Uncovering the Cover

This is the third episode of a three-part series exploring the music that has put soccer or football at the center of world pop culture, in the lead up to the FIFA World Cup 2026. Episode 1: The World Cup Songs: https://pinzondiego.com/work/world-cup-songs-full-story/ Episode 2: The fan chants borrowed from pop music: https://pinzondiego.com/work/songs-football-fans-sing-anthem-chants/ Episode 3:...

This is the second episode of a three-part series exploring the music that has put soccer or football at the center of world pop culture, in the lead up to the FIFA World Cup 2026. Episode 1: The World Cup Songs Episode 2: The fan chants borrowed from pop music Episode 3: The songs of the women's game This is the story about how football fans stole the world’s best pop songs, and made them the...

This is the first episode of a three-part series exploring the music that has put soccer or football at the center of world pop culture. Episode 1: The World Cup Songs Episode 2: The fan chants borrowed from pop music Episode 3: The songs of the women's game On May 14, 2026, just weeks before the FIFA World Cup kicked off across the United States, Canada, and Mexico — Shakira and Burna Boy rel...

Back in 1975 Aerosmith created a song out of luck, and it became a Billboard Top 10 hit. The beat and the guitar riff was heavily used years later in underground rap parties in the Bronx, and Run-DMC had actually already rapped over the song before without realizing it was an Aerosmith's song, or even who the rock band was. The story behind this cover is so unique because at first, the rap group d...

In 1990, Madonna released a song that wasn’t supposed to be a single. It was a B-side throwaway, recorded in a basement studio in Manhattan with a $5,000 budget and a vocal booth converted from a closet. It became one of the best-selling singles of the year, hit number one in over 30 countries, and 35 years later, it still soundtracks the most iconic fashion moments on screen — from Andy Sachs’ Pa...

Michael Jackson has a complex story, which will be the subject of the very anticipated biopic film, titled "Michael", in theaters everywhere April 26, 2026.In 1983, Michael Jackson debuted the moonwalk on live television in front of forty-seven million people while performing "Billie Jean" — a song Quincy Jones almost cut from the Thriller album. That night, pop music changed forever. But the deep...

This episode was originally recorded back in 2020. It hasn't been altered since its recording. Most people have sung this song at karaoke. Most people have cried to it. Most people have no idea what it's actually about."I Will Always Love You" was never a love song. It was a resignation letter — written by Dolly Parton in 1973 to say goodbye to the most powerful man in her career: her mentor, her...

You know the opening riff. You know the shout. You've probably assumed, like most people, that The Beatles wrote "Twist and Shout." They didn't. In this episode of Uncovering the Cover , host Diego Pinzón traces the complete and extraordinary journey of one of rock and roll's most beloved songs — from the Afro-Cuban dance halls of Havana to the streets of Liverpool, from a ti...

In this episode of Uncovering the Cover, we tell the full origin story of one of the most covered and culturally durable songs of the 20th century. From a motel bathtub in 1979 to the Billboard Hot 100, from the first MTV VMAs to the 2022 Supreme Court fallout — "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" is a song that has been reshaped by every era that encountered it. What You'll Learn in Each...

Dua Lipa covered a different local artist's song every night on her 2025 world tour — 60+ songs, 16 countries. Today we tell the full story: her career, her sampled songs, and the covers that had already hit #1 in the US.What if a pop star committed — every single night, across 16 countries — to covering a different song by a local artist? Not as a gimmick. As a love letter. That's exactly...

In 1988, 19-year-old Bobby Brown walked into a studio and improvised the opening of one of the most defiant songs ever to reach number one in America. "My Prerogative", written with production genius Teddy Riley, was a direct response to everyone who had ever told Brown he was too much: too loud, too wild, too himself. It hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and defined an era. Sixteen years...

To understand "Bésame Mucho," you need to understand the bolero. Not the Spanish dance from the late 1700s, but the Mexican and Cuban bolero—a romantic song form that emerged in the early twentieth century, characterized by its slow tempo, triple meter, and lyrics about love, heartbreak, and longing. By 1940, the bolero was the soundtrack of romantic Mexico. It played in cantinas and cab...

It started with a mysterious concert, became one of the biggest soul hits of the 1970s, and was reborn as a hip-hop phenomenon in the 1990s. 'Killing Me Softly' has one of the most fascinating journeys in popular music: from Lori Lieberman's delicate folk original through Roberta Flack's Grammy-sweeping masterpiece to the Fugees' generation-defining cover. But did the song real...

David Bowie's 1970 album 'The Man Who Sold the World' was a commercial flop. The title track - a churning, heavy exploration of identity and doppelgängers - became a cult favorite among Bowie devotees but remained largely unknown to mainstream audiences. Twenty-three years later, Kurt Cobain chose this obscure song for Nirvana's MTV Unplugged performance. What he and the band creat...

Before "Respect" was a feminist anthem... before it became a civil rights rallying cry... before Aretha Franklin made it one of the most powerful songs in American history... "Respect" was Otis Redding's funky plea to his wife. In this season premiere, we uncover the incredible transformation of "Respect" from a man's request into a revolution. THE STORY YOU&#...

Bad Bunny performing at Super Bowl LX, is iconic. Despite the controversy surrounding the NFL's decision, he becomes the first predominantly Spanish-language halftime show in Super Bowl history. Conservatives are furious. Trump called it "ridiculous." There was a petition to replace him with George Strait, and even an alternative "All-American" halftime show headlined by Ki...

We're back after five years! Every music cover tells a story. A story of transformation. Of perspective. Of how the same song can mean completely different things... depending on who's singing it, and when. After five years away, we're bringing back Uncovering the Cover, the podcast that explores the hidden stories behind music's greatest transformations. We're going deeper. We...

Este episodio fue publicado originalmente en inglés en febrero de 2020. Esta es la versión en español de la historia detrás de “Last Kiss”, la emblemática canción de Pearl Jam a finales de los 90. El de inglés es hasta hoy, nuestro episodio con más descargas, y como varios de ustedes lo pidieron y por el éxito que ha tenido este episodio, aquí está la versión de este episodio en español… ¡es como...

¡Sí, en español! Uncovering the Cover regresa con su segunda temporada este próximo mes de febrero dispuesto a arruinar tu canción favorita. Tu podcast favorito ahora será también en tu idioma. Conoce la historia detrás de las canciones más famosas de la música en español, aquellas canciones que nos han marcado de por vida. ¿Quieres saber todo acerca de esa canción que te recuerda a tu infancia? ¿...

Uncovering the Cover is back! This February 2021, we're coming with a second season that will BLOW. YOUR. MIND. All the songs that remind you of your childhood, the ones you blasted on your first iPod when you had just gotten your heart broken, and all the real stories behind the songs that have captured our imagination… throughout several generations!  There are a couple of amazing updates f...

This episode we examine the music of Madonna using “Papa Don’t Preach” as the starting point, but diving deep into “Like A Prayer” and her clash with the Catholic Church. We take a look at the Madonna icon of music, fashion, sex, feminism and determination. She is the best-selling female recording artist of all time, selling more than 300 million records worldwide, she’s the most successful solo a...

How did a 17th century Irish folk song transcend throughout so many generations that even Metallica won a Grammy Award with it?  Rock has traditionally looked into folk music for inspiration. From the early adaptations of black musical genres by rock and roll musicians in the late 40s to the guitar chords and raspy voices of the counterculture of the 60s, and dating all the way back to the dispute...

Today, we’re paying tribute to Alan Merrill, one of the artists who have died after contracting the coronavirus, someone who devoted almost all of his 69 years in this world to make us fall in love with rock n roll, and in the process he came up with one of the most covered songs in music history. Merrill's song has evolved so much throughout the years that it’s become a favorite of female pop sin...

What happens when you mix Elvis Presley, Rihanna, 50 Cent, Britney Spears and Maroon 5 , all into the same pot? You get the most fascinating celebration of 50s and 60s rock & roll . A trip to the future and the future with a final stop in the past. Usually, what we do in this podcast is we take one song that has been covered by many different artists, making it a success in its own right, but...

Almost by accident, this song became Pearl Jam’s most popular ever up to this day, a song that grew into a one-hit wonder with two different rock n roll bands. A song that transcended three different generations of rock fans who infiltrated the song into the pop charts in 1960s, 1970s and 1990s. This song also has a profound impact in Latin American music, having a long tradition on Latino folklor...