A podcast where musicians take apart their songs, and piece by piece, tell the story of how they were made.
“Mutt” LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON · OTHER APPS Leon Thomas is a singer, songwriter, producer, and actor. He’s nominated for six Grammys at this year’s Grammy Awards, including Best New Artist, Best R&B Album, and Album of the Year for Mutt. Mutt is his second album, and I talked to Leon about the […] The post Episode 307: Leon Thomas appeared first on Song Exploder.
“Mutt” <img fetchpriority="high" decoding="async" src="https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/SongExploder307-LeonThomas-600x338.jpg" alt="" width="600" height="338" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-5269" srcset="https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/SongExploder307-LeonThomas-600x338.jpg 600w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/SongExploder307-LeonThomas-300x169.jpg 300w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/SongExploder307-LeonThomas-768x432.jpg 768w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/SongExploder307-LeonThomas.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" /> LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON · OTHER APPS Leon Thomas is a singer, songwriter, producer, and actor. He’s nominated for six Grammys at this year’s Grammy Awards, including Best New Artist, Best R&B Album, and Album of the Year for Mutt. Mutt is his second album, and I talked to Leon about the title track, which was a breakout hit. He’d already won a Grammy for his work with SZA, but he reached a new level in his own career with this song and this album. I also spoke to David Phelps and Rob Gueringer, AKA D. Phelps and Freaky Rob, who produced the song. You can buy or stream “Mutt” here. Illustration by Carlos Lerma. For a transcript of this episode, click here. footnotes: Bizzy Crook – co-writer “Silly Love Song by Enchantment “Snooze” by SZA Electric Dusk – Leon Thomas Led Zeppelin, Kendrick Lamar, Miles Davis, Pink Floyd, and Parliament-Funkadelic Art Tatum and John Coltrane Bootsy Collins The post Episode 307: Leon Thomas appeared first on Song Exploder.
“You’ll Never Walk Alone” by Gerry and The Pacemakers LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON · OTHER APPS My guest today is John Green. John is the award-winning, #1 bestselling author of books including Looking for Alaska, The Fault in Our Stars, Turtles All the Way Down, The Anthropocene Reviewed, and Everything is Tuberculosis. John […] The post Key Change: John Green appeared first on Song Exploder.
“You’ll Never Walk Alone” by Gerry and The Pacemakers <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/KeyChange11-JohnGreen-600x600.jpg" alt="" width="2160" height="2160" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-5266" srcset="https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/KeyChange11-JohnGreen-600x600.jpg 600w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/KeyChange11-JohnGreen-300x300.jpg 300w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/KeyChange11-JohnGreen-768x768.jpg 768w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/KeyChange11-JohnGreen-1536x1536.jpg 1536w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/KeyChange11-JohnGreen-2048x2048.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 2160px) 100vw, 2160px" /> LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON · OTHER APPS My guest today is John Green. John is the award-winning, #1 bestselling author of books including Looking for Alaska, The Fault in Our Stars, Turtles All the Way Down, The Anthropocene Reviewed, and Everything is Tuberculosis. John and his brother Hank Green have co-created a lot of projects together, including their massive YouTube channel, ‘Vlogbrothers,’ and their podcast, Dear Hank and John. He also serves on the Board of Trustees for global health nonprofit Partners in Health. And when I asked John if there was a piece of music that changed his life, he knew the answer right away: “You’ll Never Walk Alone” by Gerry and the Pacemakers. footnotes: The musical Carousel The Mountain Goats, Will Oldham, and Loretta Lynn The post Key Change: John Green appeared first on Song Exploder.
Nipsey Hussle – “Racks In the Middle” (feat. Roddy Ricch and Hit-Boy) LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON · OTHER APPS Hit-Boy is an award-winning producer and rapper from LA. He’s one of my all-time favorite producers, from “Backseat Freestyle” by Kendrick Lamar, to “Sicko Mode” by Travis Scott, to tracks he’s made for Beyonce, […] The post Episode 306: Hit-Boy and Nipsey Hussle appeared first on Song Exploder.
