Ryan Dillon

It’s the holiday season, and folks are decorating their lawns and preparing feasts and presents for incoming loved ones. It’s hard to imagine this time of year without thinking of all the music that only feels fit to play as snow caresses dehydrated blades of grass. Frankly, much of the holiday music is watered-down commercial pop, more fitting for a playlist at Target than the soundtrack to a warm home. It is not easy to find authentic holiday music that truly skates around the annoyance of crowded store aisles and reminds us of the child-like excitement of the season. Thankfully, Hip-hop is home to some of the most pure and refreshing holiday tunes of the past few decades.

We are now less than a week away from Christmas, but as we all know, most people start the Holiday season a bit too early. Before the pots and plates of

In 2024, Glide spent our Thursdays digging deep into the hallowed halls of the internet, unearthing some of the rare and exciting moments in Hip-hop

In 1979, Penelope Spheeris set out to capture the moments that catapulted the underground West Coast Punk Scene into the mainstream. The director followed bands that would eventually become the legends we know today for two years. The movie The Decline of Western Civilization was released in 1981 and featured the likes of X, Black Flag, Alice Bag Band, and Circle Jerks.

In 2025, it is safe to say Philadelphia’s The Roots is a household name. With their tenure as The Tonight Show’s house band, numerous books published by ring leaders Questlove and Black Thought, and classic and commercially successful albums, the live Hip-hop band has carved a lane that reaches beyond their music and into the pop culture stratosphere. When a band reaches this level of success for this long, it’s hard to imagine when albums like Things Fall Apart weren’t a part of your rotation. The Roots were far from an overnight success, and their rise to the top began on this day (January 17) in 1995.

With everything happening in the U.S. recently, it might be hard to find solace. Our hearts are with California and those affected by the recent fires as we attempt to find inner peace with the one thing powerful enough to do so: Music. This New Music Friday is nothing short of a kaleidoscope lens on modern music. This week, we have a colorful list of recent releases that range from psychedelic pop to heartfelt, artsy folk. This Friday paints an exciting picture of the year to come, as it feels like we are entering a renaissance period as artists, just as lost as the rest of us, put their emotions into melodies.

It’s funny how the idea of a king of rock has become such a controversial conversation. Ask ten people who they believe rules over the genre, and you’ll

It has been seven years since we heard from Benjamin Booker. The NOLA-based multi-hyphenate weaves through sonic realms with an air of mystique, putting his auto-biography across several warping albums that challenge genre norms and place Booker in a league of his own. His soulful yet eerie approach to nostalgic blues is drowned in dense distortion and unpredictable song structure, making categorizing the artists a fool’s errand and ultimately unneeded. Entering a Booker album means opening your mind like the artist fearlessly navigates his twisted sonic landscapes. This week (January 24), we receive LOWER, Booker’s first album since 2017’s Witness. Booker isn’t alone on this outing, as he taps acclaimed underground Hip-hop pioneer Kenny Segal, most known for his work with Billy Woods and Serengeti, to help craft the artist’s most daring work to date.

Rose City Band, led by guitarist and vocalist Ripley Johnson, has carved a unique lane for themselves in modern country. While the burgeoning scene crashes pop charts and intertwines with pop more than ever, the band’s lighthearted, psychedelic take is a welcomed change of pace. Since the band mysteriously appeared in 2019, their sun-drenched approach has evolved into a twangy powerhouse that follows the beat of its infectious drum. Fans have become accustomed to Johnson and company’s jovial melodies and lush vocals, but Rose City Band showcases a nuanced growth on their new album. Sol Y Sombra, which translates to Sun and Shadow, is the Rose City Band’s most ambitious work. Across ten honed yet expansive tracks, looming darkness attempts to cloud the band’s typically breezy tunes as they battle reality while trying to keep one foot in the sound they crafted over the years.

While they were a short-lived and unassuming member of the British Punk Explosion, The Adverts left an undeniable legacy. Throughout two albums released in the late ’70s, the band led by T.V. Smith and Gaye Advert aimed for punk domination as they combined tropes from the era with witty and absurd songwriting. The Adverts were early punk provocateurs in the British scene, taking advantage of every opportunity. They were one of the first bands to play at The Roxy, London’s first live punk venue, opened for legends like The Damned and Generation X, and even had a contract with the legendary punk label Stiff Records.