Rock Is Lit Across the What-If Universe: Paul Levinson On His Novel ‘It’s Real Life: An Alternate History of The Beatles’
What if The Beatles did reunite—and the world was never the same?
In this special episode, Christy Alexander Hallberg welcomes acclaimed author, media scholar, and musician Paul Levinson to talk about his novel ‘It’s Real Life: An Alternate History of The Beatles’, based on his award-winning short story that reimagines a very different musical timeline.
Set in 1996, the novel follows legendary New York DJ Pete Fornatale as he heads to Grand Central Terminal—only to discover the music world has shifted in strange and unexpected ways. From speculative “what-ifs” to cultural commentary, this episode explores the legacy of The Beatles through the lens of fiction, nostalgia, and imagination.
Paul also reads a captivating excerpt from the novel, giving listeners a taste of this alternate universe where the Fab Four’s story didn’t end in 1970.
Paul Levinson, Ph.D., is professor of communication and media studies at Fordham University in NYC. His nonfiction books, including ‘The Soft Edge’, ‘Digital McLuhan’, ‘Realspace’, ‘Cellphone’, and ‘New New Media’, have been translated into fifteen languages. His science fiction novels include ‘The Silk Code’ (winner of Locus Award for Best First Science Fiction Novel of 1999), ‘Borrowed Tides’, ‘The Consciousness Plague’, ‘The Pixel Eye’, ‘The Plot to Save Socrates’, ‘Unburning Alexandria’, ‘Chronica’, and ‘It’s Real Life: An Alternate History of The Beatles’. He has appeared on CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, the Discovery Channel, National Geographic, the History Channel, and NPR.
PLAYLIST:
- Rock is Lit theme music
- Sixties 60’s music (free to use)
- “Looking for Sunsets (In the Early Morning)”—lyrics by Paul Levinson (lead vocals), music by Ed Fox
- “Murray the K’s Back in Town”—music and lyrics by Paul Levinson (lead vocals)
- “Samantha”—music and lyrics by Paul Levinson (lead vocals)
- Sixties 60’s music (free to use)
- Rock is Lit theme music
LINKS:
Leave a rating and comment for Rock is Lit on Goodpods: https://goodpods.com/podcasts/rock-is-lit-212451
Leave a rating and comment for Rock is Lit on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/rock-is-lit/id1642987350
Paul Levinson’s website: https://paullev.com/
Paul Levinson on YouTube and Facebook: @PaulLevinson
Paul Levinson on Instagram: @paullevins
Christy Alexander Hallberg’s website: www.christyalexanderhallberg.com
Rock is Lit on Instagram & Bluesky: @rockislitpodcast
Christy Alexander Hallberg on Instagram and YouTube: @christyhallberg
Christy Alexander Hallberg on Facebook: @ChristyAlexanderHallberg
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