Ken Tucker
Ken Tucker reviews rock, country, hip-hop and pop music for Fresh Air. He is a cultural critic who has been the editor-at-large at Entertainment Weekly, and a film critic for New York Magazine. His work has won two National Magazine Awards and two ASCAP-Deems Taylor Awards. He has written book reviews for The New York Times Book Review and other publications.
Tucker is the author of Scarface Nation: The Ultimate Gangster Movie and Kissing Bill O'Reilly, Roasting Miss Piggy: 100 Things to Love and Hate About Television.
-
The 17-year-old California singer-songwriter's album, When We Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?keeps listeners guessing. Her frame of reference is vast — ranging from glam rock to folk music.
-
The former co-leader of the Aussie band The Go-Betweens reflects on success and failure on his latest solo album. Critic Ken Tucker says Infernois proof of Forster's credentials as a pop musician.
-
Blanton makes folk-based music that prizes wordplay and has an antic sense of humor. Rock critic Ken Tucker says the personal is always political on her new album.
-
The country star's latest album proves Morris isn't long for the country genre — she's a pop singer with an affinity for rhythm & blues, and she's not holding back.
-
Fifty-seven years ago, Charles released two albums that helped extend the reach of country music. Though initially perceived as a novelty, a re-release of the albums proves they were anything but.
-
The Unseen In Between,by instrumentalist-turned-singer-songwriter Gunn, and True North,by veteran folk musician Chapman, both use the guitar to explore the mysteries of life.
-
Critic Ken Tucker picks three new hip-hop singles he has on heavy rotation: 21 Savage's fatalistic "A Lot," Lizzo's cheerful "Juice" and Lil Peep's melancholy "I've Been Waiting."
-
Critic Ken Tucker says you don't have to know anything about Van Etten to find her new album striking and impressive: It's the sound of a woman redefining herself, on terms that are totally her own.
-
The range of female artists was remarkable in 2018, extending from Courtney Barnett's brooding Tell Me How You Really Feel to Cardi B's hip-hop styling on Invasion of Privacy.
-
For both Crowell and the Monkees, Christmas is a time to draw up a gratitude list and put the year in perspective. The results aren't always jolly, but they're certainly sincere and passionate.