To my parasocial podcast besties
Going on tour, the flower industry, propaganda everywhere, Bruce Springsteen, deeper political analysis, sewage systems.
On a recent episode of Forever35, Sam Sanders perfectly described his dynamic with his Vibe Check co-hosts and captured why I think I love listening to them so much. He said “my hope for the show, and we do this very publicly, is to model how good conversation with friends can feel and can be. I want the show to feel like an example of learning and growing from your friends in a good way, in a positive way.” I hope that Sam knows he is definitely accomplishing that! Sam, Zach, and Saeed are one of my favourite friend groups to listen to and I’m so thankful for the fun, heartfelt, and informative discussions they have every week. For those same infectious friendship vibes, I am also constantly turning to Handsome. Tig, Fortune, and Mae always make me laugh and their banter flows effortlessly in every episode. Obviously three comedians are going to be fun to listen to, but it’s also the way they’re so genuine with each other and their answers to each week’s question. If both these shows starting putting out two episodes a week, I’d be in heaven and that’s why they’re my parasocial podcast besties. Do you have podcasts that you feel this way about?
This week’s podstack
Even If It Kills Me - A Band Called
Do you feel like summer has a wanderlust vibe to it? A time when you might be tempted to jump in the car and chase a dream or just make a memory… or move to California. That’s also what you’ll hear happening in Even If It Kills Me. Four high school best friends embark on a journey that might be familiar to many other musicians. Through archival audio and interviews with the band members, host Aaron Joy captures what’s like when a band tries to make it big. It’s not just about the industry either, it’s also about what was happening in the world that impacted their decisions, their challenges, and their success. If you were someone who watched behind-the-scenes videos about your favourite bands or big events like Warped Tour, you’re going to love this series. It’s nostalgic and personal and the episodes fly by. It’s one of my favourite easy summer listens right now!
Living Planet - Deep Dive: Where do all the flowers come from?
I had never considered how the flower market actually operates but if there’s a podcast episode about something even slightly obscure, I will listen. There’s the economic side of it but then there’s also the environmental impact. Like how the energy needed to heat a greenhouse for flower growers who get cooler temperatures can be more harmful than the impact of just importing the flowers from somewhere that doesn’t need heated greenhouses. I wasn’t surprised when pesticides were the other impact but I certainly didn’t know the extent of it. Mostly how it gets into water! But like many industries in a similar situation, if customers show a preference for organic, it will become more popular.
This Is Propaganda - S1E5: Everything Is Propaganda, Even You
This show will make you look at all marketing and advertising differently. I thought that watching Mad Men and working in podcast marketing already did that to my brain, but the analysis in this show takes it to another level. It will make you realize how deeply ingrained the persuasion is in our society and the power it holds over us. Do you ever look around and feel like everyone is treating themselves like a brand? The brands are trying to seem more human on social media and the humans are acting a bit like a brand. This episode and this show unpacks that trend and looks at the bigger picture of all the propaganda we’re surrounded by. I thought I was going to enjoy the social media subject matter of the last episode the most, but it’s the series a whole that really drives it home. Plus, the production style and pacing makes the episodes go by so quickly!
Because the Boss Belongs to Us - 1. The Mission
If you didn’t expect Bruce Springsteen to be a queer icon, this series will teach you a thing or two about what it really means to be a queer icon, the impact that Bruce’s music has had on queer people, and how much fun it is to learn about it all. Hosts Jesse and Holly have both been drawn to Bruce’s music and they know they’re not the only ones. In this first episode, they swap stories and discuss what key elements make up an icon. Even though his look and overall brand lean towards classic American Dad vibes, there’s messages in his music and journey that can be relatable way beyond that persona. To be honest, I’ve never thought much about Bruce Springsteen, but listening to Jesse and Holly analyze him is wildly entertaining and fascinating. Follow along as they go through the checklist of what makes a queer icon and how well Bruce meets the criteria!
Nationly - Could Puerto Ricans in Pennsylvania Sway the Election?
As an outside observer of the U.S. election year, I obviously hear all the main headlines and the extremely eventful things happening so far. But there are also so many other smaller stories from across states and demographics that have big impacts. Nationly feels like the needed analysis for those stories. By looking at specific demographics and issues, they’re helping voters better understand the process and each other. Sara Sadhwani and Juan Diego Ramirez bring their expertise and ability to clearly explain political issues to the show and each episode focuses on minority communities—specifically, immigrants and communities of color—to uncover the issues that truly matter to these voters. Some of the other shows doing political commentary right now feel a little repetitive or all pretty similar, but Nationly is going deeper.
Backed Up - Episode 1: Sewers Gonna Sue
Just when you think you’ve heard of every niche podcast there is, you meet Backed Up. Not only does their name and so much of the language around their show include many delightful puns, their production absolutely delivers on that fun style. I don’t think I normally would’ve been drawn to a show about Cincinnati’s sewage system but Ella and Becca have created such a fun show that I can’t help listening. They’re investigating the long-standing issues with the sewage systems in Cincinnati, what happens when those issues become a very obvious problem, and how the city and residents are dealing with it. The production quality perfectly balances being fun and informative and they make it really easy to keep up with any lingo or unfamiliar concepts. Who knows, maybe you’ll recognize similar things happening in your city because Cincinnati’s system is similar to many other cities! I also want to know everything about how Ella and Becca pitched the concept for this show and got it made - I love it!
More sweet treats
Are we listening to too many things? Too loudly? Do I need more breaks from my podcasts? Start with listening to this first.
Speaking of listening, what happens to our brains when there’s absolute silence? It struggles!
Anne Baird made me yawn so much by recommending this episode of Unexplainable about why we yawn.
Thank you for reading! If you listened to something this week that made your heart sing, your imagination wander, or your brain ponder, I’d love to hear about it!
Adding Backed Up to the list. Poop humor, education, and Fun? I am intrigued.............