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Stephen Thompson Stephen Thompson is a host, writer and reviewer for NPR Music and Pop Culture Happy Hour. He appears frequently on All Songs Considered and NPR newsmagazines.
Washington, DC - May 03, 2016: Stephen Thompson CREDIT: Matt Roth
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Stephen Thompson

Tuesday

Presenting 'Pop Culture Happy Hour': is 'Ghostbusters: Afterlife' stuck in nostalgia?

A view of a Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man figurine at the GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE World Premiere on November 15, 2021. Theo Wargo/Getty Images for Sony Pictures hide caption

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Theo Wargo/Getty Images for Sony Pictures

Review

It's Been a Minute

Presenting 'Pop Culture Happy Hour': is 'Ghostbusters: Afterlife' stuck in nostalgia?

In this special episode from our friends at Pop Culture Happy Hour, guest host Ayesha Rascoe joins co-hosts Glen Weldon and Stephen Thompson as well as NPR contributor Cyrena Touros to talk about the new movie Ghostbusters: Afterlife. They discuss why it's hard to recapture the original Ghostbusters magic and if the latest installment of the franchise added more to its world — or not.

Presenting 'Pop Culture Happy Hour': is 'Ghostbusters: Afterlife' stuck in nostalgia?

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'Encanto' is a Disney film filled with charming visuals and lackluster songs

Stephanie Beatriz voices Mirabel in the new Disney film Encanto. Disney hide caption

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Disney

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

'Encanto' is a Disney film filled with charming visuals and lackluster songs

Encanto is the latest animated Disney musical that tells the story of the Madrigal family, whose members are tucked away in the mountains of Colombia. The film is stuffed with characters who wield magical powers and perform lavish musical numbers written by Lin-Manuel Miranda. But for all its magical realism, it's also a fairly simple story about a family whose bonds need healing.

'Encanto' is a Disney film filled with charming visuals and lackluster songs

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Thursday

Wednesday

House of Gucci is a spicy meatball

Adam Driver, Jared Leto, and Lady Gaga in Ridley Scott's House of Gucci. Fabio Lovino/MGM hide caption

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Fabio Lovino/MGM

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

House of Gucci is a spicy meatball

Ridley Scott's House of Gucci is a whole lot of movie. Adam Driver plays the wealthy Mauritzio Gucci, and Lady Gaga plays his wife Patrizia. Al Pacino and Jared Leto play Mauritzio's uncle and cousin, who eventually battle Mauritzio for control of the Gucci empire. It's got fashion, it's got tragedy, and it's got terrible accents.

House of Gucci is a spicy meatball

Listen · 25:45
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Tuesday

King Richard is Will Smith at his Oscar-iest

Aunjanue Ellis, Mikayla Bartholomew, Will Smith, Saniyya Sidney, Demi Singleton and Danielle Lawson in King Richard. Warner Bros. hide caption

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Warner Bros.

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

King Richard is Will Smith at his Oscar-iest

King Richard is a sports movie about the early days of superstar tennis champions Venus and Serena Williams. But, as its title suggests, the film focuses on their demanding and ambitious father, Richard Williams. Directed by Reinaldo Marcus Green, the movie stars Will Smith as a man who'll do anything to get his daughters from Compton to Wimbledon.

King Richard is Will Smith at his Oscar-iest

Listen · 21:15
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Friday

Ghostbusters: Afterlife - Who you gonna call? And should you?

Actors Mckenna Grace and Logan Kim in a scene from Ghostbusters: Afterlife. Sony hide caption

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Sony

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Ghostbusters: Afterlife - Who you gonna call? And should you?

Ghostbusters: Afterlife reconnects with the original timeline of the Ghostbusters films from the 80s while introducing a bunch of new characters. Carrie Coon, Mckenna Grace, and Finn Wolfhard play a family who teams up with Paul Rudd to fight a new supernatural threat. The movie is directed by Jason Reitman — son of Ivan Reitman, who directed the first two Ghostbuster films.

