Charles Manson the Music Man: Lost Records and a Prosecutorial Song too Crazy to Sing
Tue, 15 Nov 2022 08:10:00 -0000
Contributed by Lukas • Default Dataset
In and out of juvie and jail since childhood, Charles Manson learned guitar in prison from the last ...
Charles Manson the Music Man: Lost Records and a Prosecutorial Song too Crazy to Sing
15 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In and out of juvie and jail since childhood, Charles Manson learned guitar in prison from the last ...
Robert Johnson: Voodoo, Delta Blues, Cursing God, and a Crossroads
01 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Robert Johnson didn’t just play the blues. He embodied them. He drank and womanized his way throug...
Chris Brown: Police Standoffs, Rejection from Rehab, and America’s Most Hated Pop Star
18 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Chris Brown established himself as America’s most hated pop star when he brutally assaulted Rihann...
Ringo Starr: Busted by Mexican Federales, Threatened by French-Canadian Separatists, and the King of Feel
04 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Ringo Starr’s first show as the Beatles’ new drummer was nearly ruined by a hostile audience tha...
Jennifer Hudson: An American Idol, a Triple Homicide, and Undying Faith
20 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Jennifer Hudson shocked her hometown of Chicago when she was eliminated from American Idol in 2004, ...
The Sex Pistols (Pt. 2): Crashing the Queen’s Jubilee, Shocking America, and Leaving a Trail of Blood, Spit, and Junk
06 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In 1977, the world’s most controversial band didn’t stop when they were dropped by their major l...
The Sex Pistols (Pt. 1): Anarchy, Thievery, and the Death of Rock ‘n’ Roll
23 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Punk rock’s greatest debut record was penned by a singer who saw traditional rock ‘n roll as a d...
Pink Floyd: Acid Overload, a Psychotic Breakdown, and a Crazy Diamond
Tue, 09 Aug 2022 07:03:00 -0000
Contributed by Lukas • Default Dataset
Pink Floyd’s original frontman, Syd Barrett, did so much LSD that he experienced a mental breakdow...
Britney Spears (Pt. 2): Lithium, Las Vegas, and a Long-Awaited Emancipation
26 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Britney Spears’ 13-year conservatorship was an arrangement so strict and unfeeling that it left he...
Britney Spears (Pt. 1): Trauma Pop
12 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
No musician owned pop music quite like Britney Spears at the turn of the century. After graduating f...
George Harrison: Surviving the Beatles, the London Drug Squad, and a Home Invasion
14 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
George Harrison famously survived the dissolution of the Beatles, a bust by London’s drug squad, a...
The Temptations: Fame, Drugs, and Paranoia
31 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The Temptations were one of Motown’s signature vocal groups, and they remain one of the most succe...
Miles Davis Pt. 2: Mountains of Pills, Bitches Brew, and the Reinvention of the Original Motherf#%*er
17 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
When it came to music, Miles Davis wasn’t about no safe, tired yesterday bullsh*t. After kicking h...
Miles Davis Pt. 1: Blasting Bebop, Blasting Racism, and a Devastating Heroin Habit
03 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Miles Davis is jazz’s first and only rock star, with the rap sheet to prove it. He did enough coca...
Juice WRLD: Percocets, Lucid Dreams and a Whole Lotta Lean
19 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The loss of emo-rap trailblazer Juice WRLD is one of the most sudden, tragic, and graphic celebrity ...
Billie Holiday: Heroin Hounds, ‘Whorehouse Music,’ and the Queen of Jazz
05 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Billie Holiday ascended from the rough and tumble streets of Baltimore and Harlem, through reform sc...
The Eagles Pt. 2: Death, a Plane Crash, and Innocence Lost at What Cost
Tue, 29 Mar 2022 07:06:00 -0000
Contributed by Lukas • Default Dataset
In the 1970s, The Eagles made taking off into the upper stratosphere of the charts look easy. Their ...
The Eagles Pt. 2: Death, a Plane Crash, and Innocence Lost at What Cost
29 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In the 1970s, The Eagles made taking off into the upper stratosphere of the charts look easy. Their ...
The Eagles Pt. 1: International Drug Smuggling, Endless Cocaine, and California Excess
Tue, 08 Mar 2022 08:05:00 -0000
Contributed by Lukas • Default Dataset
From games of chicken on private planes to one member surviving a private plane crash, the Eagles as...
The Eagles Pt. 1: International Drug Smuggling, Endless Cocaine, and California Excess
08 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
From games of chicken on private planes to one member surviving a private plane crash, the Eagles as...
