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Top Picks: Shuri’s debut, Vampire Weekend’s latest, and more

Critic Candace McDuffie on the ‘Avengers’ spinoff comic featuring Shuri from ‘Black Panther,’ Vampire Weekend’s album ‘Father of the Bride,’ and more.

  • By Candace McDuffie Contributor

Comics: Shuri’s debut 

With last year’s “Black Panther” movie, audiences got to know – and adore – T’Challa’s brilliant, tech-savvy sister Shuri. Best-selling author Nnedi Okorafor and illustrator Leonardo Romero team up for Shuri’s Marvel debut with “Shuri: The Search for Black Panther.” In this first Shuri volume, T’Challa goes missing after being sent on a short mission into space. Shuri has to keep Wakanda running while fervently looking for him. Will she succumb to the pressure of accepting the Black Panther mantle in his absence? Get ready for a fun – and suspenseful – read.

Vampire Weekend’s latest 

Vampire Weekend’s fourth album – and its third consecutive record to debut at No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard 200 – is a natural blend of the band’s signature sonic eclecticism with poignant and well-crafted musicianship. Frontman Ezra Koenig is still vocally lucid and refreshing as ever, but on “Father of the Bride” he basks in his lyrical maturity. Koenig gets slightly existentialist on the endearing yet dreary ballad “My Mistake” and more notably on “This Life” where he meditates on the pain he causes his significant other. “Father of the Bride” exudes the sort of growth and confidence that made the world fall in love with Vampire Weekend in the first place.

Hip-hop’s must read

Most hip-hop music sites are obsessed with discovering the next big artist and acquiring clicks with celebrity gossip. DJBooth.net, on the other hand, goes deeper with its examination of urban culture. Its articles explore everything from the deeper purpose of rap festivals to why black artists are rejecting code-switching (alternating between two different types of language in a single conversation). The site is a must read for anyone looking to critically engage in a genre of music that shapes mainstream culture.

Candace McDuffie is a Boston-based music and pop culture journalist. Her work has been featured in publications such as Entertainment Weekly and Forbes.

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