Sidetracked with Annie and Nick

Annie and Nick discuss the most Madonna week in music – the album announcement, the new song, the Coachella performance, and the theft. Sidetracked fans will know how much Madonna means to Nick...so why does he have beef with her this week?
Elsewhere, Justin Bieber and Billie Eilish showed us what they’re worth at Coachella Weekend 2, Olivia Rodrigo has a brilliant new song, and Annie has some thoughts on the link between bad fathers and great music artists. Plus, Charli XCX has declared the dancefloor dead, but was she being serious?
Get in touch with Annie and Nick! You can send a WhatsApp to 07970082700 or email [email protected]
And you can also stay in touch via our Instagram Channel, which you can find in the BBC Sounds Instagram bio.

SONGS
Lil Louis – French Kiss
Madonna – Vogue
Madonna – Like a Prayer
Madonna – I Feel So Free
Madonna – Justify My Love
Madonna – Hung Up
Empire of the Sun – Walking on a Dream
Olivia Rodrigo – Drop Dead

ALBUMS
Peaches – Teacher of Peaches
Madonna – Confessions II

Madonna – Confessions on a Dance Floor
Madonna – Ray of Light
Madonna – Music
Madonna – Madame X
Madonna – Hard Candy
Charli XCX – brat
Warchild Records – Help(2)
Olivia Rodrigo – You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love

Annie is back after a fortnight away and there’s a lot to catch up on. First on the agenda, Annie and Nick discuss the fallout from Wireless booking Kanye West as a headliner, and the subsequent cancellation of the entire festival. Plus, in other live music news, LIDO festival has had to cancel their planned June weekend due to environmental concerns, and CMAT fans are devastated.
And of course, after the first weekend of Coachella 2026, everyone is analysing the Justin Bieber set – and Annie and Nick hear from someone who was actually there in the field. Were the critical headlines about his YouTube use fair? Or has he just made history for one of the most special live shows in the festival’s history?
Get in touch with Annie and Nick! You can send a WhatsApp to 07970082700 or email [email protected]
And you can also stay in touch via our Instagram Channel, which you can find in the BBC Sounds Instagram bio.
With thanks to Sam Murphy (@popsamcam), who provided much needed intel from Coachella.
SONGS
Justin Bieber – Baby
Justin Bieber and Nicki Minaj – Beauty and a Beat
Ne-Yo – So Sick

ALBUMS
Arlo Parks – Ambiguous Desire
Elmiene – sounds for someone
Justin Bieber – Swag
Justin Bieber – Swag II

This week Nick is joined by a very special co-host, Arlo Parks, following the release of her third album, Ambiguous Desire. They discuss how songs come to her, being a sensitive child, accepting a Mercury prize from Annie, trusting yourself as an artist, and how LA inspires her music. Plus, what does an ideal night out look like for Arlo and which does she prefer: Coachella or Glastonbury?
Elsewhere, Slayyyter gets a lot of love, Mitski settles into a residency in a hyper-intimate venue where “you can cry,” and the band Angine de Poitrine do something never been done in music before.

We’re still open to our next Album Club recommendation, with Arlo suggesting a few in this week’s episode. Send your thoughts in to Annie and Nick! You can send a WhatsApp to 07970082700 or email [email protected]
And you can also stay in touch via our Instagram Channel, which you can find in the BBC Sounds Instagram bio.
HOMEWORK: Listen to Arlo Park’s new album, Ambiguous Desire.
SONGS
The Eurythmics - Sweet Dreams
Elmiene - Golden

ALBUMS
The xx - xx
Angine de Poitrine - Vol.II
Charli XCX - Brat
Slayyyter - WOR$T GIRL IN AMERICA
Massive Attack - debut album
Mazzy Star - debut album
Sexistential - Robyn
The King of Limbs remix album – Radiohead

CLUBS + DANCE FLOORS
Nowadays - New York
Midnight Lovers - LA
Corsica - London
Venue MOT/Unit 18
Palais - Peckham

Nick is joined by one of his favourite singers, Elmiene, while Annie is away. Fresh from releasing his debut album ‘sounds for someone’, Elmiene tells Nick what it’s like to work with Raphael Saadiq, how Benji B and Virgil Abloh helped him get his big break, and why it all links back to BBC Bitesize. They also discuss the news of Kanye West’s upcoming return to the UK, and how conflicted lots of his former fans feel about it. Plus, Celine Dion’s iconic comeback announcement inspires a conversation about Cornwall, and Rosalía’s food poisoning nightmare raises some serious questions.
Get in touch with Sidetracked! You can send a WhatsApp to 07970082700 or email [email protected]
And you can also stay in touch via our Instagram Channel, which you can find in the BBC Sounds Instagram bio.
HOMEWORK: Listen to Elmiene’s debut album ‘sounds for someone’ and tell us your thoughts.
SONGS
D'Angelo – Untitled (How Does It Feel)
Elmiene – Golden
Elmiene – Light By The Window
Eric Clapton – Layla
Solange – Cranes in the Sky
Wesley Joseph – Peace of Mind
Wesley Joseph – Pluto Baby
Kanye West – Through the Wire
Kanye West – Heartless

ALBUMS
Elmiene – sounds for someone
Ye – Bully
Rosalía - LUX

It’s the inaugural Sidetracked Album Club: Annie and Nick travel down memory lane to 2005 after listening back to LCD Soundsystem’s debut album and answer questions like: What was life like then, how much have things changed, and does the music still hold up?
Elsewhere, Nick is preparing for 6 Music Festival (which will see him DJ with Beth Ditto), Annie reflects on some excellent gig crowds and Courtney Love is on a very relatable Geese journey. Plus, Annie and Nick review SNL UK’s first episode, and a listener gets in touch about Lily Allen’s West End Girl shows, inspiring a conversation around the ethics of enjoying music about someone’s deeply personal pain.
HOMEWORK: Send in your ideas for the next Album Club choice.
Get in touch with Annie and Nick! You can send a WhatsApp to 07970082700 or email [email protected]
And you can also stay in touch via our Instagram Channel, which you can find in the BBC Sounds Instagram bio.
SONGS
LCD Soundsystem - Losing My Edge
LCD Soundsystem - Tribulations
LCD Soundsystem - Daft Punk Is Playing at My House
LCD Soundsystem - Too Much Love
LCD Soundsystem - Tired
LCD Soundsystem - Yeah
The Rapture - House of Jealous Lovers
The Killers - Mr. Brightside
Franz Ferdinand - Take Me Out
Scissor Sisters - Comfortably Numb
Geese - Trinidad
Hot Hot Heat - Bandages

ALBUMS
LCD Soundsystem - LCD Soundsystem
Robyn - Sexistential
RAYE - This Music May Contain Hope
Elmiene – sounds for someone
Courtney Barnett - Creature of Habit
The Killers - Hot Fuss

Scissor Sisters - Scissor Sisters
Green Day - American Idiot
Kasabian - Kasabian
Franz Ferdinand - Franz Ferdinand
The Pogues - Rum, Sodomy & The Lash