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It's Been a Minute Has it been a minute since you heard a thought-provoking conversation about culture? Brittany Luse wants to help. Each week, she takes the things everyone's talking about and, in conversation with her favorite creators, tastemakers, and experts, gives you new ways to think about them. Beyond the obvious takes. Because culture doesn't happen by accident.

If you can't get enough, try It's Been a Minute Plus. Your subscription supports the show and unlocks a sponsor-free feed. Learn more at plus.npr.org/itsbeenaminute
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Has it been a minute since you heard a thought-provoking conversation about culture? Brittany Luse wants to help. Each week, she takes the things everyone's talking about and, in conversation with her favorite creators, tastemakers, and experts, gives you new ways to think about them. Beyond the obvious takes. Because culture doesn't happen by accident.

If you can't get enough, try It's Been a Minute Plus. Your subscription supports the show and unlocks a sponsor-free feed. Learn more at plus.npr.org/itsbeenaminute

Most Recent Episodes

The return of Andre 3000; plus, 'Rap Sh!t' puts the music industry on blast

Andre 3000, Aida Osman as Shawna Clark, and KaMillion as Mia Knight. Kai Regan / Courtesy of the artist; Erin Simkin/Max hide caption

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Kai Regan / Courtesy of the artist; Erin Simkin/Max

The return of Andre 3000; plus, 'Rap Sh!t' puts the music industry on blast

As many male rappers seem to become more depressed or vindictive in their lyrics, the women of rap appear to be having all the fun. One show that captures this moment is Rap Sh!t on Max. Brittany sits down with the showrunner and writer, Syreeta Singleton. They discuss the complexities of navigating the rap game as a Black woman, the new social media landscape, and how rap and Rap Sh!t approach sexuality.

The return of Andre 3000; plus, 'Rap Sh!t' puts the music industry on blast

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Pressing pause on 'Killers Of The Flower Moon' and rethinking Scorsese's latest

Lily Gladstone and Leonardo DiCaprio in Killers of the Flower Moon (2023) Apple TV hide caption

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Apple TV

Pressing pause on 'Killers Of The Flower Moon' and rethinking Scorsese's latest

Martin Scorsese's Killers of the Flower Moon is everything an Oscar contender might be - long, epic, morally complicated and expensive. Yet, while many movie-goers left theaters moved, others called the film a problematic disaster. Today on the show, we hear what the movie got wrong and how it fits into a broader history of Native Americans on screen. To unpack this, Brittany Luse is joined by Robert Warrior, a literature and professor and an Osage Nation citizen, Liza Black, a Native American and Indigenous Studies professor and Cherokee Nation citizen, and Nancy Marie Mithlo, a gender studies professor and Fort Sill Chiricahua Warm Springs Apache citizen.

Pressing pause on 'Killers Of The Flower Moon' and rethinking Scorsese's latest

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Barbra Streisand says she's not a diva - she's a director

Barbra Streisand on her life and legacy in My Name is Barbra. Terry Fincher/Express/Jeff Fusco/Getty Images hide caption

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Terry Fincher/Express/Jeff Fusco/Getty Images

Barbra Streisand says she's not a diva - she's a director

The season of the celebrity memoir is upon us. In just the past few months Britney Spears, Jada Pinkett Smith, Kerry Washington, and more have showered us with bombshells and revelations about their origin stories and private lives. Despite those heavy hitters and the crowded field they occupy, the celebrity memoir our host Brittany Luse coveted most is that of the singular Ms. Barbra Streisand.

Barbra Streisand says she's not a diva - she's a director

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What restaurant trends tell us about the economy and culture

Keith Lee and Noma Ethan Miller/Getty Images; Casper Christoffersen/Reuters hide caption

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Ethan Miller/Getty Images; Casper Christoffersen/Reuters

What restaurant trends tell us about the economy and culture

The restaurant industry has been making headlines lately. Fine dining heavyweights are shuttering: Noma announced it would be closing in 2024 and NYC staple Momofuku Ko closed this past weekend. Then, there's the unintentional chaos caused by a popular Tiktok food critic, whose visit to Atlanta was so profound that it drowned out the debut of the city's first ever Michelin Guide.

