For decades hip-hop artists have used their power as popular culture stars to influence the political sphere. As academics have begun to take notice of the power of hip-hop to inspire youth and impact social change, more and more research on the history and power of hip-hop has developed. - The Conversation
She said she was motivated to create what she calls a "safe space" for young Black dancers because "when she was a child, teachers and assistants all but punished her for not fitting the traditional ballerina mould, as if she was using her race as some kind of rebellion." - Reuters
Early eighteenth-century readers cannot necessarily have been secure in their ability to understand the books they read, and they were not necessarily encouraged to feel secure. - Lapham's Quarterly
In an overhaul of its priorities last month, Arts Council of Wales (the national funder) eliminated its entire £1.6 million annual grant to the principality's main English-language theatre. "If this funding decision stands," warns the company's management, "Wales will lose National Theatre Wales in six months’ time." - The Stage
"British greeting card company Full Colour Black and its owner Andrew Gallagher have filed a libel claim against anonymous artist Banksy in the Queen’s Bench Division of the High Court over an Instagram post the British artist made in November 2022." The lawsuit could potentially require him to be named. - Artnet
"Pushkin Industries is laying off over 30% of its staff and shaking up its leadership team as the broader podcast industry continues to recalibrate after years of expensive deals and over-ambitious growth plans." - MSN (Bloomberg)
"Claire Rice, executive director of Arts Alliance Illinois, ... is asking (Mayor) Johnson to tap the city’s corporate fund for nearly 35% of the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs & Special Events’ $81 million annual budget, an unprecedented move for a department traditionally funded primarily by other sources." - Crain's Chicago Business
He went from self-publishing a renegade gay-oriented opera fanzine, mimeographed and distributed by hand to — under the identity La Cieca — operating what The New York Times called "the most essential blog in opera," as well as reviewing more formally for several magazines and the New York Post and Observer. - OperaWire
The five nominees each for fiction, nonfiction, poetry, young people's literature, and literature in translation were revealed on Tuesday. Winners will be announced at a ceremony on November 15. - AP
Like the 45-day budget bill passed by the U.S. Congress the day before, this new contract seems likely to serve as little more than a stopgap designed to tide both parties over toward a more decisive reckoning. - San Francisco Chronicle
Just as a person cannot be talked out of serious depression or anxiety, rational arguments against boredom seldom avail. A person must take interest in something, which requires initiative and energy. - First Things
The streaming service is discussing raising prices in several markets globally, but will likely begin with the U.S. and Canada, according to people familiar with the matter. - The Wall Street Journal
I’m not foolish or backward enough to think that AI is a passing fad. It’s a tool that we’ll see incorporated and integrated, like the synthesizers Miles invoked. But — But! — we have the power to prevent a future where the bots run the show. - The Gig
