Louder: How did Flea make a jazz album? Practice, practice, practice.

March 21, 2026

	By Caryn Ganz

“For two years, the musician known as Flea led a double life,” Hank Shteamer writes. By night, he headlined stadiums with Red Hot Chili Peppers, still one of rock’s most durable bands. And by day, he practiced the trumpet, dedicated to rediscovering and mastering an instrument he first found as a child. The result is his first full-length solo album, a largely instrumental LP featuring contemporary jazz luminaries and guests including Nick Cave and Thom Yorke. John Lurie praised one of its tracks: “That’s not rock, that’s not jazz, that’s music,” he said. “Which is as it should be.” Hank’s story and the photos and videos by Ariel Fisher are a delight, and for more on Flea’s past, I recommend revisiting this Alex Pappademas profile from a few years ago.

The big news in pop this week was a comeback by the K-pop juggernaut BTS, which like Elvis Presley, returned from military service to a different musical landscape than it left.

And Lindsay Zoladz wrote a beautiful profile of an indie-pop musician making her own return — Grace Ives, who broke out with her 2022 album, “Janky Star,” then hit rock bottom. “Ives was often described as a kind of endearingly sloppy agent of millennial-girl chaos,” Lindsay writes. Her new album, “Girlfriend,” “finds her reckoning with the consequences” and finding happiness on the other side.

Ariel Fisher for The New York Times

How Did Flea Make a Jazz Album? Practice, Practice, Practice.

The Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist returned to the trumpet, for a new record featuring Nick Cave, Thom Yorke and a core cast of contemporary jazz luminaries.

By Hank Shteamer and Ariel Fisher

Five members of a K-pop group stand in a tight formation, all dressed in black and holding microphones.

BTS Is Back. But the K-Pop Landscape Has Changed.

The superstar boy band returns after a four-year hiatus on Friday. The genre it helped turn into a global juggernaut has endured some shifts, and minted new stars.

By Steve Knopper

Two men dressed in military camouflage hold bouquets of flowers and salute.

As BTS Returns From the Military, There’s a Precedent: Elvis

With the K-pop group releasing its comeback album, “Arirang,” on Friday, look back at how one of pop’s original kings handled his time out of the spotlight.

By Gavin Edwards

BTS: A Guide to the K-Pop Group’s Discography

As the boy band returns on Friday with “Arirang,” listen to key albums and solo releases by its seven members.

By Jeff Benjamin

BTS’s Comeback Show Was Heavy on Their New Album

The concert in Seoul’s historic center was a grand homecoming for a pivotal force of South Korean soft power. RM, the group’s leader, performed through an ankle injury.

IN PHOTOGRAPHS AND VIDEO

K-Pop’s BTS Returns to the Stage

The group’s first concert in nearly four years — held in the historic center of Seoul — was heavy on songs from its new album. They also played a few old hits.

By The New York Times

St. Vincent, dressed in black leather, sits on a green couch in front of busy wallpaper.

OK McCausland for The New York Times

8 Songs We’re Talking About This Week

St. Vincent teams with a 60-piece orchestra, and Squarepusher replaces one by playing all the parts himself.

By Jon Pareles

A television still showing Kermit the Frog sitting beside Ray Charles, who is dressed in a yellow checkered sport coat.

CBS/Getty Images

8 Great Songs That Make It Easy to Be Green

Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with Ray Charles’s take on Kermit the Frog’s classic and tracks from Lorde, Booker T. & the M.G.’s, Joni Mitchell and more.

By Lindsay Zoladz

Caroline Tompkins for The New York Times

Grace Ives Was Tipped as a Top Indie-Rock Star. Then She Hit the Bottom.

Her 2022 breakthrough, “Janky Star,” won her accolades and devotees, but she didn’t begin a follow-up until she got sober and started fresh.

By Lindsay Zoladz and Caroline Tompkins

Tim Barber for The New York Times

The Loud Nights and Quiet Days of Avalon Emerson

Known as a D.J. at one of Berlin’s most storied clubs, she swerved with an LP of dreamy pop. Now she’s back, cataloging the angst of 30-something creative life.

By Foster Kamer and Tim Barber