Just discovered this podcast and immediately obsessed!

Update: Britney as Tier 2, BS…. Get real. I love this podcast, Louie is great and knows so much but when he has a guest on and the guest is speaking, he continually speaks over them saying “yeah…yeah… mhm… yes”. That is unnecessary and makes what the guest is trying to say difficult to understand.

Britney Spears is 100% a tier 1 artist. Your reasoning is contradictory and honestly, downright wrong. First, you seemed so bespoken to this idea that the artists themselves, needed to have a form of “ownership”, or “input” in order for their placement on the tier ranking. That is not even part of your requirements. Also, many of these artists were afforded those privileges. Britney was not. And even with the limitations in place, she was able to perform, outsell, and define a space in pop music that has inspired so many artists, more so than many of these other artists that you have ranked within the tier 1 space. Next, she exceeded your requirements with her WORK. Not just her celebrity and public narrative, but her pop work. Which in terms of sales, influence, and iconography triumphs so many of the artists you have ranked in the tier one spot. Look at last year’s VMAs. Her presence and contributions to pop culture and music, is unquestionably present. Also, I feel that the marketing and distribution of merchandise wasn’t brought up enough (during her initial three years). This model of pop star marketing was duplicated for following teen acts for years down the line. Justin Bieber, and Miley Cyrus, for example. I am thankful for the commenters and guests that argued for her rightful placement. In short, I’m disappointed that the 71% of votes, or insight from your guests did not sway your final decision. You got this one wrong. She highly deserves to be one of the top 25, tier one acts.

I’ll be honest, I’d never heard of this podcast before and have no context about its history or its host. I saw that there was a series about Britney Spears and naturally was so excited to listen. However, I could not get past the first 10 minutes. The host DID. NOT. STOP. TALKING. even when a guest was on that he was ostensibly interviewing. This is definitely not the storytelling I was expecting. Sad to say I will have to keep waiting for a Britney documentary podcast.

I love this podcast, I have listened to so many episodes. A lot of episodes are evergreen and going back to older episodes have expanded my music knowledge and helped me to appreciate pop culture moments from before my time. The conversations about contemporary pop are also super fun!

This is by far my favorite music podcast. I’m the same age as Louie, so our nostalgia is the same and his memories are similar to mine. I love hearing the history of each artist and it’s such a comforting podcast. Thanks Louie!

still degrading women in 2025

Now this got me wondering, Beyonce is the greatest of the 21st Century- will you be doing a list of top10 pop stars of the 20th Century? Was it MJ? The Beatles? Madonna? Elvis? Each episode has so much depth and I love it!! 🫶🔥

Listening to pop pantheon is like ear candy. Louis and Russ, plus their guests, are so entertaining to listen to, and make really insightful comments about topics I didn’t realize were that deep, but I absolutely love learning about all the layers. Louis is a great conversation leader, storyteller and true historian, with infectious enthusiasm for pop music and musicians. I love learning about the artists’ stories and come away inspired. I am a patreon member so get even more out if the show which I highly recommend! I have been introduced to so much amazing music and knowledge through this show. Thanks Louis and Russ for making it— it’s the dopamine hit I didn’t know I need.

I absolutely adore this show and DJ Luis, and all of his great guests. These folks have so much genuine love for the music as well as hard-core knowledge of pop music and pop culture history. Thank you for a fascinating and always entertaining show! 💯 #nichelegend

I recommend it to everyone! Love how serious you take pop music and I’m proud to be a patron.

Louis I love you but three episodes on Charli Xcx come on you’re stretching it. Cause if Michael and Madonna got four is she that important to the pop pantheon hey your the curator but really??

Top ten pop stars ranked but you did not invite one woman to your panel. Please

I really appreciate this show. It’s entertaining and well-researched, and the analysis is thoughtful. The show could use an editor - he often goes long, and the point repetition can get tiresome - but overall, a great show that’s right up my alley.

Absolutely the best $5 I spend every month. I love — and learn so much from — this show!

Thank you for your knowledge, fervor and love of pop music and sharing it with us. I really enjoyed the MJ series (haters gonna hate in the reviews 🙄) and maaaany more epis of my already favorite artists and also, some i didnt know very well in detail but learned so much! Not only related to the music specifically, but also to pop culture as a whole: past, present and their ongoing legacies. I would LOVE to attend a Gorgeous, Gorgeous! Party and dance the night away (any chance of you coming to SF in the near future?😉)

Great show and guests if you want music and cultural history. I hope Louie considers taking a breath and letting his guests speak. I can tell he’s excited but the incessant monologues immediately after asking the guest a question are too much. Also, it was on the Patreon episode but his dismissal of Not Like Us and Kendrick’s cultural impact this summer was really off-putting.

