NPR Music

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We update our running list of the year’s best songs with reflections on shedding the past, moving on and the joy of simple pleasures.  This includes the emo-coded pop of oso oso, Lake Street Dive’s list of hopeful what-aboutisms, the twitchy, genre-hopping sound of brakence, pipe organ drones from Kali Malone and more.

NPR Music editor and writer Sheldon Pearce joins host Robin Hilton.

Tell us what you think with a review on Apple or Spotify wherever you listen to podcasts.

Questions, comments, suggestions or feedback of any kind always welcome: [email protected]

Featured artists and songs:

(00:00) Intro

(01:56) Thao: “Fossils”

(09:40) Helena Deland: “Tip Of My Tongue”

(16:58) Oso Oso: “someone like that”

(24:38) brakence: “death rolL”

(32:33) Lake Street Dive: “What About Flamingos?”

(42:46) Kali Malone: “Map The Path”

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There is always so much to be said about the Latin Grammys. Some fans and musicians insist that music shouldn't be a competition or that the ceremony is more about entertainment than art. But if you look very closely at the annual nominations, it can be an accurate and informational take on the current state of Latin music.

When the nominations were announced back in September, Ana and I noticed the heavy influence Latin American folk music was having on Spanish-language music in a more significant and creative way than in the past. And my fascination with what I call the "down ballot" categories continues to introduce genre-busting creativity that is slightly outside of the mainstream.

With the Latin Grammy awards scheduled to take place this week in Las Vegas, we used this episode to dig deep on some categories, and even offer some guesses about who will walk away with a Latin Grammy.

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Willi Carlisle. Bricknasty. Katie Gregson-MacLeod. Host Stephen Thompson breaks down the best new albums out Friday, Nov. 6 with DJs from around the NPR Music network: Chloe Kimes from WMOT in Nashville, Nastia Voynovskaya from KQED in San Francisco and Izzi Bavis from WTMD in Baltimore. Plus, a handful of NPR Music writers and critics offer their personal picks in the lightning round. 

The Starting 5

(03:50) Album No. 1
- Willi Carlisle, 'The Universal Bubba'

(09:46) Album No. 2
- Katie Gregson-MacLeod, 'Albatross'

(17:59) Album No. 3
- Dawuna, 'Love's Arp'

(24:04) Album No. 4
- Bricknasty, 'forever'

(30:27) Album No. 5
- Catherine Ellicson, 'River of Fat'

(37:27) The Lightning Round

- Straw Man Army, 'True North'
- Odette, 'Blink'
- Skepta, 'The Fork and Knife'
- Bad Brains, 'Are You Ready: The First Studio Recording'
- Bassvictim, 'Peace + War'

Sample the albums via our New Music Friday playlist.

Credits:
Host: Stephen Thompson
Guests: Chloe Kimes, Nastia Voynovskaya, Izzi Bavis
Audio Producer: Noah Caldwell
Digital Producer: Dora Levite
Editors: Elle Mannion, Otis Hart
Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed
Special thanks to Sheldon Pearce and Lars Gotrich

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The Mexican folk celebration of Día de los Muertos transcends borders and cultures these days. It is so widely celebrated that you can buy plastic marigolds and papél picado (the intricately cut designs on tissue paper) and even fake sugar skulls for your home altars on Amazon. And yet that popularity hasn't seemed to diminish the actual intent: an offering to the spirits of our friends and family who have passed, as a reminder that they are still in our hearts.

Years ago on Alt.Latino we started a tradition of making those offerings through words and music for a Sonic Altar: songs, dedications, lots of emotions and more than a few tears.

This year, we dedicate our altar to the iconic civil rights icon Dolores Huerta by returning to an Alt.Latino episode from Sept. 2017, when she mixed her passion for social justice with jazz. We also make some time for a special personal dedication, and remember some prominent Latin musicians who left us this year: Ruben Rada, Roxana Amed and Willie Colón.

This podcast episode was produced by Noah Caldwell. Suraya Mohamed is the executive producer of NPR Music.

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As we enter the homestretch of 2026, we pause to catch up on some of the great tracks we missed from earlier in the year. This includes a stunning, ever-shifting earworm from a bedroom pop artist out of Northern Iowa known as Kinji, maximalist polyrhythms from the composer and electronic artist Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith, the singular voice of Mexican singer Silvana Estrada and more.

AltLatino host Anamaria Sayre joins All Songs Considered’s Robin Hilton.

Featured artists and songs:

(00:00) Intro

(01:49) Kinji: “Windburn”

(08:42) Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith: “Ruin”

(17:37) Rita Payés & Lucía Fumero: “Rueda eterna”

(25:32) Lizzie Weber: “Truth Teller”

(33:20) Pedro Mizutani: “Queria Ter Nove”

(39:58) Lockimara: “Tastes Like”

(47:04) Silvana Estrada: “Pensarte”

(53:54) Lennon Stella: “Unforgivable Things”

Tell us what you think with a review on Apple or Spotify wherever you listen to podcasts.

