“Low Rider” View this post on Instagram A post shared by Song Exploder (@songexploder) LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON· OTHER APPS The band War formed in 1969, in Long Beach, California. “Low Rider” is from their 1975 album Why Can’t We Be Friends? The song was a hit as soon as it came out. It went to #1 on the Billboard R&B charts, and it’s just had tremendous lasting power ever since. Besides being in the movie Dazed and Confused, where I heard it, it’s been sampled by the Beastie Boys, it was covered by Korn, and it was the theme song for all six seasons of The George Lopez Show ..read more

“Y.B.P.” (feat. Bruiser Wolf) View this post on Instagram A post shared by Song Exploder (@songexploder) LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON· OTHER APPS Danny Brown started his career in 2007 by handing out mixtapes in Detroit, where he’s from. In 2011, he put out his acclaimed second album, XXX. Since then, he’s collaborated with rappers like Kendrick Lamar, A$AP Rocky and JPEGMafia, but he’s also worked with electronic bands like Purity Ring and The Avalanches, and he did a verse on a remix for Korn. When I first heard him, around when XXX came out, I was really drawn to his voice. And I a ..read more

“You Louisiana Man” View this post on Instagram A post shared by Song Exploder (@songexploder) LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON· OTHER APPS Rhiannon Giddens has released five solo albums since 2015. Before that, she was a member of the Grammy-winning band, the Carolina Chocolate Drops. She is now also the artistic director of the Silkroad Ensemble, the musical supergroup that Yo-Yo Ma founded. Rhiannon Giddens is one of those people where I feel like they have to start inventing new awards, because she’s already won all of them. She’s got multiple Grammys, she won the Pulitzer Prize for a ..read more

“Basket Case” View this post on Instagram A post shared by Song Exploder (@songexploder) LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON· OTHER APPS Green Day is a punk band from the East Bay in California. Billie Joe Armstrong, Mike Dirnt and Tré Cool have playing music together since 1987. They’ve sold over 90 million records. They’ve won four Grammys, including twice for Best Rock Album. They put out their first album in 1990, and in 91, they put out their second album, Kerplunk!. And then they moved to a major label, and in 1994 they put out their third album, Dookie, which was huge. It helped bring ..read more

“The District Sleeps Alone Tonight” Deluxe Anniversary Edition View this post on Instagram A post shared by Song Exploder (@songexploder) LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON· OTHER APPS The first episode of Song Exploder, about The Postal Service song “The District Sleeps Alone Tonight,” came out 10 years ago, in January 2014. To celebrate the 10th anniversary of the podcast, we’re doing what bands do, and putting out a deluxe, expanded edition of our very first release: this version features a new interview, new insights, and new pieces of the song and demo. The Postal Service formed in 200 ..read more

“The Teacher” View this post on Instagram A post shared by Song Exploder (@songexploder) LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON· OTHER APPS For the last episode of the year, I got the chance to drive up to Northridge, California, and have a conversation with Dave Grohl. We talked about the Foo Fighters song “The Teacher,” which is an epic, 10-minute long song. Dave told me it’s the most important piece of music he’s ever written, because it’s dedicated to his mother, Virginia, who passed away in 2022. Dave Grohl started Foo Fighters in 1994, after Nirvana ended. This year, Foo Fighters set a re ..read more

Escapism (feat. 070 Shake) View this post on Instagram A post shared by Song Exploder (@songexploder) LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON· OTHER APPS Raye is a singer, songwriter and producer from London. Besides being an artist in her own right, she’s also been a songwriter for other artists since she was a teenager. She’s co-written songs for Beyoncé, Charli XCX, and Ellie Goulding. In 2023, she released her debut album, My 21st Century Blues. The first single, “Escapism,” became her first song to hit #1 in the UK. It’s gone platinum in the US, the UK, and seven other countries. It feature ..read more

Spirit 2.0 View this post on Instagram A post shared by Song Exploder (@songexploder) LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON· OTHER APPS Sampha is a singer, songwriter and producer from London. His first album, Process, won the Mercury Prize in 2017. He’s collaborated with artists like the XX, Kendrick Lamar, Drake, and Solange. If you saw the Song Exploder Netflix show, Sampha was in the Alicia Keys episode, for the song they did together as a duet. This year, in October 2023, Sampha put out his second album, Lahai. And for this episode, I talked to Sampha about the song “Spirit 2.0.” Coming u ..read more

Liar View this post on Instagram A post shared by Song Exploder (@songexploder) LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON· OTHER APPS I think one of the hardest things there is to do in music is to write a love song that expresses something real. I read that the song “Liar” by Paramore was written by Hayley Williams, the singer of the band, about her longtime bandmate Taylor York, and about the feelings she started to realize she’d had for him. Paramore has been a band for over 20 years, since Hayley and Taylor and Zac Farro, who plays drums, were all young teenagers. Paramore’s won a Grammy for B ..read more

Eat The Acid View this post on Instagram A post shared by Song Exploder (@songexploder) LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON· OTHER APPS Kesha is a singer and songwriter from Los Angeles. She put out her first song in 2009, and it was a huge #1 hit in the US and 13 other countries. She’s had 10 top-ten singles on the Billboard charts, and sold millions of albums. She got famous for songs that were about partying, and breaking the rules, and having fun. But this year, in May 2023, she put out the album Gag Order, which is a lot more raw and vulnerable. She made it with superstar producer Rick ..read more