Podcast Episodes
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Paper Planes, Chandelier & What the #@%! is Timbre? (with Constance Grady)
We hand over the hosting duties to Constance Grady, book reviewer for Vox.com, to discuss our new book/baby - Switched on Pop: How Popular Music Work…
6 years, 3 months ago
Prelude & Feud on a 'G' Thang: Biggie vs Tupac
The East Coast / West Coast hip hop feud between Tupac Shakur and Biggie Smalls is full of tragedy and conspiracy, but what did it really sound like?…
6 years, 3 months ago
Pop is the Sound We Need Right Now (with Electric Guest)
Electric Guest (Asa Taccone and Matthew Compton) take a left turn towards pop on “Dollar" — a song about making more out of less, something too many …
6 years, 3 months ago
The Past, Present, and Future of EMO (with Allegra Frank)
Nate doesn’t know much about the musical style known as emo. Sadly, he was too busy nerding out on jazz during his youthful years to catch the moment…
6 years, 3 months ago
When Pop and Classical Collide (with James Bennett II)
Once upon a time, classical music was pop, so today it's worth stepping back and asking: where does one genre stop and the other begin? Can classical…
6 years, 4 months ago
Unlocking the Rhythms of Rosalía
Back in the fall of 2017, our producer Megan Lubin went for a stroll near her house, popped in earbuds, and heard a song that’s stuck with her ever s…
6 years, 4 months ago
Rihanna Party! (with Gina Delvac)
Last year, NPR Music ran an audacious headline: "Rihanna Is The 21st Century's Most Influential Musician." Millions and millions of fans the world ov…
6 years, 4 months ago
Why U Love 2 Listen 2 Prince (with Anil Dash)
Anil Dash is obsessed with Prince. Since he’s the host of the tech podcast Function, he has a unique perspective on the Purple One’s complicated rela…
6 years, 4 months ago
A Brief History of Men Singing Really High
Men singing high is so ubiquitous in modern pop that we might take it granted, never pausing to ask: has it always been this way? Estelle Caswell, wh…
6 years, 5 months ago
Total Request Live! Taylor, Lana, Kim, and More (with Sam Sanders)
NPR's Sam Sanders stops by to break down the tracks that Switched On listeners have been loving. Swedish dancefloor confessionals, songs that stop ti…
6 years, 5 months ago