Hour 3 - Clay's Controversial Music Take

Summary

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The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show

Episode: Hour 3 – Clay’s Controversial Music Take

Date: February 3, 2026
Host: iHeartPodcasts
Theme: Clay Travis ignites controversy by declaring Taylor Swift to be “the Beatles of our time,” sparking intense debate, listener backlash, and humor-filled banter with Buck Sexton over music, pop culture, and enduring stardom.

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Overview

This episode revolves around Clay Travis’s provocative assertion that Taylor Swift is the modern equivalent of the Beatles—an opinion that inflames the show’s audience more than prior discussions of far more contentious topics. Along the way, Buck Sexton challenges Clay’s take with skepticism, drawing generational and musical comparisons. The hosts read and play a cascade of listener reactions, discuss related pop culture phenomena (like boy band nostalgia), and touch on breaking news and true crime items, all while maintaining their trademark blend of sarcasm and wit.

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Key Segments and Insights

Breaking News & Serious Updates

• US Shoots Down Suspected Iranian Drone
  • Buck provides a real-time news update, noting ongoing changes in naval warfare and how hypersonic missiles challenge existing force projection.
  • “The world of naval surface warfare is changing very rapidly... aircraft carriers... could turn into multibillion dollar targets.” – A (Buck), 01:15
• Nancy Guthrie Disappearance (Savannah Guthrie’s Mother)
  • Clay relays the latest: Nancy Guthrie appears to have been taken against her will in Tucson, Arizona. FBI is involved, but no new information is available.
  • “There is no surveillance video... the FBI is asking if you have tips on this. 1-800-call-FBI.” – B (Clay), 02:39

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Clay’s Taylor Swift Take: The Beatles of Our Time

Starts at: 04:24

• “Taylor Swift is the Beatles of our time. Buck is totally wrong that 20 or 30 years from now, no one will care.” – Clay, 04:40
• Clay predicts:
  • Swift’s music will be even more popular in 20–30 years.
  • She will tour as long as the Rolling Stones do (“till she’s 85 or 90”).
• Buck dismisses the notion, comparing Swift to ephemeral pop phenomena:
  • “You know who people would have said this about... the Backstreet Boys. Oh my gosh, in 30 years, everyone's gonna be listening to the Backstreet Boys.” – Buck, 05:40
  • Points out the fleeting nature of most pop stardom and questions putting Swift in the same league as the Beatles or even Aerosmith.

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Boy Band & Pop Nostalgia

Starts at: 06:07

• Clay counters: many women do pay serious money to see boy bands (Backstreet Boys), even now.
  • “They sell out tours like crazy. Now there are 50 year old women... who spent $1,000... to get good seats to the Backstreet Boys tour.” – Clay, 06:07
• Buck insists this is nostalgia, not proof of timelessness.
  • “Not a single one of them paid $1,000 in the last year for a Backstreet Boys ticket. Talking crazy talk.” – Buck, 06:26

Memorable Story: Madonna Concert Floods Atlantic City Club

Starts at: 08:03

Buck shares a story from Atlantic City where a nightclub crowd instantly transformed with a flood of women spilling over from a Madonna concert—a pop icon parallel and commentary on music’s gendered fandoms.

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Clay’s Taylor Swift “Power 5” Songs

Starts at: 09:56

Clay's Top 5 Taylor Swift Songs:

1. Bad Blood
2. Love Story
3. You Belong With Me
4. I Knew You Were Trouble
5. Wildest Dreams
   With honorable mentions: Shake It Off, Mean

Clay asserts Swift’s catalog will end up being more “substantial” than the Beatles.

• “I think Taylor Swift has a more substantial catalog of good songs in the decades ahead than the Beatles do.” – Clay, 10:34
  Buck: “Just insane.” – 11:02

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Politics, Controversy, and Audience Reaction

Starts at: 12:03

• Clay acknowledges Swift’s politics are “moronic,” but sees that as irrelevant to her musical impact.
  • “A lot of people are going to react to her politics... but the Beatles... often had political takes...” – Clay, 12:03
• Buck highlights how this music take has caused more uproar than discussions about Jeffrey Epstein.
  • “My take on Taylor Swift is the one that people are upset about.” – Clay, 12:47

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Emails, Calls, and Listener Talkbacks

Sampled Throughout
Hosts read and play listener feedback, much of it blistering:

• “No one will remember a Taylor Swift song in 10 years... you must have shaved off your brain cells when you shaved your beard.” – Listener Bruce, 15:31
• “No way in any universe is Taylor Swift in the same league as the Beatles.” – Listener Steve, 15:31
• “Taylor Swift’s best song is Blank Space...” – Aaron from Minnesota, 15:20 (one of few in support)

Other notable reactions:

