Louder: Why Pop’s Biggest Stars Are Staying Put

August 19, 2022

By Caryn Ganz

Pop Music Editor

This weekend marks the beginning of Harry Styles’s 15-show run at Madison Square Garden in New York. Next month, he’ll start another 15-date engagement at the Kia Forum in Inglewood, Calif. The majority of his tour supporting his smash album “Harry’s House” will involve staying in one place, and he isn’t alone: Pop residencies in Las Vegas have been wildly popular for several years now (Adele starts hers in November), and other artists, like Maná, have been setting up shop in one location. What’s behind this shift to a format that used to be seen as an option mostly for older artists toward the end of their careers? Ben Sisario dives in.

Also this week: Jazmine Hughes interviewed the genre-smashing pop star Rina Sawayama (who made one of the best albums of 2020) as she readies the release of her second album, “Hold the Girl.” Grayson Haver Currin spoke with a host of Indigenous American artists who have worked to cast off a legacy of stereotypes and are making vibrant experimental music. Jon Caramanica explored the overlap between Beyoncé, Madonna and Saucy Santana when it comes to borrowing and authorship, and hosted a second Beyoncécast (there’s a lot to unpack here!). And over at the magazine, Jody Rosen profiled Willie Nelson, nearly 90 and not yet ready to retire.

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Why Pop’s Biggest Stars Are Staying Put for Long Residencies

Extended runs in one venue, once associated with legacy acts, have become popular with stars including Harry Styles and BTS, lowering bills and building hype as touring costs rise.

By Ben Sisario

THE CRITICS & POPCAST

The Playlist

Blackpink’s Genre-Clashing Return, and 8 More New Songs

Hear tracks by Blake Shelton, Chloe Moriondo and Madonna.

By Jon Caramanica, Caryn Ganz and Lindsay Zoladz

Critic’s Notebook

Pop’s Material Girls, Rich With Influence

Questions about borrowing, authorship and inspiration — from the underground to the mainstream and vice versa — connect new releases from Beyoncé, Madonna and Saucy Santana.

By Jon Caramanica

Beyoncé’s ‘Renaissance’: The Speed Round

The conversation continues about one of the year’s most ideologically provocative pop albums, its queer inspirations and its credits.

FEATURES

Olivia Lifungula for The New York Times

If It’s All Going to Hell, Rina Sawayama Can’t Wait to See You There

The 32-year-old singer and songwriter is a genre-clashing, deep-thinking pop star. Her upcoming album, “Hold the Girl,” is an introspective, apocalypse-ready dance party.

By Jazmine Hughes

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Upending Expectations for Indigenous Music, Noisily

After long being consigned to a legacy of stereotypes, Indigenous American artists are making some of the country’s most engaging experimental music.

By Grayson Haver Currin

A Swarm of 13-Year-Olds Took a Broadway Stage. What Could Go Wrong?

For the creators and cast of the 2008 musical “13,” a new Netflix adaptation brings back memories — theatrical and hormonal.

By Nancy Coleman

OBITUARIES

Deborah Feingold

Abdul Wadud, Cellist Who Crossed Musical Boundaries, Dies at 75

He performed with classical ensembles, but he was best known for his work with cutting-edge composers and improvisers like Anthony Davis and Julius Hemphill.

By Seth Colter Walls

Andy Kropa/Getty Images

John L. Eastman, McCartney’s Lawyer in Beatles’ Strife, Dies at 83

An entertainment attorney for high-profile clients, he was central to a battle over control of the Beatles’ business empire in the last days of the band.

By Ben Sisario

NEWS

R. Kelly Trial in Chicago: What to Know as Witnesses Testify

A woman told the jury that Mr. Kelly had sexually abused her on video when she was 14, and persuaded her not to testify against him at his 2008 state trial.

By Julia Jacobs and Robert Chiarito

Woman Testifies R. Kelly Sexually Abused Her on Video When She Was 14

The woman testified at the singer’s federal trial in Chicago that she had been persuaded not to testify against him at his 2008 state trial, which ended in his acquittal.

By Robert Chiarito and Julia Jacobs

The Charts

Bad Bunny Beats YoungBoy Never Broke Again in a Tight Race for No. 1

Beyoncé’s “Renaissance” falls to No. 3 as the Puerto Rican superstar and the Louisiana rapper battle for the top spot on the Billboard album chart.

By Ben Sisario

Solange Enters New Territory: Ballet Composer

The multihyphenate pop star will compose her first ballet score for the Fall Fashion Gala at New York City Ballet in September.

By Joshua Barone

Ukraine Dispatch

Ready to Party. But First Comes the Cleanup.

More than 100,000 buildings in Ukraine have been destroyed in the war. Volunteers are clearing away the rubble — and partying while they do it.

By Maria Varenikova and Emile Ducke

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Willie Nelson’s Long Encore

As he approaches 90, even brushes with death can’t keep him off the road — or dim a late-life creative burst.

By Jody Rosen

TikTok Audio Memes Are Everywhere. How Do They Work?

Welcome to the era of the audio meme, a time when replicable units of sound are a cultural currency as strong as — if not stronger than — images and text.

By Charlotte Shane

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