Swiftologist is the official audio feed of pop culture commentator Zachary Hourihane. Known for incisive analysis of Taylor Swift, pop music, celebrity branding, and internet discourse, Swiftologist offers smart, funny, and unfiltered commentary on the artists and stories shaping contemporary culture. From album reviews and career retrospectives to media criticism and pop industry analysis, this is where fandom meets critical thinking.
Latest episodes
Showing 20 · updated from the feed
24: Swiftologist x Rebecca Black Interview: I Have Total Control And It Cost Everything
Rebecca Black sits down with me to talk about her new album Age of the Exhibitionist, surviving "Friday" to become a cult DJ, and staying independent without a label — th
Sep 14 1 h 03 min
23: Swiftologist x Lizzo Interview: Pop Is Broken And Nobody Wants To Admit It
Welcome to Proto Pop: my new long form interview series about what it actually means to be a pop artist right now...not just charts and drama, but the systems, risks and
Jun 28 1 h 04 min
22: Journalist Reacts to Olivia Rodrigo's NYTimes Interview
Olivia Rodrigo finally sat down for her first real podcast interview — and she had a lot to say. In this emergency reaction, I break down her NYTimes PopCast conversation
Jun 9 51 min
21: My Brutal Advice for Pop Stars
Justin Bieber. Taylor Swift. Ed Sheeran. Dua Lipa. Katy Perry. I sat down and gave them all my most brutal, unsolicited career advice... and none of them asked for it!
Jun 2 39 min
20: One Song That Can Destroy an Entire Pop Era
The lead single is the highest-stakes move in pop music. One song decides if you get to level up or if the entire era dies on arrival.I ranked every level of lead single
May 25 38 min
19: I Ranked Every Olivia Rodrigo Song From WORST to BEST 😬
THEEEEE rodrigologist is BACK! Before you seem pretty sad for a girl so in love drops, I ranked every single Olivia Rodrigo song from drivers license to drop dead.. and i
May 18 36 min
18: Anthony Fantano Admits He Was Wrong About Everything
GET TICKETS TO MY TOUR: https://www.evolutionofasnake.com
I sat down with Anthony Fantano (The Needle Drop) for one of the most honest conversations about what it actua
May 11 1 h 22 min
17: Journalist Analyzes Taylor Swift's Greatest Songwriter Interview
The New York Times just named Taylor Swift one of the 30 Greatest Living Songwriters. I watched the full Taylor Swift interview and I have some professional thoughts on h
May 7 50 min
16: Manon Proved Katseye Doesn't Have Members. It Has Replaceable Girls.
Manon didn't just leave Katseye. She exposed the system every girl group runs on and it's been running since Destiny's Child. Every girl group has one. The member who doe
Apr 27 41 min
15: Drop Dead Proves Olivia Rodrigo Has No Competition
Olivia Rodrigo's "drop dead" is the best thing I've heard in 2026 — and I'm not being hyperbolic. I'm breaking down everything: the full song reaction, a deep dive into
Apr 21 29 min
14: Ryan Murphy's JFK Jr. Show Is Moral Rot In Designer Clothing
Carolyn Bessette Kennedy did not die in a tragedy. She died in a crash that was preventable, predictable, and the direct result of her husband's decisions. Ryan Murphy's
Apr 12 43 min
13: The Problem With Chappell Roan Has Nothing To Do With Chappell Roan
The Chappell Roan discourse is loud, exhausting, and almost entirely beside the point. There are two versions of this story circulating right now. One casts her as a brav
Apr 7 28 min
12: Ranking Every Taylor Swift Song 5 Years Later (I Was Wrong)
In 2021, I foolishly ranked all of Taylor Swift's studio albums. Let's just say that things have changed since then...we have THREE new albums to discuss: Midnights, The
Mar 30 1 h 32 min
11: Olivia Rodrigo Is The Best Kind Of Taydaughter
Everybody in pop music is trying to look busy right now. Sabrina Carpenter. Tate McRae. The new industry logic is: more output, more presence, more proof of life — or the
Mar 22 22 min
10: Do I Actually Owe Zara Larsson an Apology? Midnight Sun Revisited
