Podcasts by Hit Parade | Music History and Music Trivia

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Turn Around, Bright Eyes, Part 1 from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Hit Parade is back for non-Slate Plus listeners! Upcoming episodes will be split into two parts, released two weeks apart. For the full episode right now, sign up for Slate Plus and you'll also get...

One and Done, Part 2 from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Hit Parade is back for non-Slate Plus listeners! Upcoming episodes will be split into two parts, released two weeks apart. For full episodes on the day of release, sign up for Slate Plus and you'll...

One and Done, Part 1 from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Hit Parade is back for non-Slate Plus listeners! Upcoming episodes will be split into two parts, released two weeks apart. For the full episode right now, sign up for Slate Plus and you'll also get...

The Bridge: Yacht Or Nyacht? from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

First, we have a few announcements about the future of Hit Parade—and it’s good news for both Slate Plus members and non-Plus listeners. While the economic challenges of COVID-19 certainly haven’t ...

Wednesday Night Live: Music Trivia from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Hey, Hit Parade listeners—we’ve got an unusual schedule for August. Today’s show is a recording of last week’s installment of Slate’s Wednesday Night Live, which was a live Hit Parade trivia editio...

What a Fool Believes Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Like many media organizations at the moment, Slate is getting hit pretty hard by what's going on with the economy in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. We want to continue doing our work, providing...

The Bridge: Lilith’s Winding Road from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

In this mini-episode of Hit Parade, host Chris Molanphy is joined by Jessica Hopper, acclaimed critic for publications like Rolling Stone, The New York Times Magazine, GQ, The Guardian, Elle and Bo...

Building a Herstory Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Like many media organizations at the moment, Slate is getting hit pretty hard by what's going on with the economy in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. We want to continue doing our work, providing...

These Are the Good Times, Part 2 from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Hit Parade is back for non-Slate Plus listeners! Upcoming episodes will be split into two parts, released two weeks apart. For the full episode right now, sign up for Slate Plus and you'll also get...

The Bridge: Many Ways to be OutKasted from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

In this mini-episode of Hit Parade, host Chris Molanphy is joined by Dr. Regina Bradley, Assistant Professor of English and African Diaspora Studies at Kennesaw State University in Kennesaw, Georgi...

Shake It Like a Polaroid Picture Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

A special Hit Parade announcement: Like many media organizations at the moment, Slate is getting hit pretty hard by what's going on with the economy in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. We want to...

The Bridge: Piano Man, Everyman from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

A special Hit Parade announcement: Like many media organizations at the moment, Slate is getting hit pretty hard by what's going on with the economy in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. We want to...

Still Billy Joel to Me Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

A special Hit Parade announcement: Like many media organizations at the moment, Slate is getting hit pretty hard by what's going on with the economy in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. We want to...

The Bridge: Hits Don’t Lie from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

A special Hit Parade announcement: Like many media organizations at the moment, Slate is getting hit pretty hard by what's going on with the economy in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. We want to...

La Vida Loca Edición from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Hit Parade takes you back to the turn of the millennium when, for a couple of years, it seemed like a Latin pop star was topping Billboard’ Hot 100 every few weeks: Ricky Martin. Jennifer Lopez. En...

The Bridge: Wesley on Whitney from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

In this mini-episode of Hit Parade, host Chris Molanphy is joined by Wesley Morris, Pulitzer Prize–winning critic, New York Times critic-at-large, and co-host of Still Processing. They discuss the ...

I'm Your Whitney Tonight Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Eight years after her passing—and 35 years after the release of her debut album—Whitney Houston is about to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Predictably, some rock fans have carped ...

The Bridge: Living in an Amish Paradise from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

In this mini-episode of Hit Parade, host Chris Molanphy is joined by Nathan Rabin, podcaster and writer of two books about “Weird Al” Yankovic. They discuss the most recent full-length episode of H...

The White and Nerdy Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Sped-up voices. Wacky instruments. Songs about cavemen, bathtubs, bikinis and mothers-in-law. From the very birth of rock-and-roll, novelty songs were essential elements of the hit parade. Right th...

The Bridge: Legacy of the Elusive Chanteuse from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

In this mini-episode of Hit Parade, host Chris Molanphy is joined by Rich Juzwiak, writer for Jezebel as well as Slate’s advice column How to Do It. The two discuss the most recent full-length epis...

Make My Wish Come True Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Music fans in 2019 are gobsmacked that the No. 1 song in America is not only a Christmas song but a 25-year-old recording: Mariah Carey’s holiday perennial “All I Want for Christmas Is You.” Even m...

The Bridge: Queens Bey, Rih and Robyn Reign Different Kingdoms from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

In this mid-month mini-episode of Hit Parade, host Chris Molanphy is joined by The Bridge producer Asha Saluja to discuss the most recent full-length episode of Hit Parade, an exhaustive analysis o...

