The B-Sides
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The B-Sides
The B-Sides is a podcast for progressives who love pop music. Subscribe today wherever you listen to get biweekly musings from hosts Becky, Hannah, and Mimi on pop’s place in our world, and the music you should put in your ears to fuel your reckoning with the trashfires all around us.
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56. A Mailbag for the Road
We're back one last time with a bittersweet symphony to close out season 3 of the B-Sides.
In this mailbag episode, we're answering a flurry of...
55. Almost Famous: Nepo Siblings & the Pop World
On today's episode we talk about nepo-siblings. Who are they? And what creates a power imbalance?
Nepo-siblings are a rare breed. Being a nepo-...
54. It's the Climb: Why Artists' Inflection Points Matter
There are moments in pop culture where an artist makes a choice - and there’s no turning back.
Those moments, those inflection points, remind us...
53. Avril Lavigne: An Investigative Report
So sorry, but: Why'd she have to go and make things so complicated?
Avril is such a rare artist. She made a splash right away with Let Go, whic...
52. New Year, New Artists We're Excited About
Now for something a little different: on today's podcast Mimi, Hannah and Becky take listeners through a few artists they're excited about. Getting yo...
51. Surveying the Super Bowl Halftime Show
First thing's first: Go birds; E-A-G-L-E-S; and Fly, Eagles, Fly.
Whew, okay. Here we find ourselves again at the intersection of music and spo...
50. Our 50th Episode Retrospective!
It’s our 50th episode!! We are so proud of US! <3
So - let’s reflect.
We’ll stare directly at the sun but never in the mirror…until today...
49. A Moment Like This: What Kelly Clarkson’s Staying Power Shows Us About Pop Culture
It's September 4, 2002. You're ten years old. You're huddled around your parents' TV, quickly dialing on your landline for vote for Kelly Clarkson. Sh...
48. Astroworld Revisited: We Still Need to Talk About What Happened
When 10 people died at Travis Scott’s Astroworld festival in November of 2021, it was incredibly difficult and painful to make sense of the news. Over...
47. Selener's Celebrity: Reviewing "My Mind & Me"
This week we've got just one more review for you, and then we'll move on to our not-reviewing-a-new-album-or-film-every-episode programming.
We...
46. We Came Back For You, Baby: Reviewing "The Loneliest Time"
We came back for you with a full episode review of Carly Rae Jepsen's newest album, The Loneliest Time. The album – which was released the same midnig...
45. It's Us, Hi: Reviewing "Midnights"
The B-Sides is BACK for Season 3! (We came back for you, baby!)
We are the *most* excited to launch season 3 with a review of Taylor Swift’s 10t...
BONUS: Carly Rae Jepsen Concert Review
The B-Sides season 3 is COMING!
Until then, enjoy this bonus episode. Your friendly neighborhood B-Sides hosts went to see Carly Rae Jepsen live...
44. The Long 2009
Welcome to our season 2 finale! We're wrapping up 2021 with a nice long chat about the long shadow of 2009 in pop and pop culture. Such power, such im...
43. The Ethics of Speculating about Taylor Swift's Sexuality
Today we’re going to talk about Taylor Swift. We know it’s not ethical to speculate on celebrities’ sexualities. But it feels so intoxicating - and in...
42. With Arms Wide Open: How Christian Rock Crossed Over into Mainstream
On today’s episode we’re going to talk about the elusive and enduring genre of music that is Christian Rock. How did it happen? Why do we (as Jews) li...
41. Witness to Wokeness: Katy Perry and the Pretense of Purposeful Pop
With her 2017 album Witness, Katy Perry invented the genre of “purposeful pop” more as a tool for relevance in her album promotion than an actual poli...
40. When Reinvention Goes Awry
This week, we return to flophood but with a Halloweentown twist. Because the flop eras we’re talking about this episode involve artists who felt compe...
39. Will Dear Evan Hansen Ruin Ben Platt's Career?
On today's podcast we are joined by musical expert Jon Schneidman. Together we do a deep dive into Dear Evan Hansen, the recent musical turned movie,...
