Melissa Kacar

Over the course of the past year, I set out to write 52 song reviews, posted every single Monday, and it has grown into something much bigger than I ever expected it to be. I focused on highlighting a diverse range of artists and genres, many of whom I never had the opportunity to write about before. I was able to spotlight so many of my personal favorites, along with deeper cuts, massive hits, and tracks I saw beginning to trend on social media that ultimately became defining songs of the entire year. This series came from a desire to write about as much music as possible in a way that my long‑form album reviews or New Music Friday posts don't always allow. It gave me the freedom to explore any artist I wanted to - new or old - with the only real criteria being that the song had to speak to me in some way, or carry a story worth telling. While I love diving into full bodies of work, there are certain songs that deserve their own spotlight, inviting a deeper look into their cultu...

Did you know that one out of every 15 vinyl albums sold in the United States in 2023 was by Taylor Swift ? She was also the top selling vinyl artist in the U.S., making up 7% of the total vinyl sales of the year with nearly 3.5 million copies sold. For the third year in a row, the majority of her music catalog  topped the vinyl charts and I think this is such an interesting look at the direction the music industry is headed in for the coming years. While vinyl never really went away, it has definitely made a big resurgence in the past five years or so, seemingly ushering in a new generation of collectors. So why now? Of course, these numbers also have a lot to do with the immense rise in popularity Taylor has experienced since the pandemic. Although she has always been a massive, high-selling artist for nearly two decades, the hold she currently has on the culture right now is unprecedented. There are a lot of reasons for that, but specifically after the release of her groundbreak...