jason hirschhorn's @MusicREDEF: 12/27/2019 - Special Edition: Artists of the Year

When everyone believes ya, what's that like? Is this interest remix not displaying correctly? | View it in your browser. Billie Eilish at Coachella, April 13, 2019. (Frazer Harrison/Getty Images) Friday - December 27, 2019 Fri - 12/27/19 "When everyone believes ya, what's that like?" -  Taylor Swift, "The Man" rantnrave:// The artist of the year 2019 came to the attention of pop fans via TIKTOK, and to the attention of much of the rest of the world via his forcible removal from the BILLBOARD chart that TikTok had helped him land on. He's smart, ambitious and blessed with self-awareness, and what comes next is anybody's guess. Or maybe the artist of the year is four women who appropriated their name from four men and set out to right some wrongs on the very chart from which that other artist of the year was summarily tossed. Or maybe it was the fearless pop star who added the phrases "re-recording rights" and "private equity" to the everyday pop music lexicon. Or the co-ed rock band who dropped its third and fourth albums five months apart and tried its best to tell us not what is, but what is not. Or the bold, brassy woman who had major hits in 2019 with songs from 2016 and 2017, a little help of her own from TikTok and a magic flute (which may have been the instrument of the year). Below are reflections from throughout the year on the artists who left a noticeable dent in our loudspeakers and headphones, and maybe in our perceptions of the world. But this is just one list. You'll find a couple hundred more (and counting) in MusicSET: "Best Music of 2019: The Year in Lists." - Matty Karas, curator cowboy hat from gucci Time Magazine 'It Feels Like I'm Chosen to Do This.' Inside the Record-Breaking Rise of Lil Nas X by Andrew R. Chow "It's crazy how any baby born after March has not lived in a world where 'Old Town Road' wasn't number 1." Rolling Stone Billie Eilish and the Triumph of the Weird by Josh Eells She's a 17-year-old superstar who did it her way and doesn't care what you think — even if she still calls out for mom after a bad dream. Billboard Billboard Woman of the Decade Taylor Swift: 'I Do Want My Music to Live On' by Jason Lipshutz In the 2010s, she went from country superstar to pop titan and broke records with her chart-topping albums and blockbuster tours. Now Swift is using her industry clout to fight for artists' rights and foster the musical community she wished she had coming up. Stereogum Big Thief's Big Year by Michael Tedder Big Thief released one of 2019's most acclaimed albums with 'U.F.O.F.,' but they're already back with another. We talked to bandleader Adrianne Lenker about Big Thief's big year. The New York Times Rosalía's Incredible Journey From Flamenco to Megastardom by Marcela Valdes Before her videos were racking up millions of views on YouTube, the artist spent more than a decade training in one of the world's oldest and most complex musical art forms. Billboard How Bad Bunny Took Over Pop -- Singing Exclusively In Spanish by Eduardo Cepeda He scored over 50 hits and a top 20 debut rapping and singing exclusively en español, when he wasn't painting his nails or tweeting about body positivity. How Bad Bunny taught American pop a new language. Vulture The Highwomen Were Built for This Cultural Moment by Jewly Hight A debate has been raging in Nashville for the better part of this decade over what should be done about the dearth of female hit-makers on country radio and the corresponding lack of opportunities for women to build marquee careers in the format. Los Angeles Times How Lana Del Rey reinvented herself ... and modern-day rock stardom by Molly Lambert Lana Del Rey on her love for the Eagles and all things California, her new boyfriend and the righteous anger of Greta Thunberg. Texas Music Lizzo's Moment by Julia Smith How a formerly homeless 30-year-old classically trained flautist became this year's pop superstar. Tidal Rap Radar: Burna Boy by Elliott Wilson, Brian "B.Dot" Miller and Burna Boy The African Giant, Burna Boy, sits down with Elliott and B.Dot post Grammy nomination. Listen to how he found out about the nomination, how he made the hit song "Ye," got the call to be on The