Bowen Yang, Charlamagne Tha God, Rachel Maddow and More Reveal Their Podcasting Secrets
As part of its annual list of podcasting’s most powerful players, THR asked every honoree to fill out a questionnaire about the state of the industry, the challenges holding it back, their recording booth habits, and what they consider to be the most underrated podcast. A selection of our favorite responses below, from the likes of Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Alex Cooper, Kara Swisher and many more.
Bill Simmons (The Bill Simmons Podcast)
What are your podcasting guilty pleasures?
The JFK assassination or mysteries centered around dead porn stars. A narrative pod about a dead porn actress who may have been the second JFK shooter would be my dream pod.
Current favorite podcast (that you’re not involved in)?
This isn’t a specific pod, but I love any social media clip of a retired NBA player saying the worst sports take possible. It’s 2024’s single best trend. I never knew there could be so many incomprehensibly dumb sports takes. It’s like a new art form is being created out of thin air.
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Podcasting no-no’s learned the hard way?
Don’t waste time at the top of the episode with dumb bullshit banter, don’t have guests just to have guests (have people you actually want to talk to), don’t eat anything heavy before you pod and just assume everything you say can and will be cut out into a 25-second clip out of context to make you look bad.
How would you like to see the medium evolve?
It’s a two-decade medium so evolving isn’t in the cards at this point. It’s way more likely podcasts get dumber and more insane.
Podcasting is best suited to …
Being there as you’re doing something else that’s slightly more important.
Biggest challenge facing podcasting now?
There’s far too many of them, which means far too many of them don’t do as well as how they’re being sold to advertisers, which means advertisers eventually get less excited about spending money on podcasts.
What podcast doesn’t exist yet that should?
A Larry David sports podcast. He’s available! Every holiday season we’d get to hear him melt down about the Jets.
Thoughts on 1.5x?
It’s for sociopaths.
We need podcasts because…
In the 2020s humans have less contact with each other than ever before — so at least they can listen to someone else’s conversations.
“______ should have been a podcast”
Meghan and Harry.
The most underrated podcast is…
Plain English with Derek Thompson.
In five years, podcasting will…
Be in the exact same place it’s in right now.
What haven’t you yet done with the podcast that you would like to?
Blow it out and make it more of a TV show.
Pre-recording routine?
I don’t have one…. Am I supposed to have one? What are we, professional athletes? Have you seen some of the people that pod!
The one person in my life who still doesn’t know how I earn a living:
My 16-year-old son — I think he thinks I just watch sports and movies in my underwear. He’s not necessarily wrong.
Weirdest ad I ever had to record…
I had to do a read for a beverage that I absolutely hate. My skin was crawling. It made me realize that I’d do a read for basically anything. Podcasts… they turn you into a whore!
Theo Von (This Past Weekend)
Current favorite podcast (that you’re not involved in)?
Tie: The Joe Rogan Experience and Matt and Shane’s Secret Podcast
How would you like to see the medium evolve?
Idk. I just hope to evolve with it, and if I don’t, then it’s been fun while it lasted. Amen.
Biggest challenge facing podcasting now?
Everyone has a podcast — even animals.
What podcast doesn’t exist yet that should?
Children of the Porn. Kids conceived on porn sets share their stories.
Thoughts on 1.5x?
Love it.
We need podcasts because…
Mainstream media doesn’t allow certain humor and voices. Fuck them. We made our own.
The most underrated podcast is…
Stiff Socks with Trevor Wallace and Michael Baluestein.
Weirdest ad I ever had to record…
Lenny’s Urine Tablets. Change the color of your pee. 1 mg and 5 mg.
John Allen, aka MrBallen (MrBallen Podcast)
Podcasting is best suited to …
Podcasting is best suited to creating unique theater of the mind. It’s a medium that can so specifically place you in a moment, a location, a scene, but that scene is something you create entirely for yourself. Especially with dramatic storytelling, one gets lost in the voice of a host or a person impacted by an event, and those voices alone often convey something even deeper than seeing them on camera. We become hyper focused on every word. Then, a simple bit of sound design can often transport us right into the story.
Thoughts on 1.5x?
I totally get listening at 1.5x. People are busy, and it can be a good way to consume content if you’re really on the run! That said, it’s not for me. People watch blockbuster movies on their phones, but it certainly isn’t the same if you’re watching Star Wars on your phone vs. in the theater. I want the full effect, the full impact of how the storyteller intended to deliver that story, and I’m sure it’s not with them sounding like a chipmunk.