• “Clay’s not the Beatles of our time—maybe the Elvis.” – Tim in Tucson, 24:14
• “Taylor swift is a 10-thumbed, tone-deaf, talentless noise polluter. Always has been and always will be.” – Josh in Ohio, 25:07

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Rapid-Fire Banter & Notable Quotes

On generational tastes and nostalgia:

• “The nostalgia bands are so big because there aren’t enough good contemporary music acts.” – Buck, 27:44
• “The enduring power of music is to evoke reactions for decades, which is what Taylor Swift's going to be doing as a modern day Beetle.” – Clay, 29:10

Comparisons to Madonna & Michael Jackson:

• Buck compares Taylor Swift’s likely cultural arc to Madonna, who once dominated but whose songs are now less heard.
  • “I think the best comparison with Taylor Swift would be... Madonna... and you really don’t hear Madonna songs anymore.” – Buck, 29:10
• Michael Jackson invoked as a contrasting pop icon whose music remains streamed but gets less radio airplay due to controversy.

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Brief True Crime News Update

Jill Biden’s Ex-Husband Charged with Murder
(20:22)

• Buck reports that Jill Biden’s first husband has been charged with killing his second wife, noting the bizarre paths of public and private lives.

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Listeners’ Humorous Reactions & Show Closer

• Dripping sarcasm and banter about what going to a Taylor Swift concert might do for a single man, tongue-in-cheek:

  • “I'm not sure there's a more fertile environment... than the Taylor Swift concert.” – Clay, 34:07
  • “All those young ladies are listening to songs about how bad the ex-boyfriends were... it's all about her breakups.” – Buck, 34:51

• Clay’s mustache and “Swiftie” enthusiasm are hilariously discussed as a running gag.

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Memorable Quotes & Moments (with Timestamps)

• “Taylor Swift is the Beatles of our time... her music, much like the Beatles music, is going to endure.” – Clay, 04:40
• “This is a take that’s going to go down in history, like whoever said that the internet is going to be as important as the fax machine.” – Buck, 05:28
• “I'm enjoying every second of it. Sometimes you get lit up and you’re right. You just have to take the abuse.” – Clay, 17:10
• “He’ll take these stances... he refers to Mozart as the Britney Spears of his time. He doesn’t care what you say.” – Buck, 17:14

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Notable Segments and Timestamps

• Show opens & breaking news on Iranian drone: 00:00–02:26
• Nancy Guthrie disappearance: 02:39
• Transition to Taylor Swift debate: 04:24
• Boy band nostalgia rebuttal: 06:07
• Clay lists top 5 Swift songs: 09:56
• Listener backlash kicks off: 12:03 onward
• Email, call, and talkback readings: 15:20, 22:32 (David from PA), 24:14 (Tim from Tucson)
• Comparisons to Madonna/MJ: 29:10–31:46
• Jill Biden ex-husband news: 20:22
• Show closes with mustache–Swiftie banter: 34:07–35:44

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Summary

Hour 3 of The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show features Clay’s audacious comparison of Taylor Swift to the Beatles—prompting an outpouring of listener outrage, playful ribbing from Buck, and a festival of classic talk radio interaction. The segment provides a case study in audience engagement and pop culture generational divides, wrapped in the hosts’ signature blend of candor and comedic tension.

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End of Summary

Transcript

[A]

This is an iHeart podcast. Guaranteed human. Welcome in, everybody, to the third hour of the Klay Travis and Buck Sexton show. Just a news update here for you. As we are live. We are real time. Not like some of these podcasts that people put out, Mr. Clay, where they, like, tape it on their way to their beach vacation and then play it a week later or something. We're live, baby. We're doing it here for all of you, with you three hours a day. The beauty of radio and our almost 600 affiliates, the beauty of the iHeart app. We are here, we are with you, we are taking your calls, and we are bringing you the latest up to the minute, saying, I gotta say, there's no, there's no craziness here. We're live. These are the value propositions we bring you. We're live. We tell you the truth. And, and we're not nuts like some of the folks out there who are building audiences, including on the right, who probably should spend a little time getting some help looking inward, addressing some of their demons. Just saying, I'm here to help. I'm here to help everybody on the team now. US Drone. I'm sorry, US Rather, has shot down a suspected Iranian drone on approach to an aircraft carrier. That is the breaking news in this moment. Nothing too big, but just note, I've been an aircraft carrier, Clay. I had a lot of these discussions when I was in Taiwan with the president, National Security Advisor of Taiwan, Vice President. The world of surface, naval surface warfare is changing very rapidly. And the projection of force that is possible with aircraft carriers is something that is variable insofar as ship killing missiles and the technology, hypersonic missiles and the technology that is developing very rapidly could turn aircraft carriers into multibillion dollar targets. Well, they're already targets, but target practice, lot of stuff to look at here in the, in the years ahead. But instead of talking about or going deeper into my analysis of this national security threat, I don't want to forget that Clay, who now has two things going for him. One, a brand new mustache. And two things. Taylor Swift is the new Beatles. Do you wish to tell us the greatest.

