Life in Seven Songs
Episodes
Al Roker shares his life story through seven joyful songs
03 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Al Roker has been the weatherman on “Today” for 30 years, but that describes only a small part of his very full life. He’s also a bestselling au...
Seven songs that shaped Kris Bowers, the composer behind ‘Bridgerton’
27 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Even if you don’t know Kris Bowers by name, you’ve almost certainly heard his work. He composed scores for “The Wild Robot,” “King Richard,”...
How music shaped Maria Konnikova, from PhD psychologist to poker champion
20 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Maria Konnikova is a professional poker player, though she doesn’t even consider herself a gambler at heart. Before her pursuits at the poker table,...
BD Wong on music, identity, and fighting for Asian American visibility
13 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Actor BD Wong rose to fame with the Tony Award-winning performance of Song Liling in the 1988 Broadway musical “M. Butterfly.” He went on to pick ...
How Hinge founder Justin McLeod’s love story shaped a dating empire
06 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Long before he founded the dating app Hinge, Justin McLeod was a little boy in Louisville, Kentucky, belting out Meat Loaf’s “I’d Do Anything fo...
Go-Go’s singer Belinda Carlisle says her life got interesting when she got sober
30 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Belinda Carlisle says she’s been hit by lightning three times in her career: first with the success of the Go-Go’s, then with her solo hit “Mad ...
ENCORE: Why Kara Swisher loves country music and the military
23 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Today on the show, we're re-running a listener favorite: our interview with longtime journalist and media entrepreneur Kara Swisher, who's been coveri...
How actress Mayim Bialik is rethinking her worth after a lifetime in the spotlight
16 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Mayim Bialik has seemingly done it all: she became a beloved teen star on Blossom, earned a PhD in neuroscience, then returned to TV to play a neuros...
Inside musician John Grant’s pain: Seven songs that saved his life
09 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
John Grant’s music is known for its brutal honesty – songs about desire, rage, and shame. But the story behind that voice is even more extraordina...
31 and done: F1 champion Nico Rosberg on why he walked away at the top
02 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
From the outside, Nico Rosberg lived every young racer’s dream: born to a Formula One world champion, raised with a go-kart track in his backyard, a...
Baking star Christina Tosi on the soundtrack behind her cookie empire
25 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Milk Bar founder Christina Tosi didn’t set out to become a dessert icon. She just knew that if there was one thing she’d like to do every day for ...
How Taylor Swift got TV writer Michael Schur out of a rut
18 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Schur is the creative force behind some of the most beloved comedies of the past two decades: The Good Place, Parks and Rec, Brooklyn Nine-Nin...
Introducing 'Pacific Standard Time'
17 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Pacific Standard Time is smart, surprising weekly podcast about California’s future—and why what happens here matters everywhere and to everyone. ...
Why Andrew Ahn remade the first gay film he ever saw
11 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
When Andrew Ahn’s family rented “The Wedding Banquet” in the early 1990s, they didn’t realize it was a queer film. They also had no idea that ...
Trump fired him, but Preet Bharara is still defending the country he loves
04 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Long before he became the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Preet Bharara was a first-generation Indian immigrant, listening to Bol...
How actress Pepi Sonuga keeps the faith, even when Hollywood says 'We don't need you'
28 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Pepi Sonuga always knew she would become a performer. Even as a little girl in Lagos, Nigeria, watching “Barney” tapes that her flight attendant m...
Drag queen and activist Peppermint finds joy even when there’s ‘no tears left to cry’
21 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Miss Peppermint wears a lot of hats (and wigs): drag queen, first openly trans woman on RuPaul’s Drag Race, Broadway actress, Traitors contestant...
How music taught culture critic Sam Sanders to be grateful for his grief
14 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
As the host and creator of numerous hit culture podcasts, Sam Sanders is known for having a finger on the pulse of pop culture. But growing up strictl...
From the South Bronx to Sesame Street: How Sonia Manzano made Maria a Latina icon
07 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Sonia Manzano knows you think of her as Maria on Sesame Street – and that’s exactly the point. Growing up in the South Bronx in a household “r...
From Mozart to Drake: The music that moves Misty Copeland
30 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
After 25 years with American Ballet Theatre, Misty Copeland is taking her final bow this October. Just ahead of her last performance, the groundbreaki...
Riding waves and weathering life’s storms with surfer-turned-writer Jamie Brisick
23 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Jamie Brisick was living the California dream – a pro surfer sponsored by Quicksilver, traveling the world and competing on the ASP World Tour. But ...
