before-heard 2013 conversation with the Houston hip-hop pioneer about finding God, expelling demons, and his attempt to reshape his legacy.
Music
June 7, 2019
Bruce Robison and Kelly Willis Revisit the Astrodome in New Video and Album
'Beautiful Lie,' out later this month, is the newest collaboration from the state's reigning couple of Americana.
Music
May 30, 2019
Okkervil River Frontman Will Sheff Speaks Candidly About the Music Business, Big Tech, and the Band’s New Subscription Service
The Austin indie band recently launched a live-album series that chronicles its 20-plus-year career.
Music
May 29, 2019
Globe-Trotting DJ Spencer Brown’s Unique Form of Stress Management
The Dallas native has always suffered from anxiety. Becoming a famous, globe-trotting DJ made it worse—and gave him a way to channel it.
Music
May 24, 2019
Tobe Nwigwe Is a Visionary Hip-Hop Missionary
How the groundbreaking Nigerian-Houstonian rapper has gone viral—and why his art matters.
Music
May 17, 2019
Megan Thee Stallion’s “Fever” Is a Summer Party Album With a Feminist Agenda
The Houston rapper assumes a ”hot girl” persona as she turns the tables on chauvinist hip-hop posturing.
Music
May 17, 2019
Texas Monthly Recommends: Khalid and John Mayer Make a Summer Hit
Plus, Mary H.K. Choi’s novel about young adulthood in Austin, a classic Cyd Charisse film, and Liza Koshy’s YouTube series.
Music
May 10, 2019
In Light of Kacey Musgraves’s Latest Video, A Brief History of Celebs as Centaurs
After Musgraves went there in ”Oh What a World,” we decided to dig into the not-insignificant trend.
Music
May 7, 2019
The Mount Rushmore of Texas Music Beats All Comers
Yes, we’re taking this week’s overblown Twitter fight way too seriously.
Music
May 6, 2019
Rhett Miller: “I Was Terrified I Wouldn’t Be Creative Without Booze”
On this week’s National Podcast of Texas, the Old 97’s frontman discusses his new book of poetry for children, the creative benefits of sobriety, and the song he’s dying to have Willie Nelson sing.
Music
April 30, 2019
Grupo Fantasma on Their Latest Album and Being Pigeonholed As “Latin Music”
The Grammy-winning jazz-funk-rockers are back with American Music: Vol. VII, their first album in five years.
Music
April 26, 2019
The New Taylor Swift Video Teases a Possible Dixie Chicks Collaboration
Could the pop star's next single feature Natalie Maines, Martie Maguire, and Emily Robison?…