Sasha Frere-Jones joins L.A. Times as cultural critic

Sasha Frere-Jones, a leading voice on music, language and culture, is joining the Los Angeles Times as cultural critic at large, Editor Davan Maharaj and Managing Editor S. Mitra Kalita have announced.

Frere-Jones will help launch an entertainment-focused digital vertical and will work closely with colleagues across the newsroom to increase The Times’ efforts and relevance in these key areas of coverage.

Frere-Jones comes to The Times from Genius, where he was an executive editor. He was a staff writer and pop music critic at the New Yorker from 2004 to 2015, and before that wrote for the Village Voice, Spin and the New York Times, among others.

He was a founding member of the band Ui, which released five albums and toured the U.S. and Europe from 1990 to 2010.

Over the years, Frere-Jones has written about such diverse topics as Beyoncé and fountain pens, Timbaland and ringtones, Yves Klein’s blue and the ideal bodega sandwich.

Frere-Jones, who was raised in New York City, will move West this month and begin work July 27. You can find him on Twitter at @sfj.