We need podcasts because…
We need podcasts because not every story can be told visually, or can find its way onto the screen. There are so many stories out there that deserve to be told, need to be told, and audio is the perfect format for so many of them. There is some incredible journalism going on, bringing stories to us that would never see the light of day if not for podcasts. I’m very proud to say that we are working on one right now. A story that’s more than 30 years in the making. Stay tuned!
Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Wiser Than Me)
Thoughts on 1.5x?
What the fuck is that?
Weirdest ad I ever had to record…
I had some ad where they kept wanting me to say “for the Spunky Woman in your life.” I wouldn’t do it.
Pre-recording routine?
I always put lipstick on, even though we don’t use video on Wiser Than Me. I guess I do it because it just makes me feel like a Spunky Woman.
Kara Swisher (On with Kara Swisher)
What are your podcasting guilty pleasures?
Anything about the history of Rome! I love The History of Rome, Hardocre History and Stuff You Missed in History Class, to name a few.
Current favorite podcast (that you’re not involved in)?
Ultra from Rachel Maddow! I’m interested in the area of misinformation, obviously, but I love how Rachel knits historical things I didn’t know about together with current events. I really appreciate that.
Where do you do most of your listening (besides the car)?
Working out, walking, grocery shopping.
What podcast doesn’t exist yet that should?
One with my son! He’s funny and brilliant, and generally, I think we should have more podcasts hosted by young people.
We need podcasts because…
They’re substantive and fun and interesting and intimate.
What haven’t you yet done with the podcast that you would like to?
I’d love to do more live events.
The one person in my life who still doesn’t know how I earn a living:
My mother!
Charlamagne Tha God (The Brilliant Idiots)
What are your podcasting guilty pleasures?
I don’t think I have any of those. That’s the beauty of podcasting: Whatever you’re listening to, you must be intentional about listening to it. So, there is nothing I feel guilty about listening to…
Current favorite podcast (that you’re not involved in)?
The Pivot with Ryan Clark, Fred Taylor, and Channing Crowder.
Podcasting no-no’s learned the hard way?
You have to be consistent. Please don’t start any podcast you’re not committed to doing because when you miss weeks at a time, it’s very hard to get that audience back.
How would you like to see the medium evolve?
I would like to see podcasting evolve into daily content for radio and streaming platforms. Think of a platform like Netflix; they are doing so much live content nowadays; how about doing that with a few of the top podcasts during the week? Streaming some of the podcasts that have amazing live shows. Look at the success with 85 South Show; imagine they did that live? Whoreible Decisions Live? Or you could just keep it simple, and when folks are taping their podcast live during the week, they just stream them live on Netflix? With radio, the next generation of broadcasting talent is on podcast, and has been for the last decade-plus. Radio should be repurposing some of that content on terrestrial radio. That’s the next level for Black Effect and iHeart.
Podcasting is best suited to …
Be a trusted source in the news because all the traditional corporate mediums are completely compromised and have agendas that serve their bottom line (money), not people.
Biggest challenge facing podcasting now?
Oversaturation.
Where do you do most of your listening (besides the car)?
In the gym.
What podcast doesn’t exist yet that should?
I’m not saying it because Black Effect will do it first.
Thoughts on 1.5x?
I do that all the time, especially with Audible books. If I have to interview an author and I have a few days to read their book, I do that all the time.
We need podcasts because…
They are the evolution of talk radio. Talk radio, when done right, will always be one of the greatest forms of entertainment, and podcasting is the evolution of that.
“______ should have been a podcast”
I hate to answer a question with a question, but what isn’t a podcast?
If video is available, do you prefer watching or just listening? Why?
I prefer listening because I spend a lot of time commuting, and I intentionally disconnect from screens. So listening is the move for me. Plus, I’m primarily in the audio business for now.
The most underrated podcast is…
The Read with Kid Fury and Crissle West. One of the biggest podcasts out, and has been for over a decade, but they don’t get the credit or recognition they should. The people love them though.
In five years, podcasting will…
They will be more accepted in the mainstream — believe it or not it’s still considered a niche medium. There will be new ways to monetize in the future, the production quality of podcast will increase because that will be the only way to stand out and compete. You have to LOOK like a show, especially if people keep doing visuals to go along with their audio. I’m sure podcasting will merge with new technologies like AI, AR and VR. You will be able to sit in with your favorite podcast from the comfort of your own home and I think there will be a local aspect to podcasting. Some podcasts may not be big among everyone but they may be go-to programming in their respective cities.
What haven’t you done yet with the podcast that you would like to?
