Tetragrammaton with Rick Rubin

Marc Andreessen is a prominent entrepreneur, investor, and software engineer best known for his key role in the development of the early internet. In the early 90s, Marc co-created Mosaic, a pioneering web browser, while a student at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign. In 1994, he founded Netscape, launching the popular Netscape Navigator browser. After selling Netscape to AOL in 1999...

Actor, writer, producer, and director Daniel Kaluuya is known for his groundbreaking role in "Get Out" and his Oscar-winning portrayal of Chairman Fred Hampton in "Judas and the Black Messiah," which also earned him BAFTA, Golden Globe, and SAG Awards. Born in London, Kaluuya honed his storytelling skills from a young age, beginning his career as a writer and then actor for the popular British ser...

Robert Greene is an author known for his books on strategy, power, mastery, and seduction. The 48 Laws of Power, perhaps Greene's most famous book, found a particularly passionate audience among rappers and musicians, as the book resonates with the challenges and dynamics of the music industry. After 50 Cent read it, he approached Greene and the two collaborated on The 50th Law. It’s been mentione...

Terry Gilliam is the creative, comedic mind behind some of cinema's most imaginative and thought-provoking films. The only American member of the legendary British comedy troupe Monty Python, Gilliam’s contributions to cinema include gems like Time Bandits (1981), Brazil (1985), The Fisher King (1991), Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998), and The Brothers Grimm (2005).  ------ Thank you to the s...

Tim DeLaughter is an Emmy nominated singer, songwriter, performer, and producer of the musical group The Polyphonic Spree. Formed in 2000 following a period of heartbreak, confusion, and uncertainty as his original band Tripping Daisy fell apart in 1999, Tim started over again. Accompanied by 23 other collaborators, draped in robes, and drunk on the natural exuberance of a new chapter, he introduc...

​​Steven Pressfield wrote for 27 years before publishing his first book, the novel The Legend of Bagger Vance. His relentless pursuit of a writing career led him through a diverse array of experiences. Along the way, he held 21 different jobs in eleven states, embracing roles such as a schoolteacher, tractor-trailer driver, and advertising professional. His stint as a screenwriter in Hollywood all...

Andrew Huberman, Ph. D., is a neuroscientist and tenured professor in the Department of Neurobiology and, by courtesy, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Stanford School of Medicine. In 2021, Huberman launched the Huberman Lab podcast. By 2023, the podcast had become the 6th most popular podcast in the US on Spotify platforms, while his YouTube channel had 4.1 million subscribers and his Instag...

Nick Cave is a musician, songwriter, author, and actor, best known as the frontman of the band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, though is also beloved for his early group, The Birthday Party. Albums from The Boatman's Call (1997) to Skeleton Tree (2016) showcase Cave’s ability to craft emotionally charged and intellectually stimulating compositions filled with hauntingly poetic lyrics. Beyond music, C...

Robert F. Kennedy Jr and Dr. Jack Kruse join Tetragrammaton to talk about water pollution, corruption vs. capitalism, spirituality, running for office, the privatization of natural resources, the death of Robert’s uncle John F. Kennedy, the history of SV-40, the medical industrial complex, the Monsanto trial, the chronic disease epidemic, and some of the things Robert would do as President.  Rober...

Jamie Byng is the CEO and publisher of the independent publishing firm Canongate Books. When Canongate was on the verge of bankruptcy in 1994, Byng, then in his mid-20s, bought it with a business partner. His first move in overhauling the company's image was to establish the ultra-hip Payback and Rebel Inc. imprints, dedicated to championing cult authors. Over a series of years, the publisher beca...

Kenny Beats is a highly acclaimed music producer and songwriter known for his unique sound and creative approach to music production. With an impressive discography that includes collaborations with some of the biggest names in Hip Hop, Kenny has established himself as a force to be reckoned with in the industry. His distinctive style, blending trap and electronic music elements, has earned him a...

Tyler Cowen has long nurtured an obsession with music. It’s one of the few addictions Tyler believes is actually conducive to a fulfilling intellectual life. In this bonus episode, an addendum to Rick’s conversation with Tyler, Rick sits with Tyler as he plays and talks through the music that moves him: from the outer bounds of the avant-garde to contemporary pop music and all points in between.

Tyler Cowen is one of the top thinkers in the world: the thinkers’ thinker. A professor of economics at George Mason University, he has one of the most popular economics sites on the internet, Marginal Revolution, where he’s blogged every day for over 20 years. It also runs the online educational platform Marginal Revolution University. However, he may be best known for his popular podcast, Conver...

