Switched on Pop

Latest Episodes:

Berlin's Hottest Club is Rico Nasty & Boys Noize Apr 16, 2024

Show notes

There are few artists pushing the boundaries of their respective genres like Maryland rapper Rico Nasty and German-Iraqi electronic producer Boys Noize. The two have run in the same circles for over half a decade, but their joint collaboration has reached an apex with their three song EP, HARDC0RE DR3AMZ, a dance-floor ready project that owes as much to Berlin techno as it does to Dutch gabber music. Rico and Boys Noize – a.k.a. Alexander Ridha – are also incredible friends with a lot of love for one another, and for producer Reanna Cruz, all of these reasons make the duo’s EP one of the best projects of the year.

On the heels of Berlin techno being added to the UNESCO list of intangible cultural heritage for Germany, Reanna sat down with Rico and Alex for this episode of Switched on Pop.

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Chasing old sounds: Djo's "End of Beginning" with Joe Keery Apr 09, 2024

Show notes

Joe Keery is best known for his acting roles, such as the reformed jock Steve Harrington in "Stranger Things" and his chilling performance in season 5 of "Fargo." But he's also a spectacular musician. Rising through the Chicago music scene in college, he has self-released two albums under the moniker 'Djo.' His latest work, "Decide" from 2022, serves as a coming-of-age story and a meditation on navigating modern life. Despite strong initial reviews, the album only gained widespread attention two years later when its breakout hit "End of Beginning" became a soundtrack for youthful nostalgia on TikTok, casting Keery as an accidental pop star. Joe Keery joined "Switched On Pop" to discuss the creation and significance of "Decide."

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Cowboy Carter: This Ain't Country Apr 02, 2024

Show notes

Beyoncé's Cowboy Carter is her foray into country music, but this isn't just dirt roads, blue jeans and whiskey. Her country music distills all of American pop: blues, gospel, R&B, soul, house, hip-hop and yes, country. If this ain't country, what is?

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Hip-hop's Sea Change at Rolling Loud Mar 26, 2024

Show notes

Hip-hop is in a weird place right now. Research says that the genre, in both streaming and chart performance, has declined over the last decade. And while rap artists can still get number one songs on the Hot 100, it’s a far cry from the peak of trap circa 2017, when Nielsen data named hip-hop as the most popular genre in the U.S.

So what does that mean for the future of rap? To find out, producer Reanna Cruz spent all weekend reporting from Inglewood, CA, at the California edition of the world’s largest hip-hop festival: Rolling Loud. Through talking to attendees and catching the weekend’s hottest sets, they learned about the current state of hip-hop – the good and the bad – as well as what the future may hold.

To read Reanna’s highs and lows from the festival, check out their Vulture article here.

Special thanks to Antonio Cruz for his production help on this episode.

Songs Discussed:

OsamaSon – Pop
Nicki Minaj – BARBIE DANGEROUS
¥$, Kanye West, & Ty Dolla $ign – EVERYBODY (live)
¥$, Kanye West, & Ty Dolla $ign – BACK TO ME (live)
Junior H – Y LLORO
Natanael Cano – Pacas de Billetes
Fuerza Regida – Enculado
That Mexican OT, Lefty SM – Barrio (with Lefty SM)
That Mexican OT – Cowboy Killer (live)
KenTheMan – Not My N**** – Extended
KenTheMan – Poppin Sh!t
KenTheMan – Keep Going (live)
Kaliii – Area Codes
Action Bronson & Statik Selektah – Respect the Moustache
Drake, SZA, & Sexyy Red – Rich Baby Daddy (live)
Sexyy Red, Sukihana – Born By the River (feat. Sukihana)
Sexyy Red, Chief Keef – Skee Yee (live)
Nettspend – shine n peace (live)
Nettspend – deftones snippet (live)
Matt Ox – Overwhelming
Nettspend – What they say
SOPHIE – BIPP

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Rhapsody in Blue, Reimagined Mar 22, 2024

Show notes

What do Duke Ellington, United Airlines, and the K Pop group Red Velvet share in common? They've all covered George Gershwin's piano concerto, Rhapsody in Blue. First premiered in 1924, the piece became an immediate hit for the way it blended American jazz with the European symphonic tradition. Gershwin had a number of successes as a composer in his day—his aria "Summertime" from the opera Porgy and Bess is by some measures the most covered song ever—but the staying power of the Rhapsody make it a rare instrumental piece that's instantly familiar. Maybe too familiar.

In 2024, there will be many centennial performances of this iconic piece, but pianist Lara Downes wanted to do something more than just the sound the notes of Gershwin's score for the umpteenth time. Downes commissioned Puerto Rican musician Edmar Colon to create a new version of Gershwin's composition, one that brought in the full spectrum of American life in 1924: fiery improvisation, Latin percussion, and dance rhythms. The resultant piece both pays tribute to an American icon while adding a new set of modern counterpoint.

Nate sat down with Lara to ask her if she was nervous to rewrite such a canonic piece, why a concerto is like a musical kaleidoscope, and the surprising family connection to Gershwin's musical world she discovered while researching Rhapsody in Blue.

