Is there a Disney curse?: Demi, Selena, and Miley

Switched on Pop

Vox Media Podcast Network

Music Interviews, Music History, Music, Music Commentary

4.6 • 2.7K Ratings

🗓️ 18 November 2025

⏱️ 49 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

This year, there were a few records that delivered less-than-optimal returns on either the Hot 100 or the Billboard 200 – and they all came from former Disney pop stars. Demi Lovato’s latest album peaked at number nine on the Billboard 200, where it spent one week and then fell off; Selena Gomez’s record with Benny Blanco peaked at number 2 on the Billboard 200, but no songs cracked the top 40; and Miley Cyrus’s album is her shortest charting project to date. On this episode of Switched On Pop, Nate and Reanna try to get to the bottom of the so-called “Disney curse,” and why these artists are unable to recapture their past commercial success. Songs discussed: Demi Lovato – Here All Night Selena Gomez, benny blanco – Sunset Blvd Miley Cyrus – End of the World Demi Lovato – Sorry Not Sorry Demi Lovato – Heart Attack Demi Lovato – Skin of my Teeth Demi Lovato – Fast Kesha – JOYRIDE. Demi Lovato – Frequency Demi Lovato – Kiss Todd Terry, Martha Wash – Keep On Jumpin' Demi Lovato – Sorry To Myself Selena Gomez, A$AP Rocky – Good For You Kygo, Selena Gomez – It Ain't Me Selena Gomez, Marshmallo – Wolves Selena Gomez, benny blanco, Gracie Abrams – Call Me When You Break Up benny blanco, Selena Gomez, J Balvin, Tainy – I Can't Get Enough J Balvin, Willy William – Mi Gente Selena Gomez, benny blanco – Bluest Flame Selena Gomez, benny blanco, The Marías – Ojos Tristes Miley Cyrus, Big Sean – Love Money Party Miley Cyrus – Flowers Miley Cyrus – Easy Lover Miley Cyrus, Naomi Campbell – Every Girl You've Ever Loved Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Support for Switched on Pop comes from Sonos. Nothing quite makes a holiday gathering pop like turning on the music.
0:07.0	And if you're looking to set the mood, you should check out Sonos. With Sonos, movie nights feel bigger and more cinematic, while holiday parties come alive with music that flows from room to room.
0:19.0	It's the kind of sound that makes a house feel warm and connected during the season.
0:23.8	Want studio quality sound at home?
0:26.5	Explore Sonos speakers, soundbars, and more at sonos.com
0:31.6	and discover how easy it is to build your own whole home audio system.
0:44.0	Stage on the... your own whole home audio system. Welcome to Switchdown Pop. I am producer Rihanna Cruz.
0:47.6	And I'm musicologist Nate Sloan. Rihanna, this is the second week in a row that you and I are holding it down here at
0:55.0	Switchdown Pop HQ.
0:56.4	Yeah, burning the midnight oil over here.
0:58.6	While our colleague songwriter Charlie Harding, gallivance around Norway, supposedly leading
1:06.3	workshops for students there in songwriting and music criticism. But I think really we know he's
1:13.0	just hanging out in saunas and sipping Norse vodka. I mean, he deserves it, but you and I, Nate,
1:20.2	are here to hold it down. Yes, because the pop does not stop. And Rihanna, what's on tap
1:27.4	for us today? Well, Nate, I think you know that here on the show,
1:31.3	we tend to wax poetically on the more commercially successful end of the pop spectrum. Yeah,
1:38.7	we chase the hits. Absolutely. You know, often we look at why a song hit number one, why an artist is
1:44.1	successful. But today, Charlie's not here.
1:47.0	So I have the potential to turn the show upside down, to flip the script here.
1:53.0	And what I'd like to do is not talk about the top of the pop charts, but rather some of this year's less successful pop efforts.
2:02.2	I'm here for it. When the Charlie's away, the mice play. Let's do it.
2:05.6	In 2025, there were a couple records that delivered less than optimal returns. Specifically,
	...

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