Hit Parade: The Bridge – "Yacht or Nyacht?"

Episode Date: August 28, 2020
Host: Chris Molanphy
Guests: JD Ryznar, Dave Lyons, "Hollywood" Steve Huey (Creators of "Yacht Rock" & "Beyond Yacht Rock" podcast)

Main Theme: Defining and Debating Yacht Rock

This special Bridge episode dives deep into the origins, definitions, and legacy of Yacht Rock—the jokey but musically earnest web series-turned-podcast–turned-pop genre. Host Chris Molanphy welcomes the creators of the original YouTube series, who popularized the term and continue to police which songs are "Yacht…or Nyacht" via their Yachtski Scale. Through discussion, anecdotes, and critical analysis, the team explores why Yacht Rock endures, how it’s (mis)interpreted, and why the boundaries of the genre matter.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. How Yacht Rock Was Born (03:00–09:30)

• Early Internet Viral Hit: The Yacht Rock webseries launched in 2005 at Channel 101, quickly gained traction due to limited narrative content on early YouTube.
  • "There was almost nothing to pass around the Internet...anything slightly sticky, you could go a little bit viral, and that's what happened to us." —JD Ryznar (08:45)
• Development of Characters: Coco Goldstein (Dave Lyons) created as a sacrificial, scene-anchoring character.
  • "Somebody had to die, and you can’t kill off a real person." —Dave Lyons (06:42)
• Costume and Visual Template: The captain's hat, blousy shirts, and harpoons became the visual shorthand, inspiring real tribute bands and costumes at shows.
  • "I was the one that went out and bought all the captain's hats for the first episode and wore it as my character." —Dave Lyons (08:09)

2. Why Did Yacht Rock Catch On? (09:30–12:30)

• Naming Matters: Content was viral, but the term “Yacht Rock” itself, for many reasons, stuck the landing.
  • "I think yacht rock is just so evocative. Smooth music, relaxing, '70s when yachts were hot. I get it. And I think that really helped…" —JD Ryznar (09:47)
  • "Marina Rock" was almost the name, but "Yacht Rock" was catchier and easier to Google, especially compared to vague terms like “West Coast.” (11:02–11:24)
• Literal vs. Thematic: The term led some to confuse the genre as only being about boats or nautical themes.
  • "People really went to town on the yacht side of the equation…it's got to be music about boats…Jimmy Buffett counts…" —Chris Molanphy (11:24)

3. Defining the Genre—Musical Hallmarks (13:01–16:40)

• Musicological Intent & World-Building: Showrunners mixed parody with genuine music geekery, using liner notes and session musician overlaps to script episodes.
  • "We get story ideas by looking at liner notes and see who played on what. Each episode was kind of constrained to an era that had happened..." —JD Ryznar (13:35)
• "Doobie Bounce" and the Evolution of Sound: Early vs. late Yacht Rock—differences in groove and production, with Michael McDonald and "What a Fool Believes" marking a shift.
  • "Earlier yacht rock tends to sound more like Boz Skaggs than Michael MacDonald…before ‘What a Fool Believes’ comes out." —Hollywood Steve Huey (14:08)
• Genre Boundaries Debated: The hosts continue to debate songs' yachtiness using the “Yachtski Scale.”
  • "It means you were sort of live and in real time defining the boundaries and the hallmarks of this genre." —Chris Molanphy (23:46)

4. The Yachtski Scale: Science, Satire, and Sincerity (20:33–25:55)

• Systematic Song Rating: The Yachtski Scale rates songs 0–100 on "yachtiness," evolving as the team learned more.
  • "The margin of error on the Yachtski scale is about three points." —JD Ryznar (24:21)
  • "It's completely arbitrary. But it's not right." —Dave Lyons (25:31)
• Irony vs. Sincerity: The comic seriousness of the scale and genre policing is part of the fun.
  • "There's nothing like that for anything. We call it the Yatsky Scale, say it was invented by a guy named Gene Yatsky. It's ridiculous. But it works." —JD Ryznar (25:44)

5. R&B and Yacht Soul’s Central Role (25:51–29:00)

• R&B Roots: Yacht Rock's DNA is fundamentally entwined with Black R&B, jazz, and soul.
  • "All the white yacht rock guys that you first think of...all growing up, listen(ed) to Black R&B, Black jazz." —JD Ryznar (26:08)
• Cross-Pollination by Musicians: Studio musicians and producers like Quincy Jones, Rod Temperton, David Foster crossed racial ‘genre lines,’ contributing to both pop and R&B chart-toppers.
• Cultural Re-evaluation: Yacht Rock's resurgence tied to the "poptimist" movement where genres previously dismissed (disco, soft rock, R&B) were reappraised for craftsmanship.

