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PODCAST

The Sam Sanders Show

KCRW & Sam Sanders

The Sam Sanders Show from KCRW is your guide to entertainment. Find out what makes your favorite artists tick, dissect the trends that shape our culture, or just make sense of that random meme you can’t stop thinking about. Join us every week to unpack the pop culture we love. Sign up forSam’s Newsletter to get behind the scenes stuff from every interview each week. Sam Sanders is an award-winning podcast and radio host. He’s been named best podcast host by both The

society & culture

All Episodes

50:55

Should We Still Care About Fashion? w/ Robin Givhan

The Sam Sanders Show ·

2025/09/05

Pulitzer Prize–winning fashion critic Robin Givhan joins Sam to talk style, luxury, and legacy. Sam also asks the eternal question: which jeans should he wear—skinny, baggy, barrel, or wide leg?Robin offers sharp fashion advice and dives into her new book, Make It Ours: Crashing the Gates of Culture with Virgil Abloh. They unpack the rebellious influence of Virgil Abloh—the late visionary behind Off-White and the first Black designer to lead Louis

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42:54

A Brief History of Terrible Lyrics (from Switched On...

The Sam Sanders Show ·

2025/08/29

Why do bad lyrics happen to good people?From ‘suckin' on a chili dog’ to ‘making love to his tonic and gin,’ even the biggest hits from our favorite artists can feature lyrical turns that make us feel quizzical, offended, or even downright nauseated. Sam joins Nate and Charlie, hosts of the Vulture music podcast Switched on Pop, to plumb the depths of the worst pop lyrics of all time—culled from hundreds of listener submissions—to categorize,

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40:58

Does Pop Culture Give a F*#% about Friendship?

The Sam Sanders Show ·

2025/08/22

BFF’s Lindy West and Meagan Hatcher-Mays (Text Me Back! Podcast) dive into what pop culture gets right (and wrong) about friendships.The duo share their hot takes with Sam, make a case for renaming Love Island to Friendship Island, and ask if MTV’s The Real World ruined the country. Plus, should some problematic celebrities (cough *Cardi B* cough) get a pass for being too real? Want more Lindy and Meagan? Check out their Substack for Text Me Back! Sign up for

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49:07

Bob the Drag Queen: What is Freedom?

The Sam Sanders Show ·

2025/08/15

Harriet Tubman… as a rap icon?Bob the Drag Queen’s new book Harriet Tubman: Live in Concert reimagines the historical icon as an abolitionist rapper in present-day America. Bob tells Sam about Tubman’s radical impact on history and why he’s obsessed with her legacy. They dive into what freedom means in 2025. Plus, Bob shares hilarious impressions (Thanks, Obama) and his thoughts on today’s protest music. Sign up forSam’s Newsletter to get

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46:58

Big Freedia: Is Twerking Next to Godliness?

The Sam Sanders Show ·

2025/08/08

Big Freedia is best known as the Queen of Bounce, but her new gospel albumPressing Onward showcases her holy roots.She tells Sam about growing up as a young gay church kid in New Orleans, what moved her to make a gospel album, and how twerking and praising God go hand in hand. Plus, Big Freedia breaks down her iconic feature on Beyoncé’s 2016 hit single “Formation.” Pressing Onward is out now. Sign up for Sam’s Newsletter to get behind the scenes

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59:13

Did Beyoncé Change Country Music Forever?

The Sam Sanders Show ·

2025/08/01

Beyoncé just wrapped her Cowboy Carter era, which saw an acclaimed world tour, historic Grammys wins, and a lot of backlash. So what does her massive crossover really mean for country music and its politics?Writer and cultural critic Tressie McMillan Cottom joins Sam to unpack whether or not country music still has a race problem (spoiler alert: it does), the reaction to Beyoncé’s success in the genre, and if Cowboy Carter truly opened doors for Black

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49:43

Are We Living in a Feminist Dystopia?

The Sam Sanders Show ·

2025/07/25

This week, writer Anne Helen Petersen unpacks the idea of Feminist Exhaustion — a term she coined to describe the burnout, backlash, and disillusionment many women feel toward the hollow promises of modern feminism. Sam and Anne explore how pop culture shaped (and warped) our ideas of empowerment through shows like Scandal, Girls and basically every recent Nicole Kidman project. Plus, they dive into the evolution from girlboss to tradwife, and ask how future generations

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4:07

Checking in from the public media dumpster fire

The Sam Sanders Show ·

2025/07/24

Anyone else exhausted?

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53:43

What’s Worth Watching (and Skipping) in 2025 So Far?

The Sam Sanders Show ·

2025/07/18

We’re halfway through the year, so it’s time for a pop culture check-in!Sam is joined by two of your faves — Linda Holmes (Pop Culture Happy Hour) and Ronald Young Jr. (Leaving the Theater, Weight For It) — to break down the best and worst of the year so far. From Sinners to The Studio to Love Island and the online discourse that kept us all talking. Plus, an epic fix for The White Lotus season four (you’re welcome). Sign up for Sam’s

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54:26

Can Atsuko Okatsuka Turn Family Trauma Into Comedy Gold?

The Sam Sanders Show ·

2025/07/11

Atsuko Okatsuka’s comedy is bright and joyful, yet rooted in trauma. In this episode, she joins Sam to talk about her wild childhood, including being kidnapped by her grandmother, growing up undocumented in LA, and navigating her mother’s schizophrenia. They also talk about Atsuko’s new Hulu special Father, and what it reveals about marriage, mental illness, and emotional survival. Along the way, she explains why she calls herself the “father” in

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42:45

Woodstock '99: Mosh Pit at the Apocalypse with Sam...