Zara Larsson is one of the most commercially consistent pop acts in Europe and has never once managed to translate that into a moment that felt culturally urgent. That's
Mar 19 27 min
9: The Rise and Fall and Rebirth of Camila Cabello
Most people have already written the Camila Cabello narrative: Fifth Harmony fallout, "Havana" mega-hit, public image disaster, then C,XOXO as a redemption arc. Neat, tid
Mar 19 46 min
8: Taylor Swift’s Career Was Dying…Until Folklore Saved It
By 2020, Taylor Swift had everything that looks like success on paper and was quietly losing the thing that actually matters: cultural relevance. The 63 taylor swift rep
Mar 19 31 min
7: How to Murder Your Career: Nicki Minaj Chose This
There was a version of Nicki Minaj's story that ended in an undisputed, generational legacy. The first female rapper to be taken seriously in a boys' club genre, the blue
Mar 19 47 min
6: How to Murder Your Career: Demi Lovato And The Disney Curse
Demi Lovato had everything that should translate into a long, sustained pop career: a genuinely powerful voice, a built-in fanbase from her Disney era, and a personal sto
Mar 19 1 h 23 min
5: Why Taylor Swift Finally Broke Her Silence on Charli XCX
Taylor Swift and Charli XCX spent years existing in the same pop universe without ever publicly acknowledging each other — and then, suddenly, that changed. This episode
Mar 19 53 min
Chart trend
Position in the Music Commentary chart (US), last 90 days.
#1#66#130JunJulAugSep
#11
all-time peak
93
days in the top 50 since Mar 2026
Chart positions
Where Swiftologist ranks today in each Apple Podcasts chart (US, Sep 21, 2026).
A curated, balanced selection of Apple Podcasts reviews.
Zach is hilarious and witty. He’s willing to have nuanced and thoughtful conversations about pop culture, and about Taylor Swift. While I don’t agree with some of the comments he makes, he provides thoughtful conversations, and creative thoughts, while also being clever and genuine.
ricklepickle13 · May 2026
Don’t listen to the bots lol. The Swiftologist provides thoughtful nuanced opinions on pop culture. My favorite podcast. So happy I can listen to it on Podcasts now!!
ikebrett12 · May 2026
A weird sort of viewer/listener but a regular none the less. I found Zach when I heard a cultural anthropologist say the Eras Tour was the Woodstock of our day and age and those minimizing it were missing out on history and so 10 years and 3 kids later I decided see what Taylor had done since 1989& to do a ADHD hyper fixation on the anthropological significance of an Artist I liked in my teens and Twenties that would now go down in history for many very impressive reasons and that is how I found Zach and have stayed with ever since because I was able to get the take on her realizes as well as the hindsight deliciousness of understanding all the Matty Healy stuff since I didn’t come back until after TTPD was out and analyzed. Zach has combined his Childhood obsession and his big brain with his incredible impressive journalistic chops to bring a high brow, sass filled, cultural commentary and when necessary critique on the life and career, music and brand of Taylor swift (and many others that Im not as interested in) Taylor fan or not Zach is has incredible talent and is so good for the mind and soul! Enjoy!
pbandy1 · Apr 2026
There’s been a rise in resentful & rude rhetoric under the disguise of “criticism” in all internet spheres, but this podcast is one main example. “Snark” will always be a low brow form of “comedy” & just is lazy, boring, and personally not funny. A man making profit off of pitting women against women will never be morally sound. Hope anyone who listens to this thinks twice about giving him a platform.
Retro_Chick · May 2026
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Here you find the Apple Podcasts chart positions of Swiftologist, its latest episodes to listen to directly, and reviews from listeners. Rankings are updated daily for the United States.