Lion King album, thoughts on identity, African history, plus more. wrangler on my booty Hollywood Reporter BTS Is Back: Music's Billion-Dollar Boy Band Takes the Next Step by Seth Abramovitch The seven-man K-pop sensation, which accounts for $4.65 billion of South Korea's GDP and rivals The Beatles on the charts, opens up about their future, performing in Saudi Arabia, looming military service and a possible Grammy nomination: "An absolute dream come true." Paper Megan Thee Stallion Was Made for This by Kiana Fitzgerald The Houston Hottie on her quick rise to the top. Crack Magazine The Comet is Coming embody the collaborative spirit of jazz by Anna Tehabsim and Duncan Harrison The Comet is Coming are facing each other, eyes closed and hyperventilating. It's the day before they set off on a tour that will stretch on until the end of the year, and this is their final rehearsal. Invisible Oranges Blood Incantation's "Hidden History of the Human Race" is Death Metal Infinite, Incarnate by Langdon Hickman There is an air of specialness to Blood Incantation that is hard to define, either as a fan or a critic. GQ Inside the World that Tyler Created by Carrie Battan Being indoors makes Tyler, the Creator, irritable, which is why he loves public parks so much. In most cities he visits on tour, the 28-year-old rapper and youth-culture multi-hyphenate will seek one out and make it his second home. The Washington Post The transcendence of Nick Cave: After losing his son, the post-punk icon found communion with his fans by Caitlin Gibson Nick Cave's fans arrived carrying gifts - flowers, handwritten letters, even a portrait of the artist himself set in stained glass, stoic and saintlike. But they had also come to receive something in return. The Ringer How Vampire Weekend Became the Last Mega Indie Band Standing by Rob Harvilla Twelve years ago, Vampire Weekend arrived with crisp polos and Africa-indebted melodies, becoming heroes and villains all at once. They return with a new album this week as survivors of the blog-hype era and a music industry that doesn't prop up hot, young indie bands like it used to. Broken Record Yola's Walk Through Fire by Bruce Headlam and Justin Richmond After years honing her craft in the UK, Yola finally lands with her beautiful album, "Walk Through Fire." Produced by the Black Keys' Dan Auerbach, the album combines classic country, soul and rock and roll. Bruce Headlam talks to Yola about her journey to this album. Los Angeles Times At 13, she had her first hit. 48 years later, could country outlaw Tanya Tucker win her first Grammy? by Randy Lewis In a major surprise, Tanya Tucker is nominated for four Grammy Awards, including song of the year, for her comeback album, "While I'm Livin'." The Outline Oh my God, it's DaBaby by Drew Millard We spent the day with the insanely popular Grammy-nominated rapper in his North Carolina hometown. Afropunk Raphael Saadiq's 'Jimmy Lee' Is the R&B Album We Needed Right Now by Michael Gonzales At an age when most middle-aged soul folks are content to become museum pieces performing at oldies shows across the world, Raphael Saadiq has delivered an innovative, damn near brilliant album that tackles the subject of addiction with gusto, God and genius. NPR Chicago Trumpeter Jaimie Branch Delivers A Political Message On 'Fly or Die II' by Nereida Moreno "The trumpet is an alert, and we're sounding some alarms." Pitchfork Weyes Blood Finds Hope in a World That's Going to Hell by Sam Sodomsky The Los Angeles singer-songwriter explains how climate change, absurd comedy, and the Great American Songbook inspired her strangely uplifting new album, "Titanic Rising." The FADER How Holly Herndon and her AI baby spawned a new kind of folk music by Emilie Friedlander Holly Herndon's "Proto" is an engrossing testament to the power of multiple voices singing in unison. One of those voices is a computer named Spawn. MUSIC OF THE DAY YouTube "Truth Hurts (live on 'Saturday Night Live')" Lizzo "REDEF is dedicated to my mother, who nurtured and encouraged my interest in everything and slightly regrets the day she taught me to always ask 'why?'" — @JasonHirschhorn REDEF, Inc. NY - LA - EVERYWHERE redef.com YOU DON'T GET IT? 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