Craig Jenkins Author Archive
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Craig Jenkins

Music Critic
See all their articles from across New York Magazine
@CraigSJ
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Craig Jenkins is a critic who writes about music and television and comedy and video games. He was a 2021 finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in Criticism.

  1. song review
    Taylor Swift’s ‘ME!’ Is, Uh, Cute But Cloying“ME!” aims to reach the masses by sacrificing nuance for fun-for-the-family relatability.
  2. album review
    On Lizzo’s Cuz I Love You, Finally, a Star Is BornCuz I Love You is a playground for a phenomenal talent reaching the peak of its powers.
  3. song review
    Beyoncé’s ‘Before I Let Go’ Cover in Homecoming Is Just As Timeless As BeychellaHomecoming — and its companion live album — is what we talk about when we talk about public figures being “unapologetically black.”
  4. beyonce
    We’ll Revisit Beyoncé’s Coachella Performance for the Rest of Our LivesJust seconds in, it was apparent she was playing for keeps.
  5. old town road
    When Genre Becomes a PrisonThe story of “Old Town Road” is the story of nearly every black artist’s attempt at a country hit.
  6. album review
    BTS and Blackpink’s New Albums Mark an Unprecedented Era for K-PopPersona and Kill This Love capture the blockbuster K-pop groups at the height of their fame while also angling to push out into new territories.
  7. amazing grace
    Aretha Franklin’s Amazing Grace Was Always a Must-Hear. Now It’s a Must-See.If you can make it out to a theater where it’s playing, after all these years, go.
  8. backstories
    Inside the Making of Billie Eilish’s When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?From the Invisalign bit to recording in bedrooms to stressing over climate change, her older brother and producer Finneas O’Connell breaks it down.
  9. album review
    Khalid Takes a Stunning Left Turn on His Sophomore Album Free SpiritThis is his “fame sucks” album, but it represents something even greater for the 21-year-old singer-songwriter.
  10. remembrances
    The Complicated Life and Death of Nipsey HussleEvery rapper says they love where they came from, but Nip invested in the very streets that ultimately took his life.
  11. the imitation game
    Welcome to the Age of Pop ‘Plagiarism’In 2019, the question of if and how a song has been copied is an incredibly complicated one.
  12. living legends
    Janet Jackson Continues to Break All the Rules of What It Means to Be a Pop StarIn honor of her Rock Hall induction, a look at how Janet has pushed pop’s boundaries for four decades.
  13. album review
    Billie Eilish Is the FutureThe teen’s debut album is a quiet revolution.
  14. album review
    Jenny Lewis’s On the Line Is Her Best Work to DateOn the Line is a triumph of patient refinement.
  15. album reviews
    Karen O and Danger Mouse’s New Album Is a Letdown for Two Artists This GoodIt makes you wonder what this album could’ve been had the two veteran collaborators pushed beyond their respective comfort zones.
  16. spring preview
    Spring Music Preview: Rihanna, Tame Impala, & More Albums We Can’t Wait to HearRihanna is (maybe, hopefully, please!) coming.
  17. album review
    The Dystopian Future of Juice WRLD’s Death Race for LoveThe world these records depict is forbidding.
  18. album review
    Solange Is Creating a Beautiful WorldHer purpose seems to be to envision the peace and order the real world lacks.
  19. legacies
    No One Deserves As Much Power As Michael Jackson HadWe gave a performer carte blanche to live however he wanted because the music was more important to us.
  20. album review
    On Lil Pump’s Harverd Dropout, the Best Songs Are the Most DepravedThe picture that Harverd Dropout paints, though, even accounting for poetic license, seems scary.
  21. the law
    Jussie Smollett and the Court of Public OpinionThis story is exceedingly abnormal, and it’s drawing the worst out of many of us, but it doesn’t speak for us either.
  22. music
    Ryan Adams Abused His PowerIt’s time to retire the myth of the tortured artist.
  23. anniversaries
    The Weird Sadness of Aughts NostalgiaThe good art from the era came at the expense of great distress.
  24. album review
    Can’t Say I Ain’t Country Almost Ranks As Florida Georgia Line’s Best AlbumIf only they’d edited it down a bit.
