Radio: This American Life

Long before podcasts, there was This American Life, a radio program hosted by Ira Glass that debuted in 1995. It features a panoply of spoken-word gems, including essays, memoirs, short fiction and serious journalism. Last week, TAL became the first-ever recipient of the Pulitzer Prize for audio reporting, for its heart-wrenching episode “The Out Crowd,” about the plight of asylum seekers left in limbo by the Trump administration’s immigration policy. Start there, then go back through the show’s archives, of stories of people navigating life’s hardships and joys (check out “One Last Thing Before I Go” and “Our Friend David”). You will laugh, you will cry—sometimes at the same time—and you will be moved. Apple Podcasts, thisamericanlife.org. –Genevie Durano

Music: RJD2: The Fun Ones

You might already dig an RJD2 track and not know it: His “A Beautiful Mine” served as the theme to Mad Men. The latest album from the trip-hop virtuoso born Ramble Jon Krohn veers between jazzy, jump-outta-your-seat funk and moody, cinematic downtempo, and it could well be the soundtrack to your own mad life. Queue up “A Genuine Gentleman,” featuring a few fleet-footed verses from Aceyalone, and let the LP’s gravity draw you in. –Geoff Carter

Video Game: The Sims 4

Nintendo’s Animal Crossing has been the sleeper hit of the pandemic, but have you tried OG life simulation game The Sims? Launched way back in 2000, it’s now in its fourth edition and still going strong with regular expansion packs. The Sims 4 provides a chance to be a meddling god in your own universe. Create people, build their houses and guide them through their lives … or kill them if you prefer. Have fun! For Mac, PC, Xbox One, Playstation 4; ea.com/games/the-sims. –C. Moon Reed

Music: Kraftwerk

Florian Schneider’s recent death won’t derail Kraftwerk as a live entity; Ralf Hütter has kept the German electronic group touring since his co-founder’s 2008 exit—and it remains a powerful presence, as evidenced by 2014’s marvelous 3D performance at the Cosmopolitan here in Las Vegas. But Schneider and Hütter were the creative team behind every note of Kraftwerk’s studio catalog, so you can pay respects by digging through it, for the first or thousandth time.

The music’s contrasts remain exciting: basic structures fueled by advanced technology; an icily detached delivery capable of warming the soul; and a futuristic aesthetic that remained wildly unique even as it influenced countless DJs, rock bands and rappers through the years. The albums are legends unto themselves … Autobahn, Trans-Europe Express, The Man-Machine, Computer World. I’ve been spinning 1986’s Electric Café (aka Techno Pop) a lot this week, a so-called “lesser” Kraftwerk project that dwarfs most modern EDM.

RIP Florian Schneider, musical trailblazer. –Spencer Patterson

Television: We're Here

It’s like Queer Eye, but with drag queens. Three former RuPaul’s Drag Race stars—Bob the Drag Queen, Eureka O’Hara and Shangela—bring the diverse art form to Smalltown U.S.A. by transforming community members into drag queens. What could a cis man from Twin Falls, Idaho, a mother striving to overcome her homophobic past in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, and a father struggling to be more open with his daughter in Branson, Missouri, have in common? They all look great in drag. Thursdays, 9 p.m., HBO. –Leslie Ventura