The RELEVANT Podcast

Cameron, Jesse, Derek and Emily are all back together for a packed episode. In RELEVANT Recommends, we highlight Indie Tribe's new album, Who Do You Say I Am? and caught up with the guys at SXSW to talk about the making of the project and what it says about who they are as a group.
In RELEVANT Buzz: Alabama's basketball team has been quietly building a faith culture all season that's worth knowing about. Then, as Stephen Colbert is wrapping up the Late Show, his next move is pretty unexpected: writing a Lord of the Rings movie with Peter Jackson. And then we highlight an unexpected connection between SNL's newest cast member and Orlando-based Christian rapper Caleb Gordon. For real.
Plus we cover NCAA tournament drama, late night legends ranked, and the high school celebrity alumni rabbit hole (yes, DJ Khaled, Joey Fatone and Wayne Brady went to school together). In Slices: googly eyes are scientifically proven to deter seagulls (and lions), and the world record Big Mac guy has opinions on the Big Arch. And at the end of the show it's One Has to Go: pop icons, board games, classic Comedy Central, sneaker culture and more. We said it was packed.
0:00 — Intro / Derek's back, everybody's been sick
4:00 — The podcast economy is in trouble
11:30 — Mike Lindell gets served mid-interview
19:58 — RELEVANT Buzz
20:30 — NCAA Tournament buzzer beater & Dan Hurley headbutts a ref
23:30 — Alabama basketball's faith culture and Bible study movement
25:45 — Stephen Colbert leaving Late Show; late night legends ranked
27:25 — Colbert is co-writing a Lord of the Rings movie (Shadows of the Past)
33:00 — Unexpected celebrity connections: Snoop & Cameron Diaz, Dr. Phillips HS alumni
34:50 — SNL's Cam Patterson and Christian rapper Caleb Gordon went to school together
39:05 — Slices: Googly eyes deter seagulls (and lions in Botswana)
41:35 — Slices: The Big Mac world record holder reviews the Big Arch
44:42 — RELEVANT Recommends: Indie Tribe's Who Do You Say I Am?
47:37 — Derek on writing albums in lockdown camps
53:00 — One Has to Go: pop icons, comedians, board games, sneakers, Nickelodeon, MTV

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Worship leader Pat Barrett — known for "Good Good Father" and "Build My Life" — joins Cameron, Jesse and Emily to talk about his new live album 'Break Open,' why he sat on the title track for nearly a decade, and his late-in-life obsession with surfing (including an upcoming trip to Kelly Slater's Surf Ranch). He also gets honest about how his thinking on songwriting vs. worship leading has shifted, because of course we ask awkward questions.
Also, Emily brings RELEVANT Buzz fresh from South by Southwest, where she sat in on a panel with Vince Gilligan — creator of Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul — who said he thinks he owes the world something better than anti-heroes. Plus: High Point University's Cinderella March Madness run, and the faith story behind Chase Johnston's #99 jersey that everyone's been talking about.
And to close it out — Pat helps the crew run the Sweet 16 mascots through a no-stats, vibes-only bracket challenge to crown the real national champion. Based solely on mascots, not teams. One with a mustache may or may not have won.
Highlights:
0:00 – Why last week's episode was late
2:30 – Starlink satellites
9:30 – Driving gloves
17:50 – RELEVANT Buzz: High Point University's Chase Johnston's #99 story
27:00 – Emily's South by Southwest panel with Vince Gilligan
31:45 – The Lost arc, the Sawyer problem, and what Vince Gilligan owes culture
36:00 – Pat Barrett joins the show
38:30 – Recording 'Break Open' live in a sweaty tent
40:40 – Why the title song sat unreleased for nearly 10 years
42:50 – Songwriting vs. worship leading — what's actually better?
45:20 – Pat's surfing obsession
48:15 – The March Madness Mascot Bracket Challenge