[B]

Yes, hold on, let me tell you that. But first, serious news. We tease that we would.

[A]

I'm talking your mustache. I'm going from the serious. You can't pivot. My pivot. Okay, go ahead, give us your serious news.

[B]

So we don't know what happened to Nancy Guthrie. I told you that they were going to have a press conference. This is the number one story on every newscast Nancy Guthrie, mother of Savannah Guthrie. We have a huge audience in Arizona. She was taken against her will. There is no surveillance video. They basically have no idea where she is. The FBI is asking if you have tips on this. 1-800-call-FBI. The FBI is now involved. Uh, this is in Tucson, Arizona. And basically no one has any idea what happened to Nancy. Nancy Guthrie. They believe she was taken against her will. And that's it. I mean, it's. It's. It's a huge mystery. So there's a lot of interest here. 1-800-AT- CALL FBI. So I wanted to make sure. I mean, I thought maybe we would get info because they had a press conference scheduled. But the press conference was to let us know that basically they knew nothing.

[A]

I'm leaving it to you to how you transition back to Taylor Swift now. Cause that's a very sad, serious story.

[B]

So I.

[A]

This is all on you, buddy.

[B]

Now I have to pivot back from serious story to the story that. By the way, producer Ali, come up here for a sec. We just talked about Jeffrey Epstein. We gave a huge take on Jeffrey Epstein. Everything related to Epstein. You are telling me that my take on Taylor Swift has been considered more controversial, more controversial by this audience than everything we said about Jeffrey Epstein. If you wondered whether the Jeffrey Epstein story is over, you guys are angrier about my Taylor Swift take. Is that correct, Producer Ali? Yes. There is a waterfall of emails on your Taylor Swift and overall music take coming in, pouring in.

[A]

All right. The people have spoken and the people are correct.

[B]

Okay. I'm about to turn that deluge. What's more than a deluge? What would be bigger than a deluge? The ca. The cavalcade of emails.

[A]

I think tsunami is more than a deluge.

[B]

I think that's right. I'm about to turn the deluge into a tsunami. Taylor Swift is the Beatles of our time. Buck is totally wrong that 20 or 30 years from now, no one will care. Taylor Swift, buck, get ready. 20 or 30 years from now. Flag this. I hope I'm alive to take my victory lap. 20 or 30 years from now, Taylor Swift will be more popular than she is now. Her music, much like the Beatles music, is going to endure. And she will be touring much like the Rolling Stones. As long as she's like Mick Jagger and can still walk out there and kick her legs, she's going to be touring until she's 85 or 90. If she lives that long singing all.

[A]

These songs, this is a take that's going to go down in history. Like whoever Said that the Internet is going to be as important as the fax machine. I mean, this is a, this is an all timer for you, Clay.

[B]

All right?

[A]

Taylor Swift. You know who, you know who people would have said this about like the icon of teenage girls when we were growing up? Oh my gosh, in 30 years, everyone's gonna be listening to the Backstreet Boys. Oh, the Backstreet Boys were huge. The Backstreet Boys in sync. All those boy bands, you could even, you could even put them all together and, and you would have thought, oh my gosh, there's such a global phenomenon no one can, no one listens to. In fact, hold on, you're.

[B]

You're wrong about this. They sell out tours like crazy. Now there are 50 year old women right now who are throwing their radios, if they're physical, across the room that spent $1,000 with their girlfriends to get good seats to the Backstreet Boys tour.

[A]

We do a single. We do not have a single person. We have millions of people. We have a. We have like the city the size of Chicago of listeners right now listening to us. Not a single one of them paid $1,000 in the last year for a Backstreet Boys ticket. Talking crazy talk.

[B]

I'm saying with her girlfriends, they might have spent $250 each for four of them. If you went to the Backstreet Boys at Buck Sexton right now, get your phones out on Twitter at Clay Travis 2, I want you to let me know. I bet there's. I bet.

[A]

I need you guys to tell Clay to put the whispering angel down and get with reality here for a second. Okay? I don't know if this is crazy.

[B]

Or your wife, right? Because we got a. I think it's 70% male. If your wife did or you did. Backstreet Boy tickets at Buck Sexton at Clay Travis. All right. You asked.

[A]

Mark loves to tell me that I'm wrong, which is why we've been such good friends now for over a decade. He says the Backstreet Boys have a residency at the Sphere in Vegas that is selling out every night.

[B]

And it's just crazy.