Nipsey Hussle – “Racks In the Middle” (feat. Roddy Ricch and Hit-Boy) <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/SongExploder306-HitBoy-NipseyHussle-600x338.jpg" alt="" width="600" height="338" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-5262" srcset="https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/SongExploder306-HitBoy-NipseyHussle-600x338.jpg 600w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/SongExploder306-HitBoy-NipseyHussle-300x169.jpg 300w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/SongExploder306-HitBoy-NipseyHussle-768x432.jpg 768w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/SongExploder306-HitBoy-NipseyHussle.jpg 1200w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" /> LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON · OTHER APPS Hit-Boy is an award-winning producer and rapper from LA. He’s one of my all-time favorite producers, from “Backseat Freestyle” by Kendrick Lamar, to “Sicko Mode” by Travis Scott, to tracks he’s made for Beyonce, Nas, and the Jay-Z & Kanye album Watch the Throne. So I was really excited to talk to him, and when I asked him which song from his incredible catalog he wanted to talk about, I was really moved by his choice. He picked “Racks in the Middle” by Nipsey Hussle, featuring Roddy Ricch. Nipsey Hussle was a rapper and community activist from LA whose career was cut short, tragically, when he was murdered in 2019. He’d released just one album, Victory Lap. “Racks in the Middle” was the last song released in Nipsey’s lifetime. It went platinum, and a year after his death, it won the Grammy for Best Rap Performance, in 2020. This episode features a few short clips from a video that Nipsey Hussle made for the website Genius, back in 2019. But here in the studio, to tell the story, I spoke to Hit-Boy about how “Racks in the Middle” came together. You can buy or stream “Racks In the Middle” (feat. Roddy Ricch and Hit-Boy) here. Illustration by Carlos Lerma. For a transcript of this episode, click here. footnotes: Dustin James Corbett – co-writer Greg Allen Davis – co-writer “Die Young” – Roddy Ricch Knowledge Smith, Future, and Chalice Recording Studio Mailbox Money – mixtape by Nipsey Hussle “A Hunnit a Show” (feat. Rick Ross) – Nipsey Hussle “Alert” (feat. Hit-Boy & Nipsey Hussle) – HS87 “Thuggin” (feat. Lil Boosie & Lil Cali) – Nipsey Hussle The post Episode 306: Hit-Boy and Nipsey Hussle appeared first on Song Exploder.
“Playground Love” (feat. Gordon Tracks) LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON · OTHER APPS The band Air is a duo from Versailles, France. Their first EP came out in 1995, followed by their critically acclaimed debut album, Moon Safari, which was an international hit. Then they made the music for the film The Virgin Suicides, […] The post Episode 305: Air appeared first on Song Exploder.
“Playground Love” (feat. Gordon Tracks) <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/SongExploder305-Air-600x338.jpg" alt="" width="600" height="338" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-5255" srcset="https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/SongExploder305-Air-600x338.jpg 600w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/SongExploder305-Air-300x169.jpg 300w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/SongExploder305-Air-768x432.jpg 768w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/SongExploder305-Air.jpg 1200w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" /> LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON · OTHER APPS The band Air is a duo from Versailles, France. Their first EP came out in 1995, followed by their critically acclaimed debut album, Moon Safari, which was an international hit. Then they made the music for the film The Virgin Suicides, which was written and directed by Oscar-winner Sofia Coppola, based on the novel by Jeffrey Eugenides. The movie came out in 1999, and it was Sofia Coppola’s first film. An album version of Air’s score came out in 2000, and it was nominated for a Brit award. Pitchfork put it at number four on their list of the best film scores of all time. In addition to the instrumental music that appears in the movie, Air also wrote a song for the end credits, called “Playground Love.” That song featured Sofia Coppola’s future husband, Thomas Mars, from the French band Phoenix, on vocals. Phoenix was still a very new band, and he and Sofia hadn’t even met yet. Thomas appears on the song under the name Gordon Tracks. So for this episode, I spoke to all of them: Nicolas and JB from Air; Sofia Coppola; Thomas Mars; as well as Brian Reitzell, who was the music supervisor of the film. You can buy The Virgin Suicides Redux album as a CD or vinyl, and you can buy or stream “Playground Love” here. Illustration by Carlos Lerma. For a transcript of this episode, click here. footnotes: The Chateau Marmont Redd Kross (band) Thomas Bangalter and Daft Punk “Highschool Lover” – Air ‘Kick,’ an album by INXS Ringo Starr, Beck, and 10cc “Walk on the Wild Side” by Lou Reed Bob Dylan “Yoghurting” The post Episode 305: Air appeared first on Song Exploder.
