Billboard's weekly deep dive into the past, present and future of pop stardom, hosted by deputy editor Andrew Unterberger. New episodes every Thursday.
In 2006, Arctic Monkeys served as the culmination of a half-decade worth of much-hyped U.K. buzz bands, and finally experienced the biggest breakthrough any group had in its home country since Oasis a decade before â although it took them nearly a decade to make anywhere near the same impact stateside. In this second half of our 2026 kickoff to our annual Vintage Almost-Pop Stardom mini-series, looking at close-but-not-quite pop stars during their biggest years â also be sure to check out part one about 2006 Lily Allenâ Thomas Smith of Billboard UK joins to dive into Arctic Monkeys during the group's once-in-a-generation year of 'Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not' setting records and trends, even though the band couldn't avoid backlash even for the full year.
2006 Lily Allen Playlist:
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLQcYuiBTg6VU&si=95K_2zIBEqVgCTM3
And if you enjoy the pod, please consider donating to the following causes:
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https://transgenderlawcenter.org/
Trans Lifeline
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Destination Tomorrow
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Gender-Affirming Care Fundraising on GoFundMe
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https://www.hrc.org/in-your-area
Also, please consider giving your local congresspeople a call in support of trans rights, with contact information you can find on â â â â â â â â â â â â â â â â â â 5Calls.orgâ â â â â â â â â â â â â â â â â â .
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2006 Lily Allen: Vintage Almost-Pop Stardom (with Sophie Williams)
In 2006, Lily Allen was a much-needed breath of fresh air during a period in pop music that had gotten a little static and stale â although we didn't really get it in the U.S. until the next year, and then never to the same level as in her home country. In this first half of our 2026 kickoff to our annual Vintage Almost-Pop Stardom mini-series, looking at close-but-not-quite pop stars during their biggest years â be sure to also check out part two about 2006 Arctic Monkeys â Sophie Williams of Billboard UK joins to dive into all things Lily Allen during her singular breakout season, the year of "Smile," "LDN," 'Alright, Still,' and mini-feuds with just about the entire pop scene of 2006.
2006 Lily Allen Playlist:
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLK_vydQf1SVg&si=uBjBw3GBS8gzgJ7o
And if you enjoy the pod, please consider donating to the following causes:
Transgender Law Center
https://transgenderlawcenter.org/
Trans Lifeline
https://translifeline.org/
Destination Tomorrow
https://secure.givelively.org/donate/destination-tomorrow-inc
Gender-Affirming Care Fundraising on GoFundMe
https://www.gofundme.com/c/gender-confirmation-surgery-fundraising
Human Rights Campaign - In Your Area
https://www.hrc.org/in-your-area
Also, please consider giving your local congresspeople a call in support of trans rights, with contact information you can find on â â â â â â â â â â â â â â â â â 5Calls.orgâ â â â â â â â â â â â â â â â â .
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On this Who Won the Month episode of the Greatest Pop Stars podcast, host Andrew Unterberger is joined by Billboard staffers Trevor Anderson and Kyle Denis to discuss the big pop stars, rising prospects and veteran greats who were heard from loudest in September 2026 â who closed out the summer season in pop stardom in style. We each choose our top fives for the month that was, then we talk some disappointing recent performances, and look ahead to who we're most anticipating hearing more from in the final months of 2026.
If you enjoy the pod, check out out our Who Won the Month recaps for the first two months of 2026 and all 2025 here:
https://www.billboard.com/t/who-won-the-month/
And please consider donating to the following causes:
Transgender Law Center
https://transgenderlawcenter.org/
Trans Lifeline
https://translifeline.org/
Destination Tomorrow
https://secure.givelively.org/donate/destination-tomorrow-inc
Gender-Affirming Care Fundraising on GoFundMe
https://www.gofundme.com/c/gender-confirmation-surgery-fundraising
Human Rights Campaign â In Your Area
https://www.hrc.org/in-your-area
Also, please consider giving your local congresspeople a call in support of trans rights, with contact information you can find on â â â â â â â â â â â â â â â â â 5Calls.orgâ â â â â â â â â â â â â â â â â .
