Shatter the Standards

Shatter the Standards

Home
Album Reviews
BLAST
Blackpolitan
Lists
Milestones
Soulpolitan
Wednesday Roundups
bmr
Words Past da Margin
Tenderness, Control, and a Strong Sense of Self
These five R&B albums from 2011 that stayed close to the body and the voice, then kept deepening over time. Some came in quietly, but none of them…
8 mins ago • Soulpolitan
Album Review: Good Intentions by Ego Ella May
A South London songwriter turns prayer, diaspora grief, and unglamorous love into her sharpest record yet.
4 hrs ago • Shatter the Standards and Ameenah Laquita
Wednesday Roundups #141: 25 New Projects You Should Listen to Now
Listen to new releases from Olive Jones, Cities Aviv, Miranda Rae, Self Proclaimed Narcissist, sky, Charlotte Colace, Blessing Jolie, Jamal Gasol, Leven…
12 hrs ago • Shatter the Standards
Album Review: Comfortably Suffering by Duncecap & Samurai Banana
On their first album together in a decade, the Queens rapper and his longtime producer reunite with sharper teeth and heavier bags under their eyes.
Mar 17 • Shatter the Standards and Mina Abdel
The Handguide to Lucky Daye
David Brown left a cult at eight, got cut from American Idol at nineteen, and starved in LA at thirty. Lucky Daye is what happened after all of it…
Mar 17 • Shatter the Standards and Janelle K. Moore
So Plush on Rodney Jerkins, Darkchild Records, and the Making of Their Debut Album (2001 Interview)
Rodney Jerkins has been tearing through the R&B charts across the turn of the century. The first act on Darkchild, the label he established under Epic…
Mar 16 • bmr
Milestones: I Want You by Marvin Gaye
Leon Ware built the body; Gaye dressed it in sweat and falsetto. I Want You is a slow-burning desire, a borrowed collection of songs that became the…
Mar 16 • Shatter the Standards and Imani Raven
There Is Only One Chaka Khan
Since the mid-seventies, Chaka Khan has been a colorful chameleon on and off the stage. She is widely known for her spontaneity and has constantly found…
Mar 16 • Blackpolitan and Raya Sinclair
Album Review: Love Games by Larrenwong
A Bay Area multi-instrumentalist’s second LP charms and seduces with real skill. It rarely risks enough to let anybody see him sweat.
Mar 15 • Shatter the Standards and Jen Mauvais
Album Review: Beautifully All Over the Place by Eric Roberson
A grown-folks record comfortable in its own living room. Roberson’s pen is sharpest when it stays indoors; the pep talks could use a window.
Mar 15 • Shatter the Standards and Jamila W.
Glenn Lewis, Thundercat, Alex Isley, and More R&B Songs This Week
Glenn Lewis is back. Plus Thundercat, Alex Isley, Leven Kali, and Casper Sage. What do we get? Returns, debuts, and a duet that sounds like almost…
Mar 15 • Soulpolitan
Album Review: What’s Bracken by Jeremy Ryan
The Jacksonville rapper’s concept album asks you not to trust him, then spends almost an hour trying to earn your trust anyway.
Mar 14 • Shatter the Standards and Tai Lawson
© 2026 Shatter the Standards, LLC. · Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start your SubstackGet the app
Substack is the home for great culture