A tour through Lady Gaga's inspiration, imitation, and self references on Mayhem’s Museum of Brutality

“Get Ur Freak On” Pushed Pop into the Future

How a late night studio improvisation created a surprise hit

In this Modern Classics episode, we explore how Rihanna's "Umbrella" not only catapulted her to superstardom through its iconic vocal hooks and protective message, but also revolutionized music production by legitimizing GarageBand loops for mainstream hits, forever changing how pop is made.

Tate McRae and the “Simple Pop” formula

Is trance music making a comeback in 2025? FKA twigs fully embraces the genre's euphoric sound while The Weeknd flirts with its textures, signaling a potential return of the Y2K dance phenomenon.

Who controls the playlists?

Playing bingo for the coming year in pop, and predicting the Grammy for Album of the Year.

Bad Bunny’s anti-colonial record is a send off to tourists

Our theme music sucks. Let’s change it.

What Mufasa and Moana 2 tell us about the future of your favorite animated musical franchises

The Christmas song that holds up a mirror to American society

As listeners question the accuracy of their Spotify Wrapped data, we explore three innovative artists reshaping pop music in 2024: Doechii's shape-shifting approach to hip-hop narrative, Mk.gee's revolutionary bedroom guitar techniques, and ROSÉ's bold evolution from K-pop idol to boundary-pushing solo artist.

Doling out sleigh bells and coal to pop stars’ seasonal offerings

On GNX, Kendrick Lamar balances artistic complexity with mainstream accessibility.

Defying gravity, one riff at a time

The third essential aspect of Madonna's holy trinity is her ever-shifting spirituality.

To understand Madonna is to see her music as a cultural melting pot.

The way Madonna communicates gender is integral to understanding her and her music.

Madison Cunningham and Andrew Bird revive Buckingham Nicks on Cunningham Bird