With so many platforms it can be hard to keep track of the latest pop culture trends. So this week we're sharing pods to keep you current by rounding up the best in pop culture. First, we'll meet MC Sha-Rock. You may not know her name, but she's an integral part of hip-hop history. Her group the Funky 4 + 1 More was one of the first rap groups to ever perform on national TV. But shortly after, her career hit the glass ceiling. Louder Than A Riot explores how Sha-Rock's legacy got buried in the hip-hop archive. Then we look at the origins of another hip hop icon Drake. But we're not talking about his mixtape. We're talking about his performance on Degrassi: The Next Generation:The podcast Back Issue asks "Do you remember the teen show that made you fall in love with teen shows?" From there we change lanes from hip hop to 90s pop. In a clip from Switched on Pop, we'll hear from Seal himself on how his timeless hit "Kiss from a Rose" became a surprising, but enduring classic. Yes, the Batman Forever soundtrack was an integral part of the song's legacy (thank you, Joel Schumacher). Plus: we look into the rise of TV rewatch podcasts. Why are they so popular and why does every celeb seem to have one? Featuring: Switched On Pop: "Kiss From a Rose" is one of the most unusual number one hits of all time. Seal's song can't decide if it's in minor or major, it uses an old-fashioned waltz rhythm, and its lush orchestration and elaborate vocal harmonies support mysterious lyrics about a "greying tower alone on the sea." Seal himself wasn't sure about the song, and needed some convincing to include the composition on his 1994 album SEAL II." Louder Than a Riot: "In 1981, MC Sha-Rock and her group, the Funky 4 + 1, were invited to perform on Saturday Night Live. It was one of the first nationally televised rap performances ever, expanding the reach of the nascent genre to mainstream audiences who might never have heard or seen it before. It was almost certainly the first time many viewers had seen a woman rapping. But little did SNL's audience know that Sha-Rock was hiding something — for the sake of the group's continued success, and for her own survival." Frontburner: "As a kid in the Winnipeg suburb of Transcona, Tyson Smith was obsessed with hockey and the Winnipeg Jets. He dreamed of being a professional goaltender. Decades later, Smith – now known as "Kenny Omega" – has made his way to the Jets' home arena for a different reason: he's performing as a professional wrestler. Omega joined Front Burner host Jayme Poisson to discuss the culture of wrestling in Winnipeg, his path to fame in Japan, his push to expand inclusivity and storytelling in the sport, and swirling rumours about what he'll do next." Back Issue: Josh Gwynn is joined by Amil Niazi to revisit Degrassi: The Next Generation. Does the show stand up? Or did it age about as well the the cottage cheese you forgot in the back of the fridge? 2 Black Girls, 1 Rose: Time for a reality TV deep dive. If you watched season 3 of Love is Blind, then you may have had a lot of questions for Zanab Jaffrey. Co-hosts and real-life BFFs Justine Kay and Natasha Scott-Reichel did too. Here they dig deep on "the cuties debacle," Zanab's experience as a woman of colour dating a white man on TV, their epic wedding breakup, and more! For more podcast recommendations visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/podcastplaylist To share your fave podcast email us: podcastplaylist@cbc.ca

Building better mental health is something we could all stand to work on. The good news? You're definitely not alone. This week we're unpacking mental health with podcasts that uplift, investigate and validate. We all know the grief that comes from losing someone you love, but have you ever experienced climate grief? It's the feeling of hopelessness as the climate crisis continues to worsen. But for one Canadian musician, out of those feelings of fear, sadness and angst came artistic inspiration. We'll hear the conversation with folk band The Weather Station in a clip from Reseed. Plus, treatment for mental health has experienced a lot of innovation in the last century. That evolution continues as the Toronto facility "Remedy" researches the use of MDMA to treat post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). We'll share why the early results have researchers and patients so excited. The themes in this episode may be triggering for some listeners. If you or someone you know is in crisis, help is available. In Canada, you can call the Suicide Prevention Service at 1-833-456-4566. In the US, you can call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255. Or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting TALK to 741-741. Featuring: Terrible, Thanks for Asking: Grief comes with so much judgment. Everybody is sure that there's a right way to do it, and only for a certain length of time. If our grief doesn't neatly fit into a category, we worry that it's illegitimate. Erin knows this judgment very well. She's a widow … or is she? Reseed: Music can help us make sense of, and deeply feel, our climate grief. Tamara Lindeman's acclaimed album Ignorance about climate grief struck a chord with citizens and critics. Performing as The Weather Station, Lindeman's 2021 poetic, thoughtful, and highly danceable album was named album of the year by The New Yorker and Uncut. Tamara joins Alice Irene Whittaker, the host of Reseed, for a conversation that starts with climate grief before spanning to art, selfhood, rootlessness, connection, and the heartbreaking beauty of birds. WTF Marc Maron: Zazie Beetz and Marc were in three things together - Joker, the Netflix series Easy, and the new animated film The Bad Guys - but they're only now meeting each other for real. That makes for a good opportunity to interrogate their respective anxiety issues and compare their coping strategies. Zazie and Marc also talk about her German heritage, why she's not an LA person, and how she sees her work on Atlanta as being part of an overall reflection of Donald Glover's real life story. Depresh Mode: We're seeing the effects of prolonged work-from-home jobs and from employers who are doing little or nothing to address burnout. We're seeing a blurring of lines between job and life, an old work system we're never going back to, and people who just can't take it anymore. They're quitting their jobs, often with no new job to go to, because they are flat out done. Depresh Mode host John Moe speaks with Jennifer Moss, a burnout expert who fought burnout herself when writing her book, The Burnout Epidemic: The Rise of Chronic Stress and How We Can Fix It. Mental Health Comedy Podcast: Comedian Dave Holmes talks honestly about being diagnosed and learning to deal with ADHD. As a kid growing up in the 70's and 80's, he'd get messages from teachers about not living up to his potential. The overall solution was "don't be like that." And the road from that place to where he is now, has many steps. Now it's prioritizing self care, nutrition, exercise, sleep etc. And that there are days when it is difficult to focus, and on those days there are other creative ways to deal. And not every day is a great day. Sickboy: Dr. Anne Wagner is a clinical psychologist and treatment development researcher in Toronto, Canada. For more, visit: http://www.cbc.ca/radio/podcastplaylist

