Cali Tucker's latest single "Last Name" arrives like a perfectly timed conversation with a friend who finally found their voice. There is no need to carry the weight of famous family or live up to standards. Tucker instead makes something much more personal and meaningful to everyone. The daughter of LaCosta Tucker and niece of country legend Tanya Tucker could have easily leaned into her family's...

Listening to Afaq Art Production's new single "Bejamalen (With Beauty)" performed by Ziad Kamal feels a bit like stepping out of a chaotic, sun-baked street into the sudden, vaulted vastness of an ancient sanctuary. https://open.spotify.com/album/7GbecQZE3yVH6enRaALvLk?si=seoOwwjgS_SE3MsuPg-rxw Kamal is only twenty-four. He manages the rather fascinating trick of balancing his daily life as a Mechatronics engineer with a profound, academic mastery of Eastern Maqams, violin, and oud. Here,...