Just by looking at the tattooed, dreadlocked Michael Franti, you can tell he marches to the beat of his own drum. By listening to him, you can tell he sings to it, too. Over a fusion of reggae, hip-hop, rock and jazz, his records touch...

Katy Perry is contemporary pop music's most cynical success story. The daughter of Christian pastors, she launched her music career with a religious-rock record in 2001 under her birth name Katy Hudson. After the record tanked, she gave up on Christian music and reinvented...

New Orleans’ Galactic is one of the few bands in the jam scene to attempt hip-hop without embarrassing themselves. Unlike all the bands that condescend with snot-nosed, novelty covers of rap hits or time with monotone raps, Galactic challenges themselves with more thoughtful, complex hip-hop rhythms...