A podcast all about the making and meaning of popular music. Musicologist Nate Sloan & songwriter Charlie Harding pull back the curtain on how pop hits work mag...
When the song “Get Ur Freak On” hit radio in 2001, it set the world of popular music on fire. Missy Elliott and Timbaland’s first crossover hit sounded nothing like the chart-topping bluesy rock of Aerosmith or Lenny Kravitz, or the smooth R&B of Joe or Jagged Edge. It was a song that compelled you to dance - literally, with Missy issuing repeat commands to “get ur freak on” and encouraging crowds to gather ‘round in what we’ve only ever experienced as a hot slick mess of bodies, cheering and vibing as one pretzeling mass. But this song was years in the making. Timbaland and Missy had been hard at work on the sound for nearly a decade before “Get Ur Freak On” was heard by anyone.
This week, in yet another segment of our Modern Classics miniseries, our guest host and former producer Megan Lubin shares the story of the sound that made “Get Ur Freak On” a pop music phenomenon, and transformed Timbaland into one of the most ubiquitous producers of the aughts.
Songs Discussed
Missy Elliott - Get Ur Freak On
Tweet - Oops (Oh My)
Jay-Z - Dirt off Your Shoulder
Justin Timberlake - What Goes Around... Comes Around
2Pac - Me Against The World
TLC - Creep
Ginuwine - Pony
Aaliyah - One in a Million
Jay-Z ft. UGK - Big Pimpin’
Jay-Z - Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)
Justin Timberlake - Cry Me a River
Nelly Furtado - Promiscuous
Justin Timberlake ft. T.I. - My Love
Timbaland ft. One Republic - Apologize
Sports Car - Tate McRae
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36:27
Playing "Hide and Seek" with Imogen Heap
It may be hard to believe it in this technology-driven day and age, but one of the most pervasive sounds in popular music came about when a computer STOPPED working. In 2005, artist and innovator Imogen Heap released "Hide and Seek," a mysterious and emotional song featuring just her voice and a digital harmonizer. In this episode, Nate and Reanna dissect a song that launched a thousand memes and gave the world one of the defining sonic textures of our time.
Songs Discussed
Imogen Heap - Headlock
Imogen Heap - Hide and Seek
Electric Light Orchestra - Mr. Blue Sky
Phil Collins - In The Air Tonight
Daft Punk - Around the World
Imogen Heap - Getting Scared
Frou Frou - Let Go
Jason Derulo - Whatcha Say
Bon Iver - Woods
Coldplay - Hurts Like Heaven
Kacey Musgraves
gracias a la vida
Frank Ocean - Close To You
Zedd, Maren Morris, Grey - The Middle
Caroline Polachek - So Hot You're Hurting My Feelings
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35:11
The Umbrella Effect: How Rihanna’s Breakout Hit Changed Pop Music Forever
In 2007, a 19-year-old Barbadian pop singer released the lead single off her third album. By doing so, she didn't just give us a timeless, undeniable banger -- she changed the way pop music is made, and became the global superstar that we know Rihanna to be today. In this episode we go back in time to unearth the origins of "Umbrella," and how the song blossomed as a result of many shifting currents in the music industry, the democratization recording technology, and the persistence of Rihanna and her team to record the song instead of the artist for whom it was intended.
SONGS DISCUSSED
James Brown "Funky Drummer"
Funkadelic "Get Off Your Ass and Jam"
Soft Cell "Tainted Love"
N.W.A. "100 Miles and Runnin"
Mya "Case of the Ex (Whatcha Gonna Do?)"
Britney Spears featuring Madonna "Me Against the Music"
Nine Inch Nails "The Hand That Feeds"
Rihanna "Pon de Replay"
Rihanna "S.O.S."
