Radio Heartland, The Current's stream stream featuring acoustic, Americana and roots music, will soon celebrate its 10th anniversary. This week on Listen to Looch, Mary Lucia talks to Radio Heartland Program Director Mike Pengra about MPR's longest-running music stream.

'The Dirt,' a forthcoming Motley Crue biopic, has a release date next spring. Plus, when Beyonce and Ed Sheeran showed up for a duet with VERY different outfits, it sparked a fan debate: do female artists need to meet higher onstage dress standards than their male peers? Also in the news today: Kanye apologizes for being on his phone during Cher musical, Travis Scott hits number one with a sprawling single, Princeton singers deem 'Kiss the Girl' inappropriate, and the 1975 pay tribute to Talking Heads.

Listen up. It's National Sock Day. We just played an in-studio with JD McPherson where he played songs off his new record SOCKS. And we just learned that George H.W. Bush had socks for every occasion, even his funeral. So for today's 9:30 Coffee Break, what songs do you want to hear that mention socks or any kind of footwear?

Even though JD McPherson told himself he'd never do a Christmas album, a little holiday spirit changed his mind. McPherson and his band recently released 'Socks,' an album of 11 holiday originals. 'It still just hits me as the most ridiculous album title of all time!' McPherson laughs as he and his band stopped into The Current studio for a session hosted by Brian Oake and Jill Riley.

Roy Orbison played his final gig; The Byrds and Sly and the Family Stone went to No. 1; Prince put on a trench coat in protest; the so-called "Million Dollar Quartet" impromptu jam session took place with Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Johnny Cash and Carl Perkins, and Frank Zappa passed away, Today in Music History.

Minnesota music landmark First Avenue has teamed up with Minneapolis retailer Ragstock to create a pair of holiday sweaters sure to catch the eyes of local music fans. Ragstock, a thrift chain with locations that have become go-to destinations for holiday sweater shoppers, helped create two “ugly” Christmas sweaters adorned with the First Ave logo…

This Saturday, Dec. 8, two of the world’s leading Qawwali musicians, Fareed Ayaz and Abu Muhammad, will be returning to Minnesota for a live Qawwali concert. Held at the Minnesota Masonic Heritage Center in Bloomington, the concert aims to bring Qawwali music to Minnesota for more people to hear. Originating in India during the 13th century, Qawwali music is…

Associate blogger Hanna Bubser shares her favorite songs of 2018.

Jeffrey Bissoy, assistant producer for MPR News and contributor to The Current, shares his favorite songs of 2018.

The Message co-host Sanni Brown shares her top 10 songs of 2018.