As we cross what appears to be the midpoint of Sean Diddy Combs’ federal trial, Tess rounds up highlights from witnesses like Cassie Ventura and Kid Cudi, and assesses the prosecution and defense’s strategies thus far. 

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Pop Mystery Pod is written and produced by Tess Barker @tesstifybarker. Produced by Tyler Hill. 

Theme song by Rick Wood @Rickw00d.

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Making a dinosaur buddy cop movie is all fun and games, until you’re Whoopi Goldberg and you actually have to shoot this thing with sworn enemies. Joining Tess on this bonkers journey that sent Tess into the courthouse archives is the hilarious Tom Lenk @tommylenk (“Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar,” “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” “Tilda Swinton Answers a Craigslist Ad.”

If you must, watch “Theodore Rex” here. 

Follow Pop Mystery Pod on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok @popmysterypod 

Pop Mystery Pod is written and produced by Tess Barker @tesstifybarker. Produced by Tyler Hill. 

Theme song by Rick Wood @Rickw00d.

Support independent pop journalism and join us on Patreon at Pop Mystery Pod. Get access to ad free episodes, bonus content, and polls about upcoming topics. patreon.com/PopMysteryPod

Follow Tess’s other podcasts Lady to Lady and Toxic: The Britney Spears Story wherever you get your pods. 

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There’s only one Patti LuPone. Which is why the s**t hit the gold plated fan when Andrew Llyod Webber tried to have two Norma Desmonds. Tess is joined by Paul Caiola, one of the hosts of “That Aged Well,” (@thatagedwell) as the two of them dissect the fascinating and high drama turns of Patti Lupone’s “Sunset Blvd,” firing, and the antics that followed. 

Follow Pop Mystery Pod on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok @popmysterypod 

Pop Mystery Pod is written and produced by Tess Barker @tesstifybarker. Produced by Tyler Hill. 

Theme song by Rick Wood @Rickw00d.

Support independent pop journalism and join us on Patreon at Pop Mystery Pod. Get access to ad free episodes, bonus content, and polls about upcoming topics. patreon.com/PopMysteryPod

Follow Tess’s other podcasts Lady to Lady and Toxic: The Britney Spears Story wherever you get your pods. 

Make sure to leave us a review! And tell a friend about the show! 

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To be, or not to be? Aye, there’s the central question at the heart of the classic work “Tommy Boy” the 1995 broad comedy starring the late Chris Farley. This movie is more than a work of staggering childish genius. It is also a sophisticated adaptation of “Hamlet,” as in, the Shakespeare one. Joining Tess for a close reading of “Tommy Boy” through a Shakespearean lens is the comedian and podcaster Lisa Chanoux @LisaChanoux. 

Listen to BBC’s “In Our Time: Hamlet” 

Listen to the Hardcore Literature podcasts’ Hamlet episode. 

Follow Pop Mystery Pod on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok @popmysterypod 

Pop Mystery Pod is written and produced by Tess Barker @tesstifybarker. Produced by Tyler Hill. 

Theme song by Rick Wood @Rickw00d.

Support independent pop journalism and join us on Patreon at Pop Mystery Pod. Get access to ad free episodes, bonus content, and polls about upcoming topics. patreon.com/PopMysteryPod

Follow Tess’s other podcasts Lady to Lady and Toxic: The Britney Spears Story wherever you get your pods. 

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The landslide of allegations against Sean Diddy Combs was started by a singular person - R&B singer Cassie Ventura. Cassie’s allegations formed the framework for the federal case against Sean Combs, which is set to kick off  May 5, 2025. Tess takes a deep look into Cassie’s harrowing escape and the surprising stories Cassie’s intersects with. 

Follow Pop Mystery Pod on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok @popmysterypod 

Pop Mystery Pod is written and produced by Tess Barker @tesstifybarker. Produced by Tyler Hill.

Theme song by Rick Wood @Rickw00d.

Support independent pop journalism and join us on Patreon at Pop Mystery Pod. Get access to ad free episodes, bonus content, and polls about upcoming topics. patreon.com/PopMysteryPod

Follow Tess’s other podcasts Lady to Lady and Toxic wherever you get your pods. 

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Selena Quintanilla was 23 years old, and well on her way to becoming an international megastar when she was shot and killed by Yolanda Saldivar, the president of her fan club. Though a biopic starring Jennifer Lopez paints a fairly simple picture of this tragic death, the truth appears less black and white. Only two people really know how and Selena died that day, and one of them was Selena. Joining Tess to talk through this operatic tale of a forever young pop star is hilarious comic Vanessa Gonzalez @vanessagcomedy. 

Watch the sourced documentary Selena and Yolanda: The Secrets Between Them

Read the sourced book: To Selena, With Love, By Chris Perez 

Watch the sourced biopic “Selena.”  

Follow Pop Mystery Pod on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok @popmysterypod 

Pop Mystery Pod is written and produced by Tess Barker @tesstifybarker. Produced by Tyler Hill. 

