Kelefa Sanneh
The New Yorker
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Past articles by Kelefa:
Ed Templeton’s Unsparing Photographic Diary of Skateboarding Life
Templeton’s images, taken between 1995 and 2012, capture the intimacy and aimlessness of being on tour. → Read More
Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Perilous Power of Respectability
We revere the man and revile the strategy, but King knew what he was doing. → Read More
Can HARDY Revive “Butt Rock”?
Onstage, the musician plays the role of a small-town boy who is too rock for country, and too country for rock and roll. → Read More
A New TV Show That’s a Real Slap in the Face
Kelefa Sanneh on “Power Slap,” a new TBS show that televises slap fighting, a sport that’s drawn criticism from medical professionals and M.M.A. fighters alike. → Read More
A Rising Country Singer Tries to Win Over Nashville’s Gatekeepers
Hailey Whitters has won critical acclaim and fans on the Internet. But radio still determines who gets to be a star. → Read More
Morgan Wallen Is Not on an Apology Tour
The singer was banished from radio stations after he used the N-word, but his album was still, by one count, the most popular of 2021, and he has now taken his show back on the road. → Read More
Petey’s Earnest Songs and Absurd TikToks
He has become famous online for silly and sweet comedy videos. Now fans are discovering his music. → Read More
The Education of a Part-Time Punk
Learning to love music—and to hate it, too. → Read More
Manny Pacquiao and When a Boxer Should Retire
The fighter, who is forty-two, will enter the ring again on Saturday night. → Read More
The Spaced-Out Jazz of Sam Gendel and Sam Wilkes
The group blurs the line between jazz duo and electronic-production team, providing listeners with not many notes but plenty of vibes. → Read More
The Ridiculous, Not-So-Ridiculous Spectacle of Floyd Mayweather vs. Logan Paul
On Sunday, a YouTube prankster will step into the ring with one of the greatest living boxers. What could go wrong? → Read More
How Olivia Rodrigo Became Pop’s Brightest New Star
On “Sour,” Rodrigo delivers eleven semisweet songs, almost all of them about love gone wrong. → Read More
From Guns to Gay Marriage, How Did Rights Take Over Politics?
The N.R.A., the Supreme Court, and the forces driving the country’s most intractable legal debates. Kelefa Sanneh on the Second Amendment and new books by Carol Anderson and Jamal Greene. → Read More
The Plan to Build a Capital for Black Capitalism
Kelefa Sanneh on the activist who set out, in 1969, to build an African-American metropolis from scratch. What would have happened if Soul City had succeeded? → Read More
How Morgan Wallen Became the Most Wanted Man in Country
Wallen has become a singer, a character, and, to the surprise of many Nashville professionals, an online sex symbol. → Read More
Mike Tyson and Roy Jones: When Is a Fight Not a Fight?
By the time the two came together on Saturday night, out of retirement, each was far removed from his prime. After promises of carnage, what followed was thoroughly civilized. → Read More
Cage-Fighting During a Pandemic: Is This the Future of Sports?
On Saturday night, the U.F.C.’s voluble president finally did what he has been saying he would do: he put on the first major American athletic event since the country began its lockdown. → Read More
Pinegrove Stages a Complicated Comeback
In the wake of a scandal, the indie band must prove that it has atoned. → Read More
The Safdie Brothers’ Full-Immersion Filmmaking
After a decade of acclaimed do-it-yourself productions, two directors make their big move. → Read More
Andy Ruiz Shocked the Boxing World—Now He’s Trying to Do It Again
Unlike some boxing spectacles, the rematch between Andy Ruiz and Anthony Joshua, in Saudi Arabia, is also a fascinating athletic contest. → Read More