R&B as a genre distinction is mostly meaningless at this point. There are a host of reasons — the popularization of the rapper-singer, the broadening of what is considered R&B and pop co-opting the sound without taking on the classification — but artists are still down to argue over a …

Cyntoia Brown was only 16 when she was sentenced to life in prison, and the Tennessee Supreme Court ruled this past week that she will have to serve 51 years before she could be eligible for release. Brown was convicted of murder and robbery for killing 43-year-old Johnny Mitchell Allen …

Broken Bells, the group featuring the Shins’ James Mercer and producer Brian “Danger Mouse” Burton, have shared their new song “Shelter,” the duo’s first new recording in four years. Touted as the first time Broken Bells have “combined their unmistakable melodies, lyrics, vocals and singular composition style with samples,” the …

Border Patrol agent Juan David Ortiz has been indicted for capital murder for the killings of four women in and around Laredo, Texas. Ortiz confessed to the four murders when he was arrested in September, after one woman escaped and informed authorities that he had pointed a gun at her. …

Of the few people in the world who can say they’ve led both box-office-toppling action films and award-winning works of musical theatre, Hugh Jackman is probably one of the most nonchalant about his accomplishments. The actor, who turned 50 this year, just announced a global arena tour off of the …

Hootie & the Blowfishseem to have a lot of fun on the road, which includes hazing and apparently leaving a bandmate behind, as the group revealed during an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on Monday. Their appearance, which included a performance of their classic hit “Only Want …

Meek Mill addressed Jay-Z‘s headlining-generating “What’s Free” verse during a recent CNN interview, explaining that the guest rapper wasn’t shaming Kanye West for frequently wearing one of President Trump’s “Make America Great Again” hats. On the track, which appears on Mill’s recently issued fourth LP, Champions, Jay-Z rhymes, “No red …

D ’Angelo is a morning person, of sorts. When he’s working in the studio, as was often the case in the 14-year interregnum between 2000’s Voodoo and 2014’s Black Messiah, he quits his all-night recording sessions just in time to greet each day’s sunrise. “I’m definitely on the night shift,” …

This story was originally published in the July 31, 2000, issue of Rolling Stone. Upstairs in his bedroom, trying to sleep, Ozzy Osbourne has just about had it with all the goddamn noise floating in from outside his window. He tosses and turns, frets and stews, moans and groans, and …

D ear heavenly Father,” someone is saying to the silent room, “please give us the ability to touch this crowd.” All thirty-six members of D’Angelo‘s touring band and crew are stuffed into his dressing room, hands linked, heads bowed in a large prayer circle. “And when our ability fails, Lord. …