The Hook and Bridge Podcast

Music's Biggest Moments in 2025!

Send in your music story!It’s amazing how a show grows up. We started with wobbly mics and chaotic intros; now we’re three and a half years in, juggling season three plans, holiday chaos, and a creator workflow that actually works most days. The conversation opens with gratitude and candor—what lasting commitment feels like when the calendar fills with family visits, three different Christmas dinners, and a sleep schedule that doesn’t. We talk numbers without bragging and gear without gatekeeping, then admit the obvious: consistency is the hardest part.The heart of the episode sits behind an espresso machine. A customer drops sexist remarks at 6:30 a.m., and we unpack why speaking up matters, how teams set boundaries, and what real allyship looks like in service work. Minutes later, a smoky haze: the refrigerated display case is literally cooking the sandwiches. Cue problem-solving under pressure, a call to the manager, and a lot of quick thinking. Then the season’s absurd punchline—syrup shortages, dark humor at the drive-thru, and a gut check to make sure people are actually okay. That’s the theme: laugh at the chaos, but see the human first.We promise a music show and deliver: Wham’s Last Christmas nudges Mariah from the holiday throne, sparking a smart chat on charts, nostalgia, and what makes a song “seasonal canon.” We widen the lens with 2025 music moments, from high-profile space stunts to the Grand Ole Opry’s 100th birthday and industry reckonings that refuse to be PR-washed. No stan wars here—just a clear look at ownership, legacy, and accountability, and how those stories shape the way we listen.For a warm reset, we pop into a 90s-themed coffee shop with a working tube TV and retro posters, because third places are where culture sticks. We wrap with the perennial debate: which films are “real” Christmas movies—Gremlins, Die Hard, claymation classics, Elf—and why personal rituals matter more than rules. If you’re into music culture, creator practice, and the strange comfort of holiday messiness, this one’s a cozy ride with sharp edges.Enjoyed the episode? Follow, subscribe, and share it with a friend who loves music and good stories. Drop your most controversial Christmas movie take in the reviews so we can read it on the next show.Check out our Youtube and Instagram! Check out our Website! Become a member!Support the showPlease give us a quick rate and review. If you enjoyed the audio version head over to our Youtube for video content! Follow the Instagram for special content and weekly updates. Check out our website and leave us a voice message to be heard on the show or find out more about the guests!Ever wanted to start your own podcast? Here is a link to get started!https://www.buzzsprout.com/?referrer_id=1964696https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCONMXkuIfpVizopNb_CoIGghttps://www.instagram.com/hook_and_bridge_podcast/https://www.thehookandbridgepodcast.com/

Top 10 Songs Everyone Knows the Words to!

Send in your music story!Ever watch a stranger melt down in public and wonder what the right response should be? We start with a jaw-dropping Walmart story—complete with aisle-side outrage and a hero repeating “why are you mad?”—and turn it into a bigger conversation about empathy, language barriers, and how to keep your dignity when everything feels loud. No lectures, just honest debate about patience, translation apps, and the tiny choices that make life easier for everyone.From there, we jump into a home-repair misadventure that would make any new homeowner sweat: a contractor who shows up with painter’s tape and no materials, a realtor with disappearing texts, and the case for clear communication. We talk tipping etiquette for delivery apps and why incentives matter, then shift gears into a moment of tenderness: Taylor’s hand-drawn cardinal for her dad, honoring a loved one with art that blends craft and memory.And then it’s pure joy. We pull up Spotify Wrapped confessions and rank the 10 songs everyone knows, singing along to the anthems that turn bars into choirs and cars into stages. From Sweet Caroline and Don’t Stop Believin’ to Mr. Brightside, Wannabe, All the Small Things, Hey Ya, Bohemian Rhapsody, and We Will Rock You, we argue, laugh, and admit which tracks make us want to rage or cry in the best way. It’s nostalgia, karaoke energy, and the shared soundtrack that proves music still ties us together when words fail.Grab a zero-sugar boost made with coffee-based caffeine, check out our new merch, and hang with us for a ride that’s messy, human, and weirdly uplifting. If this made you smile, think, or sing along, hit follow, share with a friend who needs a pick-me-up, and leave a quick review—what’s your number one singalong song?Check out our Youtube and Instagram! Check out our Website! Become a member!Support the showPlease give us a quick rate and review. If you enjoyed the audio version head over to our Youtube for video content! Follow the Instagram for special content and weekly updates. Check out our website and leave us a voice message to be heard on the show or find out more about the guests!Ever wanted to start your own podcast? Here is a link to get started!https://www.buzzsprout.com/?referrer_id=1964696https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCONMXkuIfpVizopNb_CoIGghttps://www.instagram.com/hook_and_bridge_podcast/https://www.thehookandbridgepodcast.com/

