Commotion with Elamin Abdelmahmoud

‘Forever’ is a new Netflix tv series that reimagines Judy Blume’s controversial YA book of the same name, through the lens of the contemporary Black teen experience. Guest host Radheyan Simonpillai is joined by culture critics Kathleen Newman-Bremang and David Dennis Jr. to discuss the new series and its approach to the teen drama genre. Plus, with the second season of HBO’s hit zombie drama ‘The Last of Us’ winding down this week, culture reporter Kat Tenbarge explains how the story developments of this season further intensified the online hate campaign against its star Bella Ramsey.

So many TV shows and movies mine the dramatic potential of those first few days on campus where new students get to re-invent themselves.But despite everything that’s come before it, Benito Skinner’s new show, 'Overcompensating,' treads new ground. Chris Murphy and Jackson Weaver join guest host Rad Simponpillai to talk about why it’s so refreshing. Plus, ‘0-60 Driving Academy’ is a new series that’s being called Atlantic Canada’s first Black sitcom. It’s also inspired by the real life experiences of Dartmouth based driving instructor Steve Lawrence. Elamin is joined by author and artist Guyleigh Johnson to discuss the series and what it says about African Nova Scotian culture. 

Elamin is joined by Leander Schaerlaeckens and Richard Sutcliffe to talk about the new season of Welcome to Wrexham, a docu-series about Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney buying a Welsh football team. Plus, over the course of the past decade, Andy Shauf has emerged as one of Canada's most respected singer-songwriters with multiple Juno nominations and fans like Wilco's Jeff Tweedy and Barack Obama. Vish Khanna explains how this low-key musician has developed a fervent fanbase, and how the sophomore record of his band Foxwarren pushes his artistry into new territory.

For this Friday’s Group Chat, culture critics Teri Hart, Eli Glasner and Rebecca Jennings join host Elamin Abdelmahmoud to get into the latest, and possibly final, instalment of Tom Cruise's 'Mission: Impossible' franchise.Plus, American newspapers publish AI-generated summer reading lists with books that don't exist.

Elamin is joined by Refinery29 journalist Taryn Finley, who lays out what has happened at music mogul Sean Combs' trial in New York. Plus, film critics Jackson Weaver and Adrian Horton weigh in on A24’s new Tim Robinson and Paul Rudd buddy comedy Friendship, and how it subverts traditional depictions of male companionship on screen.

Elamin is joined by Jeevan Sangha and Joyita Sengupta to discuss the second season of the acclaimed dramedy series ‘Late Bloomer’ — and why season two of this look at the Sikh-Canadian millennial experience is being called its best season yet. Plus, Gloria Malone joins to talk about the release of ‘La Bellaza,’ the new album from Polaris Music Prize winner Lido Pimienta. 

The world’s most prestigious film festival is on right now, and the headlines coming from Cannes include the muted response to the new Mission Impossible movie, and reaction to the new red carpet rules. Film critics Barry Hertz and Rad Simonpillai chat with Elamin Abdelmahmoud about the big stories at Cannes this year. Plus, the standout stories from Eurovision with Karen Fricker, who talks about Austria's JJ stealing the win over fan-favourite Sweden, and Israel's second place finish.

The phrase 'girl power' was coined by Bikini Kill in the early 1990s, but its meaning was watered down later in the decade when angry radical women in music were followed by younger, less opinionated pop stars.Sophie Gilbert dives into 1990s and 2000s pop culture in her new book, Girl on Girl: How Pop Culture Turned a Generation of Women Against Themselves, to figure out what happened.

Music writers Carl Wilson, Andrea Williams and Sarah Boesveld discuss Morgan Wallen's new album 'I'm The Problem,' Maren Morris’s pivot to pop on 'Dreamsicle' and Lana Del Rey’s honky-tonk makeover.

Romance author Emily Henry is back with one of the most anticipated novels of 2025, and it’s already topping bestseller lists. Elamin speaks with two culture critics, CT Jones and Alicia Foshay, about her latest book 'Great Big Beautiful Life,' and what makes her writing so popular. Plus, Indigenous Studies professor and Winnipeg Press columnist Niigaan James Sinclair discusses the Hudson Bay Company’s controversial decision to sell off its collection of Indigenous art and artifacts as part of its liquidation efforts.