Music news. Beyond the headlines.
Writer
Mara Ellis has a weakness for R&B records that sound better after midnight. The kind with warm basslines, expressive vocals, and lyrics that reveal a little more than the singer probably intended. She's equally happy revisiting an old Motown favorite or getting lost in a contemporary soul album that hasn't found its audience yet.
Her listening habits are driven by curiosity more than nostalgia. She notices the background harmonies, the unusual phrasing, and those little moments when a singer's voice cracks in exactly the right place. A beautifully imperfect performance will usually win her over faster than a technically flawless one.
Mara has a particular affection for overlooked album tracks and artists who never received quite the recognition they deserved. She's also willing to admit that some classics haven't aged as gracefully as their reputations suggest. For her, the pleasure of discovering music never really wears off.
Spotify has reached 300 million Premium subscribers, hitting a new scale for paid audio streaming as subscriber growth, revenue and profitability all increased during the second quarter of 2026. The company disclosed the milestone August 4th with its Q2 results. Premium subscriptions increased 9% from a year earlier, while Spotify…
Influence Media Partners has agreed to acquire substantially all of Anthem Entertainment’s assets for more than $600 million, adding a sprawling collection of publishing rights, master recordings and film and television music to its BlackRock-backed music investment platform. The agreement was announced July 29th and covers Anthem’s music publishing catalogs,…
Taylor Swift has revealed the full shape of The Life of a Showgirl, confirming that her 12th studio album will arrive October 3rd with exactly 12 songs, a production team of Max Martin and Shellback and a closing title track featuring Sabrina Carpenter. The August 13th reveal completed an announcement…