Bass distorted to the edge of audibility; voices croaking out dark and violent lyrics; a hacked-together DIY aesthetic. This isn't a fringe musical movement, this is the sound of TikTok, the video app used by millions in Generation Z. And soon enough it might also be the sound of pop as we know it. Cat Zhang from Pitchfork stops by to clue us into the sonic ... Show More
Oct 6
Has Taylor Swift jumped the shark?
One year after the release of her twelfth studio album The Life of a Showgirl, Taylor Swift is back with an encore. Specifically, The Encore, four tracks that have polarized critics and Swifties alike, from the country-esque number one hit “Patient Zero” to her ode to married Ohi ... Show More
47m 55s
Sep 29
Carly Rae Jepsen’s pop pedagogy
Five years after her first appearance on Switched on Pop, Carly Rae Jepsen returns to the podcast to talk all things Day and Night, her latest album. Born out of Swedish disco, big emotion, and substantive life change – including becoming a wife and a mother – the double album is ... Show More
49m 17s
May 2024
Boom Bling: TikTok's sonic guerrilla marketing
TikTok’s sonic logo is one of the fastest growing sonic logos in history. Today, that little sound is being heard millions of times a day on apps like Instagram, Reddit and Youtube… but creating it wasn’t easy. To make it, the creative team went through thousands of iterations, e ... Show More
20m 34s
Nov 2020
Inside the Reinvention of the Music Business
From TikTok to Fortnite to Twitch and beyond, we discuss how the music business is radically transforming in 2020. Amy X. Wang, Samantha Hissong, and Ethan Millman join host Brian Hiatt for a look at the innovators on Rolling Stone’s Future 25 list. Learn more about your ad choic ... Show More
33m 24s
Aug 2022
The Worst Songs of all Time
From "Blurred Lines" to "Twinkle Twinkle Little Bitch," we look at some of the worst songs ever - while also questioning whether we can really be sure of "worst songs" in 2022, when the canon and our own tastes are in a constant state of reevaluation. Plus, a look at how pressure ... Show More
56m 34s