Cannonball with Wesley Morris

Conversations about the culture that moves us – the good, the bad and whatever’s in between. Every week, critic Wesley Morris talks with writers and artists about the moment we’re in. Surprisingly personal and never obvious, new episodes drop Thursdays. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

Cannonball with Wesley Morris is a arts podcast hosted by Unknown Host, with 0 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80. PitchCentric scores this show on Booking Probability, Listen Score, and live audience signals refreshed every 24 hours.

Unknown Host hosts Cannonball with Wesley Morris, a arts show with 0 episodes published.

Our AI reads these to draft pitches. Use them as grounding for a pitch that cites a real guest and a specific topic.

• 

  Cannonball with Wesley Morris

  Caught Up in the Rapture of Anita Baker

  Aug 20, 202651 min

  Anita Baker’s second album, “Rapture,” was released in 1986 and became a breakout hit for the R & B singer from Detroit, winning two Grammys and selling eight million copies worldwide. The album’s eight tracks defined her signature sound — what Baker liked to call “fireside love songs with jazz overtones” — and solidified her as a giant of the Quiet Storm radio era. But while the singer went on to produce four more albums, most notably her follow-up, “Giving You the Best That I Got,” in 1988, she hasn’t maintained the mainstream presence of her “Rapture” years. Today, Wesley wonders: Is Baker underrated, properly rated, or just kind of … forgotten? He brings these questions to Danyel Smith, former editor at Billboard and editor in chief of Vibe Magazine. Together, they luxuriate in Anita Baker’s “Rapture” while wrestling with her legacy. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher .  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Cannonball with Wesley Morris

  The Bicentennial Was Better!

  Aug 13, 202647 min

  What did we get for our country’s 250th birthday, a.k.a. the semi-quincentennial? An Ultimate Fighting Championship cage match on the White House lawn? A sparsely attended Great American State Fair? An underwhelming logo? The last time we had an anniversary this massive, it was 1976 — the bicentennial — and the celebration was everywhere: in our movies, in our books, in our Saturday morning cartoons. What happened this year? Wesley Morris is perplexed. Jennifer Schuessler, a Times reporter who covers intellectual life and ideas, has talked to state planners and historians alike, and attended semi-quincentennial events across the country. Together, she and Wesley mull over the circumstances that led this year’s birthday bash to fall flat, and they celebrate the bicentennial gifts that keep on giving, 50 years later. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher .  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Cannonball with Wesley Morris

  Madonna Returns as Queen of the Club

  Aug 6, 202650 min

  When Madonna’s new album, “Confessions II,” dropped in early July, it went straight to the top of the Billboard 200 ( her 10th No. 1 album ). Many of the 16 tracks plumb her own history for lessons learned along the way. On “Bizarre,” the blue Shelby Cobra she gave her first husband, Sean Penn, “ wasn’t meant to last .” On “The Test,” she tells her daughter Lola Leon, with whom she sings: “I wish I knew the pain I’ve caused.” And on “Danceteria,” she takes us to the New York City clubs of the 1980s and the moment when a D.J. “ played my tape ‘Everybody’ ” and launched her career. Wesley Morris describes the album as “post-nostalgia,” with Madonna using an idea of her past as a slingshot into some kind of future. “Confessions II” is also a dance record that reminds us of the impact she has had on club culture and gay culture. Wesley sits down with one of the biggest Madonna fans he knows — Jacob Bernstein, a writer for The Times’s Styles section and a former club kid in New York City — to talk about her new record and the immense influence Madonna has had on their lives. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher .  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Cannonball with Wesley Morris

  Nolan’s Been Making ‘The Odyssey’ All Along

  Jul 23, 202651 min

  If you haven’t seen Christopher Nolan’s “The Odyssey” yet, good luck. The hit of the summer is selling out showtimes around the country. Wesley Morris initially thought he didn’t need this adaptation. Then, Matt Damon was cast as Odysseus. Curiosity piqued. Fast forward to him in a packed theater (IMAX 70mm, of course) excited by the prospect of an old-fashioned all-star-cast movie. But with Nolan’s filmmaking, it’s never that simple. There’s a lot going on within the nearly three-hour epic that’s fascinated moviegoers and critics alike. And so, whenever there’s a big movie that everybody is talking about, Wesley wants to hear from his pal, Sean Fennessey. Fennessey is head of content at The Ringer and a co-host of the podcast “The Big Picture.” Together, Wesley and Sean go deep on the “The Odyssey” and the evolution of Nolan’s career. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher .  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

  ListenShow Notes
• 

  Cannonball with Wesley Morris

  The World Cup Is This Summer’s Blockbuster

  Jul 16, 202646 min

  After five weeks of action, the World Cup is finally coming to an end, a tournament that will be remembered as much for its feats of athleticism — the precision passes and laserlike goals — as for the passionate fans and spirited team rivalries. No wonder soccer is called the beautiful game. Wesley and his guest, Pablo Torre, host of the podcast “Pablo Torre Finds Out,” also see the action on the pitch as something more: pure cinema. They tick down a list of reasons the matches — and the culture surrounding them — are theatrical. Cue the lights, the cameras and the Viking score. These games have proved more than ready for their Oscar-worthy close-up. Don’t forget the pomade! Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher .  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

  ListenShow Notes

Based on semantic analysis of episode topics and host coverage, this show is a strong guest fit for executives in:

Industry fit is computed by PitchCentric using vector embeddings of the show's episode catalog.