#158 The Case of the Missing Hit

The '#158 The Case of the Missing Hit' episode of the 'Reply All' podcast follows the story of Tyler Gillett, a man haunted by a 90s pop song stuck in his head that he cannot find anywhere online. Host PJ Vogt delves into Tyler's obsession, which is compounded by his inability to locate the song through Google searches or music identification apps like Shazam and Soundhound. The song combines elements reminiscent of U2 and Barenaked Ladies, with a catchy chorus and verses that feature rap-like cadences. In his quest to identify the song, Tyler even recreates it from memory using Adobe Premiere, crafting a multi-track version with his own voice.

PJ decides to help Tyler by flying to Los Angeles, where they enlist the help of a band to professionally record a new version of the song based on Tyler's memory. Despite the high-quality recording, music recognition apps still fail to identify the song. PJ then seeks the expertise of music critics and industry professionals, but no one recognizes the song. The theory emerges that the song could have been a minor hit that was tested in certain radio markets but never made it big or was released officially, explaining its absence from the internet.

The narrative takes a turn when PJ considers the possibility that Tyler's memory of the song might be a composite of different songs, leading to a false memory. This theory gains traction when they fail to get any recognition from a host of music critics, including those with encyclopedic knowledge of 90s pop music. However, the breakthrough comes when PJ searches Facebook with the song's lyrics and discovers posts by other individuals who remember the song, eventually leading to the original artist, Evan Scott Olsen.

Evan confirms that he wrote and recorded the song, titled 'So Much Better,' which was picked up by Universal Music but never saw widespread success. The song was tested on radio stations but never received the promotion or attention it needed to become a hit. Evan's experience encapsulates the volatile nature of the music industry in the late 90s and early 2000s, where many songs and artists were lost in the shuffle of the record label's speculative practices.