Ghostbusters: Afterlife - Who you gonna call? And should you?

Listen · 25:23
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Wednesday

Silk Sonic is the opposite of sexy, but still fun

Anderson .Paak and Bruno Mars comprise the R&B superduo Silk Sonic. Harper Smith/Atlantic Records hide caption

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Harper Smith/Atlantic Records

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Silk Sonic is the opposite of sexy, but still fun

Silk Sonic is a new musical showcase for two familiar faces: Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak. Their soulful collaborations started trickling out this past March, when the duo released the single "Leave The Door Open." Now they've dropped the album An Evening With Silk Sonic, which features classic funk and soul updated for the present day.

Silk Sonic is the opposite of sexy, but still fun

Listen · 18:29
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Monday

Thank you for the music, ABBA

Björn Ulvaeus, Agnetha Fältskog, Anni-Frid Lyngstad, and Benny Andersson of ABBA. ABBA's new album Voyage is out now. Baillie Walsh/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Baillie Walsh/Courtesy of the artist

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Thank you for the music, ABBA

Earlier this month, ABBA released a new album called Voyage. It's the Swedish pop sensation's first set of new material in 40 years. Voyage gives us a perfect excuse to talk about all things ABBA: the massive sales, the jukebox musical Mamma Mia!, the endless hiatus, and — of course — those classic songs.

Thank you for the music, ABBA

Listen · 19:58
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Tuesday

Tuesday

Friday

New Music Friday: The top 10 albums out on Oct. 29

Mon Laferte's 1940 Carmen is one of our picks for the best releases out on Oct. 29. Joel Orta/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Joel Orta/Courtesy of the artist

All Songs Considered

New Music Friday: The top 10 albums out on Oct. 29

NPR Music picks the best new albums out this week, including new releases by Tori Amos, Mick Jenkins, Mon Laferte, The War on Drugs and more.

New Music Friday: The top 10 albums out on Oct. 29

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Monday

The scary movies and books that still haunt us

Horror author Stephen King has been scaring audiences for generations. Jim Spellman/WireImage hide caption

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Jim Spellman/WireImage

Pop Culture Happy Hour

The scary movies and books that still haunt us

A lot of us are about to have the experience of opening our front doors to find witches, goblins, ghosts, and those guards from Squid Game standing on our porches. Why? Because it's almost Halloween. We decided this would be a good time to talk about what kinds of entertainment scared us when we were kids, and maybe even whether they still scare us now.

The scary movies and books that still haunt us

Listen · 21:57
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Thursday

Three songs for cleaning your bathroom

Cleaning the bathroom requires two things: a mop and some really good tunes. Angela Hsieh/NPR hide caption

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Angela Hsieh/NPR

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Three songs for cleaning your bathroom

NPR Music has song recommendations for every occasion, from major life events to tidying up the house. As we enter the fall season, it doesn't hurt to spruce up and start afresh with a new playlist. Today, we're recommending three songs to play while dance-cleaning the bathroom.

Three songs for cleaning your bathroom

Listen · 6:15
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Wednesday

When auteurs and film franchises meet

Director Taika Waititi made offbeat films like Hunt for the Wilderpeople before he leveled up to blockbuster director status with Marvel's Thor: Ragnarok. Dave J Hogan/Getty Images hide caption

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Dave J Hogan/Getty Images

Pop Culture Happy Hour

When auteurs and film franchises meet

This fall, a number of auteurs are directing major blockbusters: Cary Joji Fukunaga took on the James Bond movie No Time To Die; Chloe Zhao joins the Marvel Cinematic Universe with Eternals; and Denis Villeneuve hopes to launch a film franchise with Dune. So we thought it would be a good time to revisit our conversation about how auteur directors shape genre films. In this encore episode recorded on stage in Los Angeles, we're talking about auteurs and film franchises — and dream up some great artists taking on unexpected genres.

When auteurs and film franchises meet

Listen · 23:01
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