Is Monoculture Dead? Rein Me In, Algorithms and Music

Is monoculture dead? Sam Fender and Olivia Dean's Rein Me In became the longest-running UK number one, yet plenty of people say they have never heard it. James and Claire ask Dr Chris Anderton, associate professor in cultural economy at Southampton Solent University, what has changed in how we find and share culture.

They discuss how on-demand media and algorithms split our attention, why online communities replace third spaces for younger people, how social media drives music discovery, why radio leans on catalogue, whether the charts still matter, and why nostalgia tours and artists' public identities now carry so much weight.

Read the Guardian article that prompted this episode, "Demise of the monoculture: why so many have never heard UK's record-breaking No 1 single": https://www.theguardian.com/music/2026/aug/05/demise-monoculture-why-have-so-many-never-heard-uk-record-breaking-no-1-single-sam-fender-olivia-dean

Dr Chris Anderton's staff profile at Southampton Solent University: https://www.solent.ac.uk/staff/academic/chris-anderton

Some of the songs mentioned in the episode:

* Rein Me In, Sam Fender and Olivia Dean: https://open.spotify.com/track/1mMRddLLTQgjxVmgXQOYhT?si=5c981d4e3ffa4baf

* Dai Dai, Shakira and Burna Boy: https://open.spotify.com/track/0kosUz0jePvjiz4ctmR6wL?si=7c81dbbb363f4dc5

* Baker Street, Gerry Rafferty: https://open.spotify.com/track/3V07f70cRjUDg4KqDzHhFg?si=780649742d0a481f

* Dreams, Fleetwood Mac: https://open.spotify.com/track/0ofHAoxe9vBkTCp2UQIavz?si=336898c20c924779

Chris's listening picks

* Tangerine Dream, the Berlin electronic group founded in 1967: https://www.tangerinedreammusic.com

* Mike Keneally, former member of Frank Zappa's 1988 touring band: https://www.keneally.com

* Ani DiFranco: https://www.anidifranco.com

* Elina Duni, Swiss-Albanian jazz singer: https://www.elinaduni.com

Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast all about attention. Join hosts Claire Coady and James Wickham as they dive into how your attention is attracted, tracked, traded, and manipulated in the modern attention economy.

* Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham

* Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk in conjunction with The Attention Practice https://www.theattentionpractice.com

* Find out more on our website https://canwehaveyourattention.com

* Got a story for us? Email us: [email protected]

Like this episode? If you enjoyed this episode, please click subscribe. If you really liked it, please leave a rating - every rating helps this podcast reach more listeners like you.