Janelle Monae

In light of our Independence issue this month, we feel that there is no lady better suited for the music section than Janelle Monáe – the of-the-moment artist whose songs evoke a sense of freedom, soul and energy (you can bet we sing our hearts out to We Are Young whenever it’s being played). The 26-year-old from Kansas City studied drama at the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in New York before joining the Freedom Theatre in Philadelphia. Her love and talent for drama and performing was brought to the attention of Big Boi of Outkast, whom she met in Atlanta. Big Boi told his friend Sean P. Diddy Combs about her, who then visited her MySpace page and the rest, as they say, is history (yes, she’s signed to Diddy’s Bad Boy Records).

Out Of The Game

Rufus Wainwright

This Mark Ronson-produced album is the seventh for singer-songwriter Rufus Wainwright. With their many years and experiences put together, you can expect Wainright’s great vocals paired with equally great music, lyrics and collaborations. Nels Cline of Wilco, Sean Lennon, and Nick Zinner of Yeah Yeah Yeahs all make appearances at one point or another.