It's Been a Minute
by NPR
Latest episode
Some friendships aren’t forever, and that’s okay
Some friendships aren’t forever, and that’s okay
About this podcast
Want in on a secret? Your likes and dislikes didn't develop by accident. There are subtle and not-so-subtle forces around you, shaping what you think, how you act, and even who you think you are. Brittany Luse is here to break the spell and help you feel wiser in a society that makes things blurry.
THE BEST POP CULTURE PODCAST AWARD WINNER AT THE 2025 SIGNAL AWARDS
It’s Been A Minute with Brittany Luse is the best podcast for understanding what’s going on in culture right now, and helps you consume it smarter. From how politics influences pop culture to how identity influences tech or health, Brittany makes the picture clearer for you every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.It’s Been A Minute reaches millions of people every week. Join the community and conversation today.
Support public media by joining NPR+ at plus.npr.org. You’ll get perks for over 25 NPR podcasts, including sponsor-free listening for It's Been A Minute.
Episodes
The newest 50 of 1,134 episodes
- Some friendships aren’t forever, and that’s okay · 29 minSome people are in your life for a reason, and some people…for a season. How do you tell a friend you don’t feel considered? Or that your friendship feels more transactional…
- Do we need the death penalty? · 31 minFrom a botched execution in Tennessee to the commutation of over 500 people on death row in California, capital punishment is all over the headlines. But where do American…
- Middle age doesn’t need to be a crisis · 38 minMidlife isn’t just about body changes and sports cars. For Allison Aubrey, journalist and host of Your Turn, there’s more to midlife is a new opportunity. In fact, what we’ve…
- Wicker, wicker, where art thou? · 22 minIs Wicker succeeding where rom-coms fall short? When the Wicker trailer dropped, all thirst broke loose. The movie -- starring Olivia Colman as a spinster fisherwoman and…
- What does it mean to be a good 'church girl'? · 24 minWhat does it cost to be seen as a ‘godly woman’? The Secret Lives of Church Ladies author Deesha Philyaw asks that and more in her latest novel, The True Confessions of First…
- Does 'the talk' include consent? · 27 minIn response to the rape allegations out of Cornell University, many parents are online questioning the lessons they are teaching their children. But what about the fathers who…
- How Denée Benton conquered Hollywood, TV, and Broadway · 29 minDenée Benton is having a very good year. She’s currently starring in season four of the hit television show ‘The Gilded Age’ while starring in the production of ‘School Girls…
- Does a high IQ make you smart? · 36 minWhy IQ still matters to people - even if it's biased. President Trump and Silicon Valley tech bros are obsessed with IQ, but the history of intelligence testing is full of bunk…
- Why is divorce financially harder on women? · 27 minDivorce can be liberating. And expensive. When author and science journalist Melinda Wenner Moyer separated from her ex-husband, her social media feed was inundated with posts…
- Bringing a chatbot to the polls · 22 minHow do you decide who to vote for? Some people are turning to AI chatbots to craft bespoke voter guides, while others are leaning on the wisdom of their favorite Instagram or…
- Our money dysmorphia is real · 43 minAre we in an economic crisis? It’s a question that prompted Pulitzer Prize-winning data journalist and illustrator Mona Chalabi to pitch her first book, Ten Lives: How What We…
- There's nothing scarier than private equity in food · 18 minDoes private equity turn restaurants into zombified husks of their former selves? From the Crumbl and Insomnia cookie empires, to some of our country's most enduring chains like…
- How will Gen Z independents shape the midterms? · 20 minHas Gen Z changed how we think about independents? It's no secret that Americans are politically divided, as faith in political parties erodes. In the past, so-called…
- A chatbot a day keeps the doctor away · 18 minWho do you trust to help you make decisions about your sexual health? In the absence of widespread public health campaigns and high-profile narratives in TV and film about HIV…
- How artists conquer Tiny Desk · 33 minWhat makes a great Tiny Desk concert? For NPR’s Tiny Desk Creative Director Bobby Carter, success means making space for an artist's creativity within the show’s strict…
- The sport of online harassment · 34 minNon-consensually posted intimate images can devastate women – and beget male bonding. The burner accounts on X loosely grouped into the “burnerverse” started by bonding over…
- Who gets to keep the lights on? · 28 minAs our climate crisis continues to unfold, who gets to keep the lights on? On August 11th, a derecho hit northwest Indiana, and the predominantly Black city of Gary was left…
- The high flying girls who desegregated America · 28 minShe's America's sweetheart, but she just might be America's superhero as well. The American cheerleader has become one of the nation's most cemented symbols of femininity…
- Nowadays, celebrity is a state of mind · 40 minWe’re in an era where everyone can be a celebrity. And that’s okay! For the past ten years, Bobby Finger and Lindsey Weber, hosts of the podcast Who? Weekly, have dissected the…
- The proposal to know less about America · 26 minCensus data about race can be incredibly important – but we might lose it. The Trump administration has proposed to stop asking people in the U.S. about their race and ethnicity…
- The Palestinians telling their own stories · 27 minPalestinians are challenging the narrative one story at a time. Editor-in-Chief of The Key, Sara Yasin, wants us to rethink what she calls ‘it’s complicated' journalism. As more…
- The secret pain of your high school bully · 26 minSome of life's hardest lessons are learned in high school. In Jocelyn Bioh's Broadway play, School Girls; or, the African Mean Girls Play, the ladies of Aburi Girls' Boarding…
- Is loving your mother worth the pain? · 35 minAuthor Mary H.K. Choi is obsessed with her mom. New York Times bestselling author, Mary H.K Choi, is known for her young adult novels Emergency Contact and Yolk. But her latest…
- When did it become OK to blast TikToks in public? · 33 minThere are deep roots behind the latest entry into public noise. It’s a now-common scenario: you’re using public transit, or waiting at the airport, or dining in a restaurant…
- So you wanna be a critic... · 26 minSocial media has made it easy for everyone to give their opinion...so why do people hate critics? To answer that question Brittany is joined by Lovia Gyarkye, culture editor at…
- Bacteria is taking over the food pyramid · 27 minHow do you know what's safe to eat? You don't. And after a summer full of food recalls from lettuce to blueberries and even jalapeños, a regular trip to the grocery store can…
- Help, America is in a sex drought! · 35 minWho's afraid of a horny movie? According to Bobbi Miller, culture critic and host of Culture Kitsch, horny movies pique our carnal curiosities. Sometimes there's an overall…
- Is the internet choosing your food? · 29 minRecipes online seem to have all become… kind of the same. They're described in lots of words that end in y – creamy, jammy, lemony – and they tend to use lots of globally…
- The power of giving & receiving advice · 19 minGot first date jitters? Maybe your siblings are already starting drama ahead of the holidays? Or perhaps you need tips on supporting a friend through a hard time? You’re in good…
- Carla Hall on cooking, courage, and curiosity · 24 minFor nearly twenty years, chef, author, and actor Carla Hall has taught us to cook from the heart across both screen and stage. Beyond culinary arts, her career path has spanned…
- 'Anxious attachment' is popular. But is it real? · 41 minAttachment theory is having a moment online. It’s the concept that the relationship we have with our parents directly impacts how we relate to and interact with others…
- Are we in a 'color recession'? · 25 minAre neutrals dominating your color palette? Our world is looking kind of gray. Not the trees, the grass or the sky – but the cars, the buildings, the houses, and the decor and…
- The report that changed public education · 34 minIn 1966, the federal government commissioned a massive survey aimed at solving educational inequality. Instead, the explosive Coleman Report unleashed a 60-year debate over…
- The Good, the Baddies, and the Ugly · 25 minAre we living in a Baddies Revolution? We just might be. Over the past few years, the Zeus Network franchise Baddies has steadily grown in virality, capturing dozens of young…
- Your summer (Sponsored by prediction markets) · 38 minThe summer of 2026 turned into the summer of predictive markets. Polymarket and Kalshi, two of the largest betting platforms in the US, expanded their marketing to reach users…
- The rising power of American Muslims · 35 minIs this a new era for American Muslims? American Muslims are building their own cultural institutions – New York Magazine and The Guardian have reported on flourishing…
- The manosphere is coming for R&B · 28 minThe genre made for lovers doesn't seem to respect the very fanbase it’s engineered to woo. When Mankaprr Conteh interviewed R&B artist Isaia Huron, she imagined a thoughtful if…
- Would you let your kids play football? · 27 minIs the fantasy of football worth the potential price? That's what football athletes, fans and doctors are asking after a new study published in late August revealed that from a…
- We've reached peak 'optimization.' What comes next? · 42 minHas the era of optimization finally reached a fever pitch? Veneers, perfect minimalist home decor, and even eye whitening drops are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to…
- Why you shouldn't bring your full self to work · 45 min"Be vulnerable." "We love your authenticity." "Bring your full self to work." Sound familiar? In this episode from our friends at Code Switch, B.A. Parker chats with Jodi-Ann…
- In America, are you what you wear? · 23 minYou are what you wear… or are you? In her new podcast, Philosophy Club, host Avery Trufelman -- who also hosts the fashion podcast Articles of Interest -- tries to answer that…
- Where did all the 'masculine men' go? · 26 minHas there been a decline in "masculine" men? Some women on Tiktok seem to believe so. The phrase, "Who's gonna be the boys?" has been used online to refer to all the mundane…
- It's healthy to eat your feelings. Here's why. · 37 minCarla Lalli’s latest cookbook wants you to eat your feelings. After the end of her decades-long marriage, Lalli -- the former Bon Appétit editor whose cooking videos and…
- The rise of 'intentional living' · 27 minDoes everyone need their own lawnmower? For a lot of people, living with your spouse and kids in a standalone house with a white picket fence is, more or less, the American…
- Hitting the open road can lead to new beginnings · 24 minWhat would it look like to have all of your needs met? That’s the question filmmaker Shatara Michelle Ford’s asks in their film, Dreams in Nightmares. As three Black queer…
- The influencer era is dead. What's next? · 19 minWould you go back to college? What if it looked less like four years of textbooks and cram sessions, and more like five days of non-stop streaming and content creation? That's…
- Books can teach you to love yourself. If you let them. · 37 minHow do you convince people to read more novels? You could ask author Jason Reynolds for a start. The acclaimed author of young adult novels, Look Both Ways, Long Way Down, and…
- Bite-sized shows are taking over the internet · 26 minMicrodramas are taking over the internet. But are they art – or products? The Double Life of My Billionaire Husband. Break Me, Princess. Married the Mafioso I Saved. These are…
- 'The Pitt' star Sepideh Moafi on being limitless · 24 minSepideh Moafi wants you to get raw with your emotions. Season 2 of HBO Max’s original series, The Pitt, brings a new doctor into the fold: Dr. Baran Al-Hashimi. An Iranian-Iraqi…
- Broadway has a labor issue · 23 minIt seems like no one on Broadway is happy. Actors are buckling under the weight of the eight-show week, producers aren't making their money back, and audiences are getting tired…
