When Frank Farian first laid eyes on Rob Pilatus and Fab Morvan, he saw everything he wasn’t. They were handsome, young, and Black. But Frank had something they didn’t. He had power.
So, Frank offered them a devil’s bargain. Almost overnight, Milli Vanilli’s debut album went five times platinum and scored a Grammy nomination. But when the lie at the center of their success started to unravel, Rob and Fab would discover the hard way the difference between star power and real power.
From Wondery, Blame It on the Fame is a story about the lie that shot to #1 and what it cost to tell the truth. Hosted by Amanda Seales.
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Business is war. Sometimes the prize is your wallet or your attention. Sometimes, it’s just the fun of beating the other guy. The outcome of these battles shapes what we buy and how we live. Business Wars gives you the unauthorized, real story of what drives these companies and their leaders, innovators, investors and executives to new heights -- or to ruin. In the newest season of Business Wars, dive into the high-stakes race to supply the world’s hottest weight-loss drug. Listen to Business Wars: The Race to Ozempic: https://wondery.fm/BW_IFD
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20 Oct 2025TRANSCRIPT
Listen now: Scamfluencers | The Pharmacist Femme Fatale
Natalie Cochran seemed like she had it all: a good job as a pharmacist, a loving husband, and two kids. But then she quit her job to become a government contractor and started raking in dough, or so she claimed. Behind the scenes, Natalie was running a classic Ponzi scheme, scamming friends and family with fake contracts, fake government emails, and even fake cancer. But when the walls start closing in, lies alone won’t be enough to save her… These are the stories of the world’s most insidious Scamfluencers. And we are their prey. Every week on Scamfluencers, join co-hosts Scaachi Koul and Sarah Hagi as they unpack epic stories of deception from the worlds of social media, fashion, finance, health, and wellness. These influencers claim to be everything from charismatic healers to trusted financial insiders to experts in dating. They cast spells over millions. Why do we believe them, and how does our culture allow them to thrive? Listen now: Wondery.fm/SCAM
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28 Jul 2025TRANSCRIPT
Listen Now: Lawless Planet
It’s not that hard to kill a planet. All it takes is a little drilling, some mining, a generous helping of pollution and voila! Earth over. When you take stock of what’s left, it starts to look like a crime scene: decapitated mountains, poisoned rivers, oil-soaked pelicans, maybe a sun-bleached cow skull in a dried-up lake bed. The only thing missing is yellow caution tape. On each episode of Lawless Planet, host Zach Goldbaum reveals the scams, murders and cover-ups on the frontline of the climate crisis, and the life and death choices people are making to either protect our world – or destroy it.
Listen to Lawless Planet: Wondery.fm/LawlessPlanet
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Inside a recent episode
Listen now: Scamfluencers | The Pharmacist Femme Fatale
Published 20 Oct 2025 · Transcript excerpt
[…] This is the last straw for Michael. Their company has been bringing in hundreds of millions of dollars. But for the past few months, he and Natalie have been having cash flow problems. Michael thinks it's ridiculous that they're technically worth millions of dollars, but don't have the cash to pay their sewer bill. […]
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