The Sam Sanders Show ·

2025/07/04

Today we’re sharing an episode from our friends at The Big Flop!Every week, the show unpacks pop culture’s most fascinating flops, frauds, and fiascos. In this episode, host Misha Brown throws back to Woodstock '99 with Sam and Lindy West (Text Me Back!). The music fest was meant to commemorate the original 1969 festival with “three days of peace and music” but instead became "three days of rage and chaos." If you thought Fyre Fest was bad… At

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51:16

Is Allison Williams Afraid of Her Own Movies?

The Sam Sanders Show ·

2025/06/27

Allison Williams became a millennial icon as Marnie on HBO’s Girls — but her second act is even more thrilling. From Get Out to M3GAN, she’s carved out a new space as a horror star and unexpected scream queen. In this episode, Allison joins Sam to unpack what draws her to morally messy characters, and why she keeps playing women we love to hate. They dive into her newest film, M3GAN 2.0, and what it says about AI, parenting, and the eerie ways tech is shaping

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52:46

A United Nations of Red Flags (From Normal Gossip)

The Sam Sanders Show ·

2025/06/20

We’re taking a little break from the show week, but very excited to share an episode from the Normal Gossip podcast. It’s a hilarious show with a simple premise: listeners send in the strangest, juiciest gossip they’ve heard, then host Rachelle Hampton dishes it all out. In this episode, Sam and Rachelle break down a case of “accidental” love-bombing at a Colombian hostel.Enjoy! Sign up forSam’s Newsletter to get behind the scenes stuff from

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53:38

Jeff Hiller: Can Faith And Queerness Coexist?

The Sam Sanders Show ·

2025/06/13

Actor Jeff Hiller opens up about his journey from church kid in Texas to queer fame in Hollywood. Jeff and Sam swap stories of growing up gay in conservative Christian spaces, where church was both a sanctuary and a source of shame. They unpack the complicated ways faith and queerness collide. They also break down how Hollywood struggles to tell stories about people who are queer, religious, working class — and simply human.Jeff Hiller’s new memoir is called Actress

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50:28

Who’s On Your Queer Hollywood Mount Rushmore?

The Sam Sanders Show ·

2025/06/06

This week, we’re building the ultimate Queer Hollywood Mount Rushmore. Who belongs on the mountain of the most iconic LGBTQ+ entertainers in history?Sam is joined by comedians Cameron Esposito and Jay Jurden for a fast, funny, and heartfelt debate covering everyone from RuPaul to Little Richard, Janelle Monáe to George Michael, and Abraham Lincoln. Yes, we put Lincoln on the list. No, we’re not taking it back. Along the way, they unpack what it really means

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49:49

What happened to Britney Spears and the Millennial...

The Sam Sanders Show ·

2025/05/30

We all know the saga of Britney Spears. Her meteoric rise, followed by a grim downfall and a troubling conservatorship. Her story captured a generation. But what does it say about America and ourselves?Sam reflects on it all with journalists Andrea Domanick and Jeff Weiss. They break down Britney’s impact on music, the tabloids that encroached on her private life and how she became a symbol for America’s downfall. Jeff is the author of the new book Waiting For

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51:01

Zainab Johnson: Is It Still Radical Just to Exist?

The Sam Sanders Show ·

2025/05/23

Comedian Zainab Johnson joins Sam for a smart, funny, and unfiltered conversation about identity, comedy, and power.They dive into her standup special Hijabs Off (now on Prime Video), where Zainab explores what it means to be Black, Muslim, and a woman in America — and why that trifecta still feels radical. She opens up about performing in a post-DEI Hollywood, navigating Islamophobia, and finding freedom in standup. They also unpack the rise of crowd work, the hustle of

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52:11

Can Hollywood Learn from Its Biggest Bombs?

The Sam Sanders Show ·

2025/05/16

Some movies are so bad, they become iconic. Think Cats, Joker: Folie à Deux, Madame Web, and The Flash—massive flops that cost studios millions and spark endless debate.Sam breaks down why these high-profile films failed – and whether Hollywood is learning anything from its most embarrassing box office bombs. Lizzie Bassett and Chris Winterbauer of theWhat Went Wrong podcast join him to explore VFX disasters, star power misfires, and the curse of franchise

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53:23

Is Pop Culture in a Recession? Hot Takes Round 2

The Sam Sanders Show ·

2025/05/09

The ice bucket challenge is back, Lady Gaga’s making dance-pop again, and everyone’s hoarding tinned fish. Could it all mean… a recession?Comedians Zach Zimmerman and Eliot Glazer join us to unpack the internet’s funniest (and eeriest) recession indicator memes — from “recession blonde” to layaway coachella tickets to the return of vampire movies. Then, the hot takes fly: Zach argues that daytime TV needs to be mean again (bring back

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50:58

Has Marvel Lost Its Magic?

The Sam Sanders Show ·

2025/05/02

After almost 20 years of box office dominance, is the Marvel Cinematic Universe starting to fall apart?Sam dives deep into the highs and lows of Marvel with two sharp pop culture minds, Kyle Buchanan (NY Times) and Tracy Brown (LA Times), exploring what’s gone wrong in recent years — and whether Thunderbolts* marks a real reset or just more of the same. They dig into Marvel’s pivot to TV, the fatigue of endless interconnected stories, and what the MCU could

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