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    Back to Press Play with Madeleine Brand

    Press Play with Madeleine Brand

    Helping Your Community in LA, and 'The Song Machine'

    Angelenos are not volunteering as much as they want to. That’s one of the findings in a new poll from USC. And we take a close look at the way today’s top pop music is made.

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    By Madeleine Brand • Oct 7, 2015 • 39m Listen

    Angelenos aren’t volunteering as much as they’d like to according to a new poll from USC. One popular way for people to feel like they’re contributing to something worthwhile is by funding a Kickstarter campaign. Now, at the request of the White House, Kickstarter is asking people to help Syrian refugees. The money goes to the U.N. Refugee Agency, and so far nearly $1 million has been raised. Then, we talk to the new artistic director of the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts. Finally, Swedish producer Max Martin has written songs for the biggest pop stars of the past twenty years, from Britney Spears to Taylor Swift, and he helped pioneer the songwriting approach that today’s top hitmakers use.

    In this episode

    4 stories
    1. 0:00

      Why Aren’t Angelenos Volunteering More?

      Angelenos are not really helping the less fortunate in their own backyard. They’d like to! But they’re just too busy. That’s one of the findings in a new poll from USC.

      Read the story
      6 min
    2. 5:36

      Can Kickstarter Help Syria?

      A popular way for people to feel like they’re contributing to something worthwhile is by funding a Kickstarter campaign. But those campaigns are usually for other people’s pet projects. For the first time, Kickstarter is now raising money for a social cause. At the request of The White House, Kickstarter is asking people to help Syrian refugees.

      Read the story
      9 min
    3. 14:42

      Wallis Center's Artistic Director On LA Theater

      There was a lot of excitement when Eli Broad’s new art museum opened downtown last month. It’s sold out until the middle of November. Now another Southern California arts institution is hoping to get some of that buzz. The Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts opened two years ago.

      Read the story
      8 min
    4. 23:11

      'The Song Machine' Looks At The Making of Pop

      Lennon and McCartney. The two Beatles need no introduction—they’ve written the most number-one hit songs of all time. In third place? A 44-year-old Swedish producer named Max Martin.

      Read the story
      17 min
    • https://images.ctfassets.net/2658fe8gbo8o/AvYox6VuEgcxpd20Xo9d3/769bca4fbf97bf022190f4813812c1e2/new-default.jpg?h=250

      Madeleine Brand

      Host, 'Press Play'

    • https://images.ctfassets.net/2658fe8gbo8o/AvYox6VuEgcxpd20Xo9d3/769bca4fbf97bf022190f4813812c1e2/new-default.jpg?h=250

      Matt Holzman

      Producer, 'The Document'

    • https://images.ctfassets.net/2658fe8gbo8o/AvYox6VuEgcxpd20Xo9d3/769bca4fbf97bf022190f4813812c1e2/new-default.jpg?h=250

      Anna Scott

      Former KCRW Housing and Homelessness Reporter

    • KCRW placeholder

      Jolie Myers

      Managing Producer, 'Press Play'

      News

    In this episode

    4 stories
    1. 0:006 min

      Why Aren’t Angelenos Volunteering More?

    2. 5:369 min

      Can Kickstarter Help Syria?

    3. 14:428 min

      Wallis Center's Artistic Director On LA Theater

    4. 23:1117 min

      'The Song Machine' Looks At The Making of Pop

    Back to Press Play with Madeleine Brand