[A]

That's Vegas.

[B]

That's not, that's not like crazy expensive. They just had a tour. They were selling out arenas everywhere.

[A]

All these women talking about something on the scale of the Beatles. Okay?

[B]

Which is what you are.

[A]

This is a, this is a global cultural musical phenomenon that is timeless and has lasted for decades. To say that the Backstreet Boy is selling out a venue in Vegas. Although it does sound Kind of cool. Actually. I might have to go check. I kind of want to see the sphere. So maybe.

[B]

By the way, is Carrie there? Carrie's gonna spend a thousand dollars on these tickets when she. When she finds out about it.

[A]

All right, I'm gonna tell you this, that I. That I hooked a buddy of mine up. I. You know, I'm gonna digress. Cause we're talking music. I was at a birthday party. I was at a birthday party for I'm as my brother. And we went to Atlantic City, which is the New York City kid version of Vegas, baby. Vegas. Last minute, we go to Atlantic City and Clay, we are at the Borgata, which I think is the nicest property in Atlantic City. We probably have the manager. The manager of the Borgata probably listens to this show. Like we got a lot of. A lot of people that run businesses listen to the show. I think it's the nicest in Atlantic City. We're at the Borgata and we're at their club. I don't remember the name of the club, but their nightclub there. And I'm telling you it is. There are tumbleweeds blowing through. It is a sad, sad night at the borgata at like 10 o' clock at night for this birthday night. And out of nowhere when I tell you there was an influx of 25 year old to 35 year old girls, women and, and nothing but. I've never seen anything like this in my life. I was just like, this is. We're there. We're a table of guys. We had no women with us. We're hoping to meet some ladies. By the way, one of my friends met his wife this night. We're at a table. Yeah. And I introduced them. We're a table by influx. We are the. I was. There were some guys there, but we were the only straight guys in this nightclub. Pretty much. There are a lot of guys, but they were not straight from my understanding. Madonna had just finished a Show at like 11 o' clock at night. A Madonna show got out and flooded. Flooded the place with chicks.

[B]

It was.

[A]

It was incredible. It was honestly like manna from heaven. I've never cause no dudes because what dudes go to a Madonna show?

[B]

Totally not straight dudes. 800-282-2882. By the way, Clay.

[A]

Clay's about to pivot back to like whether.

[B]

No, I'm just saying the federal government is back open to the extent anybody cared. All right, here's my songs. Bad Blood Love Story. You belong with me. I knew you were trouble And Wildest dreams is my power five, in no particular order for Taylor Swift, others that I love. Can you repeat this? Can you repeat this? My top five. My top five of the modern day Beetle, Taylor Swift. And I'll say this, Buck, I think Taylor Swift has a more substantial catalog of good songs in the decades ahead than the Beatles do.

[A]

All right, again, just because I want to make sure that I don't actually know any of these songs because no one cares. Go ahead.

[B]

Bad blood, love story, you belong with me, I knew you were trouble. And Wildest dreams, my power five to.

[A]

The only one of those songs that I know that you've just mentioned is the number five song. The rest of those songs, I don't even know what they are.

[B]

You never heard I knew you were trouble, you belong with me, Love story or bad blood. Now we got bad blood. You've never heard that song.

[A]

I might hear them if they came on. But Clay, to speak about these in the same breath as the Beatles, I would even say to speak about this in the same breath as like Aerosmith, it's just insane. Just insane.

[B]

She's a modern day beetle. And two honorable. Two honorable mentions. Shake it off.

[A]

I got to play. Shaves his beard. Off he goes mustache. And all of a sudden he's like Taylor Swift number one fan. Something's happened here. I don't know what's going on.

[B]

Mean, which my wife likes because she says I am the mean person in the song. Mean. Why you got to be so mean? So that is my top five. And then two honorable mentions. And I'm right. And 30 years from now, if you're still alive, everyone out there listening, you're going to have to recognize, you know what? Clay Travis nailed this. Taylor Swift is the modern day Beatles and she's going to continue to sell out places forever.

[A]

I don't know if this is your most wrong take ever, because that's going to require some digging, but this is definitely like. I would, I would say that this is getting. You're getting close to your. Your craziest Clay Travis take on the show.

[B]

A lot of people are going to react to her politics. And I am not endorsing that. I think Taylor Swift is a moron when it comes to her political knowledge. But I'm sure the Beatles, by the way, often had political takes that many people.

[A]

Yeah, Lenin was a. I mean, Lennon was a comic. He might as well have been Lennon. He was a communist.

[B]

Doesn't mean they're not still talented guys. But yeah, I think Taylor Swift 21st century. The most in the 21st century since 2000. The biggest star.

