What inspired you to create This Album Podcast, and how did the concept come together?

It came together quickly! I appeared on two music podcasts within the space of 2 weeks (22 Grand Pod and the Oasis Podcast) and it confirmed something I always secretly suspected…. “I’d be quite good at this and I could add some value here….”

Within 24 hours of saying to myself that I’m going to do it, I had the concept, the artwork, the first few guests booked, microphones purchased, and theme music written.

It took a further 48 hours for my mates to stop laughing and taking the piss out of me though!

In my day job, I’ve always worked in proactive sales, so I’ve developed the skill set of being a good communicator and listener (…or so I’d like to think!) inevitable that I’d be getting into podcasting really…

This Album… host, William Hann

Your show invites guests to talk about albums that are special to them – what makes an album worthy of discussion in your eyes?

What I really love is the personal attachments that people have to an album. So where most podcasts can be quite clinical or scientific in discussing music, I’m more interested in how badly my guests were dressed when they discovered an album, who broke their heart, all the mad memories they made while listening to the album. That kind of thing.

But I guess if an album was recorded or released in a unique way, that’s always going to be of interest.

The first episode I recorded (yet to be released that episode though) was on Another Side of Bob Dylan and that album was recorded within 4 hours! I didn’t know you could just do that! So straight away you have a conversation topic.

Has there been an album choice that completely surprised you or changed the way you think about a particular artist?

Almost every episode!

It’s really proven that if you listen to an album and give it a few goes with an open heart and mind, the reward is significant! There must be a life lesson in that somewhere….

The album I’ve covered that’s furthest away from what I normally listen to is 100 Gecs second album, 10,000 Gecs. I’m not sure if you’ve listened to much Hyper pop… but bloody hell! It is a lot!

And yet, by my third listen of the album, I started connecting with it and finding joy in it and respecting them a lot more as artists.

Having said that, I’ve got an upcoming episode on Soundgarden. I’m really trying man… but I’m not connecting with that at all yet! Let’s see if a couple more listens changes that.

Who has been your dream guest so far, and is there anyone you’d love to have on the show in the future?

Stu Whiffen, of course!

Also, getting to spend an hour chatting to Russell from Bloc Party was a dream come true for a little indie boy like me.

But Matt Crosby from Radio X was the perfect guest. I’ve been listening to his Radio X show with Ed Gamble for 5 years and his episode was the exact amount of in-depth album discussion and silliness I’d always hoped the show would have. PLENTY of silliness on that one.

It was also the funniest I’ve ever been! I thought I’d shrivel next to a proper comedian, but man, I was on fire that day! Podcast gold!

William Hann (right) in conversation with Russell Lissack (left), Bloc Party lead guitarist, on episode 7

Music can be deeply personal – have there been any particularly emotional or memorable moments on the podcast?

I’ve been lucky that all my guests so far have been very vulnerable and open.

I guess the episode with Matt Crosby had a real unexpected gear change when he revealed that the silliest song on the album we were discussing had hidden depth about “radical acceptance” and the difficulties that come with being a trans person in Trump’s America.

I thought Frog On the Floor by 100 Gecs was just a silly song about a frog coming to a party!

As a host, how do you approach guiding conversations to balance personal anecdotes with music analysis?

The podcast is very conversational and I think making sure that it’s entertaining and funny is of far higher importance than accurately describing the brand of hi hat the drummer used.

But I always have a small scripted section which I spend quite a lot of time preparing. That allows me to get the analytical bit out of the way, then start asking the important questions like “which member of Interpol still wore a full suit to soundcheck despite it being the hottest day ever recorded in London.” (It was guitarist Daniel Kessler)

But really, I love a deviation and the guest’s album of choice is just a vehicle for us to share anecdotes and chat shit.

What’s next for This Album Podcast? Any exciting plans or changes coming up?

I was recently asked to host a series of Q and A’s on stage at The M&S Bank Arena in Liverpool, that was absolutely class! I think I did a really good job of it and I’d love to do more on stage interviews at festivals this summer.

I’ll definitely be announcing a live show in London soon too.

