Commotion with Elamin Abdelmahmoud

Summer Bummer (via Switched on Pop)

Every music critic seems to agree: 2025 has no true song of summer. Last August, Teddy Swims’s “Lose Control” dominated the charts. This year…Teddy Swims’s “Lose Control” dominates the charts. What’s going on? Why is there no new summer song to unite us in collective listening, and will there ever be again?Elamin recently joined Switched on Pop’s Nate Sloan and Charlie Harding to discuss the dearth of seasonal bops, and suggest some possible contenders for sleeper summer hits, from the soundtrack of the anime film KPop Demon Hunters to the latest from the Haim sisters. Despite the moribund status of the Hot 100, there is no shortage of great music to be found in the dog days of summer if you’re willing to listen closely.Switched on Pop is a podcast from Vulture all about the making and meaning of popular music. Musicologist Nate Sloan & songwriter Charlie Harding pull back the curtain on how pop hits work magic on our ears and our culture. Listen wherever you get your podcasts.And for more, check out Commotion’s recent deep dive episode on Justin Bieber’s new album featuring Switched On Pop producer – and frequent Commotion panelist – Reanna Cruz.

Is 'Weapons' horror flick of the year? & the buzz around 'Shook'

Commotion guest host Rad Simonpillai is joined by film and culture critics Jackson Weaver, Rachel Ho and Joyita Sengupta to discuss the horror films ‘Weapons’ and ‘Together’ along with buzzing homegrown movie,‘Shook.’

BONUS: Why did the Nelk Boys talk to Benjamin Netanyahu?

Recently, the Nelk Boys, a Canadian YouTube duo known for their prank videos, released an interview with Israel's Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. Hasan PIker, Justin Ling and Alyssa Mercante react to the interview and what it reveals about the current media landscape.

The Maybe Happy Ending controversy, and Chappell Roan has new music

Theatre critics Glenn Sumi and Joshua Chong talk about the story lighting up Broadway this week -- the casting of Andrew Barth Feldman, a white actor, in the musical Maybe Happy Ending, a Seoul-set comedy about robots finding love at the end of their batteries. Plus, Reanna Cruz talks about Chappell Roan's new single, and about her commitment to speaking out - from everything to the ills of social media to supporting other artists

The Naked Gun, Happy Gilmore 2, and the summer of the comedy reboot

The Naked Gun is back! Liam Neeson reprises Leslie Neilson’s role in the classic spoof movie and Adam Sandler is back with another Happy Gilmore. Alison Willmore and Adam Nayman join guest host Rad Simonpillai to talk about the summer of the comedy reboot.