Math & Magic: Stories from the Frontiers of Marketing with Bob Pittman
Episodes
Charlamagne Tha God Live at POSSIBLE: “Influencer means impact.”
30 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
As a Radio Hall of Fame inductee, best-selling author, TV personality, and producer, Charlamagne Tha God is a singular shaper of culture. He’s t...
Sherrie Westin: “As long as we’re true to our purpose, the brand is authentic.”
23 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Working across 190 countries to deliver research-driven early learning, Sesame Workshop is the non-profit behind the longest running children’s ...
Mike Milken: “Science could not move fast enough.”
16 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
From the free market to medical research to philanthropy, Mike Milken has had an outsized impact on it all. In the 1970s he ushered in an explosive er...
Lisa Coffey: “ Radio personalities are the original influencers."
02 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Chief Business Officer at iHeartMedia, Lisa Coffey has run the gamut in media sales. She started out as part of traditional media, at newspapers like ...
Strauss Zelnick: “Doing something from scratch, that’s challenging.”
26 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
After finding success from a young age at companies like 20th Century Studios, Vestron, and BMG Entertainment, Strauss Zelnick decided to go out on hi...
Mike Cessario: ”No investor was gonna write me a check for the concept.”
19 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
A skull-emblazoned design with a funny slogan is just not what people expect when they’re buying a healthy beverage. But that’s exactly wh...
Math & Magic Returns March 19th
12 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Join iHeartMedia Chairman and CEO Bob Pittman for a new season of Math & Magic: Stories from the Frontiers of Marketing. Bob is taking you behind ...
CEOs You Should Know: Chon Nguyen, CEO of Newgentek
18 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Chon Nguyen started his career in the kitchen. As he shares on this episode of CEOs You Should Know, he became an entrepreneur but never left restaura...
CEOs You Should Know: Avani Desai, CEO of Schellman
04 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Avani Desai is the CEO of Schellman, the largest specialized CPA firm focusing on cybersecurity assessments for major companies like Walmart, Meta, an...
Listen to Bob on Tetragrammaton with Rick Rubin
30 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Math & Magic host Bob Pittman shares some iconic stories from the launch of MTV in this episode preview of Tetragrammaton, a podcast by ...
Bonus Episode: Business Breakthroughs
29 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This bonus episode is all about innovation– that breakthrough that can change individual careers and even entire industries. We’re going b...
Jonathan Adashek: “I’m going to do this job like I don’t need it.”
22 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
From the White House, to Edelman, Microsoft, Nissan and IBM, Jonathan Adashek has had a wide-ranging career. His experiences may span from politics, t...
The Value of College
15 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
It can take decades to build breakthrough brands and noteworthy careers, and this bonus episode examines an essential building block to getting there ...
Bobby Bones: “Tenacity is a talent.”
08 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Bobby Bones has been called “the most powerful man in country music.” Host of the nationally syndicated country music radio program, The B...
Ron Howard: “Understand the entertainment value of an idea.”
24 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Ron Howard is an Academy Award, Golden Globe, Emmy, and Grammy award-winning film director. With work spanning from comedies like Splash and...
Bonus Episode: Building Corporate Culture
17 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Corporate culture is a big buzzword these days, but for our guests it’s integral to how they do business. Bill Koenigsberg, CEO of Horizon Media...
Hugh Howey: “I write for myself.”
10 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Hugh Howey is an international best-selling author whose work has been published in 40 languages. But he’s not just a writer, he’s an entr...
Norma Kamali: “Be creative, be original, be innovative.”
03 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Fashion designer Norma Kamali has stayed relevant for generations by tapping into culture, creativity, and technology. In the early 60s, she got a deg...
Tarang Amin: “Embrace what you think is risky.”
27 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
When he was 14, Tarang Amin’s family sold their home and bought a motel. They fixed it up and expanded their business, buying one motel after an...
Damian Maldonado: “You can’t teach motivation.”
20 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
A billion dollar business born from a $5,000 line of credit seems hard to believe, but so are a lot of Damian Maldonado’s achievements. The co-f...
Jewel: “It’s a lot less painful to be honest.”
13 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Jewel–with just that name, you know exactly who she is. With over 30 million albums sold worldwide, four Grammy nominations, and an American Mus...
Stéphane Bancel: “The upside was changing humanity forever.”
06 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Moderna’s CEO Stéphane Bancel will go down in history for pioneering the Covid-19 vaccine. He sits down with Bob to recount the story of ...
Math & Magic Returns March 6th
27 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join iHeartMedia Chairman and CEO Bob Pittman for a new season of Math & Magic: Stories from the Frontiers of Marketing. How do the most successfu...
Bonus Episode: Improbable Career Jumps
20 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Whether it’s a promotion or a pivot, a great pitch or a stroke of luck, behind most successful careers is an improbable jump that unlocks new po...
Bonus Episode: Secrets from the Marketing Masters
13 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Over the years Bob has asked dozens of business titans to share their secrets –what’s inspired them, how they’ve exceeded their care...
Martha Stewart Live at iHeart: “Living is a Limitless Subject Matter.”
05 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Martha Stewart has been a household name for over four decades and she still isn’t done building her empire. During her rise, the world’s first fe...
Celebrating MTV’s Anniversary with the Real Story of MTV
01 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In honor of the 43rd anniversary of MTV, we’re rereleasing a classic episode: the real story of MTV, as told by the founders. Today MTV is a cultura...
Pitbull: “Anything you love you have to fight for.”
25 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
You may know this week’s guest by many names. Mr. 305, Mr. Worldwide, or more likely, the one and only Pitbull. Yes, the Grammy winning superstar, e...
Ryan Seacrest: “I celebrate people, but I’m not the star.”
11 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Ryan Seacrest is America’s favorite host. He’s been on the radio since he was a teenager, but it wasn’t until he came on all of our TV screens i...
Andrew Jarecki: “People really do want to tell you their story.”
04 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
You’ve probably been entertained by entrepreneur and filmmaker Andrew Jarecki even if you didn’t realize it. He co-founded the business everyone u...
Rob Reilly: “Be a fountain of ideas.”
28 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
How does one come up with great ideas? Some may think they’re random strokes of genius, but Rob Reilly knows it takes a mix of hard work and creativ...
Scott Borchetta: “This is the future – we better figure this out.”
14 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Country music is the biggest radio music format and Nashville’s Scott Borchetta knows the genre inside and out. He’s the founder, president, and C...
Kenneth Feld: “People make an organization.”
07 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Audiences love a spectacle, and Kenneth Feld knows better than anyone how true this is. As the Chairman and CEO of Feld Entertainment, he’s an accl...
Kellyn Smith Kenny: “The working world is a team sport.”
29 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Kellyn Smith Kenny was born to innovate. From her early years, she was a textbook over-achiever, thriving as both an athlete and a mathlete and joinin...
Math & Magic Returns Thursday, February 29th
22 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Join iHeartMedia Chairman and CEO Bob Pittman for the new season of Math & Magic: Stories from the Frontiers of Marketing, starting Thursday, Febr...
Ted Leonsis: “People want purpose.”
08 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Tech pioneer Ted Leonsis is never one to shy away from a challenge. He’s an uncanny trend spotter, from his beginnings at companies like Wang Labora...
Howard Makler: “Your brand is a fingerprint of your behavior.”
01 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Howard Makler knows how vital small and medium-sized businesses are to the economy. But he also knows not everyone appreciates their value. A successf...
Jacki Kelley: “Don’t be afraid to zig and zag.”
25 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The world of media is ever-changing — and no one has played it quite like Jacki Kelley, CEO of the Americas and Global Chief Client Officer of adver...
Jon Bon Jovi: “It comes down to truth.”
11 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Jon Bon Jovi is so well known that when his songs play, everyone can sing along – even those born well after they first hit the radio. That kind of ...
Angela Yee: “Every time I learn something, I want to bring it to people.”
04 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
At its core, radio is a community service. No one knows that better than Angela Yee. She’s been on the airwaves for over a decade as a founding memb...
Paris Hilton: “I love to be someone who is underestimated.”
27 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
For so long, Paris Hilton’s story was told for her – in tabloids, through her persona on The Simple Life, and in the context of her legendary fami...
Gwyneth Paltrow: “Transaction can actually be a service”
13 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
These days, a lot of actors double as entrepreneurs. Yet no one has had their finger on the pulse quite like Gwyneth Paltrow. Before everyone else was...
Allen Grubman: “I’m a businessman first and a lawyer second.”
06 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Allen Grubman is a legend in the music business, but he’s not a musician. He’s an entertainment lawyer who for over 50 years has been making deals...
Blake Scholl: “It doesn’t matter what you’ve already done. It’s what you can learn to do.”
30 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
With Boom Supersonic, Blake Scholl is reaching for the impossible. When the Concorde was grounded in 2003, dreams of a profitable model for supersonic...
Math & Magic Returns March 30th
23 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Join iHeartMedia Chairman and CEO Bob Pittman for the new season of Math & Magic: Stories from the Frontiers of Marketing. This season, Bob sits d...
Colin Cowherd: “I’m more interested in ‘the why’ than ‘the what.’”
08 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
You might be surprised to learn that legendary sportscaster Colin Cowherd rarely checks his ratings. As he puts it: checking your ratings doesn’t ma...
Christian Juhl: "I have to predict the future just slightly better than everybody else."
01 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Throughout the tumultuous pandemic, Christian Juhl kept a steady hand at the helm of GroupM at WPP—the world’s largest advertising and media inves...
Mike Meldman: "If the product is bad, no matter who is behind it, it won’t work.”
17 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
After a brief stint as a Blackjack dealer, Mike Meldman thought he’d try his hand as a real estate developer. Cut to the present: Mike and his team ...
Byron Sharp: “Highly restrictive targets are a fantastic way to shrink brands.”
10 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Although Byron Sharp grew up on a sheep farm, he’s spent his career defying herd mentality. As Director of the Ehrenberg-Bass Institute for Marketin...
Stephanie Ruhle: “I want the world to get better and smarter.”
03 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
It’s impossible to make good business decisions with bad information. That’s where truth-seeking reporters like Stephanie Ruhle come in. Host of t...
Tony Coles: “We are sourcing stories that mainstream newsrooms would never tell.”
20 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In 2019, the Black Information Network— a full-time news service by and for the black community— was in the early stages of planning at iHeartMedi...
Jeff Bewkes: “We didn’t care about the ratings.”
13 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Jeff Bewkes started at HBO as something of a traveling salesman; his job was to urge motels to add HBO to their properties and their marquees. Later, ...
Steve Cooper: “You should never get too comfortable.”
06 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
What do Enron, Warner Music Group and Krispy Kreme have in common? “King of the Turnaround” Steve Cooper’s guiding hand during key transitions. ...
Dr. David Eagleman: “The conscious mind is like a broom closet in the mansion of the brain.”
29 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
If you think a neuroscientist couldn’t lead a master class in marketing, you haven’t met Dr. David Eagleman. Professor of Brain Plasticity at Stan...
Suzy Deering: “We are at the moment where everything changes. And a big reason we’re at that moment, is the F-150 Lightning.”
22 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Suzy Deering has been preparing to take the business world by storm since the second grade, and she certainly has. She’s shaped powerhouse brands li...
Math & Magic Returns September 22nd
15 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Join Bob Pittman for the new season of Math & Magic. This season, Bob sits down with visionaries—from CEOs, to neuroscientists, and everyone in-...
Bob Pittman on Minnie Questions with Minnie Driver
16 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today, Bob goes from podcast host to podcast guest and sits down with actor Minnie Driver for her iHeartRadio podcast, Minnie Questions. Bob shares wh...
Ben Horowitz: “Let’s go make something. Let’s change the world.”
12 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
What do start-up founders and hip hop artists have in common? According to Ben Horowitz: a lot! Since his teenage years, Ben has been inspired by hip ...
Celebrate MTV’s 40th Birthday with the Real Story of MTV
31 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In honor of the 40th anniversary of MTV, we’re rereleasing a fan-favorite episode: the real story of MTV, as told by the founders. Today MTV is a cu...
Remi Kent: “A small act can make a difference.”
10 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In Remi Kent’s first job as a library page, she discovered her love of stories. Now, as CMO of 3M, Remi is crafting stories for countless consumers ...
Christian Navarro: “I've been at the bottom; and if I can use that energy to help people stay on top, then I win.”
13 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
After dropping out of school and struggling with homelessness, a young Christian Navarro was rejected by his top-choice job and accepted a gig sweepin...
Brad Gerstner: “If something's not a fast yes, then it's a quick no.”
18 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
When Brad Gerstner, a “simple kid from Indiana” set out to build a brand-new investment firm in the swirl of the 2008 financial crisis, his friend...
Alec Baldwin: “You have to find a way to make it work.”
04 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Before Jack Donaghy, before Jack Ryan and SNL, Alec Baldwin was studying to be a lawyer and interning on Capitol Hill. This episode, Alec sits dow...
Gary Vaynerchuk: “Accountability's an incredible gateway to happiness.”
28 Jan 2021
Contributed by Lukas
No one's story captures the spirit of the American Dream better than Gary Vaynerchuk. Fresh from the USSR, Gary’s earliest memories are of his famil...
Sir Martin Sorrell: “Good people are by nature difficult”
15 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Any good student of advertising and marketing should know Sir Martin Sorrell’s name! From his rising to star status as Saatchi & Saatchi’s CFO...
Elizabeth Rutledge: “We call our employees colleagues.”
24 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
As the Chief Marketing Officer of American Express, Elizabeth Rutledge has a rare superpower... she's an introvert. And the way she wields it is imp...
Jan Brandt: “We had to break a lot of glass”
13 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
It’s hard to imagine what this pandemic would look like without the internet to keep us all connected, and we have Jan Brandt’s marketing genius t...
Brad Hiranaga: “I’ve been in love with brands since I was 5 years old.”
02 Jul 2020
Contributed by Lukas
It's not just about marketing for Brad Hiranaga. As the Chief Brand Officer, North America for General Mills, Brad has been helping the company realiz...
The Real Story of MTV: Founder’s Edition
25 Jun 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Today, MTV is a cultural institution. But people forget what a long shot it was to get the channel off the ground. Bob Pittman led the team that creat...
Marisa Thalberg: “Connect the dots that aren’t obvious”
11 Jun 2020
Contributed by Lukas
From Estee Lauder to Taco Bell to now EVP, Chief Brand and Marketing Officer at Lowe’s, Marisa Thalberg hasn’t had the most obvious career path. B...
Dave Cote: “I benefited from second chances. I always kept that in mind”
28 May 2020
Contributed by Lukas
For anyone struggling to lead their company through the current climate, Dave Cote has some advice for you. The legendary former chairman and CEO of H...
“Believe in your own greatness”: Advice from Tim Cook, David Chang, Abby Wambach and more
21 May 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In this Special Edition of Math and Magic, Bob sifts through his favorite graduation speeches from Commencement: The Podcast, to share lessons for a...
Hans Vestberg: “This country relies on connectivity. My job is to empower and energize my company in these times.”
16 Apr 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Though the world has stopped, we've been able to text with friends, video conference relatives, check e-mails and stream content. It's easy to take fo...
Special Covid-19 Episode: "Market with humanity"
26 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
The world has changed a lot in the last week. We’re dealing with a pandemic that’s shaken us in unimaginable ways. But how should CMO's shepherd ...
Philippe Krakowsky: “If you say you’re going to do something, do something.”
19 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
It's hard to imagine an exec with a more colorful background than IPG's Chief Operating Officer and EVP Philippe Krakowsky. Hailing from Mexico City...
Shazi Visram “Finding solutions— that’s just a part of my DNA.”
12 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
The way Shazi describes it, she had a magical childhood. Living in the motel her family owned and operated, she had no shortage of things to keep her...
Rich Lennox: “I came from a culture where I saw big ideas transform businesses.”
05 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
As a kid, Macy's CMO Rich Lennox had two dreams: to be the next Chuck Yeager, or to be a veterinarian. But after a “bizarre series of accidents,” ...
Fan Favorite: Judy McGrath: “I didn’t know anything about TV; I didn’t even like it!” (rebroadcast)
27 Feb 2020
Contributed by Lukas
All Judy McGrath wanted to do when she grew up was to write for Rolling Stone. Instead, the storied CEO of MTV Networks now sits on the board of Amazo...
Bonus Episode—How They Made It
20 Feb 2020
Contributed by Lukas
From The Breakfast Club to Nickelodeon, Bobbi Brown to CoverGirl, there’s no question these brands and personalities have shaped culture. But how di...
Ken Auletta: “My task is to understand them”
13 Feb 2020
Contributed by Lukas
BusinessWeek once called him “the James Bond of the media world.” The Columbia Journalism Review declared “No other reporter has covered the new...
Raja Rajamannar: “Even the brightest ideas get killed if they're not emotionally embraced by your team.”
06 Feb 2020
Contributed by Lukas
As a child in Hyderabad, India, Raja Rajamannar figured he'd study hard and grow up to be a chemical engineer. But when a twist of fate led him to ...
Bobbi Brown: “I started doing it my way... and it caught on!”
30 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
When Bobbi Brown couldn't find a major she wanted, she created her own at Emerson College. When she didn't want to conform to the style of the times, ...
Marian Goodell: “In this day and age, we need more bridges.”
23 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
When Marian Goodell first pulled up to Burning Man in 1995, two men in the desert-- one with a machine gun, and another wrapped in a white sheet holdi...
Paul Tudor Jones: “All I had was a checkbook and a big heart.”
16 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
After 44 years of trading, Paul Tudor Jones has built an enviable career as a hedge fund manager. But the way he uses that success to improve the worl...
Charlamagne tha God: “You fail by trying to be the next anything. You should just be yourself.”
09 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Charlamagne tha God is one of the most powerful people in media, reaching millions of ears every week as co-host of the nationally syndicated The Brea...
Marc Pritchard: “We serve all humanity. We need to reflect that.”
02 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Live from Cincinnati, Bob sits down with Procter & Gamble’s Chief Brand Officer Marc Pritchard to discuss the company’s unique culture, how...
Gerry Laybourne: "Have you ever been slimed? It is wonderful!"
26 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Known as the "fairy godmother of Nickelodeon," Gerry Laybourne took a channel for pre-schoolers and turned it into a cultural phenomenon. Hear how she...
Norm de Greve: "You have to be facile; you have to teach creativity back into yourself"
19 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
This episode Bob sits down with Norm de Greve, the Chief Marketing Officer of CVS, to learn how having a Dutch father gave him a unique perspective as...
Bill Koenigsberg: "I built a culture where business is personal"
12 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
To kick off Season 2, Bob sits down with CEO and Founder of Horizon Media Bill Koenigsberg and discovers how Bill pulled off the ultimate trick: ...
Bonus: Our favorite Audio Stories
10 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Leading up to the Season 2 launch, Bob revisits some of the incredible ways his guests have embraced audio. Walter Isaacson discusses why podcasts wil...
Bonus: Our favorite Marketing Stories!
26 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Bob recounts a few of his favorite stories from Season 1-- from the real origin story behind Olivier Francois' "Imported from Detroit" tagline (it's w...
Season 2 of Math & Magic Coming Soon!
25 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Join Bob Pittman for more stories from the frontiers of marketing starting December 5th. And in the meantime, we'll be keeping the feed warm with a fe...
Bertha González Nieves: "I've always been an entrepreneur."
17 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
From starting a poinsettia business as a kid, to making and selling her own greeting cards, Casa Dragones CEO and co-founder Bertha Gonzalez knew she ...
Walter Isaacson: "People want to hear ideas. There's a hunger for that."
10 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
You might know Walter Isaacson as a legendary biographer, or as the former Editor of Time, or as the Chairman and CEO of CNN ... but did you know he w...
David Zaslav: “We’re betting for the long term.”
03 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
In this week’s episode, Bob sits down with David Zaslav to learn how the Discovery CEO and President grew a network of just three channels (Discover...
Michael Kassan: “If you can find chaos, there’s going to be opportunity.”
26 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Few people can charm and foster connections the way MediaLink Founder, Chairman and CEO Michael Kassan does. Learn how Michael changed the media buyin...
Scott Hagedorn: “I like agencies to have some funk.”
19 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Scott Hagedorn is CEO of Omnicom Media Group, but don’t let his C-suite title fool you. From why he started a snake wrangling business as a kid, to ...
Jeremy Zimmer: "I grew up loving stories."
12 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Bob sits down with UTA co-founder and CEO Jeremy Zimmer to discuss how fixing a chair got him his first real gig in Hollywood; why the best storytelli...
David Solomon: “I think the culture starts with leadership. And the leadership has to live it.”
05 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
David Solomon never thought he was a shoe-in to become Chairman and CEO of Goldman Sachs. In fact, as a young man, he’d twice applied for jobs at th...
Tom Freston: “I never wanted to be a mainstream businessman. I still don’t.”
29 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Tom Freston has a rare skill: the ability to pair raw, creative visionaries with the establishment to create bigger and bolder ventures than either co...