SoundStack

“Twas The Night Before Christmas" by James Hetfield

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This week, Eric Deggans speaks with Vince Gilligan about his new series, Pluribus. The creator of Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul explains how he felt being at the center of his first-ever bidding war, and how a long-standing partnership with Sony ultimately brought the project to Apple. Gilligan also reflects on why the days of writing episodic television on The X-Files shaped his love of serialized storytelling. And after years of explaining his work to fans and critics alike, Gilligan shares why he’s learning to let audiences decide what his shows mean for themselves.

Plus, with the Academy set to bring the Oscars to YouTube in 2029, Hollywood’s biggest night is moving to a very different kind of stage. Kim Masters and Matt Belloni unpack why the Academy made the deal—and what it reveals about how the industry is rethinking where, and how, audiences show up.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton says a Wisconsin-based electronic health records company has a monopoly over the industry. We’ll have more on the AG’s fight against Epic.
Remembering a couple of major figures in the Tejano music world who we lost this past weekend: Manny Guerra and Abraham Quintanilla.
Plus, counties are getting new equipment to warn residents before flooding strikes. What is it, and will it help?

The post Tejano music mourns two foundational figures appeared first on KUT & KUTX Studios -- Podcasts.

He’s been an elected Democrat for over 50 years, but now local party officials in Houston are refusing to endorse Mayor John Whitmire. Unwinding the political drama, today on the Texas Standard.
Texas’ new bathroom law effects schools and government-owned buildings, but one reporter found enforcement depends on exactly where you go.
Texans Michael and Susan Dell are giving away billions to American kids. Who’s eligible and how the donation will work alongside so-called Trump Accounts.
Texas drivers know monarch butterflies all too often end up on our windshields or car grills. Efforts are underway to protect their road crossings.
Plus, some environmental concerns for the popular Dinosaur Valley State Park.

The post Protecting monarch butterflies on Texas highways appeared first on KUT & KUTX Studios -- Podcasts.

This week on The Metallica Report…

Steffan and Renée do a deep dive into the hugely successful “Get The Load Out” competition, which has seen fans submit their cover versions of every cut from the Load album. We hear from participants Archie Heron and Luke McMordie, the band Scary Guys, and Fernando Nina, plus the two primary architects of the competition, HQ's Dan Nykolayko and Evan DeLong. 

The Metallica Report – your official, weekly guide for all things Metallica, straight from the source. New episode every Wednesday.

Second Avenue: instagram.com/the_second_avenue 

Archie & Luke’s Winning “2x4” Entry: instagram.com/p/DO4H0-PAemv 

Scary Guyz: instagram.com/scaryguyz 

Scary Guyz’s “The House Jack Built” Entry: instagram.com/p/DRsaHvYAVod 

Fernando Nina: instagram.com/sugarcello 

Fernando’s “King Nothing” Entry: instagram.com/p/DPV5EmKjLYX 

Become A Fifth Member: metallica.com/register 

Music from The Metallica Report: metallica.lnk.to/TMR-music 

Upcoming Tour Dates: metallica.com/tour 

Wanna be featured in a future fan debate? metallica.com/podcast

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Texas does not allow people change their gender on driver’s licenses. Those who still try are now being tracked.
How the Trump administration is reorganizing the Army to reflect a new focus on Latin America.
Professors caution students about relying on AI, but some universities are doing just that to review course content.
And a new memoir by the man who helped invent the carefree Cosmic Cowboy movement. Our talk with musician Bob Livingston, plus a reflection on the legacy of Joe Ely, who died Monday.

The post Texas collects data on trans residents through state IDs appeared first on KUT & KUTX Studios -- Podcasts.

Big audiences get the spotlight — but passionate, niche communities are where podcast success quietly thrives. In this episode of Podcast Insider, we dive into why smaller-focused shows are often more engaged, more loyal, and more profitable than broad, mass-appeal podcasts.

Whether your show is about vintage guitars, homeschooling twins, paranormal tourism, or the science of sleep — the beauty of podcasting is that there’s a niche for everything. We’ll explore how creators can grow strategically by going narrower, not broader.

When listeners feel like the show gets them, they become true fans.

A niche focus leads to:

Blubrry helps: Our analytics tools show exactly which topics and episodes resonate most — so you can double down on content your niche loves.

You don’t need millions of listeners to earn real revenue.

Smart monetization strategies include:

The goal? High-value conversations with a clearly defined audience.

Blubrry helps: With Podcasting 2.0 features like Value4Value and subscriptions (via compatible integrations), monetizing loyal listeners is easier than ever.

Instead of trying to reach everyone, reach your people.

Try:

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Houston, Fort Worth… Now three more Texas school districts are expected to be taken over by state education officials. Where, why and what comes next?
The son of Texas A&M’s campus rabbi is among those critically injured in the mass shooting at Bondi Beach near Sydney, Australia.
Mexican citizens who routinely cross into the U.S. at Texas’ southern border to donate plasma may be taking advantage of an immigration loophole.
And our own Sarah Asch tells us why a library in a tiny Texas town may be a template for preserving adult education programs nationwide.

The post Tiny Texas town’s library could be adult education template appeared first on KUT & KUTX Studios -- Podcasts.

Austin and San Antonio have long been home to some of the fastest-growing cities in the U.S. Together, they are becoming what the authors of a new book are calling a “Megaregion.”

This is an extended conversation with former San Antonio Mayor Henry Cisneros and longtime journalists Robert Rivard.

The post Texas Extra: The challenges and opportunities ahead for the Austin-San Antonio ‘Megaregion’  appeared first on KUT & KUTX Studios -- Podcasts.

With Netflix’s bombshell move to acquire Warner Bros. still reverberating through the town, Paramount has gone fully hostile–bypassing Warner leadership and taking its case straight to shareholders. Matt Belloni and Lucas Shaw break down the latest maneuvering in a saga that seems to sprout new twists by the day.

Also, with Kim Masters sidelined by a bug this week, Belloni presents a few bonus stories from Masters's recent conversations: Wake Up Dead Man writer-director Rian Johnson and producer Ram Bergman talk about the green room they devised for the first Knives Out–a space that became so essential to the ensemble’s chemistry that trailers sat mostly empty. And Stranger Things executive producer Shawn Levy explains why, despite the runaway success of Deadpool & Wolverine, he’s not sprinting toward a sequel just yet.