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The Arts Intel Report

A Cultural Compass
For the World Traveler
A Cultural Compass
For the World Traveler

Artists Inspired by Music: Interscope Reimagined

Jan 30 – Feb 13, 2022
5905 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90036, USA

In 1989, Jimmy Iovine and Ted Field wished for a record label that gave artists and producers—rather than lawyers and executives—creative control. So they started one: Interscope Records. Their first hit came in December 1990: “Rico Suave” by Gerardo, an Ecuadorian rapper. Countless hits followed during that decade, from artists like Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch, Tupac Shakur, and Snoop Dogg. Thirty years on, Interscope is behind records from a range of artists—pop stars Lady GaGa and Billie Eilish, rappers Eminem and Dr. Dre. LACMA has tapped contemporary artists—among them Takashi Murakami, Ed Ruscha, and Lauren Halsey—to make work inspired by albums and songs from Interscope’s catalogue. The exhibition presents 57 original works. A series of limited edition vinyls are on sale. —Jensen Davis

Kehinde Wiley, “The Watcher,” 2021 © Kehinde Wiley. Photo courtesy of LACMA.