Arts & Entertainment

By KYLE KERSEY The Beat Report is a bi-weekly music report on some of my favorite new stuff music has to offer, as well as some great albums celebrating anniversaries.   Little Simz – GREY Area (Hip-Hop) “I’m Jay Z on a bad day, Shakespeare on my worst days” is a bold statement for anyone to open their album with, no less an underground rapper.  Boldness is a running theme on the London rapper’s third album, and Little Simz makes good on her braggadocious opener “Offence,” delivering the rare album that’s directly inspired by classics – she cites “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill” and “Good Kid, M.A.A.D. City” as examples – without sacrificing its voice.  On an aesthetic level, one might miss the presence of such influences. It’s hardly a West Coast gangster story album with Dr. Dre ...

By KYLE KERSEY In case you didn’t know by now (or haven’t been paying attention, which, I mean, fair enough), The Beat Report is a bi-weekly music report on some of my favorite new stuff music has to offer. It will also will feature retrospectives on great albums celebrating anniversaries this year. No genre is off limits. Everything written about is recommended and encouraged. And if you don’t know, now you know. Something New: Ariana Grande – “Thank U, Next” (Pop) Let’s talk about the chart-topping elephant in the room: It’s similar to last year’s “Sweetner,”, an incredibly clean pop album that checks all the boxes: it’s catchy, it’s energetic, it’s … catchy. Oh, and it’s vulnerable. Very vulnerable. “Ghostin’” stands alone as the zenith of vulnerable pop, a ballad that runs over a ...

By KYLE KERSEY February’s no fun. Football season is over. Arizona has yet to reach peak surfing weather. There isn’t much new music. Oh, and the Grammys happened. That’s bad, too.  1. Pusha T – “Daytona” (Hip-hop) Boomers will deride it as everything that’s wrong with hip-hop culture. I’ll praise it as a pugnacious poem to sinning that’s no different than the excess of ’80s hair metal except it’s actually good.  Pusha’s latest record isn’t going to blow anyone away with an ambitious concept or deep themes. It’s as straightforward as it gets.  “Hello,” he says. “My name is Pusha T.  I deal drugs and hate Drake.  Here’s some songs about me dealing drugs and hating Drake.” Simple, yet effective. Kanye provides some of his grittiest production to date to back the pugnacious Pusha T. It’...