Songs Discussed

George Gershwin, Lara Downes, Edmar Colon - Rhapsody in Blue Reimagined

Gershwin - Rhapsody in Blue

Gershwin - 3 Preludes: II. Andante con moto e poco rubato

Sarah Vaughan - Nice Work if You can Get It

Sam Cooke - Summertime

Chet Baker - But not For ME

Louis Armstrong - Aint Misbehavin

Ella Fitzgerald - Blue Skies

Red Velvet - Birthday

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Eternal Sunshine of Ariana Grande's Mind Mar 19, 2024

Show notes

Sidestep the gossip and focus on the music in Ariana Grande’s latest album Eternal Sunshine. The music is an exercise in nostalgia: 70s Disco, 90s R&B, and 00s pop and dance music. As she moves through the musical past, her lyrics tear through past relationship. But it's the way her lyrics interweave with the deft melodies and harmonies that reveal the meaning of the record.

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Songs Discussed

Ariana Grande - Eternal Sunshine, Bye, Don’t Wanna Break Up Again, True Story, The Boy Is Mine, We Can’t Be Friends, Imperfect For You
Isaac Hayes - Theme From Shaft
Barry White - Can’t Get Enough of Your Love Babe
Britney Spears - Oops I Did It Again, Gimme More
Brandy, Monica - The Boy Is Mine
Aaliyah - Are You That Somebody
Ginuwine - Pony
Robyn - Call Your Girlfriend, Show Me Love

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How to DIY a Music Career (with Amelia Meath and David Gray at SXSW) Mar 15, 2024

Show notes

In a landscape where the music industry seems designed to stifle creativity and independence, Amelia Meath stands as a beacon of resistance. Through her involvement in bands like Sylvan Esso, Mountain Man, and The A's, and as a founder of label Psychic Hotline, Meath defies the narratives that label success in music. This conversation dives into the systemic challenges musicians face today—from the pitfalls of streaming economics to the trials of touring and beyond. Yet, it's not just about the hurdles; it's a conversation on solutions, embodied by Meath's multifaceted career and the inspirational journey of David Gray, whose story of grassroots success with "Babylon" serves as a case study in artistic resilience and independence.

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Songs Discussed

David Gray - Babylon, Shine, What Have I Become, Skellig

Sylvan Esso - Coffee, Die Young

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Is Beyoncé's music #sponcon? And other mysteries LIVE in Brooklyn Mar 12, 2024

Show notes

Live from On-Air Fest in Brooklyn, Nate and Charlie investigate listeners’ burning musical mysteries, such as: Is Beyoncé’s reference to Lexus in “Texas Hold ’Em” product placement? And, could we be tuning all our music the wrong way? These stories have twists, turns, and a live parody performance that no asked for.

Thanks to Steve Stoute, Lucas Keller, Samer Ghadry, Helen Zaltzman, and Phil Pappas for contributing to this episode.

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Songs Discussed:

Beyoncé – TEXAS HOLD ‘EM
RUN DMC – My Adidas
Busta Rhymes – Pass The Courvoisier Part II
Taylor Swift – Out of the Woods
Outkast – Hey Ya!
Jason Aldean – Take A Little Ride
Justin Timberlake – I'm Lovin' It
Chris Brown – Forever
Pitbull – Rain Over Me (ft. Marc Anthony)
Lady Gaga – Telephone (ft. Beyoncé)
Beyoncé – SUMMER RENAISSANCE
Beyoncé – Crazy In Love (ft. Jay-Z)
LFO – Summer Girls
Aqua – Barbie Girl
Moonlight Sonata (432hz)
Here Comes the Sun (432hz)
Deep Focus Music with 432 Hz Tuning and Binaural Beats for Concentration - Study Music

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Jacob Collier unites the world Mar 05, 2024

Show notes

One of the most inventive and gifted musicians working today is none other than Jacob Collier. Maybe you know him from his YouTube videos, or co-writing SZA’s “Good Days,” or even performing alongside Joni Mitchell at this year’s Grammys. Jacob is a musician with thunderous chops, proficient on multiple instruments and with a voice that ranges from bass to soprano. over the past few years, he’s managed to release several records, net collaborations with everyone from Michael McDonald to T-Pain, and become the first British artist to receive a Grammy Award for each of his first four albums. His latest album Djesse 4 is the conclusion to his Djesse quadrilogy, and it features a kaleidoscopic range of style, from Indian sitar to Colombian reggaeton to a haunting Simon and Garfunkel cover. This week, we’re going to take a look inside the work and process of a musical mad scientist – our resident songwriter Charlie Harding sat down with Jacob to learn about his new record, his collaborators, and the beautifully unique way he sees and thinks about music.

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SONGS DISCUSSED

Jacob Collier - In My Room, 100,000 Voices, A Rock Somewhere, Little Blue, She Put Sunshine

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Beyoncé's Country Feb 27, 2024

Show notes

Renaissance Act II truthers, your time has come: There’s new music from Beyoncé, and boy, is it country. Her two new singles dropped two weeks ago, and in the time since, they’ve both climbed up the chart and taken the internet by storm. There’s the barnstorming stomp and holler ditty “TEXAS HOLD 'EM,” which just notched the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100, and the dark horse “16 CARRIAGES,” a autobiographical work song detailing Beyoncé’s roots in Houston, Texas. Charlie and Nate unpack both of these two songs, highlighting their structures, inspirations, and collaborators, from Raphael Saddiq to Rhiannon Giddens. Then, producer Reanna Cruz speaks to music journalist Taylor Crumpton, whose article for Time, “Beyoncé Has Always Been Country” lays out the cultural implications of this sonic pivot for one of the biggest artists of all time.

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Songs Discussed