Listening Habits

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This is Defector, a new sports blog and media company. We made this place together, we own it together, we run it together. Without access, without favor, without discretion, and without interference.

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Defector

Columnist. Author of many <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Drew-Magary/e/B001JS8R52/ref=dp_byline_cont_pop_book_1">fine works of literature</a>, including Point B. Handsomest man in the world.

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Drew Magary

James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich of Metallica perform during the M72 World Tour at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on June 03, 2025 in Atlanta, Georgia.

Metallica M72 World Tour – Atlanta, GA

Music

Metallica Is Forever

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Lauren Theisen

Brian Wilson, along with the Beach Boys perform at the Oakland Coliseum in Oakland, California on January 1, 1987 .

Beach Boys Live

Brian Wilson Was The Sound Of Something Just Out Of Reach

Dave McKenna

LOS ANGELES - 1966: Singer and mastermind Brian Wilson of the rock and roll band "The Beach Boys" directs from the control room while recording the album "Pet Sounds" in 1966 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)

Recording “Pet Sounds”

Brian Wilson Was A Sad Genius Who Brought Joy To The World

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Israel Daramola

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Is This An Era Of Cultural Stagnation?

Rick Derringer performs at Oakland Stadium in Oakland, California - July 23, 1977

Rick Derringer Live

Arts And Culture

Rick Derringer Made Rock And Roll Fun

Slayer, Tom Araya, Clash of the Titans, Genk, Belgium, 22nd September 1990.

Slayer

Are We Human, Or Are We Slayer?

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Typing

Sabrina Imbler

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Kelsey McKinney

Visual Editor. Runs <a href="http://defectorstore.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">defectorstore.com</a>. Philadelphia-based, if you couldn’t tell.

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Dan McQuade

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Ray Ratto

The two Eurovision hosts are surrounded by dancers holding giant fondue sticks.

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Can You Do Racism Against Italians? A Eurovision Roundtable

Author Photo_Stratis_Credit Alysha Haugen

Niko Stratis

Jakob Dylan, in 1997, singing in front of a microphone. He has short curly hair, maybe has a little beard, and he's in a long sleeve collared button-front shirt. He's playing guitar. In the corner there's an image of a book cover: The Dad Rock That Made Me A Woman, by Niko Stratis

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Book Excerpts That Don't Suck

Got To Be Something Better Than In The Middle

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Soraya Roberts

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Tunde Adebimpe’s Solo Debut Channels The Gift Of The Mixtape

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The Case For A New MTV

John Semley is a writer and researcher based in Philadelphia.

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John Semley

People queue outside indie record store Flashback Records to shop for vinyls on Record Store Day in London on April 20, 2024.

BRITAIN-CULTURE-MUSIC-RECORD STORE DAY

How Record Store Day Became The Stupidest Day In Music

Lindsey Adler is a writer based in Brooklyn. She exclusively covered sports for a decade but has other interests, too.

Lindsey Adler

NEW ORLEANS, LA - OCTOBER 28: Jesse Lacey of Brand New performs during the 2017 Voodoo Music + Arts Experience at City Park on October 28, 2017 in New Orleans, Louisiana.

2017 Voodoo Music + Arts Experience – Day 2

Brand New Tour, Same Old Question

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Billy Haisley

Still image of MC Ktrine and DJ Saze from the music video for "Bonde da Ó."

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MC Ktrine’s Rapping Is A Gift To Brazilian Funk

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Gangsta Grillz Is Forever

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David Roth

Left to right, Jason Narducy, Bob Mould, and Jon Wurster playing a set at Riot Fest in Chicago in 2019.

Riot Fest 2019

Podcasts

Catching The Rain, With Bob Mould

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Kathryn Xu

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KiiiKiii And The Dawn Of K-Pop’s Process Era

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What Is An Industry Plant Anyway?

John Paul Jones, Robert Plant and Jimmy Page from rock group Led Zeppelin perform live on stage at Earls Court in London on 24th May 1975. The image is in black and white; the Defector Music Club badge, at upper right, is not.

Led Zeppelin Live In London

Defector Music Club Is Getting The Led Out

Rolling Loud California 2025

Playboi Carti Goes Big Game Hunting

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To Live And Age In Rap Music

Tate McRae kicking her leg up into the splits like a Barbie.

Hot 99.5’s iHeartRadio Jingle Ball 2024 – Show

Two Tate McRae Fans Explain Everything They Know About Tate McRae

West & Trump In The White House

How Donald Trump Won Rap Back

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - DECEMBER 28: Cash Cobain and Bay Swag attend Funk Flex Winter Fest on December 28, 2024 in New York City. Cobain is wearing a Yankees cap and sunglasses. He has a beard that's short and hit shis chin. He's in a blue hoodie. Bay Wag is wearing a big gold chain, sunglasses, a baseball hat, a very diamond-encrusted watch, and holding a plastic bottle of water in one hand and a microphone in the other

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How Do You Make Sex And Party Music For An Era Uninterested In Both?

Interior of the Metropolitan Opera House, New York City, showing orchestra in foreground and audience in back

Metropolitan Opera

Silence Brings Us Together

A woman stands in front of the Yoko Ono, »Cut Piece«, 1965, during a press preview at the Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen in Duesseldorf, western Germany on September 26, 2024. In cooperation with the Tate Modern, the Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen is presenting the influential work of artist and activist Yoko Ono in a comprehensive solo exhibition taking place from September 28, 2024 to March 6, 2025.

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My Weekend With Yoko