Rick Rubin

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  1. Brandon Flowers

    1d ago

    Brandon Flowers

    Brandon Flowers’ new album, Thrasher, is a beautifully written ode to the Southwest where he grew up. It’s a deeply personal record, shining a light on the people close to him, the lives they’ve lived, and the difficulties they’ve navigated between his childhood in Henderson, Nevada, and Payson, Utah. It also explores some of the dead ends Brandon himself might have easily gone down had he not found another path. Of course, that path led to extraordinary success with the Killers and a sound Brandon describes as a mix of Britpop and British post-punk. But the music that surrounded him growing up was country. His dad and his neighbors played Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, and other country greats. It was a sound Brandon never quite left behind, and one he developed a deeper connection to over the years. So for Thrasher, he went to Nashville’s legendary RCA Studio A, where he recorded with some of the great musicians in the genre: Charlie McCoy, who played on Bob Dylan’s legendary Nashville sessions; Bruce Bouton, who has played pedal steel with Garth Brooks from the very beginning of his career; and David Rawlings, Gillian Welch’s longtime collaborator. On today’s episode, Brandon Flowers talks about making Thrasher, what it felt like to finally unlock the door that country music had been holding open for him his whole life, and the stories the album carries with it: the family members, the memories, and the particular texture of growing up Mormon and working-class in the American West. You can hear a playlist of some of our favorite songs from Brandon Flowers HERE. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

  2. Best Of: The Tao of Rick Rubin

    Sep 1 • Subscribers Only

    Best Of: The Tao of Rick Rubin

    Whatever type of music you love, Rick Rubin has probably left his mark on it. Rubin, a founder of Def Jam Recordings and a former co-chairman of Columbia Records, might be the most influential music producer alive. A very partial roll call of the artists he’s worked with: Johnny Cash, Jay-Z, Run-DMC, Eminem, Beastie Boys, Slayer, The Red Hot Chili Peppers, Kanye West, Neil Diamond, Brandi Carlile and Adele. We recorded this in 2023, after Rubin released a fascinating, unusual book, “The Creative Act: A Way of Being.” I’d expected stories of late-night sessions with famous musicians, but instead it read like a spiritual tract. Rubin was offering a guide to how to cultivate the mind states that lead to real creativity. And that’s what this conversation was about, too: how to open yourself up more to the world, and learn to trust your own taste.  Rubin’s advice feels more relevant with each passing year, as technology gets ever better at hacking our attention and the world fills with A.I. slop. So I wanted to share this episode again.  Mentioned: The Tao Te-Ching by Lao Tzu, translated by Stephen Mitchell “American Recordings” by Johnny Cash “Pulses” by Steve Reich and Erik Hall “Music for Wobbling. Music Versus Gravity.” by F.S. Blumm and Nils Frahm Album recommendations: “Forever Changes” by Love “The Beatles” by The Beatles “Ramones” by Ramones Thoughts? Guest suggestions? Email us at ezrakleinshow@nytimes.com. You can find transcripts (posted midday) and more episodes of “The Ezra Klein Show” at nytimes.com/ezra-klein-podcast, and you can find Ezra on X @ezraklein. Book recommendations from all our guests are listed at https://www.nytimes.com/article/ezra-klein-show-book-recs. This episode of “The Ezra Klein Show” is produced by Annie Galvin. Fact-checking by Michelle Harris. Our senior engineer is Jeff Geld. Our recording engineer is Aman Sahota. Cinematography by Marina King. Our executive producer is Claire Gordon. The show’s production team also includes Marie Cascione, Rollin Hu, Kristin Lin, Emma Kehlbeck, Jack McCordick and Jan Kobal. Original music by Pat McCusker. Audience strategy by Shannon Busta. The director of New York Times Opinion Shows is Annie-Rose Strasser. Special thanks to Jon Caramanica, Dan Charnas, Jack Hamilton, Felix Grimm, Carole Sabouraud and Kristina Samulewski. 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. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

