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Vulture

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.

Switched on Pop

In 2024, Kendrick Lamar pulled off what seemed impossible: winning hip-hop's biggest rap battle in recent history, securing the Super Bowl halftime show, and dropping GNX, a surprise album that might be the year's defining pop record. But this triumphant return wasn't guaranteed. Two decades into his career — well past the average life expectancy of a rap career — Kendrick faced a critical challenge: how to balance his legendary artistic complexity with mainstream accessibility.

Songs discussed:

Kendrick Lamar – squabble up

Kendrick Lamar – luther (feat. SZA)

Kendrick Lamar – tv off (feat. Lefty Gunplay)

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Kendrick Lamar: from Pulitzer to pop

It's an annual tradition: Every December, artists release their bids to join the hallowed halls of holiday music history. The gold standard remains Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas Is You," which reportedly earns the pop star $2.5 million annually in royalties. This year's crop of seasonal offerings spans from ambitious originals to reimagined classics, with artists trying everything from AI-generated lyrics to funk renditions of Hanukah hymns. To evaluate this year's entries, we're introducing our definitive sleigh bell ranking system: five sleigh bells marks a future holiday classic destined to join Mariah in the pantheon, while one sleigh bell promises pop obscurity.

Songs Discussed:
•Kelly Clarkson - You For Christmas
•Orville Peck - Happy Trails
•Conan Gray - Holidays
•Dan and Shay - Take Me Home for Christmas
•Amy Grant - Tennessee Christmas
•Kesha - Holiday Road
•Ben Folds - Xmas Aye Eye
•Jennifer Hudson - Santa for Someone
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The best (and worst) of holiday music in 2024

Three artists quietly reshaped pop music in 2024, though you might not know it from your Spotify Wrapped. As listeners question the accuracy of their year-end streaming stats, we explore the innovative sounds bubbling up just below the algorithmic radar. Tampa's "Swamp Princess" Doechii brings narrative depth back to hip-hop through her chameleonic vocal approach. Bedroom producer Mk.gee discovers entirely new possibilities for the electric guitar by deliberately recording "wrong." And BLACKPINK's ROSÉ challenges K-pop industry constraints while building bridges to Western pop on her revolutionary solo album. These artists point toward an exciting future where pop continues to evolve in unexpected ways, even as streaming platforms try to predict and package our musical tastes. Plus: Our producer Reanna Cruz presents evidence that their Spotify Wrapped might be fibbing, and Nate reveals his most-played track of 2024 was... Jeremy Irons singing "Be Prepared" from The Lion King? The algorithm works in mysterious ways.

Songs Discussed

Doechii: "Girls," "Yucky Blucky Fruitcake," "NISSAN ALTIMA," "Denial Is A River," "Boom Bap"

Mk.gee: "I Know How You Got," "Big Mics," "Are You Looking Up," "Alesis"

BLACKPINK"Boombayah," "Kill This Love," "How You Like That," "Pink Venom,"

ROSÉ: "On The Ground," "APT." (featuring Bruno Mars), "Toxic Till The End"

Taylor Swift: "Shake It Off"

Avril Lavigne: "Girlfriend"

Toni Basil: "Mickey"

Tom Petty: "American Girl"

Bo Diddley: "Bo Diddley Beat"

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Breaking Through: Doechii, Mk.gee, Rosé

The first time you hear "Santa Claus is Coming to Town," it probably registers as just another cheery holiday standard. But hiding within this seemingly simple song is a remarkable story of American transformation - musical, technological, and social. Each time artists reimagine the song over its 90-year history, they leave an imprint not just of their own style, but of their entire cultural moment.

Correction: Last week, we mistakenly credited Jermaine Jackson with playing bass on The Jackson 5’s “Santa Claus is Coming to Town.” The bass on the studio recording was performed by Wilton Felder, a renowned session musician from The Crusaders. Jermaine played bass in live performances.

Artists Discussed:

Eddie Cantor

Bing Crosby and the Andrews Sisters

The Crystals

Ella Fitzgerald

Fred Astaire

The Jackson Five

Bruce Springsteen

Justin Bieber

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Santa Claus is coming to town and stalking America

Popular music changes all the time, but there’s been one consistent element in practically everything released in the last two decades: Auto-Tune is everywhere. What started as a simple audio processing tool in the 1990s has become the dominant force in music. Artists are training to sing with Auto-Tune; songs sound like Auto-Tune. Like it or hate it, Auto-Tune is everywhere. And to be clear, most people like it.
On this episode of The Vergecast music journalist and Switched on Pop co-host Charlie Harding tells us the story of Auto-Tune. (Disclosure: Switched on Pop is part of the Vox Media Podcast Network, as is The Vergecast.) It starts, of all places, in the oil and gas industry. It involves artists like Cher and T-Pain, spreads like wildfire throughout the music business, and quickly becomes so utterly ubiquitous that you probably notice when Auto-Tune isn’t used more than when it is.
As we barrel toward whatever the “AI era” of music will be, we also look for clues in Auto-Tune’s story that point to what’s coming next. We talk about the distinct sound that comes from tools like Suno and Udio, how artists will use and abuse AI, and whether we should be worried about what it all means. We haven’t yet found the “Believe” of the AI music era, but it’s probably coming.
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Auto-Tune always and forever