Wagner’s ‘Das Rheingold’ LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON · OTHER APPS My guest today is director Rian Johnson, which is exciting for me, because I’ve been a huge fan of his ever since seeing his first feature film, Brick, in 2006. Since then, he’s made six more feature films, including Looper in 2012; Star […] The post Key Change: Rian Johnson appeared first on Song Exploder.
Wagner’s ‘Das Rheingold’ <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/KeyChange10-RianJohnson.jpg" alt="" width="2160" height="2160" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-5251" srcset="https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/KeyChange10-RianJohnson.jpg 2160w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/KeyChange10-RianJohnson-300x300.jpg 300w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/KeyChange10-RianJohnson-600x600.jpg 600w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/KeyChange10-RianJohnson-768x768.jpg 768w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/KeyChange10-RianJohnson-1536x1536.jpg 1536w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/KeyChange10-RianJohnson-2048x2048.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 2160px) 100vw, 2160px" /> LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON · OTHER APPS My guest today is director Rian Johnson, which is exciting for me, because I’ve been a huge fan of his ever since seeing his first feature film, Brick, in 2006. Since then, he’s made six more feature films, including Looper in 2012; Star Wars: The Last Jedi in 2017; the murder mystery Knives Out in 2019; and his most recent movie, another in the Knives Out series, Wake Up Dead Man, which is already out in theaters, and comes to Netflix on December 12. I talked to Rian about a piece of music that had a profound impact on him, which was the overture to Das Rheingold by Richard Wagner. footnotes: “Kill the Wabbit” “La Traviata” Focus Features The Brothers Bloom Opéra Bastille Ring Cycle J. R. R. Tolkien J. J. Abrams Terrence Malick Nathan Johnson Bayreuth Festival Theatre Wagnerism: Art and Politics in the Shadow of Music by Alex Ross The post Key Change: Rian Johnson appeared first on Song Exploder.
“Goliath” LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON · OTHER APPS Jessie Reyez is a singer and songwriter originally from Toronto. She’s won two of Canada’s Juno awards, and she’s been nominated for a Grammy. In addition to writing her own music, Jessie’s been a songwriter on tracks by Calvin Harris, Dua Lipa, Sam Smith, Eminem, […] The post Episode 304: Jessie Reyez appeared first on Song Exploder.
“Goliath” <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/SongExploder304-JessieReyez-600x338.jpg" alt="" width="600" height="338" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-5245" srcset="https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/SongExploder304-JessieReyez-600x338.jpg 600w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/SongExploder304-JessieReyez-300x169.jpg 300w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/SongExploder304-JessieReyez-768x432.jpg 768w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/SongExploder304-JessieReyez.jpg 1200w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" /> LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON · OTHER APPS Jessie Reyez is a singer and songwriter originally from Toronto. She’s won two of Canada’s Juno awards, and she’s been nominated for a Grammy. In addition to writing her own music, Jessie’s been a songwriter on tracks by Calvin Harris, Dua Lipa, Sam Smith, Eminem, and many others. You’re probably aware that there are songwriters and producers whose names you’ll find over and over again in the credits for big hits; Jessie is one of them. But for this episode, I talked to her about her own song “Goliath.” And the day that she wrote that song, she happened to be in the studio with a bunch of other songwriters and producers. So I also talked to Jordan and Stefan Johnson, from the production team Monsters & Strangerz, and Jeff Gitelman, AKA Gitty. Between the three of them, their credits also include songs by Selena Gomez, Maroon 5, Alicia Keys, Mac Miller, and, again, tons more. When a group like this gets together to write music, they don’t always know if they’re going to be making a song that’s going to get recorded and released by an artist somewhere down the line, or if the song’s going to get recorded at all. But in the case of “Goliath,” what came out was a song that was very personal to Jessie Reyez. You can buy or stream “Goliath” here. Illustration by Carlos Lerma. For a transcript of this episode, click here. footnotes: LunchMoney Lewis – co-writer Miles Julian – trumpet Drew McKeon – drums Lisa and BLACKPINK The post Episode 304: Jessie Reyez appeared first on Song Exploder.
“You Only Live Once” by The Strokes LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON · OTHER APPS My guest today is Demi Adejuyigbe. One of the things that makes Demi so special is how hard it is to summarize him in an intro like this, because he has so many talents and applies them in so […] The post Key Change: Demi Adejuyigbe appeared first on Song Exploder.
