Hit Parade | Music History and Music Trivia

Talk about ?90s rap, and most music fans will throw around the word ?gangsta? and talk about the East Coast?West Coast feud that tragically brought down Biggie and Tupac. But one rap group, OutKast, quite literally rose above the fray: At the 1995 Source Awards, while East and West were bickering with each other, OutKast?s André Benjamin took the mic and told the rap faithful that hip-hop?s future was in the South. For the next quarter century, he was proved indisputably correct. OutKast brought about this sea change by conceiving of hip-hop as everything music: funk, soul, pop, club, even country and indie all found their way into André and Big Boi?s music. By the time of their final studio album, they had pulled away almost fully from pure rap?and were rewarded with their biggest hits ever, a No. 1 smash each for Big Boi and André. Including that immortal jam that taught you, the fellas and the ladies?including all Beyoncés and Lucy Lius?what?s cooler than being cool. Podcast production by Benjamin Frisch and Kevin Bendis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Talk about ?90s rap, and most music fans will throw around the word ?gangsta? and talk about the East Coast?West Coast feud that tragically brought down Biggie and Tupac. But one rap group, OutKast, quite literally rose above the fray: At the 1995 Source Awards, while East and West were bickering with each other, OutKast?s André Benjamin took the mic and told the rap faithful that hip-hop?s future was in the South. For the next quarter century, he was proved indisputably correct. OutKast brought about this sea change by conceiving of hip-hop as everything music: funk, soul, pop, club, even country and indie all found their way into André and Big Boi?s music. By the time of their final studio album, they had pulled away almost fully from pure rap?and were rewarded with their biggest hits ever, a No. 1 smash each for Big Boi and André. Including that immortal jam that taught you, the fellas and the ladies?including all Beyoncés and Lucy Lius?what?s cooler than being cool. Podcast production by Benjamin Frisch and Kevin Bendis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What do Lenny Kravitz, a hitmaker primarily in the ?90s and ?00s, and Bruno Mars, a 2010s?20s hitmaker, have in common? It turns out, a lot: Each man has a wide-ranging ethnic and musical background, with early exposure to unusual sides of showbiz. Each has scored hits in a variety of styles. They are admirers of each other?s work and have even performed live together. But the main thing Lenny and Bruno have in common is their skill?some might say habit?of borrowing tropes and styles from hitmakers of the past. Kravitz from the very start of his career emulated the rock stylings of his heroes, like John Lennon and Sly Stone. And Bruno Mars?talk about an Unorthodox Jukebox: His career has been a parade of hits whose sound has spanned from the Police to Rick James to Michael Jackson. Are they cultural appropriators, or genius style chameleons? Join Chris Molanphy as he chronicles two premier pop stylists of the last 30 years who wore genres like costumes and rebooted oldies into modern hits. Don?t believe them? Just watch. Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What do Lenny Kravitz, a hitmaker primarily in the ?90s and ?00s, and Bruno Mars, a 2010s?20s hitmaker, have in common? It turns out, a lot: Each man has a wide-ranging ethnic and musical background, with early exposure to unusual sides of showbiz. Each has scored hits in a variety of styles. They are admirers of each other?s work and have even performed live together. But the main thing Lenny and Bruno have in common is their skill?some might say habit?of borrowing tropes and styles from hitmakers of the past. Kravitz from the very start of his career emulated the rock stylings of his heroes, like John Lennon and Sly Stone. And Bruno Mars?talk about an Unorthodox Jukebox: His career has been a parade of hits whose sound has spanned from the Police to Rick James to Michael Jackson. Are they cultural appropriators, or genius style chameleons? Join Chris Molanphy as he chronicles two premier pop stylists of the last 30 years who wore genres like costumes and rebooted oldies into modern hits. Don?t believe them? Just watch. Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today, the Pointer Sisters are mostly remembered for their flurry of ?80s hits, especially the ?Excited? one about losing control and liking it. But their musical history is far more varied: jazz standards? Civil rights?era funk? Country music? Yacht rock? The Pointers applied their impeccable sibling harmonies to all of it. Billboard ranks the Pointer Sisters behind only the Supremes, TLC, and Destiny?s Child among hitmaking girl groups. Yet their versatility has gone relatively unheralded?from the Grammy they won in a country category, to the Bruce Springsteen demo they turned into a smash, to the kiddie bop they recorded for Sesame Street. How did the Pointers score so many hits in so many idioms? Join Chris Molanphy as he gives the Pointer Sisters their due as harmonizing innovators and genre-defying hitmakers. Here at Hit Parade, we jump (for their love). Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. This Pride Month, make an impact by helping Macy?s and The Trevor Project on their mission to fund life-saving suicide prevention services for LGBTQ youth. Go to macys.com/purpose to learn more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today, the Pointer Sisters are mostly remembered for their flurry of ?80s hits, especially the ?Excited? one about losing control and liking it. But their musical history is far more varied: jazz standards? Civil rights?era funk? Country music? Yacht rock? The Pointers applied their impeccable sibling harmonies to all of it. Billboard ranks the Pointer Sisters behind only the Supremes, TLC and Destiny?s Child among hitmaking girl groups. Yet their versatility has gone relatively unheralded?from the Grammy they won in a country category, to the Bruce Springsteen demo they turned into a smash, to the kiddie bop they recorded for Sesame Street. How did the Pointers score so many hits in so many idioms? Join Chris Molanphy as he gives the Pointer Sisters their due as harmonizing innovators and genre-defying hitmakers. Here at Hit Parade, we jump (for their love). Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. This Pride Month, make an impact by helping Macy?s and The Trevor Project on their mission to fund life-saving suicide prevention services for LGBTQ youth. Go to macys.com/purpose to learn more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the ?90s, U.K. rock was by Britons, for Britons. The music of the U.K. indie, Madchester and shoegaze scenes fused together into a new wave of guitar bands with punk energy, laddish lyrics and danceable grooves. They called it Britpop. In the motherland, Britpop set the charts alight: Blur faced off against Oasis. Pulp poked fun at the class system. Suede sold androgyny, and Elastica repackaged ?70s art-punk as ?90s pop. But with rare exception, these hits didn?t translate in America. There was no Third British Invasion in the ?90s?with the exception of that one inscrutable Oasis song about a ?Wonderwall.? Why did Britpop fire up Old Blighty and flop with the Yanks? Join Chris Molanphy as he tries to define Britppop?was it a scene? a sound? a movement??and explains how the music boomed and busted faster than a cannonball. Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Make an impact this Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month by helping Macy?s on their mission to fund APIA Scholars. Go to macys.com/purpose to learn more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the ?90s, U.K. rock was by Britons, for Britons. The music of the U.K. indie, Madchester and shoegaze scenes fused together into a new wave of guitar bands with punk energy, laddish lyrics and danceable grooves. They called it Britpop. In the motherland, Britpop set the charts alight: Blur faced off against Oasis. Pulp poked fun at the class system. Suede sold androgyny, and Elastica repackaged ?70s art-punk as ?90s pop. But with rare exception, these hits didn?t translate in America. There was no Third British Invasion in the ?90s?with the exception of that one inscrutable Oasis song about a ?Wonderwall.? Why did Britpop fire up Old Blighty and flop with the Yanks? Join Chris Molanphy as he tries to define Britppop?was it a scene? a sound? a movement??and explains how the music boomed and busted faster than a cannonball. Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Make an impact this Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month by helping Macy?s on their mission to fund APIA Scholars. Go to macys.com/purpose to learn more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Before 1964, British bands couldn?t get anywhere on the U.S. charts. Then suddenly, after a certain Fab Four broke, they were everywhere. By 1965, they had locked down our Top 10. In 1981, a new generation of U.K. acts armed with synthesizers were largely shut out of the Hot 100 once again. But then a new video channel called MTV changed the game?helped by some very pretty men in dapper suits. By 1983, half of the U.S. Top 40 had a British accent. What did these two movements have in common, besides screaming fans and impressive hair? Join Chris Molanphy as he dissects these two bloodless coups that rebooted our hit parade. These Invasions were about as easy as a nuclear war. Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Make an impact this Earth Month by helping Macy?s on their mission to bring more parks to more people across the country. Go to macys.com/purpose to learn more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Before 1964, British bands couldn?t get anywhere on the U.S. charts. Then suddenly, after a certain Fab Four broke, they were everywhere. By 1965, they had locked down our Top 10. In 1981, a new generation of U.K. acts armed with synthesizers were largely shut out of the Hot 100 once again. But then a new video channel called MTV changed the game?helped by some very pretty men in dapper suits. By 1983, half of the U.S. Top 40 had a British accent. What did these two movements have in common, besides screaming fans and impressive hair? Join Chris Molanphy as he dissects these two bloodless coups that rebooted our hit parade. These Invasions were about as easy as a nuclear war. Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Make an impact this Earth Month by helping Macy?s on their mission to bring more parks to more people across the country. Go to macys.com/purpose to learn more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Alecia Moore was so fearless, they put an exclamation point in her name. Pink?a.k.a. P!nk?was full of bravado from the moment she broke at the turn of the millennium, singing a frothy style of teen pop&B. She was promoted as ethnically ambiguous and sold to white and Black audiences as a sassy Total Request Live starlet. She even joined an all-star remake of ?Lady Marmalade.? But Pink felt misrepresented, even Missundaztood?so she recorded an album by that name, fusing rock guitar, dance beats and filter-free lyrics. She called out shiftless boyfriends, other pop stars, even the president of her record label in the lyrics of her hits, becoming the pop fan?s rock star. Join Chris Molanphy as he explains how Pink defined her own genre fusing punk attitude and soaring melodies into 21st-century self-empowerment music. She made herself into a rock star, simply by calling herself one. Who knew? Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Make an impact this Women?s History Month by helping Macy?s on their mission to fund girls in STEM. Go to macys.com/purpose to learn more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Alecia Moore was so fearless, they put an exclamation point in her name. Pink?a.k.a. P!nk?was full of bravado from the moment she broke at the turn of the millennium, singing a frothy style of teen pop&B. She was promoted as ethnically ambiguous and sold to white and Black audiences as a sassy Total Request Live starlet. She even joined an all-star remake of ?Lady Marmalade.? But Pink felt misrepresented, even Missundaztood?so she recorded an album by that name, fusing rock guitar, dance beats and filter-free lyrics. She called out shiftless boyfriends, other pop stars, even the president of her record label in the lyrics of her hits, becoming the pop fan?s rock star. Join Chris Molanphy as he explains how Pink defined her own genre fusing punk attitude and soaring melodies into 21st-century self-empowerment music. She made herself into a rock star, simply by calling herself one. Who knew? Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Make an impact this Women?s History Month by helping Macy?s on their mission to fund girls in STEM. Go to macys.com/purpose to learn more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