The Eagles Pt. 1: International Drug Smuggling, Endless Cocaine, and California Excess
Tue, 08 Mar 2022 05:00:00 -0000
Contributed by Lukas • Default Dataset
From games of chicken on private planes to one member surviving a private plane crash, the Eagles as...
Bonus Episode: Just A Cook, Napkin Hats, and Big Country
23 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week Jake talks the inspiration and background behind this week's brand-new DISGRACELAND episod...
Hank Williams: Sanatoriums, Poison Pills, and Fired from the Grand Ole Opry
22 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Hank Williams defined the genre we now call country with a guitar in one hand and a bottle of booze ...
Sublime: Hoodlums, Police Helicopters, and Getting Dirty at Denny’s
08 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
With their newfangled ska-punk, Sublime preached the gospel of Long Beach’s seedy shores unlike an...
Tom Petty: House Fires, Hiding a Heroin Habit, and Run-Down Dreams
25 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
When a mystery arsonist set Tom Petty’s house on fire in the late 1980s, he barely escaped with hi...
Taylor Swift: Horrifying Stalkers
11 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Taylor Swift has a list of stalkers longer than her stadium tour setlists. One drove over 900 miles ...
Derek and the Dominos: Clapton, Cocaine, Motorcycles, and Murder
07 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In 1960s London, for young guitar enthusiasts, believing that “Clapton is God” was practically t...
Woodstock Pt. 2: A Disaster Movie
16 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
The original Woodstock was a literal disaster, declared so on its first day by the state of New York...
Woodstock Pt. 1: A Disaster Movie
02 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Woodstock is remembered as the generation-defining moment when the baby boomers demonstrated to the ...
Black Sabbath: Satanists, Severed Limbs, Dismembered Fingers, Mountains of Cocaine and the Invention of Heavy Metal
Tue, 26 Oct 2021 07:00:00 -0000
Contributed by Lukas • Default Dataset
Black Sabbath are solely responsible for conjuring the diabolical power of heavy metal. When guitari...
Fleetwood Mac Pt. 2: Going to #1, and Going Your Own Way
Tue, 21 Sep 2021 07:07:00 -0000
Contributed by Lukas • Default Dataset
Fleetwood Mac’s mid-’70s merger with the musical duo of Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks chan...
Fleetwood Mac Pt. 2: Going to #1, and Going Your Own Way
21 Sep 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Fleetwood Mac’s mid-’70s merger with the musical duo of Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks chan...
Fleetwood Mac Pt. 1: Guns, God, Cocaine and Rumours
Tue, 14 Sep 2021 07:06:00 -0000
Contributed by Lukas • Default Dataset
Few bands can boast a rock ’n’ roll lore at the level of Fleetwood Mac. The band lost not one bu...
Fleetwood Mac Pt. 1: Guns, God, Cocaine and Rumours
14 Sep 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Few bands can boast a rock ’n’ roll lore at the level of Fleetwood Mac. The band lost not one bu...
Tommy James and the Shondells: Mony Mony and Mafia-Sanctioned Hits
17 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Tommy James came up during a time when the music industry was in part controlled by New York’s Ita...
Pantera’s Dimebag Darrell: A Murderous Fan, Brotherly Love and Cowboys from Hell
03 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Gunned down onstage by a delusional fan who thought his metal heroes had stolen lyrics from him, Dim...
Ray Charles: Busted for Heroin and Busting Genres with the Best Damn R&B
13 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Ray Charles was hooked on heroin, arrested by federal agents, and once survived a near-death plane r...
John Lennon: Violence, Protests, Provoking the FBI, and Pissing off the President
29 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In the early 1970s, John Lennon was suspected of conspiring to disrupt an American political convent...
Paul McCartney: Paul Is Dead
15 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Despite his reputation as “the safe Beatle,” Paul McCartney was a badass. He took wild artistic ...
The Notorious B.I.G. Pt. 2: A Dead Rivalry, New Inspiration and a Murder Mystery for the Ages
Tue, 25 May 2021 07:14:00 -0000
Contributed by Lukas • Default Dataset
In part two of the Notorious B.I.G. story we see the young star trying to deal with life after the d...
The Notorious B.I.G. Pt. 2: A Dead Rivalry, New Inspiration and a Murder Mystery for the Ages
25 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In part two of the Notorious B.I.G. story we see the young star trying to deal with life after the d...