What restaurant trends tell us about the economy and culture

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"The Gilded Age" and the trouble with American period pieces

The Gilded Age's Dorothy and Peggy Scott, portrayed by Audra McDonald and Denée Benton. Alison Cohen Rosa/HBO hide caption

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Alison Cohen Rosa/HBO

"The Gilded Age" and the trouble with American period pieces

The Gilded Age delighted audiences with its lavish sets, decadent costumes and social sniping when it debuted. Lucky for us, the period drama just returned to HBO Max with a second season. But if we look a little closer at the show, it reveals what we truly want out of period pieces: to remake the past with our modern sensibilities and values. As Brandon Taylor wrote in his essay called "morgan spector pls break me in half," The Gilded Age engenders "self-delusion" about our history – because to reflect our past more accurately, would be "too horrifying" for a somewhat soapy show. Brittany Luse sits down with Brandon to discuss sentimentality, why we're particularly drawn to this era now and how it's portrayal could be done better.

"The Gilded Age" and the trouble with American period pieces

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What makes 'The Real Housewives' so addictive? (Classic)

What makes 'The Real Housewives' peak culture? Santiago Felipe/John Lamparski/Jim Spellman/Getty Images hide caption

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Santiago Felipe/John Lamparski/Jim Spellman/Getty Images

What makes 'The Real Housewives' so addictive? (Classic)

It's a big week for fans of reality TV - it's Bravocon 2023. This year it's in Las Vegas – and while we couldn't make it to Vegas, we're revisiting what we learned from last year's Bravocon in New York. Host Brittany Luse and producer Liam McBain talked to fans, a producer, an academic and the Housewives themselves to understand what makes The Real Housewives peak culture – as in the #1 topic in the group chat – for so many people.

What makes 'The Real Housewives' so addictive? (Classic)

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Britney Spears can finally tell her own story in 'The Woman in Me'

Britney Spears holds her awards for the 1999 MTV Europe Awards; The Woman in Me (2023) by Britney Spears JOEL SAGET/AFP via Getty Images, Simon & Schuster, Inc. hide caption

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JOEL SAGET/AFP via Getty Images, Simon & Schuster, Inc.

Britney Spears can finally tell her own story in 'The Woman in Me'

Britney Spears just released one of the most hotly anticipated celebrity memoirs of the year, The Woman In Me. The book details her meteoric rise to fame, her family history, and her 13 year-long conservatorship. This week, host Britney Luse talks to the two best people to break it all down: Claire Parker and Ashley Hamilton, comedians and co-hosts of the Celebrity Memoir Book Club podcast. Together they look at what the princess of pop is trying to tell us, how she contextualizes her own story and how she doesn't seem to implicate the audience in her abuse.

Britney Spears can finally tell her own story in 'The Woman in Me'

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The new "final girl" in horror; plus, who's afraid of a horny hag?

Who gets to be a final girl? Plus, what's the deal with horny hags? 20th Century Studios/Christopher Moss/A24 hide caption

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20th Century Studios/Christopher Moss/A24

The new "final girl" in horror; plus, who's afraid of a horny hag?

Halloween is upon us — and it's the season for horror movies. Host Brittany Luse is a HUGE horror girlie, but loving horror also means critiquing it. Today, we're breaking down two major figures in horror: the final girl and the horny hag. First, Brittany chats with Dr. Kinitra Brooks, Audrey and John Leslie Endowed Chair of Literary Studies at Michigan State University, about what it means when the final girl is a Black woman. And later, Brittany is joined by horror author and film critic Gretchen Felker-Martin to discuss what's behind the horny hags in movies like X and Barbarian — and what that trope tells us about how we feel about older women in our society.

The new "final girl" in horror; plus, who's afraid of a horny hag?

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Misinformation & uninformed comments are clogging war coverage; plus, Tupac's legacy

Israeli army armoured vehicles, 2023. Elon Musk, 2023. Tupac Shakur, 1993. YURI CORTEZ/AFP via Getty Images, Al Pereira/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images,Justin Sullivan/Getty Images hide caption

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YURI CORTEZ/AFP via Getty Images, Al Pereira/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images,Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Misinformation & uninformed comments are clogging war coverage; plus, Tupac's legacy

A warning: This episode contains explicit language and mentions of rape.

Misinformation & uninformed comments are clogging war coverage; plus, Tupac's legacy

Listen · 50:28
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Code Switch: Baltimore teens are fighting for environmental justice — and winning

Students give a presentation at a construction site in South Baltimore. The student activists, who formed the group Free Your Voice, are fighting against a very different kind of danger in their neighborhood: air pollution and climate change. B.A. Parker/NPR hide caption

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B.A. Parker/NPR

Code Switch: Baltimore teens are fighting for environmental justice — and winning

From our friends at Code Switch, we present a story about one group of student activists in Baltimore and how their efforts to make their neighborhood healthier has them facing big coal — and actually making gains.

Code Switch: Baltimore teens are fighting for environmental justice — and winning

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