Been listening for a bit and I’ve been patiently waiting for the MJ series! I know it’s not over yet so this review is a bit premature, but so far I’ve enjoyed it, especially the Off the Wall episode with the very knowledgeable Joseph Vogel. I will say, I didn’t love how adamant the first guest was about the allegations. She is, of course, entitled to believe them if she wishes, but she speaks of them as if they are proven fact and that just isn’t so. I found that irresponsible frankly. I would like to point out that there is plenty of evidence out there to the contrary if one is open minded enough and willing to do the research. I understand that these are very serious, complicated and triggering allegations that are a undeniable part of his life story but there are always 2 sides to every story and his side has legit weight and deserves to be told and upheld, especially because he is not here to defend himself. I’ll continue to listen to the upcoming MJ episodes because I still found it very interesting and insightful but I wish it was more careful about what narrative it’s trying to tell. Great work nonetheless.

Re Emily part 1 she believes those liars from LN I really am shocked how stupid ppl are it makes me not want to take you seriously I did enjoy part 2 with Joe Vogel who I saw at a book review in 2012 I suggest you research false accusations you will learn a lot I decided to not even finish listening to part 1 very disappointed you choose to have her on

Absolutely love this podcast - I always learn something and laugh out loud throughout. I’m a Patreon subscriber too and love it !

I love this pod. DJ Louie knows his stuff. They get into details and excavate the depths of pop music. It’s fascinating and accurate. loved the P!NK episode.

Hi, Do you get access to Patreon episodes if you pay for subscription? I subscribed but i don’t have access to the October episode of ‘1989 Taylor’s version’, it says it’s only on Patreon? But I pay more for the subscription…🤔

Love this podcast. Well produced, always well researched, and great guests. Makes me appreciate artists I sometimes ignored and always dive deeper into their music catalog. Highly recommended!

I love the show. Lately I’ve been recommending it to everyone. The conversations make me love music even more. I think the best episodes are with guests that make the host laugh because then we get to laugh along and learn at the same time.

Could not press play on the Hilary Duff episode fast enough!

Love this podcast so much. As a teacher, I also love introducing my students to various episodes as we take deep dives into the various facets of culture and history.

I love this podcast but am hoping for a britney pop pantheon episode 💖🩷

I truly cannot get enough of this podcast. I appreciate how seriously DJ Louis, Russ and the guest take pop music. I’ve learned so much about music history, and I have reevaluated music that I didn’t enjoy/get the first time around. I don’t always agree with the takes, but love to hear them. Going back and listening to older episodes, you can really tell how far the podcast has come. The quality of the discussions and guests has increased exponentially (Katy Perry could never). It’s obvious how much time and effort is put in by the whole team. It’s such a pleasure to listen to every week. Keep it up guys! Thank you!

dj louie you will always be famous

Discussing the good, the bad, and the dirty of pop music history, theory, aesthetics and culture through a largely queer lens, this podcast feels like I’m sitting at a coffee shop with my favorite Queer, Music lover friends. Let me clarify, you do not have to be Queer to enjoy this podcast, nor is the podcast always talking about specifically Queer things. But the perspective is really cool to me. Sometimes I wish Louie would let the guests talk more, he gets a little excited. A Gay Jimmy Fallon thing.

take a shot every time louie says lingua franca, urtext, or auteur

I stumbled upon this podcast looking for podcasts discussing George Michael. That was the first episode I heard and I was HOOKED! I love the detailed analysis, fast pace, humor, music sprinkled in, and the discussion of where the performer may have been emotionally when writing and performing. I have recommended to friends and have now started with episode #1. I have this podcast on throughout the day!

What more could you want

Louie is incredibly charming and you can hear in his voice how studied and respectful he is of these artists. I’ve always hoped that someone would make a show like this that has such reverence for pop history old and new and truly makes an effort to pair each episode with a commentator who can speak not only to the artists’ background and perspective but also that of their fans. The nods to LGBTQIA+ community that make up so much of pop’s audience is the icing on the cake for me and is truly what makes me love this program so much. There is one issue I have with the show that comes down to its premise. Put simply, I’m here for the history, not for the tiers, and I don’t think they’re actually necessarily to truly contextualize what these artists mean to people. In the (nearly) three years since the show premiered, the Pantheon has already been tweaked multiple times to make space for unrankable artists and it’s also been argued in newer episodes that the legacies of some featured acts have changed in that small period of time, making the final judgements seem a bit wishy-washy to me. I think Louie’s love for pop history IS quite serious, however I would change it to a podcast talking about legacies of pop stars more broadly as opposed to putting them in a tier based on who’s more important. A pantheon doesn’t need to have tiers! All of that aside, this podcast rules. Louie I really appreciate the work you and your guests put into researching these artists and I also love that you walk us through each one like a trusted friend. Thank you for making content for us every week and I’m looking forward to the next episode! 💖

Love the podcast. I am familiar with a lot of the artists featured, but it has been a real pleasure to dive deep in to these pop legends’ discographies. Well researched and so fun!

Loveeeeee the podcast! So insightful and well researched. After listening to Mariah’s 3 parts and hearing all the Mary J. references, I’d love to hear an episode featuring her. I’m such a huge fan I want to see where she’d rank. 😊

I loved this podcast for several years but lately it’s been the same takes from Louie over and over. They just did a 2023 best of recap and it was basically the same thing as the half year recap. We never need to hear how pop stars like Billie or SZA don’t look like Janet Jackson again. Someone (Russ) needs to help mix this podcast up. Also agree with critiques about how Louie asks run on questions with very little room for guests to thoughtfully answer.

Appreciate the host and guests that bring so much knowledge about the history of the artists and their music! Keep going, because I’m going to keep listening!⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I saw Troy McEady post on Instagram about his guest spot on this show, so of course I listened as I’ll follow him anywhere. Glad I did because I’ve been binging episodes for the past few days. I think this was such a great idea for a Podcast and DJ Louie does an amazing job. It sound so professional. Can’t wait to listen to this every week!

Overall this is an excellent podcast and a fun topic to cover. My only critique is the host has a tendency to rapid fire 20 questions in a run on sentence and the guests never really get to answer them before it’s off to another set of questions.

This podcast is a masterpiece in the vein of Blackout and Autobiography. Highlight of my weeks!

i found out about this podcast from Joe Coscarelli on Popcast Deluxe and i’ve been hooked ever since! Louie and his guests are a wealth of knowledge about the people they talk about and it’s truly been a joy to listen and learn about artists i didn’t know much about previously. i think the artist’s synopsis at the beginning is one of my favorite parts of the show, they are so well written and well edited with the music. the Lorde one made me tear up and i just KNOW whenever there’s an episode on Taylor Swift i will absolutely be sobbing. speaking of Taylor, i know everyone wants an episode on her so i won’t pile on 😉, but i would also love an episode on Halsey and Doja Cat. Halsey in particular is someone i’m a huge fan of and have been since Badlands, and i truly have no idea how people outside of their fandom perceive them. are they like a Bebe Rexha/Zara Larsson type pop star, or maybe more like Lana/Lorde? i would love some insight into this. and Doja is such an interesting person both in music and her online presence, so i know an episode on her would be nothing short of entertaining. keep up the good work Louie, i’m so glad i found this podcast!!

…rock wonks like myself love to listen to these historic dives because 1) the window is closing on those who remember these groups and 2) we want to find gotchas. In fairness the podcaster here is doing shows that span decades. So he should be complimented for his knowledge. But a couple of facts to consider: - everything should be considered in the context of the time. Every action of a woman was not based on some political consideration. Women in the 40s—Peggy Lee, Ella Fitzgerald left bands when their careers evolved. - the Marvelettes had a career beyond the tunes played, and did great stuff when Smokey started writing for them (don’t recall that covered). -though race clearly played a role in Motown strategies, their slogan was “the sound of young america” and it truly was- blaring out of everyone’s radios. Couple specifics: in Tonight’s the night, the lyric “said you’re gonna make me..” is a sly reference to slang at the time. To make a girl was to have sex w her. So after that line, Shirley pauses for a split second. Wonkie fact: the Velvelettes hit played at the end was not the original recording And keep up your good work!!!

THIS PODCAST FEEDS MY GAY SOUL🩷 Please do an episode on Norwegian singer Aurora, & Dula Peep🩷

One of my favorite recent finds in podcasts! I’ve been binging the older episodes and subscribed to the Patreon for the album deep dives, highly recommended! Only critique is the glaring blind spot of not covering any of the Slayyyter rollout/coming album, c’mon Louie get it together!

honestly an amazing podcast. While I always learn something new and often come away with new songs, my favorite aspect is DJ Louie’s enthusiasm for each conversation. Each guest is perfection, especially when they bring something personal to the episode. I wanna say a special shout out to the Duran Duran episode. It was pretty obvious that DJ Louie was out of his comfort zone, but he clearly made an effort to really understand the band and their work. (And yes, as a lifelong fan of New Wave, Duran Duran epitomizes sleaze lol) Now when are we getting that Marina and the Diamonds episode y’all promised??

Please do an episode about Bruno Mars. I know some people have issues with some of his music. It is fair to criticize him, but there is no doubt (I would love to listen an episode about No Doubt) he is a very talented musician. He is from Hawaii, which was a great foundation for him becoming such a successful musician. Thank you and I love the podcast.

I am not at all involved in the music industry and I don’t even know how I stumbled on this podcast and I am obsessed. I immediately signed up for the Patreon. There are so many amazing throwbacks and the analysis makes me develop an even greater appreciation for my favorite (and not so favorite) singers. Download this bestie!

Do an episode on second albums/comeback albums! Very relevant with Olivia Rodrigo right now

This is one of the best podcasts I’ve ever come across and that’s saying a lot as a podcaster as well as pop fan. The way the episodes are structured is so entertaining and I learn sooo much about pop stars and history. Plus Louis’s opinions are funny and the guests are perfectly curated. Great job! I look forward to it every week.