DISGRACELAND is an award-winning music and true crime podcast about musicians getting away with murder and behaving very badly. Jerry Lee Lewis's 5th wife? Dead. Sid and Nancy? Both dead. Why? Because musicians are insane, and insane things happen to them. Why did we lose Amy Winehouse at 27? Was Debbie Harry really abducted by Ted Bundy as she claims? Is Patti Smith not just the "Godmother of Punk", but also the "Original True Crime Girl"? What really happened the night of the Jay Z nightclub stabbing? What do the Diddy indictments truly reveal? All these stories and more, on artists from every genre and their true crimes, in our massive 260-plus story archive. The Dead, the Stones, Johnny, Willie, Frank, Kurt, Courtney, Gaga, Lana, Taylor, and too many to name. DISGRACELAND is music history come to life through audio storytelling as you've never heard it before, with revealing facts: yes, assassins are the real reason the Beatles quit touring—reclaimed myths: no, Mama Cass didn't die from choking on a ham sandwich––and constant reckoning between art and artist––all told through the lens of true crime. This is the podcast for the self-proclaimed "Disgos", the musically obsessed and the true crime heads; the outsiders, the independent thinkers who know that the best history is the history that gets buried. DISGRACELAND is where host Jake Brennan tells the stories they didn't want told. The kind you'll end up telling someone else. Get ready to uncover hidden truths and buckle up for truly edge-of-your-seat storytelling. New, fully scripted, sound-designed episodes are released every Tuesday. Bonus chat-style episodes where Jake responds to voicemails, texts, and emails from Disgos hit on Thursdays, and "Rewind" episodes from our archive drop on Sundays. DISGRACELAND is not a journalistic podcast. It's an entertainment podcast inspired by true events. Certain dialogue and scenes are dramatized, as is common in scripted entertainment based on real stories. Sources and credits for each episode are available at www.disgracelandpod.com . To unlock ad-free listening, exclusive content, and connect with your fellow Disgos, go to www.disgracelandpod.com to become an All Access member. Rocka Rolla.
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Christina Grimmie: A YouTube Star, an Obsessed Fan, and a Murder in Orlando
May 19, 2026
Viral YouTube star Christina Grimmie built her career one click, one song, and one fan at a time. Her breakout run on the NBC singing competition show The Voice was watched by millions. But one…
Ariana Grande: Terror on Tour, Tragedy in Manchester, and Learning to Sing Again (REWIND)
May 17, 2026
On May 22, 2017, a terrorist detonated a bomb outside Ariana Grande’s performance at Manchester Arena. The blast killed 22 people. It injured over a thousand more. The attack remains one of the most…
Bonus Episode: Shocking Details in D4vd’s Evidence Brief Surrounding the Murder of Celeste Rivas Hernandez
May 14, 2026
The newly revealed evidence from prosecutors detailing the alleged murder of a 14 year old by rising hip hop star D4vd are as shocking as they are dumb. You will not believe what this musician is…
Stevie Ray Vaughan - Fiery Blues and Fateful Choices
May 12, 2026
By the time he was 27 years old, Stevie Ray Vaughan was the hottest guitar player in Texas. But outside of the Lone Star State, he was practically unknown, with no real audience and no record deal…
Sean “Diddy” Combs (Pt. 2): The Explicit Story Behind the Indictments
May 10, 2026
How does a music mogul satiate himself when he’s rich, famous, and can have whatever he wants? When he compares himself to gangster-pimp-king-hustlers from the past? When he’s one of the most…
Sean “Diddy” Combs (Pt. 1): A Nightclub Shooting, a Fatal Stampede, and the Cost of Doing Business
May 10, 2026
Sean “Diddy” Combs is a music producer and rapper, but he is a businessman first. And as every businessman knows, you gotta pay the cost to be the boss. You’ve gotta bet big to win big. You have to…
Bonus Episode: Top 5 Most Surprising Musician True Crimes
May 08, 2026
The “smart” folks over at The New York Times aren’t the only ones with a list this week. We use the (mostly solid) Times list of Thirty Greatest Living American Songwriters as a jumping off point…
Ian Watkins from Lostprophets: A Nu Metal Monster in the So-Called “Monster Mansion”
May 05, 2026
The story about Ian Watkins of Lostprophets might be the most disturbing I’ve come across in all my music history research. It involves the abuse of children and a monstrous abuse of power and fame…
Bjork: The Package, the Fan, and a Deadly Obsession (REWIND)
May 03, 2026
A deranged fan. A deadly package. And one of the most innovative musicians on the planet. This is the true story of obsession, art, and attempted murder. This is Björk in Disgraceland. This episode…
Bonus Episode: The Count Who Killed Jim Morrison?
Apr 30, 2026
Like the Foo Fighters Taylor Hawkins’ death, the details around the Doors Jim Morrison’s death are mysterious. Was a debonair jetset Count responsible for the singer’s death along with the death of…
Foo Fighters: How Did Taylor Hawkins Die?
