It’s been nearly a decade since Rihanna released a studio album—and fans and critics alike have wondered when, if ever, a follow-up to 2016’s Anti might arrive. Which is ironic, because in her heyday, Rihanna was the most productive hitmaker on the charts. Churning out at least one album a year in the late aughts and early ‘10s, Rihanna’s approach to the charts was closer to early Motown or the Beatles than Beyoncé or Taylor. The result: the Barbadian pop deity scored more No. 1s than any 21st c...
Apr 25, 2025•58 min
It’s been nearly a decade since Rihanna released a studio album—and fans and critics alike have wondered when, if ever, a follow-up to 2016’s Anti might arrive. Which is ironic, because in her heyday, Rihanna was the most productive hitmaker on the charts. Churning out at least one album a year in the late aughts and early ‘10s, Rihanna’s approach to the charts was closer to early Motown or the Beatles than Beyoncé or Taylor. The result: the Barbadian pop deity scored more No. 1s than any 21st c...
Apr 11, 2025•1 hr
When you think of music in the 1960s, some groundbreaking artists probably come to mind: Bob Dylan, Jimi Hendrix and the Jefferson Airplane, for example. But the pop charts paint a very different picture of that decade, which embraced easy listening, groovy bubblegum, novelty and instrumental records—even a guitar-strumming Belgian nun. In other words, the soundtrack of the era was more like Mad Men and less like Forrest Gump. Join Chris Molanphy as he unearths forgotten hits from Bobby Vinton, ...
Mar 28, 2025•1 hr 1 min
When you think of music in the 1960s, some groundbreaking artists probably come to mind: Bob Dylan, Jimi Hendrix and the Jefferson Airplane, for example. But the pop charts paint a very different picture of that decade, which embraced easy listening, groovy bubblegum, novelty and instrumental records—even a guitar-strumming Belgian nun. In other words, the soundtrack of the era was more like Mad Men and less like Forrest Gump. Join Chris Molanphy as he unearths forgotten hits from Bobby Vinton, ...
Mar 14, 2025•54 min
In the late 1980s, the English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys dominated the U.K. pop charts and staged an invasion of the American charts. Years later, founding member Neil Tennant dubbed this streak of creative and commercial supremacy the group’s “imperial phase”—a term that eventually caught on among music critics and pop fans. So, what does it take for an artist to achieve imperial dominance? Why might Fleetwood Mac in the 1970s or The Weeknd in the 2010s qualify, while Cher or Lizzo don’t quit...
Feb 28, 2025•47 min
In the late 1980s, the English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys dominated the U.K. pop charts and staged an invasion of the American charts. Years later, founding member Neil Tennant dubbed this streak of creative and commercial supremacy the group’s “imperial phase”—a term that eventually caught on among music critics and pop fans. So, what does it take for an artist to achieve imperial dominance? Why might Fleetwood Mac in the 1970s or The Weeknd in the 2010s qualify, while Cher or Lizzo don’t quit...
Feb 14, 2025•1 hr 7 min
At the movies, A Complete Unknown depicts Bob Dylan as a 1960s “it” boy—played by a 2020s “it” boy, Timothée Chalamet. But the film ends in 1965. What happened in the six decades after that? Dylan not only kept recording. He actually started topping the charts—in the 1970s, the era of Led Zeppelin, not Pete Seeger. And several of his chart-topping albums came decades later, in the 21st century. Bob’s voice got rougher, but loyal audiences kept buying his music. Several of these platinum Dylan LP...
Jan 31, 2025•1 hr 3 min
At the movies, A Complete Unknown depicts Bob Dylan as a 1960s “it” boy—played by a 2020s “it” boy, Timothée Chalamet. But the film ends in 1965. What happened in the six decades after that? Dylan not only kept recording. He actually started topping the charts—in the 1970s, the era of Led Zeppelin, not Pete Seeger. And several of his chart-topping albums came decades later, in the 21st century. Bob’s voice got rougher, but loyal audiences kept buying his music. Several of these platinum Dylan LP...
Jan 18, 2025•1 hr 5 min
To kick off the New Year, we're sharing a podcast that we think Hit Parade listeners are going to love: Broken Record. Check out this episode with singer/songwriter Norah Jones, co-hosted by Blue Note Records President Don Was. Norah has been with Blue Note Records since releasing her juggernaut 2002 debut album, Come Away With Me. In this conversation, Norah details her musical upbringing and what it was like striking it big with her debut album. She also performs for us, and talks about the mu...
Jan 03, 2025•1 hr 23 min
The Slate Music Club is back, in a special edition of Hit Parade – “The Bridge”! Our year-end panel of critics—NPR Music’s Ann Powers, Hearing Things’ Julianne Escobedo Shepherd, Slate’s own Carl Wilson and Hit Parade host Chris Molanphy—discuss their favorite albums and singles and the trends that shaped the year in pop, rap, country, Latin and global music. Among the questions the roundtable tackles: Have we reached peak Taylor Swift? Did the Kendrick Lamar–v.-Drake beef overshadow hip-hop’s n...
