Gary Suarez of CABBAGES

Helio-Tropes

Gary Suarez is a writer and podcaster who founded CABBAGES, a media outlet and podcast dedicated to covering independent artists. A Queens, New York native, Gary has contributed to esteemed publications such as The Quietus, Forbes, Rolling Stone, The New Yorker, The New York Times, NPR, and more. In this special two-hour year-end finale, Gary joins us to share his favorite albums of 2024—including standout projects from Cavalier, Roc Marciano, Vayda, and Your Old Droog—and reflect on the journey of launching his own publication and podcast via a newsletter during the pandemic, back when having a Substack wasn’t as common for journalists as having a cellphone. We explore his experiences breaking into music writing in the days when advance copies arrived by USPS, his perspective on covering independent artists, the use of samples in Jersey club and drill music, the “rap trap” that is pain music, and his Top 5 songs of the moment. Come for the year-end album breakdown, and stay for the tangents on cringe vulnerability in hip-hop and the legacy of Jay-Z and more.