MTV launched with “ladies and gentleman, rock and roll.” Tonight’s VMAs ads are like “ladies and gentleman, join ICE.”

I can use your vote! I'm on a proposed panel for this year's South By Southwest @sxsw.com about music and AI w/ a dizzying lineup of co-panelists: @adamneely.bsky.social, @charlieharding.bsky.social (of @switchedonpop.bsky.social), and @Tristra Yeager (of @RockPaperScissors inc.) 1/2 w/ voting link:

🎤🎤 Is Morgan Wallen just Frank Sinatra in a baseball cap?? Nate Sloan & @charlieharding.bsky.social of @switchedonpop.bsky.social say they have more in common than you may think. Listen to our curated playlist of Morgan Wallen podcast moments: share.harkaudio.com/NUvBbt6d6URL...

Lorde’s Virgin sounds like the chill out room for the Brat after party.

One of my students share this ear bleeding AI artists who is getting millions of streams—if you listen, I warned you open.spotify.com/artist/2lltc...

They achieved Mission Impossible: making a worse movie than the 2nd in the series

Pod 4 u. @switchedonpop.bsky.social does it again

The Sounds of Resistance, featuring: - Woody Guthrie’s anti-Nazi music @iwriteok.bsky.social - The politics of joy @charlieharding.bsky.social - Bob Dylan’s first protest songs @boweryboys.bsky.social Hosted by Brooke Williams of @resistrevchorus.bsky.social . Listen: shorturl.at/lOspA

HARK DAILY: Today's best podcast moments in one playlist, featuring: - Are U.S. citizens next? @podsaveamerica.crooked.com - The power of raves @charlieharding.bsky.social - Cory Booker's life-changing flight @toure.bsky.social

@switchedonpop.bsky.social @charlieharding.bsky.social a great episode on Imogen Heap! Being in Europe, I had missed the OC/SNL cultural moment and only discovered the song much later through Jason Derulo sample. Young Marco new version now on my playlist!

Nothing infuriates me more than hearing someone say they “do music”—as if it’s a side hustle or content stream, not something you create, play, or perform. To “do music” strips it of artistry, reduces musicians to service providers, and treats human expression as a disposable commodity.

As a podcast host, I am a mattress salesman. For the past decade, I have danced for the Mattress Industrial Complex. I’ve extolled the virtues of foam core technology. I’ve given discount codes. I’ve said “bouncy. And now, my back hurts enough for me to come right out and say - SHOW ME THE MATTRESS.

Spotify just posted its first profitable year. Today’s show is how it grifted musicians and listeners to make it happen. switchedonpop.com/episodes/how...

Kendrick Lamar just did the impossible: won 2024's biggest rap battle, secured the Super Bowl, & dropped a surprise album redefining pop. How does hip-hop's most complex storyteller make hits without losing his soul? Listen: switchedonpop.com/episodes/ken...

In Wicked's "The Wizard and I," the music itself warns us of Elphaba's fate. At the end of the song, after she sings about being "so happy I could melt," the harmony shifts to unsettling chords one note away from the home key - like shadows at the edge of light.

Listen for Wicked's "Unlimited" leitmotif - a melody cleverly borrowed from "Over the Rainbow." The first seven notes match perfectly, connecting Elphaba's story back to The Wizard of Oz's original score.

Madonna named herself after the Virgin Mary then called her album 'Like a Virgin' - that 'like' is doing a lot of work! This week on @SwitchedOnPop: how pop's greatest provocateur used subtle wordplay and musical choices to revolutionize gender in pop. switchedonpop.com/episodes/lis...

Now Kendrick’s feature on “Bad Blood” finally makes sense.

After listening to this week’s Switched On Pop, I got my hands on a copy of ‘Buckingham Nicks’ — the released-once-in-1973-and never-again (and only) studio album from Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks — and, wow! Thank you @charlieharding.bsky.social and Nate Sloan!

I’m such a fan of Switched on Pop & honored to join @charlieharding.bsky.social for a chat about my new book 𝙊𝙡𝙙 𝙏𝙤𝙬𝙣 𝙍𝙤𝙖𝙙. Does Lil Nas X’s record-setting 2019 smash explain country music’s 2023 boom? And how did genre classification change the song’s trajectory? switchedonpop.com/episodes/why...