Raye is a singer, songwriter and producer from London. Besides being an artist in her own right, she’s also been... more

Sampha is a singer, songwriter and producer from London. His first album, Process, won the Mercury Prize in 2017. He’s... more

I think one of the hardest things there is to do in music is to write a love song that... more

Kesha is a singer and songwriter from Los Angeles. She put out her first song in 2009, and it was... more

Alvvays is from Toronto. Their first album came out in 2014, and they’ve put out two other albums since then.... more

Laufey is a singer and songwriter originally from Iceland. She studied piano and cello as a kid. When she was... more

This summer, in June 2023, Janelle Monáe put out her fourth album, The Age of Pleasure. Listening to it made... more

The "Skip Intro" button first got introduced to us through Netflix in 2017, and, I know, a lot of people... more

It can be hard to be in a band, or really, in any kind of group where there’s creative collaboration,... more

Bakar is a singer and songwriter from London. In 2018 he put out his first release, Badkid. A year later,... more

Natalie Merchant is an award-winning singer and songwriter from upstate New York. She was the lead singer of the band... more

This week, I wanted to go back and revisit an older episode. I recorded an interview with singer and songwriter... more

Feist is a singer/songwriter from Canada. She put out her first solo album in 1999. She’s won 11 Juno awards,... more

Madison McFerrin is a singer, songwriter, and producer from New York. She’s sung with legends like Aretha Franklin, George Clinton,... more

In May 1980, the band Joy Division was devastated by the death of lead singer Ian Curtis. The three remaining... more

It’s usually hard to pin down when a genre of music starts. But people point to this one party in... more

Yaeji is a singer, songwriter, and producer from New York. During her childhood she moved between Queens, Atlanta, and Seoul.... more

Seal is a multi-Grammy-winning singer and songwriter from England. His song “Kiss from a Rose” was first released in 1994,... more

Kenny Beats is a hip-hop producer who’s been making beats and producing songs for other artists since 2010. He’s got... more

Last month, in January 2023, Kimbra put out her fourth album. I was listening to it, and it made me... more

MUNA is a trio from Los Angeles, made up of Katie Gavin, Josette Maskin, and Naomi McPherson. They’ve been making... more

Noah Kahan is a singer and songwriter from Strafford, Vermont. Last year, in 2022, he released Stick Season, his third... more

Sampa The Great is a songwriter, rapper, and singer from Zambia. She was based in Australia for years, but came... more

Everything Everywhere All at Once is a sci-fi comedy independent film that came out in the spring of 2022. It’s... more

Omah Lay is a Nigerian singer, songwriter, and producer. He’s one of the young stars of Afrobeats, the West African... more

The final episode of Book Exploder is with author James McBride. He was born in New York City and raised... more

In 2002, Sam Beam’s first album as Iron & Wine was released on Sub Pop Records. He’d given them a... more

George Saunders has won the Booker Prize, and he’s the recipient of a MacArthur Genius Grant. He won the Folio... more

Santigold is a singer, songwriter, and producer. She’s put out 4 albums since 2008, and she’s been featured as a... more

Celeste Ng is an American writer and author of three novels. Her second novel, Little Fires Everywhere, was published in... more

King Princess is the project of Mikaela Straus, a singer, songwriter, and producer from Brooklyn. She’s a platinum-selling artist, and... more

Tayari Jones is the author of four novels. She won the 2019 Women's Prize for Fiction, and received a Lifetime... more

Panic! at the Disco is the Grammy-nominated project of Brendon Urie, who originally started it as a band with his... more

Carmen Maria Machado is the award-winning author of In the Dream House, a memoir where each chapter has its own... more

(This is a re-issue of Björk’s episode from December 2015.) In January 2015, Björk released Vulnicura. She described it as "a... more

Michael Cunningham is the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Hours. He’s the recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts... more

Madonna is the best-selling female recording artist of all time. She has twelve albums that have gone multi-platinum. She’s won... more

Min Jin Lee is the author of the best-selling novel Pachinko. She’s a Guggenheim Fellow, and the recipient of South... more

Kae Tempest is a songwriter, rapper, an award-winning poet, and best-selling novelist. They’ve been nominated for the UK’s Mercury Prize... more

Introducing a new miniseries: Book Exploder, where authors break down a passage from one of their books, and discuss the... more

Sudan Archives is a singer, songwriter, producer, and violinist. She grew up in Cincinnati before moving to LA. Her music... more

Maia from mxmtoon released her first EP in 2018. She was 18 years old, recorded it in her bedroom, and... more

Monica Martin is a singer and songwriter based in Los Angeles. Before that, she was based in Madison, Wisconsin, where... more

Maren Morris is a Grammy-winning, multi-platinum artist. She’s also won multiple country music awards, including CMAs for Female Vocalist of... more

Rick Astley is a singer and songwriter from England, whose debut single, "Never Gonna Give You Up," became an international... more

Kevin Morby is a singer and songwriter based in Kansas City. He’s put out seven albums since 2013, including his... more

Arooj Aftab is a singer and composer based in Brooklyn. She grew up in Saudi Arabia, but her family is... more

This week, I want to introduce you to another podcast that I make, called Partners. It’s a show about partnerships... more

Peaches is a musician, producer, and performance artist. She’s released six albums and in 2015, she won the Polaris Heritage Music... more

Steve Reich is a legendary composer who was one of the pioneers of minimalism. He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize... more