How Charlie Puth honored Whitney Houston for 125 million people (live at Berklee NYC)

Switched on Pop

Vox Media Podcast Network

Music, Music Interviews, Music History, Music Commentary

4.6 • 2.9K Ratings

🗓️ 3 April 2026

⏱️ 55 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Charlie Puth joins Switched On Pop in Studio A at Power Station at Berklee NYC, live before a room of current students, ten days after performing the national anthem at Super Bowl 60 and weeks before releasing his fourth album, Whatever's Clever. The conversation is grounded in one question: how do you absorb the music you love and turn it into something that actually sounds like you? Puth traces his national anthem arrangement through a lineage running from Jose Feliciano's 1968 World Series performance to Marvin Gaye's 808-driven 1983 All-Star Game version to Whitney Houston's 1991 Super Bowl rendition. The through-line: citation is letting your influences dissolve into your hands until they become unrecognizable. That principle runs throughout the new record, from the Quincy Jones guitar tone on "Cry" to the Chick Corea quotation buried in "Boy" that Puth didn't realize was there until after writing it. Songs Discussed Bruce Springsteen – "Born in the USA" Madonna – "Like a Virgin" David Bowie – "Let's Dance" Charlie Puth ft. Wiz Khalifa – "See You Again" Charlie Puth – "We Don't Talk Anymore" Charlie Puth – "Attention" Charlie Puth – "Light Switch" Whitney Houston – "The Star-Spangled Banner" Babyface – "Whip Appeal" Jose Feliciano – "The Star-Spangled Banner" Jimi Hendrix – "The Star-Spangled Banner" Marvin Gaye – "The Star-Spangled Banner" Marvin Gaye – "Sexual Healing" Soulja Boy – "Crank That (Soulja Boy)" DeBarge – "Who's Holding Donna Now" Charlie Puth ft. Jeff Goldblum – "Until It Happens to You" Charlie Puth – "Changes" Charlie Puth – "Cry" Kenny G – "Lullaby" SOPHIE – "It's Okay to Cry" Michael Jackson – "Human Nature" Johnny Hates Jazz – "Shattered Dreams" Madonna – "Into the Groove" Joshua Redman – "St. Thomas" Charlie Puth – "Boy" Chick Corea – "Spain" Charlie Puth – "How Long (Has This Been Going On)" Bell Biv DeVoe – "Poison" Elton John – "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" Prince – "When Doves Cry" Schoolly D – "PSK What Does It Mean" Rick Astley – "Never Gonna Give You Up" Charlie Puth – "Beat Yourself Up" Britney Spears – "Lucky" George Benson – "Give Me the Night" No Doubt – "Hella Good" Michael Jackson – "Beat It" Michael Jackson – "Billie Jean" Charlie Puth – "Washed Up" Charlie Puth – "I Used to Be Cringe" Richard Smallwood – "Center of My Joy" Richard Smallwood – "Total Praise" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Dell PCs with Intel inside are built for every moment.
0:03.5	With long lasting battery life and built in intelligence, you can stay focused on what matters most.
0:08.6	Dell Technologies, built for you.
0:10.5	Dell.com slash del PCs.
0:15.0	Hey, it's Charlie.
0:16.2	Back in February, I had the chance to sit down with Charlie Puth just days after he had sung the national anthem at the Super Bowl,
0:22.1	a marvelous performance which honored Whitney Houston and so many other musical greats.
0:27.2	Charlie and I sat down in front of the piano.
0:29.1	It was a really delightful conversation, and I wanted to play it for you now upon the release of his album, Whatever's Clever.
0:35.3	Here is my conversation with Charlie Puth, live at Power Station at Berkeley, NYC.
0:44.7	Welcome to Switched on Pop.
0:50.0	I'm songwriter and tonight, Berkeley professor, Charlie Harding, Charlie Puth, sitting right next to me. First broke out in 2015 with CU again. His collaboration with Witts Khalifa, tribute to Paul Walker, the state at number one for 12 weeks. He followed that with a string of hits. We don't talk anymore. Attention and light switch. But what makes Charlie different from most pop stars is the depth underneath those songs. He has perfect pitch, something roughly one in 10,000 people are born with. He studied jazz piano at the Manhattan School of Music, pre-college, and then graduated from Berkeley in 2013. I did, too. With a degree in music production and engineering. Yeah. He writes, arranges, and produces his own records. He's the real thing. He's been on Switched on Pop twice before.
1:29.3	Yeah.
1:30.3	But I wanted to bring him back for two reasons.
1:31.3	First, because here we are tonight in Studio A in Power Station at Berkeley, NYC, where Springsteen's
1:39.4	born in the USA, Madonna's like a Virgin, and Bowie's Let's Dance were recorded among many, many hit records.
1:45.6	This is wholly recording round.
1:48.0	And it felt right to bring a Berkeley alum into this room live in front of current students.
1:53.3	So that's the first reason.
1:54.7	More importantly, we're catching Charlie at an inflection point in your life and your career.
2:00.1	Ten days ago, you performed the national anthem at Super Bowl 60.
2:05.6	Accompanying yourself on a Rhodes keyboard with a choir and orchestra behind you,
	...

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