The Taylor Swift Music Awards: Monday, September 28th, 2026

The Toast is a comedy podcast hosted by sisters Jackie and Claudia Oshry that covers entertainment and pop culture news with humor and commentary. This September 28, 2026 episode is framed around Taylor Swift and the MTV VMAs, though the actual content spans five distinct entertainment and sports stories. The episode opens with a 31-minute segment on Taylor Swift's VMA performance and awards recap. It then pivots to covering Margaret Qualley and Sabrina Carpenter joining Tom Holland in a Fred Astaire biopic (casting news from Variety). A significant portion addresses Jay-Z facing rape allegations that the accuser subsequently recanted, claiming she never met the rapper. The hosts also discuss Justin Verlander's emotional final pitching appearance, where his 7-year-old daughter greeted him with a hug as he left the mound. The episode concludes with commentary on the New York Times' list of the 100 best TV shows of the 21st century. The show includes at least one sponsor read (Sleep or Die product). The hosts bring their established comedic sensibility to these news items, relying on their chemistry and commentary style rather than scripted jokes. The episode structure follows a typical entertainment news podcast format: multiple brief segments covering trending stories with host banter and reactions. No guest appearances are listed, so the comedy relies entirely on the hosts' rapport and takes on the material.

Verdict: A typical entertainment news podcast with unclear comedic payoff and a misleading title that promises Taylor Swift focus but delivers mostly unrelated celebrity gossip.

Comedy rubric

• Laugh density n/a

  Show notes provide no specific jokes, comedic moments, or indication of how funny the hosts' commentary actually is

• Originality of material n/a

  Cannot assess originality of takes without hearing the actual commentary; news recap format is inherently reactive rather than original

• Chemistry and delivery n/a

  No audio samples or descriptions of host interaction quality, timing, or rapport provided in source material

• Substance 2/5 33%

  Five brief news items with minimal depth indicated; longest segment is 31 minutes on VMAs but no detail on analytical substance versus surface-level reaction

• Delivers on its title 2/5 33%

  Title promises 'Taylor Swift Music Awards' focus but only the first 31 minutes of 78 minutes covers that; remaining 47 minutes covers unrelated entertainment and sports news

• Value for time 2/5 33%

  Five disparate topics in 78 minutes suggests scattered focus; title misdirection means listeners expecting Swift coverage get mostly other content

How we score Comedy

Worth it if you're a dedicated Toast fan who enjoys the hosts' personalities and want casual entertainment news commentary, but not if you're seeking deep analysis or expecting the promised Taylor Swift focus.

Content flags

• Clickbait Title emphasizes 'Taylor Swift Music Awards' but only 31 of 78 minutes covers that topic; remaining content is unrelated celebrity news

Based on the episode description. AI-generated; it can be wrong.