Pop Pantheon

Madonna Singles Draft! Louie and Russ are joined by  Paper 's Joan Summer and music journalist Annie Zaleski to join forces and pick the Top 20 Madonna Singles of All Time, draft style. Listen to a Spotify playlist of our Top 20 Madonna Singles of All Time Get tickets to Gorgeous Gorgeous NYC on 1/31 Join Pop Pantheon: All Access, Our Patreon Channel, for Exclusive Content and More Shop Merch in P...

In a preview of this week's Pop Pantheon: All Access episode, Louie and Russ talk about the lead single for Bruno Mars' forthcoming fourth studio album, "I Just Might," then break down the latest pairing from Robyn, "Talk to Me" and "Sexistential," and finally take on more of your unpopular opinions about Katy Perry, Taylor Swift, Madonna, and Cyndi Lauper. To hear the rest of the this episode plu...

Louie and Russ are joined by actress, comedian and Pop Pantheon listener (!) Ivy Wolk to react to all of your most unhinged unpopular opinions about Addison Rae, Janet Jackson, Sabrina Carpenter, & More! Join Pop Pantheon: All Access, Our Patreon Channel, for Exclusive Content and More Shop Merch in Pop Pantheon's Store Follow Pop Pantheon on Instagram Follow DJ Louie XIV on Twitter Follow DJ...

In a preview of this week's Pop Pantheon: All Access episode, for the first episode of 2026, Louie and Russ took on Taylor Swift's venerated "Track 5s," the fifth song on each of her album track lists that many fans view as the records' respective emotional cores. The boys go track by track chronologically through each Taylor album, then each share their Taylor Track 5 rankings.  To hear the rest...

Happy New Year! We'll be back next week with brand new episodes of Pop Pantheon. In the meantime, enjoy this rerun from April 2022, our Abba A-Side with Abba scholar Carl Magnus Palm. Join Pop Pantheon: All Access, Our Patreon Channel, for Exclusive Content and More Shop Merch in Pop Pantheon's Store Follow Pop Pantheon on Instagram Follow DJ Louie XIV on Instagram Join Pop Pantheon: All Access, O...

In a preview of this week's Pop Pantheon: All Access episode, Louie and Russ shares their picks for the worst pop of the year, discuss what's in the pipeline for 2026 then make predictions for the next year in pop music. To hear the rest of the this episode plus receive weekly bonus episodes of Pop Pantheon, gain access to our Discord channel and so much more, subscribe to Pop Pantheon: All Access...

Merry Christmas! We're off for the next couple weeks but as a little treat, we're re-running our episode reviewing Addison Rae's debut album, Addison , from June of this year. If you enjoy this episode and want to receive weekly bonus episodes of Pop Pantheon, gain access to our Discord channel and so much more, subscribe to Pop Pantheon: All Access at the Icon Tier. For a limited time, enter the...

In a preview of this week's Pop Pantheon: All Access episode, friend of the Pod Omri Rolan returns for the 3rd annual Top of the Flops – a celebration of all the best and biggest flops in pop music this year. Louie, Russ + Omri share their picks for the best pop music that flopped this year, announce the listener-voted award for Bellyflop of the Year and, finally, give away the Sabrina Carpenter A...

Last Tuesday night in New York City, DJ Louie gathered an all-star panel— Who Weekly 's Lindsey Weber, Lemme Say This ' Peyton Dix, and Billboard's Jason Lipshutz— live on stage to break down of their favorite pop songs of 2025. Hear a playlist of this year's picks Fill out Pop Pantheon's 2025 Listener Survey Join Pop Pantheon: All Access, Our Patreon Channel, for Exclusive Content and More Shop M...

In a preview of this week's Pop Pantheon: All Access episode, Louie and Russ break down the first two episodes of Taylor Swift's new docuseries, The End of an Era, Russ shares his top albums and songs of the year, and finally, the two announce all of YOUR favorites from the past year in pop music and culture. To hear the rest of the this episode plus receive weekly bonus episodes of Pop Pantheon,...

Note: This full episode will be available for free on our main feed on Thursday. In a preview from Pop Pantheon: All Access , As a special treat for our paid subscribers, we're giving you next week's main feed drop, our Best Pop Songs of 2025 live show, almost a week in advance!  On Tuesday, DJ Louie gathered an all star panel — Who? Weekly's Lindsey Weber, Lemme Say This' Peyton Dix, and Billboar...

On Tuesday night in New York City, DJ Louie gathered an all-star panel— critic and best-selling author Ira Madison III, writer and critic Doreen St. Félix, and New York Times Pop Music Editor Caryn Ganz— live on stage to break down of their favorite pop albums of 2025. Tune in next week for The Best Pop Songs of 2025! Fill out Pop Pantheon's 2025 Listener Survey Join Pop Pantheon: All Access, Our...