  3. Tom Morello

    Sep 8

    Tom Morello

    Tom Morello arrived in Los Angeles from Libertyville, Illinois, in the mid-1980s with a Harvard political science degree in his pocket and a guitar slung across his back, determined to become the next great guitarist on the scene. Instead, he found himself locked out of the glam-rock world that had taken over the Sunset Strip. By day, he worked as a secretary to a state senator; by night, he played clubs, searching for a way in. Then, in 1991, Morello co-founded Rage Against the Machine with Zack de la Rocha—and everything changed. The band fused hip-hop, punk, metal, and politics into something entirely new, becoming one of the biggest rock bands of the 1990s. Rage has been on and off over the past 25 years, but Morello has rarely stood still. He formed Audioslave, recorded folk protest songs as The Nightwatchman, toured as a member of Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band, and collaborated with artists ranging from Chuck D and B-Real to Johnny Cash. Now, for the first time in his decades-long career, Morello has made a true solo album. Everyone Gets Everything They Want combines high-energy rock with social consciousness—and features his 15-year-old son, Roman, as a collaborator throughout. On today’s episode, Justin Richmond talks with Tom Morello about making Everyone Gets Everything They Want and the long road that led him there. Morello tells the story of his early years in Los Angeles, the divide between the Eastside and the Sunset Strip, his time with the E Street Band, and much more. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

  4. Essentials: How to Access Your Creativity | Rick Rubin

    Aug 20

    Essentials: How to Access Your Creativity | Rick Rubin

    In this Huberman Lab Essentials episode, my guest Rick Rubin, world-renowned music producer and author of The Creative Act: A Way of Being, and I discuss how to access creativity by noticing ideas, trusting your taste and staying fully present with the work. Rick explains the phases of the creative process and how focus, disengagement, self-doubt, deadlines and meditation can support original work. We also explore perception, pro wrestling and why remaining open to uncertainty can help anyone create more authentically. Thank you to our sponsors AG1: https://drinkag1.com/huberman LMNT: https://drinklmnt.com/huberman Timestamps (00:00:00) Rick Rubin & Creativity (00:00:23) Creativity as a Dream or Cloud (00:01:53) Childhood, Openness & Originality (00:03:29) Trust Your Taste; Experiment, Don't Over-Explain (00:05:28) Announcement: Protocols Live Events (00:07:07) Creative Aperture & New Perspectives (00:07:48) External Feedback & Staying True to the Work (00:09:14) Finishing Creative Projects (00:10:35) Focus, Disengagement & the Subconscious (00:13:15) Sponsor: LMNT (00:15:04) Perception, Storytelling & Uncertainty (00:17:38) Pro Wrestling, Playfulness & Reality (00:18:59) Morning Routine & Receptivity (00:19:50) Four Phases of Creative Work; Deadlines (00:24:47) Sponsor: AG1 (00:26:08) Self-Doubt as a Creative Tool (00:27:05) Capturing Real Moments; Authenticity (00:28:10) Routines, Advice & Staying Open (00:29:45) Look for Clues; Belief & Attention (00:32:01) Staying Present in the Work (00:32:44) Meditation: Mantra, Breath & Awareness (00:34:42) Monroe Institute Surgical Support Series Disclaimer & Disclosures Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  5. David Porter

    Sep 1

    David Porter

    David Porter's story goes well beyond writing songs and releasing albums for Stax Records. His recent memoir, The Soul Man, tells how he and his partner Isaac Hayes helped invent a sound rich and enduring enough to define American music from the 1960s to today. Together they wrote and produced hits for Sam & Dave, Johnnie Taylor, and dozens of other artists, and in the process built what became known as the Stax sound, a sound Porter still describes as the pursuit of pure emotional connection. Porter grew up on a dead-end street in Memphis that also produced Maurice White of Earth, Wind & Fire and members of the Bar-Kays. He started out singing in church before eventually singing and producing music for Stax. He never learned to read music. None of the great names at Stax did. Instead, they built songs by ear, in the room, together, a process Porter calls “head arrangements,” and it became the foundation for some of the greatest songs in the history of R&B. Today, Bruce Headlam sits down with David Porter to talk about how he and Isaac Hayes built a signature sound to set themselves apart from Motown, Burt Bacharach and Hal David. He also recalls the writing session that turned a bathroom joke into Sam & Dave's "Hold On, I'm Coming," and the incredible story of how Otis Redding went from an artist's personal driver to a Stax superstar. You can hear a playlist of some of our favorite songs from David Porter HERE. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

