Articles by Justin Beckner
The King of Rock & Roll Was More Than Just That: How Elvis Presley Fused Blues, Country, and Gospel Into Rock & Roll
Scott Joplin: How the King of Ragtime Shaped American Music
‘Last Christmas’: The Enduring Appeal of Wham!’s Holiday Classic
Now a Christmas Classic, ‘O Holy Night’ Was Originally Banned by Church Leaders
A Holiday Standard Shaped by War: Why ‘I’ll Be Home for Christmas’ Still Resonates
‘Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas’ Was Rewritten to Be Happier, So Why Does It Still Sound Sad?
Frank Sinatra Loathed ‘Strangers in the Night,’ Yet It Became One of the Legendary Singer’s Most Successful Tunes
His Legacy Is Controversial, and Yet His Works Are Impressive: Way Ahead of His Time, This Legendary Composer Is Known for All the Wrong Reasons
How Billy Joel’s Early Bar-Gig Years Shaped “Piano Man” and Why the Song Still Connects Today
Don’t Follow the Formula: They Deliberately Defied Rock Songwriting Trends, and Yet They’re One of the Biggest in the Genre
Executives Wanted to Cut ‘Over the Rainbow,’ but a Producer Fought to Keep It — and Made Movie History
Everyone Knows About the Elton John and Bernie Taupin Writing Duo, But What Really Went on Behind the Scenes, and How Did They Create All Those Hits?
Four Horror Film Scores Every Composer Should Study: From Jaws to The Witch, What to Learn and Why
Two Music Theory Tools Adele Uses to Create Power and Vulnerability (and Songs That Will Stand The Test of Time)
It’s a Legendary Song, but There’s a (Very) Simple Reason Why This Frank Sinatra Classic Is So Great
Beethoven Was the First Rock Star: What Modern Musicians Can Still Learn From His Genius
The Minimalistic Greatness (and Edge) of Billie Eilish: A DIY Home Musician Who Reinvented Pop Music
Which One’s a Better Sports Anthem: Coldplay’s “Viva La Vida” or Queen’s “We Will Rock You”?
Quirky and Dark Can Work Perfectly Together, and Danny Elfman Does It the Best: Here Are Some of His Secrets
Scoring Emotion: What Really Makes John Williams So Great and How He Shapes the Narrative
How Taylor Swift Evolved From Country to Synth-Pop: A Songwriter’s Guide to Genre-Crossing
When Music Speaks: 10 Songs That Drove Change Each Decade For the Past 100 Years (1930s to Today)
