In the wake of a major political event, like the president firing the head of the FBI, it can be difficult to remember why creating, working in or writing about music is important. Let me give you a reason: You, too, can make a political difference. Keeping the spotlight on members of vulnerable populations is an act of resistance. I saw that in this great piece by ELLIE GILES on protecting the mental health of bands he manages. I saw it in MATT WILHITE's thoughtful piece for DJ BOOTH dissecting how MILEY CYRUS’s recent comments and the idea of “conscious rap” is a destructive narrative for hip-hop. I saw it in JESSIE REYEZ's hard-to-watch short film addressing what happens when gatekeepers abuse their position to take advantage of up-and-coming talent. Even on days like these, when you can’t peel your eyes away from TWITTER for fear of missing the next unbelievable piece of breaking news, know that not only does what you do matter, but it is a direct assault on those who would silence and ignore all these people and issues... I am obsessed with this talk out of the COLLISION CONFERENCE in NEW ORLEANS on how voice control can impact the future of music. How often to you ask ALEXA (who execs from SPOTIFY and PANDORA noted has a high engagement for their users) to play you a song? Or a playlist? IAN GELLER, global head of hardware at Spotify, told the crowd that ALEXA and similar product engagement seems to be “an IPHONE moment for the connected home," while Pandora VP GEOFF SNYDER said his 7-year-old often hops in their car and demands that Alexa plays the MOANA soundtrack without giving it a thought. Geller says the next move is getting Alexa up to speed with more specific voice requests… So many great, nerdy reads out there, but this one by JASON YUAN, who was turned down for a graphic design internship by APPLE MUSIC and so redesigned its app to get the experience he would have got on the job, is special. The part of his case study suggesting how to make the interface more user-friendly to listeners he calls “nomads” is of special interest... A quick reminder that in a world of MIRANDA LAMBERTs and MAREN MORRISes, there is still only one female outlaw: JESSI COLTER. With a new memoir out, this is an excellent time to revisit the legendary world of ‘60s country music through her eyes.