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On this episode, we explore the misunderstood history of Muzak, formerly the world’s foremost producers of elevator music. Out of the technological innovation ... Show More
Nov 19
How Protein Muscled Its Way to the Top
Americans are currently besotted with protein. It’s touted as being good for muscle growth, weight loss, skincare, mental acuity, longevity, and much else besides. It’s sold to men, women, children, the elderly— you can even buy protein for your pets. The protein supplement marke ... Show More
44m 50s
Nov 12
The Slate Culture Gift Guide
Hark, the holiday season is upon us—and with it the most solemn of festive traditions: a gift guide! In this video and podcast special, Slate hosts Dana Stevens, Chris Molanphy, and Willa Paskin beam-in from their collective hearths to deliver unto the internet their favorite gif ... Show More
49m 44s
Nov 5
Cozy Autumn Mysteries
Autumn may have more cozy signifiers than any other season—though we all have our own favorites. Maybe for you it’s sweater weather, football games, spooky season, apple picking, leaf peeping, or mainlining candy corn. Whatever it is, in today’s episode we’re looking closely at t ... Show More
55m 1s
Apr 2024
Decoder Ring: Making Real Music for a Fake Band
Pop culture is full of fictional bands singing songs purpose-made to capture a moment, a sound. This music doesn’t organically emerge from a scene or genre, hoping to find an audience. Instead it fulfills an assignment: it needs to be 1960s folk music, 1970s guitar rock, 80s hair ... Show More
41m 45s
Nov 2023
Sounds That Sell: How companies entice us with sonic candy
Since the earliest days of commercial radio, companies have been using sound to worm their way into our brains. And over the decades, they’ve come up with all kinds of sonic tactics to make us want, crave and remember their products. In this episode, we take a whirlwind tour thro ... Show More
23m 18s
Oct 2023
The Battle for World Supremacy, with DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince | 1
In January of 1988, the music industry was treating hip hop like a fad. But that was all about to change – along with the lives of two kids from Philly. Host Will Smith brings us straight into the most pivotal year in hip hop history. It started at the Battle for World Supremacy, ... Show More
31m 16s
May 2020
Shake It Like a Polaroid Picture Edition
A special Hit Parade announcement: Like many media organizations at the moment, Slate is getting hit pretty hard by what's going on with the economy in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. We want to continue doing our work, providing you with all our great podcasts, news and repor ... Show More
7m 58s
Nov 2022
Synth Showdown: Moog vs. Buchla
In the United States, the East Coast and West Coast have rivalries across food, sports, music and more. But there’s another rivalry that’s less well known, but just as important. This standoff created sounds that were unlike anything that had been heard before. It redefined what ... Show More
26m 22s
Nov 2023
Tune Tech: Distortion, sequencers, Auto-Tune, and more
From electric guitars to samplers to drum machines and beyond, the music we love is only possible thanks to the technology used to create it. In many ways, the history of popular music is really a history of technological innovation. In this episode, we partnered with BandLab to ... Show More
25m 33s