Theme song by Rick Wood @Rickw00d.

Support independent pop journalism and join us on Patreon at Pop Mystery Pod. Get access to ad free episodes, bonus content, and polls about upcoming topics. patreon.com/PopMysteryPod

Follow Tess’s other podcasts Lady to Lady and Toxic: The Britney Spears Story wherever you get your pods. 

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If there is such a thing as the typical college experience, Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen,  the two most famous child star twins of all time, were probably never going to have it. Nevertheless, they persisted…kind of. Joining Tess to talk through the Olsen twins transition to otherworldly fashion icons is writer, actor, and comic Guy Branum. 

See Guy’s new one-person show “Fruitful” live in Chicago May 6th, St. Paul May 7th. And watch “Hacks,” the HBO comedy Guy just won a Golden Globe for. 

Read sourced article: 

WSJ: “Mary Kate and Ashley Olsens’ The Row Launches Menswear” 

NYT: “No Labels For the Olsen Twins” 

Vogue: “Mary Kate and Ashley Find a Home for ‘The Row’ in Paris” 

Follow Pop Mystery Pod on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok @popmysterypod 

Pop Mystery Pod is written and produced by Tess Barker @tesstifybarker. Produced by Tyler Hill. 

Theme song by Rick Wood @Rickw00d.

Support independent pop journalism and join us on Patreon at Pop Mystery Pod. Get access to ad free episodes, bonus content, and polls about upcoming topics. patreon.com/PopMysteryPod

Follow Tess’s other podcasts Lady to Lady and Toxic: The Britney Spears Story wherever you get your pods. 

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The Olsen twins are endlessly fascinating celebrities. They were selected for stardom before they could walk. They’re both an inspirational story and I cautionary tale. They’re just so important. Joining Tess to talk through the wild mystery that is the Olsen twins existence is writer, actor, and comic Guy Branum. 

See Guy’s new one-person show “Fruitful” live in Chicago May 6th, St. Paul May 7th. And watch “Hacks,” the comedy Guy just won a Golden Globe for. 

See the “Tiny Tycoon” TV Guide cover here. 

Read sourced article: 

Washington Post “Less is More: How the Little Stars of “Full House” Hit the Big Time 

Watch sourced documentary “Celebrity Profile: The Olsen Twins” here. 

Follow Pop Mystery Pod on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok @popmysterypod 

Pop Mystery Pod is written and produced by Tess Barker @tesstifybarker. Produced by Tyler Hill. 

Theme song by Rick Wood @Rickw00d.

Support independent pop journalism and join us on Patreon at Pop Mystery Pod. Get access to ad free episodes, bonus content, and polls about upcoming topics. patreon.com/PopMysteryPod

Follow Tess’s other podcasts Lady to Lady and Toxic: The Britney Spears Story wherever you get your pods. 

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Forget skeletons in the closet. Barbra Streisand has a mall. In her basement. Like, a real one. Joining Tess to tour this fascinating and unhinged corner of American architecture is writer, director, and podcaster Chelsea Devantez. Chelsea’s memoir  “I Shouldn’t Be Telling You This, But I’m Going to Anyway,” is out now. Her podcast “Glamorous Trash” is  pop perfection and a must-listen! 

Got 48 hours? Check out “My Name is Barbra.” 

Want to see more of that Malibu house? Check out “My Passion for Design.”  

Follow Pop Mystery Pod on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok @popmysterypod 

Pop Mystery Pod is written and produced by Tess Barker @tesstifybarker. Produced by Tyler Hill. 

Theme song by Rick Wood @Rickw00d.

Support independent pop journalism and join us on Patreon at Pop Mystery Pod. Get access to ad free episodes, bonus content, and polls about upcoming topics. patreon.com/PopMysteryPod

Follow Tess’s other podcasts Lady to Lady and Toxic: The Britney Spears Story wherever you get your pods. 

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Before she was proclaiming she’d invented “gay pop,” child dance phenom-turned heavily costumed try-hard helmed a junior girl group called XOMG. The group claimed to offer aspiring pop stars as young as 8 years old a line into their show biz dreams. Some claim what followed was a candy-flavored nightmare. 

Joining Tess to talk through Jojo’s turn as a teacher and her life as a child star, is comedian, actor, podcaster, and singer Jade Catta-Preta @jadecattapreta. 

To learn more about this story check out the Rolling Stone article “Jojo Siwa Promised Them Stardom. They Say They Were Thrown in the Trash.”  

Follow Pop Mystery Pod on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok @popmysterypod 

Pop Mystery Pod is written and produced by Tess Barker @tesstifybarker. Produced by Tyler Hill. 

Theme song by Rick Wood @Rickw00d.

Support independent pop journalism and join us on Patreon at Pop Mystery Pod. Get access to ad free episodes, bonus content, and polls about upcoming topics. patreon.com/PopMysteryPod

Follow Tess’s other podcasts Lady to Lady and Toxic: The Britney Spears Story wherever you get your pods. 

Make sure to leave us a review! And tell a friend about the show!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.