Taylors Big Beautiful Show!

Send in your music story!A birthday crown, a Charizard Loungefly, and a brand‑new Switch 2 set the stage for a wild ride through shiny hunts, DLC megas, and the strange magic of pacing a game you love. We get honest about Pokemon Legends ZA: the fun of guaranteed shinies, the feel of the world, and why the journey beats the postgame grind. Then the bombshells: DLC teases with Mega Chimecho, Mega Basculegion‑style reveals, Lucario Z, and a level cap blasting past 100 for the first time in 30 years. It’s a shake‑up built for highlights, not homework, and we break down why that works.Life doesn’t pause for play. We map out screen‑time rules for a toddler—TV as background, no iPad babysitting—and how handheld sessions fit into family evenings. The conversation spills into “What Grinds My Beans,” our running segment on everyday chaos: tapping gift cards like chips, slapping terminals instead of holding a card still, and the art of ordering without treating baristas like NPCs. It’s funny because it’s true, and it’s useful because five seconds of patience can save everyone five minutes of hassle.Then we tackle the Black Friday saga: waking up at 4:30 AM for a hyped “first 100” Target bag only to discover tickets were quietly handed out hours earlier. What counts as a fair promotion, and what does a brand owe the people who show up in the cold? Sprinkle in some adulting—brake rotors, oil change myths, and the difference between a maintenance reminder and a warning light—and we land on a theme that ties it all together: plan well, play smart, and fight for transparency.Big news: we’re launching two new shows. The Dark Side of Music with Danny Otto digs into true crime across music history—Kurt Cobain and Courtney Love, Tupac, the 27 Club, and beyond. Off The Record brings loose, in‑person conversations, games, and the kind of banter that made you hit play today. If you’ve missed our chaotic energy, you’ll love where we’re headed next.If you enjoyed this one, follow and share with a friend who loves Pokemon, barista rants, or retail war stories. Drop a review, subscribe on YouTube, and help us hit 500 on Instagram and 200 on YouTube—then tell us your worst checkout fail.Check out our Youtube and Instagram! Check out our Website! Become a member!Support the showPlease give us a quick rate and review. If you enjoyed the audio version head over to our Youtube for video content! Follow the Instagram for special content and weekly updates. Check out our website and leave us a voice message to be heard on the show or find out more about the guests!Ever wanted to start your own podcast? Here is a link to get started!https://www.buzzsprout.com/?referrer_id=1964696https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCONMXkuIfpVizopNb_CoIGghttps://www.instagram.com/hook_and_bridge_podcast/https://www.thehookandbridgepodcast.com/

Love, Loss, And Finding “God Boy” an Interview with Ryan Woods

Send in your music story!A church kid with a four-year-old’s guitar and a head full of melodies grows into an artist who threads love, doubt, and faith into a tight, modern pop record—this conversation with Ryan Woods brings that journey to life. We explore how God Boy is more than a title; it’s a lens for understanding infatuation, heartbreak, and the freeing moment when you accept your agency. From the shimmering rework of Loving You in the track two slot to the pulsing honesty of Gun in the Glove Box, Ryan walks us through the album’s arc and the choices that make each song land.Ryan shares how distance shapes his writing—he waits until the storm passes so the lyric can be useful, not just cathartic. That approach gave us Garden, a tender rush of feeling after COVID-era numbness, and Good Swim, a wedding-born celebration that blooms from a slow sway into bright, percussive joy. We dig into production stories too: why he reproduced Gun in the Glove Box himself on deadline, how he and his videographer Zay built a short-form-first content strategy, and why singable guitar solos beat endless shredding. His influences are clear without being derivative—think Bruno Mars and Kevin Parker energy made in a bedroom, with arrangements that value movement and melody over length.The heart of the episode is Ryan’s take on faith and free will. Raised religious, he’s honest about the pressure of perfection and the anxiety of feeling predestined. God Boy becomes a statement of agency: even if the plan exists, the freedom to choose is where we live and love. That philosophy meets practice when he defines success not by charts but by impact, sharing a story of a fan who walked through an ice storm to a show and said a song kept her alive. It’s a reminder that music is magic because it’s useful—something you can hold when the night is long.Stream God Boy, queue up Garden and Gun in the Glove Box, and tell us the track that hit you hardest. If this conversation resonated, follow the show, share it with a friend, and leave a quick review to help others find it.Check out our Youtube and Instagram! Check out our Website! Become a member!Support the showPlease give us a quick rate and review. If you enjoyed the audio version head over to our Youtube for video content! Follow the Instagram for special content and weekly updates. Check out our website and leave us a voice message to be heard on the show or find out more about the guests!Ever wanted to start your own podcast? Here is a link to get started!https://www.buzzsprout.com/?referrer_id=1964696https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCONMXkuIfpVizopNb_CoIGghttps://www.instagram.com/hook_and_bridge_podcast/https://www.thehookandbridgepodcast.com/

Interview with "A New Violet"

Send in your music story!Ever want to throw a bag in the car, leave the stale routine behind, and floor it toward something that feels alive again? That’s the pulse beating through our conversation with Beth from A New Violet—a rock vocalist with a punk heart—fresh off the electricity of Warped Tour and deep in the craft of songs that move fast, hit hard, and actually say something.We dive into 66, a highway anthem that doubles as a personal dare: escape the four walls, grab the person who gets you—or go alone—and chase a life that breathes. Beth opens up about the layers hidden in the lyric, from nostalgia and romance to self-motivation when you’re stuck. We unpack the new EP, The Heat Is Getting Hotter, calling out the line the heat is getting hotter, I’m burnt for a reason and exploring how the best hooks invite you back to discover the message underneath. Conformity takes the punk crown on the tracklist, a fast, defiant refusal to live by someone else’s plan or timeline, while Runaway channels a real friendship rift into a cathartic sing-along that still hits after the dust settles.Along the way, we get into the studio process behind This Is My Life with Orlando’s Red Lion Studio, talk self-taught guitar roots, and debate hooks versus bridges—the hooks pull you in, but the bridge can turn a good song great. Beth shares why genre boxes feel too tight, how rock muscle and punk attitude can live in the same chorus, and why evolving sound is a feature, not a flaw. If you’re hunting for new rock music with real guitars, big choruses, and lyrics that stand for something, you’ll find plenty to add to your queue.Listen now, share it with a friend who needs a road-song push, and tell us the track that grabbed you first. If you enjoy these conversations, follow the show, leave a quick review, and subscribe so you never miss what’s next.Check out our Youtube and Instagram! Check out our Website! Become a member!Support the showPlease give us a quick rate and review. If you enjoyed the audio version head over to our Youtube for video content! Follow the Instagram for special content and weekly updates. Check out our website and leave us a voice message to be heard on the show or find out more about the guests!Ever wanted to start your own podcast? Here is a link to get started!https://www.buzzsprout.com/?referrer_id=1964696https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCONMXkuIfpVizopNb_CoIGghttps://www.instagram.com/hook_and_bridge_podcast/https://www.thehookandbridgepodcast.com/