Dec 27, 2024•35 min
That damned jingle! In that infernal commercial trying to sell you cars, sneakers, soda, gum! Can’t get it out of your head? Well, what if we made it longer, had a famous singer perform it, and put it on the radio? How would you like it then? A surprising number of hits across chart history got their start in advertisements: the Carpenters song that was originally a promo for a California bank. The ’70s country-pop smash by a character who didn’t exist, and was selling you sliced bread. The Stin...
Dec 27, 2024•45 min
That damned jingle! In that infernal commercial trying to sell you cars, sneakers, soda, gum! Can’t get it out of your head? Well, what if we made it longer, had a famous singer perform it, and put it on the radio? How would you like it then? A surprising number of hits across chart history got their start in advertisements: the Carpenters song that was originally a promo for a California bank. The ’70s country-pop smash by a character who didn’t exist, and was selling you sliced bread. The Stin...
Dec 13, 2024•1 hr
You know her honorific: Queen of Soul. And heavy is the head that wears the crown. In her lifetime, Aretha Franklin didn’t just want to be revered. She wanted hits. But Franklin made pop come to her, not the other way around. When showtunes and standards didn’t work in the ’60s, Aretha switched to gritty R&B and gospel harmonies—and started topping the charts. When she recorded a live album in a church in the ’70s, it became her best-seller. When the MTV era changed the game in the ’80s, she did...
Nov 29, 2024•58 min
You know her honorific: Queen of Soul. And heavy is the head that wears the crown. In her lifetime, Aretha Franklin didn’t just want to be revered. She wanted hits. But Franklin made pop come to her, not the other way around. When showtunes and standards didn’t work in the ’60s, Aretha switched to gritty R&B and gospel harmonies—and started topping the charts. When she recorded a live album in a church in the ’70s, it became her best-seller. When the MTV era changed the game in the ’80s, she did...
Nov 15, 2024•1 hr 1 min
U2 have millions of admirers—and haters: from the fans who regard them as rock’s conscience, to the cynics who blanch at lead singer Bono’s self-importance. Here’s the thing: U2 want to play to both crowds. They know why the haters can’t stand them. After a decade of earnestness in the ’80s, Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen called BS on themselves, rebooting their sound and image for the ’90s age of irony. This shouldn’t have worked. Instead, U2 became as big as ever, and kept scori...
Oct 25, 2024•59 min
U2 have millions of admirers—and haters: from the fans who regard them as rock’s conscience, to the cynics who blanch at lead singer Bono’s self-importance. Here’s the thing: U2 want to play to both crowds. They know why the haters can’t stand them. After a decade of earnestness in the ’80s, Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen called BS on themselves, rebooting their sound and image for the ’90s age of irony. This shouldn’t have worked. Instead, U2 became as big as ever, and kept scori...
Oct 11, 2024•1 hr 5 min
A decade ago, Rolling Stone magazine called 1984 “Pop’s Greatest Year.” A bold statement…but a lot of critics agree. A confluence of factors—the comeback of dance music, the peak of MTV, the Second British Invasion, and the emergence of metal and hip-hop—made the radio a great place to be. It was a year of fearless genre crossover…cinematic hits…veterans reinventing themselves…ballads that became standards…a newcomer named Madonna…and a movie star who called himself The Kid and made doves cry. J...
Sep 27, 2024•1 hr 4 min
A decade ago, Rolling Stone magazine called 1984 “Pop’s Greatest Year.” A bold statement…but a lot of critics agree. A confluence of factors—the comeback of dance music, the peak of MTV, the Second British Invasion and the emergence of metal and hip-hop—made the radio a great place to be. It was a year of fearless genre crossover…cinematic hits…veterans reinventing themselves…ballads that became standards…a newcomer named Madonna…and a movie star who called himself The Kid and made doves cry. Jo...
Sep 14, 2024•1 hr 7 min
For decades—literally since Woodstock—female musicians had battled music-industry perceptions that amassing too many of them, on the radio or on the road, was bad for business. And yet, by the ’90s, women were vital to the rise of alt-rock and hip-hop on the charts: from Suzanne Vega to Queen Latifah, Tracy Chapman to Sheryl Crow, Natalie Merchant to Missy Elliott. Sarah McLachlan harnessed this energy into an all-woman tour she dubbed Lilith Fair. Its string of sellouts from 1997 to ’99 affirme...
Aug 30, 2024•48 min
For decades—literally since Woodstock—female musicians had battled music-industry perceptions that amassing too many of them, on the radio or on the road, was bad for business. And yet, by the ’90s, women were vital to the rise of alt-rock and hip-hop on the charts: from Suzanne Vega to Queen Latifah, Tracy Chapman to Sheryl Crow, Natalie Merchant to Missy Elliott. Sarah McLachlan harnessed this energy into an all-woman tour she dubbed Lilith Fair. Its string of sellouts from 1997 to ’99 affirme...
