Commotion with Elamin Abdelmahmoud

This year, the conversation about the Met Gala was less about looks, and more about the outrage. Billionaire Jeff Bezos and his wife Lauren Sanchez Bezos were the main sponsors and honorary chairs at this year’s ball, proving the most prestigious night in the fashion world can be bought. But can taste? Elamin Abdelmahmoud gets into it with fashion writer Joan Summers and culture writer Amil Niazi....

When was the last time you watched a romantic comedy in theatres? Rolling Stone's CT Jones joins Elamin Abdelmahmoud to break down why studio execs are putting rom-coms on streaming platforms instead. And FIFA’s rules around what other events can be held during the tournament means organizers of summer festivals in Toronto and Vancouver have to change their plans. Dominic Lai with Dragon Boat BC e...

Elamin is joined by culture critics Joan Summers, Lainey Lui and Taryn Finley to discuss ‘The Devil Wears Prada 2’, the new album 'Middle of Nowhere' from Kacey Musgraves and the online buzz around the breakup between Megan Thee Stallion and NBA player Klay Thompson.

The romance genre is booming in Canadian literature. From romantasy to sports smut to paranormal erotica, readers are flocking to romance-themed bookstores and Booktok to share their love for spice. Deborah Aarts and Nathan Maharaj join Elamin to discuss what’s driving the romance surge and how its popularity could be changing the way readers and publishers value the genre. Plus, Ella Langley’s su...

New legislation in Ontario makes it illegal to resell tickets to concerts and sporting events above their face value. The aim is to clamp down on a lucrative resale market blamed for high ticket costs. Billboard Canada reporter Richard Trapunski and public-policy analyst Vass Bednar explain why this law is being enacted right now, what it means for the ticket-buying experience going forward and wh...

'Yesteryear', the debut novel of Caro Claire Burke, follows a tradwife influencer who posts about her idyllic farm life to millions of followers. But when she wakes up in 1855, she learns what it's really like for women living in the past. Amil Niazi, author of 'Life After Ambition', and essayist Charlie Tyson join Elamin Abdelmahmoud to talk about how 'Yesteryear' takes on tradwives — the online...

With the release of 'Michael', the biopic on the King of Pop, Elamin Abdelmahmoud is joined by Black pop expert Prof. Mark Anthony Neal, film critic Sarah-Tai Black and culture critic Jay Smooth to discuss how it handles the high, lows and controversies of Michael Jackson's legacy.

Earlier this week, a giant ice sculpture appeared in the middle of downtown Toronto with the release date of Drake's new album hidden inside. It attracted a lot of gawkers, live streamers and people with pickaxes, until the fire department hosed it down. Music journalist Emilie Hanskamp, culture critic Matt Amha and comedian Marlon Palmer join Elamin Abdelmahmoud to talk about how Drake is a...

After sharing her diagnosis of a rare neurological condition, it seemed possible that Celine Dion might never perform again. Now she is back with a new song, and a 16-night residency in Paris that sold out in minutes. Elamin Abdelmahmoud checks in with Eugénie Lépine-Blondeau, host of Radio-Canada's Admission générale podcast and Benjamin Locoge, editor-in-chief for Culture of Paris Match, about t...

Premiering in 2023, the Netflix series Beef was an instant smash hit thanks to its gripping premise about a minor road-rage incident between two strangers that snowballs into an all-consuming, back-and-forth battle. For season two, creator Lee Sung Jin introduces a new cast of characters who clash at an upscale country club. Variety TV critic Alison Herman and Vulture TV critic Roxana Hadadi talk...

The memes being lobbed by the U.S. and Iran have been fueled not only by the intensity of their conflict, but also pop culture and AI. James Poniewozik, chief television critic for The New York Times, and Iranian Canadian journalist Samira Mohyeddin talk with Elamin Abdelmahmoud about how these memes have shifted our understanding of the US-Iran war. Plus, millions of people love watching zit popp...

The marketing company Chaotic Good Projects has become a lightning rod of controversy in the music industry in recent weeks, after a viral essay from indie musician Eliza McLamb shed light on their claims that they can manipulate social media algorithms to boost the careers of their clients, including the rock band Geese. Music journalists Steven Hyden and Matthew Ismael Ruiz discuss whether Chaot...

Chandler Levack’s second film, Mile End Kicks, is a nostalgic coming-of-age tale set in Montreal’s indie rock scene in 2011. Barbie Ferreira stars as Grace Pine, a Toronto music critic who impulsively moves to Montreal to write a book about Alanis Morissette and gets very distracted along the way. Montreal Gazette writer T’Cha Dunlevy, author Lux Alptraum and cutsleeve drummer Lian McMillan join E...

