Louder: Dua Lipa’s Uncertain, Unprecedented Album Launch

April 10, 2020

By Caryn Ganz

Pop Music Editor

This week, we remember John Prine, the brilliant songwriter who wowed Bob Dylan and led Kris Kristofferson to (joking) suggest someone should break his thumbs, and Hal Willner, the yenta/matchmaker/“SNL” music coordinator who could seemingly convince anyone to do anything. The coronavirus also took Ahmed Ismail Hussein, one of Somalia’s most important musicians, and the cult downtown singer Cristina.

The pandemic is the subject looming in the background of my profile of Dua Lipa, a British pop star at an extremely crucial moment: the second album, the one that can prove she’s a career artist and not a flash in the pan. A further complication: The record is filled with disco bangers. While Lipa wrestled with some big questions — is it appropriate to release a (very upbeat) album right now? — we spoke in a series of FaceTime calls and talked about her big decisions, her path so far and Madonna. (Most of the Madonna stuff is on the cutting room floor, but you know, had to mention it. We’re all Leos, for the record!)

Plus, some fantastic work from our critics this week: Jon Caramanica wrote about Drake cutting to the chase and making a TikTok video before the official one, and the spectacular sing-rapper Rod Wave; Jon Pareles wrote about Green Day and Pearl Jam, ’90s bands that need to prove they’re willing to evolve; and Lindsay Zoladz addressed the album we didn’t get today (Lady Gaga’s “Chromatica”) by looking back at her epic “Telephone” video from 10 years ago.

And an investigation by Ben Sisario and Graham Bowley into fans’ complaints that ticket vendors treated the thousands of live events that were called off over the pandemic as postponements, which impacted their ability to get refunds.

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Charlie Gates for The New York Times

Dua Lipa’s Unplanned, Uncertain, Unprecedented Album Launch

The English pop star spent years preparing to release her anticipated second LP, “Future Nostalgia.” Should she — and could she — do it during a pandemic?

By Caryn Ganz

CRITIC’S NOTEBOOKS

critic’s notebook

It’s a TikTok! No, It’s a Song! Drake and the Viral Feedback Loop

“Toosie Slide” is one of a few new hip-hop songs that weren’t songs first — they were ideas spreading on social media.

By Jon Caramanica

critic’s notebook

Pearl Jam and Green Day Are Still Going Strong. But Can They Evolve?

Both bands started in the 1990s and have arena-sized followings today. On new albums, they take vastly different approaches than they have in the past.

By Jon Pareles

‘Telephone’: When Lady Gaga Took Beyoncé Into the Deep End

With Lady Gaga’s pop extravaganza “Chromatica” on hold, a look back at one of her most over-the-top videos, which recently turned 10.

By Lindsay Zoladz

critic’s notebook

Learning to Listen to, and Beyond, the Siren’s Call

A music critic’s soundscape has been reshaped by the wail of ambulances. But she’s learning to hear in unexpected ways.

By Lindsay Zoladz

ALBUM REVIEW, PLAYLIST AND POPCAST

critic’s pick

Rod Wave Sings Through the Pain

On his second new album in five months, “Pray 4 Love,” the 21-year-old musician shows why his cross-pollination of singing and rapping is unique.

By Jon Caramanica

the playlist

Neil Young’s Call to Action, and 14 More New Songs

Hear tracks by Laura Marling, Frank Ocean, Charli XCX and others.

By Jon Pareles, Jon Caramanica, Caryn Ganz and Giovanni Russonello

Sam Hunt and Kenny Rogers, Country Music Rule-Benders

Both artists pulled Nashville in fresh directions, and gave the genre growing pains.

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REPORT

Rytis Seskaitis/EyeEm, via Getty Images

Angry Fans Say First the Concerts Were Canceled, Then the Refunds

Ticket vendors are being criticized for treating the thousands of live events that were called off as postponements, on which some do not offer refunds.

By Ben Sisario and Graham Bowley

OBITUARIES

Chad Batka for The New York Times

Those We’ve Lost

John Prine, Who Chronicled the Human Condition in Song, Dies at 73

A singer and songwriter with a raspy voice and a gift for offbeat humor, he was revered by his peers, including Bob Dylan. He died of the coronavirus.

By William Grimes

John Prine’s 15 Essential Songs

He showed how much humor you could put in a song and still be taken seriously. The singer and songwriter died of complications of Covid-19 at 73.

By Rob Tannenbaum

Jason Isbell: John Prine Taught Me to Stay Vulnerable

If the artist’s job is to hold a mirror up to society, John had the cleanest, clearest mirror of anyone.

By Jason Isbell

REMEMBERING BILL WITHERS

an appraisal

How Bill Withers Defined Soulful Selflessness

He treated his utterly distinctive voice as a vehicle, not a centerpiece, and wrote songs about everyday lives with remarkable compassion.

By Jon Pareles

Bill Withers’s 10 Overlooked Songs

The soulful singer with a gift for writing understated classics has died at 81. Beyond his hits (“Lean on Me,” “Ain’t No Sunshine”) is a trove of lesser-known gems.

By Giovanni Russonello

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OBITUARIES

Hal Willner, Music Producer Who Melded Styles, Dies at 64

He was best known for assembling diverse casts of performers to play a slightly off-center body of work, and for obliterating the lines between genres.

By John Leland

those we’ve lost

Ahmed Ismail Hussein, Venerable Somali Musician, Dies at 91

Famously known as the “King of Oud,” Mr. Hussein was considered one of the giants of modern Somali music. He had the novel coronavirus.

By Abdi Latif Dahir

those we’ve lost

Cristina, Cult Downtown New York Singer, Dies at 64

A fixture in New York’s dance-music nightlife of the late ’70s and early ’80s, she gained new attention in 2004 when her albums were reissued.

By Jon Caramanica

Chynna, Model-Turned-Hip-Hop Artist, Dies at 25

The rapper, whose full name was Chynna Rogers, performed with ASAP Rocky’s hip-hop collective ASAP Mob.

By Neil Vigdor

Victor Skrebneski, Who Captured Stars in Striking Photos, Dies at 90

His career began when he found a camera in a park as a boy. A famous campaign for Estée Lauder followed, as did images of celebrities in black turtlenecks.

By Neil Genzlinger

PROFILES

The Weirdly Enduring Appeal of Weird Al Yankovic

National economies collapse; species go extinct; political movements rise and fizzle. But — somehow, for some reason — Weird Al keeps rocking.

By Sam Anderson

Yves Tumor Redefines Rock Stardom, Body on the Line

The musician known for a constantly shifting sound moves a little closer to standard pop on the new album “Heaven to a Tortured Mind,” but remains a master of anarchic energy.

By Alex Frank

NEWS

montreal dispatch

‘What Rhymes With Purell?’ Franglais Rappers Push Language Boundaries in Quebec

Critics in Montreal say hip-hop artists mixing French and English are threatening the future of the French language in the majority Francophone province.

By Dan Bilefsky

Judge Dismisses Case Against Universal Music Over Losses in 2008 Fire

A group of high-profile musicians and estates had sued the Universal Music Group over a fire that destroyed thousands of archived recordings.

By Ben Sisario

the charts

The Weeknd Repeats at No. 1, but Spotify’s Top Songs Are Slipping

Listening habits continue to shift during the coronavirus pandemic, leading to the third straight week of decline for the streaming service’s top 200 tracks.

By Ben Sisario