Orville Peck bares his soul in his music, but chances are you wouldn’t be able to pick him out of a crowd. 

For the entirety of his country music career he has been wearing a literal mask, on and off the stage. For Orville, the mask gives him the strength to be vulnerable. In his new album, Mule, he opens up even more while singing songs about his darkest moments with addiction, his time in rehab, and his path to sobriety. 

Orville tells Sam about hitting rock bottom, how he stays authentic even while wearing a mask, his country music influences, and how he’s queering the genre in his own way.

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The Sam Sanders Show is a production of KCRW and Sam Sanders Productions.

Books are bringing people together this year in ways Sam has never seen before.

There have been a handful of times in the last few months alone when it felt like he was in one giant book club with his friends, reading the same books, and having deep conversations. It made Sam ask himself … are books actually hot this year? Or should we believe the headlines that Western society is moving toward a post literate society? 

To figure it out, Sam turns to his favorite book people Traci Thomas (The Stacks) and Greta Johnsen (Happy to Be Here). Together they get into the books everybody is reading this year, discuss why reading literacy is in danger, and make a case that there’s a book out there for everyone. 

Plus, Traci and Greta share a few book recommendations to add to your reading list. 

Books mentioned in this episode: 

'John of John' by Douglas Stewart 

'Strangers: A Memoir of Marriage' by Belle Burden

'Yesteryear' by Caro Claire Burke

'Kin' by Tayari Jones

'The Disappearers' by Marlon James 

'The Great Wherever' by Shannon Sanders 

'Sunrise' by Téa Obreht

'Unreasonable Women' by Justine van der Leun

'American Hagwon' by Min Jin Lee

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The Sam Sanders Show is a production of KCRW and Sam Sanders Productions.

David Archuleta shot to fame while competing on American Idol when he was just 17 years old. 

During his time on the show he was a poster boy for his Mormon faith, but behind the scenes he was forced to hide his sexuality and queerness. He describes all of this in his memoir Devout: Losing My Faith to Find Myself. David talks to Sam about learning to accept himself, why his time on American Idol was terrifying, and the surprising ways he’s found community after leaving his religion. 

David Archuleta’s new holiday album Warm Me Up is out this fall. Check out his website for tour dates.

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The Sam Sanders Show is a production of KCRW and Sam Sanders Productions.

We gotta admit, this summer felt great for movies!

From all the monoculture surrounding The Odyssey, to the successful sleeper hits like Backrooms and Obsession, the past few months felt like a magical comeback for the industry.

Joining Sam to break it all down is Jacqueline Coley, awards editor at Rotten Tomatoes and host of the Seen On The Screen podcast. Together, they unpack the biggest lessons for Hollywood and also give some movie recommendations for your watchlist.

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The Sam Sanders Show is a production of KCRW and Sam Sanders Productions.

Musician and rapper Wyclef Jean shot to fame in the ‘90s after founding the seminal hip-hop group Fugees. Since then, he’s had an impressive solo career with plenty of acclaimed projects. He’s also become an undeniable hitmaker, creating massive records for artists like Shakira, Santana, Whitney Houston and many more.

Wyclef joined Sam in the studio with his guitar, to play some songs that tell his life story. From his campaign to be president of Haiti, to his fondness for church music, he shares the many life moments that shaped his craft.

He also breaks down his new project 'Quantum Leap,' a seven-album project spanning seven different genres. So far, his jazz album ‘Q Theory’ and ‘Clef Notes,’ the hip-hop project, are out now. 

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The Sam Sanders Show is a production of KCRW and Sam Sanders Productions.

This episode, we’re going back in time for one of Sam’s favorite shows…‘Portlandia!’

For eight seasons, the sketch comedy show famously poked fun at the hipster culture, all while set in a fictionalized version of Portland. Creators and co-stars Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein played many of the show’s central characters. Now, they’re revisiting the episodes with a weekly rewatch podcast called ‘Podlandia: A-O Rewatch with Fred and Carrie.’

Sam got to chat with Fred about the show, their favorite sketches, and why hipsters were always ripe for spoofing. 

“Podlandia: A-O Rewatch” is distributed by iHeartPodcasts and is available on the iHeartRadio app and everywhere podcasts are heard. New episodes air every Thursday.

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The Sam Sanders Show is a production of KCRW and Sam Sanders Productions.

We will always love Dolly Parton.

Sam unpacks Dolly’s immense legacy with Ann Powers, critic and correspondent for NPR Music. Together they spend time reflecting on her many hit songs, her brilliant roles in Hollywood and her everlasting philanthropic efforts. 

They also break down the secrets to Dolly’s impeccable stardom, diving into what exactly made her so ubiquitous and beloved. Plus, they share some overlooked music from her catalog.

Also, make sure to check out Ann's moving tribute essay to Dolly Parton.

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The Sam Sanders Show is a production of KCRW and Sam Sanders Productions.

Whether it was big sporting events, or big blockbusters, or even celebrity weddings, Summer 2026 had a ton of pop culture that we all consumed together. For the first time in years, we even talked about it all together.

But was it actually a return of monoculture? Sam looks at how this happened (and if it will ever happen again) with Esther Zuckerman, culture reporter for The Wall Street Journal who recently wrote all about the monoculture phenomenon. 

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The Sam Sanders Show is a production of KCRW and Sam Sanders Productions.

Comedian Janelle James became a star after playing the selfish, scamming, yet hilarious principal Ava Coleman in 'Abbott Elementary.'

She’s since been nominated for five Emmy awards for the role. But Janelle spent years grinding through the standup scene before finding television success. She told Sam about what inspired her to try comedy years ago, and what she’s learned about herself from playing a larger than life character in a sitcom. Plus, Janelle breaks down her forthcoming Hulu show inspired by her own childhood in the U.S. Virgin Islands. 

This conversation took place in front of a live audience at KCRW’s Annenberg Performance Studio in Santa Monica.

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The Sam Sanders Show is a production of KCRW and Sam Sanders Productions.

Sam recently experienced one of the best stage musicals he’s seen in years. 

Cats: The Jellicle Ball reimagines the classic Andrew Lloyd Webber story with a ballroom twist. The show is filled with voguing, runway and Black, queer joy. It also won multiple Tony awards this year, which packed the theater night after night. 

The whole show seemed like it was on the path to success, until it closed suddenly on August 8th. 

Theater critic Naveen Kumar wrote about the fate of the production for The New York Times. He joined Sam to break down the major money problems facing Broadway. He also shares some ideas to fix them…Which may involve a certain charismatic mayor.

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The Sam Sanders Show is a production of KCRW and Sam Sanders Productions.