Pop Mystery Pod

Selena Quintanilla was 23 years old, and well on her way to becoming an international megastar when she was shot and killed by Yolanda Saldivar, the president of her fan club. Though a biopic starring Jennifer Lopez paints a fairly simple picture of this tragic death, the truth appears less black and white. Only two people really know how and Selena died that day, and one of them was Selena. Joining Tess to talk through th...

If there is such a thing as the typical college experience, Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen,  the two most famous child star twins of all time, were probably never going to have it. Nevertheless, they persisted…kind of. Joining Tess to talk through the Olsen twins transition to otherworldly fashion icons is writer, actor, and comic Guy Branum. 

See Guy’s new one-person show “Fruitful” live in Chicago May 6th, St. P...

The Olsen twins are endlessly fascinating celebrities. They were selected for stardom before they could walk. They’re both an inspirational story and I cautionary tale. They’re just so important. Joining Tess to talk through the wild mystery that is the Olsen twins existence is writer, actor, and comic Guy Branum. 

See Guy’s new one-person show “Fruitful” live in Chicago May 6th, St. Paul May 7th. And watch “Hacks,...

Forget skeletons in the closet. Barbra Streisand has a mall. In her basement. Like, a real one. Joining Tess to tour this fascinating and unhinged corner of American architecture is writer, director, and podcaster Chelsea Devantez. Chelsea’s memoir  “I Shouldn’t Be Telling You This, But I’m Going to Anyway,” is out now. Her podcast “Glamorous Trash” is  pop perfection and a must-listen! 

Got 48 hours? Che...

Before she was proclaiming she’d invented “gay pop,” child dance phenom-turned heavily costumed try-hard helmed a junior girl group called XOMG. The group claimed to offer aspiring pop stars as young as 8 years old a line into their show biz dreams. Some claim what followed was a candy-flavored nightmare. 

Joining Tess to talk through Jojo’s turn as a teacher and her life as a child star, is comedian, actor, podcas...

“Plaintiff would pay for her statement regarding Tupac.” In this chilling line from an assault case filed against Sean Diddy Combs, legal representatives for Ashley Parham, an alleged victim’s of Sean Combs synopsize what is a shocking and brutal claim of sexual assault by Combs. Parham’s story is deeply disturbing. It also provides telling insight into Comb’s alleged network of trafficking and coercion…and seems to point ...

Cameras wrap on “It Ends With Us.” Now, the real battle begins. After Blake Lively alleges that she’s been harassed while filming this movie, her attempts at wrestling back agency stall out.  Ultimately, Lively is able to get back some power…but at what cost? And who is really making her pay? 

Tess has sifted through the many legal filings in this case. As this story’s concludes (for now) what does it have to tell us abo...

Betrayal. Gaslighting. Things not being what they seem. These are themes in the movie “It Ends With Us,” but they could also describe the dramatic and seemingly constantly escalating conflict between actor and fashionista Blake Lively and her co-star and director Justin Baldoni. Tess has sifted through the many wordy legal filings and blurry screen grabbed texts, and a narrative seems to emerge around what actually happene...

You don’t have to be a Swiftie to know there’s bad blood between Taylor Swift, Kanye West, and Scooter Braun. What exactly went down between these three powerful and strong personalities? Who was really in the wrong here, and how did Kanye taking the mic from Taylor at the VMAs lead to the re-recorded albums known as “Taylor’s Version?” 

Joining Tess to parse and explain this twisted and juicy tale is performance artist ...

Few murders have rocked the music world like the untimely deaths of Biggie Smalls and Tupac Shakur. Neither slain rapper has ever had their killer brought to justice. Recent allegations against Sean Diddy Combs, the producer who have Biggie Smalls his start, have forced questions about Diddy’s involvement in this dark and violent tale. 

Joining Tess to talk through Diddy’s role in the Tupac and Biggie murders is writer, ...

A sweet movie about a talking pig turned a whole new generation of children into vegetarians. Those children often remained vegetarians into adulthood, and played a role in transforming the plant-based food industry. How did “Babe” make such a lasting impact on kids, and why were so many of those ‘90s babes girls? 

Joining Tess to talk through this phenomenon are psychologist and author Dr. Carla Manly (@drcarlamanly); a...

So this actually happened: one of the most unpredictable and eccentric NBA players of all time put the entire United States (and maybe the whole world) at risk when he found himself cozying up to one of the world’s most notorious dictators. Joining Tess to talk through this strange and hilarious story is writer, actor, and comedian Megan Koester (@bornferal). 

Read Megan’s writing here. 

To learn more about this story,...

While we’re all lining up to see “Wicked,” Tess has some thoughts on a different upcoming Jon Chu movie musical – the Britney Spears biopic. Britney herself has said on Instagram that this movie, which was optioned from the book “A Woman in Me,” is not actually a biopic. So what is really going on here? 

Follow Pop Mystery Pod on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok @popmysterypod 

Pop Mystery Pod is written and produced by ...

There was a moment in history where it seemed like every celeb was dabbling in Kabbalah - the secretive spiritual practice that set up camp at the bottom of Beverly Hills. Madonna and her many famous friends were all wearing red bracelets and talking about awareness and balance, but for all the press Kabbalah got, Kabbalah’s darker side was pushed into the shadows. 

Joining Tess to talk through this very LA fad are Rache...

Aliens: their existence seems kind of inevitable, right? So why are they such a fringe topic? They’re not, to legendary comedian Dan Aykroyd, who has spent his entire life studying alien encounters. This SNL founding member has a lot to say about extraterrestrials, and Tess brings on comedian CJ Sullivan (@cjsullivanwastaken) to sift through what Dan Aykroyd knows, and what the government is (and isn’t) telling us. 

Foll...

Brandon Lee was supposed to have a long and successful film career. Instead, he died in a freak shooting accident on the set of his breakout film “The Crow.” He was shot by a blank. So how was that shot fatal? Tess talks with professional armorer Mike Tristano about how and why this horrific tragedy occurred. 

Follow Pop Mystery Pod on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok @popmysterypod 

Pop Mystery Pod is written and produc...

Happy Halloween! We don't talk much about the woman buried at Donald Trump's golf course, huh? This strange and alarming story has been on Tess' mind for a couple years, and the week ahead of election day seems as good a time as any to get into it. 

Pop Mystery Pod is written and produced by Tess Barker 

Produced by Tyler Hill 

Theme song by Rick Wood 

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Woody Harrelson is a huge movie star. His dad Charles Harrelson was a storied hit man with a fascinating life. The two Harrelsons shared a lot, including the spotlight in twisted various ways. Joining Tess to talk through this strange noir father son story is comedian River Butcher @rivbutcher 

Listen to the “Son of a Hitman” podcast by Jason Cavanaugh here. 

Follow Pop Mystery Pod on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok @po...

In 2001, Winona Ryder was arrested for shoplifting clothes at Saks 5th Avenue. This resulted in the creation of a wildly trendy garment - the Free Winona t-shirt. The iconic tee was designed by Billy T @yquetradingpost. Why was the Free Winona fad such a big deal? And why was Winona’s relatively petty theft treated like the crime of the century? 

Follow Pop Mystery Pod on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok @popmysterypod 

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