Commotion with Elamin Abdelmahmoud
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Commotion with Elamin Abdelmahmoud
Big laughs. Smart takes. Every day. Commotion is where you go for thoughtful and vibrant conversations about all things pop culture. Host Elamin Abdelmahmoud calls on journalists, critics, creators and friends to talk through the biggest arts & entertainment stories of the day, in 30 minutes or...
Episodis Recents
494 episodis
The rise of Penske Media Corporation, and The Testament of Ann Lee
With Penske Media Company’s acquisition of several key publications and award shows, Commotion guest host Radheyan Simonpillai is joined by entertainm...
The Pitt is back, and A$AP Rocky too
After winning lots of fans and awards in its first season, HBO’s medical drama 'The Pitt' is back for another 15-hour shift. Culture critics Nicholas...
Friday Wrap: The Bone Temple, The Traitors, Dragon's Den patty controversy
Elamin is joined by culture critics Marlon Palmer, Roxana Hadadi and CBC Entertainment reporter Jackson Weaver to discuss ‘28 Years Later: The Bone Te...
How betting has infiltrated entertainment, and the tumultuous revamping of CBS
While sports and betting have always gone hand-in-hand, the gambling industry has started infiltrating all corners of the entertainment world, establi...
The Giller jury will be booksellers this year, and remembering Grateful Dead's Bob Weir
With The Giller Prize announcing that for the first time its jury will consist of seven booksellers and no authors, Elamin is joined by Another Story...
Why this Canadian orchestra is ditching NDAs in cases of sexual misconduct
One of Canada’s most prestigious orchestras is facing a moment of reckoning. The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra says it will no longer use non-disclosur...
All the tea on this year's Golden Globes, and S4 of Industry
The 83rd Golden Globes were held in Los Angeles last night, providing an early gauge as to which films and actors have the momentum heading into Oscar...
The Heated Rivalry Obsession
There has never been a bigger Canadian show than Heated Rivalry – and people everywhere are obsessed. Culture critics Cassandra Morann, Jason P Frank...
Are TV writers dumbing down the dialogue we hear on TV? And the CFNY radio doc
Are we in an era of insufferable TV dialogue? Screenwriter and show-runner Anthony Q. Farrell and culture writer Kathryn VanArendonk talk to Elamin ab...
Nicky Minaj's turn towards Trump, and Adin Ross comes after Doechii
The new year kicked off with some big stories from the world of hip hop. There's the petition to have Nicki Minaj deported to Trinidad, Drake is facin...
The memeification of the Venezuela crisis, and Jim Heson's Labryinth turns 40
Millions of people are encountering the crisis in Venezuela right now through memes – from Nicolás Maduro's 'viral dance' that reportedly angered U.S....
Are we in for an AI cultural reset this year?
AI has already transformed what we read, watch, and listen to .. and some people are already fed up. So .. are we in for a cultural reset this year? A...
What's new in music in 2026?
There are so many big albums to look forward to in 2026, and there are so many industry trends, like the rise of AI in music. What should we pay atten...
What we're watching in 2026: The Pitt S2, lots of Canadian movies and more
Critics Kathryn VanArendonk and Saloni Gajjar chat with Elamin Abdelmahmoud about the new and returning TV shows they’re excited about for the new yea...
Fashion wins and misses in 2025
2025 was a big year on and off the runway. Fashion writers Danya Issawi, Tashira Halyard and Mosha Lundström Halbert look back on a year in fashion th...
The biggest pop culture moments of 2025
Coming into 2025, the phrases '6-7,' 'Italian brainrot,' 'Coldplay kiss-cam' and 'astronaut Katy Perry' were not commonly used expressions, but thanks...
How riot grrls were replaced with girl power you could buy [2025 HIGHLIGHTS]
The phrase 'girl power' was coined by Bikini Kill in the early 1990s, but its meaning was watered down later in the decade when angry radical women in...
What our shrinking attention span means for arts and entertainment [2025 HIGHLIGHTS]
Culture writer Rebecca Jennings, tech/public-policy expert Vass Bednar, and media-studies professor Siva Vaidhyanathan discuss how shrinking attention...
Mariah Carey's new album, and why she's still one of the most iconic singers of our time [2025 HIGHLIGHTS]
Elamin is joined by culture critics Pablo The Don and Michael Blackmon, along with Juno nominated singer Tanika Charles to discuss ‘Here For It All’ -...
How NPR's Tiny Desk Concerts became a hub for Black pop [2025 HIGHLIGHTS]
For almost 20 years, NPR's Tiny Desk Concerts have given the internet a chance to see some of the biggest artists and promising upcoming talents in an...
