President Barack Obama and Bruce Springsteen discuss how their friendship began. They share how race and racism in their hometowns defined their feelings of belonging and what it was like growing up as teenagers in the 1960s and 1970s. Bruce sings some of "My Hometown."
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Archival clips courtesy of CBSNews, NBC Universal, British Pathé, and Huntley Film A ... Show More
Oct 2025
Introducing Fela Kuti: Fear No Man
If you loved The Wonder of Stevie, you cannot miss Higher Ground and Audible's newest music show. In Fela Kuti: Fear No Man, Jad Abumrad—creator of Radiolab, More Perfect, and Dolly Parton's America—tells the story of one of the great political awakenings in music: how a classica ... Show More
57m 45s
Jun 2021
Looking Towards American Renewal
President Obama and Bruce discuss the hope for American unification, they ask themselves what defines cultural appropriation, and Bruce shares memories from when he was writing "Born in the USA."--Archival clips courtesy of Sofa Entertainment, MLB, and Drew Associates' ´The Child ... Show More
50m 10s
May 2021
The One Where They're Not Over Friends
When Friends went off the air in 2004, we truly had no idea that we'd still be talking about the sitcom 17 years later, but here we are. On this week's episode, we're gearing up for the Friends reunion special by re-visiting some of our all-time favorite guest stars, one-liners, ... Show More
43m 48s
Jun 2022
Scoring Stranger Things with Kyle Dixon & Michael Stein
We recently deconstructed how Kate Bush’s 1985 song “Running Up That Hill” has found itself at the center of culture due to a placement in the Netflix, eighties, horror, sci-fi show, Stranger Things. For that episode we excerpted an interview with the composers of the show who sh ... Show More
20m 55s
Mar 2023
Friendship in the Apocalypse | What About Your Friends?
On the very first episode of ‘What About Your Friends?,’ Erika Ramirez, host and founder of ILY, explores the ins and outs of friendship in the dire circumstances of an apocalypse or doomsday scenario with her best friend and cohost, Steven Othello (0:05), and builds an ideal doo ... Show More
47m 55s
Apr 2024
ORVILLE PECK — being queer in country music and mask analysis
Musician Orville Peck joins the show. Over deli classics, Orville tells me how a South African kid grew up obsessed with country music, why country is actually a global genre, and we bond over our love of "RuPaul’s Drag Race." This episode was recorded at Nate 'N' Al's in Beverly ... Show More
50m 47s
Dec 2018
Nashville Revolution: Bobby Braddock, Don Schlitz, and Don Henry
Malcolm Gladwell talks to three songwriters who helped transform country music in the 1970s. Gone were cowboy hats, train whistles and church suppers. In came songs about desperation, loss, changes, and regret that changed how Nashville made music and spoke to a new generation of ... Show More
27m 32s