Tasteland

This week on Tasteland we're joined by Bre Morell, one half of the duo, crushed.__crushedTour datesListenInstagramTwitter/X__Timestamps00:00 Judging a book by its cover09:29 Brits in an Oasis14:46 Entering eBay flow state19:46 Late 90s musical influences28:11 Nostalgic corners of the internet33:00 Video game musical influences38:33 Driving in Texas41:37 Touring the country as a vegan44:28 To make timeless music, be genreless__Our intro song, Night Life, is written by Nakisso Peralta and performed by Chillers

This week on Tasteland we're joined by the GM and co-founder of Boys Club, Natasha Hoskins.__Boys ClubWebsitePodcastInstagramTwitter/XNatasha HoksinsLinkedIn__Timestamps00:00 The asperges defense05:38 Into the archives07:55 Boys Club extended universe12:23 Golden Globes Polymarket collab17:15 The Boys Club network20:27 Twitter muted words reveal29:17 Trump to Tom Brady chlamydia domino effect35:50 Traitors in the Industry41:43 Hooked on Reels44:12 New year, new LinkedIn strategy__Our intro song, Night Life, is written by Nakisso Peralta and performed by Chillers

This week on Tasteland we're joined by Dena Yago, an artist, writer, and founding member of the trend forecasting group K-HOLE. Dena is currently working at Cosmos, a visual discovery and inspiration platform for creatives.__Dena YagoWebsiteInstagramLinkedInTwitter/X__Timestamps00:00 Smoking Christmas gift4:44 No smoke without fire10:00 GQ editor-in-chief predictions12:40 Name that trend16:26 Parallel thinking and Darwinism19:45 The Cosmos secret sauce25:25 Why books still matter in fast media32:19 Irony is dead, long live cringe42:25 The rise of the Cosmos girl49:04 AI and curation__Our intro song, Night Life, is written by Nakisso Peralta and performed by Chillers

Daisy and Francis bring 2025 to a close by looking back on their defining media of the year and looking ahead to the world of tech and media in 2026.__Timestamps00:00 A New England Christmas04:09 Invisible labor of the holiday season08:15 Dirt Books14:13 Songs and albums 202518:23 Is 2026 the year of the techlash22:37 The creator economy in 202629:32 Dirt reader's top books of 202531:44 Daisy's viral tweet of 2024-2025__Our intro song, Night Life, is written by Nakisso Peralta and performed by Chillers

This week on Tasteland we're joined by writer and editor, Daniel Spielberger. Daniel is also the executive editor of Study Hall and the host of the Study Hall Podcast. Read the Farmer's Almanac article we discuss here.__Daniel SpielbergerStudy Hall PodcastDaniel DocsLinkedInTwitterInstagram__Timestamps00:00 $45 well spent, $5 poorly spent07:36 Surprise proposal and tweets going viral11:09 Influencer culture in media17:50 We need storytellers24:39 Daniel Docs28:09 Study Hall33:08 Too much media about media44:32 Olivia Nuzzi did it all for nothing53:43 Grown men shouldn't have birthday parties58:29 Worst movie of 2025__Our intro song, Night Life, is written by Nakisso Peralta and performed by Chillers

This week on Tasteland we're joined by Jamie Wilkinson, co-founder of Know Your Meme, VHX, and most recently, Glif.__Jamie WilkinsonGlifWebsiteGitHubTwitter/X__Timestamps00:00 Coke and Wall St03:26 Memes are a business of their own11:30 The evolution of memes17:03 Relationships with social media by generation26:45 Software sub-cultures of consuming and creating34:37 The intention of creation38:45 Creating for yourself45:02 The state of vibecoding50:40 The art and value of software creation__Our intro song, Night Life, is written by Nakisso Peralta and performed by Chillers.

This week on Tasteland we're joined by Ochuko Akpovbovbo, creator and writer of the culture and marketing newsletter as seen on.__Ochuko Akpovbovboas seen onLinkedIn__Timestamps00:00 Naturist, not nudist05:38 Resident of nowhere10:07 Books of 202514:20 Nuremberg is boring17:00 Writer vs. Substacker27:22 An aversion to defining34:30 Avoiding the parasocial42:21 For business reasons, I need to be perceived52:32 Influencers shaping brand narratives__Our intro song, Night Life, is written by Nakisso Peralta and performed by Chillers.

