

Commotion with Elamin Abdelmahmoud
CBC
Big laughs. Smart takes. Every day. Commotion is where you go for thoughtful and vibrant conversations about all things pop culture. Host Elamin Abdelmahmoud calls on journalists, critics, creators and friends to talk through the biggest arts & entertainment stories of the day, in 30 minutes or less.Subscribe to Sounds Good: CBC's Podcasts newsletter for the finest podcast recommendations and behind-the-scenes exclusives.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Oct 6, 2025 • 33min
The Riyadh Comedy Festival, Electronic Arts, and why Saudi Arabia is investing in culture
Comedians performing at the Riyadh Comedy Festival are being criticized for selling out to a Saudi regime that is trying to change its image. Alyssa Mercante and Shireen Ahmed join Elamin Abdelmahmoud to talk about Saudi Arabia's soft power, and how it's making inroads into new cultural realms and changing the conversation. Fill out our listener survey here. We appreciate your input!

Oct 3, 2025 • 27min
Taylor Swift beefs with Charlie XCX on Life of a Showgirl, and Bad Bunny at the Super Bowl
Music journalists Emilie Hanskamp, Reanna Cruz, and Suzy Exposito join Elamin Abdelmahmoud in the Group Chat to weigh-in on Taylor Swift’s highly anticipated new album, ‘Life of a Showgirl,’ and the recent announcement of Bad Bunny as the halftime-show performer at next year's Super Bowl.Fill out our listener survey here. We appreciate your input!

Oct 2, 2025 • 29min
Only Murders in the Building, Hacks -- is Hollywood getting aging right?
With the release season 5 of ‘Only Murders In The Building’, the films ‘The Thursday Murder Club’ and ‘Eleanor The Great,’ Elamin is joined by film and tv critics Radheyan Simonpillai and Teri Hart, and screenwriter and show-runner Anthony Q. Farrell to discuss the ways characters who are 60-plus show up in our film and tv programming today, and whether Hollywood is doing a good enough job at portraying these characters, as well as what it means to age.Fill out our listener survey here. We'd love to hear from you!

Oct 1, 2025 • 25min
Mae Martin's twisty new series Wayward & Patrick Watson's album Uh Oh
Niko Stratis and Rachel Ho join Elamin Abdelmahmoud to share their thoughts on comedian Mae Martin's series Wayward, an unexpectedly dark thriller that is definitely not a comedy. Plus, T'Cha Dunlevy talks about the return of Montreal singer-songwriter Patrick Watson, whose ethereal new album Uh Oh is about losing his voice.Fill out our listener survey here. We'd love to hear from you!

Sep 30, 2025 • 33min
How Kent Monkman creates new conversations about art and Canada's past
On this National Day for Truth and Reconciliation – we talk about an artist who is having a profound impact on the way we understand Canada’s past – and the resilience of Indigenous people. Riley Yesno, Susan Blight and Marion Newman celebrate Kent Monkman, whose gender-fluid alter ego, Miss Chief Eagle Testickle is now the subject of an opera, parts of which will be performed tonight (Sept 30) in Montreal.

Sep 29, 2025 • 25min
Heavyweight returns, the Williams sisters' new podcast & Sweden leaves Abba out of its cultural canon
The hit narrative podcast Heavyweight by Jonathan Goldstein is back after being cancelled by Spotify a few years ago. Plus, Venus and Serena Williams jump into podcasting with their new show, Stockton Street, available exclusively on X.com. Elamin Abdelmahmoud chats with culture critic Nicholas Quah and author Jael Richardson about what these shows say about where we’re at with podcasting right now.And, reporter Matilda Källén talks about Sweden's controversial list of 100 things that make up their cultural canon, which includes Pippi Longstocking and IKEA, but excludes ABBA and Swedish food.

Sep 26, 2025 • 28min
One Battle After Another, and the release of the thriller series The Savant is delayed
CBC Entertainment's Jackson Weaver, film critic Radheyan Simonpillai, and poet El Jones join Elamin Abdelmahmoud to discuss Paul Thomas Anderson’s new film 'One Battle After Another,' a prescient action-comedy about a family stuck in a political war, and Apple TV+’s controversial decision to postpone its series 'The Savant.'

Sep 25, 2025 • 25min
What does the end of Bad Bunny's residency mean for Puerto Rico? And a new Fela Kuti graphic novel
Elamin is joined by Kennya Giselle Rivera Sanabria and Reanna Cruz to look back on Bad Bunny’s historic 31 day residency in Puerto Rico (which ended this past Saturday) and what its success might mean for Bad Bunny and Puerto Rico, moving forward. Plus, Elamin is joined by culture critic Matt Amha to discuss the new graphic novel ‘Fela: Music Is The Weapon’ and how Fela Kuti’s legacy intersects with present day pop culture.

Sep 24, 2025 • 25min
Kimmel retuns to late night, what did he say?
Less than a week after being yanked off the air for comments he made about Charlie Kirk, Jimmy Kimmel is back. But will he be muzzled? TV critic Eric Deggans and comedian Ashley Ray join Elamin to talk about Kimmel's return to late night.

Sep 23, 2025 • 23min
Football/horror film Him, Black Rabbit, and MJ The Musical
Film critics Radheyan Simonpillai and Sarah-Tai Black join guest host Amil Niazi to talk about the film 'Him,' a Jordan Peele-produced horror film about American football culture, and the new Netflix drama Black Rabbit starring Jason Bateman and Jude Law. Plus, Toronto critic Joshua Chong discusses the Michael Jackson jukebox musical, ‘MJ: The Musical’ (which recently made its Toronto debut) and how it grapples – or doesn’t – with the more controversial aspects of Jackson’s legacy.