Will Sinners do for blues what O Brother did for bluegrass?

February 17, 2026·51 min·4 clips

How did a 1973 film about con men bring ragtime composer Scott Joplin back from obscurity?

The hosts and guest Fran Hoffner explore how films like The Sting, O Brother Where Art Thou?, The Mask, Swingers, and Drive revived or popularized music genres such as ragtime, bluegrass, swing, and synthwave, analyzing the symbiotic relationship between cinema and music with historical examples and personal insights, while speculating on the potential impact of the film Sinners on blues music.

As heard by us

A focused soundtrack discussion that links Sinners' blues frame to O Brother's sequenced staying power.

Ryan Coogler's Sinners gives this Switched on Pop discussion its guiding question: how does a film rooted in blues and the African-American musical canon make its force felt through music?

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Why you'd press play

You want to hear Sinners through the afterlife of a soundtrack that can outgrow its movie.

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