But what I really want is the podcast to just continue being of a real high quality and I reckon it’s only going to get better as time goes on.

I don’t know what the next 12 months will bring, but I promise it won’t be boring.

Listen to This Album…with William Hann on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and other popular podcast apps >>

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Stu, thanks for joining us! Can you tell us how Off The Beat & Track came to be?

Absolutely! I’ve always been passionate about music and the impact it has on our lives. As a musician and DJ, I’ve had so many amazing conversations about how music shapes people’s experiences. I wanted to create a space where artists, actors, and creatives could share their personal journeys through music. That’s how Off The Beat & Track was born.

Stu Whiffen with Julian Marley (ep.42), Clara Amfo (ep.100), and Rob Da Bank (ep.43)

What makes your podcast stand out from other music-focused shows?

I think it’s the personal element. Rather than just discussing an artist’s latest project, we dive deep into the tracks that have shaped their lives. Music is a powerful storyteller, and each guest brings a unique perspective. It’s intimate, nostalgic, and often full of surprises.

You’ve had some incredible guests. Any standout moments?

Oh, there have been so many! Having people like Fatboy Slim and Foo Fighters’ Chris Shiflett on the show was a real pinch-me moment. But what I love is that every guest, no matter how famous, brings something special. Hearing their personal music memories – whether it’s the first record they bought or a song that reminds them of a major life event – makes for some really moving conversations.

How do you keep your listeners engaged episode after episode?

Consistency is key, but so is variety. I mix up the guests, from music legends to rising stars, actors, and comedians. The format of discussing life through music keeps it fresh, and I make sure the conversations are relaxed and natural. Listeners feel like they’re eavesdropping on an intimate chat between friends, which keeps them coming back.

Stu Whiffen with Kate Thornton (ep.55) and James Buckley (ep.28)

What advice would you give to aspiring podcasters?

Just start! Don’t overthink it. If you’re passionate about your topic, that enthusiasm will shine through. Invest in decent audio quality, be consistent, and most importantly, be authentic. The best podcasts feel like genuine conversations, not scripted interviews.

What’s next for Off The Beat & Track?

There’s so much in the pipeline! More incredible guests, some live event recordings, and I’m even exploring the idea of a book based on the podcast. I just want to keep sharing amazing stories through music and growing the community of listeners who love these conversations as much as I do.

That sounds exciting! Thanks for chatting with us, Stu.

Thanks for having me! And to all the Pod Bible readers – keep listening and keep discovering amazing music

Listen to Off The Beat & Track on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and other popular podcast apps >>

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Who are you and what’s your podcast about?

I’m the Radio Coordinator at This is Distorted, and our podcast takes you behind the scenes of the music industry. It’s one of the most dynamic and elusive fields and so we dive into every aspect of the industry, covering everything from music production and live events to marketing and artist management. Essentially, it’s a deep dive to uncover the stories “behind the beat”, including the highs, lows, career beginnings and advice from the pros in the field.

How did the idea for Behind The Beat come about?

I did a Music Business degree at BIMM Manchester, where I gained experience through internships and work placements across various areas of the industry, including events, labels, management, and radio. Even with all that experience, I realised after graduation, that I had only scratched the surface of the job roles and opportunities out there… it wasn’t until I researched it that I discovered my current job role now!

There are plenty of resources available, but it can be tough to navigate on your own – I speak from experience! I found that the best way to learn was by talking to people, asking for their advice, and getting a better grasp of what they do.

Not everyone has the chance to go to university, and the industry can feel pretty elitist at times. That’s why I wanted to create a more accessible resource for people who want to get into this industry and with all the connections we have at Distorted, it just made total sense.

I’m really passionate about new talent coming into the industry and bringing a whole fresh perspective and I hope this podcast will encourage that.

What do you hope listeners will gain from listening to Behind The Beat?

I really want listeners to feel inspired and gain a better understanding of how the music industry works. If they take away just one thing from this podcast, I hope it’s the valuable advice from our guests that can help guide their career choices in some way.

Can you give us any teasers for guests that listeners can expect to hear on the podcast?