  6. Steven Pressfield

    Aug 12

    Steven Pressfield

    Steven Pressfield is a bestselling novelist, nonfiction author, and screenwriter. He published his first novel, The Legend of Bagger Vance, in his early fifties, launching him onto the literary map and leading to a 2000 film directed by Robert Redford. Pressfield’s 1998 Spartan epic Gates of Fire became a modern classic of military historical fiction and is widely read in military circles around the world, selling over one million copies worldwide. He is also the author of the 2002 bestseller The War of Art and subsequent titles like Turning Pro and Do the Work, which have made him a key voice on the inner challenges of writing, work, and creative life. Steven Pressfield is a bestselling novelist, nonfiction author, and screenwriter. He published his first novel, The Legend of Bagger Vance, in his early fifties, launching him onto the literary map and leading to a 2000 film directed by Robert Redford. His 1998 Spartan epic Gates of Fire became a modern classic of military historical fiction, widely read in military circles around the world and selling more than one million copies. His newest novel, The Arcadian, published in 2026, returns to the terrain of war and the warrior’s inner life in a genre-bending story set in sixteenth-century Spain. Following the mercenary Telamon across time and lifetimes, the novel explores fate, violence, redemption, and whether a man made for battle can ever truly lay down his sword. Pressfield is also the author of the 2002 bestseller The War of Art and subsequent books including Turning Pro and Do the Work, which have made him a defining voice on resistance, discipline, and the inner challenges of writing, work, and the creative life. The War of Art Gates of Fire Tides of War The Arcadian  A Man at Arms The Legend of Bagger Vance ------ Thank you to the sponsors that fuel our podcast and our team: Anthropic ⁠https://Claude.com/tetra⁠ ------ AGZ ⁠https://DrinkAG1.com/tetra⁠ ------ Athletic Nicotine ⁠https://www.AthleticNicotine.com/tetra⁠ Use code 'TETRA' ------ LMNT Electrolytes ⁠https://DrinkLMNT.com/tetra⁠ Use code 'TETRA' ------ Lectio 365 ⁠https://Lectio365.com⁠ ------ Sign up to receive Tetragrammaton Transmissions https://www.tetragrammaton.com/join-newsletter  Follow Tetragrammaton: ⁠https://x.com/tetranow⁠ https://www.instagram.com/tetragrammaton.now Follow Rick: ⁠https://x.com/rickrubin⁠ ⁠https://www.instagram.com/rickrubin⁠

  7. Interpol's Daniel Kessler

    Aug 18

    Interpol's Daniel Kessler

    Daniel Kessler grew up between London, Paris, and Washington, D.C., listening to his older brother’s early UK rock records. He picked up guitar as a teenager, the same day he quit skateboarding, and after moving to New York in the late ’90s, he set out to find musicians serious enough to start a band. In 1997, that band became Interpol and when their debut Turn on the Bright Lights came out in 2002, it helped define a new wave of New York indie bands, alongside the Strokes and Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and topped Pitchfork’s year-end list. More than two decades later, Kessler remains the musical architect of Interpol, writing the foundation of the band’s songs, often alone on a classical guitar before bringing them to his bandmates. The band has now made eight albums together, and their latest, This Mirror Weighs a Ton, is their first record made in New York in more than a decade. Produced by Andrew Wyatt, it expands Interpol’s familiar sound with more experimental textures—and features Kessler singing for the first time since Turn on the Bright Lights. On today’s episode, Leah Rose talks with Daniel Kessler about making the new album, the early days when Interpol played to almost nobody, a chance encounter with David Bowie before a show at Hammerstein Ballroom, and the creative routines—guitar, coffee, and films—that have kept him writing for nearly three decades. You can hear a playlist of some of our favorite songs from Daniel Kessler & Interpol HERE. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.