Ross Raihala
Pop Music Critic at Pioneer Press
Pop music critic St. Paul @PioneerPress. All shade very necessary. Former dancer at the Grind. World weary, cynical arbiter of taste. Gen X, baby.
Articles
-
1 week ago |
twincities.com | Ross Raihala
With the forecast calling for temperatures in the 90s this weekend, the coolest place in town may well be the Twin Cities Jazz Festival. What started as a small single day event in downtown Minneapolis 27 years ago has grown into what organizers call one of the largest free civic jazz festivals in the upper Midwest. The family-friendly event has called Mears Park, in St. Paul’s Lowertown neighborhood, home since 2009. Here’s what you need to know if you’re planning to check out the action.
-
1 week ago |
twincities.com | Ross Raihala
After opening his concert Tuesday night at St. Paul’s Xcel Energy Center, Rock and Roll Hall of Famer James Taylor told the crowd of about 12,000: “Minneapolis. It’s great to be back.”But a few songs later, the 77-year-old corrected himself and then told a great story about Minnesota guitar maker Jim Olson. Back in 1989, Olson heard Taylor was going to be in town to play a benefit show and managed to get one of his guitars into Taylor’s hands.
-
1 week ago |
yahoo.com | Ross Raihala
After opening his concert Tuesday night at St. Paul’s Xcel Energy Center, Rock and Roll Hall of Famer James Taylor told the crowd of about 12,000: “Minneapolis. It’s great to be back.”But a few songs later, the 77-year-old corrected himself and then told a great story about Minnesota guitar maker Jim Olson. Back in 1989, Olson heard Taylor was going to be in town to play a benefit show and managed to get one of his guitars into Taylor’s hands.
-
1 week ago |
twincities.com | Ross Raihala
The Walker Art Center’s newly announced 2025-26 performing arts season “fearlessly confronts the urgent issues defining our world, brought to life through captivating movement, light, sound, projection, text and indelible stage images.”Tickets for most performances are on sale now via walkerart.org or by calling 612-375-7600. The four productions in January and February are part of the Walker’s Out There 2026 series.
-
1 week ago |
twincities.com | Ross Raihala
Saturday night, the Weeknd transformed U.S. Bank Stadium into a futuristic, post-apocalyptic wasteland with impeccable production design and a steady stream of the Toronto native’s gloomy, boomy electronic pop songs that dabble in everything from goth rock to hip hop. While many of his hits arrive cloaked in a dark sonic snarl, the man born Abel Tesfaye makes them truly special with his angelic voice that’s often reminiscent of the late Michael Jackson.
Journalists covering the same region
Joni Astrup
Associate Editor at Elk River Star News
Joni Astrup primarily covers news in the Minneapolis area, Minnesota, United States and surrounding suburbs.
Ben Hovland
Staff Photojournalist at MPR News (Saint Paul, MN)
Ben Hovland primarily covers news in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States and surrounding areas.
Brooks O'Brian
Program Director and Afternoon Host at WFMS-FM (Indianapolis, IN)
Brooks O'Brian primarily covers news in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, Minnesota, United States, including surrounding suburbs.
Ricky Campbell
Investigative Producer at KSTP-TV (St Paul, MN)
Ricky Campbell primarily covers news in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area, Minnesota, United States and surrounding regions.
Tim Lyon
Digital Managing Editor at KMXK-FM (94.9)
Digital Managing Editor at WWJO-FM (St. Cloud, MN)
Tim Lyon primarily covers news in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, Minnesota, United States and surrounding suburbs.
Try JournoFinder For Free
Search and contact over 1M+ journalist profiles, browse 100M+ articles, and unlock powerful PR tools.
Start Your 7-Day Free Trial →Coverage map
X (formerly Twitter)
- Followers
- 6K
- Tweets
- 35K
- DMs Open
- Yes
As someone who has spent the last week listening to nothing but the new Miley Cyrus and Pulp albums, I've realized Something Beautiful is Miley's This Is Hardcore
5-8 https://t.co/sdgIH3l9Wt
I'm really digging the new Miley Cyrus album. It's weird! But it's got some killer songs. I absolutely adore Walk of Fame, which sounds like it was Jimmy Somerville (not Brittany Howard) singing on it. https://t.co/HTiNhJMba4