Celebrating Black Art & Artistry: Our 2025 Black History Month Soundtrack!

As Black History Month comes to a close, Atwood Magazine celebrates the Black artists, past and present, whose timeless contributions continue to inspire, shape, and redefine music.

Playlist: Celebrating Black Art & Artistry

Celebrating Black Art & Artistry

Our 2025 Black History Month Soundtrack!

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All of my other blurbs are about artists I have known and admired for a long time, so I’ll go the opposite direction with this one and instead cover a song that was just recently pitched to me for Atwood. It’s by two African artists I hadn’t previously been acquainted with – French-Angolan producer AGATCHU and Congolese singer Ya Levis – but I’ve become a fast fan of their individual talents in the beat-making and vocalizing departments, as well as the soothing and enrapturing effects that are achieved when those two talents of theirs are merged onto the same track, their new single, “One for Me.” – Josh Weiner

Says the quadrilingual lead producer, “”This is a song I’ve dreamed of making with Ya Levis for years. I deeply respect his artistry and vibe, and it’s incredible to finally create something that unites our musical universes.” Those universes have indeed been united in splendid style on “”One For Me””— this one is for just about anybody who loves good music!

“Isis and Osiris,” the final track on Alice Coltrane’s Journey in Satchidananda, stands apart as the only live recording on the album. It unfolds as a 11 minutes of impressionistic raga jazz that reaches past conventional form into a divine plane, textured by sliding glissandis and droning bass. Somewhere between the East and West, Coltrane shaped a musical realm entirely her own in the male-dominated space of late ’60s and early ’70s jazz. She was many things — a pianist, harpist, wife, mother, and swamini — and each identity shaped her into an artist who didn’t push against cultural barriers so much as render them weightless. – Anu Sarode

Sisters and immortal ravers Chaya and Nyrobi Beckette-Messem form the intense pop-punk EDM mashup known as ALT BLK ERA. They’ve had an amazing run for quite some time, but they released a new album, “”Rave Immortal,”” last month. The record captures Nyrobi’s intense battle with an invisible disability through a creative lens. “”Hunt You Down,”” describes the profound isolation that drives someone into an unhealthy relationship for the sake of connection. It’s poignant, yet it serves as a booming example of the ferocity these artists bring to their music, featuring both organic instruments like guitars and drums and synthetic sounds such as synthesizers. It’s utterly entrancing and a complete earworm. – Kaiana Lee

The richness of Ari Lennox’s voice is what drew me to her originally. The spring that 2019’s “Shea Butter Baby” came out was so incredibly formative for me, particularly because this album soundtracked almost the entire second half of that year. Her voice is honey, the music fits her perfectly. I’d blast “BMO” on repeat because it’s so fun and sexy and sassy. She’s a diverse singer, able to mold herself to pop, R&B, soul and blues stylings with ease. She’s a real luminary presence and deserves her flowers now, not later, when the majority finally catches up. – Kendall Graham

Bartees Strange has never been one to color inside the lines. Across his first two albums – 2020’s Live Forever and 2022’s Farm to Table – he has carved out a singular space in music, one where genre distinctions blur and dissolve in service of something deeper, rawer, and truer to his ever-evolving artistry. His latest album, Horror, is his boldest statement yet: An unflinching exploration of personal fears, artistic ambition, and the haunting weight of self-doubt. If Live Forever was an introduction and Farm to Table a snapshot of an artist in motion, Horror is the sound of Bartees Strange fully in command of his craft – pushing himself to new emotional and sonic extremes. – Mitch Mosk

Since 2011, Dev Hynes has cemented his legacy as Blood Orange! Combining R&B and electronic elements, each song and lyric deeply speaks to his existence. Aside from singing and writing his own music, he has produced and worked with some of the biggest names in music (Solange, Britney Spears, Carly Rae Jepsen and more.) Even working on the score for the 2013 film Palo Alto. One thing is abundantly clear – Dev Hynes excels at everything he does, while remaining true and apologetically Black and Queer. – Jada Moore

Buddy Guy, still performing to this day at the age of 88, is a blues guitarist and vocalist who has inspired innumerous musicians. Those who cite him as an influence include Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, and Keith Richards. He had a huge hand in shaping American blues through his masterful guitar skills, smooth vocals, and electric personality, all of which can be heard in his 1991 song, “Feels Like Rain.” – Audrey Connelly