This week on Tasteland we're joined by technologist and artist, Zane Kind. Zane is the co-founder and CEO of Silk, a blogging platform for creative research,moodboarding, and subculture.__Zane KindSilkTwitter/XLinkedInWebsiteZane's FWB Fest talk__Timestamps00:00 Notebook vandalism and clone hype08:57 Building the zoomer Facebook17:06 The slow scale business model19:28 Defining taste23:38 Scaling without killing subculture30:07 Where are the Silkers?36:51 Celebrity is changing47:09 Creation starts with consumption49:02 Rapid-fire hot-potatoes__Our intro song, Night Life, is written by Nakisso Peralta and performed by Chillers.

This week on Tasteland we're joined by Ethan Sawyer, a field producer at CBC and curator of the newsletter Human Pursuits, a newsletter for navigating modern existence with help from need-to-know names in media and culture.__Ethan SawyerHuman PursuitsTwitter/XLinkedIn__Timestamps00:00 beats to write/edit to04:08 Writer's block is not real07:57 Nights in the Gardens of Brooklyn11:46 An analysis of social climbers18:40 Olivia Nuzzi did it all for love24:23 The art of guest selection32:15 Francis tells a bad joke32:57 Music for work and focus37:46 Music is so good43:16 Defining slop54:46 Introducing the "content economy"__Our intro song, Night Life, is written by Nakisso Peralta and performed by Chillers.

No guest this week on Tasteland so Daisy and Francis discuss whether Frankenstein should've shown hog, the introduction to the polycene and quote tweeting the Pope.__DaisyDirtTwitter/XLinkedInFrancisCreator SpotlightTwitter/XLinkedIn__Timestamps00:00 The hog of Frankenstein09:55 It was all yellow16:29 Welcome to the polycene27:15 Gambler's wives30:24 Don't die, take mushrooms34:00 Marc Andreessen vs. the Pope39:29 Vibe shifts are vibe shifts44:00 Affordability vs abundance in politics46:50 But I'm not a rapper, I'm mayor__Our intro song, Night Life, is written by Nakisso Peralta and performed by Chillers.

This week on Tasteland we’re joined by novelist Adam Voith. Adam is the editor and publisher of Little Engines magazine.__Adam VoithSubstackInstagramLittle Engines__Timestamps00:00 Did Zohran win?03:14 Dirt’s new podcasts08:01 Relationship between art and commerce13:29 Submission culture in publishing20:29 Conservatism in publishing26:35 Culture reflected in literature33:32 Monetizing early support in creative industries43:29 The rise of freelancing and founding48:00 Writers are small business owners__Our intro song, Night Life, is written by Nakisso Peralta and performed by Chillers.

This week Daisy and Francis are joined by Nick Susi, a strategy executive and entrepreneurial builder for 13+ years, exploring the technological, societal and psychological forces that shape our identity, perception and culture.__Nick SusiWebsiteSubstackLinkedInInstagramTwitter/X__Timestamps00:00 Creators are consumers of the self07:51 Posts are the cheetle of your identity15:19 Presence in marketing17:11 Start a war, create a monoculture29:16 Building trust vs capturing attention36:59 How myths shape modern media and technology45:25 Separating the technology for the myth51:45 Ice Cube got it right__Our intro song, Night Life, is written by Nakisso Peralta and performed by Chillers.

This week Daisy and Francis are joined by startup founder, developer, and runner, Cole Townsend. Cole has been a product designer for over a decade and is the head of tech and co-founder of Sole Retriever.__ColeWebsiteSole RetrieverLinkedInX/Twitter__Timestamps00:00 Jury duty06:54 Post Tokyo crash17:20 Every app is a marketplace or dating app24:49 Running is becoming lifestyle29:53 Crewing an ultramarathon34:12 Performance culture37:17 Founding Sole Retriever43:36 Never had a New Balance50:20 Moth tech__Our intro song, Night Life, is written by Nakisso Peralta and performed by Chillers.

This week on Tasteland, Daisy and Francis are joined by NYC based journalist, Claire Landsbaum. Claire is the Deputy Editor at HighSnobiety and has formerly held positions at The Cut, Vanity Fair, and Business Insider.__ClaireWebsiteHighSnobietyLinkedInInstagramX/Twitter__Timestamps00:00 Show and tell09:02 The bowling alley is the new afterparty11:27 Writing for magazines15:06 Finding journalistic honesty19:03 Fake adult in Berlin26:53 Are Veronika and Kyle for real?32:40 I saw this tweet37:08 Can The Daily Beast be saved?48:35 Revenue and editorial integrity54:29 Tattoos and steaks57:53 The dream profile__Our intro song, Night Life, is written by Nakisso Peralta and performed by Chillers.