Special Episode: The songs that shaped our listeners’ lives (and Sophie’s, too)
16 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
To celebrate one year of Life in Seven Songs, Sophie answers some burning questions about the show, shares a few songs off her list, and turns the mic...
How I Met Your Mother gave Josh Radnor 'identity vertigo.' Ayahuasca set him straight.
09 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This week, we Willkommen actor and musician Josh Radnor! Josh is best known for playing Ted Mosby on the hit sitcom How I Met Your Mother for near...
How TV’s favorite couples therapist, Dr. Orna Guralnik, found her interior life through music
02 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Orna Guralnik broke barriers by bringing actual therapy sessions to millions of viewers through Showtime’s hit docuseries “Couples Therapy” ...
'Everyone’s seen my tits': Keeley Hazell on reclaiming the narrative in her new memoir
26 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Keeley Hazell has lived a life that would make great television – which is probably why she inspired the beloved character Keeley Jones on Ted Lass...
Amanda Knox survived a living nightmare. Flight of the Conchords helped.
19 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
At 20 years old, Amanda Knox found herself alone in an Italian jail cell, falsely accused of a brutal murder, and facing 26 years in prison. She was c...
ENCORE: How Robert Reich learned to fight bullies
12 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This week, we’re revisiting a favorite – our conversation with former US Labor Secretary Robert Reich, who just released “Coming Up Short,” a ...
Mary Louise Kelly: NPR host, war reporter, mother … spy novelist?
05 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
You probably know Mary Louise Kelly’s voice as the co-host of NPR’s All Things Considered. But you may not know that the veteran journalist has ...
Biographer of geniuses Walter Isaacson on the songs and city that made him
29 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In our first ever live episode, recorded at the 2025 Aspen Ideas Festival, Sophie sits down with Walter Isaacson, the acclaimed journalist behind the ...
Best-selling author Jason Reynolds writes the YA books he never had
22 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Jason Reynolds is a #1 New York Times bestselling author and 2024 MacArthur Fellow who writes books for young people – but he didn’t finish a bo...
The music, movie stars and murder trial that shaped actor Griffin Dunne
08 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Griffin Dunne was a Hollywood insider long before he became the successful actor he is today – in fact, he might not have survived childhood if Sean...
Joan Osborne got famous for 'One of Us' — but finding her own voice took decades
24 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
If you’ve ever wondered, “What if God was one of us?” you probably have Joan Osborne to thank. But you might not realize that Osborne didn’t a...
Death, Sex, Money – and music: The mixtape to podcaster Anna Sale’s life
10 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
As the creator and host of “Death, Sex & Money" – the hit podcast about "the things we think about a lot and need to talk about more” – Anna S...
W. Kamau Bell on fighting white supremacy — but keeping it funny
27 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
W. Kamau Bell has made a career out of asking uncomfortable questions about race in America – both as a standup comedian and in his award-winning CN...
The White Lotus’ Natasha Rothwell on the 'angsty' music that shaped her
13 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Long before Natasha Rothwell started stealing scenes as Belinda on The White Lotus or Kelli on Insecure, she was a self-described people-pleaser an...
How Damian Woetzel jeté-ed his way from ballet phenom to head of The Juilliard School
29 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Damian Woetzel got addicted to dance when he was 11 years old. While his “dirty secret” is that ballet was never that hard for him, his experience...
Embracing ‘amor prohibido’ with singer David Archuleta
15 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
At the age of 16, David Archuleta captured hearts as the runner-up on American Idol. But behind the charismatic performer on stage was a young man str...
John, Yoko, and a 'beautiful boy': How author David Sheff's life was shaped by three relationships
01 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
David Sheff’s memoir Beautiful Boy became a #1 New York Times bestseller and a major film, chronicling his son Nic’s harrowing battle with meth ...
America, the broken? Richard Misrach photographs the country's splendor and scars
18 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Richard Misrach is one of the most influential photographers of his generation, known for his haunting, large-scale images of the American West. His w...
Held captive in Iran, Sarah Shourd found solace in a Seal song
04 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Journalist, author, and playwright Sarah Shourd shares the songs that helped her though a childhood steeped in violence and poverty, and the 410 days ...
Rufus Wainwright’s rough road to becoming ‘the greatest songwriter on the planet’
18 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Over the last three decades, Rufus Wainwright has released 10 studio albums, written two operas, and countless songs for TV and film. He’s been prai...
