Lonely phone calls, dying and dead relatives, a literary classic, and a reexamination of the Middle Eastern conflict took the prizes at the 2007 Third Coast International Audio Festival competition. The jury turned much of their lives over to their headphones, listening to 225 entries in search of the best English-language radio docs. Winners received a trophy/sonic instrument, a national platform for their work, and some cash to help support their future work. more ›

Dear Kanye, We love you. We’re your hometown fans. We get that you have to have vision and determination to make it to the top in the music industry. We understand the ego that goes with great talent. But, it’s time for a carefrontation. There was your issue with losing the American Music Awards' Best New Artist category to Gretchen Wilson. We thought it was a little bit odd to threaten the Grammy voters right... more ›

In one of the biggest upsets at last night’s Grammys, one of Chicago’s most talented artists was robbed of the top honors for his stellar work in the past year. As unbelievable as it might seem, Eddie Blazonczyk’s Versatones didn’t win the Grammy for Best Polka Album. And Kanye West is gonna have a problem too, ya'll. Unlike last year, we chose not to subject ourselves to the Grammy awards so we’ve been catching up... more ›

Nominations for the 48th Annual Grammy Awards were announced today and thank God Kanye West was nominated several times or we would never hear the end of it. As expected, West’s “Gold Digger” picked up nods for Record of the Year and Best Rap Solo Performance while Late Registration was tapped for Album of the Year and Best Rap Album (“Diamonds In Sierra Leone” pulled a songwriting nod for Best Rap Song). Common, another member... more ›

What’s the best way to cap off a week of promotion for your new album? If you’re Kanye West, it’s taking on the President during a national telethon and cementing your status as the ambassador of the hip-hop nation. During an appearance on NBC’s “A Concert for Hurricane Relief,” West departed from scripted remarks he was to deliver with fellow presenter Mike Myers. After an introduction by Meyers, a nervous-looking West stammered “You see a... more ›

So depending on which paper you favor, Kanye West either cast a long shadow over the rest of the Grammy nominees or was overshadowed. more ›

With the Super Bowl over for another year, America’s pop culture radar is now flooded with innumerable awards shows, most of which are utterly pointless aside from their function as commercials for whatever corporate entity is presenting them. In order to avoid exhaustion, Chicagoist avoids most of them except for the Grammys and the Oscars.* Not because they’re the most entertaining or honor those most deserving but because there’s not much cultural insight to... more ›