One of the most improbable blockbuster successes of the ?90s was Hootie and the Blowfish: a South Carolina bar band fronted by a Black lead singer that played jangly alt-pop. That singer, Darius Rucker, built a career that?s one of a kind. Rucker?s tastes growing up were eclectic, as were the influences on his young bandmates. Their Cracked Rear View album took a year to catch on, but then it dominated the charts. The story gets more interesting after Hootie fell off: Darius Rucker?s career is a prime example of how chart success is a product of musical trend. First, Rucker tried to become a neo-soul star. Then he tried his hand at country music, even though Nashville had not produced a major Black solo star since Charley Pride. Join Chris Molanphy as he traces this improbable journey?the role Rucker?s band played in mainstreaming alt-rock, Rucker?s effort to find a genre to call home, and how he finally became a chart-conqueror again.. Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Make an impact this Black History Month by helping Macy?s on their mission to fund UNCF scholarships for HBCU students. Go to macys.com/purpose to learn more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

One of the most improbable blockbuster successes of the ?90s was Hootie and the Blowfish: a South Carolina bar band fronted by a Black lead singer that played jangly alt-pop. That singer, Darius Rucker, built a career that?s one of a kind. Rucker?s tastes growing up were eclectic, as were the influences on his young bandmates. Their Cracked Rear View album took a year to catch on, but then it dominated the charts. The story gets more interesting after Hootie fell off: Darius Rucker?s career is a prime example of how chart success is a product of musical trend. First, Rucker tried to become a neo-soul star. Then he tried his hand at country music, even though Nashville had not produced a major Black solo star since Charley Pride. Join Chris Molanphy as he traces this improbable journey?the role Rucker?s band played in mainstreaming alt-rock, Rucker?s effort to find a genre to call home, and how he finally became a chart-conqueror again.. Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Make an impact this Black History Month by helping Macy?s on their mission to fund UNCF scholarships for HBCU students. Go to macys.com/purpose to learn more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The story of Fleetwood Mac is an oft-told rock n? roll tale: British blues-rock band sells poorly until two Americans join, bringing California vibes and lots of drama. Everybody fights, cheats, drugs, and boozes. Out pops Rumours and tons of hits. It?s more complicated than that. Those two Americans?Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham?got all the media coverage and wrote many great songs. But the quiet lady behind the keyboards, Christine McVie, actually wrote more of the hits: ?Don?t Stop.? ?Say You Love Me.? ?Hold Me.? ?Little Lies.? ?Everywhere.? They were all Christine compositions. Join Chris Molanphy as he remembers Christine McVie, who died in late 2022 at age 79, and restores her rightful place as the glue that held Fleetwood Mac together. Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The story of Fleetwood Mac is an oft-told rock n? roll tale: British blues-rock band sells poorly until two Americans join, bringing California vibes and lots of drama. Everybody fights, cheats, drugs and boozes. Out pops Rumours and tons of hits. It?s more complicated than that. Those two Americans?Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham?got all the media coverage and wrote many great songs. But the quiet lady behind the keyboards, Christine McVie, actually wrote more of the hits: ?Don?t Stop.? ?Say You Love Me.? ?Hold Me.? ?Little Lies.? ?Everywhere.? They were all Christine compositions. Join Chris Molanphy as he remembers Christine McVie, who died in late 2022 at age 79, and restores her rightful place as the glue that held Fleetwood Mac together. Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sam the Sham over the Rolling Stones? The Knack over Donna Summer? Wilson Phillips over Mariah Carey? Glass Animals over Harry Styles? On Billboard?s year-end Hot 100, upsets are quite common. Songs that seemed to dominate the chart all year are defeated by stealthily ubiquitous earworms. Sometimes the obvious song takes the prize: ?Hey Jude,? ?Every Breath You Take? or ?I Will Always Love You.? And then sometimes it?s a one-hit wonder: Domencio Mudugno, Daniel Powter, Gotye, Glass Animals?all won the year-end Hot 100 prize. Join Chris Molanphy as he explains the secrets behind having the hit of the year?and why it doesn?t always go to a superstar. Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today, we?re excited to share an episode from Slate?s Decoder Ring that we think you?re going to love. For this episode, a story from Slate senior producer Evan Chung about how Yanni, John Tesh and a number of other surprising acts made it big in the 1990s. It?s a throwback to a simpler time? when musicians struggled to find their big break, but discovered it was possible with a telephone, a television, and our undivided attention. This story originally aired in 2019 on Studio 360 from PRX. We hear from George Veras, Pat Callahan, and John Tesh. This episode was written and produced by Slate?s Evan Chung. Decoder Ring is produced by Willa Paskin and Katie Shepherd. Derek John is Slate?s Executive Producer of narrative podcasts. Merritt Jacob is Senior Technical Director. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sam the Sham over the Rolling Stones? The Knack over Donna Summer? Wilson Phillips over Mariah Carey? Glass Animals over Harry Styles? On Billboard?s year-end Hot 100, upsets are quite common. Songs that seemed to dominate the chart all year are defeated by stealthily ubiquitous earworms. Sometimes the obvious song takes the prize: ?Hey Jude,? ?Every Breath You Take? or ?I Will Always Love You.? And then sometimes it?s a one-hit wonder: Domencio Mudugno, Daniel Powter, Gotye, Glass Animals?all won the year-end Hot 100 prize. Join Chris Molanphy as he explains the secrets behind having the hit of the year?and why it doesn?t always go to a superstar. Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Punk was meant to be angry. But the so-called Angry Young Men of the late ?70s U.K. scene were secret sophisticates in punk clothing. They delivered withering lyrics and snarling attitude over melodies a pop fan could love. In so doing, Elvis Costello, Joe Jackson and Graham Parker helped transform a slew of back-to-basic styles?pub-rock, power-pop, post-punk?into the catchall category New Wave. It would take over the charts at the turn of the ?80s. But the launch of the MTV era forced these sardonic troubadours to adjust their songwriting for a New Romantic age. Join Chris Molanphy as he chronicles the history of three men who wrote the book on alternative rock before it had a name. Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Punk was meant to be angry. But the so-called Angry Young Men of the late ?70s U.K. scene were secret sophisticates in punk clothing. They delivered withering lyrics and snarling attitude over melodies a pop fan could love. In so doing, Elvis Costello, Joe Jackson and Graham Parker helped transform a slew of back-to-basic styles?pub-rock, power-pop, post-punk?into the catchall category New Wave. It would take over the charts at the turn of the ?80s. But the launch of the MTV era forced these sardonic troubadours to adjust their songwriting for a New Romantic age. Join Chris Molanphy as he chronicles the history of three men who wrote the book on alternative rock before it had a name. Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the ?70s, funk was pop?the cutting edge of Black music and the way listeners got their groove on, before disco and hip-hop. After James Brown taught a generation a new way to hear rhythm, and George Clinton tore the roof off with his P-Funk axis, nothing would be the same. Rising alongside blaxploitation at the movies, funk took many forms: Curtis Mayfield?s superfly storytelling. War?s low-riding grooves. Kool & the Gang?s jungle boogie. Earth, Wind and Fire?s jazzy crescendos. But when funk began fusing with rock and disco took over the charts, would these acts have to give up the funk? Join Chris Molanphy as he traces the history of funk?s first big decade. You?ll ride the mighty, mighty love rollercoaster and get down just for the funk of it. Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the ?70s, funk was pop?the cutting edge of Black music and the way listeners got their groove on, before disco and hip-hop. After James Brown taught a generation a new way to hear rhythm, and George Clinton tore the roof off with his P-Funk axis, nothing would be the same. Rising alongside blaxploitation at the movies, funk took many forms: Curtis Mayfield?s superfly storytelling. War?s low-riding grooves. Kool & the Gang?s jungle boogie. Earth, Wind and Fire?s jazzy crescendos. But when funk began fusing with rock and disco took over the charts, would these acts have to give up the funk? Join Chris Molanphy as he traces the history of funk?s first big decade. You?ll ride the mighty, mighty love rollercoaster and get down just for the funk of it. Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What do you call a song that bombed on the charts back in the day, that now booms out of radios and streaming apps nationwide? Chris Molanphy has a name for these songs: legacy hits. Elton John?s ?Tiny Dancer.? Etta James?s ?At Last.? The Romantics? ?What I Like About You.? Peter Gabriel?s ?In Your Eyes.? Talking Heads? ?Once in a Lifetime.?   Many catalysts can change a song?s trajectory, from movie scenes to stadium singalongs, wedding DJs to evolving tastes. Sometimes the hivemind just collectively decides that this Whitney Houston hit, not that one, is her song for the ages.   Join Chris as he explains how the charts sometimes get it wrong, and how legacy hits correct the record?and counts down 10 of his favorite flops-turned-classics.   Podcast production by Kevin Bendis and Merritt Jacob. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What do you call a song that bombed on the charts back in the day, that now booms out of radios and streaming apps nationwide? Chris Molanphy has a name for these songs: legacy hits. Elton John?s ?Tiny Dancer.? Etta James?s ?At Last.? The Romantics? ?What I Like About You.? Peter Gabriel?s ?In Your Eyes.? Talking Heads? ?Once in a Lifetime.?   Many catalysts can change a song?s trajectory, from movie scenes to stadium singalongs, wedding DJs to evolving tastes. Sometimes the hivemind just collectively decides that this Whitney Houston hit, not that one, is her song for the ages.   Join Chris as he explains how the charts sometimes get it wrong, and how legacy hits correct the record?and counts down 10 of his favorite flops-turned-classics.   Podcast production by Kevin Bendis and Merritt Jacob. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