Inside actor Rita Wilson's other life as a singer
04 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Actor, producer, and director Rita Wilson is known for her performances in films like “Sleepless in Seattle” and “Now and Then.” Her name can ...
Director Cord Jefferson on winning an Oscar and writing for love
21 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Writer and director Cord Jefferson charts his journey from being a rule-following kid to an angry teenager to an adult with depression. After a lifeti...
Introducing Professional Book Nerds: An Interview with Daniel Handler
14 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
On this special episode, we’re featuring a conversation from our friends at the Professional Book Nerds podcast, a podcast from the book nerds at Ov...
Failing publicly and feeling at home with Nextdoor’s Nirav Tolia
07 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Cofounder and CEO of Nextdoor, Nirav Tolia, looks back on his childhood in small-town Texas, and how an inner conflict about belonging may have led to...
Rock photographer Jay Blakesberg on capturing the souls of legends
17 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
From Nirvana to BB King, The Rolling Stones to Radiohead, legendary rock photographer Jay Blakesberg has been documenting music icons for nearly 40 ye...
Sandra Bernhard’s ‘risky, beautiful, and heartbreaking’ life
03 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
From her groundbreaking role playing one of the first openly gay characters on television, to her iconic appearances on David Letterman — where she ...
Chesa Boudin, raised by radicals, on the songs that shaped him
19 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Lawyer Chesa Boudin’s professional life has been nearly as tumultuous as his upbringing. He was raised by family friends because his parents—membe...
Rahsaan “New York” Thomas on breaking barriers behind bars
05 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Rahsaan “New York” Thomas spent more than two decades incarcerated before being granted a commutation for his rehabilitation efforts behind bars. ...
Why Kara Swisher loves country music and the military
22 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Longtime journalist and media entrepreneur Kara Swisher has been covering Silicon Valley and the Internet since the days of dial-up. She’s taken nea...
Turns out, Mark Cuban is an emotional guy
08 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Billionaire businessman and investor Mark Cuban is known for making — or crushing — entrepreneurs' dreams on the TV show Shark Tank. But in realit...
Introducing American Masters: Joseph Gordon-Levitt Can Do That Genre Too!
01 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Today we’re sharing an episode of a podcast from our friends at PBS that we think you’ll really like – American Masters: Creative Spark. It’...
OpenAI’s Sam Altman: the human behind the machine
24 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Sam Altman is the CEO of OpenAI, the groundbreaking company leading the development of AGI—artificial general intelligence. AGI aims to create machi...
How Rhodessa Jones went from nude dancer to theater icon
10 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Rhodessa Jones is a performance artist who turned her life as a nude dancer into a theatrical revolution. From her days in a San Francisco peep show, ...
How Robert Reich learned to fight bullies
27 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
A giant in the field of politics, former Secretary of Labor Robert Reich—who stands just under 5 feet tall—has spent a lifetime fighting for, yes,...
What Daniel Handler, aka Lemony Snicket, says about terror
13 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Daniel Handler, or Lemony Snicket as you may know him, is the author of more than two dozen books, including the 13-book best-selling saga for young a...
What inspired the original starchitect, Lord Norman Foster
30 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The 89-year-old behind some of the world’s most famous buildings, including Apple’s “Spaceship” headquarters in Cupertino, the Reichstag in Be...
How comedy saved Margaret Cho’s life
16 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Raunchy, risk-taking and always hilarious, Margaret Cho has had a legendary career as a stand-up comic, actress and musician. She says her success is ...
‘Life in Seven Songs’ full theme song
09 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
We’ve received numerous requests from our listeners about our theme music, and we're excited to share the full track with you today! Composed exclus...
He shaped the iPhone—so what shaped Jony Ive?
02 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
You may not know his name, but you certainly know his work. Sir Jony Ive is the former chief design officer for Apple, and the mastermind behind devic...
D’Wayne Wiggins on Tony! Toni! Toné!, Beyoncé and beyond
18 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Music producer and musician D’Wayne Wiggins has mentored superstars like Beyoncé, Kehlani and Zendaya, all while touring with his own Grammy award-...
The truth hurts with SF Mayor London Breed
18 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Host Sophie Bearman sits down with London Breed, the 45th mayor of San Francisco, and the first Black woman to hold the position. London opens up abou...
Introducing ‘Life in Seven Songs’
29 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
“Life in Seven Songs” is a new podcast from The San Francisco Standard. In each episode, host Sophie Bearman brings you closer to influential figu...