Switched on Pop

• Put your headphones on for TikTok's Addison Rae

  Despite TikTok defining this decade's music landscape, the app hasn't spawned a bonafide pop superstar – yet. 24-year-old Addison Rae is trying to be the first. She's already had cosigns from Arca, Charli XCX, and Benny Blanco; critical acclaim from outlets like Pitchfork, Rolling Stone, and Elle; and is cultivating a fervent fanbase with a slew of breathy, ethereal, and inspiration-laden singles. But how does one translate TikTok celebrity into pop success? On this episode of Switched On Pop, Reanna, Nate, and Charlie put their "Headphones On" to understand how one of the biggest Gen-Z celebrities is trying to parlay her allure into pop princess-dom. MORE Subscribe to our newsletter to receive your own bingo card! SONGS DISCUSSED Addison Rae – Diet Pepsi Addison Rae – Aquamarine Addison Rae – High Fashion Addison Rae – Headphones On Addison Rae – Obsessed Charlie Puth – The Way I Am Michael Jackson – Smooth Criminal Addison Rae – I got it bad Addison Rae – Nothing On (But The Radio) Addison Rae – it could've been u Addison Rae – 2 die 4 (feat. Charli XCX) Charli XCX, Addison Rae, A. G. Cook – Von dutch a. g. remix Lana Del Rey – Blue Jeans Lana Del Rey – Cherry Lana Del Rey – Diet Mountain Dew Lana Del Rey – Bartender Lana Del Rey – Cola Madonna – Nothing Really Matters Selena Gomez, A$AP Rocky – Good For You Edie Brickell & New Bohemians – What I Am Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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• Generation Taylor: Gracie, Maisie, Phoebe (with Jensen McRae)

  Taylor Swift isn't just a world-conquering pop star at the top of her game, her approach to songwriting has also proven massively influential for an up-and-coming generation of singer-songwriters. Gracie Abrams, Maisie Peters, and Phoebe Bridgers—all of whom opened for Swift during her Eras Tour—each owe a debt to Swift's hyperspecific lyrics, minimal melodies, and bombastic bridges. We break down the key aspects of Swift's songcraft and how we can hear them manifest in the work of her young acolytes, and we speak to another burgeoning artist, the brilliant Jensen McRae, to learn firsthand why Swift's style has been so resonant. Songs Discussed Taylor Swift - All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylor's Version) (From The Vault) Gracie Abrams - That’s So True Maisie Peters - There It Goes Taylor Swift - Style (Taylor's Version) Taylor Swift - You're On Your Own, Kid Phoebe Bridgers - Motion Sickness Taylor Swift - Our Song Beyoncé - Sandcastles Katy Perry - Unconditionally Taylor Swift - cardigan Dua Lipa - Levitating Taylor Swift - You Belong With Me (Taylor’s Version) Taylor Swift - Dear John (Taylor's Version) Jensen McRae - Praying For Your Downfall Jensen McRae - Savannah Jensen McRae - Immune Taylor Swift - Would've, Could've, Should've MORE Subscribe to our newsletter to receive your own bingo card! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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• Music's New Success Model

  Specialized platforms and social media have empowered musicians to tap into niche audiences, igniting a quiet revolution in the music industry. Despite the dominance of viral hits, a new wave of artists, labels and businesses are redefining success by building dedicated fanbases with focused, niche strategies. This conversation, live from SXSW, features Charlie leading a conversation with: LP Giobbi, a producer, jazz-trained pianist, and activist who spends 300 days a year touring between festival stages, club floors, and studios. Nabil Ayers, president of Beggar's Group, home to multiple indie labels including 4AD, Matador Records, Rough Trade, and XL Recordings. Dani Deahl, a DJ, producer, and head of communications and creator insights at BandLab, the most popular digital audio workstation worldwide. MORE Subscribe to our newsletter to receive your own bingo card! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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• Miley Cyrus goes avant-garde

  Miley Cyrus just released three singles from her ninth studio album, Something Beautiful. Inspired by Pink Floyd's The Wall—specifically the 1982 feature film based on the album—Cyrus is not just sharing new music but a whole visual album, each song accompanied by a music video shot by director Panos Cosmatos. We last heard from Cyrus in 2023 with her massive smash "Flowers," which found the industry veteran finding some kind of inner peace. With her new songs, Cyrus is turning from healing herself to healing the world. She described the project as "a concept album that’s an attempt to medicate somewhat of a sick culture through music." What does such an endeavor sound like? For one, a lot of surprising textures and collaborators: Shoegaze guitarists, jazz saxophonists, indie rock producers. At least, sounds that are surprising to those who only know Cyrus from "Flowers," "Wrecking Ball," and "Party in the USA." The true Miley stans expect the unexpected from an artist who, it turns out, has always been weird. Songs Discussed Miley Cyrus - Flowers, Prelude, Something Beautiful, End of the World, Dooo It!, Malibu, Cattitude (feat. RuPaul), Plastic Hearts Blank Banshee - Eco Zones Caroline Polachek, Oneohtrix Point Never - Long Road Home D'Angelo - Send It On Alice Coltrane, Pharoah Sanders - Journey In Satchidananda Whitney - Forever Turned Around ABBA - Mamma Mia, Dancing Queen Alvvays - Easy On Your Own? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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• Chappell Roan is giving country... and hair metal?

  Why was Chappell Roan's band dressed like an 80s hair metal act during her Grammy performance? The answer unlocks the surprising secret behind her #1 country hit "The Giver." This musical detective story connects glam rock aesthetics to modern country through an unexpected lineage involving AC/DC's producer, Shania Twain's revolution, and men who inadvertently dressed in drag. Between fiddle licks and gated reverb drums lies a brilliant subversion of country traditions that proves the genre has always been about musical drag while revealing what "rhinestone cowgirl" really means. MORE Subscribe to our newsletter to receive your own bingo card! Songs Discussed: Chappell Roan – "The Giver" Chappell Roan – "Pink Pony Club" Big & Rich – "Save a Horse (Ride a Cowboy)" Bon Jovi – "Living on a Prayer" Guns N' Roses – "Sweet Child of Mine" AC/DC – "Back in Black" Def Leppard – "Pour Some Sugar on Me" Nirvana – "About a Girl" Bryan Adams – "Everything I Do (I Do It for You)" Shania Twain – "Any Man of Mine" Shania Twain – "Man! I Feel Like a Woman!" Toby Keith feat. Willie Nelson – "Beer for My Horses" Carrie Underwood – "Before He Cheats" Trace Adkins – "Honky Tonk Badonkadonk" Glen Campbell – "Rhinestone Cowboy" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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