The Toast

Podbit · The Toast

Bloodlines: Wednesday, June 24th, 2026

Explore episode Jun 24, 2026
Music
Lizzo Sold 2,649 Copies — And the Real Reason Is the Music

Bloodlines: Wednesday, June 24th, 2026 · Jun 24, 2026 Music

Lizzo's new album 'Bitch' sold just 2,649 copies in its first week and failed to land a single song on the Billboard 200. Jackie and Claudia argue the real culprit isn't the lawsuit from her backup dancers, the label abandoning her, or even the streaming shift — it's simply that the music isn't good enough to overcome any of those headwinds.

Where this was said

Sponsor Block 2: Fashion Pass, Starbucks Frappuccino & Outshine

At 44:49 · chapter starts 42:00

Claudia opens the second sponsor block with Fashion Pass, a clothing rental service she's used since around 2022, pitching it as a 'second closet you don't have to organize' — particularly for 'sweepers' who over-accumulate clothes. Starbucks Frappuccino follows, with Claudia recounting how she served a large bucket of them at Ruby's birthday party in the park as a coffee solution that went completely empty. Outshine frozen fruit bars close the block, positioned as a guilt-free summer sweet treat — almost all bars under 100 calories, mini pops at 40 calories each — with Claudia noting the family buys three or four boxes every grocery run.

Similar podbits

Music
Joe Higgs: The Man Who Built the Wailers

Reggae: Kingston’s Gift to the World · Aug 6, 2026 Music

Joe Higgs is reggae's great unsung hero. This Kingston musician took teenage Bob Marley, Peter Tosh, and Bunny Wailer under his wing and taught them how to sing, write songs, and make music — at a time when most artists would have focused on their own careers. Without him, the Wailers probably just would have sucked.

Music
Marley vs. Tosh: MLK and Malcolm X of Reggae

Reggae: Kingston’s Gift to the World · Aug 6, 2026 Music

Reggae archivist Roger Steffens' analogy says it all: Bob Marley was reggae's Martin Luther King Jr., making the music universally palatable; Peter Tosh was its Malcolm X, inserting fierce militant political energy. Together, they gave the Wailers a depth no single voice could achieve alone.

Music
King Tubby and the Birth of Dub

Reggae: Kingston’s Gift to the World · Aug 6, 2026 Music

King Tubby built his own hardware from cast-off recording gear to strip vocals and create dubbed-out instrumental reggae — essentially inventing electronic music in Kingston before Kraftwerk did it in Germany. The dubplate he created became the raw material for DJs to toast over, seeding hip-hop.

Music
Bob Marley Shot, Still Played the Concert

Reggae: Kingston’s Gift to the World · Aug 6, 2026 Music

Two days before the 1976 Smile Jamaica anti-violence concert, gunmen shot Bob Marley in the chest and shoulder, shot Rita Marley, and wounded two others. He showed up and played anyway. The concert had already drawn accusations that Marley was a tool of the PNP government — a charge that frustrated him deeply.

Music
The Murder of Peter Tosh

Reggae: Kingston’s Gift to the World · Aug 6, 2026 Music

Peter Tosh's killer was a man Tosh had taken in after prison, giving him shelter and food. The man repaid that generosity by holding Tosh hostage, torturing him for money, and shooting him in the head. It is one of the most brutal betrayals in music history.

Music
London: Reggae's Second City

Reggae: Kingston’s Gift to the World · Aug 6, 2026 Music

The Windrush Generation brought Caribbean music to London after World War II, and reggae's 2-and-4 rhythm lodged itself deep in British culture — giving birth to ska bands like The Specials, pop acts like UB40, and even punk. Johnny Rotten was a reggae fan, and Public Image Limited has the dub influence to prove it.

Music
Reggaetón's Reggae Roots

Reggae: Kingston’s Gift to the World · Aug 6, 2026 Music

Reggaetón didn't come from nowhere. It emerged from underground Spanish-language reggae-rap scenes in Panama and Puerto Rico, drawing directly on Jamaican reggae's rhythms and attitude. The line from Kingston to Bad Bunny's Super Bowl performance is a straight one.