How Kent Monkman creates new conversations about art and Canada's past [2025 HIGHLIGHTS]
This year, on the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, the group chat gathered to talk about Kent Monkman, Kent Monkman is having a profound imp...
Friday wrap on: Avatar 3 and new Disney/OpenAI deal
Elamin is joined by film critics Jesse Wente, Sarah-Ta Black & Jackson Weaver to discuss ‘Avatar: Fire & Ash’ - the latest installment in James Camero...
The Geese divide + best new Xmas albums!
Pretty much every best-of-2025 music list of note has featured Brooklyn band Geese’s third album, Getting Killed, at or near the top – a remarkable fe...
Remembering Rob Reiner, and the 2025 shows and films you might've missed
Today, we remember Rob Reiner’s amazing Hollywood legacy, and a look back at some of the shows and films that may have flown under your radar. Elamin...
What Rogers V. Rogers play tells us about Canada in this moment
Michael Healey’s new play 'Rogers V. Rogers: The Battle for Control Over Canada's Telecom Empire,' reveals a lot about the power structures that exist...
Has parodying the Toronto accent gone too far, and the cultural impact of the Shopaholic series
With a hot debate raging between prominent Toronto content creators Marlon Palmer and City Boy JJ about the right and wrong ways to use the Toronto ac...
Friday Wrap on: Wake Up Dead Man, and Quentin Tarantino trash talks Paul Dano
Critics Roxana Hadadi, Angelo Muredda and Jackson Weaver chat with guest host Radheyan Simonpillai about the new Knives Out movie 'Wake Up Dead Man,’...
The best in Canadian music in 2025
CBC Music’s Natalie Harmsen, culture writer Riley Yesno, and Walrus writer Erin Macleod reflect on the big albums, trends, and challenges that defined...
How Frank Gehry's love of art showed up in the buildings he created, and S2 of For The Culture
Remembering Frank Gehry – one of the most famous architects of the last half-century, who had an improbable path to global stardom. Elamin Abdelmahmou...
Club Chalamet and can fandom actually go too far, and iHeartRadio stands up to AI
Club Chalamet is a Timothée Chalamet fan club started by Simone Cromer. Elamin is joined by pop culture writers Kayleigh Donaldson and CT Jones to dig...
50 Cent's new Diddy doc is wiiild, and what to make of Canada's revolving door of Heritage Ministers
With the Netflix release of the Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs docu-series ‘The Reckoning,’ executive produced by 50 Cent - Elamin is joined by entertainment repo...
Friday Wrap on: Sentimental Value, Hamnet, Jay Kelly
Three new movies illuminate what it means to be an absent father: Joachim Trier's movie 'Sentimental Value,' Chloé Zhao’s film 'Hamnet,' and Noah Baum...
How Uiksaringitara (Wrong Husband) brings Inuit storytelling to the big screen, and Broadway shows at the movies
Zacharias Kunuk’s films are legendary for the way they show the beauty of Canada’s North and the richness of Inuit culture. His latest film 'Uiksaring...
How RapCity connected Canadians through hip-hop
With pioneering MuchMusic program ‘RapCity’ having its 35th anniversary celebrations this year, Elamin is joined by the show's original creator and pr...
The gay hockey romance Heated Rivalry is lusty, horny, and real, and why Claire Danes' face has the internet talking
Imagine this: Two of the best hockey players on the best teams in the NHL are arch-rivals on the rink. Off the ice: they’re lovers. That’s the premise...
Choclair’s first album in 20 years, Trump really wants Rush Hour 4
Choclair’s first full length album in 20 years - veteran music critic Dalton Higgins and Canadian music industry veteran Craig ‘Big C’ Mannix join Ela...
Jesse Wente on Thomas King and finding hope in a hard moment
For decades, Thomas King was considered to be one of the most prominent Indigenous authors and creators, so news that he has no Indigenous ancestry ca...
Why you can't tell the story of reggae without Jimmy Cliff, and Stranger Things S5
With the recent passing of reggae legend Jimmy Cliff, Elamin Abdelmahmood is joined by University of West Indies professor Sonja Stanley Niaah and cul...
What happens when an author who claimed he was Indigenous, now says he isn't?
Cree journalist Michelle Cyca and Anishinaabe/Mohawk writer Kim Wheeler assess the fallout from award-winning author Thomas King’s recent admission th...
What Vanity Fair's Hollywood Issue says about masculinity in this moment, and Tobias Jesso Jr.'s new album
Vanity Fair’s Hollywood issue is always a barometer for the year’s hottest celebrities, especially ahead of Oscar season. Well, this year -- for the f...