This summer, one singular artist could be heard everywhere from the new Cardi B album to the TikTok charts: Janet Jackson. The incomparable Queen of Pop has had her fingerprints all over pop music for the past few months, and it’s never been more apparent than on Doja Cat’s “Jealous Type.” The lead single from Doja’s new album Vie has all the hallmarks of the Janet Jackson sound, from breathy and percussive vocals to nods to iconic production from Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis.
This episode of Switched on Pop, we go on a journey guided by Janet, and discover the implicit connections to Doja Cat – the so-called “queen of pop-rap” – in the process.
Vote for Switched On Pop in this year's Signal Awards! We're nominated for Best Music Podcast and Best Original Score/Music, linked here. Thank you!
Songs discussed:
Janet Jackson – Someone To Call My Lover
Sabrina Carpenter – House Tour
Cardi B, Janet Jackson – Principal (feat. Janet Jackson)
Doja Cat – Jealous Type
Janet Jackson – What Have You Done For Me Lately
Janet Jackson – Nasty
Janet Jackson – Feedback
Janet Jackson – What About
Prince – 1999
Janet Jackson – Throb
Janet Jackson – Control
Janet Jackson – When I Think Of You
Janet Jackson – Go Deep
Doja Cat – Cyber Sex
Doja Cat – Rules
Doja Cat – Boss Bitch
Doja Cat – Woman
Doja Cat – Agora Hills
Janet Jackson – Let’s Wait Awhile
Janet Jackson – Escapade
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35:35
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35:35
Stockholm syndrome: Why we can't resist Swedish pop (ft. Zara Larsson)
How does a country of 10 million people dominate the global pop charts? From ABBA's Eurovision breakthrough to Max Martin's methodical hit-making, Sweden has quietly engineered a kind of musical Stockholm Syndrome: we've all become captives to their sound without realizing it. Listen to the crystalline vocal production and deceptively simple chord progressions in tracks by Lisa, Childish Gambino, and Addison Rae, and you're hearing Sweden's sonic fingerprint so embedded in pop's DNA that it now defines the genre itself. We sit down with pop star Zara Larsson to explore her love letter to home, "Midnight Sun." As she puts it, "I can't really leave Sweden; it's just something that's like a part of who I am," a sentiment that captures how Swedish pop's unique blend of melancholy and euphoria, mirroring the country's extreme seasons, has made us all willing prisoners of Stockholm's musical empire.
Songs Discussed
Lisa ft. Rosalia: "New Woman"
Childish Gambino: "Lithonia"
Addison Rae: "Fame Is a Gun"
Bleachers: "Tiny Moves"
Zara Larsson: "Midnight Sun"
Robyn: "Show Me Love"
Robyn: "Dancing on My Own"
Nirvana "Smells Like Teen Spirit"
Brad Mehldau "Smells Like Teen Spirit"
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43:29
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43:29
The music theory behind K Pop Demon Hunters' chart dominance
It's time. Nate and Charlie break down the K Pop Demonhunters soundtrack to uncover the musical secrets behind its unprecedented success. From West Side Story to Gregorian chant, Phrygian modes to musical theater clichés, we 'll explain why you can't stop listening to the sounds of Huntr/x and Saja Boys.
Songs Discussed
Huntr/x - How It's Done, Golden, What it Sounds Like
Saja Boys - Soda Pop, Your Idol
Aldred Deller and the Deller Consort - Dies Irae
West Side Story - Jet Song
Aespa - Drama
Riize - Get a Guitar
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42:26
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42:26
The architecture of the album with Djo (Joe Keery live at NYU)
Halfway through the opening track of Joe Keery's The Crux, a line emerges that sounds like casual conversation: "My dog is at my house again, but I live somewhere else." The song refuses to settle into predictable pop architecture, drifting from whispered confession to baroque strings that recall Pachelbel more than indie rock. Recorded live at NYU, Charlie explores how this structural restlessness reflects broader questions about authenticity in contemporary music, examining how Keery's creative process emerged from practical constraints like writing in Stranger Things trailers and stripping back arrangements to work live. The album's hotel metaphor isn't marketing concept but lived displacement: temporary rooms, fractured domesticity, the search for stability. From the snarky dismissiveness of "Basic Being Basic" to a stadium-rock anthem written for his sisters, The Crux demonstrates how eclectic influences can serve cohesive emotional architecture, trusting listeners to follow sophisticated progressions while never losing sight of why these songs matter to people finding their way back to their own hearts.
Songs Discussed
Djo - "End of Beginning"
Djo - "Lonesome is a State of Mind"
Djo - "Basic Being Basic"
Djo - "Potion"
Djo - "Charlie's Garden"
Djo - "Back On You"
Djo - "Carry the Name"
Djo - "Crux"
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55:11
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55:11
Finneas and Ashe want you to start a band
Everyone should be in a band at some point—and Finneas and Ashe prove why. The Grammy-winning producer and rising singer-songwriter discuss how their friendship evolved into The Favors, a new band debuting their album The Dream on September 19th, 2025. We explore what it means to create as a band, how stepping back from confessional songwriting freed them creatively, and why sometimes the best way forward is embracing older ways of making music.
SONGS DISCUSSED
The Favors - "The Little Mess You Made"
Ashe - "Moral of the Story"
Ashe & Finneas - "Till Forever Falls Apart"
Billie Eilish - "What Was I Made For?"
The Favors - "Home Sweet Home"
The Favors - "The Dream"
The Favors - "Lake George"
Billie Eilish - "bad guy"
Simon and Garfunkel - "Old Friends"
Simon and Garfunkel - "The Only Living Boy in New York"
Simon and Garfunkel - "So Long, Frank Lloyd Wright"
Simon and Garfunkel - "America"
Rick Springfield - "Jessie's Girl"
The Favors - "David's Brother"
The Favors - "The Hudson"
Fleetwood Mac - "Landslide"
Fleetwood Mac - "Dreams"
Kate Bush - "Running Up That Hill"
Olivia Rodrigo - "drivers license"
Sabrina Carpenter - "emails i can't send"
Miley Cyrus - "Flowers"
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Listen closer to pop music — hear how it moves us. Hosted by musicologist Nate Sloan & songwriter Charlie Harding. From Vulture and the Vox Media Podcast Network.
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