[A]

I'm excited that on this, in this hour of the Clay, Travis and Buck Sexton show, we can all just sit back, relax, and enjoy Clay getting dragged over the metaphorical broken glass of this audience for. For the next 45 minutes. They are. They are going to come.

[B]

What I think is really funny is we've talked about the save act. We've talked about Epstein, all these stories. Epstein is the most controversial story in years. Everybody's like, yeah, Clay and Buck, you guys nailed that. My take on Taylor Swift is the one that people are upset about.

[A]

The stuff that people write about you online, that is the meanest, which I do see sometimes. And I'm always like, I'll fight them. It makes me sad. But the meanest are always the people who are mad at you over sports, which I find so funny.

[B]

Oh, they are. That's why the politics thing doesn't. It doesn't impact me because if you pick a winner of Alabama, Auburn, and it's the other side, or Ohio State, Michigan, like politics is small stakes compared to the anger of sports fans.

[A]

They get. They get very angry at you. I was like, wow. And the sports ball, very passionate. The sports ball fans. All right, come back into this here in a second. If someone broke into your home, would you be prepared? I mean, right now, would you be ready for it? This is something you got to do in advance. You can't wait until the moment and then fire up your laptop and try to get what you need. Then you want to take action today with Sabers Home Defense Launcher. Powerful protection designed to keep you safe. I have this at home. So does Clay. They're easy to use. The Sabre Home Defense Launcher delivers seven powerful impactor pepper projectiles. That's two more than the competitors that are out there. When fear hits and you have to defend yourself, having extra stopping power can change everything. And protection doesn't stop at your front door when you're on the move. Sabre pepper sprays, pepper gels and stun guns. Gives you compact, reliable protection wherever life takes you. When safety matters, America chooses Sabre, the number one brand trusted by police and millions worldwide. Sabre S A B R E is how it's spelled. Don't wait for a close call. Get protection now@sabre radio.com that's S A B R E radio.com or call 844-824 safe clay, Travis and Buck Sexton.

[B]

Mic drops. That never sounded so good. Find them on the free iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts. Walk back in. Clay, Travis, Buck Sexton show a ton of reaction pouring in on a variety of different types of topics. We make sure that I get everything in front of me right now. Lot of emails. I'm in tech. Oh, I don't want to read that one. Where are the rest of all the emails that came in? There's so many different text threads now for the show. Here we go. Aaron from Milwaukee. See, let's listen to him.

[A]

A Clay and Buck. This is Aaron, a heterosexual male in Minnesota. Taylor Swift's best song is Blank Space. And in second place would be you Belong with Me.

[B]

All right, there's a positive Buck VIP email. Bruce, no one will remember a Taylor Swift song in 10 years. You are clearly insane. You must have shaved off your brain cells when you shaved your beard. Steve says, no way in any universe is Taylor Swift in the same league as the Beatles. She's a pop sensation, but she is not. Not the. I read all these. I can't even keep up. I will say. Then I. I will say the number of you that have gone to see and are going to see the boy bands, the Backstreet Boys in particular. Buck, you sign off on this. There are a lot of people tweeting that either they or their wives have been going to these and paying a lot of money for them.

[A]

Look, that's a pure nostalgia play. And I will tell you the. You know, I would go see. I almost got tickets for Carrie and me to go see the Goo Goo Dolls because I actually think they're the most.

[B]

Oh, that's underrated.

[A]

Band of the 90s. I think Goo Goo Dolls are fantastic. Like, they're good songs, are just great. Great tunes out of Buffalo, New York, by the way. You know, they.

[B]

That's where Gavin Rossdale. Right. Oh, that's Bush.

[A]

Wow. You just look at this. It's like me talking football, baby. You just. Oh, Clay, the 90s called. They want their. Their dignity back.

[B]

Well, Gavin Rossdale was with Gwynne. Gwen Stefani. Right. That's kind of a power 90s.

[A]

Not Gwyneth Paltrow. That's a different way. That's right. That's right. Gwen Stefani. Yes. Yes. You're. You're getting lit up on these comments, and I'm. I'm enjoying every second of it. I would just say I'm bright.

[B]

Sometimes you get lit up and you're right. You just have to take the. You just have to take the.

[A]

The. You know, the great thing about Clay is he'll. He'll make these.

[B]

He'll.

[A]

He'll take these stances, you know, so when he refers to Britney, when he refers to Mozart as the Britney Spears of his time, you know, he doesn't care what you say. He's going to stand behind that.