Questions, comments, suggestions or feedback of any kind always welcome: [email protected]

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Sampa The Great. Moses Boyd. Kaitlin Butts. Guest host Lars Gotrich breaks down the best new albums out Friday, Oct. 30 with DJs from around the NPR Music network: Jewly Hight from WPLN in Nashville, Matt Byars from WUOT in Knoxville and Raina Douris from World Cafe in Philadelphia. Plus, a handful of NPR Music writers and critics offer their personal picks in the lightning round. 

The Starting 5

(02:00) Album No. 1
- Kaitlin Butts, 'Hello, Honky Tonk'

(08:52) Album No. 2
- Sampa The Great, 'Nu Zamrock'

(16:48) Album No. 3
- Kali Malone, 'Burning Song'

(22:42) Album No. 4
- Moses Boyd, 'Songs For Sinners'

(29:34) Album No. 5
- P***, 'you made me / skin on linen'

(37:52) The Lightning Round

- 2nd Grade, 'Girls and Boys'
- NØ MAN, 'Between the Sword and the Neck'
- DIIV, 'ZIRP!'
- Takuya Nakamura, 'Shape The Future'
- Joyce Moreno, 'Never Too Soon'

Sample the albums via our New Music Friday playlist.

Credits:
Host: Lars Gotrich
Guests: Jewly Hight, Matt Byars, Raina Douris
Audio Producer: Noah Caldwell
Digital Producer: Dora Levite
Editors: Elle Mannion, Otis Hart
Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed
Special thanks to Sheldon Pearce and Felix Contreras

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As we poured ourselves into the El Tiny takeover of the Tiny Desk, a month's worth of new music piled up in our inboxes. So, this week, we dig in and bring the long-awaited debut album from Puerto Rico's Benito-approved ensemble Chuwi, the rap-electronica of Monterrey's alternative experimentalist Nsqk, and a track of resilience in the face of an earthquake's destruction. Plus, Sofía Campos, The Mars Volta, and a deep dive into the glory days of mambo in New York City.

Artists, albums and songs mentioned in this episode:

(01:00) Chuwi, 'Libertad'
(09:33) Carlos Vives, Nidia Gongora, Juliana, "Aquí Seguiré"
(12:43) Nsqk, 'mosca'
(18:07) The Mambo Legends Orchestra, "La Rumbantela"
(24:35) Sofía Campos, 'Minha Beleza'
(26:59) The Mars Volta,"Voice In My Knives - Poseedora De Mi Sombra"

This podcast episode was produced by Noah Caldwell. Suraya Mohamed is the executive producer of NPR Music.

Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include bonus episodes and sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org.

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It’s been an unprecedented year for arguing about “fake” music, and it’s not just AI. From bot-powered ticket sales and social media campaigns to manufactured artist identities and an endless wave of complaints against nepo babies, 2026 feels like a turning point in the timeless debate about authenticity in music.

This week on All Songs Considered, NPR Music’s Ann Powers and Isabella Gomez Sarmiento join host Robin Hilton to break down how we’ve reached this point, what it means, and where we go from here.

Tell us what you think with a review on Apple or Spotify wherever you listen to podcasts.

Questions, comments, suggestions or feedback of any kind always welcome: [email protected]
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Anderson .Paak and Cordae. Michael Kiwanuka. Fenne Lily. Host Stephen Thompson breaks down the best albums out Friday, Oct. 23 with DJs from around the NPR Music network: Francesca Harding from KCRW in Los Angeles, Erin Wolf from Radio Milwaukee and Alex Newman from KMHD Jazz Radio in Portland, Ore. Plus, a handful of NPR Music writers and critics offer their personal picks in the lightning round.

The Starting 5

(00:47) Album No. 1
- Anderson .Paak & Cordae, 'Heavy Is The Crown'

(07:34) Album No. 2
- Michael Kiwanuka, 'Fudge'

(14:33) Album No. 3
- Fenne Lily, 'Win Win'

(20:34) Album No. 4
- Fine, 'Jazz dreams'

(27:07) Album No. 5
- Surprise Chef, 'Frogs In A Pond'

(33:53) The Lightning Round

- Shabazz Palaces, 'It's a Style Sport'
- Claud, 'Me and the Music'
- Josh Johnson, 'Animative'
- The Olivia Tremor Control, 'The Same Place'
- Jlin & Third Coast Percussion, 'Vernacular'

Sample the albums via our New Music Friday playlist.

Credits:
Host: Stephen Thompson
Guests: Francesca Harding, Erin Wolf, Alex Newman
Audio Producer: Noah Caldwell
Digital Producer: Dora Levite
Editors: Elle Mannion, Otis Hart
Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed
Special thanks to Ann Powers, Lars Gotrich and Tom Huizenga

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