Can't Stop The Pop

Don't tell us that you're done as far as we go because in this episode of Can't Stop The Pop , we're sitting down to have a chat about The Saturdays' 'Ego' – which snuck into the UK chart at the very end of 2009. 'Ego' was a pivotal moment in The Saturdays' career. The second single from the group's second album, 'Wordshaker' – and later included on the 'Headlines!' EP – marked a point where comme...

In this episode of Can't Stop The Pop, we commemorate (or should that be commiserate) 30 years since the UK entered 'Ooh Aah…Just A Little Bit' into the Eurovision Song Contest 1996 and finished in…eighth place!? Matty and Craig discuss how Gina G's debut single tore through the UK chart for months prior to Eurovision, then became an international hit and even reached the top 20 of the US Billboar...

Get your vibe on because Can't Stop The Pop is back for a new year-long series of monthly episodes, and where better place to start than with Dannii Minogue vs. Flower Power's mid-'00s anthem, 'You Won't Forget About Me'. Matty and Craig explore how the track represented a timely evolution of the 'Neon Nights' formula and marked a new era for Dannii Minogue's career as she signed with All Around T...

It's the season three finale of  Can't Stop The Pop, and as befitting such an occasion, we're looking back at 'Viva Forever' by the Spice Girls. Matty and Craig reflect on how this – the fourth single from the 'Spiceworld' album – marked the end of the group's imperial era as Geri Halliwell quit. We examine what makes the song so sonically and structurally different from any other Spice Girls ball...

Things take a supernatural turn in this episode of  Can't Stop The Pop as Matty and Craig discuss Goldfrapp's 2005 hit, 'Ooh La La'. We examine how the duo's sound evolved from their earlier material, resulting in a breakthrough that propelled them to new commercial heights and helped shape the charts. It seems only fitting that in approaching the work of such a creative, diverse act, the episode...

In this episode of  Can't Stop The Pop , two divas join forces to deliver a vocal masterclass as Matty and Craig discuss Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston's superstar duet: 'When You Believe'. We look at the manufactured rivalry between the two singers and how their duet for the soundtrack to the animated movie 'The Prince Of Egypt' was an almost inconceivable prospect in the '90s. There's some con...

The S Club bandwagon comes to a crashing halt in this episode of Can't Stop The Pop as we look back at the bizarre turn of events that was I Dream. Find out what happens when you merge S Club 8 with five additional aspiring singers/actors, cast them all in a TV show and then release a single featuring just two members of the group. It's fair to say that Matty and Craig have very different opinions...

In this episode, Matty and Craig revisit the electrophonic revolution that was Phixx and their very '80s, very (homo)erotic debut single: 'Hold On Me'.  We're joined by Peter Smith from the group to discuss his dramatic exit from Popstars: The Rivals, how the sound and image for Phixx came together and what went wrong with One True Voice. In a brutally honest interview, Peter also reveals the trut...

We feel your lips, your fingertips...in this episode of Can't Stop The Pop, Matty and Craig are revisiting 1996 when Louise released her third solo single, 'Naked'.  This is one of those perfect songs that gets everything right in terms of sound, production, styling and visuals. In fact, Craig declares one moment as his favourite in any pop track...ever! And what on earth has Peppa Pig got to do w...

Are you…ready for it? In this episode, sparks fly as Matty and Craig discuss Taylor Swift's breakthrough (and, for several years, only) hit in the UK: 'Love Story'. Join us as we look back at the lead single from the 'Fearless' album, a music video that left us both enchanted and a relentless promotional campaign that went out of the woods to include appearances on The Paul O'Grady Show and Loose...

Presenting Glitter & Gold vs Can't Stop The Pop – LIVE! This special episode was recorded live at the Here & Now Gala Night pre-show fan event on September 4 th 2025, as we set out to determine our favourite Steps single. The rules were simple (after Craig explained them several times): every Steps single* went head-to-head, with the winner staying on until each podcast was left with their favouri...

Presenting Can't Stop The Pop...LIVE! On July 2nd, 2025, we hosted our first live podcast at the Kings Arms in Soho as part of the London Pride celebrations. For this very special occasion, we discussed 'It's Raining Men' by Geri Halliwell, and in this episode, you can hear the audio from the event.  We talk about Geri Halliwell's interpretation of the song for the soundtrack to Bridget Jones' Dia...