With millions of listeners, Daniel Caesar is beloved by many in the music industry as he continues to grow and set standards. “Always” is written as a love song for the person that will always hold space in the musican’s heart. With his romantic view on the world and relatable perspectives, listeners cannot get enough. Daniel Caesar will always be held closely in the hearts of his listeners, and is an artist worth highlighting this Black History Month. – Miranda Urbanczyk

This Florida born rapper has got high-speed rhymes, as plenty of rappers do, yet at the age of 26 she’s become known due to the authenticity, comedy, truth, and confidence in her lyrics. “DENIAL IS A RIVER” is a song unlike most, with what sounds like dialogue between Doechii herself and a friend while the rapper tells a hilarious yet honest tale of what she’s undergone throughout her life. The song is part of her album Alligator Bites Never Heal, which made her the third woman to ever win a Grammy for Best Rap Album. Without a doubt, Doechii has impressively and masterfully earned her spot at the top of the lists of rap’s acclaimed artists. – Bárbara Martínez Campuzano

With a singular, ever-changing artistry and an ardent refusal to color between the lines, Dreamer Isioma has been an inimitable force since their debut some six-plus years ago. Three dynamic, genre-bending albums later, Isioma remains a unique ray of light, passion, and power in the modern indie/alt scene, and their upcoming album – StarX Lover, set for release in spring 2025, promises to once again highlight that X-factor that has made them stand out from day one. Heavier and grittier than any of their past work, the record leans into the rock world more so than ever before, and recently released singles “Born 2 Live,” “Did You Ever Care,” and “Dead End” highlight not only the palpable sonic tension, but also the raw emotional friction and inner turmoil that brought this new set of songs to life. One thing remains certain: Dreamer Isioma remains a trailblazer, a boundary-breaker, and an unapoogetic powerhouse of artistry. – Mitch Mosk

Frank Ocean hasn’t released an album in almost 10 years and there’s no reason to think that dry spell will end any time soon. So… can he be considered one of the all-time greats in his genre on the strength of only two albums? Hard to say, but then again, nearly every hip-hop fan includes the Notorious B.I.G. on their list of best rappers ever, and he also only ever made two albums. So, by that reasoning, perhaps Frank Ocean will indeed go down as one of the all-time great R&B singers, especially since his two albums, Channel Orange and Blonde, have both been subject to immense critical acclaim – well-deserved, given that gems like “Pyramids” are featured in the track listings.

In my opinion, this song was Frank Ocean’s finest hour – nearly ten minutes long, and an epic and compelling listen for every one of them, as Frank imagines the consequences of a pimp falling in love with one of his own prostitutes. It’s an utterly absorbing oeuvre, and even if Frank Ocean never releases any more records (something I’d put my money on at this point), at least he’ll have majestic songs like this one to ensure that his legacy will endure. – Josh Weiner

This is a song from my childhood that shaped a part of who I am. It’s not just a stereotype that as Black Americans, we tend to show and feel a lot of pride in our hair; whether styling it in locs, braids, pressing it, or letting it grow out naturally, the way we style our hair is often a form of self-expression and even more so, simply a way of protecting our hair. So many of us, including myself, have memories of being looked down upon for our hair, even going so far as getting in trouble by deans and principals in school for wearing it out in its most natural state. India Arie’s song “I Am Not My Hair” (released on her album Testimony, Vol. 1: Life & Relationship) was the first time I had ever heard someone who looks like me so boldly proclaim that their hair did not define them— that they way they chose to wear it didn’t make them more or less beautiful. It completely altered my perception of beauty at a young age. It taught me that true beauty starts from within, and it’s a lesson I’ve kept with me ever since. – Noa Jamir

Irma Thomas, known as the “Soul Queen of New Orleans,” never quite achieved the level of fame she deserved. She recorded “Time is on My Side” by Jerry Ragovoy in 1964, which inspired the Rolling Stones to record their own cover the same year. (I had the privilege of seeing Thomas and the Stones perform the song together at the legendary New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival in 2024, and it was life changing). She was and continues to be an immense influence on the New Orleans R&B scene, and even if her name is not as well known as some of her contemporaries, her incredible talent shaped so much of the music we enjoy today. – Audrey Connelly