  25. grammys 2019
    The Grammys Needed to Say More This YearThanks to host Alicia Keys, the show was appealingly low-key, but maybe it shouldn’t have been.
  26. album review
    Thank U, Next Is a Phoenix Moment for Ariana GrandeThis isn’t a breakup album, it’s a list of demands and a statement of hunger for someone willing to fulfill them without too much fuss.
  27. music
    The Rise and Fall and Rise of the Backstreet BoysWhy do they appear to be resonating more with fans this year than they have in the last decade?
  28. super bowl halftime
    Maroon 5’s Super Bowl Performance Was Safe and CloyingIt also featured a slow, cynical striptease from front man Adam Levine.
  29. interview
    Max Bemis Closes the Book on Say Anything“Everyone is getting older, and it’s just getting sadder. And I’m like, ‘This is not me.’”
  30. album review
    Finding the Fun in Weezer’s Teal AlbumThe album is a play on the idea of the washed-up rock star taking a swan dive into the nostalgia circuit.
  31. album review
    James Blake, Future, and the Power of VoiceThe impactful vocalists of this decade are increasingly the least traditional ones.
  32. music
    Surviving R. Kelly and the Problem With Modern Fan CultureMany of the biggest success stories of the last year in music involved men with volatile histories.
  33. music
    How Will Rock and Roll Find Its Future?This year, rock seemed bored with itself.
  34. roundtable
    A Roundtable Discussion of Kanye West’s Tumultuous YearA lot happened on Twitter, and in the White House, but also Kanye West had his hand in no less than five separate albums. How do they sound now?
  35. album review
    The Trouble With XXXTentacion’s Fragmented SKINSIt’s all chilling ideas that dissipate before they can be resolved.
  36. music
    Christmas Music Highlights From a Year Unreasonably Stacked With Christmas MusicJohn Legend, Sufjan Stevens, a Zaytoven Christmas gospel album, and more.
  37. best of 2018
    The 15 Best Albums of 2018Featuring Mitski, Earl Sweatshirt, Mac Miller, Pusha T, Kacey Musgraves, Pistol Annies, and much more.
  38. album review
    Tekashi 6ix9ine Gets Lost in His Own AlbumThe sense that the guests are here because this is where the most people’s eyes and ears are going to be this month is hard to shake.
  39. interview
    Earl Sweatshirt Fights Off Bad Vibes“I go off what would make me soar in my room by myself as a child.”
  40. profile
    Brockhampton Isn’t Your Typical 13-Member Rap Collective–Slash–Multimedia EmpireThe band’s ascent may seem sudden, but the success of Iridescence and this fall’s “I’ll Be There” tour is the result of years of work.
  41. album review
    Anderson .Paak Is a Formidable Talent and a Work in ProgressOn his new album, Oxnard, he is very clearly both.
  42. album review
    Mariah Carey’s Caution Is an Invitation and a WarningThe album is a song cycle about clearing out dead weight in your life in order to make room for new faces and experiences.
  43. album review
    Mumford & Sons’ Delta Is Hit or MissThere’s interesting experimentation here, but things tend to get pretty hammy.
  44. album review
    The Triumph and Tragedy of Lil Peep’s Come Over When You’re SoberPosthumous albums are a gift and a curse.
  45. album review
    On Vince Staples’s FM!, Everybody DiesThen it sets about making its characters’ trip through the pearly gates as much of a riot as possible.
  46. best of 2018
    The Best Albums of 2018 (So Far)Including Janelle Monáe, Cardi B, Kali Uchis, Sleep, Kacey Musgraves, and more.
  47. music
    Robyn’s Honey Is MasterfulAt its core, the album is a series of observations about the places our minds go in the dark of the night.
  48. retrospectives
    The Enduring Appeal of Nine Inch NailsSome bands stay alive by rehashing the hits. Others stay adjacent to whatever’s new and popping. Nine Inch Nails is too cool to play that game.
  49. album review
    Quavo Could Stand to Learn a Few Things From UsherOne artist released a good album disguised as a nonevent, the other released an event album that’s sort of inessential.
  50. album review
    Tom Morello’s Atlas Underground Is Amusing but Often OverbearingA few less hands on deck would’ve done this album better.
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