In this episode, Matty and Craig bring yesterday back around to discuss the Sugabab-babes' (seriously, what was with the typography for this campaign?) biggest hit: 'About You Now'.  Despite unanimous praise for the song and a consensus that the music video was slightly underwhelming, there are wildly different opinions on what 'About You Now' meant for where the group were at this point, and how...

For this episode, we've ventured (just) outside the '90s and '00s to discuss Joe McElderry's 2010 single, 'Ambitions'. And we've bent the rules with good reason because the man himself joins us to look back at his first post-X Factor release. Joe gives us all the background on the song's origins as a chart-topping hit for the Norwegian band Donkeyboy and how it helped shape the sound of his debut...

In this kingsize episode, Matty and Craig look back at 'Let's Dance', which earned Five their third #1 hit while simultaneously becoming the backdrop to the group's sudden implosion as they split before the single had even left the top 40.  There are differing opinions on the song, and a music video that hasn't aged particularly well for several reasons. We also revisit how Five announced their sp...

This week, Matty and Craig look back at a seminal moment for pop music, when Will Young released Leave Right Now and proved there was life after TV talent shows with a critically and commercially acclaimed second album.  We examine the origins of the track and how Eg White began by trying to write a Christmas song for Gareth Gates. We also discuss the single-shot music video and share some quirky...

In this episode, Matty and Craig hit the Ibiza dancefloor to look back at Melanie C's  I Turn To You .  The fourth single from the  Northern Star album received a remix by Hex Hector, which helped propel it to the top of the charts. We discuss misheard lyrics in the song, an unintentional  Jurassic Park reference in the music video, and those all-important stats, which saw Melanie C become the fir...

In this episode, we're looking back at H & Claire's third (and final) single, All Out Of Love . It's a song that, in many ways, marked a full-circle moment for the duo, reuniting them with a familiar team of Steps songwriters as they prepared to release their debut album. There's so much to discuss, not least a  Jumanji -inspired dance break from the music video. Plus, Matty questions whether the...

In this episode, we're joined by Louise Fudge - one third of Supersister - to talk about the group's iconic '00s hit, Coffee . Find out what inspired the lyrics, what the song's got in common with It's Raining Men , and which act were chosen to perform on  Top Of The Pops instead of Supersister.  We also discuss their recently released Lip Service album, the group's triumphant live comeback at Mig...

Welcome to the fourth and final episode of a special series of Can't Stop The Pop X CCTV: The Nonstop Pop Show, where we pit Steps against S Club in an almighty pop-off.   Here's how it works: The singles from both acts were paired chronologically from their debut onwards, and we picked our favourite for each round. By this point, we're deep into the S Club Juniors/8-era of the S Club brand, as we...

Welcome to the second episode in a special four-part series of Can't Stop The Pop X CCTV: The Nonstop Pop Show, where we pit Steps against S Club in an almighty pop-off.   Here's how it works: The singles from both acts were paired chronologically from their debut onwards, and we picked our favourite for each round. In this episode, we compare and discuss: Better Best Forgotten vs  Natural Love's...

It's time... For our Christmas episode, we're celebrating 30 years of  All I Want For Christmas Is You  and discussing how Mariah Carey's 1994 festive hit has become a perennial chart staple. Among the talking points are the song's origins (and an embarrassing attempt by Craig to pronounce Walter Afanasieff's name), its initial chart success and what's happened in the streaming era, we look back a...

Welcome to the third episode in a special four-part series of Can't Stop The Pop X CCTV: The Nonstop Pop Show, where we pit Steps against S Club in an almighty pop-off.   Here's how it works: The singles from both acts were paired chronologically from their debut onwards, and we picked our favourite for each round. In this episode, S Club pass the baton to S Club Juniors as we compare and discuss:...

Welcome to the first episode in a special four-part series of Can't Stop The Pop X CCTV: The Nonstop Pop Show, where we pit Steps against S Club in an almighty pop-off.   Here's how it works: The singles from both acts were paired chronologically from their debut onwards, and we picked our favourite for each round. In this episode, we compare and discuss: 5, 6, 7, 8  vs  Bring It All Back Last Thi...

Easy V doesn't come for free! For our second season finale, we're discussing an artist and a song so seismic that they allegedly brought down an entire record label. It's Victoria Beckham with her dance-pop track, Let Your Head Go. We delve into a complicated situation that resulted in two different albums being recorded (neither of which was officially released), Victoria Beckham's prominent role...