Aesthetics for Birds

Aesthetics and Philosophy of Art for Everyone

A promotional image from Spotify's 2024 Wrapped. Mostly in Spotify's typeface, some of the letters and numbers are styled as yellow splotches.

December 10, 2024
by Aesthetics for Birds
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How Spotify and its Genres Define Who We Are

Spotify and its bizarre, hyper-specific genres are rewriting how we understand music. Why? And should we bother fighting back? Continue reading →

Ten ballerinas dressed in minimal white outfits dance on a dark stage. Four are lined up in the center, three arranged on triangles on each side, with two in the front.

September 12, 2024
by Aesthetics for Birds
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Barbara Montero on Balanchine Ballets

Philosopher Barbara Montero, who has written widely on the body, talks about George Balanchine’s Concerto Barocco. Continue reading →

April 18, 2024
by Aesthetics for Birds
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Five Scholars Discuss Beyoncé’s “Cowboy Carter”

Five academics review “Cowboy Carter” from different angles: genre, place and community, politics and the market, and the boldness of Beyoncé herself. Continue reading →

Taylor Swift singing at a concert, wearing a sparkly black jumpsuit adorned with a red snake

October 26, 2023
by Alex King
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How Swiftomania Turns Fans into Professors

How Taylor Swift became this generation’s Franz Liszt and James Joyce wrapped in one Continue reading →

October 19, 2023
by Aesthetics for Birds
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What’s Wrong with Setlist.fm?

The concert equivalent of a spoiler: Checking a band’s concert setlist beforehand. Continue reading →

A black bedazzled jacket. Vertical and lines going up and down the entire back form bars on a jail cell beyond which a lonely cowboy plays a guitar.

March 2, 2023
by Aesthetics for Birds
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Nose to the Rhinestone: The Authenticity of Country Music’s Sparkling Suits

How can the country singer’s rhinestone suit be truly authentic if it’s not what cowboys or farmers would actually wear? Continue reading →

Two images Monroe's dress. One before worn by Kardashian, the other after with some crystals missing and stretching around the zipper. An overlayed Tweet reads "Everyone's poling on Kim Kardashian for ruining the Marilyn Monroe dress, but no one said a word when Nic Cage stole the Declaration of Independence."

December 2, 2022
by Aesthetics for Birds
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Lizzo Playing Madison’s Flute and Kim Wearing Monroe’s Dress Are Not the Same

Lizzo playing James Madison’s crystal flute is a success story for preservationists. Kim Kardashian wearing Marilyn Monroe’s dress is not. Continue reading →

October 20, 2022
by Aesthetics for Birds
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When Can A Band Cover Their Own Song?

Were the Pet Shop Boys covering Elvis or Brenda Lee when they sang “Always on My Mind”? And other paradoxes of cover songs. Continue reading →

A black man with a crown of thorns and the handle of a gun in his waistband holds a complacent child in his arms while a woman breastfeeds on a bed.

September 22, 2022
by Aesthetics for Birds
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Five Scholars Discuss ‘Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers’

Kendrick Lamar’s 2022 album has been met with controversy, even among general praise. Here, scholars across different disciplines examine and discuss it. Continue reading →

January 27, 2022
by Aesthetics for Birds
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Polite Conversations: Philosophers Discuss the Arts

A YouTube series features interviews with philosophers about their work in aesthetics and the philosophy of art. Continue reading →