With summer around the corner, you can’t help but feel a little bit of wanderlust. So whether you’re looking for inspiration for your next vacation, or simply looking for an escape, the stories in this episode will transport you to some exciting places. We’ll head to Cape Town to learn how to freedive, meet a woman who traveled by Vespa from Southeast Asia to Europe, and much more. Featured podcasts: This Is Love, Invisibilia, Nothing Is Foreign, Far Flung, Alpaca My Bags, Not Lost. For links and more info on all the podcasts on today's show, visit us at http://cbc.ca/podcastplaylist.

This week we've got six hot new releases to refresh your podcast rotation. Words like "girl boss," "gaslight" and "gatekeeper" have taken over on social media but, like a game of telephone, how they're used in memes can be a long way from their original meaning.  In its latest season, the Canadian podcast Rehash hones in on internet terminology and archetypes and untangles it all. Hosts Hannah and Maia (otherwise known as Broey Deschanel on YouTube) sit down with Podcast Playlist host Leah-Simone Bowen to chat about what viral moments and internet drama say about wider culture and whether the shenanigans all add up to a net positive or negative.  Plus, we'll take a look at the latest seasons and new listens from podcast institutions and newbies alike, including a deep dive into the lengths the province of Alberta went to keep rats from crossing over the border from Saskatchewan.  Podcasts featured this week: Secret Life of Canada: "Is it true that Alberta is a rat-free province? We look into why the province of Alberta took rat hating to a new level." California Love: K-Pop Dreaming: "Growing up in Koreatown during the 90s and 2000s, host Vivian Yoon was an emo-listening teenager who embraced American pop culture. At least that's what it seemed from the outside. But at home, by herself, what she listened to was K-Pop. How Vivian's hidden love for the music is propelling her to explore the connections between K-Pop and her hometown." The Turning: Room of Mirrors: " By tracing the origins of this unusual lifestyle, starting with the legacy of choreographer George Balanchine and the intimate stories of young dancers, we expose the beauty of an artform and the complexity of ballet culture." You Didn't See Nothin': "Part investigation and part memoir, "You Didn't See Nothin" follows Yohance Lacour as he revisits the story [of Lenard Clark] that introduced him to the world of investigative journalism, and examines how its ripple effects have shaped his life over the past quarter-century." Serial: Coldest Case in Laramie: "A Times investigative reporter, Kim Barker, revisits the murder of Shelli Wiley — a long-unsolved case from Kim's time in high school. She reaches out to Shelli's family to understand why the police arrested a man named Fred Lamb for Shelli's murder in 2016, and why prosecutors abruptly dropped the charges against him." Rehash: "Caleb was a very bad boy. But did we have to John Tucker him x 1 million? Hannah and Maia get personal about life in the trenches of online dating, and whether or not doxxing is a justified means to a feminist end." Plus, we interview Rehash hosts Hannah and Maia about the internet's most overused words

If you could hang out with some of the smartest people in the world, what would you ask them? That’s the premise of the podcast Ologies. It’s hosted by science lover, Alie Ward. On her show, she chats with experts of all kinds about their specialties – from flesh-eating plants, to Dark Matter, to the study of raccoons. You may have seen Alie on TV. She's a Daytime Emmy Award-winning science correspondent for her work on The Henry Ford's: Innovation Nation with Mo Rocca on CBS. She also hosts Did I Mention Invention? on the CW and 100 Humans on Netflix. This week she joins us to share what makes her brain light up, and how to keep curiosity alive in your own life. Plus, she shares a few of her favourite educational podcasts. We'll learn about different parts of the brain, how dinosaurs are related to birds, plus, the wonders of the pecan tree. Podcasts featured this week: Ologies, Hidden Brain, Invisibilia, Completely Arbortrary, Talk Nerdy For links and more info on these shows, head to https://cbc.ca/podcastplaylist