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Ryan Gosling joins the RELEVANT Podcast to talk about his new sci-fi film Project Hail Mary — what made him fall in love with this story and why this one might be a "core memory" film for a generation. 
Before that, Emily reports from SXSW to break down the week's biggest faith-and-culture stories: a Christian animated short film made by two Pixar animators and 200 volunteers (including musician Josh Garrels) got nominated for an Oscar. Also Christian apologist Wesley Huff went on the popular podcast 'Diary of a CEO' and told Stephen Bartlett to his face he's going to hell. Plus, NFL quarterback Justin Fields reveals he wants to become a missionary after football. 
Then in Slices: the Tooth Fairy economy is growing (Jesse has a lot of thoughts), a huge scandal in a camel beauty pageant, and you'll never be able to predict this week's 'What's Jesse Thinking?' segment. It's a wild ride this week.
Highlights:
00:25 — SxSW breakdown: The decline from tech-and-music powerhouse 
07:38 — RELEVANT BUZZ
07:43 — The Office canon errors: a deep dive nobody asked for (Michael Scott's anniversary math)
10:11 — Forevergreen: Oscar-nominated Christian animated short by two Pixar animators + 200 volunteers, featuring Josh Garrels
19:22 — Wesley Huff talks Christianity on 'Diary of a CEO'
26:07 — NFL QB Justin Fields says he wants to be a missionary after football 
30:07 — SLICES
30:14 — The Tooth Fairy economy 
35:34 — Camel beauty pageant scandal 
37:53 — RELEVANT RECOMMENDS: Project Hail Mary 
43:25 — Ryan Gosling on why he keeps making space movies and why he won't actually go to space
46:42 — Ryan Gosling on why he picked Project Hail Mary — "you would die for this rock alien"
48:54 — Ryan Gosling on Project Hail Mary as a "core memory movie" like E.T. and Back to the Future
50:01 — WHAT'S JESSE THINKING?: Should Golden Corral run the US government?
56:23 — Post-credits: Apology to the estate of Shel Silverstein

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Colony House is back with a new album, and they sat down with Emily to reflect on 10 years of making music and what they want the next decade to look like. 
In RELEVANT Buzz: Papa Roach lead singer Jacoby Shaddix shares his powerful faith journey — from foxhole prayer, to sobriety and a faith that sounds like the real thing. We also bring a story flying under the radar: nearly a million Christians are living inside Iran right now, and we hear directly from believers on the ground to get their thoughts on the war and religious freedom. 
Plus, the backlash to the Atlanta Hawks announcing "Magic City Night" — a themed game night centered around an infamous Atlanta strip club.Then, pastor Kyle Idleman joins us to talk about how modern American Christianity has slowly turned Jesus into a therapist and self-help guru — and what we've lost in the process. It's a challenge worth sitting with.
In Slices: a Turkish soccer player performs CPR on a seagull he accidentally hit mid-game, United Airlines starts banning passengers who refuse headphones, and we close with a Spring Break edition of Would You Rather.
01:00 — The crocheting trend taking over 
03:48 — The appeal of old stuff
10:41 — RELEVANT BUZZ 
10:41 — Papa Roach lead singer Jacoby Shaddix shares his Christian testimony. Foxhole prayers, sobriety and millennial rockers finding faith
14:25 — Marty's attempt to join the Elk Club for a Newport parking spot
22:04 — Iranian Christians: nearly 1 million believers inside Iran
28:33 — Atlanta Hawks "Magic City Night"
30:42 — Kyle Idleman interview: How American Christianity has missed the real Jesus
35:16 — SLICES
35:16 — Turkish soccer player performs CPR on a seagull he accidentally hit
41:01 — United Airlines bans passengers who won't use headphones
45:31 — RELEVANT RECOMMENDS: Colony House — 77 Part 2 
50:33 — WOULD YOU RATHER: Spring Break Edition | Pullout couches, photo shoots, emo cruises, bad vibes vs. mediocre food, and Marty's 3am cockfight vacation

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Zachary Levi — Chuck, Shazam, and now host of the new docu-drama David: King of Israel — joins us to talk about why the story of David is the one he keeps coming back to. It's a story of someone who's broken, who makes terrible decisions, and who somehow still gets called a man after God's own heart. Levi explains what sets this show apart from all the other David content out there right now and why he thinks everyone needs to hear this story again.
Also in this episode: We've been hearing a lot about revival — from the SEU outpouring to Asbury to rising Bible sales. But does the data actually back that up? We talked to Ryan Burge, a pastor, researcher and political analyst who's spent 20 years studying church trends, and his answer might surprise you. Plus, Gen Z is quietly bringing physical media back, why AI in the operating room is already causing problems, and Jesse drops a statistic about cats and birds that is either shocking or deeply unpopular depending on whether you own a cat.
And it's the spring edition of One Has to Go!
TIMESTAMPS
0:45 — Cameron stress-eating popcorn at the Magic game and them losing because of it 
5:45 — RELEVANT Buzz 
7:00 — Zach Levi on David: King of Israel
11:15 — DVDs and physical media are making a comeback, thanks to Gen Z 
19:00 — Is revival actually happening in America? Researcher Ryan Burge on the data 
28:15 — SLICES: Jesse's very unpopular take on cats and birds 
36:05 — Derek: AI in the operating room and why we need to pump the brakes 
41:00 — ONE HAS TO GO: Spring Edition 

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