Well personally Andrew Schulz and I have a podcast called Brilliant Idiots that I’ve always wanted to turn into an animated series. Stay tuned...
Pre-recording routine?
Regular conversation with Andrew Schulz and whoever else is in the room and once that convo gets good we turn the mics on so we don’t start off cold. It’s like warming the car up.
The one person in my life who still doesn’t know how I earn a living:
Probably my 8-year-old, 5-year-old, and 2-year-old.
Bowen Yang & Matt Rogers (Las Culturistas)
What haven’t you done yet with the podcast that you would like to?
We haven’t taken it to the moon. We’d love to be the first podcasters to record from the lunar surface.
Pre-recording routine?
We talk all the shit we can’t say on the podcast, then we have a four-hour session with Dr. Orna Guralnik from Couples Therapy.
The one person in my life who still doesn’t know how I earn a living …?
Our elementary school teachers who wrote on our reports that our socializing “disturbed learning” should know that we get paid to socialize now. Eat it, Ms. Smith! (We both had one.)
Weirdest ad I ever had to record …?
Anything written by AI, and yes we can always tell.
What are your podcasting guilty pleasures?
We’ve never felt guilty about any of our pleasures ever. We’re very indulgent people.
Podcasting no-no’s learned the hard way …?
Pop filters always. Emotional filters sometimes.
Where do you do most of your listening (besides the car)?
Matt paces around his apartment. Bowen does it while half-asleep on planes. Just kidding! We’re both in the gym 12 hours a day.
Thoughts on 1.5x?
Very pro, don’t waste any more time on us than you need to.
Jon Favreau, Jon Lovett, Tommy Vietor (Pod Save America)
What are your podcasting guilty pleasures?
Ezra Klein with the lights off.
Current favorite podcast (that you’re not involved in)?
We each have our favorite shows. Tommy loves Pardon My Take. Favreau is a fan of Sarah Longwell’s Focus Group podcast. Lovett likes “every pod that is just a conversation between a gay man and bi woman in alt comedy.”
How would you like to see the medium evolve?
More AI.
Biggest challenge facing podcasting now?
Not enough AI.
Thoughts on 1.5x?
1.2 is delightful. 1.5 is brisk but doable. When you start pushing 1.75x to 2x, maybe chill out. You’re not cramming for your “murdered ingenue” final at Dateline University. You’re just filling a little time before it’s your turn to say bowl or burrito.
Rachel Maddow (Ultra)
Podcasting is best suited to …
Everything. It works for news, sports, art, history, criticism, gossip, pure entertainment. And as the logistics of production and distribution get cheaper and easier, podcasting can now be almost live in terms of its response to fast-moving events.
Pre-recording routine?
I do a weird ‘la la la hum hum hum mee mee mee’ vocal warmup so I don’t sound like I’m trying to be Barry White right out of the gate. But then I always need to re-record the first ten minutes anyway, because it doesn’t work.
Thoughts on 1.5x?
If you’re in that much of a hurry and you really don’t care that much about who made it, and how they made it, maybe podcasting isn’t your thing — just get a transcript and skim it.
If video is available, do you prefer watching or just listening? Why?
I always prefer just listening. With headphones on, or out loud, or — best of all — in the car, there’s something immediate and — to me — riveting about audio only. I absorb information and nuance about 100x better when I’m not distracted by visuals.
Biggest challenge facing podcasting now?
None of the apps are great. We don’t just need curation and charts, we need rational organization, and a meritocratic way for the best and most relevant shows and episodes to circulate efficiently. It’s hard for me to understand why we’re still saddled with such uniformly clunky, unintuitive user interfaces at this point.
How would you like to see the medium evolve?
As more and more people are presenting authoritative journalism and history and academic work in the podcast format, I’d love to see more innovation around a podcasting version of footnotes. Supporting materials, in-app temporally-specific links to visual elements and further reading, sidebar audio add-ons. Especially with Google now promoting AI-generated author-free nonsense at the top of search results, and social media (particularly Twitter) making it harder and harder to ferret out original-source citations, being able to see the source of provable claims is not just interesting, it’s important. It isn’t obvious how to do it well, though — so I’d love to see a lot of different people try different takes on it.
Ben Shapiro (The Ben Shapiro Show)
Current favorite podcast (that you’re not involved in)?
EconTalk with Russ Roberts
How would you like to see the medium evolve?
Podcasting platforms are way behind on empowering publishers with the tools and data to grow and find new audiences. If Apple and Spotify created backend tools similar to YouTube Studio, for example, I am convinced there would be exponential growth in the podcast space.
