Rob Drew @slobster48602.bsky.social · 06/02/2026The invitation for the Jeopardy Invitational Tournament should read, "You are invited to get your ass kicked by Matt Amodio." 000
Rob Drew @slobster48602.bsky.social · 06/12/2025Sophie's choice: Rankin/Bass or Syd & Marty Krofft? 010
Rob Drew @slobster48602.bsky.social · 28/11/2025I had it in my head this was called Turn Me On Dead Man (i.e. even cooler/more obscure Beatles reference than Glass Onion) but no such luck m.imdb.com/title/tt1436...m.imdb.comWake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery (2025) ⭐ 7.9 | Comedy, Crime, Drama2h 24m | PG-13 1101
Rob Drew @slobster48602.bsky.social · 24/09/2025Been watching late night monologues on and off for half a century ... Never seen anything like that. 000
Rob Drew @slobster48602.bsky.social · 20/07/2025What an honor and a joy it was to share a few fond memories of my alma mater bit.ly/4lBMKPSbit.ly“There Was Never Any Doubt Where I Was Going”Rob Drew ’83 is a professor of communication at Saginaw Valley State University in Michigan, where he teaches classes in media studies and popular culture. He is the author of Karaoke Nights: An Ethno... 020
Reposted by Rob DrewAndrew Simon @simongandrew.bsky.social · 02/07/2025Over a century ago, today, a blind performer turned political dissident was born in Egypt. To commemorate the start of Shaykh Imam's story, the subject of my new book project, it seems only fitting to share this podcast episode: kerningcultures.com/sheikh-imam-...kerningcultures.comSheikh Imam: Voice of Dissent - KERNING CULTURES كيرنينج كلتشرزA blind oud player from humble beginnings, Sheikh Imam's destiny changed drastically when he met a dissident poet called Ahmed Fouad Negm, and they formed a 133
Reposted by Rob DrewWill Hermes @willhermes.bsky.social · 13/02/2025The great David Johansen of the NY DOLLS has been battling stage 4 cancer for the past few years, unable to work. This being America, he is having a hard times paying for medical care. A fundraiser has been set up through Sweet Relief; more info below. www.sweetrelief.org/davidjohanse...sweetrelief.orgSweet ReliefSweet Relief Musicians Fund provides financial assistance to all types of career musicians and music industry workers who are struggling to make ends meet while facing illness, disability, or age-rela... 23624
Rob Drew @slobster48602.bsky.social · 23/02/2025Evidently @katejewell.bsky.social was lucky enough to have a friend in high school with a tape deck in their car that could only play "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida." Also her review of Unspooled is super detailed and thoughtful. Thanks to Kate and @ranjitdighe.bsky.social ! 051
Reposted by Rob DrewBenjamin Duester @benjaminduester.bsky.social · 20/01/2025@limnpress.bsky.social The Obsolescence Issue featuring a piece by @slobster48602.bsky.social and myself. I had a blast writing this article and I am stoked to see the connection between the historic (mixtapes) and present (tape labels) use of cassettes that we’ve traced in it. 063
Reposted by Rob DrewDuke University Press @dukepress.bsky.social · 18/12/2024Great to see "Unspooled" by @slobster48602.bsky.social on @variety.bsky.social's Best Music Books of 2024 list!buff.lyThe Best Music Books of 2024: Joni Mitchell, Lisa Marie Presley, Kathleen Hanna, Rolling Stones and MoreThis year's bumper crop of great music books includes titles on Joni MItchell, Bikini Kill's Kathleen Hanna, the Rolling Stones, the Bee Gees and more. 0113
Rob Drew @slobster48602.bsky.social · 18/12/2024Thanks to @adamorosi.bsky.social and Variety magazine for naming Unspooled one of their best music books of 2024 variety.com/2024/music/n...variety.comThe Best Music Books of 2024: Joni Mitchell, Lisa Marie Presley, Kathleen Hanna, Rolling Stones and MoreThis year's bumper crop of great music books includes titles on Joni MItchell, Bikini Kill's Kathleen Hanna, the Rolling Stones, the Bee Gees and more. 141
Rob Drew @slobster48602.bsky.social · 13/12/2024Thank you @subwaysurface.bsky.social for taking the time and thought to engage so fully with my work (and two other terrific books) 030
Reposted by Rob DrewDuke University Press @dukepress.bsky.social · 12/12/2024Thanks to Boulder Weekly for recommending two of our titles on their holiday music book guide, "Unspooled" by @slobster48602.bsky.social and "At the Vanguard of Vinyl" by Darren Mueller.buff.lyBooks about music: 2024 holiday roundup - Boulder WeeklyYour annual roundup of books about music for your holiday shopping list — featuring Bruce Springsteen, Prince and more. 184
