Hello - is this thing on?
It is now!
Luvvie Ajayi!
Sean Rameswaram, what’s going on?
Professional troublemaker, best-selling author, host of the Rants and Randomness,
co-host of the Jesus and Jollof podcast?!
Yes!
I be trying, you know - Rider of bikes,
True
Notorious recycler
True
Sri-Lankan Canadian-American
Do it all.
C’mon, global citizen.
Yes
And host of Vox’s Today Explained podcast!
She read my bio
I did, I’m impressed.
Mm!
So it’s a great time to talk about making podcasts right now.
It’s like the wild, wild west of podcasts right now.
Yeah
Couple years ago, 10 years ago or so, they were a novelty … And now it’s the most
exciting time in the history of humanity-
History!
to work in audio.
Yeah.
And anyone and everyone can start a podcast, there are no gatekeepers.
It’s a truly democratic and international medium.
You might be totally new to making things or you might already be sharing your passion
projects on sites like SoundCloud or YouTube"
But - should you make a podcast?
If you think the answer’s YES - these ten videos are for you.
Google Podcasts and PRX have teamed up to create the Google Podcasts creator program
and bring you these dope videos, which will help you learn what you need to make your
podcast dream a reality.
As your hosts, Luvvie and I will be here to guide you - from like your kernel of an idea
all the way to podcast superstardom (we hope!).
You want to ask yourself some hard questions to get to your WHY….WHY does this story
need to be told?
And WHY are YOU the person to tell it?
And given how many podcasts are already out there, Why is your show a must-listen?
Yeah, think about my podcast, Rants & Randomness.
My WHY is that I want to talk about the world as I see it, drive meaningful conversation,
and elevate voices, particularly marginalized voices that I find interesting.
Some you may already know and others you may not.
For me, everyone’s ordinary is kind of extraordinary.
You’re the only person talking about your experience the way you’re talking about
it.
And even though my daily news show is really different from yours,
Yeah
What sets us apart is that we’re not trying to be the all-knowing news authority out there.
Our whole thing at Today, Explained is: we think it’s important to understand the news,
and we're here trying to figure it out right next to you.
Yeah, and once you’ve figured out your WHY, let’s go a little deeper, and think about
the WHO you are making this for.
Ask yourself what is your podcast about?
REALLY about?
A simple way to test this is to work out a kind of mad-libs focus statement for your
show - something like this:
“My show is about “blank” And on it you’ll hear “blank”
And you should listen if you are “blank.”
Sean, you wanna give it a go?
I think I can do this, for sure.
We actually had to do this when we were launching my show, Today, Explained.
The show is about: Explaining the news - The news comes at you fast, and we’ll help you
understand it at the end of the day.
And on it you’ll hear: a 20-minute explanation of one of the most important news stories
in the world.
And you should listen if you are: the type of person who gets like a news notification
on your phone and you go like, “Wait, whaaaaaattt?!”
Nice!
All right, let me try for Rants & Randomness:
The show is about: all things pop culture And on it you’ll hear my most pressing rants,
raves, and faves in this topsy, turvey world.
And you should listen if you're: Somebody who wants to be their best self and loves
real talk.
Nice!
And you know what’s great?
Podcasting is such an intimate medium - when you reach that listener you have in mind,
there’s a good chance they’ll feel super connected - like they know you!
Yeah.
After all, they’re listening to you when they’re on their way to work, taking the
bus, cleaning the house.
It’s a deep connection, the best!
The best.
And that’s why it’s so critical in podcasting, where listeners have to seek out your show,
to have a really good sense of your audience.
All right: so you try.
Make your own focus statement….
“My show is about…
And on it, you’ll hear…
And you should listen if you are…”
Try it out on your friends.
Get feedback.
Make changes.
Revisit your focus statement often, as you develop your show.
And think about your WHY -
Think about your WHO -
And you’re on your way!
That’s huge!
Huge
All right, so come and join me in our next episode, where I’m gonna go deep on the
other things you wanna be thinking about when starting your podcast.
And while you’re at it, visit googlecp.prx.org for more information about the Google Podcasts
creator program.