BROADCASTS.com

Modern Classics is the new series where Charlie and Nate invite their favorite musicians, journalists, and friends of the show to wax lyrical about a song that's important in their life. In the first installment of Modern Classics, Nate and Charlie sit down with the host of NPR\u2019s hit news and culture program It\u2019s Been a Minute, Sam Sanders. Sam is one of the best people to talk music with, not only because he has his finger on the pulse of what\u2019s happening in the entertainment world, but because as a former music major he\u2019s got knowledge for days.\nThat knowledge makes Sam the perfect person to explain why Labrinth\u2019s 2019 track \u201cSexy MF\u201d might be one of the hidden gems of contemporary pop, a song that he hears as \u201cfun and fantastical with all these wonderful tricks and bells and whistles.\u201d Nate and Charlie had never heard \u201cSexy MF\u201d before Sam brought it to them, and were immediately hooked by the song\u2019s copious ear candy: sly references to Prince and James Brown, death-defying vocal harmonies, all scaffolded atop an indomitable piano groove.\nLabrinth, aka Timothy Lee McKenzie, is a U.K. singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer who released his first single in 2010. Since then he\u2019s gone on to compose the score for the hit TV show Euphoria, collaborated with Sia and Diplo as L.S.D., and worked with Beyonc\xe9 on the live-action Lion King soundtrack. Labrinth has racked up massive streaming numbers with tracks like \u201cJealous\u201d and \u201cThunderclouds,\u201d but \u201cSexy MF\u201d is more of what one might call a \u201cdeep cut.\u201d If you haven\u2019t heard it yet, like Sam, you might find that it\u2019s one you\u2019ll play \u201cperhaps a thousand times\u201d after your first listen.\nSongs discussed\nLabrinth - Sexy MF, Still Don\u2019t Know my Name, Mount Everest, Misbehaving\nPrince - Sexy M.F.\nJames Brown - Get Up (I Feel Like Being a Sex Machine)\nLauryn Hill - Doo Wop (That Thing)\nPaul Anka - Put Your Head on my Shoulder\nBeach Boys - God Only Knows\nHarry Nilsson - Gotta Get Up\nForeigner - Cold As Ice\nDr Dre and Snoop Dogg - Still D.R.E.\nGrizzly Bear - Two Weeks\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices