After taking a couple diversions from her status as a world-dominating pop star that included a stripped-back country-pop project, a couple albums of duets with a legendary jazz singer, and becoming an Oscar-nominated actress, Lady Gaga’s first album in four years is her much-anticipated return to the kind of extravagant and electronic dance-pop that characterized … Continue reading Lady Gaga – Chromatica
Ariana Grande
Childish Gambino – 3.15.20
After a somewhat confusing rollout involving a mysterious website that could only have come from the mind of the eccentric and boundlessly creative Renaissance man that is Childish Gambino, the “single-track opus” 3.15.20 has finally arrived on streaming services and it’s just as weird as you might expect – though not always in the best of ways. … Continue reading Childish Gambino – 3.15.20
BensBeat Top 25 Albums of 2019
Another decade of music comes to a close, and here are the greatest full-length projects this year had to offer. Happy New Year! Honourable Mentions: Cage The Elephant - Social Cues Cashmere Cat - PRINCESS CATGIRL EARTHGANG - Mirrorland Harry Styles - Fine Line James Blake - Assume Form Kaytranada - BUBBA King Princess - … Continue reading BensBeat Top 25 Albums of 2019
Bensbeat Top 50 Songs of 2019
While 2019 might have been missing the star-studded releases seemingly every week that last year provided, we witnessed the rise of quite a few promising rising stars, as well as some of the decade's biggest trends being stretched to their breaking point. The 2020s should be an exciting time full of new sounds. Hip-hop took … Continue reading Bensbeat Top 50 Songs of 2019
Rapid Fire Reviews (2 Chainz, Maren Morris, Juice WRLD)
2 Chainz - Rap Or Go To The League Usually one of the most cartoonish and comedic faces in rap, 2 Chainz’s fifth studio album Rap Or Go To The League – apparently executive produced by basketball star LeBron James – sees him dial the punchline bars back and address some more serious issues, all … Continue reading Rapid Fire Reviews (2 Chainz, Maren Morris, Juice WRLD)
Rapid Fire Reviews (Ariana Grande, Broods, Luis Fonsi)
I've been gone for a while but my school commitments are once again slowing down and I'll be able to catch back up to the present with some quick posts here. I just completed my first year at journalism school and will be writing music reviews in major publications this summer! Here are my thoughts … Continue reading Rapid Fire Reviews (Ariana Grande, Broods, Luis Fonsi)
BensBeat Top 50 Songs of 2018
Music in 2018 can be mostly defined by the continued rise in prominence of hip-hop, taking over from rock as the most listened to genre for the first time. As both a rather limitless, rule-free form creatively and a way to express protest, almost every genre drew elements from hip-hop this year. We also got … Continue reading BensBeat Top 50 Songs of 2018
Troye Sivan – Bloom
Former YouTube sensation and retro-pop rising star Troye Sivan evades the sophomore curse with his second studio album Bloom, a celebratory and confessional look at Sivan’s powerful self-expression as he details his approaches to relationships as a gay man set to the kind of pop music that inspired him growing up. Working with some of … Continue reading Troye Sivan – Bloom
Ariana Grande – Sweetener
Virtuosic R&B-pop princess Ariana Grande’s 4th studio album, Sweetener, might not be her best work yet - but it’s certainly her riskiest and most groundbreaking. With production shared between the omnipresent Pharrell Williams and old friends Max Martin and Tommy Brown, who we haven’t seen since her soulful debut, it’s the work of the former … Continue reading Ariana Grande – Sweetener
Nicki Minaj – Queen
Rap superstar Nicki Minaj continues to adapt and thrive, dropping her most rap-heavy album yet, Queen. Her fourth full-length project, we see Minaj raising her defenses a bit and reverting back to her classic hip-hop tactics of biting lyricism and an always surprisingly technically proficient flow. In a world quickly becoming more accommodating to the … Continue reading Nicki Minaj – Queen