6. Yacht Rock’s Artist Reactions (31:47–35:07)

• Mixed Feelings Among Artists:
  • Boz Scaggs: Annoyed by the Yacht Rock label, dislikes pigeonholing.
  • Kenny Loggins: Nonplussed; polite but unenthusiastic about the association.
    • _"Kenny kind of stopped smiling and just looked at her and said, 'Oh.' Not, 'Hey, not cool.'...Just, 'Oh.'" _—Dave Lyons (33:33)
  • Michael McDonald: Seems delighted, embracing the unexpected afterlife of his music.
    • "They really hit on something. Kind of like when you get a letter from a stalker and you don’t know how they knew all that." —(quoting McDonald, 34:25)
  • Steely Dan Fans: Object to the association but, the team notes, the personnel ties are undeniable.

7. The Future: Book and Podcast Continuations (35:33–37:43)

• Upcoming Book: Official reveal—the Yacht Rock team is writing a definitive book on the genre, providing a researched narrative and further solidifying its musical contours.
  • "We've been deep into research and learning so much, and luckily all the research we're doing is only reinforcing our theory about what yacht rock is." —JD Ryznar (36:14)
• Podcast Plans: The team aims to reboot their Yacht Rock-dedicated podcast once the book is completed.

8. Listener Trivia Segment (39:00–48:00)

• Trivia Focus: Yacht Rock, one-hit wonders, the Grammy Awards, and more.
• Listener turns the tables: Rachel, a trivia contestant, quizzes Chris with a complex question on rap artists with four No. 1 hits and Grammy wins (Jay-Z and Kanye West).
• Preview of Next Episode: The September episode will dissect the definition and folklore behind "one-hit wonders."

Notable Quotes and Memorable Moments

• On the catchiness of the term "Yacht Rock":

  • “Yacht rock is just so evocative. Smooth music, relaxing, '70s when yachts were hot. I get it.”
    —JD Ryznar, 09:47

• On policing the genre:

  • "We invented the term Doobie Bounce to sort of explain, well, this is what we're hearing…very similar to what the Doobie Brothers did when Michael McDonald was writing the songs." —JD Ryznar, 15:23

• On the Yachtski Scale’s seriousness:

  • "There's nothing like that for anything yet. We call it the Yatsky Scale...It's ridiculous. But it works." —JD Ryznar, 25:44

• On artist reactions:

  • "My wife went up to [Kenny Loggins] and said, 'Hey, my husband played Coco in Yacht Rock.' And Kenny kind of stopped smiling and just looked at her and said, 'Oh.'" —Dave Lyons, 33:33

• On the fundamental role of R&B:

  • “All the guys, all the white yacht rock guys that you first think of…all growing up, listened to Black R&B, Black jazz…Kenny Loggins said he patterned his singing after Aretha Franklin.” —JD Ryznar, 26:08

• On discovering they’d created a lasting phenomenon:

  • "We get there [to a bar in Chicago]…there was a line out the door…people in captain's hats reciting lines from the show. Our episode...was a huge hit. This Chicago crowd. So it really felt very nice." —JD Ryznar, 17:41

Timestamps for Major Segments

• 00:04–02:29 — Show updates, intro to Yacht Rock episode
• 02:30–06:15 — "Mornin'" by Al Jarreau as exemplar, introduction of guests and show origins
• 06:15–09:30 — Character development, Coco Goldstein, webseries production
• 09:30–12:24 — Virality, the stickiness of the “Yacht Rock” term, costume culture
• 13:01–16:40 — Genre definition, musicological debate, "Doobie Bounce"
• 17:08–20:33 — The genre’s afterlife, community adoption
• 20:33–25:55 — Yachtski Scale, evolving definitions, internal disputes
• 25:51–29:27 — Yacht Soul and R&B’s deep influence, poptimism, Allmusic Guide experience
• 31:47–35:07 — Reactions from Yacht Rock artists, from delighted to annoyed
• 35:33–37:43 — Book announcement and future plans
• 39:00–48:00 — Extended trivia segment with listener Rachel

Concluding Thoughts

“Yacht or Nyacht?” is both a celebration and serious interrogation of a genre that started as an internet in-joke and evolved into a movement. The conversation weaves humor and scholarship, showing how pop history can be both fun and important—and how passionate fans and critics can shape the way music is remembered and enjoyed.

For more Yacht Rock definitions, disputes, and smooth jams, keep an eye out for the guests’ upcoming book and new podcast—details to come!