Jon Caramanica

It also can't be underestimated that Chapel Roan is singing songs about queer love, queer lust, queer disappointment. Like, these are things that have often been subliminally encoded into pop music and no longer are subliminally encoded. And I think there's a real power on top of the structure of the songs, on top of the power of the voice.

It also can't be underestimated that Chapel Roan is singing songs about queer love, queer lust, queer disappointment. Like, these are things that have often been subliminally encoded into pop music and no longer are subliminally encoded. And I think there's a real power on top of the structure of the songs, on top of the power of the voice.

There is this added layer to it, I think, is speaking very loudly, especially for a younger generation that is ready for that.

There is this added layer to it, I think, is speaking very loudly, especially for a younger generation that is ready for that.

I went to see her in Tennessee, and I was blown away by the level of fan identification. The Chapel Roan audience... It's almost like 5X Error Store in intensity, which is saying a lot.

I went to see her in Tennessee, and I was blown away by the level of fan identification. The Chapel Roan audience... It's almost like 5X Error Store in intensity, which is saying a lot.

When I was seven. Yes.

When I was seven. Yes.

She's post-hit. This is really important to understand. Taylor Swift's post-hit this year was about hits without stars, stars without hits. And what that means is the biggest individual songs you heard this year are likely to come from the hit-making ecosystem, which is up from TikTok, slightly unexpected, maybe a little left field.

She's post-hit. This is really important to understand. Taylor Swift's post-hit this year was about hits without stars, stars without hits. And what that means is the biggest individual songs you heard this year are likely to come from the hit-making ecosystem, which is up from TikTok, slightly unexpected, maybe a little left field.

To me, I don't think Chapel and Sabrina fit exactly into that, but I do think that they are the highest profile avatars of that mode of hit creation. Taylor doesn't need that. Taylor has 300 million people who care about Taylor Swift. Now, does that mean that she has a hit? It does not.

To me, I don't think Chapel and Sabrina fit exactly into that, but I do think that they are the highest profile avatars of that mode of hit creation. Taylor doesn't need that. Taylor has 300 million people who care about Taylor Swift. Now, does that mean that she has a hit? It does not.

Can I start by going back a little bit? Please. It's important to remember, before all of this, Drake and Kendrick are generational peers. They are not simply artists of a generation. They are generational peers. They emerged roughly around the same time with two different value propositions for the direction that hip-hop should go in.

Can I start by going back a little bit? Please. It's important to remember, before all of this, Drake and Kendrick are generational peers. They are not simply artists of a generation. They are generational peers. They emerged roughly around the same time with two different value propositions for the direction that hip-hop should go in.

They have worked together in the past, but there has been an icy chill between them for many years. Through the Drake lens, hip-hop is a font for melody, for a certain kind of emotional storytelling. It's pop-oriented, both in the nature of the songwriting and also simply because a billion people like it. That's the Drake proposition. And I would say that that is the dominant proposition.

They have worked together in the past, but there has been an icy chill between them for many years. Through the Drake lens, hip-hop is a font for melody, for a certain kind of emotional storytelling. It's pop-oriented, both in the nature of the songwriting and also simply because a billion people like it. That's the Drake proposition. And I would say that that is the dominant proposition.

hip-hop proposition of the 2010s into the 2020s then you have kendrick kendrick is a moralist he's a lyrical traditionalist he's someone who grew up and and admired the great storytellers of the 90s um and sees himself squarely in that tradition and also understands the genre as something that should be protected something that needs defense

hip-hop proposition of the 2010s into the 2020s then you have kendrick kendrick is a moralist he's a lyrical traditionalist he's someone who grew up and and admired the great storytellers of the 90s um and sees himself squarely in that tradition and also understands the genre as something that should be protected something that needs defense

Kendrick the Rapper today is very much the Kendrick the Rapper of 10 years ago, telling stories, complicated double-triple entendres, and a stern message that art matters, that black art matters, that it's inseparable from politics, sometimes for better, sometimes for worse. For the last 10 years, those two ideas have run parallel to each other. It has not been a zero-sum game until this year.

Kendrick the Rapper today is very much the Kendrick the Rapper of 10 years ago, telling stories, complicated double-triple entendres, and a stern message that art matters, that black art matters, that it's inseparable from politics, sometimes for better, sometimes for worse. For the last 10 years, those two ideas have run parallel to each other. It has not been a zero-sum game until this year.