This week Daisy and Francis are joined by Jose Mejia, the CEO and Co-Founder at Scene Infrastructure Company, a software company building better instruments for socialization.__Jose MejiaSICX/TwitterLinkedIn__Timestamps00:00 Intro01:42 Stress-induced tramp stamp04:07 Zero-slop pop-up gets pwned10:44 Daisy bullies Chat-GPT, again13:16 Addison Rae Iconic Magazine scene report15:10 Wild soda flavor combos17:45 Shopify for the experience economy21:31 World Cup 2026 ticket prices26:17 The endgame of the attention economy33:38 The decline of consensus reality41:34 Rebuilding consensus reality48:38 Matryoshka doll of meaning51:08 When did everything become so intentional?__Our intro song, Night Life, is written by Nakisso Peralta and performed by Chillers.

This week on Tasteland, Francis and Daisy go guest-free and dive into everything from small farms and soybeans to the future of media and paywalls. Is media all media marketing now? Life is good.__Timestamps00:00 Sourdough fatherhood01:43 Venture agriculturalism05:34 Soybean political own goal10:06 All media is marketing15:40 Not all media is marketing22:37 Retiring the op-ed27:46 The future of micropayments and paywalls35:27 Distasteland38:11 Nostalgic scent of manure39:33 AGI is coming, go to party school42:04 Life is good; drip__Our intro song, Night Life, is written by Nakisso Peralta and performed by Chillers.

This week Daisy and Francis are joined by Casey Lewis, founder of the After School newsletter and Gen Z consumer trends expert. Casey has been an editor at Teen Vogue, MTV, and New York Magazine, and in 2016, she started a media company for Gen Z, which was acquired by another media company for Gen Z.__CaseyAfter School NewsletterInstagramLinkedInTikTok__Links & ReferencesA Taste of Thomas Bernhard__Timestamps00:00 Thomas Bernhard renaissance05:25 Double dogs and doubled subs08:00 Gen alpha are the marketing generation10:11 Denim is back18:51 Individuality vs. conformity in youth culture26:46 Brand loyalty in gen z and gen alpha30:45 Mom's influence on tween shopping34:00 The uncanny valley of fashion38:09 Refragmentation of youth culture44:03 You stole my brainrot51:30 The ethics of child influencers58:27 I wanna be your billboard__Our intro song, Night Life, is written by Nakisso Peralta and performed by Chillers.

This week on Tasteland we're joined by Dani Loftus. Dani is a founder, writer and investor focused on the digital evolution of culture. After founding content platform This Outfit Does Not Exist in 2021, she became a leading voice in the digital fashion space working with brands like Chanel, Dion Lee, and Google and writing for publications such as HUNGER, DIRT and Jing Daily.__DaniSubstackInstagramLinkedInX/Twitter__Timestamps00:00 Introducing Dani01:00 Gimmicky martini epidemic05:10 The return the hipsterdom17:27 Happy victims20:28 Fashion is fine art28:18 Pandemic shopping habits31:22 The Doji problem38:58 The commodification of taste in fashion46:52 Putting a watermark on humanity51:22 Class structure in the UK vs US__Our intro song, Night Life, is written by Nakisso Peralta and performed by Chillers.

This week Daisy and Francis are joined by Andy Hunter, the founder and CEO of bookshop.org, an online bookshop with a mission to financially support local, independent bookshops.__BookshopWebsiteInstagramBlueskyAndy's LinkedIn__Timestamps00:00 Introducing Andy and Bookshop02:08 Press Publish NYC06:26 Introducing e-books on Bookshop08:00 Aligning against big tech11:36 Best performing genres on Bookshop14:12 The catalyst for Bookshop's impressive growth15:52 Rejecting investment to maintain the company's mission19:51 Support bookstores, not billionaires28:03 Innovating the e-reader35:00 Bookshop's impact on local book stores37:25 AI vs human book recommendations46:42 Taking the Bookshop model beyond books53:40 The value of physical books57:40 Current reads__Our intro song, Night Life, is written by Nakisso Peralta and performed by Chillers.

This week Daisy and Francis are joined by Ben Dietz, a long-time media/entertainment business guy.__BenSubstackLinkedIn[SIC] Talks Podcast__Timstamps00:00 Do not disturb05:12 No new luxury brands11:11 Cybertruck: a future classic16:20 Can software be luxury?23:23 AI email summaries, with emotion30:34 Brand safety is dead34:56 Podcasting for the generations38:31 Job tenure trends47:39 Well-mannered, socialized and curious51:13 Psychological foot binding54:00 A month of sobriety__Our intro song, Night Life, is written by Nakisso Peralta and performed by Chillers.