Universitetet i Agder

Song Lyrics in Depth

Music EN ↓ 3 episodes

Song Lyrics in Depth is a podcast that focuses on popular music from the perspective of semantic content, genre convention, and performativity. The hosts and invited guests bring a breadth of experience and insight. Håvard Bamle has written a Ph. D. thesis on ecological aspects of popular song lyrics; Michael Prince is co-leader of the Song Lyrics Research Group at the University of Agder. Our approach combines close reading with an informed understanding of cultural context for the titles we discuss.

Author

Universitetet i Agder

Episodes

Song Lyrics in Depth, Episode 3: Eurovision Song Contest 2026, Part 2 12.06.2026 37:16

Håvard and Michael continue their discussion by considering syntactical richness, genre performance, and even nationalist politics to give an in-depth view of this years (2026) Eurovision song contest.

Song Lyrics in Depth, Episode 2: Eurovision Song Contest 2026, Part 1 04.06.2026 26:43

Right after World Cup Soccer, the Eurovision Song Contest is the most coveted prize, with enormous cultural cachet. Arranged by an assembly of state television channels in Europe, the Middle East, and -- yes -- Australia, each nation selects a song + performance to represent them in this internationally televised program. Håvard Bamle and Michael Prince share offhand and deeply considered remarks...

Pilot Episode - MGP Norway 2026 22.05.2026 31:04

Håvard Bamle and Michael Prince discuss the 2026 MGP Finale for Norway. The cultural context for MGP and Eurovision in Norway is illustrated via an in-depth discussion of 5 of the entries. In terms of genre and aesthetics, performance has gradually displaced the "song" as the determining factor, as shown by Jonas Lovv's victory.