by Tiger Biskup

Episode 316: Hayley Kiyoko

“Girls Like Girls”

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Hayley Kiyoko is a singer, songwriter, author, and director from Los Angeles. She was a child actor on Disney and Nickelodeon, and briefly in a girl group called The Stunners. But then, she started her career as a solo artist. In 2015, she put out the EP This Side of Paradise, and one of the songs on it was “Girls Like Girls.” She co-wrote it with Lily May-Young and Owen Thomas, and it was produced by James Flannigan. Hayley co-directed the music video for it, and when the song and the video came out, it was an absolute phenomenon. It became a lesbian anthem; Rolling Stone named it one of the most inspiring LGBTQ songs of all time. Hayley’s legion of fans gave her the nickname “Lesbian Jesus.” In 2023, Hayley adapted the song into a bestselling coming-of-age novel. And in June 2026, she made her feature film directorial debut, with the movie adaptation of “Girls Like Girls.” So for this episode, Hayley and I talked about how it all started with the making of that song.

You can buy or stream “Girls Like Girls” here.

Illustration by Carlos Lerma.

footnotes:
NSYNC
Yeah Yeah Yeahs, TV On The Radio, and M83
Imogen Heap

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by Tiger Biskup

Key Change: Tatiana Maslany

“Faceshopping” by Sophie

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My guest today is the actor Tatiana Maslany. One of the things I find so compelling about Tatiana and her career is that the roles that she plays often contain multitudes—literally. She played over 10 different characters-clones, but with distinct personalities-in the TV show Orphan Black. And in the Marvel Universe, she played She-Hulk, who also had the very different alter ego of Jennifer Walters, a lawyer. And right now, she’s starring in the show Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed on AppleTV. When Tatiana prepares for her roles—and the roles within the roles—she often uses music to inspire and motivate her. Today, I got to talk to Tatiana about a song that’s been really important to her and her process. And that song is “Faceshopping” by Sophie.

If you’re not aware of Sophie’s music, she was an incredible, groundbreaking electronic artist from the UK. She was trans, and she passed away far too young, in 2021. But even in a short time, she made a big impact. In addition to her own music, she also produced tracks for Charli XCX, and Madonna, and more. In 2018, she released her breakthrough Grammy-nominated album, Oil of Every Pearl’s Un-Insides, which dealt a lot with her trans identity. And that’s the album that has the song “Faceshopping.”

You can buy or stream “Faceshopping” by Sophie here.

footnotes:

BIPP by Sophie
Beastie Boys, “Gangsta’s Paradise” by Coolio, and “Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now)” by C+C Music Factory
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
The Streets, Dizzee Rascal, and Prodigy
System of a Down

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by Tiger Biskup

Episode 315: Paul McCartney

“Ripples in a Pond”

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Paul McCartney is a singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer whose career spans more than six decades. As a member of The Beatles and later Wings and then his own solo albums, he’s simply one of the most influential artists of all time. In May 2026, he released his twentieth solo album, The Boys of Dungeon Lane. He co-produced it with Andrew Watt, who won the 2021 Grammy for Producer of the Year, and whose credits include working with Lady Gaga, The Rolling Stones, Justin Bieber, and Elton John. For this episode, I spoke to Paul McCartney about how he wrote and recorded his song “Ripples in a Pond.”

You can buy or stream “Ripples in a Pond” here.

Illustration by Carlos Lerma.

For a transcript of this episode, click here.

footnotes:
Steve Orchard – engineer
“Yesterday” by The Beatles
John Lennon

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