Podcasting is best suited to…
Podcasting is best suited to long, in-depth conversations with plenty of detail and nuance.
Biggest challenge facing podcasting now?
The biggest challenge is marketing, particularly in the news sphere, where government pressure has resulted in social media platforms cutting off traffic for news shows in particular.
Where do you do most of your listening (besides the car)?
I do most of my listening while exercising.
What podcast doesn’t exist yet that should?
I’d love a What If history podcast that examines what would have happened if historical events had gone differently.
Thoughts on 1.5x?
1.5x is too slow. 2x might be too slow.
We need podcasts because…
We need podcasts because the constraints of traditional broadcasting as well as the gatekeeper function have to be thwarted
______ should have been a podcast
Firing Line with William F. Buckley
If video is available, do you prefer watching or just listening? Why?
I prefer listening, but that’s because I’m usually multitasking.
The most underrated podcast is…
There are some amazing shows crushing it on YouTube that don’t get the recognition they deserve in the podcasting conversation, including Modern Wisdom with Chris Williamson, Lex Fridman and Full Send with the Nelk Boys. They should all be on this list.
In five years, podcasting will…
In five years, podcasting will just be called mainstream news entertainment.
What haven’t you yet done with the podcast that you would like to?
I’d love to broaden out the scope of the conversations I have to include a wider panoply of fascinating guests with knowledge I don’t have.
Weirdest ad I ever had to record…
Before we got a dog, I did an ad for a dog product — and I didn’t like dogs at that point. So that was an awkward read.
DJ EFN (Drink Champs)
Podcasting is best suited to …
Give people the time to express themselves without restriction.
Biggest challenge facing podcasting now?
Quality control.
What podcast doesn’t exist yet that should?
N.O.R.E.’S daily affirmation podcast
We need podcasts because…
It provides an array of voices that we otherwise would have never had the chance to hear or see.
“______ should have been a podcast”
[Rapper] Big Pun.
If video is available, do you prefer watching or just listening? Why?
I go between both. Sometimes I like to imagine the expressions and sometimes I want to see them.
In five years, podcasting will…
Be indistinguishable from TV shows and news media.
What haven’t you done yetwith the podcast that you would like to?
Record episodes overseas.
Pre-recording routine?
A solid snack and the occasional pre-drink or two.
The one person in my life who still doesn’t know how I earn a living
My neighbor.
Alex Cooper (Call Her Daddy)
What haven’t you yet done with the podcast that you would like to?
There is always room for growth and improvement! I’m continually challenging myself to find new ways to evolve the show and give the Daddy Gang the best possible experience.
The one person in my life who still doesn’t know how I earn a living:
My dogs, Henry and Bruce.
Where do you do most of your listening (besides the car)?
I’m typically listening to Call Her Daddy on my laptop while I’m editing.
Thoughts on 1.5x?
Big fan! Any way to listen or watch more content is a win in my eyes.
Tony Hinchcliffe (Kill Tony)
What are your podcasting guilty pleasures?
I don’t listen to podcasts. When I get a chance to put headphones on or drive somewhere, it’s exclusively music for me.
Current favorite podcast (that you’re not involved in)?
The Joe Rogan Experience
Podcasting no-no’s learned the hard way?
Double confirm your bookings. Don’t count on rappers that famously smoke vast amounts of weed to remember that they are booked on a certain date and time.
How would you like to see the medium evolve?
The video players need to be better on Spotify, Apple and everywhere shows stream to create a competitive environment.
Podcasting is best suited to…
Get consumers away from mainstream media, network notes and industry executives that have no idea what is entertaining.
Where do you do most of your listening (besides the car)?
Your mom’s house.
What podcast doesn’t exist yet that should?
The Nancy Pelosi stock market investment advice show.
Thoughts on 1.5x?
Depends on the show. Some should be played at 10x.
We need podcasts because…
It clears the air on who and what is entertaining… it lets the people decide what they want.
“______ should have been a podcast”
The last supper.
If video is available, do you prefer watching or just listening? Why?
I prefer glancing while listening. Just to make sure it’s really happening.
In five years, podcasting will…
Be bigger than ever. People will always need more longform content.
What haven’t you yet done with the podcast that you would like to?
One word…Chappelle .
Pre-recording routine?
IV drip, cold plunge, sauna, chicken and broccoli, hot yoga, a six shot iced latte, playing drums for 20-30 minutes, eight cigarettes.