In a preview of this week's Pop Pantheon: All Access episode, From Gaga to Addison, Lorde, Beyoncé, Scissors Sisters, Mary Blige, Katy Perry, and SO many more, Louie and Russ gather to rank their favorite (and least favorite) live shows of the past year. To hear the rest of the this episode plus receive weekly bonus episodes of Pop Pantheon, gain access to our Discord channel and so much more, sub...

Louie and Russ take listener calls about Pop Pantheon rankings they may have gotten wrong this year and throughout the podcast's run. Fill out Pop Pantheon's 2025 Listener Survey Grab tickets to our Best Pop of 2025 Live Show LATE SHOW in NYC on 12/9 Grab tickets to the final Gorgeous Gorgeous of 2025 in LA on 12/5 Join Pop Pantheon: All Access, Our Patreon Channel, for Exclusive Content and More...

In a preview of this week's Pop Pantheon: All Access episode, with a new Olivia Rodrigo album seemingly on the horizon, Louie and Russ return to her sophomore effort, 2023's Guts , to parse their differing vibes on Olivia, reflect on the album's middling commercial performance, and... uh... gut - check on how the record's held up by going track-by-track. To hear the rest of the this episode plus r...

We're off for Thanksgiving so as a little treat, we're publishing a Patreon episode from earlier this year where Russ and Louie go track by track on Katy Perry's Teenage Dream , skipping the singles to decide whether the album is a classic— or even any good— without them. This is a little taste of what you’ll get if you subscribe to our Patreon show , where we publish weekly bonus episodes. We’ve...

In a preview of this week's Pop Pantheon: All Access episode, Louie and Russ take listener calls on Robyn's forthcoming album, how Taylor will navigate motherhood in her music, Tate McRae's 2025 up-level and more.  To hear the rest of the this episode plus receive weekly bonus episodes of Pop Pantheon, gain access to our Discord channel and so much more, subscribe to Pop Pantheon: All Access at th...

Note: This episode was updated shortly after release to correct a missing audio clip. If you’re listening on Apple Podcasts and hear a gap or missing section, please delete the episode and re-download to access the updated version. Omri Rolan joins Pop Pantheon to unpack the ups and many, many, many downs of girl grouper turned solo pop flop, Nicole Scherzinger. Louie and Omri dig into Nicole’s or...

In a preview of this week's Pop Pantheon: All Access episode, Louie and Russ are joined by the LA Times ' Suzy Exposito to break down Rosalia's ambitious, orchestral, multilingual fourth album, Lux . To hear the rest of the this episode plus receive weekly bonus episodes of Pop Pantheon, gain access to our Discord channel and so much more, subscribe to Pop Pantheon: All Access at the Icon Tier. Yo...

Troy McEady of Beyond The Blinds returns to Pop Pantheon to unpack the defining prefab American girl group of the 2000s, The Pussycat Dolls. Louie and Troy dig into PCD’s beginnings as a burlesque troupe, early dalliances with pop stars like Christina Aguilera and Gwen Stefani, and brand extension into a ready-made musical girl gang. They discuss the group’s breakthrough, “Don’t Cha,” 2005’s PCD ,...

In a preview of this week's Pop Pantheon: All Access episode, Louie and Russ react to the 2025 Grammy nominations plus dissect new songs from Katy Perry and Hilary Duff. To hear the rest of the this episode plus receive weekly bonus episodes of Pop Pantheon, gain access to our Discord channel and so much more, subscribe to Pop Pantheon: All Access at the Icon Tier. You can also subscribe for the a...

Max Martin is the biggest pop producer of all time, having crafted hits across three decades for everyone from Britney and Backstreet Boys to Kelly Clarkson, Katy Perry, Taylor Swift, The Weeknd, Ariana Grande and so many more. He recently re-teamed with Taylor for her 12th album, The Life of Showgirl , a record that many believe didn't reflect his best work but also made us wonder: What is?   Pop...

In a preview of this week's Pop Pantheon: All Access episode, in anticipation of the 2026 Grammy nominations which will be unveiled this Friday, Louie and Russ share their predictions for the nominees in the big four and pop categories. To hear the rest of the this episode plus receive weekly bonus episodes of Pop Pantheon, gain access to our Discord channel and so much more, subscribe to Pop Pant...

Louie and Russ answer your questions about Taylor Swift and interpolation credits, Katy and Miley's recent flops, their favorite lead Britney singles, how they first met one another and more.... Grab tix to Gorgeous Gorgeous Halloween in LA Join Pop Pantheon: All Access, Our Patreon Channel, for Exclusive Content and More Shop Merch in Pop Pantheon's Store Follow Pop Pantheon on Instagram Follow D...

In a preview of this week's Pop Pantheon: All Access episode, Louie and Russ discuss new albums from Lily Allen and Demi Lovato and also dive into recent changes to the way Billboard tracks the Hot 100. To hear the rest of the this episode plus receive weekly bonus episodes of Pop Pantheon, gain access to our Discord channel and so much more, subscribe to Pop Pantheon: All Access at the Icon Tier....