Switched on Pop

In case you missed it last year: why are there no new Christmas songs? One one hand, there's more holiday songs than we’ll ever need. Every year pop stars drop countless holiday-themed album.But despite the annual glut of Christmas releases, few of these new songs join the rotation of holiday classics. On Billboard's Holiday Hot 100 chart right now, there's only four songs from the past ten years that have made it to the top fifty.We listen to each of these holiday hits—from Kelly Clarkson, Ariana Grande, Justin Bieber, and the Jonas Brothers—and and ask if these songs can go the distance and become the 21st century members of the Christmas music canon.Songs Discussed - PlaylistKelly Clarkson - Underneath the TreeAriana Grande - Santa Tell MeJustin Bieber - MistletoeJonas Brothers - Like It's ChristmasThe Bird and the Bee - You and I at Christmas TimeLoretta Lynn - White Christmas BlueWoody Goss - One for OneSharon Jones and the Dap Kings - 8 Days of HannukahJenny Owen Youngs, Tancred, John Mark Nelson - Fireside Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In hip-hop, what draws us to an artist is not just the content of their lyrics but how they deliver them. Along with tapping your foot to the rhythm, understanding something called “flow” is essential to understanding hip-hop as a whole.In this episode of Switched On Pop, we interview genre icon DJ Jazzy Jeff on the concept of flow: what it is, how it applies to all music – not just hip-hop – and how any rapper’s flow can be analyzed under his guidelines. Taking his word for it, we put our magnifying glasses on to look at the bars of our favorite rappers, from Megan thee Stallion to Babytron.Songs Discussed: The Notorious B.I.G. - Big Poppa Mary J. Blige - Family Affair A Tribe Called Quest - The Hop Danger Mouse, Black Thought - Aquamarine BabyTron - Crocs & Wock’  RXKNephew - Take Three JID - Better Days (feat. Johnta Austin) Megan Thee Stallion - Not Nice Megan Thee Stallion - Cocky Af Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Coping Mechanism, Willow's new album, is her heaviest music yet. Charlie and Willow chat about the making of the new record and the many multitudes of rock music.Music Discussed The Anxiety - Meet Me At Our Spot Willow - Maybe It's My Fault, UR Town, Human Leach, PrettyGirlz, Lipstick, Why, Breakout, Hover Like a Goddess, Curious/Furious, Ur A Stranger Yungblood - Memories (with Willow) Deftones - Sextape Radiohead - I Will Straight Line Stitch - What You Do To Me Killswitch Engage - My Curse Lamb of God - Redneck Primus - Lacquer Head Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Tegan & Sara and King Princess have found themselves placed under the banner, "sapphic pop," a term recently coined referring to music by and/or for sapphics (a.k.a. women or femme folks attracted to other femme folks). Journalist Emma Madden defines the folk-inspired sound as having a “soft tactile approach” that’s “more sensual than it is sexual.” This umbrella folds in everyone from indie pop veterans Tegan & Sara to nonbinary artists like King Princess; even artists like Hozier and Sufjan Stevens are, improbably, considered sapphic pop, with their music having the same sonic qualities of other songs dedicated to feminine yearning.From articles popping up in multiple news outlets to the majority of Taylor Swift’s openers for this upcoming tour (looking at MUNA, girl in red, and Phoebe Bridgers, specifically), the terminology of “sapphic pop” has come to define a scene almost out of nowhere.This week on Switched On Pop, we explore exactly what sapphic pop is, where it came from, and how artists feel about it – even asking Tegan & Sara and King Princess directly. You can listen wherever you get podcasts.Songs discussed Clairo – Sofia King Princess – Talia girl in red – i wanna be your girlfriend Hozier – Cherry Wine (live) Alex G – Sarah The Velvet Underground – I Found A Reason Sufjan Stevens – To Be Alone With You Cris Williamson – Shine On Straight Arrow Jaylib, Madlib, J Dilla – The Red Taylor Swift – betty Brittany Howard – Georgia MUNA, Phoebe Bridgers – Silk Chiffon Tegan & Sara – Call It Off Tegan & Sara – Smoking Weed Alone King Princess – 1950 King Princess – I Hate Myself, I Want To Party King Princess – Pussy is God Kate Bush – Why Should I Love You? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Scary Pockets is the musical collective that has been transforming pop classics into funk anthems for over half a decade. Each week they release a new cover on YouTube featuring razor-sharp instrumentalists and a rotating cast of virtuosic lead singers. Amazingly, each of their 200-plus covers is arranged on the fly, in a span of about 90 minutes—capturing the talent and spontaneity of a group of musicians at the top of their game. We here at Switched on Pop were struck by the band's ability to infuse familiar songs with syncopation and backbeat, and rack up millions of views in the process, so we reached out to Scary Pockets's leaders—guitarist Ryan Lerman and keyboardist Jack Conte—to arrange for Nate and Reanna to be flies on the wall during their creative process. After documenting the behind-the-scenes dialogue that led to a slow-burning interpretation of the Bee Gees's 1977 classic "Staying Alive," we called up Ryan, Jack, and the song's lead vocalist, Lizzy McAlpine, to hear their insights on making a song that everyone knows sound fresh and unfamiliar Songs DiscussedBee Gees - Staying Alive (Scary Pockets Cover)Paul McCartney and Wings - Arrow Through Me (Scary Pockets Cover)Beatles - Maxwell's Silver HammerColdplay - Fix You (Scary Pockets Cover)Parcels - TieduprightnowBill Withers - Just the Two of Us (Scary Pockets Cover)Justin Bieber - Peaches (Lizzy McAlpine Cover)More on Scary PocketsWatch the video of Scary Pockets and Lizzy McAlpine covering "Staying Alive"See them LIVE with David Ryan Harris & John Scofield, November 16 at Echoplex in Los Angeles! TicketsSubscribe to their YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/scarypocketsMerch Store: https://www.scarypocketsfunk.comPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/scarypocketsListen on Spotify: Scary PocketsInstagram: @scarypockets Musician Credits:Vocals: Lizzy McAlpineBGVs: Sophia James, Arielle KasnetzGuitar: Ryan Lerman, Will GraefeWurlitzer & Synth: Jack ConteBass: Travis CarltonDrums: RJ KellyAudio: Engineered & mixed by Caleb Parker Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

 A Taylor Swift album is just not a collection of new music, it’s an exploration of a theme. For the last eight years, each release has embodied a single idea. Reputation marked a turn to the dark side, Lover a return to the light, and her pair of albums Folklore and Evermore painted acoustic, fictional landscapes. Each album propels fans to find covert lyrical connections to her personal life, and easter eggs to past compositions.Whereas Swift's pop star contemporaries have focused their energies on becoming business moguls, Swift has gone deeper into songwriting and receiving accolades in the process. In September 2022, the Nashville Songwriting Association International awarded Swift the Songwriter of the Decade award. In her acceptance speech she says, “writing songs is my life’s work and my hobby and my never-ending thrill.”Now she continues that thrill collaborating with her frequent producing partner and friend of the show, Jack Antonoff, on Midnights, her 10th studio album (not counting her recent “Taylor’s version” re-recordings of past releases). On Midnights Swift builds a lyrical and sonic world that takes place across “13 sleepless nights.” Nate and Charlie listen closely to hear how she constructs this late night feeling.  More Nate’s article on “Taylor Swift and the Work of Songwriting” for the Contemporary Music Review Journal John Hull's Soundfly course on Advanced Synths and Patch Design for Producers Music Discussed: Taylor Swift - Anti-Hero, Lavender Haze, Maroon, Question, Snow On the Beach, Mastermind, Bejeweled, Vigilante Shit, Labyrinth, Midnight Rain, You’re On Your Own Kid, You Belong With Me, Stay Kevin “Reese” Saunderson - Just Want Another Chance Ray “Renegade” Keith - Terrorist P.A. Mix Burial - Archangel  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It’s the song that launched a thousand TikTok videos – or over 500,000 to be exact: Steve Lacy’s “Bad Habit.” The track