The Notorious B.I.G. Pt. 1: Dealing Crack on the Corner, Spitting Beef and Creating One of the Greatest Hip-Hop Albums of All Time
Tue, 11 May 2021 07:13:00 -0000
Contributed by Lukas • Default Dataset
The Notorious B.I.G. entered adulthood as a crack dealer and left this world as one of the most famo...
The Notorious B.I.G. Pt. 1: Dealing Crack on the Corner, Spitting Beef and Creating One of the Greatest Hip-Hop Albums of All Time
11 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
The Notorious B.I.G. entered adulthood as a crack dealer and left this world as one of the most famo...
Lil Wayne: Murder Squads, A Pre-Teen Suicide Attempt, a Year at Rikers and More Hits than Elvis
27 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Lil Wayne grew up on the mean streets of New Orleans. His father split when he was two, and his step...
Oasis Pt. 2: The Biggest Band on the Planet, Britop, Private Islands, A Drowning Rolls-Royce, Liam and Noel Off Their T*ts and at Each Other’s Throats
13 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Oasis were the biggest band on the planet for a moment. They famously warred with Britpop rivals Blu...
Oasis Pt. 1: Hooliganism, Hedonism, Rock Star Anthems and the “Greatest Rock ‘N’ Roll Band on the Planet”
30 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Few bands have come from as little and made as much of themselves as Oasis. Along the way they were ...
The New York Dolls: Born to Lose, Lipstick Killers and R&B in four-inch heels
16 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
The New York Dolls were one of the greatest rock ‘n’ roll bands of all time. They came to life w...
Lil’ Peep: A new hip-hop and emo fusion; trap beats, tender lyrics, too much Xanax and an overdose that’s still mysterious.
09 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Lil’ Peep was a once-in-a-generation talent. Poised to become a new Cobain, Bowie or Dylan, but wh...
The Beatles (Pt. 2): Kamikaze Assassins, Acid Smuggling, Suicide, Kidnapping, and the Breakup the Greatest Band of All Time
02 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
At the height of their world-changing and culture-defining popularity, the Beatles faced death threa...
The Beatles (Pt. 1): Stoned with Dylan, Dosed with Acid, Outrunning Knife Wielding Maniacs, and Driving the World to the Brink with Beatlemania
23 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
The Beatles caused fans to enter into manic states, literally. People died because of it. The band s...
The Ramones: TV Bombs, Psycho Therapy, Toilet Syringes, Turning Tricks and Saving Rock ‘N’ Roll
16 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Sniffing glue, hooking for drug money, hurling rocks at the Beatles, and writing infectious sunshiny...
David Bowie: The occult, cocaine, orgies, arrests, exorcisms, a weird flirtation with fascism and a dead body.
09 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
No musical artist better personified the hedonism of the ’70s than David Bowie. He captivated the ...
Tupac Shakur Pt. 2: Life Behind Bars, Suge Knight Saves The Day, East Coast/West Coast Beef, and What Could Have Been
02 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In part two of the Tupac Shakur story, we see the young star trying to deal with life behind bars an...
Tupac Shakur Pt. 1: 1960s Radicalism Gives Way to Socially Conscious Rap, a Charismatic Screen Star, and Deadly Violence
26 Jan 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Tupac Shakur was many things. He was a supremely talented MC and was wildly charismatic in front of ...
Gram Parsons: A Stolen Body, Heroin, More Rolling Stones and Cosmic American Music
12 Jan 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Gram Parsons is one of the most influential musicians in rock ‘n’ roll that you’ve maybe never...
Chuck Berry: Systemic Racism, Sexual Depravity and the Invention of Rock ‘N’ Roll
24 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Chuck Berry was imprisoned numerous times. He was a victim of violent systemic racism and accused of...
Selena: Tejano, Deception, and the Death of the Madonna of Mexico
10 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Selena Quintanilla Pérez ushered in the Golden Age of Tejano music in Texas with a meteoric rise up...
The Misfits: Robbing Graves, Night of the Living Dead and the Teenagers from Mars
27 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
The Misfits were truly unique. Scary. Violent. Angry. Nihilistic. These words can easily describe no...
The Grateful Dead Pt. 2: The Ballad of Pigpen and Old, Weird America—an Origin Story
13 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Bootlegging whiskey, acid tests, grass, and songs about murder. The origins of the Grateful Dead are...
The Grateful Dead Pt. 2: The Ballad of Pigpen and Old, Weird America—an Origin Story
Tue, 13 Oct 2020 04:00:00 -0000
Contributed by Lukas • Default Dataset
Bootlegging whiskey, acid tests, grass, and songs about murder. The origins of the Grateful Dead are...
