Amani Bin Shikhan

Essays

Teyana Taylor's True Potential Shines on Stage

It is consensus that the G.O.O.D. Music-signee deserves more, but what Taylor does with what she has is truly something worthy of marvel.
Amani Bin Shikhan
10.24.18
Interviews

Halal Gang Set the Record Straight

Following the tragic loss of Toronto’s Smoke Dawg, three childhood friends and members of the collective talk about their upbringings and what happens when home fails them.
Amani Bin Shikhan
7.6.18
Interviews

Moud's Stirring 'Maba' EP Retraces His Parents' Journey from East Africa

The Torontonian R&B singer-songwriter traces the city's constellation of diaspora with grooves and heart.
Amani Bin Shikhan
6.6.18
Interviews

Faiza Makes R&B About the Audacity of Being a Black Girl

The artist's debut EP 'Audacity' tells stories of infatuation and money-making while melding new-age R&B with the genre’s traditional sensibilities.
Amani Bin Shikhan
4.11.18
Essays

The Weeknd Breaks Up With Himself on 'My Dear Melancholy,'

'My Dear Melancholy,' is a break-up album. But who is it, really, that he’s leaving behind?
Amani Bin Shikhan
4.3.18
PROFILES

The Woes and Wiles of Cold Specks

Writing in English and Somali about love and exile, heartbreak and catastrophe, 'Fool’s Paradise' is the singer's most open offering yet.
Amani Bin Shikhan
12.12.17
Essays

What’s Drake to Do When Toronto Isn’t Enough?

"Toronto’s problems always have been and always will be greater than the one who stunned it out of its stupor."
Amani Bin Shikhan
11.20.17
Interviews

Adria Kain Wants You To Exhale on New EP 'DECOMPRESSED'

The singer-songwriter tells her story of depression, fatigue, and resilience after finding herself face-to-face with an insatiable darkness.
Amani Bin Shikhan
11.6.17
Essays

Daniel Caesar's Holy Devotion to Love on 'Freudian'

On his debut record, the Toronto singer finds himself at the centre of his own reckoning.
Amani Bin Shikhan
8.30.17
Essays

Aminé‘s World of Fun Is Good for All of Us

The young Portland artist is more than a one-hit wonder. Bananas, anyone?
Amani Bin Shikhan
8.4.17
Essays

"Bodak Yellow" Is Just the Beginning of Cardi B's Reign

With "Bodak Yellow," Cardi B has stepped out from being a social media star and established herself as a rapper to be taken seriously.
Amani Bin Shikhan
8.2.17
Essays

'All Eyez On Me' and The Danger in Worshiping Our Idols

The 'All Eyez On Me' doc is not the first or last rehashing of Pac’s legacy. But when will it end?
Amani Bin Shikhan
6.24.17
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