Quickly - don’t think too hard - but is there a more immediately recognizable Rock riff of the last 25 years than The White Stripes’ Seven Nation Army?

Not so much a song owned by a band anymore, and more of a tour-de-force piece of performance art for passionate sporting event-goers worldwide to make their own; Seven Nation Army has become a part of the public consciousness in ways that very few songs since the turn of the century have managed to.

Seven little notes, no real chorus, and a band who spent a lot of their existence arguably trying to *not* follow trends and gain worldwide celebrity status - it doesn’t really seem like the recipe for success on paper.

This is the story of The White Stripes 2003 Classic - ‘Seven Nation Army’

Featuring newly unearthed audio from the band themselves!

Also contains audio from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-7bSDbIePc

Like Madonna, Bono, Prince and Beyoncé before her, Adele is one of the great mononymous superstars of our time.

Adele Adkins was born on May 5, 1988 in Tottenham, a working class town in northern London known best for its football club, Tottenham Hotspur. Her mom Penny Adkins, was only 18 when she was born and when she was only two, Adele’s father upped and left for Wales; he would never be in the picture as Adele grew up.

From the age of 4, Adele began to sing at every opportunity she would get. When the Spice Girls emerged, young Adele would become obsessed with the Girl Powerful group. In 2016, she would tell Vogue, “People always think I joke about this, but the Spice Girls blew up when I was seven, and seeing them coming from a humble background — there was hope in it. It was really a massive part of my life when the whole Girl Power thing happened.”

When she was 11, her mum and stepdad moved her to West Norwood in south London, which she would immortalize in her 2007 hit “Hometown Glory.” It was there that Adele would fall in love with contemporary R&B and the big, classic voices that would shape her voice in the years to come.

“Hometown Glory,” was first released in October 2007 as a limited 7-inch on a small label called Pacemaker. The song didn’t do much until it was re-released the following year by XL. But the buzz was growing for Adele. As 2008 arrived, she became the youngest artist ever to win the BBC’s Sound of 2008 award, which is selected by music critics and industry figures searching for the UK’s most promising new music talent. She also took home the Critic’s Choice Award at the BRITs, which was given to the top rising star.

Soon after, Adele released her debut album, 19, on January 28, 2008. She named it 19 because, well, that’s how old she was when she recorded the album. It didn’t take long for critics and fans to fixate on her age, and how mature she sounded for someone who was only 19.

Adele was quickly popping up everywhere on both sides of the pond. 19 was on the shortlist of nominees for the coveted Mercury Prize, which is awarded for the best album released by a musical act from the United Kingdom or Ireland.”Hometown Glory” popped up all over TV, soundtracking huge dramatic scenes in countless TV shows like Grey’s Anatomy, So You Think You Can Dance, Coronation Street and 90210. But perhaps the greatest achievement, at least in Adele’s eyes, was one of her heroes, Beyoncé calling her “THE British singer,” separating her from the rest of the pack.

Her followup single “Chasing Pavements” earned Adele her first Grammy for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, beating out her former classmate Leona Lewis. It was also nominated for Song of the Year and Record of the Year. Even bigger than that, Adele also won Best New Artist.

Now with a lot more pressure on her, Adele was ready to record her followup album Feeling the raw sting of a recent breakup, Adele reached out to Paul Epworth in October 2009 and immediately they headed into the studio. She brought him a ballad she had begun writing a couple years ago about a boy, which he felt needed to be stronger and more aggressive in its arrangement. With Epworth’s help they channeled the anger she felt from her recent split and used some guitar riffs he had previously written down.

As the two worked together, Adele began to feel her heart race, which became the beat of the song. The two of them came up with the verses and the chords of the song in under 15 minutes, with the rest only taking about two hours.

This is the true story of Adele's iconic song 'Rolling in the Deep' with newly unearthed footage from Adele herself!

Also contains clips from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U_mj1CuXrPE

and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H1wjMGosYa8

As I’m sure you’re mostly aware of already - the lyrical content of Amy Winehouse's breakthrough single ‘Rehab’ is very much a true story.

Working with up-and-coming producer Mark Ronson in New York city, Amy inspired the entire production of the song simply walking down the street, telling Ronson her true ‘rehab’ story. Ronson initially thought of it as a funny little anecdote - and one worth turning into a song. Unfortunately, the tale of Rehab was far from a funny one - and Winehouse's knack of drawing inspiration from bad situations would lead to tragedy.

Amy Winehouse was a star - a breath of fresh air in the music industry that pulled the Motown sounds of the 60s into the 21st century with edginess, swagger, and admittedly - a sense of glorified self-destruction.

Released in the UK as the Album’s lead single in late October 2006, Rehab was the perfect distillation of Amy the persona and Amy the artist.

Winehouse truly had nothing to hide and she was ready to expose her talent and her scars to the world unapologetically. This is the story of Rehab, with newly unearthed audio from Amy Winehouse herself.

Also contains audio from:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-SBezSiJGfM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x0q3Re5ksVg

Content Warning: This episode discusses themes that may be difficult for some listeners, including substance abuse, disordered eating, and interpersonal violence. Please take care while listening.