The Zane Lowe Interview Series

The Story of Classical is your essential nine-part companion guide to classical music. In each of our commentaries, we unlock the mystery and beauty of every musical period—from the Middle Ages to the present day—by chronicling an encounter between vital figures in music history.

As a founding member of blink-182, +44, and Simple Creatures, Mark Hoppus has survived three decades of alternative music—from the punk clubs of Southern California to unlikely pop stardom in the TRL era to navigating the new millennium’s post-genre revolution. Each week on After School Radio on Apple Music 1, Mark focuses on the songs, artists, and culture that’ve defined the movement, with the sense of humor and perspective that have become his trademark.

One of K-pop’s hottest octets now has its own show on Apple Music 1. Hosted by Bang Chan and Felix, All About Stray Kids Radio gives listeners an inside look into the boy band and their highly anticipated comeback album. Over the course of four episodes, the two band members will share their favorite music, inspirations, and stories about their lives before becoming Stray Kids, plus they’ll invite their bandmates to join as guests.

London-based Matt Wilkinson first bubbled up as a writer and editor at renowned UK music magazine NME, where he reported on artists who were changing pop culture one song at a time. His first interview was with Amy Winehouse, in a cemetery in Bristol, when she was one of the biggest names in music—a foundational experience for Matt. “Even though I was totally inexperienced,” he says, “that Amy interview was life-changing for me. When she realized I was there to talk about music rather than her private life, she just came alive—waxing lyrical about ’60s girl groups, hip-hop, the lot. This was the first time I’d ever sat eye-to-eye with a big-name musician and really connected with them. And forging that connection is still what I aim to do when I speak to artists today.” As the host of his namesake show on Apple Music, Matt brings that sense of music history and connection to the air, mining the most interesting new music, chronicling the best of the UK scene, and telling the stories behind the songs of the day with revealing interviews and more. But above all? He’s a music fan obsessed with the idea that “there are still classic songs waiting to be discovered,” he says. “I’m forever looking for the 'hairs on the back of the neck' feeling to happen. That unnameable, rare thing where you hear a song and it suddenly changes your life. It happens every so often and it's the best thing ever.” Hear The Matt Wilkinson Show every Monday through Friday on Apple Music 1 at 4 am LA/7 am NYC/12 pm LDN.

Apple Music Country host Ty Bentli knew that he wanted to spread the joy of music to the masses at a young age. “There are tapes of my best friend and I doing a bedroom radio show,” Bentli explains, explaining that tragedy helped fuel his belief in the power of great music. “I lost several friends to suicide when I was young, which informs my commitment to making people feel included, connected, and loved. I love to show people that they belong—and music plays a role in every bit of that.” From those humble bedroom beginnings, the South Dakota native and lifelong country music fan worked his way up the radio ranks, through Little Rock, Austin, Chicago, Los Angeles, and, finally, New York City. Nashville opened a door when he was offered a nationally syndicated country show, which expanded internationally soon after. (“I’m still on each morning in New York City,” he explains, “but with the added benefit of a yard in Tennessee.”) On his namesake Apple Music Country show, Bentli uses songs, stories, and in-depth conversations with your favorite musicians to reflect what’s happening in the world each day. “My job is to take the connection you have to music, make it more fun, and give it more depth,” he says. “The personal aspect of a song and how it can emotionally move someone is so important.” Tune in to The Ty Bentli Show every Monday through Thursday on Apple Music Country at 7 am LA/9 am NYC/3 pm LDN.

The host of her namesake show as well as R&B Now, Nadeska Alexis brings a one-of-a-kind, truly global and diverse perspective to music and culture. Although she proudly reps New York City, she was born in Grenada to a huge family and moved to Brooklyn when she was 11, which is where her musical education blossomed. “Living in Grenada for the first few years of my life meant that reggae and soca music were the sounds that I naturally heard all around me—those sounds still very much feel like home to me,” she says. “But the earliest musical memory that sticks in my mind was spending time with my cousins after school and watching hip-hop and R&B videos. I was a little too young to fully understand what I was seeing, but it made an impression, and when I moved to the States I became fully immersed in that culture. It gave me a unique musical education.” Nadeska—who made her name as a music journalist and cohosted Complex’s breakout hit video series Everyday Struggle—brings that unique viewpoint to everything she does. “My show is crafted from the perspective of a young Black woman who’s experienced many different cultures growing up; that has given me an appreciation for multiple genres and how often they overlap,” she says. “My goal is always to leave listeners with something new that feels familiar at the same time." Hear her on The Nadeska Show every Friday at 7 am LA, 10 am NY, and 3 pm London on Apple Music 1, plus Fridays at 8 am LA, 11 am NY, and 4 pm London on R&B Now Radio.