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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

Relax: Songs to calm the nerves

Image from the cover to Laraaji's 2023 album, Segue to Infinity. Illustration by Jackie Lay/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Illustration by Jackie Lay/Courtesy of the artist

All Songs Considered

Relax: Songs to calm the nerves

It's music to the rescue on this week's All Songs Considered, with a mix of songs to slow the blood, including the one track scientists believe can reduce anxiety by up to 65%.

Relax: Songs to calm the nerves

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Friday

New Music Friday: The best albums out March 22

Waxahatchee's Tigers Blood is one of the best releases out March 22. Molly Matalon/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Molly Matalon/Courtesy of the artist

All Songs Considered

New Music Friday: The best albums out March 22

Though it isn't quite as packed with huge names as last week, we're digging through another robust assortment of terrific albums. Daoud Tyler-Ameen and Stephen Thompson open by hailing Tigers Blood, the latest album from a singer-songwriter — Katie Crutchfield of Waxahatchee — who sounds more assured and potent than ever.

New Music Friday: The best albums out March 22

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Thursday

Sunday

Review

Movie Reviews

Review: 'Kung Fu Panda 4'

How does Kung Fu Panda 4 stack up against its predecessors in the popular animated movie franchise? Stephen Thompson from NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour brings a group together to review the new film.

Review: 'Kung Fu Panda 4'

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Friday

Wednesday

Is 'Kung Fu Panda 4' a worthy entry in the fun and thoughtful franchise?

Shifu voiced by Dustin Hoffman and Po voiced by Jack Black return in DreamWorks Animation's Kung Fu Panda 4. DreamWorks Animation hide caption

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DreamWorks Animation

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Is 'Kung Fu Panda 4' a worthy entry in the fun and thoughtful franchise?

Kung Fu Panda 4 is the latest movie in the popular and surprisingly thoughtful animated film franchise. Jack Black returns to voice Po, a gigantic, adorable panda who becomes the highly unlikely Dragon Warrior. He embarks on a quest alongside a devious fox, played by Awkwafina, to face a new villain, the Chameleon, played by Viola Davis. You got your hero's journey and training montages and some pretty stellar voice acting.

Is 'Kung Fu Panda 4' a worthy entry in the fun and thoughtful franchise?

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Monday

Our 2024 Oscars Recap

Emma Stone won her second best actress Oscar, this time for her role in Poor Things. Arturo Holmes/Getty Images hide caption

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Arturo Holmes/Getty Images

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Our 2024 Oscars Recap

At this year's Oscars, Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer won in most of the major categories, including best picture and best director. It was also a big night for Emma Stone, and Robert Downey Jr. Plus, Ryan Gosling brought the kenergy with a performance from Barbie.

Our 2024 Oscars Recap

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Friday

What's Making Us Happy: A guide to your weekend viewing and listening

Pauli Murray is the subject of the documentary My Name Is Pauli Murray. Pauli Murray Foundation hide caption

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Pauli Murray Foundation

What's Making Us Happy: Recommendations From 'Pop Culture Happy Hour'

What's Making Us Happy: A guide to your weekend viewing and listening

Each week, Pop Culture Happy Hour guests and hosts share what's bringing them joy. This week: My Name is Pauli Murray, Strangers with Candy, the On the Job series and the Eurovangelists podcast.

2024 Oscars Preview: Who will win and who should win

Cillian Murphy in the film Oppenheimer. Universal Pictures hide caption

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Universal Pictures

Pop Culture Happy Hour

2024 Oscars Preview: Who will win and who should win

Will it be Oppenheimer? Will it be Barbie? Or will it be some other story entirely? It's time to get down to business, because the Oscars are upon us. In this guide, we're talking about actors, directors, best pictures — and everything we think will and should win.

2024 Oscars Preview: Who will win and who should win

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Wednesday

Polyamory gets a bad rap in 'Couple to Throuple'

Ashmal in Peacock's Couple To Throuple. Paul Castillero/Peacock hide caption

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Paul Castillero/Peacock

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Polyamory gets a bad rap in 'Couple to Throuple'

Most dating shows have two things in common: They are terrible and they are watchable. That dynamic continues on Peacock's new dating show Couple to Throuple. Four couples exploring polyamory arrive at a resort and are allowed to choose from a smorgasbord of single people in the hopes that they will find a "third" who can put the "throup" in "throuple." Drama ensues.

Polyamory gets a bad rap in 'Couple to Throuple'

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Tuesday

The Contenders, Vol. 4: Our running list of the year's best songs

Madi Diaz's new album, Weird Faith, includes the deeply affecting song, "God Person," one of our best-of-the-year contenders. Muriel Margaret/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Muriel Margaret/Courtesy of the artist

All Songs Considered

The Contenders, Vol. 4: Our running list of the year's best songs

Brittany Luse, host of NPR's It's Been A Minute, joins NPR's Stephen Thompson and host Robin Hilton to update our running tally of songs that could end up on NPR Music's best-of-the-year lists.

The Contenders, Vol. 4: Our running list of the year's best songs

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Monday

2024 Oscars Guide: Original Song

Ryan Gosling performs the Oscar-nominated song "I'm Just Ken" in Barbie. Warner Bros. hide caption

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Warner Bros.

Pop Culture Happy Hour

2024 Oscars Guide: Original Song

This year's Oscar nominees for best original song are headlined by two songs from Barbie: one from Billie Eilish, and the other from Ryan Gosling. But there's also an intriguing mix of tracks from Jon Batiste, the Osage Tribal Singers, and Becky G — with an assist from perennial Oscar nominee Diane Warren. Today, we get into what we think will win, what should win, and what criteria should we use when we judge original songs in movies?

2024 Oscars Guide: Original Song

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Saturday

Tuesday

Beck's 'Loser' at 30 and the golden age of slacker rock

Beck as seen in his 1994 video for the song "Loser." Youtube screen grab by NPR hide caption

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Youtube screen grab by NPR

All Songs Considered

Beck's 'Loser' at 30 and the golden age of slacker rock

Nothing on mainstream radio sounded like Beck's "Loser" when it dropped in 1994. Thirty years later, we explain why, look at its impact on the rise of slacker rock and how we still hear it today.

Beck's 'Loser' at 30 and the golden age of slacker rock

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