Rolling in God’s Royal Uptown Road Edition. from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

All decades of pop music swing between trends and fads—but the 2010s was swingier than most. From the maximalist EDM of the early ’10s to the downbeat hip-hop of the late ’10s, the pop pendulum osc...

The Bridge: Genre v. Generation, ’80s to ’10s from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

In this mid-month mini-episode of Hit Parade, host Chris Molanphy is joined by Ned Raggett, freelance music writer for All Music Guide and The Quietus and expert on the ’80s U.K. bands celebrated o...

Lost and Lonely Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

If you were an angsty American teenager in the 1980s—whether in real life, or in a John Hughes movie—the rock you loved probably came from the United Kingdom, complete with droning vocals, brooding...

The Bridge: Rain Sounds and Moody Goths from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

In this monthly mini-episode of Hit Parade, host Chris Molanphy is joined by Aisha Harris, culture editor for The New York Times’ Opinion section. Aisha and Chris discuss the Janet Jackson album Rh...

State of the World Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

In the mid-1980s, Janet Jackson broke away from her world-famous, hit-making family and, with her Control album, rebooted both her career and pop style in the New Jack Swing era. The challenge was ...

The Bridge: Ladies of the Canyon and the Rhythm Nation from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

In this monthly mini-episode of Hit Parade, host Chris Molanphy is joined by Asha Saluja, operations manager for Slate Podcasts and new producer of these monthly mini-episodes. Asha tells Chris abo...

We Are Stardust, We Are Gold-Certified from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Are you tired of hearing how awe-inspiring the Woodstock Music and Art Fair was 50 years ago for 400,000 lucky hippies in Bethel, New York? Imagine how the people of 1969 felt—specifically the mill...

The Bridge: Nostalgic for Number Ones from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

In this monthly mini-episode of Hit Parade, host Chris Molanphy is joined by Tom Breihan, senior editor at Stereogum and writer of their long-term blog project “The Number Ones,” a chronological re...

Without The Beatles from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

This month, Hit Parade explores the legacy of songs by The Beatles topping the charts...without The Beatles. This is the story of how a discarded Beatles song, a superstar vanity cover, and a bizar...

The Bridge: Farewell, Lilith Fan from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

How much do you know about the women rockers who dominated the '90s? Find out in the latest episode of Hit Parade: The Bridge. In this monthly mini-episode of Hit Parade, Host Chris Molanphy is joi...

The Lullaby of Broadway Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Musical theater is one of America’s greatest cultural products—and in the mid–20th century, it also dominated the Billboard charts, from My Fair Lady to West Side Story. But the rise of rock and ro...

The Bridge: The "Give My Regards" Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Think you know music? Hit Parade, the music history podcast from Slate, is back with a new episode of The Bridge. In this mini-episode of Hit Parade, Host Chris Molanphy is joined by T. J. Raphael,...

The Invisible Miracle Sledgehammer Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

When a band member leaves to go solo, usually it means the band’s best days are over. That’s what everybody thought when Peter Gabriel left Genesis in the ’70s. Except not only did the band survive...

The Bridge: Monster Drums Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Think you know music? Hit Parade, the music history podcast from Slate, is back with a new episode of The Bridge. In this mini-episode of Hit Parade, Host Chris Molanphy is joined by Nate Sloan and...

The Posthumous Hits Edition, Live from Seattle from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Spin̈al Tap was right: Death sells. When musical icons die, their songs and albums climb the charts all over again—sometimes, a legendary artist even scores his or her only No. 1 hit. In this very ...

Coming Soon: Hit Parade, Live in Seattle! from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Join Chris Molanphy for an evening of stories and trivia, at the Museum of Pop Culture in Seattle Washington, Saturday, April 13th, 2019. Tickets are going fast at Slate.com/LIVE Learn more about y...

The Everybody Say YEAH! Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

When you think of Stevie Wonder’s legendary career, what chart-toppers come to mind? “Superstition,” right? Maybe “I Wish”? Okay, but what about the start of his career, on the Motown of the ’60s? ...

The Bridge: Cover Queens and The Boy Wonder from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Host Chris Molanphy reflects on the previous full length episode of the show, and invites one Slate Plus member to play some music trivia related to an upcoming episode. This month, Molanphy is joi...

The Bad Moon on the Rise Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

In just a couple of years, Creedence Clearwater Revival generated one of the most amazing runs of hits in American pop history: from “Proud Mary” to “Green River,” “Bad Moon Rising” to “Travelin’ B...

The Bridge: R. Kelly and Music's #MeToo Reckoning from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Hit Parade, the music history podcast from Slate, is back with a new episode of The Bridge. In this monthly mini-episode, Host Chris Molanphy reflects on the previous full length episode of the sho...