Arnold Schwarzenegger is the former governor of California, a bodybuilder, actor, businessman, philanthropist, and bestselling author. Moving from a small village in Austria to America, Schwarzenegger set out to conquer anything he could dream of. From his time as the world’s greatest bodybuilder, Hollywood’s leading action star, and the highest elected official in California, one mantra imparted...

Jack Johnson is a singer-songwriter, musician, filmmaker, and surfer from the shores of Hawaii. Propelled by his signature blend of laid-back acoustic folk-rock and his innate ability to craft soul-stirring melodies and lyrics, Johnson’s music career took flight with the release of his debut album, the critically acclaimed Brushfire Fairytales (2001). Following the success of his debut, Johnson co...

Carnivore Aurelius is the pseudonym used by an independent health researcher. He’s found his life’s purpose in this research and also in sharing what he’s learned with his growing online audience across social media. Carnivore Aurelius is dedicated to becoming his healthiest and happiest self, using the tools endowed to us by nature, and isn’t afraid to buck conventional medical wisdom in the proc...

Beginning with being the webmaster for the Beastie Boys in the early 1990s, Ian Rogers’ career took off and helped forge the digital music landscape as we know it today. In 2003, Rogers was plucked to head up Yahoo’s $140 million music service and spent the next twenty years bringing digital music to the mainstream—after Yahoo, with Beats and then Apple. In 2015, he helped launch Apple Music and B...

Tom Hanks is one of the few actors who has succeeded enormously in just about every part of the silver and small screens: he’s written, directed, and produced; done summer stock theater, sitcoms, blockbuster movies, prestige TV, Broadway, and worked more than credibly in both drama and comedy. For his roles in movies like Big, Forrest Gump, Apollo 13, Cast Away, and Saving Private Ryan—that saw hi...

Peter Asher is a British musician, record producer, and manager. After starting his music career in the 1960s as part of the British pop duo Peter and Gordon, Asher ran A&R at the Beatles’ Apple Records. Over the course of Asher’s prolific career as an executive and music producer, he’s worked with artists including James Taylor, Linda Ronstadt, Cher, and Bonnie Raitt. He’s won two Grammy’s for Pr...

Whitney Cummings is a comedian, actor, writer, producer, director, and host of the popular podcast Good for You. In 2011, at the age of 29, Cummings created two sitcoms which were both picked up to series: Whitney, which she starred in as well, and the Emmy-nominated series 2 Broke Girls. She has since written and starred in numerous TV shows and films. Cummings regularly sells out her nationwide...

Rory Sutherland is a British advertising executive, author, and marketing visionary. He’s the UK Vice Chairman of Ogilvy, one of the world's largest and most renowned ad firms. Mad Men is largely inspired by the company and one of the firm’s founders, David Ogilvy. Rory started Ogilvy’s behavioral science practice, pioneering the application of behavioral economics and evolutionary psychology to m...

Judd Apatow is an American filmmaker, producer, writer, and comedian.  From his breakout directorial debut, The 40-Year-Old Virgin, to the hilarious Knocked Up, the introspective This Is 40, and the bittersweet Funny People, Apatow’s movies masterfully intertwine humor and emotional resonance. In addition to his successful career in Hollywood, he has also directed several acclaimed documentaries,...

Paula Scher is one of the most influential designers of all time. A partner at Pentagram since 1991, she began her career in 1972 at CBS Records, where she eventually became the art director for the cover department, designing more than 150 album covers a year. Additionally, she has worked with a host of clients – Bloomberg, Coca-Cola, and the High Line – crafting identity and branding systems, pr...

Andrew Hickey hosts the highly acclaimed podcast A History of Rock Music in 500 Songs. Using a single song as the centerpiece for each episode, Hickey is attempting to chart the history of rock from the beginnings of amplified guitars to modern music, with the 500th episode to draw from the year 1999. In addition to the podcast, Hickey has published more than twenty books on various subjects, rang...

Chris Chelios is a former professional ice hockey player, widely regarded as one of the greatest defensemen in the history of the sport. Chris is a pioneer in sport for having helped popularize training for injury prevention and recovery—most famously, Chelios would stationary bike in a sauna. He played the seventh most regular season games (1,651) in NHL history. After winning three Norris Trophi...