Apr 28, 2026
How is it that one of the most famous drummers on the planet died four years ago and we still don’t have an official cause of death? We have some ideas. Plus, we get into the story behind one of the…
Selena: Tejano, Deception, and the Death of the Madonna of Mexico
Apr 26, 2026
Selena Quintanilla Pérez ushered in the Golden Age of Tejano music in Texas with a meteoric rise up the charts and into the hearts of her fans. Her fans saw her as more than just a pop star — she was…
Bonus Episode: Near Death Experiences and Unlikely Covers
Apr 23, 2026
In this week’s After Party, we dive into the near-death experience of Depeche Mode’s Dave Gahan. After a harrowing moment in 1996, he floated above his body, witnessing paramedics trying to save him…
Depeche Mode: Pleasure, Pain, Death, and Resurrection
Apr 21, 2026
Machines, eyeliner, ecstasy, and a West Hollywood overdose that left their frontman clinically dead—Depeche Mode were never just a synth-pop band. From cops in riot gear to an onstage heart attack…
Beastie Boys: How They Inspired A Crime Wave, Caused New Laws To Be Written, and Influenced Culture
Apr 19, 2026
The news called the London crime wave an “epidemic”. The Beastie Boys inspired it. Liverpool wanted to kill the group. Ad Rock was in jail. Numerous other musicians were arrested, in part, because of…
Bonus Episode: We Are Starting Our Own Rock ‘n’’ Roll Hall of Fame
Apr 16, 2026
The Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame 2026 inductees were announced, and guess what? You’re pissed! So we are starting our own Hall of Fame. Plus, we are hearing from you through your voicemails, texts, and…
Grace Jones: True Crime Magnet. Eighties Icon.
Apr 14, 2026
Grace Jones was one of the era-defining multihyphenates of the 1980s, an icon of the music, fashion, and movie worlds. From Jamaica to Studio 54, she broke down barriers and smashed glass ceilings at…
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Bonus Episode: A Big Announcement, The True Crime and Grime of the Chelsea Hotel, and More
Apr 09, 2026
Disgos, we’ve got some big news—and you’re hearing it first. Also, Patti Smith has us asking (and answering), which movies about the Chelsea Hotel are worth watching, plus your voicemails, texts, DMs…
Patti Smith: How True Crime Helped The “Godmother of Punk” Survive
Apr 07, 2026
The Lindbergh Baby Kidnapping, Helter Skelter, the .44 Caliber Killers, the crime and grime of 70s New York; Central Park, the Chelsea Hotel, 42nd St., rape, murder, and the influence of junkie…
Bonus Episode: A Music History Memoir and Rock ‘N’ Roll Autobiography Reading List
Apr 02, 2026
Fresh off of reading Patti Smith’s excellent memoir Just Kids in preparation of our upcoming Patti episode, we are discussing our favorite music history memoirs and autobiographies, everything from…
Special Episode: New Artists/New Crimes Revealed
Mar 31, 2026
A special look at the new artists we’re covering in 2026, along with a peek back at how we got started, where we’re going, and some listener favorites through the years. See omnystudio.com/listener…
Bonus Episode: Brit Pop and the Attempted Kidnapping of Two British Musical Icons
Mar 25, 2026
Yeah, admit it, you don’t like Suede either. Plus, you’re going to want to learn more about the British band that attempted to kidnap not one, but two different British musical icons. Also, we…
Bonus Episode: Underrated and Influential Women From Music History, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Nominees, and our Inductee Picks
Mar 19, 2026
Why are women criminally absent from most of Rolling Stone Magazine’s list of 100 Greatest Artists? Your voicemails and texts on who you think the most badass women from music history are. Plus, our…
Chrissie Hynde: Punk at Ground Zero and the Birth of the Pretenders
Mar 17, 2026
Years spent at ground zero of UK punk. Years of almost-bands, near-misses, and stolen moments on the sidelines. Sex-shop violence, marriage schemes with the Sex Pistols, coin-studded belts, bicycle…
Bonus Episode: What Music Do Serial Killers and the Worst People In The World Listen to?
Mar 12, 2026
Surprise! Jeffrey Epstein had predictable taste in music. But the Son of Sam? Gaddafi? John Wayne Gacy? We get into what the worst people in the world listened to along with your voicemails, texts…
Bonus Episode: The Murder Mystery Hinted At in the New Elvis Concert Film
Mar 05, 2026
We saw EPiC and it’s GREAT, but why didn’t Elvis perform outside the United States? Could an unsolved murder have been the reason? For more great stories, check out our huge archive of episodes like…
INXS Pt. 2: Rock ‘n’ Roll Riots, Radio Bans, and a Letter Bomb
Mar 03, 2026
The wild west of the Australian pub rock scene that ended in fire. A hit record stalled by controversy. A pilot passed out at 30,000 feet. And a bomb sent to a rock star’s hotel room. Listen to find…
Bonus Episode: The Grateful Dead Psyop Theory and the Laurel Canyon Pop Star Military Industrial Complex
Feb 26, 2026
In light of what the Epstein Files taught us about Bob Weir and Bohemian Grove, we ask the question: Is there any merit to the conspiracy theory regarding the Grateful Dead as a CIA psyop? What…
The Grateful Dead (Pt. 3): What The Epstein Files Tell Us About Bob Weir’s Bohemian Grove Ties and MK Ultra
Feb 24, 2026
Why was the Grateful Dead’s Bob Weir a member of the secretive Bohemian Club? Maybe the answer lies in the Epstein Files or in early MK Ultra efforts? Listen to find out why a counterculture icon…
Bonus Episode: The Epstein Files and Every Musician Mentioned In Them (We Think)
Feb 19, 2026
There are countless musicians mentioned in the “Epstein Files”; a dozen or so are bold-faced names. A whole lot more are not. Some of the mentions are innocuous, a few of the mentions are highly…