The Gaga is Born Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

A Star Is Born, the movie Hollywood can’t stop remaking, is a fairy-tale about the American dream factory. But it has also, always, been a reflection of the woman in the lead role—and the latest ve...

Music Trivia: Grammys and Gaga Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Think you know music? Hit Parade, the music history podcast from Slate, is back with a new episode of The Bridge. In this monthly mini-episode of Hit Parade, Host Chris Molanphy reflects on the pre...

The Christmas is All Around Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

In the UK, the No. 1 song the week of Christmas is a big deal. The media breathlessly covers the contest, and there are even wagers placed on what song will reach the top of the charts as pop stars...

Music Trivia: The Christmas Music Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Think you know music? Quiz yourself with the latest episode of Hit Parade: The Bridge. This month, Host Chris Molanphy is joined by Jessica Goldstein, the culture editor at ThinkProgress and a jou...

The Give Me a Sign Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

From a very young age, Britney Spears seemed destined for stardom. The kid from Louisiana had landed a role on the revived Mickey Mouse Club and styled herself as a belter of power ballads. But to ...

Music Trivia: ’90s Teen-Pop Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Think you know music? Quiz yourself with the latest episode of Hit Parade: The Bridge. This month, on the heels of the 2018 midterm elections, Host Chris Molanphy is joined by T. J. Raphael, senio...

The Oh. My. God. Becky Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

In Hit Parade’s “Def Jams Edition,” we told you about rap’s first wave in the ’80s. But in this sequel (don’t believe the hype!) we enter the ’90s with still no No. 1 rap hits on the Hot 100—even t...

Music Trivia: The '90s Hip-Hop Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Think you know music? Hit Parade is back with a new episode of The Bridge. This month, Chris Molanphy is joined by Slate's Mike Pesca. Together, they reflect on the last full-length Hit Parade epis...

The Nights on Broadway Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Those falsettos, those white suits, those toothy smiles: You think you know the Bee Gees. But their story goes back much further than the ’70s, and it’s full of twists. From their roots as an eclec...

Music Trivia: The Aretha Franklin Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Think you know music? Hit Parade is back with a new episode of The Bridge. This month, we honor Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul, who died on August 16th. If you’d like to be a contestant on an ...

Madonna: The Veronica Electronica Edition (Encore) from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

In 1998, Madonna was at a career crossroads. After dominating the ’80s with hits like “Like a Virgin” and “Open Your Heart,” she spent the first half of the ’90s wavering between roles as a provoca...

The Feat. Don’t Fail Me Now Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Guest performers have existed since, literally, the beginning of the pop charts—the first Billboard No. 1 hit had a featured vocal by Frank Sinatra. Throughout the rock era, some very starry guests...

The Deadbeat Club Edition, Part Two from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

In the second part of our two-part episode about the B-52’s and R.E.M.—the bands that put Athens, Georgia on the map, and helped define new-wave rock in the early ’80s—we trace how they transformed...

The Deadbeat Club Edition, Part One from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

The B-52’s and R.E.M. don’t sound all that much like each other. One group were avatars of kitsch, fusing punk, girl-group and garage rock—even Yoko Ono—into a retro-nuevo style all their own. The ...

Music Trivia: The MTV and Alt-Rock Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

The Bridge is back, and this time it's tackling some music trivia about the heyday of MTV, and some alt-rock favorites. Play along at home and quiz yourself by listening to The Bridge. If you’d lik...

The Twerking and Chatrouletting Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Even before the launch of MTV, the music video has been making pop songs buzzworthy. And since the early ’80s, it has transformed also-rans into hitmakers—from the Buggles and Duran Duran to Peter ...

Music Trivia: Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Think you know music? Hit Parade, the pop-chart history podcast from Slate, is back with a new episode of The Bridge. In this monthly mini-episode of Hit Parade, host Chris Molanphy answers some li...

Hit Parade: The You Give Rock a Bad Name Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Bon Jovi are many things: platinum-selling, chart-topping and now, Hall of Fame–inducted. That angers music critics, who have been slagging off this band of hard-rock prom kings since the 1980s. Am...

Music Trivia: Welcome to Hit Parade—The Bridge from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Think you know music? Hit Parade, the pop-chart history podcast from Slate, is rolling out a new feature. Every month, the show will test a listener contestant in a special mini episode called The ...

Hit Parade: The Veronica Electronica Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

In 1998, Madonna was at a career crossroads. After dominating the ’80s with hits like “Like a Virgin” and “Open Your Heart,” she spent the first half of the ’90s wavering between roles as a provoca...

Hit Parade: The Def Jams Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Watching this year’s Grammy Awards, it’s clear hip-hop is the dominant genre in popular music. But back in the ’80s, it was an influential but still underground style looking fora place on the char...