With sharp, incisive lyrics and one of the most uniquely pleasing voices in music lately, Jensen McRae is solidifying her place in the folk landscape. She’s got razor-sharp wit and a level of introspection that almost borders on self-flagellation. “Happy Girl” is my favorite song by her, not least because I identify with the compulsion to mask myself or fabricate a persona in order for others to feel placated and safe around me. She does this soft run in the pre-chorus that continues to haunt me. Her new album, I Don’t Know How But They Found Me! is out at the end of April, and I absolutely cannot wait. She has the writing skills, the voice and the real, pure talent of a true musician. – Kendall Graham

Joy Oladokun’s experiences as a black queer person trying to make it in Nashville inspired this heartfelt song and its heartbreaking lyrics: “This town still isn’t big enough to love me / And I’m still too damn proud to beg for company.” Oludokun’s struggle to break through the traditional conservative cultural norms of country music is one theme of her diverse Oct. 2024 album, OBSERVATIONS FROM A CROWDED ROOM. Listen to it in full for a lot more of Oladokun’s good country. – Christine Buckley

Off the 2024 record “Family Feud”, Philadelphia singer/songwriter Julia Pratt’s heart-wrenching “Carolina” details feelings of heartbreak and growth. After spending time away from North Carolina, she returned to it changed. This reflects her changes as she grew and molded herself into the person and artist she longed to be. Returning to where her family fell apart was like returning to her old self. She went through damage in North Carolina and returned with scars of the past. The track is like a warm hug on your hardest day. The tone is rather reflective and gut-wrenching, but just like Julia, the listener emerges on the other side changed for the better. – Kaiana Lee

Hands down, the greatest piece of live jazz I’ve seen in my life was Kamasi Washington’s performance of “Fist of Fury” at the Burlington Jazz Festival in June 2023. It was absolutely astounding! My friends were left chanting “DUH! DUH! Duh-Duh-DUH!” in unison afterwards, in honor of the song’s central rhythm. The official album recording of the song doesn’t align perfectly with the version we saw live – it’s more trombone-oriented than saxophone-oriented, among other things – but it’s a great jazz composition as well and it certainly takes me back to that epic evening in Vermont, so I’m all for it! Thank you to the World’s Greatest Saxophonist for summarizing said greatness in this epic 10-minute package. – Josh Weiner

Thirteen years I’ve been a Kendrick Lamar fan — DAMN. (all-caps and with a period) indeed. I’ll give one of the hits from my early days as a fan a shout-out here, in part since I’ve never gotten the chance to do so for Atwood before (it’s from 2012’s Good Kid, M.A.A.D. City, one of the few Kendrick Lamar projects that predates Atwood‘s 2015 nascence) but also because it has long been one of my favorite K. Lamar songs and has generated plenty of positive memories over the years.

The “hand to mouth, then back down, then back up” gesture that accompanies the song’s central lyric of “Pull Up. Drank! Head Shot. Drank!” has animated many parties I’ve been to, as well as the three times I’ve gone to see the Main Man live. It’s also pure genius that one of the most fervently anti-alcohol songs I can imagine has also weaved its way into plenty of drinking games over the last decade-and-change. It’s still one of Lamar’s finest tracks, and that’s definitely saying something at this point. – Josh Weiner

The Jamaican born New Yorker is quite the musician, loyal to the Caribbean heritage music and his identity. From a young age, he took music as a form of self-therapy, and his introspective and sensational work has led him to earn a deal with Columbia Records. He’s worked with Walshy Fire from Major Lazer, Channel Tres, and Dre Day. Exploring and creating in the genres of rap, R&B, afroswing, among others, his goal is to “make the highest quality art.” His hip-hop and rap single “Breeze” shows his talent to create something groovy, confident, with a gifted wordplay. The lyrics to this song point to systemic oppression, pressure, dominance, among other topics; and this is just one small bit of his many projects that demonstrates that Kris Yute’s music is worthy of the world’s attention. – Bárbara Martínez Campuzano

