Baz Luhrmann’s “Sunscreen Song” — The 90s’ Most Unlikely Hit (with Avery Trufelman)
Switched on Pop23 Jun 2020

Baz Luhrmann’s “Sunscreen Song” — The 90s’ Most Unlikely Hit (with Avery Trufelman)

In 1999 filmmaker Baz Luhrmann released the song “Everybody’s Free To Wear Sunscreen,” a 7-minute-long graduation speech set to downtempo electronic music. It was a highly unlikely hit that made its way across continents and eventually into the ears of a young Avery Trufelman via the album NOW That’s What I Call Music Volume 2. For over 20 years, Trufelman has applied the song’s advice to her daily life: “wear sunscreen… be nice to your siblings… do one thing every day that scares you.” This unusual song has left a lasting impression, and yet for Trufelman, it makes no sense that “The Sunscreen Song” was commercially successful. We investigate the song’s many architects — novelist Kurt Vonnegut, Chicago Tribune columnist Mary Schmich and Baz Luhrmann himself — to unpack one of the internet’s first conspiracy theories that turned into Billboard’s greatest outlier. SONGS DISCUSSED Baz Luhrmann - Everybody’s Free (To Wear Sunscreen) Think - Once You Understand MORE The BBC documentary on “Everybody’s Free (To Wear Sunscreen)" https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w3cszvtr Another speech set to music, Byron MacGregor/Gordon Sinclair’s “Americans,” peaked at #4 in 1974 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Episoder(524)

The Weeknd: Dance of Deception

The Weeknd: Dance of Deception

The Weeknd’s deliriously funky chart topper “Can’t Feel My Face” has sparked sweat-soaked dance sessions across the country, but dark notes lurk at the outskirts of this ebullient jam. Chromatic intru...

23 Sep 201525min

Let’s Talk About Sax

Let’s Talk About Sax

The sax is back. This surprisingly funky reed keeps popping up in pop hits from Derulo to Grande. But where did the sax come from? And where did it go? Tighten your embouchure, because we journey to t...

9 Sep 201535min

Kacey Musgraves: Transgressing Country

Kacey Musgraves: Transgressing Country

Can you be a country star and critical of the country at the same time? Grammy Award Winner, Kacey Musgraves, has two hit albums that challenge the small-town clichés of modern country music. Is she b...

14 Aug 201526min

Song of Summer: LIVE!

Song of Summer: LIVE!

In the first-ever LIVE edition of Switched on Pop, Charlie and Nate enter an epic debate over what track should be crowned 2015’s definitive Song of Summer. Charlie’s candidate is the retro anthem “Sh...

30 Jul 201529min

The Dual Meaning of Fetty Wap’s Trap Queen

The Dual Meaning of Fetty Wap’s Trap Queen

Fetty Wap’s Trap Queen is an unlikely contender for the top 10. It straddles genres between hip-hop and pop in subtle yet mesmerizing ways. Is it a drug song? Is it a love song? Or is it both at the s...

15 Jul 201520min

One Direction: Our Modern Day Castrati

One Direction: Our Modern Day Castrati

One Direction is one of the biggest bands in pop, but unless you’re a preteen or the parent of one, like us you’ve probably never heard a second of their music. Until now. Let’s see if we’ve been miss...

29 Mai 201523min

The Final Dropout

The Final Dropout

How does a good pop song end? With a bang, right? As it turns out, explosive endings are kinda over. Songwriters are instead opting to end with a final dropout. Even the biggest pop anthems close with...

15 Mai 20157min

Hidden Sounds in FourFiveSeconds

Hidden Sounds in FourFiveSeconds

FourFiveSeconds is one of the more surprising collaborations in recent pop history. Rhianna, Kanye, Sir Paul McCartney. The motley lineup doesn’t dissapoint, serving up one of the most unexpected song...

6 Mai 201521min

Populært innen Underholdning

papaya
enkel-servering
tusvik-tnne
harm-og-hegseth
storefri-med-mikkel-og-herman
tore-og-haralds-podkast
big-5-med-nils-og-harald-2
topp-3-med-wold-og-fladseth
konspirasjonspodden
folk-flest-med-linn-og-nils
hovla
ma-pa-behandling-med-morten-ramm
kjendiscrush-med-sofie-karlstad
nare-venner
vitnemal
feedback-med-egon-holstad
gi-meg-alle-detaljene
rss-gammal-maiden
christine-dancke
rss-ls-the-next-episode