[B]

We will take your calls. By the way, producer Greg is dealing with a lot right now. 800-282-2882. Producer Greg, Big Beetle. I mean, big Taylor Swift fan because he's got daughters. And I will say, you know, sometimes you got to be ahead of the curve. You lean forward, you look around the edge of the doorway and you see where we're headed, not where we are. And 30 years from now, you're all going to say, damn, CLAY Travis wasn't 100% right. And you know what else I'm going to be 100% right about? Ways to win money in the Super Bowl. Thanks to prize picks. Drake may more than 1/2 passing yard. It's a free square. Drake made more than 1/2 passing touchdown. Jackson Smith the in jigbub More than 93 and a half receiving yards. And Sam Darnold more than one and a half passing touchdowns. That pays out at nearly 4 to 1. You can get hooked up right now. If you go to prizepix.com, use code clay. You can also download the prizepix app. You get $50 deposited in your account when you play. $5. It's awesome. You're gonna love it. Prizepix.com Code Clay. That is prizepix.com Code clay. Get hooked up now. That pick will be [e-mail] pays out at 4 to 1. Fingers crossed. Let's see if we can hit it again. That's prizepix.com code clay. All 50 states go play. Let's have some fun.

[A]

All right, welcome back into Clay and buck. So we're. We're following this news. We got two news stories that are in the true crime and very sad categories of things that are breaking today. One is the disappearance, it seems likely abduction of Savannah Guthrie's mother. Some of you have been asking us on I see on Twitter, why aren't you talking about this? We've talked about it. We know that she was abducted. We know nothing else. We're not doing a like a whodunit show here. We don't. All we know is she's been taken. We put out that the FBI is asking for help because it's an abduction and we hope that she's returned as soon as possible, unharmed. And everything else we know.

[B]

Nothing else.

[A]

There's nothing else to say about the story. This is. We do this for a living. Let me tell you. When there's things to talk about with the story, that's what we do. Nothing else to say about this. We don't have anything else beyond that. Something else. That is a story that also falls into this. More the true crime, but I think worth noting. Jill Biden. Known to some as Dr. Jill Biden. Jill Biden's ex husband has been charged with murder. Not only has he been charged with murder, but Jill Biden's ex husband has been charged with murdering his second wife. Clay, you see this?

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

That is TMZ reporting on this. There was a report of a domestic dispute. Linda Stevenson, 64, pronounced dead at the scene. Newcastle county police unsuccessfully administered aid. Cause and manner of the death not were not released. But this guy's been arrested. I mean, what a interesting change in life path. You go from married to a guy who would eventually be charged with murdering his wife. Charged with innocent until proven guilty. We know all that applies, but he has been charged with that to marrying the guy who become president after being vice president for eight years of the United States. The choices we make, my friends, can have massive ramifications. Dare I say, what we do in life echoes in eternity.

[B]

Ah, very good gladiator reference.

[A]

You're not supposed to say it. Clay.

[B]

I apologize. I didn't know I was an unk.

[A]

Move right there. Don't worry, I'll get more references in this week.

[B]

Clay, I apologize. Pretend you didn't hear me give you the indication of where that came from. I will say the Biden family. Jill was supposed to be one of the stabilizing aspects of this family. And obviously she's not married to this guy anymore. But her first husband being charged with murder. I was watching. He's smiling in his mugshot. And to your point, you know he's presumed innocent. But that's pretty crazy that she went from a guy who is an alleged murderer to Joe Biden. And then you look at everything having done with Hunter and everything having to do with the Biden family in general, and it's just what a message that entire family has been. And yeah, unless.

[A]

Unless he was involved in the trials of a pharmaceutical drug and there was a security chief who was a one armed man. I think he's in a lot of trouble.

[B]

I won't give that reference either.

[A]

All right, we got these unplayed talkbacks.

[B]

Here we go.

[A]

David, this is Number D. David from Pennsylvania. Hit it. Please stay from Pennsylvania. I just cannot believe Clay just compared Taylor Swift with the Beatles. He has no clue about music at all. No clue. My God, Clay, I'm afraid to get.

[B]

On the bad side of that guy. He sounds like he's at a Goodfellas diner.

[A]

I'm gonna make. I'm gonna make that my. I'm gonna make that guy my ringtone. Clay has no. Totally agree.

[B]

Andrew in New Jersey, Triple R radio. What you got for us?

[A]

Eclaim Buck. It's Andrew. Listen, this thing about Billy Elish, whatever her name. Yeah. She says she's on stolen land. So that means she's in possession of stolen property. So that means she could go to jail. Correct. I'm. I'm just taking a wild guess. Anyway, great show, guys. Take care.

[B]

These emails are great, by the way.

[A]

Jay says we're not on stolen land. All right. We're on Concord land. To the victor goes to spoils. Too bad.

[B]

Sorry, Jay says, Clay, either you had one too many espresso martinis, I'm going to have a couple of espresso martinis potentially tonight with my buddy Alexi Lawless in Los Angeles. We got dinner. Or you have completely lost your freaking mind. Taylor cannot even come close to holding a candle to the Beatles. I said she's the 21st century version of the Beatles and will have their same longevity. And I've tweeted it. If you want to get in a fight online, get in the mentions. It's going to be a. It's going to be a mess. Jim and oh, I'm Tim. And Tucson says Taylor's more like this.