So, sure?Billy Joel?s first Top 40 hit, way back in 1974, was ?Piano Man,? and the nickname stuck. But for a guy who became famous sitting behind 88 keys, few of his biggest hits are really piano songs. In fact, on all three of his No. 1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100, keyboards are not the primary instrument. The truth is, Joel isn?t the Piano Man, he?s the pastiche man. He has openly admitted to borrowing genre tropes, vocal styles, and even specific song hooks from his Baby Boom-era heroes, from Ray Charles to the Beatles to the Supremes. He?s been a jazzy crooner, a saloon balladeer, an anthem rocker, even a pseudo-punk. And on his most hit-packed album, he literally tried on a different song mode on every single?and was rewarded for it. This month, Hit Parade breaks down the uncanny success of pop magpie Billy Joel, the guy who would try anything for a hit: the next phase, new wave, dance craze, any ways. Podcast production by Benjamin Frisch and Kevin Bendis Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

So, sure?Billy Joel?s first Top 40 hit, way back in 1974, was ?Piano Man,? and the nickname stuck. But for a guy who became famous sitting behind 88 keys, few of his biggest hits are really piano songs. In fact, on all three of his No. 1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100, keyboards are not the primary instrument. The truth is, Joel isn?t the Piano Man, he?s the pastiche man. He has openly admitted to borrowing genre tropes, vocal styles, and even specific song hooks from his Baby Boom-era heroes, from Ray Charles to the Beatles to the Supremes. He?s been a jazzy crooner, a saloon balladeer, an anthem rocker, even a pseudo-punk. And on his most hit-packed album, he literally tried on a different song mode on every single?and was rewarded for it. This month, Hit Parade breaks down the uncanny success of pop magpie Billy Joel, the guy who would try anything for a hit: the next phase, new wave, dance craze, any ways. Podcast production by Benjamin Frisch and Kevin Bendis Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After the so-called-but-not-really ?death? of disco, dance music in the 1980s moved to its own beat. There was synthpop, electro, hi-NRG and house. But the scrappy genre that seemed to pull it all together was called freestyle?a breakbeat-tempo, Latin-flavored genre fortified with dizzying, proudly synthetic beats. Freestyle grew out of the clubs and streets of New York and Miami and briefly dominated ?80s dance-pop. Freestyle?s flagship artists were only medium-level stars: Shannon. Exposé. Lisa Lisa. Stevie B. Nu Shooz. Sweet Sensation. But these acts?most especially their yearning, floridly romantic, rhythmically hectic songs?punched above their weight on the charts and even affected the hits of superstars from Madonna to Duran Duran, Whitney Houston to Pet Shop Boys. Join Chris Molanphy as he defines the byways of this bespoke dance genre and traces how it bridged the disco era into the hiphop era. Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After the so-called-but-not-really ?death? of disco, dance music in the 1980s moved to its own beat. There was synthpop, electro, hi-NRG and house. But the scrappy genre that seemed to pull it all together was called freestyle?a breakbeat-tempo, Latin-flavored genre fortified with dizzying, proudly synthetic beats. Freestyle grew out of the clubs and streets of New York and Miami and briefly dominated ?80s dance-pop. Freestyle?s flagship artists were only medium-level stars: Shannon. Exposé. Lisa Lisa. Stevie B. Nu Shooz. Sweet Sensation. But these acts?most especially their yearning, floridly romantic, rhythmically hectic songs?punched above their weight on the charts and even affected the hits of superstars from Madonna to Duran Duran, Whitney Houston to Pet Shop Boys. Join Chris Molanphy as he defines the byways of this bespoke dance genre and traces how it bridged the disco era into the hiphop era. Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For decades, British alt-pop goddess Kate Bush had never had a Top 10 hit in America. Now, in 2022, she finds herself in the Hot 100?s Top Five?and television got her there. Her classic ?Running Up That Hill? is featured prominently in the latest season of Netflix?s hit ?80s horror fantasy show Stranger Things. This puts Bush in a long lineage of hits spawned or made bigger by TV, dating all the way back to Davy Crockett and Peter Gunn, through Hawaii Five-O and Happy Days, and peaking in the ?80s with Miami Vice and Family Ties. Join host Chris Molanphy as he walks through more than six decades of hits from the so-called boob tube and reveals why?thanks to our streaming age?Kate Bush?s hit might be the biggest TV tune of all. Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For decades, British alt-pop goddess Kate Bush had never had a Top 10 hit in America. Now, in 2022, she finds herself in the Hot 100?s Top Five?and television got her there. Her classic ?Running Up That Hill? is featured prominently in the latest season of Netflix?s hit ?80s horror fantasy show Stranger Things. This puts Bush in a long lineage of hits spawned or made bigger by TV, dating all the way back to Davy Crockett and Peter Gunn, through Hawaii Five-O and Happy Days, and peaking in the ?80s with Miami Vice and Family Ties. Join host Chris Molanphy as he walks through more than six decades of hits from the so-called boob tube and reveals why?thanks to our streaming age?Kate Bush?s hit might be the biggest TV tune of all. Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What was in the water in Virginia Beach? Starting in the ?90s and peaking in the ?00s, Pharrell Williams, Timothy ?Timbaland? Mosley and Missy Elliott?friends and family from the Tidewater Region?made nerdy pop normal on the charts. Their productions whirred, gurgled, pinged and rumbled?the handiwork of studio geeks?while their lyrics embraced the freaky: Missy demanding that you work it?Pharrell declaring he?s a hustler, baby?Timbaland bringing sexy back. Join host Chris Molanphy as he explains how these three supa-dupa fly Virginia Beach geniuses helped us get our freak on. For over two decades, they never left you without a dope beat to step to. Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What was in the water in Virginia Beach? Starting in the ?90s and peaking in the ?00s, Pharrell Williams, Timothy ?Timbaland? Mosley and Missy Elliott?friends and family from the Tidewater Region?made nerdy pop normal on the charts. Their productions whirred, gurgled, pinged and rumbled?the handiwork of studio geeks?while their lyrics embraced the freaky: Missy demanding that you work it?Pharrell declaring he?s a hustler, baby?Timbaland bringing sexy back. Join host Chris Molanphy as he explains how these three supa-dupa fly Virginia Beach geniuses helped us get our freak on. For over two decades, they never left you without a dope beat to step to. Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the 1970s, a song about protesting truckers topped the music charts in multiple countries, and kicked off a pop culture craze for CB radios. In early 2022, that same song became an anthem for a new trucker-led protest movement in Canada and the US. How did C.W. McCall?s ?Convoy? come to exist, and what had it been trying to say?  For this episode, which was inspired by a listener?s question, we?ve updated a story that originally aired in 2017, but that could not be more relevant today. Slate producer Evan Chung is going to take us through the history of this bizarre number-one smash, an artifact from a time when truckers were also at the center of the culture. It touches on advertising, hamburger buns, and speed limits but also global conflict, sky-rocketing gas prices, and aggrieved, protesting truck drivers.  Some of the voices you?ll hear in this episode include Bill Fries, advertising executive; Chip Davis, singer and songwriter; and Meg Jacobs, historian and author of Panic at the Pump. This episode of Decoder Ring was written and produced by Evan Chung and Willa Paskin with help from Elizabeth Nakano. Derek John is Sr. Supervising Producer of Narrative Podcasts. Merritt Jacob is our Technical Director. If you have any cultural mysteries you want us to decode, email us at [email protected]. If you love the show and want to support us, consider joining Slate Plus. With Slate Plus you get ad-free podcasts, bonus episodes, and total access to all of Slate?s journalism. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Five years ago this month, Hit Parade launched on the Slate podcast network. What have we learned in that half-decade? And what episodes did you love the most? We asked you to vote?and the results may surprise you. Sure, you enjoyed our shows about Madonna, Nirvana, Whitney, Mariah, Bruce, Stevie and Janet. But even more than that, you loved our nerdy deep dives about the producers behind ?Le Freak??the rules for One-Hit Wonders?the college-rockers from Athens, Ga.?the man behind Meat Loaf?the smooth players behind Yacht Rock?and that explainer about why you had to pay top dollar for CDs in the ?90s with only one good song. Join host Chris Molanphy as he shares his founding principles for Hit Parade, and counts down your 20 favorite shows. Happy fifth birthday to us! We?re finally old enough for kindergarten. Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Five years ago this month, Hit Parade launched on the Slate podcast network. What have we learned in that half-decade? And what episodes did you love the most? We asked you to vote?and the results may surprise you. Sure, you enjoyed our shows about Madonna, Nirvana, Whitney, Mariah, Bruce, Stevie and Janet. But even more than that, you loved our nerdy deep dives about the producers behind ?Le Freak??the rules for One-Hit Wonders?the college-rockers from Athens, Ga.?the man behind Meat Loaf?the smooth players behind Yacht Rock?and that explainer about why you had to pay top dollar for CDs in the ?90s with only one good song. Join host Chris Molanphy as he shares his founding principles for Hit Parade, and counts down your 20 favorite shows. Happy fifth birthday to us! We?re finally old enough for kindergarten. Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The early ?70s was a great time for R&B queens on the charts: Roberta Flack. Dionne Warwick. Patti LaBelle. Chaka Khan. They had come through the ?60s?Dionne as a smooth pop-and-B star, Patti as a girl-group frontwoman, Roberta as a cabaret pianist?and found themselves in a new decade with limitless possibilities. Flack turned folk songs into chart-topping, Grammy-winning R&B. Warwick shifted from Brill Building pop to Philly soul. LaBelle threw her insane voice at rock, funk and glam. And a relative newcomer, Rufus frontwoman Chaka Khan, followed in their footsteps, commanding the band and converting to disco, then electro. By the ?80s, all four women were ready for a major chart victory lap. Join host Chris Molanphy as he traces four parallel careers that expanded the definition of soul from the ?60s through the ?80s and beyond. These soul sisters, flow sisters, bold sisters?killed us softly, walked on by and were, finally, every woman. Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Host Chris Molanphy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The early ?70s was a great time for R&B queens on the charts: Roberta Flack. Dionne Warwick. Patti LaBelle. Chaka Khan. They had come through the ?60s?Dionne as a smooth pop-and-B star, Patti as a girl-group frontwoman, Roberta as a cabaret pianist?and found themselves in a new decade with limitless possibilities. Flack turned folk songs into chart-topping, Grammy-winning R&B. Warwick shifted from Brill Building pop to Philly soul. LaBelle threw her insane voice at rock, funk, and glam. And a relative newcomer, Rufus frontwoman Chaka Khan, followed in their footsteps, commanding the band and converting to disco, then electro. By the ?80s, all four women were ready for a major chart victory lap. Join host Chris Molanphy as he traces four parallel careers that expanded the definition of soul from the ?60s through the ?80s and beyond. These soul sisters, flow sisters, bold sisters?killed us softly, walked on by and were, finally, every woman. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today on Hit Parade, we continue tracing the history of the remix. From Jennifer Lopez to Billie Eilish to Lil Nas X, the remix has become a ubiquitous part of contemporary pop chart battles. In part 2 we continue to story of how the remix became the defacto mode of reviving flagging singles, resulting in some of the most dominant pop songs of all time. Sign up for Slate Plus now to get episodes in one installment as soon as they're out. You'll also get The Bridge, our trivia show and bonus deep dive. Click here for more info.    Podcast production by Benjamin Frisch Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today on Hit Parade, we trace the multifarious history of the remix: a musical term with a universe of meanings. Rethinks. Reboots. Reinventions. Re-recordings. Even instances where the so-called remix came before the supposed original. (How is that even possible?) In a way, the most pivotal ?remix? in chart history was the one so transformative, it compelled a change in our understanding of what a remix even is. In part 1, we explore the experimental origins of the remix and its slow but steady infiltration of the pop charts. Sign up for Slate Plus now to get episodes in one installment as soon as they're out. You'll also get The Bridge, our trivia show and bonus deep dive. Click here for more info.    Podcast production by Benjamin Frisch Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In part two of our deep dive into Daryl Hall & John Oates' genre-defying streak on the pop charts, Chris Molanphy argues they were also more cutting-edge than you may realize, essentially inventing their own form of cross-racial new wave after spending the ?70s trying everything: rock, R&B, folk, funk, even disco. At their Imperial peak in the early ?80s, Hall and Oates commanded the pop, soul and dance charts while still getting played on rock stations. And decades later, when the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame ignored them, it was Black artists?rappers and soul fans?who pushed them in. Join Chris Molanphy for a dissection of the Philly duo who invented ?rock ?n soul? and made their dreams come true. Sign up for Slate Plus now to get episodes in one installment as soon as they're out. You'll also get The Bridge, our trivia show and bonus deep dive. Click here for more info.    Podcast production by Asha Saluja. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Daryl Hall and John Oates: Their songs were earworms, their videos cheap and goofy. John Oates?s mustache and Daryl Hall?s mullet are relics of their time. And?for about five years, their crazy streak on the pop charts was comparable to Elvis, the Beatles and the Bee Gees. They were also more cutting-edge than you may realize, essentially inventing their own form of cross-racial new wave after spending the ?70s trying everything: rock, R&B, folk, funk, even disco. At their Imperial peak in the early ?80s, Hall and Oates commanded the pop, soul and dance charts while still getting played on rock stations. And decades later, when the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame ignored them, it was Black artists?rappers and soul fans?who pushed them in. Join Chris Molanphy for a dissection of the Philly duo who invented ?rock ?n soul? and made their dreams come true. Sign up for Slate Plus now to get episodes in one installment as soon as they're out. You'll also get The Bridge, our trivia show and bonus deep dive. Click here for more info.    Podcast production by Asha Saluja. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hey Hit Parade fans! Here's an episode from another show we think you?ll like.  Slate's history podcast One Year introduces you to people and ideas that changed American history, one year at a time. The new season of One Year covers 1995, a year when homegrown terrorists attacked Oklahoma City and America went online. This episode is about ?Macarena??yes, that ?Macarena,? the song and the dance that became the defining left-field pop happening of the mid-?90s. This bilingual song by a pair of Spaniards, and a couple of Miami DJs they?d never met, brought joy to millions, and it topped the charts for months, winding up Billboard?s No. 1 hit of 1996?over smashes by Mariah Carey, Boyz II Men and Celine Dion. And then, just as quickly, ?Macarena? became a cultural pariah. If you like this episode, follow One Year wherever you get podcasts. One Year is produced by Josh Levin, Evan Chung, and Madeline Ducharme. Additional production help from Cheyna Roth. Mixing by Merritt Jacob. Slate Plus members get to hear more about the making of One Year. Get access to extra episodes, listen to the show without any ads, and support One Year by signing up for Slate Plus for just $1 right now. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In part 2 of this holiday episode of Hit Parade, Chris Molanphy dives deep into radio, streaming and Billboard chart data of some your favorite holiday hitmakers to compare their long legacies to the majority-merry ways they are consumed today. And none has been more condensed by Christmas than another artist who was once famous enough to go by her first name: Brenda. A ?60s chart dominator and double?Hall of Famer, Brenda Lee is now mostly known for that tune about Christmas tree rockin?. How did the legendary ?Little Miss Dynamite? become Santa?s little helper? And will she ever pass Mariah and go back to No. 1? Podcast production by Asha Saluja. Sign up for Slate Plus now to get episodes in one installment as soon as they're out. You'll also get The Bridge, our trivia show and bonus deep dive. Click here for more info.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bing. Nat. Dean. John and Paul. Darlene. Mariah. Ariana. Musicians so famous, with so many classic hits, you don?t even need their last names. Now here are a few more, with fewer hits: Vince Guaraldi. José Feliciano. Donny Hathaway. The Waitresses. What do all of these acts have in common? Years from now, each of them may be known primarily for a single holiday chestnut. In fact, in the streaming era, some of them already are consumed largely in December. In this holiday episode of Hit Parade, Chris Molanphy dives deep into radio, streaming and Billboard chart data to compare these acts? long hitmaking histories to the majority-merry ways they are consumed today. And none has been more condensed by Christmas than another artist who was once famous enough to go by her first name: Brenda. A ?60s chart dominator and double?Hall of Famer, Brenda Lee is now mostly known for that tune about Christmas tree rockin?. How did the legendary ?Little Miss Dynamite? become Santa?s little helper? And will she ever pass Mariah and go back to No. 1? Podcast production by Asha Saluja. Sign up for Slate Plus now to get episodes in one installment as soon as they're out. You'll also get The Bridge, our trivia show and bonus deep dive. Click here for more info.