On this very special episode, we join forces with the hilarious podcast OFF BOOK. When our powers combine, Zach and Jess of Off Book, plus their killer backing band of Scott, Dana and Brett create an improvised musical, while Nate and Charlie break down the sound and structure of a Broadway show. Stay tuned for deep thoughts about what separates pop music from musicals, wild speculation about the origin of the word “vamp,” and an ENTIRE FREAKING MUSICAL COMPOSED FROM SCRATCH that will make you laugh your face off. This is not one to miss.
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Going Off Book

Critics are not feeling the love tonight when it comes to Disney's latest sequels, Mufasa and Moana 2. They've called the animated films "lifeless and bland." But save some sympathy for the composers behind these blatant IP grabs. Lin Manuel Miranda and the duo Barlow and Bear had to match the original, iconic numbers from the Lion King and Moana, songs written by Elton John and Miranda himself. Are critics of the sequels' soundtracks being too harsh? We compare the new songs to their iconic predecessors, like "Circle of Life" and "How Far I'll Go," and ask whether Disney new composers face an impossible task in trying to extend franchises through song.
Songs Discussed
Elton John, Tim Rice, Lebo M. - “Circle of Life”
Elton John, Tim Rice - “Circle of Life” (Radio Version)
Elton John, Tim Rice - “Hakuna Matata”
Lin-Manuel Miranda - “We Don’t Talk About Bruno”
Lin-Manuel Miranda - “Melele”
Lin-Manuel Miranda - “I Always Wanted a Brother”
Lin-Manuel Miranda - “How Far I’ll Go” ft. Auli’i Cravalho
Ariana Grande - “Imperfect For You”
Barlow & Bear - “Beyond” feat. Auli’i Cravalho
Barlow & Bear - “Can I Get a Chee Hoo” feat. Dwayne Johnson
More
Brett Boles’s wonderful analysis of “How Far I’ll Go,” referenced in the episode
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Have Disney musicals lost their edge?

What happens when your podcast’s theme song—cobbled together from GarageBand loops—gets called “game show music” and likened to a cereal commercial? You rewrite it. In this episode, we take you behind the scenes of Switched on Pop’s sonic makeover, from scathing critiques by music industry heavyweights to the creation of a lush, layered soundscape inspired by Wendy Carlos and PBS science shows. With expert advice from sonic branding maestro Dallas Taylor (Twenty Thousand Hertz) and the composers Zach Tenorio and Jocie Adams (Arc Iris), we dissect every step of transforming our theme into a timeless sonic identity. Tune in for the full story and hear how we turned a jingle crisis into a musical triumph.

More

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Recommendations

Read Cat Zhang at The Cut

Read Lauren Michelle Jackson’s White Negros and columns at The New Yorker

Listen to Ian Fitchuk’s work

Listen to Song Exploder hosted by Hrishikesh Hirway

Listen to NYTimes Popcast hosted by Jon Caramanica

Listen to Twenty Thousand Hertz hosted by Dallas Taylor

Songs Discussed

The Monkees: "Theme Song (Hey, Hey, We're The Monkees)"

Radiohead: "Kid A"

No Name: "Yesterday"

Mort Garson: "Ode to an African Violet"

Wendy Carlos Switched On Bach

Whitney Houston: "The Star-Spangled Banner" (1991 Super Bowl performance)

Jimi Hendrix: "The Star-Spangled Banner" (Woodstock performance)

Friends theme Song "I'll Be There for You" by The Rembrandts

Reading Rainbow theme song “Butterfly in the Sky” by Steve Horelick, Dennis Neil Kleinman, and Janet Weir

Bill Nye the Science Guy theme Song composed by Mike Greene 

3-2-1 Contact theme Song composed by Tom Anthony

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The biggest theme song fail

The first great release of 2025 is already here: Bad Bunny's newest album, DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS. Over the course of its 17 tracks, the Puerto Rican reggaetonero crafts an intertextual, anti-colonial tome of a record, incorporating sounds from across his island and the boricua diaspora. From his use of salsa classics on "NUEVAYoL," to his pointed interpolations on "VOY A LLeVARTE PA PR," and his detour into folk melodies and songwriting on tracks like the somber "LO QUE LE PASÓ A HAWAii," the record features some of Bad Bunny's most creative, intense, and direct work yet. On this episode of Switched On Pop, producer Reanna Cruz takes Charlie and Nate on a journey through Bad Bunny's love letter to Puerto Rico, with additional insight from journalist and translator Carina del Valle Schorske.
Read Carina's NPR Music review of the record: Bad Bunny's politics of presence.

