Switched on Pop Vox Media Podcast Network
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- Music
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A podcast all about the making and meaning of popular music. Musicologist Nate Sloan & songwriter Charlie Harding pull back the curtain on how pop hits work magic on our ears & our culture. From Vulture and the Vox Media Podcast Network.
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Lawrence: the eight-piece family band reshaping the music business
In today’s volatile music industry, many artists struggle to navigate the pitfalls of touring, the whims of social media, and the inequity of exploitative contracts. But Lawrence, an eight-piece band led by siblings Clyde and Gracie Lawrence, provide a beacon of hope. Combining exceptional talent, savvy business acumen, and a familial bond, they've forged an uncanny path as a band. From testifying before Congress to tackle industry monopolies, to managing their tour logistics and branding, Lawrence seamlessly blends the artistry of music with the realities of a family-run enterprise. Their perseverance and authenticity shine through their newest album, aptly named "Family Business.”
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The Imperfect Feminine: Camila, Charli, and Sabrina
The first half of 2024 has been for the “pop girlie.” It seems like every major artist who’s dominated the discourse this year has been a woman, ostensibly making music about what it means to be a woman. There’s Camila Cabello's "Chanel no.5,” Lorde and Charli XCX working out the labyrinth of emotions that come with female friendship on the “Girl, so confusing” remix, and Sabrina Carpenter’s ode to the female ego, “Please Please Please." On this episode, Charlie, Nate, and Reanna – with some insight from journalist Ilana Kaplan – unpack these tracks at length, exploring what these artists are saying about femininity, and by extension, themselves.
Songs discussed:
Camila Cabello – Chanel No.5
Camila Cabello – I LUV IT (ft. Playboi Carti)
Camila Cabello – DREAM-GIRLS
Charli XCX – Girl, so confusing
Charli XCX, Lorde – The girl, so confusing version with lorde
Sabrina Carpenter – Please Please Please
Read more from Ilana Kaplan
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Empress Of asks for your consideration (with Empress Of)
There’s many things to love about Los Angeles: low-rider cars, roadside taco stands, and, come awards season, the omnipresent “For Your Consideration” billboard. Nobody knows this better than lifelong L.A. resident Lorely Rodriguez, also known as Empress Of. The indie-pop darling’s latest record, aptly titled For Your Consideration, is her take on what it means to have your full self considered, in all of its guises. The almost genreless record is so wildly catchy and remarkable in scope (all of the percussion on the record is actually Rodriguez’s voice) that Switched On Pop host Nate Sloan and producer Reanna Cruz had to consider For Your Consideration with Empress Of herself, live in person, in the City of Angels.
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Bootsy Collins is gonna funk you up (with Bootsy Collins)
Bootsy Collins is, perhaps, the funkiest man of all time. Over the course of his nearly six decade career, Collins has given up the funk in the iconic Parliament Funkadelic, helmed Bootsy’s Rubber Band, and lended his slaparific talents to songs from everybody from James Brown to Dee-Lite to Fatboy Slim. His new album, aptly titled Album of the Year #1 Funkateer, is on the way, so in celebration of his illustrious career, we invited Bootsy Collins – aka Casper the Funky Ghost – onto Switched on Pop to reminisce on some of his greatest hits.
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Freaking out about songwriting with Nile Rodgers
There is no contemporary pop music without Nile Rodgers. Born in 1952, Rodgers grew up playing classical music on flute and clarinet before picking up jazz guitar. And at age 20, alongside bass player Bernard Edwards, Rodgers formed the band Chic. They wrote the biggest disco hits of the 70s, like: “Dance Dance Dance,” “Everybody Dance,” “Le Freak," and "Good TImes," which formed the core of Sugarhill Gang’s “Rapper's Delight”.
In his music career spanning six decades, Rodgers has produced and played on some of the biggest pop songs in history, for artists like Sister Sledge, Diana Ross, David Bowie, Madonna, Daft Punk, and Beyoncé. He is also the chair of the Songwriters Hall of Fame, so with the Songwriters Hall of Fame ceremony taking place this June, we invited him onto Switched on Pop to talk about the making of a great song.
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Begging songs and basketball's musicality (with Hanif Abdurraqib)
There's no music writer like the essayist and poet Hanif Abdurraqib: whether he's narrating the beautiful awkwardness of a Carly Rae Jepsen concert or talking jazz and eastern spirituality with Andre 3000, he manages to coax stories and insights out of songs in a way that never fails to surprise. His latest book, There's Always This Year, is a free flowing meditation on basketball, childhood, his home state of Ohio, and of course, music – so on the precipice of the NBA finals, Hanif returns to Switched On Pop to discuss classic soul, sports, and sound with musicologist Nate Sloan.
You can buy Hanif's work through his website here.
Songs discussed:
Boyz II Men, "On Bended Knee"
Otis Redding, "My Girl"
The Temptations, "My Girl"
Joy Oladokun, "My Girl"
Stevie Wonder, "My Girl"
Stevie Wonder, "Knocks Me Off My Feet"
Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross, "Challengers: Match Point"
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Customer Reviews
such good pop music analysis
i've listened to this podcast on and off for several years now and it's always a joy to hear the breakdown of contemporary pop music. the hosts have such respect for the genre and help me to hear songs and albums from a fresh perspective.
Shoulder shrug
Listened for the Beyoncé episode couldn’t even finish the Camilla, Taylor, Sabrina episode. They have very basic takes/ just wrong. I think maybe how they talk is just so boring - monotone and what saves it is the insert music piece. Will listen if I’m curious to see how the generations before/elder millennials feel about major music moments.
Why are restaurants so loud
In an episode on loud noise, why are the ads louder than the episode?