38. ARTFlop and GlitterBomb
What’s in a flop?
On today’s episode, we look at moments that “flopped” through a more critical lens to discuss why albums flop, what happens wh...
37. What's in a Feud?
In today's episode, we're trying to figure it out. Looking at the facts of a feud itself and how stories about it unfold can tell us a lot about power...
36. California Here We Come Chasing Cars... Mm, Whatcha Say?
When done well, a soundtrack can do so much for a show, audience, and featured artists - it enriches and even memorializes scenes, tells us how we’re...
35. Who Am I If Not Exploited: Olivia Rodrigo's Meteoric Rise to Fame and Where She Goes from Here
We are in an inflection point with Olivia Rodrigo's rise to fame. How we act now will determine not only her future as a celebrity, but the future of...
34. The Trials and Tribulations of GirlBossery
If you read the title of this episode then you know it's time to take a seat and buckle up. Today we're going in on a long-awaited topic, but also an...
33. Let's Go Girls: Country-Pop and the Women Who Are Shaping It
Today we’re going to talk about Country-Pop. A genre that, for many, was once (and maybe still) isn’t taken seriously as “good” or welcome or authenti...
32. Demi Lovato and the Heaviness of Fandom
Fandom is often seen as a frivolous identity or extra curricular, but it can be a heavy, heavy aspect of our lives. This is especially true for fans o...
31. Our Star-Spangled Banner, Ourselves
The American national anthem AKA The Star-Spangled Banner is absurd — in terms of the lyrics, the music, and also the weight behind it as a performanc...
30. Tik Tok on the Clock
On today's podcast we talk about our favorite frenemy app: Tik Tok. The app has had a major impact beyond just how we doom scroll the hour before bed...
29. Lil Nas X, Big Conservative Backlash
"MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name)" dropped, and our thesis this fine day is that the world will never be the same.
Without the benefit of hindsig...
28. Free Britney
We are overdue for a (re)visit to our forever princess of pop, Britney Jean Spears. Imagine being the lightning rod for so much capitalistic, patriarc...
27. Our #GirlBoss Vanguard Award Goes To (& Grammys Recap)
On today's podcast, Becky, Mimi and Hannah talk Sunday's Grammys from the Jack Antonoff memes to the Weeknd's critical decision to shut out the award...
26. It's Dolly Parton's World ft. Jacob Heath Henriquez
And we're lucky to live in it.
We’re on a break! (*Extreme Ross Gellar voice.) We will be back in March 2021, don’t miss us too much.
We k...
25. Money Can't Buy You Class, But Can It Buy You a Pop Song?
Buckle up, we're taking a wild ride down Real Housewives road. We're talking about housewives turned pop stars (and a few pop stars turned housewives)...
24. What Did 2020 Do to Music?
Happy New Year! Let's immediately dive back into 2020 to examine what it did to music, okay? We're talking about recording, performance, and consumpti...
23. A Tale of Two Girl Groups: Little Mix and Blackpink ft. Victor Carlesi
Shoutout to our Lovesick Girls! Little Mix in your Area! And it’s called Blackpink Magic! Ok we’ll stop now.
These are two of the biggest bands...
Evermore: The E(mergency)-Sides
Wreck. Our. Plans.
Taylor surprised-dropped her 9th studio album this week, and 2nd of the year. Folklore's sister, Evermore has much in common...
22. She’s Just Being Miley
Today’s podcast is about our childhood friend Miley Cyrus. Ok, fine, she’s not actually our real life friend, but she sure feels like it.
We exp...
21. The Chicks Are All Punk
Did you know that the act formerly known as the Dixie Chicks is the most punk band of all time? If you're not convinced already, you should be by the...
20. Our Positions on "Positions"
Today, we’re switching up positions for you. Hannah, Becky and Mimi take you through Ariana Grande’s newest single and music video "Positions" and how...
19. Why it's Sexist to Hate Pop Music
It’s not always sexist to hate pop music.
But more often than not, criticism of pop music is rooted in misogyny, and we’re sick of it.
In...