Songs Discussed:

Bad Bunny, "DtMF"

Bad Bunny, "NUEVAYoL"

Bad Bunny, "BOKeTE"

Bad Bunny, "EL CLúB"

El Gran Combo De Puerto Rico, "Un verano en Nueva York"

Bad Bunny, "PIToRRO DE COCO"

Bad Bunny, "BAILE INoLVIDABLE"

Rauw Alejandro, "Tú Con Él"

Bad Bunny, "VOY A LLeVARTE PA PR"

Wisin & Yandel, Héctor "El Father," "La Barría"

Alexis y Fido, "Me Quiere Besar"

Angel y Khriz, "Cazando Voy"

Bad Bunny, "El Apagón"

Bad Bunny, Kendo Kaponi, Arcángel, "P FKN R"

Bad Bunny, "LO QUE LE PASÓ A HAWAii"

Bad Bunny, "CAFé CON RON"

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Bad Bunny's love letter to Puerto Rico

2024 was an unpredictable year, and 2025 seems to be cut from the same cloth. So for this episode of Switched On Pop, Nate, Charlie, and Reanna look into the crystal ball of pop music to create a (playable) bingo card of predictions for the coming year – including AI songs on the Hot 100, a return of boy bands, and... kazoos? The Album of the Year race for this upcoming Grammys is similarly unpredictable, with a stacked nomination list including Grammy darlings Beyoncé and Billie as well as Gen-Z favorites like Charli and Chappell. The team takes a crack at guessing who will take home the award by debating the nominees, bracket-style.

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Songs discussed:

The Traveling Wilburys – Handle With Care

Ghostwriter – Heart On My Sleeve (ft. AI Drake and AI The Weeknd)

Songs from Silvio Berlusconi, Imelda Marcos, and Randi Zuckerberg

Chino Pacas, Drake, Fuerza Regida – Modo Capone

Elton John – Your Song

Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee – Despacito

Jack Black – Peaches

Tyla – Water

Rema, Selena Gomez – Calm Down

Bloodhound Gang – The Bad Touch

Megan thee Stallion, Yuki Chiba – Mamushi

Joan Osborne – One of Us

FKA Twigs – Eusexua

Katy Perry – Woman's World

David Bowie – Moonage Daydream

Jimi Hendrix – Crosstown Traffic

Jack Harlow – Lovin On Me

Billie Eilish – CHIHIRO

Billie Eilish – BIRDS OF A FEATHER

Charli XCX – guess

Charli XCX – 360

Charli XCX – i think about it all the time

Charli XCX – 365

Beyoncé – TEXAS HOLD 'EM

Beyoncé, Miley Cyrus – II MOST WANTED

Beyoncé – YA YA

Taylor Swift – I Can Do It With A Broken Heart

Sabrina Carpenter – Espresso

Chappell Roan – HOTTOGO

Chappell Roan – Pink Pony Club

Chappell Roan – Red Wine Supernova

Outkast – Hey Ya!

Andre 3000 – That Night In Hawaii When I Turned Into A Panther And Started Making These Low Register Purring Tones That I Couldn't Control ... Sh*t Was Wild

Andre 3000 – I swear, I Really Wanted To Make A "Rap" Album But This Is Literally The Way The Wind Blew Me This Time

Jacob Collier – 100,000 Voices

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25 Predictions for 2025: Grammys, J-pop, kazoos and more

Taylor Swift isn't just a world-conquering pop star at the top of her game, her approach to songwriting has also proven massively influential for an up-and-coming generation of singer-songwriters. Gracie Abrams, Maisie Peters, and Phoebe Bridgers—all of whom opened for Swift during her Eras Tour—each owe a debt to Swift's hyperspecific lyrics, minimal melodies, and bombastic bridges. We break down the key aspects of Swift's songcraft and how we can hear them manifest in the work of her young acolytes, and we speak to another burgeoning artist, the brilliant Jensen McRae, to learn firsthand why Swift's style has been so resonant. 

Songs Discussed

Taylor Swift - All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylor's Version) (From The Vault)
Gracie Abrams - That’s So True
Maisie Peters - There It Goes
Taylor Swift - Style (Taylor's Version)
Taylor Swift - You're On Your Own, Kid
Phoebe Bridgers - Motion Sickness
Taylor Swift - Our Song
Beyoncé - Sandcastles
Katy Perry - Unconditionally
Taylor Swift - cardigan
Dua Lipa - Levitating
Taylor Swift - You Belong With Me (Taylor’s Version)
Taylor Swift - Dear John (Taylor's Version)
Jensen McRae - Praying For Your Downfall
Jensen McRae - Savannah
Jensen McRae - Immune
Taylor Swift - Would've, Could've, Should've

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Generation Taylor: Gracie, Maisie, Phoebe (with Jensen McRae)

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