At First Listen

We're taking a special look at one of the greatest singer-songwriters America ever produced: Bill Withers.

With ubiquitous hits like "Lean on Me," "Ain't No Sunshine," "Just the Two of Us" and "Lovely Day," so many of Bill's songs are taken for granted because of how ingrained they are in American culture. We take a special look at Bill's second studio album, Still Bill, explore his late start in music and his early retirement from it.

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(Episode 26.)

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Talkin’ ‘Tok - Introducing our new series looking a social media’s latest viral songs.
 
In this first edition, we discuss the power of short form user-created social media content and then take a look at the song “Peggy” by viral lesbian financial dominatrix Ceechynaa. 

Dominique interprets some of the most perplexing British slang in Ceechynaa's lyrics and explains how users are appropriating "Peggy" in their own content, and why they might be relating to the song. Andrew thinks of something nice to say before politely considering Ceechynaa's economic stances: is "Peggy" a metaphor for socialism?

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From how he swept through the GRAMMYs to his historic performance at the Super Bowl halftime show, everything is coming up Kendrick Lamar.

We dig into our favorite moments of Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl halftime show and review how wrong we were about the GRAMMYs!

We also answer important questions like, did the Super Bowl have to be so black? And, is Beyoncé ranked higher in the Illuminati than Sabrina Carpenter?

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(Episode 25.)

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Charli xcx's carefree 2024 breakthrough album, BRAT, was one of the defining cultural moments of last year and likely changed Charli's career forever.

But was BRAT's GRAMMY-winning success ironic or the result of a genious marketing masterplan?

Dominique embraced BRAT over the summer, while Andrew only heard it for the first time in preparation of this episode. We discuss the beginning and end of Brat Summer, how the gay community elevated Charli to bonafide popstar status and attempt to nail down what makes this album so compelling. 

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(Episode 24)

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Each year the GRAMMYs sparks a wave of bewilderment when nominees are announced for the 'Album of the Year,' 'Song of the Year' and 'Record of the Year' categories.

While the former two categories are self-explanatory, what does the Recording Academy mean by record and who gets that award anyway?!

On this episode, Andrew and Dominique explore all eight nominees for 'Record of the Year,' predict who will win and argue about who should win the award.

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(Episode 23.)

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The At First Listen podcast returns in 2025 with a big announcement from Diamond, as she hands her cohost reigns over to Dominique Kaplowitz.

We'll be putting out weekly episodes this year, launching a YouTube channel and covering tons of music, including new and classic albums, viral artists and pop culture events.

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Andrew and Diamond look back at the 10 most recent episodes of the At First Listen podcast and choose their favorite music, moments and guests.
 
After discussing the recent history of the show, we widen the scope and debate which episode was the best.
 
At First Listen will be back in 2025!

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(Episode 22.)

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We listened to Mariah Carey's classic but infamous 1994 Merry Christmas album, so you don't have to! 

Long before she assumed the Queen of Christmas Mantle, Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas Is You" became nearly inescapable around the holidays. But does the album's titanic hit single overshadow an otherwise decent Gospel record?

On this episode, Andrew and Diamond explore the endurance of Merry Christmas and highlight some of the its less-heralded hits. Plus, in the final segment, they share their favorite contemporary Christmas songs for your holiday playlisting pleasure.

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(Episode 21.)

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Rihanna's Good Girl Gone Bad is one of the seminal albums of the mid-2000s, spawning several gigantic hits, but more importantly, this record helped entertain Diamond while she got her wisdom teeth extracted. 

On this episode, Andrew and Diamond look back on the album that made Rihanna a bonafide pop superstar with hits like "Umbrella," "Shut Up and Drive," "Don't Stop the Music," "Hate That I Love You" and "Rehab." We explore what made Rihanna so intriguing at the time and how she's maintained such a high approval rating for so long. 

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(Episode 20.)

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Longtime radio voice of the Brooklyn Nets Chris Carrino joins the show to reveal the depths of his obsession with Pearl Jam!
 
Chris was fascinated by Pearl Jam's debut album, Ten, in 1991, but points to the band's second album, Vs. (1993), as what cemented his lifelong fandom.
 
We discuss how on Vs. Pearl Jam tried to distance itself from the riotous success of the debut album, how the band has always put its fans first and Chris points out Pearl Jam's serendipitous connection to the New Jersey Nets.
 
For the last segment, we talk basketball! Chris explains his beef with Carmelo Anthony and his expectations for the 2024-25 Brooklyn Nets i.e. how he will keep his spirits up through what could be one of the worst seasons in Nets franchise history.   
 
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(Episode 19.)

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