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In Part 2 of this episode, Chris Molanphy continues his analysis of how Cyndi Lauper, Aimee Mann, and The Bangles, three contemporary female acts with rock foundations and pop sensibilities, progressed out of their distinctive rock scenes and into the spotlight. They found critical and commercial acclaim and remain influential decades later, in a variety of media, from Hollywood to Broadway. What forces were they up against, and how did they fight to define themselves?  Podcast production by Asha Saluja. Sign up for Slate Plus now to get episodes in one installment as soon as they're out. You'll also get The Bridge, our trivia show and bonus deep dive. Click here for more info.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thirty-five years ago, in the fall of 1986, women with rock foundations and pop sensibilities were doing quite well on the charts. Three acts in particular were drawing sizable attention?and they were all singing on the same album: Cyndi Lauper?s True Colors, which featured backing vocals by the Bangles and ?Til Tuesday?s Aimee Mann. It turns out these women had more than that brief coincidence in common. Lauper, Mann and the Bangles came up at the same postpunk, new-wave moment in ?80s pop. And they fought many of the same battles: record-label machinations?a media that stoked rivalries, whether or not they existed?and a sexist music industry that repeatedly underestimated their skills. In this Hit Parade episode, Chris Molanphy recounts how these women emerged from distinctive rock scenes??from punk-era New York and Boston, to L.A.?s Paisley Underground?then outgrew them. They found critical and commercial acclaim and remain influential decades later, in a variety of media, from Hollywood to Broadway. What forces were they up against, and how did they fight to define themselves?  Podcast production by Asha Saluja. Sign up for Slate Plus now to get episodes in one installment as soon as they're out. You'll also get The Bridge, our trivia show and bonus deep dive. Click here for more info.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In Part 2 of this episode of Hit Parade, Chris Molanphy traces the lineage of ?90s bands like Green Day, Offspring and Blink?182 to their descendants in ?00s emo artisans Fall Out Boy, Panic! at the Disco and their skinny-jeans-wearing, smarty-pants contemporaries.   Podcast production by Asha Saluja with help from Rosemary Belson. We have a special announcement! This year is the 25th anniversary of Slate. And for a limited time, we?re offering our annual Slate Plus membership at $25 off. As a Slate Plus member, you'll get to hear every Hit Parade episode in full, the day it arrives; plus Hit Parade??The Bridge,? our bonus episodes, with guest interviews, deeper dives on our episode topics, and pop-chart trivia. Plus, you?ll get no ads on any Slate podcast, unlimited reading on the Slate site, and member-exclusive episodes and segments. This offer lasts until October 31st, so sign up now at slate.com/hitparadeplus. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

?Punk happened, past tense.? That?s what Boomer-era critics and true-believer punks told the younger generations. Punk?s whole reason for being was rejecting the mainstream. But punk wasn?t just a movement?it was also a genre. And 20 years after it first emerged, punk went from underground to overground, dominating the radio for the first time.   In this episode of Hit Parade, Chris Molanphy traces how punk traveled from Sid Vicious to strip mall, through the lineage of ?90s bands Green Day, Offspring and Blink?182, and ?00s emo artisans Fall Out Boy, Panic! at the Disco and their skinny-jeans-wearing, smarty-pants contemporaries. From the CBGB era to the current Billboard Hot 100, punk is no historical artifact?it?s still morphing and adapting. And for all its supposed opposition to convention, the dirty little secret is: Punk has always been catchy.   Podcast production by Asha Saluja with help from Rosemary Belson. We have a special announcement! This year is the 25th anniversary of Slate. And for a limited time, we?re offering our annual Slate Plus membership at $25 off. As a Slate Plus member, you'll get to hear every Hit Parade episode in full, the day it arrives; plus Hit Parade??The Bridge,? our bonus episodes, with guest interviews, deeper dives on our episode topics, and pop-chart trivia. Plus, you?ll get no ads on any Slate podcast, unlimited reading on the Slate site, and member-exclusive episodes and segments. This offer lasts until October 31st, so sign up now at slate.com/hitparadeplus. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In Part 2 of our 50th episode of Hit Parade, we go back 50 years, celebrating the semicentennial of the year when, critics claim, ?music changed everything.? The Quiet Beatle became the Favorite Beatle, when Mick Jagger sang lyrics even he regrets, when Carole King graduated from songwriter to singer-songwriter, and commercial juggernaut, when blaxploitation took over the charts and the Oscars, and when the radio was somehow awash in Osmonds. It wasn?t a perfect year?but Hit Parade host Chris Molanphy is fond of ?71 for personal reasons.  Podcast production by Asha Saluja with help from Rosemary Belson. Sign up for Slate Plus now to get episodes in one installment as soon as they're out. You'll also get The Bridge, our trivia show and bonus deep dive. Click here for more info.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices