Life in Seven Songs

What songs tell your life story?

We ask this question of some of the world’s most fascinating people. Through seven songs, guests reveal the milestones—and the music—that have shaped their lives.


Notable guests include former Apple chief design officer Jony Ive, San Francisco Mayor London Breed, global architect Norman Foster and comedian Margaret Cho.

New episodes every other Tuesday. Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.

 


Recent Episodes

Jan. 14, 2025

Introducing Professional Book Nerds: An Interview with Daniel Handler

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 OverDrive. Every week host Joe Skelley chats book recommendations on a theme w…
Jan. 7, 2025

Failing publicly and feeling at home with NextDoor’s Nirav Tolia

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 him creating the first social network for neighbors. With his commitment …
Dec. 17, 2024

Rock photographer Jay Blakesberg on capturing the souls of legends

From Nirvana to BB King, The Rolling Stones to Radiohead, legendary rock photographer Jay Blakesberg has been documenting music icons for nearly 40 years. His work has been published in thousands of magazines, documentaries …
Dec. 3, 2024

Sandra Bernhard’s ‘risky, beautiful, and heartbreaking’ life

From her groundbreaking role playing one of the first openly gay characters on television, to her iconic appearances on David Letterman — where she repeatedly made the host speechless — actor and comedian Sandra Bernhard has…
Nov. 19, 2024

Chesa Boudin, raised by radicals, on the songs that shaped him

Lawyer Chesa Boudin’s professional life has been nearly as tumultuous as his upbringing. He was raised by family friends because his parents—members of the Weather Underground—were incarcerated for crimes committed when he w…
Nov. 5, 2024

Rahsaan “New York” Thomas on breaking barriers behind bars

Rahsaan “New York” Thomas spent more than two decades incarcerated before being granted a commutation for his rehabilitation efforts behind bars. He shares how his life was shaped by growing up in Brownsville, “the murder ca…