Ann Powers
Ann Powers is NPR Music's critic and correspondent. She writes for NPR's music news blog, The Record, and she can be heard on NPR's newsmagazines and music programs.
One of the nation's most notable music critics, Powers has been writing for The Record, NPR's blog about finding, making, buying, sharing and talking about music, since April 2011.
Powers served as chief pop music critic at the Los Angeles Times from 2006 until she joined NPR. Prior to the Los Angeles Times, she was senior critic at Blender and senior curator at Experience Music Project. From 1997 to 2001 Powers was a pop critic at The New York Times and before that worked as a senior editor at the Village Voice. Powers began her career working as an editor and columnist at San Francisco Weekly.
Her writing extends beyond blogs, magazines and newspapers. Powers co-wrote Tori Amos: Piece By Piece, with Amos, which was published in 2005. In 1999, Power's book Weird Like Us: My Bohemian America was published. She was the editor, with Evelyn McDonnell, of the 1995 book Rock She Wrote: Women Write About Rock, Rap, and Pop and the editor of Best Music Writing 2010.
After earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in creative writing from San Francisco State University, Powers went on to receive a Master of Arts degree in English from the University of California.
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Listen closely to Sturgill Simpson's classic-sounding country music and you'll hear plenty of surprises, including twists on every element of modern country's church-trucks-and-beer trinity. -
In a one-hour-plus interview with NPR Music's Ann Powers, The Boss talks about his latest album, says the current version of the E Street Band is "the best it's ever been" and shares lessons he learned from his musical heroes as well as playlists full of new music. -
We all know what's most often excavated: Nirvana's roar, Biggie's cool murmur, the futuristic sigh of Aaliyah. But there's more to the decade than those obvious landmarks. -
Thanks to brand new songs by pop's shining lights, including Lady Gaga, Katy Perry and Nine Inch Nails, this midsummer week unexpectedly became the beginning of a new hit cycle.
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Nashville the city, Nashville the TV show, close-harmony groups and two financially viable, independent-minded singers have shattered country music's glass ceiling — and the year's only half over. -
As a pop star, no one comes close to dominating culture and conversation the way Beyonce does. Because she exerts such control over her image — from advertisements to films, politics to pop songs — should we think of her differently?
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After 10 years out of the public eye, the new album from Bowie, The Next Day, proves he's still a compelling pop star in today's music world. -
Ann Powers says her infatuation with The Boss grew into adult respect for the strivers in his songs. -
The band's performance during last year's Grammy Awards show gave the song a second life. -
The Grammys reward industry insiders, and Mars is no stranger to the business.
