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Chris Ballew, frontman for the Seattle-born band, The Presidents of the United States of America, remembers the super-tornado that sprung from his band’s self-titled 1995 album and its smash, worldwide hit, “Peaches.” It was in 1996 some 25 years ago when “Peaches” really took over the airwaves, playing seemingly every 30 minutes on commercial rock stations around the country (and, likely, globally, too).

“Peaches,” which hit No. 1 in Iceland and reached the top 20 in a handful of other countries, peaked at No. 29 on Billboard and No. 8 on its Modern Rock Tracks chart in the U.S. In the mind of many teenagers at the time, though, it was surely a domestic No. 1 hit. The song, itself, is cartoonish, fun: Peaches come from a can, Ballew sings. They were put there by a man. In a factory downtown”

But the story behind the hit is both drug-filled (in a good way) and full of coincidence. Here, we catch up with Ballew to learn the origins of the song and how it changed his life dramatically. Ballew, who recently put out a new solo project, I Am Not Me, under his own name is a true dynamo of creativity.

Yes, Damian Lillard is a six-time NBA all-star and six-time All-NBA selection. Yes, he came from a small college to burst on the scene in the world’s top basketball league and become a perennial MVP candidate. He’s a superstar with commercials on every channel for products like sports drinks, shoes, and streaming services.

But Lillard is also a world-class musician and emcee. Candidly, this is not a case of a famous athlete leaning on his celebrity to sell a few records, boost YouTube views, or try to make a pseudo name for himself in another area of entertainment. Instead, Lillard’s is a story of hard work—“brick by brick,” as he says.

Perhaps more than his ability to shoot the basketball or spit a verse, Lillard’s ability to work hard, to “check every box” and not skip steps is what’s most admirable and world-class about him. The “D” in his first name assuredly stands for “Dedication.” More than a game or a song, it’s what he excels at.

We caught up with Lillard—aka Dame D.O.L.L.A.—to ask him about his new record, Different On Levels The Lord Allowed, out Friday, Aug. 20, with features from Snoop and Lil Wayne. We also talked about his origins in music growing up in Oakland, his legendary work ethic, his close-knit musical family, his community, and where he first learned a love for language.

Acclaimed singer-songwriter, Julien Baker, has already done a great deal in her life. At 25 years old, she’s released three LPs, three EPs, a number of singles and earned great praise and recognition for these works. But, for Baker, it’s what she doesn’t know, what she hasn’t yet done that seems to fuel her more and more.

With her latest release in February, Little Oblivions, Baker pushed her own creative boundaries, recording the LP over a longer period of time and with more musicians and soundscapes at her disposal. For much of her earlier career, Baker made songs with a more restricted scope, often performing live solo with just a loop pedal.

As part of Baker’s push toward sonic exploration, she is poised to soon release her next album, a five-song remix EP featuring reworked tracks from Little Oblivions. For the debut release from the work, Baker sought Helios frontman, Keith Kenniff, to offer his ambient and electronic expertise. The result is a new contemplative reimagination of Baker’s already thoughtful track, “Bloodshot,” which is out today (Aug. 10).

We caught up with Baker and Kenniff to talk about their collaborative relationship, how the newly remixed song evolved in the process, and much more.