https://5calls.org/
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2012 One Direction: Vintage Pop Stardom (With Jason Lipshutz)
In 2012, boy bands hadn't been a major part of the American pop marketplace in a decade â but by the end of the year, not only had X Factor alums One Direction (Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne and Niall Horan)Â crashed onto U.S. shores, they had absolutely taken the country over, releasing two Billboard 200-topping albums full of pop-rock bangers, swarming all of pop culture and marking a new era in social media and musical fandom. This episode of Vintage Pop Stardom sees host Andrew Unterberger joined by Billboard co-chief content officer (and author of the upcoming 1D book 'A Whole Lotta History') to remember the year that One Direction became One Direction, creating the closest thing to Beatlemania we saw in in the 2010s.
Check out a YouTube playlist of the biggest One Direction moments of 2012, all of which are discussed in the episode, here:
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLFsrDcNsyDPk&si=R6jeXLev0oV__3QD
Pre-order Jason's 'A Whole Lotta History' here:
https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/A-Whole-Lotta-History/Jason-Lipshutz/9781668205846
And if you enjoy the pod, please consider donating to the following causes:
Transgender Law Center
https://transgenderlawcenter.org/
Trans Lifeline
https://translifeline.org/
Destination Tomorrow
https://secure.givelively.org/donate/destination-tomorrow-inc
Gender-Affirming Care Fundraising on GoFundMe
https://www.gofundme.com/c/gender-confirmation-surgery-fundraising
Human Rights Campaign - In Your Area
https://www.hrc.org/in-your-area
Also, please consider giving your local congresspeople a call in support of trans rights, with contact information you can find on â â â â â â â â â â â â â â â â 5Calls.orgâ â â â â â â â â â â â â â â â .
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this Who Won the Month episode of the Greatest Pop Stars podcast, host Andrew Unterberger is joined by Billboard staffers Danielle Pascual and Eric Frankenberg to discuss the big pop stars, rising prospects and veteran greats who were heard from loudest in July 2026 â who closed out the summer season in pop stardom in style. We each choose our top fives for the month that was, then we talk some disappointing recent performances, and look ahead to who we're most anticipating hearing more from by the end of the summer of 2026.
If you enjoy the pod, check out out our Who Won the Month recaps for the first two months of 2026 and all 2025 here:
https://www.billboard.com/t/who-won-the-month/
And please consider donating to the following causes:
Transgender Law Center
https://transgenderlawcenter.org/
Trans Lifeline
https://translifeline.org/
Destination Tomorrow
https://secure.givelively.org/donate/destination-tomorrow-inc
Gender-Affirming Care Fundraising on GoFundMe
https://www.gofundme.com/c/gender-confirmation-surgery-fundraising
Human Rights Campaign â In Your Area
https://www.hrc.org/in-your-area
Also, please consider giving your local congresspeople a call in support of trans rights, with contact information you can find on â â â â â â â â â â â â â â â â 5Calls.orgâ â â â â â â â â â â â â â â â .
https://5calls.org/
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Olivia Rodrigo's Daisy Chain Fields Festival: Pop Star Performance Review
The Daisy Chain Fields festival debuted at Great Park in Irvine, Calif. on Saturday (Aug. 29), with an 11-hour lineup of all female artists and female-led groups, capped by a headlining set from the festival's founder and curator: Olivia Rodrigo. On this Pop Star Performance Review episode of the Greatest Pop Stars podcast, host Andrew Unterberger is joined by Billboard deputy editor Lyndsey Havens â who was in attendance for the full-day festival â to discuss the history being made by Daisy Chain Fields, and what it means for one of our current greatest pop stars to be able to present it to the world.
Read Lyndsey's recap of the festival here: https://www.billboard.com/lists/olivia-rodrigo-daisy-chain-fields-music-festival-recap/
And if you enjoy the pod, please consider donating to the following causes:
Transgender Law Center
https://transgenderlawcenter.org/
Trans Lifeline
https://translifeline.org/
Destination Tomorrow
https://secure.givelively.org/donate/destination-tomorrow-inc
Gender-Affirming Care Fundraising on GoFundMe
https://www.gofundme.com/c/gender-confirmation-surgery-fundraising
Human Rights Campaign - In Your Area
https://www.hrc.org/in-your-area
Also, please consider giving your local congresspeople a call in support of trans rights, with contact information you can find on â â â â â â â â â â â â â â 5Calls.orgâ â â â â â â â â â â â â â .
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2006 Nelly Furtado: Vintage Pop Stardom (with Todd in the Shadows)
Nobody was waiting for the big Nelly Furtado comeback in 2006, but with some help from superproducer Timbaland, Furtado pivoted to a big new pop sound that very briefly made her one of the biggest â and 20 years later, most fondly remembered â pop hitmakers of her era. This episode of Vintage Pop Stardom sees host Andrew Unterberger joined by Song vs. Song podcast co-host and YouTube star Todd in the Shadows as we discuss how Nelly Furtado absolutely took over with her 'Loose' album and big hits "Promiscuous," "Maneater" and "Say It Right," and then disappeared from the mainstream almost immediately afterwards.
Check out a YouTube playlist of the biggest Nelly Furtado moments of 2006, all of which are discussed in the episode, here:
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLdMepuBX1TTM&si=CMfcMBN491BNfl4X
Listen and subscribe to Song vs. Song here:
https://open.spotify.com/show/2ZPOSfyq3NwIsGGTPY1I10
Watch Todd in the Shadows' YouTube channel here:
https://www.youtube.com/@ToddintheShadows
And if you enjoy the pod, please consider donating to the following causes:
Transgender Law Center
https://transgenderlawcenter.org/
Trans Lifeline
https://translifeline.org/
Destination Tomorrow
https://secure.givelively.org/donate/destination-tomorrow-inc
Gender-Affirming Care Fundraising on GoFundMe
https://www.gofundme.com/c/gender-confirmation-surgery-fundraising
Human Rights Campaign - In Your Area
https://www.hrc.org/in-your-area
Also, please consider giving your local congresspeople a call in support of trans rights, with contact information you can find on â â â â â â â â â â â â â â â 5Calls.orgâ â â â â â â â â â â â â â â .
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Megan Moroney & Ella Langley Live in Texas: Pop Star Performance Review
The Greatest Pop Stars podcast was choosin' Texas last weekend, as two of the biggest artists in country were playing back-to-back sold-out shows in the northern parts of the Lone Star State: Megan Moroney headlining the American Airlines Arena in Dallas on Friday night (Aug. 14), and Ella Langley topping the bill at Dickies Arena in Texas on Saturday (Aug. 15). Host Andrew Unterberger was there with this week's guest, Billboard contributor and Don't Rock the Inbox co-founder Natalie Weiner â and on this Pop Star Performance Review episode, they talk about the things these two breakout stars have in common (or not), and what their joint success says about country and pop music in 2026.
Read Natalie's article about the two concerts:
https://www.billboard.com/music/country/megan-moroney-ella-langley-texas-concerts-pop-crossover-1236318803/
Subscribe to Don't Rock the Inbox here:
https://www.dontrocktheinbox.com/
And if you enjoy the pod, please consider donating to the following causes:
Transgender Law Center
https://transgenderlawcenter.org/
Trans Lifeline
https://translifeline.org/
Destination Tomorrow
https://secure.givelively.org/donate/destination-tomorrow-inc
Gender-Affirming Care Fundraising on GoFundMe
https://www.gofundme.com/c/gender-confirmation-surgery-fundraising
Human Rights Campaign - In Your Area
https://www.hrc.org/in-your-area
Also, please consider giving your local congresspeople a call in support of trans rights, with contact information you can find on â â â â â â â â â â â â â 5Calls.orgâ â â â â â â â â â â â â .
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The 100 Best No. 2 Hits: What Do They Say About the Art of the No. 2 Hit?
This week, we're paying tribute to all the greatest and weirdest runner-up finishers in Billboard Hot 100 history, first and foremost with our staff's list of our 100 favorite No. 2 hits of all time. This week on the Greatest Pop Stars podcast, host Andrew Unterberger is joined by regular guest Eric Frankenberg to discuss our list â and whether the right pop star topped it (or finished second yet again) â and to share our feelings on what it means to be a No. 2 hit, and whether that meaning has changed over the years as the charts and pop music in general have transformed so significantly.
See our staff's 100 Best No. 2 Hits list here:
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