Broken Record with Rick Rubin, Malcolm Gladwell, Bruce Headlam and Justin Richmond

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Marianne Faithfull Fights Back Mar 23, 2021

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Marianne Faithfull has been many things throughout her half a century in music—a close confidant of the Rolling Stones, a pop star, a homeless drug addict and a critically acclaimed comeback artist. Despite a career filled with personal and professional turmoil, Marianne Faithfull has always managed to find her footing. Last year, just as Europe went into quarantine, Marianne started recording a series of spoken word renditions of 19th Century Romantic poems scored by Brian Eno, Nick Cave and her longtime collaborator, Warren Ellis. Resulting in a moving new album, She Walks In Beauty.

On today’s episode, Bruce Headlam talks to Marianne Faithfull about how contracting COVID has impacted her work. Her stalled bio-pic and why she resented being labeled Mick Jagger’s muse.

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You can also check out past episodes here: https://brokenrecordpodcast.com/

Check out a playlist of our favorite Marianne Faithfull songs HERE — enjoy!

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Valerie June Shines Bright Mar 16, 2021

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Valerie June has helped widen the scope of contemporary Americana music. She’s one of few African American women in the category and her unique combination of gospel and Appalachian folk is a shimmering example of what's possible in the roots-music tradition. Broken Record producer Leah Rose caught up with Valerie to talk through her stunning new album, The Moon And Stars: Prescriptions For Dreamers. They also talk about Valerie’s new collaboration with the legendary Stax singer, Carla Thomas, and the mystical muse who inspires the chorus of voices that Valerie hears in her head.

Subscribe to Broken Record’s YouTube channel to hear old and new interviews, often with bonus content: https://www.youtube.com/brokenrecordpodcast and follow us on Twitter @BrokenRecord

You can also check out past episodes here: https://brokenrecordpodcast.com/

Check out a playlist Valerie June put together featuring her favorite imperfect voices HERE. And hear our favorite Valerie June songs HERE — enjoy!

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Ziggy Marley Reminisces About Jamaica and His Father Mar 09, 2021

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Malcolm Gladwell recently spoke with Ziggy Marley as part of the Live Talks Los Angeles series. Their conversation centers around a book of photographs Ziggy curated called Bob Marley: Portrait of the Legend. Ziggy has gone on to become a reggae icon in his own right and is now an eight-time Grammy winner, a philanthropist, author and keeper of his dad’s legacy along with the rest of the Marley family. Today we’ll hear Malcolm and Ziggy talk about the turbulence in '70s Jamaica caused by two opposing political parties. Ziggy also recalls the night gunmen ambushed the Marley house, shooting his mother and Bob—both whom thankfully survived. And Ziggy answers the question we all want to know: was the famously soccer-obsessed Bob Marley really any good on the field.

Subscribe to Broken Record’s YouTube channel to hear old and new interviews, often with bonus content: https://www.youtube.com/brokenrecordpodcast and follow us on Twitter @BrokenRecord

You can also check out past episodes here: https://brokenrecordpodcast.com/

You can find the playlist for this episode HERE — enjoy!

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Mike Shinoda on Beats, Rhymes and Linkin Park Mar 02, 2021

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Since forming in 1996, Linkin Park has sold over 100 million records worldwide. Their enormous success mixing genres like hip-hop, metal and anthemic pop was spearheaded by the band’s ultra-talented founder, Mike Shinoda. In this episode Rick Rubin talks to Mike about the albums he produced with Linkin Park that helped redefine the band’s sound. Mike also reminisces about the band’s early inner-personal dynamics. And Mike talks about the community of thousands of followers he's amassed on Twitch who watch him make beats live five days a week.

Subscribe to Broken Record’s YouTube channel to hear old and new interviews, often with bonus content: https://www.youtube.com/brokenrecordpodcast and follow us on Twitter @BrokenRecord

You can also check out past episodes here: https://brokenrecordpodcast.com/

You can find the playlist for this episode HERE — enjoy!

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See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kenny Beats + Rick Rubin, Part 2 Feb 23, 2021

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Since his first conversation with Rick, Kenny Beats’ star has continued to rise. In the past couple of years he has produced songs with Ed Sheeran, Da Baby and Vince Staples. He’s also taken several trips to the UK, and produced over 30 songs with British artists like FKA Twigs and Slowthai. Today, Kenny explains how for the first time in the history of hip-hop, an American sub-genre made its way across the pond to the UK, only to come back to the States in an updated form that is now influencing American rappers. Kenny and Rick also talk about why they don’t care about understanding English rappers' slang, and how a group of German classical musicians are co-producing some of the biggest hip-hop records today.

Subscribe to Broken Record’s YouTube channel to hear old and new interviews, often with bonus content: https://www.youtube.com/brokenrecordpodcast and follow us on Twitter @BrokenRecord

You can also check out past episodes here: https://brokenrecordpodcast.com/

You can find the playlist for this episode HERE — enjoy!

Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kenny Beats on the Regional Sounds of Hip Hop Feb 16, 2021

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There’s a reason Kenny Beats is one of the great young producers in Hip Hop. Because he has a vast understanding of the regional sounds and histories of cities to pull from when making beats for an artist. This allows him to find a common musical language with rappers. Which is super important in an art form as hyper-local as rap. We’re kicking off a two part series of interviews with Kenny Beats, in the one you’re about to hear which was taped a while back, Kenny maps out the evolution of regional sounds in hip-hop ... drawing parallels between disparate cities. And how Hip Hop has evolved from creating beats out of old drum samples—known as breakbeats—to sampling and referencing itself.

Subscribe to Broken Record’s YouTube channel to hear old and new interviews, often with bonus content: https://www.youtube.com/brokenrecordpodcast and follow us on Twitter @BrokenRecord

You can also check out past episodes here: https://brokenrecordpodcast.com/

You can find the playlist for this episode HERE — enjoy!

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See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Joan Baez Feb 09, 2021

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Rick Rubin speaks with the great Joan Baez fresh off her birthday and the announcement that she'll be among this year's Kennedy Center honorees! Joan was known the world over as the Queen of Folk at the height of her career in the 60s. She used her fame to help spread the tenets of the non-violence movement, and was a close ally to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Joan also helped introduce Bob Dylan to the world by giving him stage time at her shows when she was the biggest ticket in town and he was a complete unknown. In this conversation with Rick Rubin, Joan explains why after performing for over 60 years, she recently made the decision to stop singing and turn her attention to painting. She also talks about the time she and Pete Seeger were run out of town by local cops after a performance and getting banned from Brazil for her music.

Subscribe to Broken Record’s YouTube channel to hear old and new interviews, often with bonus content: https://www.youtube.com/brokenrecordpodcast and follow us on Twitter @BrokenRecord

You can also check out past episodes here: https://brokenrecordpodcast.com/

You can find the playlist for this episode HERE — enjoy!

Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Rivers Cuomo on Weezer's New Approach and a Wild Nirvana Conspiracy Feb 02, 2021

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Most people know Rivers Cuomo as Weezer’s brilliant, quirky lead singer. But one thing people may not know, is that several years ago, a bizarre conspiracy theory made its way around the Web that Rivers was actually Kurt Cobain. To mark the release of Weezer's incredibly catchy new album, OK Human, Rivers explains to Rick Rubin why the band ditched their classic guitar-based style for an orchestral sound. They also talk about the specific substances Rivers took to write his hit song “Hash Pipe,” and Rivers entertains the Kurt Cobain conspiracy as if it were all true.

Subscribe to Broken Record’s YouTube channel to hear old and new interviews, often with bonus content: https://www.youtube.com/brokenrecordpodcast and follow us on Twitter @BrokenRecord

You can also check out past episodes here: https://brokenrecordpodcast.com/

You can find the playlist for this episode HERE — enjoy!

Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Earth, Wind & Fire's Verdine White with Rick Rubin Jan 26, 2021

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Rick Rubin connected with Earth, Wind & Fire's Verdine White to talk about the early days of the band and about their producer, Charles Stepney, who Verdine calls their George Martin. Also Rick reads to Verdine a poignant note from the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Flea about what makes Verdine’s bass playing so special. Earth Wind and Fire are the black Beatles. Their influence simply can't be overstated. You’d be hard pressed to find a wedding or graduation party in the last 50 years where their music didn’t bring generations together to dance and sing their hearts out. Earth Wind and Fire’s music is intricate, combining melody with mysticism and jazz to create some of the most instantly recognizable and profound music of the 70s.

Subscribe to Broken Record’s YouTube channel to hear old and new interviews, often with bonus content: https://www.youtube.com/brokenrecordpodcast and follow us on Twitter @BrokenRecord

You can also check out past episodes here: https://brokenrecordpodcast.com/

You can find some of our favorite Earth, Wind & Fire songs HERE — enjoy!

Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nas In Conversation with Rick Rubin Jan 19, 2021

Show notes

Nas dropped one of the most universally loved rap albums of all time in 1994 with Illmatic. Few legends in Hip Hop have been able to maintain their relevance over several decades based on their skill alone. Nas has never chased headlines or crossover success. He’s always seemed focused on elevating his craft and the culture. And that dedication has paid off. King’s Diseaseis Nas’ 12th album, and earned him his 14th grammy nomination. It’s up for Best Rap album at this year’s awards. Rick Rubin connected with Nas over Zoom recently to talk about his earliest experiences with rap in Queens, how recording his last album with Kanye West in Wyoming almost took him out of his zone and how early beef with Jay Z made them both stronger rappers.

Subscribe to Broken Record’s YouTube channel to hear old and new interviews, often with bonus content: https://www.youtube.com/brokenrecordpodcast and follow us on Twitter @BrokenRecord

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