Thanks to her new memoir ‘Famesick,’ Lena Dunham is all over our feeds after being out of the spotlight for awhile. Slate’s Scaachi Koul and Vulture’s Fran Hoepfner [HOFF-ner] chat with Elamin Abdelmahmoud about how Lena Dunham became a polarizing cultural figure and the way she reflects on her past successes and failures now. 

[SPOILER ALERT] In the finale of Canada Reads 2026, the win went to the historical novel 'The Cure for Drowning' by Loghan Paylor and championed by Tegan Quin. Set during the Second World War, the novel follows a nonbinary protagonist named Kit as they navigate wartime, a love triangle and sibling rivalry on their family farm in rural Ontario. Tegan and Loghan joined Elamin Abdelmahmoud in the hou...

New York City rapper/producer Afrika Bambaataa was one of the most pivotal figures in the early evolution of hip-hop in the early ‘80s, thanks to an Afrofuturist aesthetic that thrust the music out from the streets of the Bronx onto dancefloors around the world. However, his reputation as a musical visionary and community leader was forever tarnished when allegations of child sexual abuse surfaced...

DTF St Louis is one of the most original shows on TV right now – Critics Michel Ghanem [MEE-shell GAH-nim] and Vinson Cunningham join Elamin Abdelmahmoud to talk about Sunday's finale and what the show reveals about male friendship in mid-life. Virtual K-pop group Plave just released their latest EP Caligo Pt. 2. It’s the follow up to last year’s Caligo Pt. 1 album that sold more than a million co...

A lot has happened in the four years since the last season of Euphoria -- for both the show’s characters and its cast members. Vulture TV critic Roxana Hadadi [ha-DAW-dee] and OnlyFans creator Gwen Adora join Elamin to talk about where the show picks up in season three, its continued obsession with sex work and the controversies its weathered along the way. Plus - the biggest music festival in Nor...

With NASA’s first crewed mission to the moon in over 50 years coming to an end, Elamin Abdelmahmoud is joined by ‘The Nature of Things’ co-host Anthony Morgan, along with culture critics Pablo The Don and El Jones, to look back on Artemis II's big moments and how they're landing in pop culture. 

Summer House is a reality show set in the Hamptons that’s been full of drama for 10 seasons. But the scandal happening off screen is what has got fans more invested than ever. Maybe too invested? Culture critics Ashley Ray and Chris Murphy join Commotion guest host Amil Niazi to talk about what’s happening, and what it says about this moment in reality television.  Plus, Mark Lee, a member of...

Memes featuring convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein are all over the internet, and an online game called ‘Five Nights at Epstein’s' has gone viral with U.S. middle and high school students. Journalist Kat Tenbarge joins guest host Amil Niazi to talk about what the memeification of Epstein says about this moment we’re in. And Toronto Star's arts critic Joshua Chong talks about 'Big Mistakes.' Da...

'The Drama' starring Robert Pattinson and Zendaya hits theatres on April 3. The movie hinges on a dark secret that's already stirred up controversy before the film's release. Film critics Bilge Ebiri and Rachel Ho talk to guest host Amil Niazi about the controversy, and why the movie still lands even if you know the spoilers. Plus, with Saskatchewan passing the Film Content Information Act that pu...

Elamin is joined by CBC entertainment reporter Jackson Weaver and filmmaker Kwame Mason to discuss the new TV series ‘Hate The Player: The Ben Johnson Story’ and the film ‘Youngblood’. Plus, music/tech journalist Cam Gordon discusses his new book, ‘Track Changes: The Origin Story of Canadian Music on the Internet (1990-2010),’ and the unsung early online adopters who built the foundation of the co...

A new anthology series 'Bread Alone: What happens when we run out of working-class writers?' edited by Kate Pasola begs the question: who gets to have a career in writing? And how does that inform the kinds of working class narratives that get published? Niko Stratis, Deborah Dundas and Catherine Hernandez join Elamin Abdelmahmoud to chat about being a working class writer in Canada, the value of...

A new musical by the legendary Cree playwright Tomson Highway is on stage in Ottawa. Theatre critic Aisling Murphy and Alessia Passafiume with the Canadian Press, join Elamin Abdelmahmoud to talk about Rose -- and why a production that was written almost 35 years ago, feels more relevant than ever today. Plus, the Goo Goo Dolls song 'Iris' was released 28 years ago. But it has enjoyed a massive re...