is a smooth, psychedelia tinged ode to yearning, currently spending its third week on the top of the Billboard Hot 100. Lacy is an artist dedicated to shifting form and convention, from his records with alternative R&B band The Internet to his productions for artists like Mac Miller and Vampire Weekend. Even in his solo work, his songs are unpredictable, deftly moving through genre in the vein of artists like Prince and Stevie Wonder. “Bad Habit” specifically, though, is rooted in the genre of bedroom pop, a scene slowly gaining mainstream traction. With this track, Lacy is taking the sound that’s seeped through TikTok and Spotify to the top of the charts. On this episode of Switched On Pop, we dig deep into Lacy's career and his ability to craft immaculate melodies.Songs Discussed: Steve Lacy, “Bad Habit” Sam Smith, Kim Petras, “Unholy” The Internet, “Dontcha” The Internet, “Special Affair” The Internet, “Palace/Curse (feat. Tyler, The Creator & Steve Lacy) Steve Lacy, “C U Girl” Steve Lacy, “Dark Red” Steve Lacy, “Only If” Steve Lacy, “Like Me” Steve Lacy, “Playground” Steve Lacy, “Static” Stevie Wonder, “Signed, Sealed, Delivered” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Earlier this year, the members of Sylvan Esso took a gamble, making their "most free and wild and strange" album yet: No Rules Sandy. And to add to the overall theme of lawlessness, Amelia Meath and Nick Sanborn decided to do something equally as free and radical: they decided to forgo the typical multi-year album cycle as well as a standard promo campaign. While wrapped in what Amelia calls a “PR cocoon,” she began to think about the less tangible aspects of the album rollout process, and wanted to enlist other musicians (as well as Switched On Pop) in exploring certain aspects of what it means to be an artist to answer the question: why does it hurt to release records?Songs Discussed Sylvan Esso - Your Reality Sylvan Esso - Cloud Walker Sylvan Esso - Didn’t Care Sylvan Esso - Look At Me Sylvan Esso - How Did You Know Sylvan Esso - Sunburn MUNA - Number One Fan MUNA - Silk Chiffon MUNA - What I Want Bartees Strange - Heavy Heart Bartees Strange - Co Signs Bartees Strange - Hennessy Wilco - Cruel Country Maggie Rogers - Alaska Maggie Rogers - That’s Where I Am Maggie Rogers - Anywhere with You Maggie Rogers - Want Want Maggie Rogers - Begging for Rain Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

After a four-year hiatus – and a name drop on a Beyoncé remix – musical polymath Santigold is back with a brand new album. Known for her signature blend of genre-defying songcraft, the artist’s fourth studio album Spirituals is one of her most artistically challenging projects yet. It’s another venture into what she does best: addressing heavy themes through toe-tapping melodies. From Nate’s personal favorite, 2016’s “Can’t Get Enough of Myself,” to “My Horror,” a pan-genre sonic vision has always been present in her career. On this episode of Switched On Pop, Santigold speaks about her new record, being a mother, and the emotions that went into making Spirituals.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In part 1 of our Vergecast: Future of Music series, Alex Cranz talks with Switched on Pop's Charlie Harding about the trends in music today that make new songs out of old material, and whether it's foreshadowing the future of pop.Further reading:Selena Quintanilla Will Sound Older on Her New Posthumous AlbumMichael Jackson songs removed from streaming services to 'move beyond' fake vocals controversyShred with Green Day, with some help from AudioShakeInvasion of the Vibe SnatchersMusic discussed:Como Te Quiero Yo A Ti - SelenaMy Way - Frank SinatraI'll Be Seeing You - Billie HolidayWe Can't Stop - Miley Cyrusbad guy - Billie EilishThrough The Wire - Kanye WestBreaking News - Michael JacksonReal Love - The BeatlesFree As A Bird - The Beatles2000 Light Years Away - Green DayBetty (Get Money) - Yung GravyGenius of Love - Tom Tom ClubFantasy - Mariah CareyBig Energy - LattoI'm Good (Blue) - David Guetta, Bebe RexhaBang Bang - Rita Ora, ImanbekHigher Love - Kygo, Whitney HoustonDon't Start Now - Dua Lipa Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices