It's Been a Minute

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Has it been a minute since you heard a thought-provoking conversation about culture? Brittany Luse wants to help. Each week, she takes the things everyone's talking about and, in conversation with her favorite creators, tastemakers, and experts, gives you new ways to think about them. Beyond the obvious takes. Because culture doesn't happen by accident.If you can't get enough, try It's Been a Minute Plus. Your subscription supports the show and unlocks a sponsor-free feed. Learn more at plus.npr.org/itsbeenaminute

  • 33 minutes 47 seconds
    Why pop stars aren't having kids (and why you might not either)
    Baby fever just isn't spreading like it used to. The United States fertility rate hit an all-time low last year, and some of our biggest musicians, like Charli XCX and Tyler the Creator, are working their parenting anxieties out in their club bangers. This week, host Brittany Luse invites Anastasia Berg, co-author of What are Children For?, to explore the unique way millennials are confronting the age old question of whether or not to have a child.

    Then, in the wake of media layoffs, there's still a hunger for food coverage. Enter TikTok star and former MMA fighter Keith Lee, whose reviews of local eats have gained him over 16 million followers. Critics of Lee say he's diluting the art of culinary criticism, but fans can't get enough of his casual style. Brittany turns to Detroit Free Press restaurant and dining critic Lyndsay C. Green, and New York Times food writer Korsha Wilson to grapple with the #KeithLee Effect.

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    15 November 2024, 8:00 am
  • 19 minutes 18 seconds
    Mormon Moms: Unpacking a national obsession
    From Hulu's The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives to your favorite homemaking TikTok influencers, the women of the Church of Latter Day Saints have been gaining mass audiences via social media for over a decade. This week, Brittany is joined by Jana Riess, senior columnist at Religious News Service and author of The Next Mormons: How Millennials are Changing the LDS Church, to discuss how Mormon culture provides some of TikTok's most powerful influencers with heavenly tools for success.

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    12 November 2024, 8:00 am
  • 34 minutes 21 seconds
    "Are you surprised?" Three Black women react to the election
    What's surprising about Trump returning to the White House? For Brittany Luse, Pop Culture Happy Hour's Aisha Harris, and NPR's Alana Wise there isn't much to be surprised about. Three Black women and journalists mull over how this moment is business as usual from where they sit.

    Then, Brittany puts the spotlight on a word that's been in the shadows in this election cycle: feminism. Vox's Constance Grady and Paper Magazine's Joan Summers join the show to discuss the state of feminism in American politics.

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    8 November 2024, 8:00 am
  • 18 minutes 53 seconds
    The hot mom rom-com phenomenon
    It's Election Day, but instead of focusing on politics, we decided to do something a little lighter for the occasion: we're looking at this year's hot mom rom-com boom. Host Brittany Luse is joined by New York Magazine features writer Rachel Handler to get a little deeper into three movies from this genre: A Family Affair, The Idea of You, and Between the Temples. They discuss how hot moms on screen have changed, but why movies like these often still feel behind the times.

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    5 November 2024, 8:00 am
  • 39 minutes 18 seconds
    America's Next Top Scapegoat; plus, Inside the Black Manosphere
    The 2024 presidential candidates are making their closing arguments. While VP Harris is focused on the economy and abortion rights, Donald Trump has doubled down on anti-immigrant and anti-trans attack ads. This week, Brittany invites Translash's Imara Jones and NPR immigration correspondent Sergio Martínez-Beltrán to understand what deeper fears these attack ads are stoking.

    Then, Brittany is joined by Code Switch's Gene Demby to explore the roots of a corner of the conservative internet that may have surprising effects on the election: The Black Manosphere.

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    1 November 2024, 7:00 am
  • 20 minutes 27 seconds
    Onscreen cannibalism and our hunger for love
    For the third and final installment of our Trilogy of Terror series, host Brittany Luse turns her attention to the ultimate taboo: cannibalism. Cannibalism stories have gotten big recently: it's in The Last of Us, Society of the Snow and Yellowjackets. She's joined by NPR Arts Desk reporter Neda Ulaby to dig deeper into three cannibalism films. They break down how versatile the trope is, what it says about how we consume – and how we love.

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    29 October 2024, 6:01 pm
  • 33 minutes 55 seconds
    The Billboard Hot 100's doom loop; Plus, a new kind of true crime story
    The same songs are sitting at the top of the music charts longer than ever, and that has Brittany Luse wondering, are our listening habits stuck in a doom loop? Brittany chats with NPR music editor Stephen Thompson to get to the bottom of the top of the charts.

    Plus, when a daughter or sister disappears how does a family move on without closure? Host Brittany Luse is joined by Fresh Air co-host Tonya Mosley and and her nephew Antonio Wiley to talk about their new kind of true crime podcast, She Has A Name.

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    25 October 2024, 5:03 pm
  • 15 minutes 26 seconds
    Kylie Minogue's tips for staying on top
    Kylie Minogue is having a capital-M moment, and Brittany sits down in studio with the pop star to talk about how to keep reaching new heights in a career full of peaks.

    Hot off her Vegas Residency, Kylie just dropped her new album Tension II and is gearing up for a world tour. The legend shares her tips for staying on top for three decades, and Brittany asks what's the secret for turning underground dance music in pristine pop bangers.

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    23 October 2024, 1:27 am
  • 41 minutes 52 seconds
    The false promise of climate havens; plus, the 'help' in horror
    Extreme weather is becoming more frequent. Now some towns that were touted as "safe" are seeing hurricanes, floods or heat waves. This week, host Brittany Luse is joined by NPR climate solutions reporter Julia Simon and NPR culture reporter Chloe Veltman to understand misconceptions around "climate havens" and what it means to preserve culture in the face of the climate crisis.

    Then, Brittany continues her Trilogy of Terror series with an unexpected horror trope: scary service workers. She invites Bowdoin College English professor Aviva Briefel and Slate writer Joshua Rivera to break down how the maids, murderers, and motel workers in horror reveal different cultural anxieties about eating the rich.

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    18 October 2024, 7:00 am
  • 20 minutes 54 seconds
    Sasha Colby takes us to Drag college
    Sasha Colby is your favorite drag queen's favorite drag queen. That's because she's one of the most decorated and influential drag queens working today - she's Chappell Roan's inspiration, a Miss Continental winner and a RuPaul's Drag Race winner.

    Sasha Colby joins Brittany following her 'STRIPPED' world tour to dish about her career, the mainstreaming of drag, and what it takes to persevere through drag's rhinestone trenches.

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    15 October 2024, 9:08 pm
  • 35 minutes 10 seconds
    Is the free speech debate dead? Plus, the devil!
    In anticipation of more pro-Palestinian protests, many college administrators rolled out new rules this fall that include getting pre-approval for posting flyers or hosting demonstrations. Brittany is joined by UC Irvine sociology professor David S. Meyer, who studies social movements and public policy, and Chronicle of Higher Education reporter Kate Hidalgo Bellows. They discuss the changes on campuses and how they tie into debates over free speech.

    Then, Brittany kicks off a new series exploring horror tropes. It's called The Trilogy of Terror. First up: Beelzebub. Brittany invites Travis Stevens and Klaus Yoder, historians and co-hosts of the podcast Seven Heads, Ten Horns: The History of the Devil, to talk about the symbology of the devil and how representations of him in horror movies have changed over time.

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    11 October 2024, 3:55 pm
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