

Rolling Stone Music Now
Rolling Stone
Inside the biggest stories in music, hosted by Rolling Stone senior writer Brian Hiatt. Featuring interviews with top artists, expert insight on new releases and breaking news from the Rolling Stone staff, and much more.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Dec 3, 2022 • 1h 37min
The 50 Worst Decisions in Music History
From Britney Spears turning down "Umbrella" to Garth Brooks deciding to become "Chris Gaines," we look at the worst and most ridiculous music blunders of all time, with Andy Greene joining host Brian Hiatt to discuss his list Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Nov 26, 2022 • 1h 52min
The Beatles' 'Revolver': The Ultimate Breakdown
Was 'Taxman' Inspired by the 'Batman' theme? Who or what was 'And Your Bird Can Sing' actually about? We dig into burning Beatles questions and go through every track on the new deluxe 'Revolver' reissue, with Rob Sheffield joining host Brian Hiatt for the deep-dive discussion Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Nov 19, 2022 • 31min
Fat Joe Looks Back: "I Might've Been the First Lizzo!"
From his days as a teenage hustler in the Bronx to his endless string of comeback hits to his friendship with Big Pun, Fat Joe – who has a new autobiography, The Book of José, out now – looks back with host Brian Hiatt Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Nov 17, 2022 • 44min
Kathleen Hanna + Syd: Rolling Stone's Musicians on Musicians – Special Series
What happens when we take the writer away and ask two groundbreaking female artists from two different genres to interview each other?On the final episode of Rolling Stone's Musicians on Musicians – also running as a special series in the Rolling Stone Music Now feed – Kathleen Hanna meets with Syd to talk about learning to sing, star signs, and what it means to be a rebel.Kathleen Hanna is a pioneer of the feminist punk movement, and she’s as active as ever, performing sold out shows across the country with her iconic bands Bikini Kill and Le Tigre. At a Hollywood studio this fall, punk rock's original "Rebel Girl" met with Syd, who's highly respected in R&B and hip-hop for the unconventional path she's carved out with her band, The Internet, and as a solo act. The conversation revealed two women with a unique ability to connect deeply to their audience through their music, and to each other through their individual forms of female empowerment.Produced by OBB Sound. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Nov 16, 2022 • 43min
Willow: The Rolling Stone Interview
"I'm just not a pop star. I love doing weird shit": Willow tells all about her new album, her love of System of a Down and Deftones, why she doesn't care about 'nepo baby' discourse, why she's not embarrassed by "Whip My Hair," and much more in an in-depth interview with host Brian Hiatt Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Nov 5, 2022 • 50min
Remembering Migos' Takeoff – and How TikTok is Rewriting Pop Hits
We look back at the life and career of Migos' Takeoff – and talk to Rufus Wainwright about his duet with Carly Rae Jepsen on the viral TikTok smash 'The Loneliest Time.' We play unheard interview audio with Takeoff while discussing his career with Andre Gee and Simon Vozick-Levinson, and also talk with Tomas Mier about how TikTok is essentially crowd-sourcing remixes of songs like Jepsen's. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Nov 3, 2022 • 33min
Common + John Legend: Rolling Stone's Musicians on Musicians – Special Series
What happens when we take the writer away and ask two old friends and Oscar-winning collaborators to dive into what drives their music and their words? On the new episode of Rolling Stone's Musicians on Musicians, also running as a special series on the Rolling Stone Music Now feed, we hear Common and John Legend discuss the emotional nature of collaboration and how their shared activism has connected them forever. In the past few years, John Legend has cemented his position as the king of inspirational R&B. His latest album, Legend, is a legitimate double album that features A-list guests and mixes snappy pop-funk with moving piano ballads. At a studio in New York this fall, he reconnected with another long-time friend and collaborator: Common. Legend has that EGOT; Common has a Grammy, Emmy and Oscar of his own, and the pair two won a Golden Globe and an Oscar for ‘Glory,’ the song they performed for the film Selma. And both have contributed their own entries to Audible’s Words + Music series, blending memoir and performance to bring listeners closer to their unique journeys as artists.The conversation revealed the strength of their bond — and a mutual appreciation of the way that art can serve as an important bridge between cultures. Produced by OBB Sound. Content in partnership with Audible's Words + Music. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Nov 1, 2022 • 35min
RM + Pharrell Williams: Rolling Stone's Musicians on Musicians – Special Series
What happens when we take the writer away and ask two pop phenoms, from two completely different places and generations, to interview each other?On today's episode of Rolling Stone's Musicians on Musicians – also running as a special series here in the Rolling Stone Music Now feed – Pharrell Williams sits down with RM of BTS to talk about the price of fame, the keys to creativity, and why it's important to take a break every so often.RM went from underground rapper in South Korea to performing in sold-out stadiums around the world as the leader of BTS. Now, he's working on his first official solo album. At the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles this fall, the young superstar met with Pharrell Williams, whose one-of-a-kind career as a producer, rapper, and singer has spanned decades. The conversation highlighted the way both artists use their emotions in their work: from the value of pain to the electric experience of playing for the whole world to the intimacy of producing another artist's work. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Oct 31, 2022 • 50min
Rick Rubin + Finneas: Rolling Stone's Musicians on Musicians – Special Series
What happens when we take away the writer and ask two groundbreaking producers, from two different generations, to interview each other? On this episode of Rolling Stone's Musicians on Musicians, also running as a special series in the Rolling Stone Music Now feed, Rick Rubin and Finneas talk about how they work in the studio, their listening habits, and the frustrations and the joy involved in making great music. Rick Rubin started Def Jam Records out of his NYU dorm room in the 1980s, and went on to produce classic albums by the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Johnny Cash and many others. He’s still going strong: In addition to his continued collaboration with groups like the Chili Peppers and The Strokes, his book The Creative Act hits bookstores in 2023. Rubin sat down with a young talent making waves of his own: Finneas O’Connell. Finneas produced his sister Billie Eilish’s 2019 smash hit debut in his childhood bedroom in L.A., and has a career of his own as an incisive singer-songwriter — just last year he released his solo debut Optimist. Rubin was a key influence when Finneas was growing up, and their conversation revealed two cutting-edge minds eager to learn from one other. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Oct 29, 2022 • 1h 24min
Cameron Crowe on 'Almost Famous: The Musical' and More
Cameron Crowe tells all about making the new musical, the real-life rock stories behind it, the day Joni Mitchell came to see the show, why he's into the idea of making a movie in the MCU, and much more; plus Broadway veteran Tom Kitt digs into the making of the music Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices