At the inaugural The Gotham + Variety Audio Honors, presented by Wondery, top podcasters discussed their top tips for building an audience and how the entertainment industry can do better to highlight underrepresented voices.
The event took place on Friday, October 14 at Second Floor NYC in Midtown Manhattan. The 10 podcast honorees were selected for their innovations in audio storytelling by a committee of industry professionals chaired by Brittany Luse, new host of NPR’s “It’s Been a Minute.” Variety Executive Editor Brent Lang hosted the panel and delivered opening remarks along with Gotham CEO Jeffrey Sharp.
The winning shows, hosts, and episodes are:
“Bag Ladiez” (Cinthia Estephanie Pimentel and Rafaela Uribe) – “Octavia was right…” “Marijuanera: a podcast for stoners” (Mala Muñoz) – “Soliloquy for sad girls” “Misrepresented” (Nikki Aggarwal) – “The myth of the Pink City”“Scare” (Ayden Castellanos) – “The Satanic Story of MS-13”“Teen Therapy” (Gael Aitor) – “Self-Critical Humor/How to Love Yourself”“Girl Tales” (Rebecca Cunningham and Georgina Escobar) – “Musings by Georgina Escobar”“TransLash” (Oliver-Ash Kleine, Editor and Lead Producer) – “Trans Mothers Day”“Out There” (Sarah Dealy) – “Indoor Kid”“Teleway 411” (Casper Cendre ) – “Taylor Hearn” “The 11th” (Sai Sion) – “His Saturn Return”
In the panel discussion, the podcasters discussed their tips for emerging creators in terms of growing audiences.
“Get on Twitter, honey, and follow all the journalists you can find,” said Mala Muñoz of “Marijuanera: A Podcast for Potheads.” “All the publications you read and respect and go to for arts, culture and entertainment news…check them out. What are they writing about? Who are they writing about? Make sure the people you want to see your work have no choice but to see your work.”
Cinthia Estephanie Pimentel added that building a community with other podcasts allowed “Bag Ladiez” to gain more exposure and “share audiences” with other shows.
In terms of monetizing their shows, the honorees recommended that sponsors relate to each show’s niche audience demographic. Gael Aitor, host of “Teenager Therapy,” said he started emailing potential sponsors until sponsors finally started coming to the show. He also recommended the podcast software monetization program Anchor and said that “Teenager Therapy” makes a significant amount of money by uploading podcast videos to Snapchat. Other honorees said a portion of their income stream comes from platforms like Patreon.
In terms of barriers to the audio industry and how Hollywood can do a better job of championing diverse creators, Sai Sion advocated for more incubator shows like Pineapple Street Studios’ “The 11th.” Sion freelanced produced a fictional piece for “The 11th” titled “His Saturn Return.”
Honorees also rallied around the idea of preserving their own intellectual property.
“One of the first things I always think about is, ‘Where am I putting my IP?’ With any partnership or contract, that’s the first question I ask and the last question I ask because I don’t know what’s going to change during that conversation,” said “Susto” host Ayden Castellanos. “We can change this industry from platform-led to creator-led.”
To drive the point home, Sarah Dealy of “Out There” added, “Listeners follow creators, and listeners trust creators and will go on journeys with them… I think we’re just at the beginning of what a podcast can be. They can be three minutes; they can be three hours; they can be fiction, non-fiction…there are so many things this medium can do.”
Source: news.google.com