There is space for Black artists in folk music, and British songwriter Labi Siffre is one of the many pioneers who paved the way. “Bless the Telephone” (released in 1971) is the perfect love song – short, sweet, and earnest. With this song, Siffre shows that sometimes all one needs is their voice, a guitar, and a tender song to move the hearts of people across the world, regardless of race or culture. – Noa Jamir

Little Simz is one of my favorite rappers, period. Her cadence and flow, the tone of her voice, her lyrical dexterity. All of it. I’ve been a fan since 2019’s “GREY Area,” and I swear I really haven’t found funner production than in “101 FM,” track six of the album. It paints a really full picture of Simz’s life growing up and coming into the scene in London. The callbacks are full of nostalgia and specific 90s/2000s-isms (PS2s, pre-Instagram photo shoots, etc.). It’s a meta kind of track, which is also fun to be a part of. She continues to prove why, at least to me, she is nearly without equal in the game. – Kendall Graham

An incredible woman and voice taken from the world too soon, Minnie Riperton uplifted Black voices throughout the 70s and shared her joy through her music. Her most famous song was “Lovin’ You,” an incredibly beautiful and ethereal love song that has stood the test of time. While her time on earth was short, her impact on society is boundless. – Audrey Connelly

Mon Rovîa has spent the past two years establishing himself as a singular voice in the contemporary American folk space, all while slowly unveiling a very special four-part EP series centered around the Hero’s Journey. With the release of Act 4: Atonement this past January, that ambitious project has now come to a close – leaving the world with a trove of intimate, relatable, and achingly beautiful folk songs that warm the ears just as they do the heart.

From the soul-stirring fragility of “To Watch the World Spin Without You” (featured on Act 1: The Wandering) and the gentle, glistening glow of “City on a Hill” (taken off Act 3: The Dying of Self), to the dreamy depths of “Dead Man Walking” and “crooked the road.” (both featured on Act 4), Mon Rovîa’s oeuvre is as sonically soothing as it is breathtakingly human – with a little something for everyone. The Liberia-born, Chattanooga, Tennessee-based singer/songwriter is now working on a full-length album that he hopes to release later in 2025, making this the perfect time to catch up on his past material while getting ready for all that’s to come! – Mitch Mosk

Nova Twins exploded into my life in the best way with their 2022 album, Supernova. Two black girls absolutely rocking, thrashing, screaming, killing sh*t in the alternative scene lit up my life so brightly and quickly that I am still reeling from the effects right now, writing this. They’ve made me feel so seen as another Black woman within the rock/alt/metal scene. Oh my god, they just shred so hard. “Choose Your Fighter” gives me, and should give anybody, an unbelievable catharsis. If you love live music, you’ll do yourself a massive favor and watch their performance of this song at the 2023 Glastonbury Festival. Again and again in their music they show us how fearless and free you can be when you fully commit yourself to what you really love. – Kendall Graham

She’s most known for her 2023 hit “Dive,” from her album Messy, which was featured on the smash Netflix series “Heartstopper,” but “Password Change” is an early, gorgeous product of this talented jazzy songwriter. Dean has said she likes a really good opening line to a song, and this is one of her best: “I wanna talk but the football’s on / Is holding hands too much to ask? / I know you can multitask.” – Christine Buckley

It’s pretty weird to be a fan of a group that has released practically no music throughout the time you’ve been a fan of theirs — I first got into OutKast as a kid in the early 2000’s around the time of their commercial peak, but right after said peak came the start of the duo’s “hiatus” that has now lasted close to 20 years now and shows not the slightest sign of ever ending. Yet the group’s output from the preceding decade (1994-2004) was so strong that discovering it all retroactively has allowed me to stay a big OutKast admirer.

“B.O.B. (Bombs Over Baghdad)” is perhaps my personal favorite release from that far more fruitful period of theirs — I will here reiterate my pet theory that this is the song that, if the world is ever conquered by aliens, this all-encompassing track is the one we should serve up to them as a five-minute summary of this peculiar art form of ours called “music.” But there are plenty of other songs that could join the list — “Rosa Parks,” “Ms. Jackson,” “Gasoline Dreams,” “SpottieOttieDopalicious” (the song I happen to have on as I type this line), and many more! And while I’m not confident I’ll ever get to see OutKast perform together, at least I got to see them individually at separate shows — Big Boi at the Howard Theatre in 2019 and Andre 3000 at the Montreal Jazz Festival in 2024. Even after 20 years of relative inactivity, their place in the Hip-Hop Hall of Fame remains unassailable. – Josh Weiner