Jordan Heath-Rawlings has been a stalwart of Canadian Media for years. But, with his daily news podcast The Big Story, Jordan has given Canadians the news that matters to them with striking authenticity. He joins us to tell us some of his favourite podcasts, why not focusing on the biggest daily stories is an advantage and how he likes to ask the questions the audiences want answers to. We’ll hear a wide variety of podcasts – including a story about the rivalry between Sony and Nintendo in the 90s, as well as the controversies that surrounded the 2000 U.S. Presidential election. Plus, Jordan tells us about his thinking behind his hit podcast The Gravy Train – about the rise of Mayor Rob Ford – and he’ll tell us why we need to be truly fearful of Canadian geese. Podcasts featured this week: The Big Story, Fireside Canada, Business Wars, Fiasco For links and more info on these shows, head to https://cbc.ca/podcastplaylist

This week on Podcast Playlist, stories about cons artists and sordid scams. First, we'll meet Dr. Ronald Dante. To clarify, he’s not an actual doctor. He was a talented hypnotist during the 1980s and 1990s. With that power, he hypnotized women out of their money. We'll hear how he swindled a Hollywood starlet out of her fortune. Then, Sam Bankman-Fried was a young billionaire who became the trusted face of crypto. He was one to watch thanks to his trading platform FTX. He won over celebrities, politicians, and Silicon Valley. But in an instant, his empire came crashing down ... The Naked Emperor, a new four-part series from CBC News' Front Burner and CBC Podcasts, tells that story. Plus: When Kitty started using dating apps, she found herself talking to so many scammers. Instead of ignoring them, she decided to scam them back. Podcasts featured this week: Chameleon: Dr. Dante, The Naked Emperor, Deep Cover Season 3: Never Seen Again, Vigilante, How To Be Fine, Twin Flames For links and more info on these shows, head to https://cbc.ca/podcastplaylist

Have you missed visiting The Vinyl Cafe? The show felt like home to so many Canadians. Jess Milton, long term producer of that show and one of Stuart McLean’s best friends, opens up about her new podcast Backstage at the Vinyl Cafe. She talks about why she wanted to return to that place, her nervousness at being a host and what it is that brings us together all over this disparate country. We also speak to Alaina Urquhart and Ash Kelley from the hit true crime podcast Morbid about their latest grisly show Frozen Head. They tell us about why true crime skews towards female audiences and why some people choose cryogenics to cheat death. Plus, we’ll hear the latest season of The Heart and about a groundbreaking podcast from Amnesty International. Podcasts featured this week: Backstage at the Vinyl Cafe, Rights Back At You, The Heart, Frozen Head For links and more info on these shows, head to https://cbc.ca/podcastplaylist

Have you ever wondered how your favourite song was made? Well, there’s a good chance that it’s been covered on the podcast Song Exploder. From Madonna, to The Roots, to Yo-Yo Ma, musicians take apart their songs piece by piece and tell the story of how they were made. Song Exploder is hosted by Hrishikesh Hirway. In addition to being a musician himself, he's also a celebrated podcaster, having co-hosted award-winning shows like Home Cooking and the rewatch podcast The West Wing Weekly. This week he joins Leah to talk about the unifying power of music, and share a few podcasts that bring him joy. We'll hear profound thoughts from inanimate objects, the adventures of a wizard and a talking badger, an analysis of the Fast & Furious movies, and close with a heartfelt poetry reading. Podcasts featured this week: Song Exploder, Everything is Alive, Hello From the Magic Tavern, How Did This Get Made?, Interesting People Reading Poetry For links and more info on these shows, head to https://cbc.ca/podcastplaylist

This week on Podcast Playlist, we’re talking about the latest in true crime podcasting. Hannah Ajala is the host of the new podcast from CBC and the BBC World Service – Love, Janessa. In the podcast, we learn about a person called Janessa Brazil, whose image has been used in countless catfishing schemes across the world. Hannah joins Leah Simone-Bowen to discuss catfishing during the pandemic and how online dating has affected relationships. Plus, new seasons of True Crime Byline, and a new CBC Podcast that looks at the Barry and Honey Sherman murders. Podcasts featured this week: Love, Janessa, True Crime Byline, Bone Valley, The No-Good, Terribly Kind, Wonderful Lives and Tragic Deaths of Barry and Honey Sherman, Scamfluencers. For links and more info on these shows, head to https://cbc.ca/podcastplaylist