Aug 10, 2024•53 min
“Summer in the City.” “I Feel the Earth Move.” “Bette Davis Eyes.” “Whoomp! There It Is.” “Get Lucky.” “Espresso.” What do these big summer hits all have in common? None of them was Billboard’s official Song of the Summer. Wait…there’s an official Song of the Summer? Isn’t that something that just happens organically? Every year, it seems everybody has an opinion on this musical national pastime. But the Hot 100 often tells a different story. For every “Light My Fire,” “Bad Girls,” “Crazy in Lov...
Jul 27, 2024•1 hr 2 min
“Summer in the City.” “I Feel the Earth Move.” “Bette Davis Eyes.” “Whoomp! There It Is.” “Get Lucky.” “Espresso.” What do these big summer hits all have in common? None of them was Billboard’s official Song of the Summer. Wait…there’s an official Song of the Summer? Isn’t that something that just happens organically? Every year, it seems everybody has an opinion on this musical national pastime. But the Hot 100 often tells a different story. For every “Light My Fire,” “Bad Girls,” “Crazy in Lov...
Jul 13, 2024•1 hr 2 min
What does a music producer do? If his name is Quincy Jones, a little bit of everything: conducting, arranging, composing. Assembling teams of ace session musicians. Sometimes, even picking a catchy title and telling an artist to go write a song about it— would “Thriller” have worked as well if it had been called “Starlight”? Quincy Jones was pop’s Renaissance Man, and he could not be limited either by genre or by role. He played in jazz bands…produced teen pop hits…discovered young talent…scored...
Jun 29, 2024•56 min
What does a music producer do? If his name is Quincy Jones, a little bit of everything: conducting, arranging, composing. Assembling teams of ace session musicians. Sometimes, even picking a catchy title and telling an artist to go write a song about it— would “Thriller” have worked as well if it had been called “Starlight”? Quincy Jones was pop’s Renaissance Man, and he could not be limited either by genre or by role. He played in jazz bands…produced teen pop hits…discovered young talent…scored...
Jun 15, 2024•51 min
Girl groups have long been underestimated—even by the producers and managers who created them. For women listeners, girl groups narrated profound emotions and expressed personal freedom—even when the singers were not so free themselves. For male listeners, girl groups provided inspiration, and a way to express matters of the heart. And for all listeners across rock and soul history, girl groups pushed music forward. In the ’60s, the Shirelles, Marvelettes, Ronettes and Shangri-Las kept rock aflo...
May 31, 2024•52 min
Girl groups have long been underestimated—even by the producers and managers who created them. For women listeners, girl groups narrated profound emotions and expressed personal freedom—even when the singers were not so free themselves. For male listeners, girl groups provided inspiration, and a way to express matters of the heart. And for all listeners across rock and soul history, girl groups pushed music forward. In the ’60s, the Shirelles, Marvelettes, Ronettes and Shangri-Las kept rock aflo...
May 17, 2024•1 hr 3 min
When you hear “boy band,” what do you picture? Five guys with precision dance moves? Songs crafted by the Top 40 pop machine? Svengalis pulling the puppet strings? Hordes of screaming girls? As it turns out, not all boy bands fit these signifiers. (Well…except for the screaming girls—they are perennial.) There are boy bands that danced, and some that did not…boy bands that relied entirely on outside songwriters, and those that wrote big hits…boy bands assembled by managers or producers, and quit...
Apr 27, 2024•1 hr 3 min
When you hear “boy band,” what do you picture? Five guys with precision dance moves? Songs crafted by the Top 40 pop machine? Svengalis pulling the puppet strings? Hordes of screaming girls? As it turns out, not all boy bands fit these signifiers. (Well…except for the screaming girls—they are perennial.) There are boy bands that danced, and some that did not…boy bands that relied entirely on outside songwriters, and those that wrote big hits…boy bands assembled by managers or producers, and quit...
Apr 13, 2024•1 hr 4 min
Cover songs once had a simple playbook: Artists would faithfully rerecord a song—note for note and word for word. They might modernize the instrumentation. If they were feeling radical, they’d punch up the vocals a bit. Now it’s hard to say what a cover is anymore. If Ariana Grande turns “My Favorite Things” into “7 Rings,” does that qualify? When Drake says he’s “Way 2 Sexy,” is he covering Right Said Fred? The recent chart success of “Fast Car”—country star Luke Combs’ very traditional take on...
Mar 29, 2024•46 min
Cover songs once had a simple playbook: Artists would faithfully rerecord a song—note for note and word for word. They might modernize the instrumentation. If they were feeling radical, they’d punch up the vocals a bit. Now it’s hard to say what a cover is anymore. If Ariana Grande turns “My Favorite Things” into “7 Rings,” does that qualify? When Drake says he’s “Way 2 Sexy,” is he covering Right Said Fred? The recent chart success of “Fast Car”—country star Luke Combs’ very traditional take on...
Mar 16, 2024•57 min