“You Only Live Once” by The Strokes <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/KeyChange9-DemiAdejuyigbe-600x600.jpg" alt="" width="2160" height="2160" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-5241" srcset="https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/KeyChange9-DemiAdejuyigbe-600x600.jpg 600w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/KeyChange9-DemiAdejuyigbe-300x300.jpg 300w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/KeyChange9-DemiAdejuyigbe-768x768.jpg 768w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/KeyChange9-DemiAdejuyigbe-1536x1536.jpg 1536w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/KeyChange9-DemiAdejuyigbe-2048x2048.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 2160px) 100vw, 2160px" /> LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON · OTHER APPS My guest today is Demi Adejuyigbe. One of the things that makes Demi so special is how hard it is to summarize him in an intro like this, because he has so many talents and applies them in so many different ways. He is a standup comedian, with a brand new one-hour special out on Dropout TV. He co-hosted the podcasts Gilmore Guys and Punch Up the Jam. He’s a screenwriter who wrote on TV shows like The Good Place. He’s famous on the internet for his parody songs, spoofing artists like Will Smith and Lana Del Rey; and for his September videos, where, for years, he made increasingly elaborate videos of himself, dancing to the Earth, Wind & Fire song. And he used the popularity of those videos to raise over a million dollars for charity. He’s also directed several music videos, including one that he made for one of my songs, back in 2022. And for this episode, we’re talking as much about a music video as the song within it. And that song is: “You Only Live Once” by The Strokes. You can buy or stream “You Only Live Once” here. You can watch Demi’s new special, Demi Adejuyigbe is Going to do One (1) Backflip, here. footnotes: Guitar Hero and Rock Band First Impressions of Earth (album) – The Strokes “Red Light” – The Strokes Warren Fu Zabriskie Point, Michelangelo Antonioni, Pink Floyd, and Jerry Garcia “I’ll Try Anything Once” – The Strokes The post Key Change: Demi Adejuyigbe appeared first on Song Exploder.
“The Birds Don’t Sing” LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON · OTHER APPS Clipse was formed in 1994 by two brothers: Gene Thornton Jr, aka Malice, and his younger brother Terrence Thornton, aka Pusha T. From the beginning, they’ve worked with producer Pharrell Williams, originally as part of the acclaimed production duo, The Neptunes. But […] The post Episode 303: Clipse appeared first on Song Exploder.
“The Birds Don’t Sing” <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/SongExploder303-Clipse-600x338.jpg" alt="" width="600" height="338" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-5235" srcset="https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/SongExploder303-Clipse-600x338.jpg 600w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/SongExploder303-Clipse-300x169.jpg 300w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/SongExploder303-Clipse-768x432.jpg 768w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/SongExploder303-Clipse.jpg 1200w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" /> LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON · OTHER APPS Clipse was formed in 1994 by two brothers: Gene Thornton Jr, aka Malice, and his younger brother Terrence Thornton, aka Pusha T. From the beginning, they’ve worked with producer Pharrell Williams, originally as part of the acclaimed production duo, The Neptunes. But there was a 16-year gap between their third album, which came out in 2009, and their most recent album, Let God Sort Em Out, which came out in July 2025. This November, they were nominated for 5 Grammys, including Album of the Year. They were also nominated for Best Rap Song for “The Birds Don’t Sing.” It’s a song that they made after the death of both of their parents in the span of just a few months. For this episode, I asked Pusha T, Malice, and Pharrell about the making of that song, which also features contributions from John Legend and Stevie Wonder. You can buy or stream “The Birds Don’t Sing” here. Illustration by Carlos Lerma. For a transcript of this episode, click here. footnotes: “The birds don’t sing, they screech in pain.” – Werner Herzog The post Episode 303: Clipse appeared first on Song Exploder.
“Frozen Love” LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON · OTHER APPS On September 5, 1973, the first and only Buckingham Nicks album was released. It wasn’t a huge hit, but it was how the world was first introduced to the music of Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham, before they went on to become members of […] The post Episode 302: Buckingham Nicks appeared first on Song Exploder.
“Frozen Love” <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/SongExploder302-BuckinghamNicks-600x338.jpg" alt="" width="600" height="338" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-5228" srcset="https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/SongExploder302-BuckinghamNicks-600x338.jpg 600w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/SongExploder302-BuckinghamNicks-300x169.jpg 300w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/SongExploder302-BuckinghamNicks-768x432.jpg 768w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/SongExploder302-BuckinghamNicks.jpg 1200w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" /> LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON · OTHER APPS On September 5, 1973, the first and only Buckingham Nicks album was released. It wasn’t a huge hit, but it was how the world was first introduced to the music of Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham, before they went on to become members of Fleetwood Mac. Their time together in Fleetwood Mac led to some of the best-selling, most critically acclaimed, and most influential albums of all time. Their individual talents, their musical chemistry together, and the ups and downs of their romantic relationship all eventually became legendary. And yet, despite all that, the Buckingham Nicks album went out of print not long after it came out. For over 50 years, it wasn’t available, until it finally got re-mastered and re-released in September 2025. So for this episode, I spoke to both Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham about the making of one of the songs from that album, called “Frozen Love.” It’s the only song on the album where they’re credited as co-writers, and it’s the song that led Mick Fleetwood to invite Lindsey Buckingham to join Fleetwood Mac. But Lindsey would only join if Stevie could, too, and that’s how that story began. So this episode is about a beginning and an ending. It’s the story of how Stevie and Lindsey first met, and how they made “Frozen Love,” and how that song really led to the end of their band. I also want to mention that not only was Buckingham Nicks out of print for all those decades, no one has heard the isolated tracks that you’re about to hear. To make this episode, there was an epic search for the original master tape from Sound City, the studio where they recorded the album with producer Keith Olsen. It took months, but the tape was finally tracked down and digitized, and it feels very special to be able to present this for the first time here, along with the memories and stories from Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks. You can buy or stream the remastered album here, and you can buy or stream “Frozen Love” here. Illustration by Carlos Lerma. For a transcript of this episode, click here. footnotes: Gary Hodges – drums Buckingham Nicks (album) “California Dreamin” – The Mamas & The Papas Fritz – members Javier Pacheco (songwriting) and Bob Aguirre (drums) Chicago, Fillmore West, and Jimi Hendrix James Taylor and Joni Mitchell Wuthering Heights and Great Expectations Jimmy Page, Led Zeppelin, and “Stairway to Heaven” Joe Gottfried – owner of Sound City Studios The post Episode 302: Buckingham Nicks appeared first on Song Exploder.
“Take On Me” LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON · OTHER APPS “Take On Me” by A-ha is an iconic hit of the 1980s. It came out in October 1985 with an equally iconic music video that helped define the age of MTV. It hit #1 in the US and in countries all over the […] The post Episode 301: A-ha appeared first on Song Exploder.
“Take On Me” <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/SongExploder301-A-ha-600x338.jpg" alt="" width="600" height="338" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-5203" srcset="https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/SongExploder301-A-ha-600x338.jpg 600w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/SongExploder301-A-ha-300x169.jpg 300w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/SongExploder301-A-ha-768x432.jpg 768w, https://songexploder.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/SongExploder301-A-ha.jpg 1200w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" /> LISTEN: APPLE · SPOTIFY · AMAZON · OTHER APPS “Take On Me” by A-ha is an iconic hit of the 1980s. It came out in October 1985 with an equally iconic music video that helped define the age of MTV. It hit #1 in the US and in countries all over the world. And it’s still massively popular today. It currently has over two and a half billion streams on Spotify. So, with all of that, it’s easy to imagine that this was all inevitable. But actually, the song took so many steps and missteps before it became the hit that everybody knows. I talked to Paul Waaktaar-Savoy from A-ha, who wrote the original bones of the song back when he was a teenager in Norway, years before it came out. The song actually came out and flopped TWICE in the UK, before it found a foothold in the US. So for this episode, Paul took me through the whole history of the song, and all the different versions that existed. And he told me how he and his bandmates, Magne Furuholmen and Morten Harket, pushed and pushed and persevered. “Take On Me” was their first single as a band, and it made them the most successful Norwegian pop group of all time. Click to view slideshow. You can buy or stream “Take On Me” here. Illustration by Carlos Lerma. For a transcript of this episode, click here. footnotes: “Lesson One” – first demo version of “Take On Me” Alan Tarney – producer & backing vocals Gerry Kitchingham – mixer Steve Barron – music video director Bridges “Aladdin Sane” by David Bowie Joe Cocker Melody Maker and Music Express magazines John Ratcliff, Terry Slater, Andrew Wickham, Tony Mansfield, and Jeff Ayeroff Fairlight CMI PPG Wave synthesizer Yamaha DX7 synthesizer “Commuter” – film The post Episode 301: A-ha appeared first on Song Exploder.