Our vocal system is incredibly complex. What we call “the voice” starts with very precise movements of our vocal cords,... more

Why do bugs make the sounds they do? And how do they make them? In this episode, we explore the... more

In honor of Mental Health Awareness month, we’ve revamped one of the most personal episodes we’ve ever worked on. To... more

In the 1960s, stereo sound revolutionized the music industry. But it turns out, a pioneering engineer named Alan Blumlein had... more

Have you ever seen something so cute that you just wanted to squeeze it? Have you ever felt sleepy after... more

For decades, the jingle was king. But in the last twenty years, jingles have nearly gone extinct. Many brands have... more

“Soundalikes,” also called “voice doubles,” are voice actors who perform as characters that were originally played by someone else. They’re... more

In a noisy, tumultuous world, how can we find inner peace? This episode features two stories about the transformative power... more

The voices inside our navigation systems are with us nearly every day. They frustrate us when they lead us astray,... more

In our third annual Mystery Sound Game Show, the crew from Endless Thread compete to guess the most sounds from... more

After months of speculation, the person behind TikTok’s current text-to-speech voice reveals her true identity. This is an update to... more

In the 1960s, Bob Moog and Don Buchla built synthesizers that changed the world. But by the early 80s, they... more

In the United States, the East Coast and West Coast have rivalries across food, sports, music and more. But there’s... more

Audio description allows you to enjoy a movie or TV show without the need for any visuals. But how do... more

In the 80s and 90s, movie trailers were ruled by “voice-of-God” narrators who used stock phrases like, “In a world…”... more

In the late 80s and early 90s, 900 numbers were all the rage. For a couple bucks a minute, you... more

In World War II, the Japanese military operated a propaganda station called Radio Tokyo. Along with jazz music, the station... more

In 2018, voiceover artist Bev Standing recorded 10,000 sentences for the Chinese Institute of Acoustics. Bev was told the recordings... more

Ted Lasso is about more than just an incompetent soccer coach—it’s about overcoming challenges by working together. And that’s exactly... more

We spend a lot of time curating for taste, touch, smell, and vision. But too often, sound gets overlooked. We... more

There’s a certain musical phrase that you’ve probably heard hundreds of times. It’s used to emphasize dramatic moments in movies,... more

What does a sound designer do all day? How do noise canceling headphones really work? And why do modern movie... more

What if you woke up one day, and found that you could no longer do the thing that gave you... more

In the same way that optical illusions can trick our eyes, auditory illusions can trick our ears. This raises a... more

Many of today’s biggest songs are written and produced by people whose names don’t appear anywhere in the credits. They’re... more

Part 2 of our series on the Windows startup sounds picks up when Microsoft made the radical decision to kill... more

Over the years, Microsoft has made at least ten iconic startup sounds for Windows—from the triumphant “Ta-da!” of Windows 3.1,... more

For nearly half a century, one eerie sound has been showing up again and again in movies and TV shows.... more

The voices of subway and train announcements are deeply ingrained in peoples’ lives. Many of us hear them every day,... more

The names of pop and rock stars are known by millions of people around the world, but the people who... more

In the forty years since The Joy of Painting first started airing, Bob Ross has become a cultural icon. His... more

In the 1960s, the BBC had a vise grip on British radio, and rarely played the pop and rock music... more

Your name is so much more than the sound that people call you by. It’s an entire human identity, distilled... more

When The Sims was first being developed, the creators faced a problem. They knew they wanted these characters to talk... more

A lovingly crafted podcast that reveals the stories behind the world's most recognizable and interesting sounds. Subscribe now. Learn more about... more

For our second annual Mystery Sound competition, we’ve rounded up the 20 best sounds from the past year, and invited... more

In part 2 of our series on HBO, we explore the tough questions that the company faced in the digital... more

In the 1980s, every movie that aired on HBO began with a truly epic theme song—a sweeping orchestral piece that... more

If you’re a human being, chances are, you know someone who is a big time snorer. You're falling asleep to... more

To give voices to the frightening monsters in movies, TV shows, and video games, sound designers often start with animal... more