Nowadays, everyone and their mum has a podcast – quite literally in the case of British singer Jessie Ware’s Table Manners series, which features her and her mother interviewing celebrity guests over dinner. It’s no secret that the podcast industry has exploded since the term was coined in a Guardian article in 2004, with everyone from comedians to former politicians like Tony Blair attempting to get in on the action.
But if you really think about it, podcasts about music in particular make a lot of sense. Long before the invention of writing, cultures around the world used music and poetry as forms of oral history, preserving stories and lived experience through lyric and rhythm. So, on some level, listening to two people wax lyrical about the latest musical microgenre through a £15 Snowball Mic is actually the continuation of an ancient human tradition. At the very least, it’s something to listen to while you do the washing.
Below, from rigorous music journalist-led series No Tags, to podcast-thriller Winds of Change, we cut through the swathes of music podcasts on air today to select our nine favourites.
If you’re looking for all the rigours of music journalism in audio form, look no further than No Tags, founded by former FACT editors Chal Ravens and Tom Lea. The pair have since spun off into different career paths – Lea founding his own electronic music label, Local Action, and Ravens becoming a freelance producer and head of audio at Novara Media – but this podcast is as clued-in as it gets.
Start with: Their latest quarterly music round-up to get a feel for the level of nerdery here, then dive back into this standout episode on baile funk.
Let’s be honest: you have, in all likelihood, already heard of Popcast. Hosted by veteran American music writers Jon Caramanica and Joe Coscarelli, the podcast has perhaps the best guest game in the space today, spanning Yung Lean, Olivia Rodrigo, Rosalía, Bad Bunny and more. What makes it particularly charming is the depth of experience Caramanica and Coscarelli bring, with their intimate and extensive knowledge of each artist helping the conversation flow seamlessly.
Start with: With such high-level talent on offer, you can really take your pick – but we recommend the Yung Lean episode for Caramanica’s anecdotes about meeting Lean during his initial rise.
Anyone can gush about why they love the latest pop star, but few are as qualified to talk about pop music as Switched On Pop co-hosts Nate Sloan, a professor of musicology, and Charlie Harding, a songwriter and music educator. Running since 2014, Switched On Pop makes music theory actually seem fun and accessible, situating contemporary pop hits within their wider technical and historical context.
Start with: This three-part series in which producer Reanna Cruz delivers a guide to the sounds of pop’s future: 2hollis, Ninajirachi and underscores. (Or, their newly launched Netflix series.)
Speaking of Netflix, the streaming giant will also have introduced many listeners to Song Exploder, an award-winning music podcast built around one elegant premise: breaking a song down into its individual parts, from vocals and instrumentation to production elements. It’s simple in theory, but in practice often leads artists down unexpected side roads into the making of a track – and their wider careers.
Start with: Again, with such a range of talent appearing on the show, you can really just search for your favourite artist and press play – but we recommend this extra-special dissection of Mobb Deep’s “Shook Ones Pt. II”, featuring surviving member Havoc.
Did the CIA write a hit rock song to help usher in the fall of the Soviet Union? If that question sounds at least mildly interesting to you, we recommend listening to the eight-part podcast-thriller series Winds of Change, in which investigative journalist Patrick Radden Keefe explores exactly that. There’s not much more we can say here – the magic is really in the journey. Buckle in for a wild ride.
Start With: Episode one, obviously.
This one harks back to a simpler time. Running from 2013 to 2021, Kinda Neat was hosted by Alaska-born rapper Intuition, who became closely allied with LA’s so-called ‘Fresh Coast’ rap scene at the turn of the 2000s. Built around the concept of inviting rising artists to perform a live rendition of a song, followed by an in-depth interview that could stretch beyond two hours, Kinda Neat was distinguished by its choice taste-making and early viral performances, including this 2016 Ghostemane session, which now stands at more than 34 million views, and an early appearance from Kali Uchis.
Start with: The interview with trap-metal pioneer Ghostemane above – then, if you’re feeling brave, check out the wild and ultimately tragic Cadalack Ron interview on Spotify.
Does having a crisp, 4K resolution YouTube video preclude it from being a podcast? We’ll argue no, in the case of Resident Advisor’s own RA Exchange podcast, which hosts sit-down conversations with some of dance and electronic music’s most important names. This one is about as far as you can get from the familiar podcast trend of pop culture gossip – it’s avant-garde tech wizzes grasping at the big questions.
Start With: This Bladee interview, pegged to his latest album Sulfur Surfer.
This ‘podcast’ is based on a paradox. London’s 180 Studios – formerly the basement of the Dazed office – is home to one of the best speaker systems in the city, and The Listening Room lets fans revisit listening sessions hosted there from the comfort of their own homes. Sure, you can’t experience the 180 speaker system in all its glory, but you do get to become a fly on the wall for some of the best-curated sound journeys around – sessions capped at around 15 attendees that often sell out in minutes.
Start with: This guide to late reggae soundsystem legend Jah Shaka, courtesy of infectious music obsessive Haseeb Iqbal.
This one is sure to make tempers flare. Hosted by veteran radio host Julie Adenuga – also the younger sister of grime stars Skepta and JME – Julie’s Top 5 tasks guests with compiling a top five list within a particular genre, album or artist’s catalogue, before pitting them against each other in a high-energy debate to settle the final ranking. The real magic lies in just how passionate everyone gets, with panellists ranging from Katy B to Afroswing group NSG variously singing, shouting at and insulting their fellow guests to get their point across.
Start with: This ranking of Skepta’s top five tunes, which brings some personal stakes courtesy of Julie Adenuga and JME themselves.