[A]

Guy F. Hey, guys, this is Tim and Tucson. I am a straight 47 year old guy and I'll admit I love Taylor Swift's music, but Clay is a little bit mistaken. She's not the Beatles of our time. She is the Elvis of our time because she is a solo performer backed up by a band, whereas the Beatles were four guys who were the band together. So there's a difference.

[B]

That's an interesting take, but what do you think about that? She's the modern day Elvis. That's not going to make you any happier. The people out there mad about the Beatles comparison aren't going to be like, yeah, you know what? She's more like Elvis.

[A]

I'm not an Elvis guy, so I'm going to stay out of this one. Not an Elvis.

[B]

Wow. Not an Elvis guy. Yeah, I know, Josh. I call.

[A]

I call balls and strikes here. I will not Bend the knee to public opinion on the music stuff. I'm sorry.

[B]

Josh in Ohio.

[A]

G. Hey, Clay and Buck. I just wanted to say Clay is wrong and Buck, I think Clay just came out of the closet because Taylor swift is a 10 thumbed, tone deaf, talentless noise polluter. Always has been and always will be.

[B]

Why would I come out of the closet to be praising a heterosexual woman? It seems like if I were in the closet, I'd be like, you know, I don't know. Who's Enrique Iglesias, man? Have you seen his hips lately? I don't know. Who's a good looking guy that does music? He married Anna Kournikova, I think, right?

[A]

Yeah. Yes, that's right. He married Anacortikova. I think they're actually expecting a child soon, so. Fourth.

[B]

Fourth child. I think that kid has got some good genes. Kurt in Iowa. Buck H. Clay.

[A]

I didn't know we spelled gay C L A y listening to a 30. Something about singing breakup songs and if she's gonna stay with Kelsey, if that's gonna be the end. There's no more songs. There's no song factory there. Give me a break.

[B]

I need the. We need to keep the opening of we now spell Clay Seal gay C L, A Y. Keep that one. Roll it over.

[A]

Is this the part of. Of Animal House where you've been paddled enough that you will no longer say, thank you, sir? May I have another? Like, are you done? Are you. Have you taken enough abuse on this one? Or do we want to keep the talkbacks?

[B]

Clay, are.

[A]

Are. Are coming in left, and I feel.

[B]

Like these are epic. Jeff in Utah, I. He's got good taste.

[A]

Hey, guys. I just want to say that Clay Travis is correct. Um, I am Buck's age, and my wife is seven years younger than me. She dragged me to see the Backstreet Boys during their residency in Las Vegas. And we also had to go to Comic Con just to meet two of the Backstreet Boys. There were tons of people in the line. Girls in their 20s were still coming.

[B]

Then we cut him off. Oh, big, big Backstreet took him out. People are saying that their wives or girlfriends have spent an embarrassing amount of money to go see the Backstreet Boys. And some of those tickets are going in the Sphere for a dollars. Buck, what would you say if Gary was like, I'm dropping a grand.

[A]

The Sphere is. Is a particularly unique venue. I've never been, but I've obviously seen it. Everyone who goes to Vegas, you. You see it. If you're in that city. So I think they're benefiting from that at some level. But these nostalgia band. But here's my, here's my thesis for you though, Clay. The nostalgia bands are so big because there aren't enough good contemporary music acts that people want to go see. That's why you're having all these.

[B]

I think there's some truth to that.

[A]

I mean, you see the Rolling Stones, I said like they're. These guys are practically in their 80s now. I mean, the Rolling Stones come out on stage, you know, you're wondering if they need to keep catheters nearby and one of those like electrodes for your chest and everything else. I mean, these guys are old. They might as well be walking out there with 1911s on their hips.

[B]

Buck going after the gun guys.

[A]

I just, I just love Cassow. Gets so mad at me. I'm like, that's right, that's right. They're like you with your little tiny hands and your Glock. Yeah, I got small hands.

[B]

What, can you do that? No, I mean, I do think there is an argument that a couple of things. One, the superstar impact is such that if you're Morgan Wallen or your Taylor Swift, the impact of being able to sell out stadiums and be a modern musician, you're more famous maybe than in the past. Because I don't think selling out stadiums used to happen. But on the flip side, I think there is a dearth of really popular modern day musicians. I think since I'm not enough of a music person, but I think synthesizing, not needing bands, the rapidity with which music can be created, and the lack of effort that is required to create a hit. I think it's led to a lot of slop. And the enduring power of music is to evoke reactions for decades, which is what Taylor Swift's going to be doing as a modern day beetle.