The one person in my life who still doesn’t know how I earn a living:
The guy who let us originally record our show at The Comedy Store now lives on an island in Honduras and plays guitar and smokes weed and doesn’t go on social media. I don’t think he fathoms what he let begin.
Alix Earle (Hot Mess with Alix Earle)
What haven’t you done yet with the podcast that you would like to?
We haven’t really had anyone on the podcast that isn’t close friends and family, but looking into the future of the podcast it would be great to bring on more guests. I’d love to create a platform for other people to come on and share the behind the scenes of their life.
Weirdest ad I ever had to record…
Back around Christmas time I recorded an ad for Manscaped about their electric razor… and how it’s a great grooming tool for every mans’ candy cane. Long story short my boyfriend called me after listening to the episode asking what that ad was all about!
What are your podcasting guilty pleasures?
My podcasting guilty pleasure is oversharing! I like to share the full behind the scenes of everything in my life but sometimes I get overexcited and share too many details or just say too much. But, at the end of the day, it’s something people can relate to or laugh at… hopefully.
Where do you listen to podcasts?
When I’m listening on my own podcast — which I do mostly before the episode comes out — I like to get things done at the same time, like doing laundry or cleaning my room. Some things I’m not always the best at. Listening to podcasts makes me more productive!
Pre-recording routine?
I have a cup of coffee or two and lock myself in my room for two hours and just talk. For my episodes, I don’t like to have a script because then it feels too rigid and not as fun, so I really only have some guiding bullet points and go.
Ash Kelley & Alaina Urquhart (Morbid)
Current favorite podcast (that you’re not involved in)?
ASH I’m a huge fan of Giggly Squad with Paige DeSorbo and Hannah Berner. It’s a constant in my rotation. I absolutely love their dynamic. You couldn’t find two people who are more different but the way the hosts lift each other up and support each other through every endeavor is what I’d love to see more of in professional spaces!
ALAINA Girls Next Level! It’s a blast from the past filled with so much nostalgia. As a woman in the podcasting space I love to watch other women succeed and thrive. Holly and Bridget are two of the sweetest people who deserve all the success.
Podcasting no-no’s learned the hard way?
ALAINA Trying to bend to fit into some kind of mold is never going to work, because you’re never going to be everyone’s cup of tea. It’s so much more important to be authentic, that’s the way you find your people. Listeners aren’t stupid, they can tell when you’re being genuine!
ASH Mine is a lot less deep, you really just can’t fiddle around with anything. If there’s a hair clip or a coffee cup filled with ice around me, it’s like there’s a gravitational pull just begging me to mess with it! Early recordings of Morbid have so much of my background noise. That mic picks up everything.
Podcasting is best suited to…
ASHThe thing I love most about podcasting is that it’s truly suited to everyone! There’s a podcast out there for everything and an audience just waiting to hear it.
ALAINA Creatives, which I think can include everyone if they’re open to tapping into that part of themselves. There’s a story teller locked away inside of everyone, it’s just finding the subject that unleashes it!
Where do you do most of your listening (besides the car)?
ASH The shower! It’s impossible for me to shower in silence at this point and dancing to music is too dangerous. Podcast it is!
ALIANA Cooking dinner or walking my hellhounds!
What podcast doesn’t exist yet that should?
ALAINA A podcast where every episode is someone in a different part of the world sitting there telling you what is going on outside their window!
ASH what she said!
We need podcasts because…
ALAINA I’ve learned so much on an unbelievable amount of subjects from my favorite podcasts. Podcasting is a perfect medium that can spark passions, start discussions and make people see things from a different angle.
“______ should have been a podcast”
ASH I really would love, scratch that, I really NEED Reba and Dolly Parton to start a podcast together. That’s a show I would quite literally never turn off!
ALAINA Skeet Ulrich and Matthew Lillard should start one but as Billy Loomis and Stu Macher. Or Tobias Forge should have one constantly updating the lore of Ghost.
The most underrated podcast is…
ASH & ALAINA Our baby pod! The ReWatcher: Buffy the Vampire Slayer. We really get to let loose on that show and have a ton of laughs. We’re really excited to see how it grows!
In five years, podcasting will…
ASH Oh man! Anything could happen but how cool would it be if you pressed play on your favorite pod and their holograms just popped up wherever you were listening?
Pre-recording routine?
ASH Always coffee first! Several if I can help it, and of course our loyal listeners know the really unhinged episodes are brought to you by me running on a Baja Blast!
ALAINA Coffee, a blanket and a big pillow to hold my laptop. I’m a creature of comfort and habit!
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