Reposted by Rob Drew🤖h̷a̷y̷w̷i̷r̷e̷z̶🐥 @haywirez.com · 06/11/2023Shane Denson's Discorrelated Images (2020) is one of the best books I've read this year. Hard to tl;dr, but we went from syncing to the human body to syncing to machines. Demonstrated through cinema. shanedenson.com/discorrelate...shanedenson.comShane Denson | Discorrelated ImagesBooks 022
Rob Drew @slobster48602.bsky.social · 23/11/2024Nothing against chimps but the NYT seems to be working through trauma with a lot of Buzzfeed type stuff above the fold 010
Rob Drew @slobster48602.bsky.social · 22/11/2024Ben Düster and I co-authored a piece on the int'l cassette revival for this beautifully produced journal. Feeling quite obsolescent these days so it's entirely apropos. 031
Reposted by Rob Drewjess rauchberg @jessrauchberg.bsky.social · 19/11/2024my latest with @jessmaddox.bsky.social is out this morning in @femmediastudies.bsky.social! We propose influencer snark as a feminist media practice to address concerns of credibility, authenticity, and representation in the influencer industry. please share!!! www.tandfonline.com/eprint/XZSZD... 612347
Rob Drew @slobster48602.bsky.social · 16/11/2024In which Ben Duester and I discuss pre- and postmillennial cassette scenes 041
Reposted by Rob DrewTanya Goldman @tanyagoldman.bsky.social · 03/07/2024My third summer academic read: Rob Drew’s @slobster48602.bsky.social’s UNSPOOLED: HOW THE CASSETTE MADE MUSIC SHAREABLE (Duke UP, 2024). Brimming with insights on various meanings of cassettes. Sends me back to my childhood bedroom where I recorded songs off the radio! 052
Rob Drew @slobster48602.bsky.social · 21/03/2024The recording of our Popular Music Books in Process session the other day ... youtu.be/5ujN97jY8t8?...youtu.beCassette Books Mixtape: Marc Masters, Jerry Kranitz, & Rob Drew, w/ Tom McCourt, PMBiP, 24/04/18Popular Music Books in Process, March 18, 2024: The compact cassette is getting overdue attention as a pivotal popular music format. This session was a conve... 001
Rob Drew @slobster48602.bsky.social · 05/03/2024My book comes out today, feels bittersweet like the summer solstice. So often I planned how I'd reward myself when it was done, only realizing afterward it was its own reward. Grateful to have been able to write it. 020
Rob Drew @slobster48602.bsky.social · 02/03/2024dukeupress.edu/unspooled will be out Tuesday! Happy to share my haul of pre-ordered copies with interested grad students, adjuncts, jr faculty. Email me your mailing address (rdrew@svsu.edu) ... hoping to get the word out and not go gently into academic book oblivion. 041
Rob Drew @slobster48602.bsky.social · 20/02/2024Unspooled traces a few of the musicians who crossed paths with the cassette in its transition from fugitive format to cultural touchstone. Here's my annotated playlist courtesy of Duke! 03610
Rob Drew @slobster48602.bsky.social · 07/02/2024@portwoodstacer.bsky.social has assured me it's okay if I brag that I was interviewed by a Jeopardy! champion ... she also happens to be the best academic book proposal consultant in the business. Really enjoyed our talk! 040
Reposted by Rob DrewLaura Portwood-Stacer @lportwoodstacer.bsky.social · 04/02/2024Delighted to have received my analogue copy of @slobster48602.bsky.social’s UNSPOOLED: HOW THE CASSETTE MADE MUSIC SHAREABLE (and extra delighted by the design work from Duke UP’s Aimee Harrison) 👏👏👏 3163
Reposted by Rob DrewLaura Portwood-Stacer @lportwoodstacer.bsky.social · 29/01/2024PSA: you do not have to apologize or feel ashamed of promoting your own book. 1) people are mostly not seeing your posts. 2) you are *helping* people find out about something they might be interested in. Others will simply ignore if it’s not new info to them. Most ppl appreciate reminders 24311
Rob Drew @slobster48602.bsky.social · 25/01/2024Big change on my campus: the Kar's Sweet 'n' Salty mixes in the vending machines have suddenly become Sweet 'n' Spicy mixes. 000
Rob Drew @slobster48602.bsky.social · 15/01/2024The inverted legalese that appeared on the j-cards of several early tapes released by Martin Newell (a.k.a. Cleaners from Venus) could serve as a credo for all of cassette culture ... 0278
Rob Drew @slobster48602.bsky.social · 06/01/2024An easy Saturday but I'll take it on 3rd night of covid 010