[A]

I, again, I think it's great. I actually, you know what? I think the most. The best comparison with Taylor Swift would be. Now, I'm not saying they're similar artists, but in terms of their place, it would be Madonna. In the 80s for Young, Madonna was huge among. Among women in the 80s, it kind of transitioned a bit to being Madonna. Very popular among the LGBTQ community as we got older as well as girls, you know, you know, younger girls. But Madonna was an icon in the 80s and you really don't hear Madonna songs anymore. So that's my, that's where I, that's where I would come down on this one. And we did have the conversation before. Not to take this into a kind of a rough direction, but I think that I just. Just my sense of the atmospherics on this. I could be wrong and I. And I get it. I feel the same way. And I know people also sometimes feel very passionate about this. Michael Jackson, I think, was the pop music catalog one of the greatest pop music pop music catalogs in all. Maybe the greatest pop music catalog in history, but one of the greatest, to be sure. Pop music, I'm saying. And people don't really listen to Michael Jackson. It's less and less you hear it, you know, it used to be just like the safe choice. Any party anywhere, any store anywhere in the world, something could put on Michael Jackson. And everybody liked it. I think you hear a lot less Michael Jackson now.

[B]

That's interesting. I don't what ties them together, by the way. Do you know who owned the Beatles catalog?

[A]

Michael Jackson. Yes.

[B]

And one of the ways that his estate became so.

[A]

Paul McCartney was ticked off about that, by the way, big time.

[B]

But Michael Jackson was such an astute businessman, or the people around him were that he had the Beatles catalog and then he paired it with the Michael Jackson catalog. And that's interesting. I still hear, I feel like Michael Jackson a lot, but I'm kind of thinking through it, have the plays of Michael Jackson songs. And certainly people are going to say that's partly connected to the overall crisis of super popular.

[A]

The data. The data. I will. I will admit, taking an L on this one. Interesting. Radio airplay has dropped considerably. You don't hear it just on the radio anymore, but streaming way up in the last few years. I'm wrong on that. On Michael Jackson songs, I'm. You don't find that surprise went from 4.7 billion in 2021 to 6.5 billion in 2023. I mean, really up.

[B]

I'm not surprised by it because my wife loves Michael Jackson and she got our kids all as big Michael Jackson fans too. So in the Travis family playlist, Michael Jackson is still popular. And. And so I'm not surprised. I did wonder what the impact of the allegations against him were, but I think he's so popular and his songs were so talented that a lot of people just say he was never convicted of anything. And he is the 1980s, fair to say, the most popular artist of the 1980s. I don't think even there's a close second you could argue.

[A]

Yeah, I mean, I would. I would think so. Yeah, I would think so for sure.

[B]

All right.

[A]

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[B]

Welcome back in Clay Travis Buck Sexton Show. The production staff is overwhelmed by the tsunami of reactions that are pouring in from so many different of you. Many of them very funny. Including. Let's see this one from. I want to make sure I get it.

[A]

J.

[B]

This is, I'm told, very funny. Hit it with. Oh, Dave from. Dave.

[A]

Hey, this is Dave from Cary, North Carolina and I just want to ask Clay if he had the choice between going to a Taylor Swift concert or spending an evening with Bill Malusion, which would he take? Thanks guys. Bye.

[B]

I would combine them. I would take Bill Malluchin to the Taylor Swift concert. Why would I pick one or the other? Can you imagine? I think Bill Malluchin is married. I'm not sure that there is a more fertile opportunity to meet young, attractive women. You were talking about Buck when you went and Madonna had the concert in Atlantic City and you're with your brother. I bet if you are a single guy. And I just remember seeing all the girls walking around downtown Nashville when Taylor Swift had the multiple studio shows. It is 90% young women in that. In that stadium. I'm not sure there's a more fertile environment, literally a fertile environment for a single guy than the Taylor Swift concert.

[A]

Counterpoint. All those young ladies are listening to songs about how bad the ex boyfriends were and there's like a weird girl power vibe to all this Taylor Swift stuff. It's all about her breakups. You don't think?

[B]

Yeah, but the entire purpose of Taylor Swift's professional career is to find the right guy. And it's just a tumultuous, sordid. What? You know, walk to try to find the right guy.

[A]

There's something. There's something about you doing analysis of Taylor Swift's whole career and about young women walking around Nashville. They're all looking at the right guy with this mustache that you have that just. It's just perfect. I can't explain it. Do more Taylor Swift analysis with your mustache. But I just love it. I.

[B]

The mustache is going to break in on TV soon, and I don't know that the TV audience is prepared for this. We'll have more fun with you all tomorrow.

[A]

This is an I Heart podcast. Guaranteed human.