Prince did not waste one second of his time on Earth. His vitality is best embodied on a song few speak of. “Tamborine” from 1985’s Around The World In A Day is a screamer, literally, featuring the shrieks we love by the man. “Tambouriiiiiiine!” My favorite bit on this kinetic cut (even by Prince standards) is the rhythm section aka Prince. Brutal bass, frenzied drumming, and finger cymbal percussion own my heart. – Josh Bloom

Roy Ayers is one of the most influential American songwriters, producers, and vibraphonists of all time. To this day, Ayers remains one of the most sampled artists in history, right up there with James Brown. Known as the godfather of jazz-funk, Ayers in his hay day was a man ahead of his time, making music that broke down the barriers of genre and style. His song “Searching”, a song about the lifelong journey of self-mastery and discovery, is a timeless artifact. And it’s one of my favorite pieces of music that has ever been created. – Noa Jamir

I think the way music is marketed in ‘the West’ does a huge disservice to international music. The flippant reduction of ‘world music’, or the perverse othering of ‘exotic’ are descriptors that must be abandoned, as they do the opposite of celebrate art from around the world. This album is not world, nor simply folk music; it is shimmering, gleeful Palm Wine Music, with sun-kissed guitars bound to leave you grinning like Rogie himself on the cover. – Frederick Bloy 

There is the music that everyone knows which is the sound of Sade which has resounded in bedrooms, lounges, clubs, and across our global ambience and memory. The music of Helen Folasade Adu as Sade has permeated cultural life at a phenomenal rate over more than forty years since her debut 1984 album Diamond Life. Her music has been an integral part of my own relationships as I reflect on the immense impact of so many albums, and especially Paradise Now which deeply reverberated in our daytime and nighttime haunts as we sauntered from bar to club in Greenwich Village in the late 80s. A remarkable song ‘Immigrant’ in her 2000 LP Lovers Rock, captures acute dilemmas surrounding race, visibility, and belonging that are paramount in today’s world. – David Buyze

The opening track of the seminal Songs in the Key of Life, “Love’s In Need of Love Today” evokes the radio presenters of Wonder’s youth in a universal plea for coexistence. A perfect song in an ironclad catalog of perfect material, it’s more pertinent than ever. I had the honor of seeing Stevie Wonder perform last fall and began weeping at the sheer power and reach of his art. We are blessed to share in his gift. – Aidan Moyer

Tanerélle has an incredibly pleasing voice. I love when women have lower, huskier voices. It’s so endearing and enthralling. Everything about her as an artist is so sensual and purposeful. Not to pivot too hard, but she has soundtracked more than a few of my anxiety attacks with her most excellent track, “A Trip Through Space to Clear My Mind.” It’s so gorgeous; sparse, but full of thought, retrospective. She acknowledges the anxious and low feelings that are going on, but lets herself feel them, sit with them, before deciding what to do about it, before deciding to choose herself over anything or anyone else. She is a haunting performer (in the best way, of course). – Kendall Graham

The Canadian global superstar Abel Makkonen Tesfaye as The Weeknd is a major cultural force that has dramatically impacted music through his innovative synergy of combining alternative R&B, pop, and electronica. His music speaks profoundly to the human condition in the melancholic darkness of late-night listening sessions and through the exuberance of his spellbinding work in video and on the global stage. His early song ‘House of Balloons/Glass Table Girls’ from his 2011 debut mixtape House of Balloons, samples Siouxsie and the Banshees’ beguiling song ‘Happy House’ from the 1980 album Kaleidoscope, in creating a song that spans across the ages in capturing his initial late-night artistic vision that was drenched in desolation, excess, sex and desire. – David Buyze

N’Dor is an artists I discovered through his being championed by Peter Gabriel, featuring on tracks such as ‘In Your Eyes’ and ‘Shaking the Tree’. Undeniably, he has wonderful voice, especially at the height of its register, at its most exuberant. He has also served a short stint as Minister of Tourism for his native Senegal. – Frederick Bloy

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:: Black History Month 2025 ::