Rob Drew @slobster48602.bsky.social · 19/12/2023I still recall being floored by Paul Gilroy's talk on Turner's Slave Ship, one of many highlights of the seminal 1990 cultural studies conference at Urbana-Champaign. 020
Rob Drew @slobster48602.bsky.social · 07/12/2023Lear and MTM, the quality TV dialectic of a 70s childhood. 010
Reposted by Rob DrewRebecca Frazer @beccafraz.bsky.social · 06/12/2023We're looking to hire 3 new science or health communication faculty at the University of Florida. Please share. explore.jobs.ufl.edu/en-us/job/52... 011
Rob Drew @slobster48602.bsky.social · 05/12/2023Pardon the proverbial cross-posting but three days remain on Duke's 50% off cyber Monday presale for Unspooled: How the Cassette Made Music Shareable with discount code CYBER23 (after which it will return to 30% off with code E24RDREW) www.dukeupress.edu/unspooleddukeupress.edu Duke University Press - Unspooled 061
Reposted by Rob DrewTaylor R. Genovese @taylorgenovese.com · 30/11/2023i had to restrain myself for @dukepress.bsky.social's 50% off sale, but i snagged some gems. ➤@lmesseri.bsky.social's upcoming ethnography on VR ➤erin mcelroy's upcoming multisited study on techno-imperialism ➤the latest translation of the maestro (rip dussel) ➤a reader on the cuban revolution 1136
Rob Drew @slobster48602.bsky.social · 30/11/2023Duke threw a playlist up on Spotify for my book Unspooled: all songs originally released on cassette, all artists discussed in the book. Some may surprise. nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.com?url=https%3A...nam10.safelinks.protection.outlook.comUnspooledUnspooled · Playlist · 20 songs 1102
Rob Drew @slobster48602.bsky.social · 29/11/2023Love this tattoo owning fandom for one of Billy's best 010
Rob Drew @slobster48602.bsky.social · 27/11/2023What better purchase to mark cyber Monday than a paper book about analog media? Duke is offering 50% off pre-orders of Unspooled: How the Cassette Made Music Shareable until December 8. Use discount code CYBER23 at www.dukeupress.edu/unspooled (in Canada utpdistribution.com/978147802559... ).dukeupress.edu Duke University Press - Unspooled 010
Reposted by Rob DrewShannon Mattern @shannonmattern.bsky.social · 26/11/2023Next Monday, 12/4, at 5:15pm I'm 🗣️ in Penn's Material Texts series. I haven't had any ⏰ for research this year, so I changed my title + topic — to REPAIR MANUALS — a few wks ago, but the website still reflects the old plan. Please join us in-person or on zoom! pennmaterialtexts.org/about/events/ 13011
Rob Drew @slobster48602.bsky.social · 26/11/2023With her uncommon, three-voweled first name, Anya Taylor-Joy counts as one of the youngest celebrities ever to enter the pantheon of nyt crossword clues. Move over, Enya. 000
Rob Drew @slobster48602.bsky.social · 26/11/2023What we wanted from the Beatles was to stay with us forever, but in a manner more akin to Field of Dreams than Reanimator or Weekend at Bernie's. www.nytimes.com/2023/11/21/m...nytimes.comThe Beatles Are Still Charting the Future of Pop. It Looks Bleak.Their latest song points toward a future where no golden goose need ever stop laying. 001
Reposted by Rob DrewLaura Portwood-Stacer @lportwoodstacer.bsky.social · 22/11/2023In today’s newsletter: why we all struggle to love our dissertations, and how you can use your book as a dissertation do-over Plus a sign-up link for my free webinar, How to Publish a Book from Your Dissertation newsletter.manuscriptworks.com/p/your-disse...newsletter.manuscriptworks.comYour Dissertation Do-Over in 2024Hello, Manuscript Workers! The too-long-didn’t-read takeaway of today’s newsletter is that I’m going to be hosting a free webinar called How to Publish a Book from Your Dissertation. You can sig... 094
Reposted by Rob DrewAmy Skjerseth @askjerseth.bsky.social · 21/11/2023Announcing a free special issue in Journal of Popular Music Studies on podcasting and gender edited by @kategalloway.bsky.social, Morgan Bimm, and me. Big thanks to our authors and to @kgoldschmitt.bsky.social , @ehphd.bsky.social, & @ericdharvey.bsky.social! Link: online.ucpress.edu/jpms/issue/3... 12913
Reposted by Rob DrewCarl Wilson @carlzoilus.bsky.social · 19/11/2023Tuesday Nov 19! John Szwed joins the Popular Music Books series 5 pm ET to talk COSMIC SCHOLAR, the first ever bio of Harry Smith, the "hipster magus" who created The Anthology of American Folk Music and much more. With American Roots' Nick Spitzer. To come: iaspm-us.wildapricot.org/Popular-Musi... 0133