Shakira "Hips Don't Lie"
Rihanna "Umbrella"
Justice "Stress"
Usher "Love in This Club"
Childish Gambino "Bonfire"
A$AP Rocky featuring Skepta "Praise the Lord (Da Shine)"
Asher Monroe "Synergy"
Justin Bieber & Lil Dicky "Running Over"
Sabrina Carpenter "Espresso"
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37:24
Learning to love: Tate McRae
Tate McRae's billions of streams and perfectly crafted hits can feel almost algorithmic, like an AI trained on 20 years of pop music. In anticipation of McRae’s third album So Close to What, out this Friday, we dissect McRae’s "SimplePop" formula, from her strategic, indescript vocal delivery to expert "vibe snatching" of Y2K sounds.
Through singles like "exes” and “sports car,” Charlie and Reanna trace her sonic lineage and discover why pop music needs artists who refine sounds as much as those who revolutionize them, seeing if there’s room to love her music in the process. This dancer-turned-singer might not be the next Britney Spears, but she could be this generation's Paula Abdul.
More
Watch Adam Neely's "Scotch Snaps in Hip Hop"
Songs Discussed
Tate McRae - "sports car"
Tate McRae - "greedy"
Tate McRae - "you broke me first"
Tate McRae - "One Day"
Tate McRae - "exes"
Lisa - "Money"
Halsey - "100 Letters"
Cardi B - "I Like It"
Beyoncé - "Drunk in Love"
Ariana Grande - "7 Rings"
Ariana Grande - "thank u, next"
Tate McRae - "it's okay im okay"
Ying Yang Twins - "Wait (The Whisper Song)"
The Lonely Island - "Bing Bong Brothers"
The Pussycat Dolls - "Buttons"
Missy Elliott - "Get Your Freak On"
Missy Elliott feat. Ludacris - "Gossip Folks"
Britney Spears - "Toxic"
Britney Spears - "Gimme More"
Cassie - "Me & U"
Paula Abdul - "Straight Up"
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45:59
Does It Trance? The Weeknd & FKA Twigs
In last month's episode predicting the coming year in pop, one of the team's predictions was that trance music – the ethereal, dreamy subgenre of electronic music popular around the turn of the century – would make a comeback on the charts in 2025. And even though we're less than two months into the year, we're already seeing the tides of nostalgia bring this club-oriented music come back into fashion. This episode of Switched On Pop, Nate, Charlie, and Reanna take a look at trance music: where it came from, what it sounds like, and if we can hear it in two of the year's most anticipated records: The Weeknd's Hurry Up Tomorrow and FKA Twigs's EUSEXUA. Does it trance?
More
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Songs Discussed
KLF "What Time is Love? (Pure Trance Mix)"
Sven Väth "L'Esperanza"
Robert Miles "Children"
Paul van Dyk "For an Angel"
Ian Van Dahl "Castles in the Sky"
Tiësto "Adagio for Strings"
Darude "Sandstorm"
Charlotte De Witte "Universal Consciousness"
FKA twigs "Two Weeks"
FKA twigs "Cellophane"
FKA twigs "Tears in the Club" feat. The Weeknd
FKA twigs "EUSEXUA"
FKA twigs "Drums of Death"
FKA twigs "Perfect Stranger"
FKA twigs "Room of Fools"
FKA twigs "Childlike Things"
The Weeknd "Wake Me Up" feat. Justice
The Weeknd "Open Hearts"
The Weeknd "The Abyss" feat. Lana Del Rey
The Weeknd "Timeless" feat. Playboi Carti
The Weeknd "Give Me Mercy"
The Weeknd "Red Terror"
The Weeknd "Sao Paulo" feat. Anitta
The Weeknd "Reflections" feat. Travis Scott & Florence + The Machine
The Weeknd "Enjoy the Show"
The Weeknd "I Can't Wait to Get There"
The Weeknd "Hurry Up Tomorrow"
The Weeknd "Blinding Lights"
The Weeknd "Save Your Tears"
The Weeknd "Until I Bleed Out"
The Weeknd "Take My Breath"
The Weeknd "Out of Time"
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A podcast all about the making and meaning of popular music. Musicologist Nate Sloan & songwriter Charlie Harding pull back the curtain on how pop hits work magic on our ears & our culture. From Vulture and the Vox Media Podcast Network.
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