Show Notes
The New York Times just named Taylor Swift one of the 30 Greatest Living Songwriters. I watched the full Taylor Swift interview and I have some professional thoughts on her process, her claims, and the reality of her current work. In this episode, I’m breaking down the most revealing moments from the Taylor Swift New York Times piece. We look at her early influences, her approach to storytelling, and the big question: Is the "genius" label still earned? We also dive into Taylor Swift Life of a Showgirl and why that specific era feels like a shift from songwriting to branding. Is she still the writer we fell in love with, or has the scale of her fame changed the music? Let’s look at the evidence…
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Rebecca Black sits down with me to talk about her new album Age of the Exhibitionist, surviving "Friday" to become a cult DJ, and staying independent without a label — this is Proto Pop. We get into making the album with zero major label backing, opening for Katy Perry's arena tour, why DJing funds her music videos, and the meaning behind "Anaheim Star," "Visions Again," and "Corsetry." We also talk stan culture, post-truth internet discourse, and her pop star Mount Rushmore (Fergie made the cut). Proto Pop is co-produced by Zachary Hourihane & FWB Talent, edited by Tyler Murphy, and styled by Michael Kirreh, with research by Bianca Brock.
Welcome to Proto Pop: my new long form interview series about what it actually means to be a pop artist right now...not just charts and drama, but the systems, risks and careers underneath it. In Episode 1, @Lizzo sits down with me for an hour‑long conversation about what really happened with B*TCH, flopping in public, and why pop is broken in 2026: If you care about the art (and science) of how pop music works beyond the brain dead stan wars (particularly how it’s marketed, measured and lived in real time) Proto Pop was made for you. This first episode is Lizzo using her own era as a case study in how the machine works (and doesn’t work) anymore.
Olivia Rodrigo finally sat down for her first real podcast interview — and she had a lot to say. In this emergency reaction, I break down her NYTimes PopCast conversation about new album You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love, the Taylor Swift feud that won't die, and the moment she bristled at being called the villain. Olivia gets candid about songwriting credits, the "frost" with Taylor, why she's stopped caring about internet conspiracies, and the baby doll dress controversy that had Gen Z in a chokehold. I bring my journalist lens to the parts the hosts missed — and the parts Olivia clearly didn't want to touch.
Justin Bieber. Taylor Swift. Ed Sheeran. Dua Lipa. Katy Perry. I sat down and gave them all my most brutal, unsolicited career advice... and none of them asked for it! In this episode, I break down exactly what 12 of the biggest pop stars in the world need to hear right now: whether they should retire, rebrand, or get completely weird. Some of these verdicts are kind. Some of them aren't. This is MY pop star career audit :)
The lead single is the highest-stakes move in pop music. One song decides if you get to level up or if the entire era dies on arrival.I ranked every level of lead single from Career Killers to Origin Myths — and some of these placements will start a fight. From Katy Perry's "Woman's World" (the textbook Career Killer) to Olivia Rodrigo's "drivers license" (the cultural Rorschach test that hard-coded an entire archetype) — this is a complete breakdown of what a lead single actually does to an artist's career. Not chart performance. Not quality. The chessboard moves. Featuring: Taylor Swift, Sabrina Carpenter, Charli XCX, Dua Lipa, Adele, Miley Cyrus, Lady Gaga, Beyoncé, Lorde, Lana Del Rey, Ariana Grande, Britney Spears & more.