Olivia Rodrigo’s lyrics cover many of the same topics I discuss with my Catholic high school students. As a church that infamously struggles to reach and retain young people, we have something to learn from her.
Music
Posted inArts & Culture, Music
Get ready to hear Ed Sheeran’s new music at every wedding from now until his next album
No matter how far he has risen in fame, Ed Sheeran has stayed true to himself.
Posted inArts & Culture, Music
Adele was the soundtrack to my coming of age. But she lost me in her glitzy ‘One Night Only’ special.
Whereas once Adele’s music exuded humility, “One Night Only” showed me someone who has become so embedded in the cultural exclusivity of Hollywood that she is no longer relatable.
Posted inArts & Culture, Music
Brandi Carlile is Pope Francis’ kind of songwriter: Tender
Brandi Carlile’s latest album shows the singer’s keen awareness of the radical nature of tenderness.
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Don’t dismiss Lil Nas X because of his controversial video. He has something to teach the church.
“Montero” can offer new perspectives into the realities of Black queerness; for some, including some Catholics, it might even give a voice to their own experiences.
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From ‘Mr. Brightside’ to ‘Pressure Machine,’ The Killers are still singing about God.
On their last two albums, the Killers continue to circle around faith and eventually grasp it—if not in completely solid form.
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Mandolinist and singer-songwriter Chris Thile writes psalms for those who struggle to believe — or belong
In “Laysongs,” mandolinist Chris Thile lays theatrics and sea captains aside and sings simply and honestly about his struggle to believe.
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‘Donda’ review: Kanye West is our generation’s Richard Wagner
Like it or not, Kanye is our Wagner—a master architect of pure spectacle and a man whose unhinged brilliance confronts us all.
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Whatever and ever Amen: Two Gen-X Catholics remember classic retreat songs.
Did the singer-songwriter era come about specifically to fill a demand by retreat directors for a poignant soundtrack to accompany the spiritual epiphanies of 16-year-olds?
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St. Augustine meets America’s Got Talent: The spirituality of Nightbirde’s viral hit “It’s OK”
Nightbirde recognizes the habit of trying to fix things on one’s own. She sings, “Don’t know why I take the tightrope and cry when I fall.”