Hit Parade: The B-Sides Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Sometimes record executives and even the musicians themselves get it totally, completely wrong: thinking that throwaway, wacky song was destined for a single’s B-side, only to find it’s actually th...

Hit Parade: The Silver Medalists Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

On the Billboard Hot 100, two  can be the loneliest number. While having a No. 1 song can define an artist’s career, there’s far less glory in finishing one spot shy  of the top slot. Yet some No. ...

Hit Parade: The Queen of Disco Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Donna Summer was a hitmaker for two decades and a dancefloor deity for more than three. Her collaborations with Giorgio Moroder and Pete Bellotte were formative in dance, electronic and rock music,...

Hit Parade: Le Petty Prince Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

In 2004, Prince joined Tom Petty onstage at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony for what is now regarded as the institution’s greatest live performance. They were both first-ballot in...

Hit Parade: The Great War Against the Single Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Ever since the ’60s, the recording industry emphasized the album over the single. By the ’80s, they were milking as many hits as possible from an album to convince you to buy it—from Thriller to Hy...

Hit Parade: The Charity Megasingle Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

In the mid-1980s, “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” and “We Are the World” gathered dozens of the biggest stars in music to put on a show for a good cause. The two songs spawned imitators, but today, ...

Hit Parade: The Imperial Elton and George Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

When Elton John came out as bisexual in 1976, it was a really big deal. It was covered on the evening news. There were angry letters and a decline in sales. And for a generation of queer musicians,...

Hit Parade: The Fab Four Sweep Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

In episode two, Chris Molanphy takes a look at the historic week the Beatles swept the entire Billboard Top Five. You can see that chart right here. It’s a feat that’s never been repeated. But the ...

Hit Parade: Red, Red Wine Edition from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

In this debut episode, Chris Molanphy tells the story of “Red, Red Wine”: a song written in the 1960s by a certain journeyman singer-songwriter who loves a Hot August Night. Improbably, it became a...

These Are the Good Times, Part 1 from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Hit Parade is back for non-Slate Plus listeners! Upcoming episodes will be split into two parts, released two weeks apart. For the full episode right now, sign up for Slate Plus and you'll also get...

Smells Like Christmas Spirit, Part 2 from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Hit Parade is back for non-Slate Plus listeners! Upcoming episodes will be split into two parts, released two weeks apart. For the full episode right now, sign up for Slate Plus and you'll also get...

Smells Like Christmas Spirit, Part 1 from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Hit Parade is back for non-Slate Plus listeners! Upcoming episodes will be split into two parts, released two weeks apart. For the full episode right now, sign up for Slate Plus and you'll also get...

Friends in Low Places, Part 2 from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Hit Parade is back for non-Slate Plus listeners! Upcoming episodes will be split into two parts, released two weeks apart. For the full episode right now, sign up for Slate Plus and you'll also get...

Friends in Low Places, Part 1 from 2021-01-31T22:10:42.023393

Hit Parade is back for non-Slate Plus listeners! Upcoming episodes will be split into two parts, released two weeks apart. For the full episode right now, sign up for Slate Plus and you'll also get...

Hit Parade: Red, Red Wine Edition from 2017-04-28T06:00

In this debut episode, Chris Molanphy tells the story of “Red, Red Wine”: a song written in the 1960s by a certain journeyman singer-songwriter who loves a Hot August Night. Improbably, it became a...

Hit Parade: Red, Red Wine Edition from 2017-04-28T06:00

In this debut episode, Chris Molanphy tells the story of “Red, Red Wine”: a song written in the 1960s by a certain journeyman singer-songwriter who loves a Hot August Night. Improbably, it became a...

Hit Parade: Red, Red Wine Edition from 2017-04-28T06:00

In this debut episode, Chris Molanphy tells the story of “Red, Red Wine”: a song written in the 1960s by a certain journeyman singer-songwriter who loves a Hot August Night. Improbably, it became a...

Hit Parade: Red, Red Wine Edition from 2017-04-28T06:00

In this debut episode, Chris Molanphy tells the story of “Red, Red Wine”: a song written in the 1960s by a certain journeyman singer-songwriter who loves a Hot August Night. Improbably, it became a...

Hit Parade: Red, Red Wine Edition from 2017-04-28T06:00

In this debut episode, Chris Molanphy tells the story of “Red, Red Wine”: a song written in the 1960s by a certain journeyman singer-songwriter who loves a Hot August Night. Improbably, it became a...

Hit Parade: Red, Red Wine Edition from 2017-04-28T06:00

In this debut episode, Chris Molanphy tells the story of “Red, Red Wine”: a song written in the 1960s by a certain journeyman singer-songwriter who loves a Hot August Night. Improbably, it became a...