Chet Baker: Heroin, Romance, Missing Teeth and the James Dean of Jazz
29 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Chet Baker, with his natural talent, unique voice and beautiful looks was known as “the James Dean...
Ice-T: Crip Rhymes, a Cop Killer, Thieving Jewels and Inventing Gangsta Rap
15 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Ice-T stoked the wrath of the President of the United States, led the life of a successful jewel thi...
The Rolling Stones Pt. 2: Swinging London, Stolen Jewels, the Mars Bar Myth, and Busted at Redlands
30 Jun 2020
Contributed by Lukas
The Establishment strikes back in this second installment of the Rolling Stones time in Swinging Lon...
Rolling Stones Pt. 1: Swinging London, a Prison Break, East End Gangsters and the Anti-Beatles
23 Jun 2020
Contributed by Lukas
London was swinging. Keith Richards was in jail. The Kray Twins were menacing about. Brian Jones was...
Prince: Dark Funk and Fentanyl
Tue, 09 Jun 2020 07:11:00 -0000
Contributed by Lukas • Default Dataset
Few pop artists achieved the dizzying creative and career highs that Prince did. An artist who famou...
Prince (Pt. 1): Dark Funk and Fentanyl
09 Jun 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Few pop artists achieved the dizzying creative and career highs that Prince did. An artist who famou...
Studio 54: Disco Decadence, a Dead Body and Bags of Cash
Tue, 26 May 2020 07:10:00 -0000
Contributed by Lukas • Default Dataset
In the late seventies, Studio 54 was the place to be for musicians and celebrities alike. John Lenno...
Nipsey Hussle: A Crenshaw Murder, Community Activism, Rollin 60s Crips, and Lost Potential
Tue, 12 May 2020 07:09:00 -0000
Contributed by Lukas • Default Dataset
Nipsey Hussle was more than just one of this generation’s most promising voices in hip hop. He was...
Nipsey Hussle: A Crenshaw Murder, Community Activism, Rollin 60s Crips, and Lost Potential
12 May 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Nipsey Hussle was more than just one of this generation’s most promising voices in hip hop. He was...
Ozzy Osbourne: The Prince of Darkness, Randy Rhoads’ Plane Crash and the Saving Grace of a Strong Woman
Tue, 28 Apr 2020 07:00:00 -0000
Contributed by Lukas • Default Dataset
Ozzy Osbourne, along with his bandmates in Black Sabbath, invented heavy metal, and throughout Ozzy’...
Run DMC: Innovation, Evolution and the Mysterious Death of Jam Master Jay
14 Apr 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Run DMC is directly responsible for elevating hip hop to previously unimagined heights. They took ra...
Joe Exotic: Tiger King, Budding Country Star, Confidence Man Extraordinaire
07 Apr 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Joe Exotic, the gun toting, mullet wearing, polyamorous subject of the hit Netflix series Tiger King...
John Denver: A Folk Singer, a Sniper and America’s Darkest Day
01 Apr 2020
Contributed by Lukas
(This is a bonus April Fools’ episode of Disgraceland that is satire and not true crime.) John Den...
Little Richard: Sex and the Duality of the King and Queen of Rock ‘N’ Roll
31 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Little Richard is the originator. Without him it’s hard to imagine the Beatles, Rolling Stones, El...
Jay Z: Street hustle, a Nightclub Stabbing, a Near Drug Bust and the God MC
Tue, 24 Mar 2020 07:00:00 -0000
Contributed by Lukas • Default Dataset
Jay Z’s career defies easy categorization. His artistry and business sense are as influenced by hi...
Guns N’ Roses Pt. 2: Real life Rocket Queen, Raging Press, Recovered Memories, and the Riverport Riot
Tue, 17 Mar 2020 07:00:00 -0000
Contributed by Lukas • Default Dataset
Post Appetite For Destruction, Guns N’ Roses embodied the word “dysfunction." As the band prepar...
Guns N’ Roses Pt. 2: Real life Rocket Queen, Raging Press, Recovered Memories, and the Riverport Riot
17 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Post Appetite For Destruction, Guns N’ Roses embodied the word “dysfunction." As the band prepar...
Guns N’ Roses Pt. 1: Brawling with Bowie, Juvenile Delinquency, Dealing Dope and Death at Donington
Tue, 10 Mar 2020 07:00:00 -0000
Contributed by Lukas • Default Dataset
Few hard rock bands lived the life portrayed in their songs as authentically as Guns N’ Roses. Sin...
Guns N’ Roses Pt. 1: Brawling with Bowie, Juvenile Delinquency, Dealing Dope and Death at Donington
10 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Few hard rock bands lived the life portrayed in their songs as authentically as Guns N’ Roses. Sin...
The Beach Boys Pt. 2: Endless Bummer, Hollywood Paranoia, Onstage Fist Fights, Incest, and Cocaine
19 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
In the aftermath of the Manson Family murders, Hollywood was gripped with fear. Various investigatio...
The Beach Boys Pt. 1: Endless Summer, LSD, Orgies, Charles Manson and a Steve McQueen Man-Crush
17 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
In the summer of 1968, the Beach Boys’ drummer Dennis Wilson invited a hippie guru and his grungy ...
The Rolling Stones at Altamont: Bikers, Blood, and the End of the '60s
Tue, 03 Dec 2019 08:10:00 -0000
Contributed by Lukas • Default Dataset
The Rolling Stones, the most dangerous band on the planet, envisioned their free concert at the Alta...
The Rolling Stones at Altamont: Bikers, Blood, and the End of the '60s
03 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The Rolling Stones, the most dangerous band on the planet, envisioned their free concert at the Alta...
A$AP Rocky: Love Sex Dreams/LSD and Locked Up Overseas
26 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
A$AP Rocky’s upbringing; Harlem, Riker’s, and his own instincts and sense of history informed hi...
Whitney Houston: Cracks in the Mirror, Crack on the Mirror, and One Fateful Choice
12 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Whitney Houston was The Voice. A stunning beauty. An early MTV star and leading actress. But when sh...
Eminem: Taking His Shot, Pulling a Glock, and Facing the Real Slim Shady
05 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
On a single Saturday in 2000, Marshall Mathers assaulted two separate men with a pistol and fought w...
Madonna: Music as Sex and Sex as Power in the Reign of the Queen of Pop
Tue, 22 Oct 2019 07:06:00 -0000
Contributed by Lukas • Default Dataset
Madonna always knew her life would be art. She rose through the late 70s New York scene reinventing ...
Madonna: Music as Sex and Sex as Power in the Reign of the Queen of Pop
22 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Madonna always knew her life would be art. She rose through the late 70s New York scene reinventing ...
Iggy Pop: Mad Artistry, Mental Wards, and Gaping Chest Wounds
Tue, 15 Oct 2019 07:05:00 -0000
Contributed by Lukas • Default Dataset
Iggy Pop pushed rock further than anyone before him, committing to live acts of sex, sickness, and r...
Iggy Pop: Mad Artistry, Mental Wards, and Gaping Chest Wounds
15 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Iggy Pop pushed rock further than anyone before him, committing to live acts of sex, sickness, and r...
Motown Records: Pimps, Prostitutes, the Detroit Mafia and the Sound of Teenage America
08 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Motown Records is one of the most successful musical industry endeavors of all time. The music and t...
Led Zeppelin: Dark Power, Cocaine, Backstage Brawls and Heavy Metal Magick
01 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Led Zeppelin were the biggest band on the planet. The great white shark of the seventies. They defin...
N.W.A Pt. 2: Beatdowns, Band Beef, Death Row and LA on Fire
26 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Part two of the N.W.A story finds the group dead center in America’s crosshairs, due in part to th...
N.W.A Pt. 1: Street Hustle, Reality Rap and Culture-Shifting Violence
26 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
N.W.A, the self proclaimed “most dangerous group in America,” were seen as violent, thuggish, pr...
Frank Sinatra: Frankie Is the Reason...That the President's Dead
Wed, 31 Jul
Contributed by Lukas • Default Dataset
Frank Sinatra had it all, then lost it all, then got it all back tenfold. He was a man of extreme ta...
The Rolling Stones: Fugitives in Exile
Tue, 23 Jul 2019 07:12:00 -0000
Contributed by Lukas • Default Dataset
Gun fights, heroin trafficking, burglaries, kidnapping threats, intra-band infidelity and the greate...
The Rolling Stones: Fugitives in Exile
23 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Gun fights, heroin trafficking, burglaries, kidnapping threats, intra-band infidelity and the greate...
Cardi B: Felony Assault
09 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Cardi B is one of the biggest artists on the planet and one of the most successful female hip hop ar...
Jim Morrison: Zodiac Killer Qu'est-ce Que C'est
25 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
This is a bonus episode of Disgraceland that is satire and not true crime. Originally released on Ap...