Ooh, we do like to keep it a bit of a mystery! We’ve already chatted to DJ and broadcaster Sarah Story and KISS FM’s content director Rebecca Frank and those episodes are live now. In the upcoming episodes, we’ll be featuring some of the management and label teams behind the brands and artists on our roster.

Who’s your dream guest for the podcast?

To be honest starting with Sarah Story was a pinch me moment. I’m a bit of a radio geek, I’d be super excited to have someone like Grimmy on the podcast – he’s one of the reasons why I got into radio, I used to listen to him with my Dad while driving to and from school.

But I’d also love to chat with someone who has a unique and different job, like a foley. That would be so interesting (I’m quite obsessed with Foley TikTok)!

What was the first podcast you ever listened to?

I can’t recall the very first podcast I listened to, but the one that really made me fall in love with the format was Off Menu with Ed Gamble and James Acaster. It might not be super educational or informative, but it’s incredibly entertaining. I loved its creativity, and it showed me that podcasts can cover just about any topic!

Which podcasts do you take inspiration from?

I feel really lucky to work with podcasts every day at Distorted, and each one has its own uniqueness. My love for music means I often find a lot of inspiration in the music-related podcasts. I’ve been really into Defected’s latest podcast, Moments in Music; it’s been great to hear from the legends of House music and club culture!

Where can the Pod Bible readers find out more about you/the podcast?

You can check out the podcast on your favourite podcast platform and if you’re listening and have a question or want to learn more about a specific job, feel free to reach out at hello@thisisdistorted.com!

Listen to Behind The Beat on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and other popular podcast apps >>

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Tell us all about your podcast!

DAN: Muses: An Ampersand Podcast is a conversation between Emma, an academic and me – Dan – who tries to be a songwriter and is in the band Bastille. Each week we discuss a person from history or mythology that I have written a song about and Emma has done a load of research on. We chat about the person or character’s life and explore how they’ve been represented (or not) in history, culture, and art.

EMMA: We also chat about Dan’s songs and then I get to set him homework to write a brand-new song on another completely different person I’ve been reading about. It’s massive fun for me! We’ve also got some really exciting guests including poets, filmmakers and novelists.

How did it come about you two working together?

DAN: We had been chatting online about interesting people from history and the songs I’d been writing, and Emma started directing me towards people that I hadn’t heard of. We ended up having loads of conversations and becoming friends and decided to turn those conversations into a podcast. I’d made a tonne of songs but loads of them wouldn’t have existed without Emma pointing me to new and interesting places. We wanted to make a podcast that allowed us to explore all these amazing people in a lot more depth and get into some of the nuances that a 3-minute song doesn’t really have room for. Basically, I was really keen to learn loads more and also trick Emma into hanging out with me and teaching me loads about fascinating people.

What is it about podcasts that appeals to you?

EMMA: The wanky answer is being able to find really niche content that appeals to you that wouldn’t necessarily be broadcast to millions of people on the radio.

DAN: I’m a massive insomniac so end up spending a lot of time listening to podcasts in the night.

What makes a great podcast guest?

EMMA: Anyone who doesn’t speak RP.

DAN: Someone with an interesting perspective or insight, who ideally also has some charisma. So… Emma?

What makes a great podcast host?

EMMA: Anyone who doesn’t speak RP.

DAN: Someone with great questions and ideas who’s also really funny and has the ability to sit back and listen. So… Emma?

If you could go back to just before you recorded the first episode of your podcast and give yourself one piece of advice, what would it be?

EMMA: It would be… if you move the mic closer to your mouth YOU WILL BE LOUDER.

DAN: I’d tell myself to do the fucking reading before going into the recording. And to chill the fuck out a bit maybe?

What’s been your worst podcast moment?

DAN: Maybe when Emma asked me to play an unreleased demo which I didn’t want to play – it took 8 episodes to build trust, and then when I finally played it, she proceeded to laugh and call it, and I quote, “Bon-Jovi-esque”. Lovely circle of trust eh!?

EMMA: Nowt I think I’ve done a dead good job.

What is your podcast/podcaster pet peeve?

DAN: Live podcasts…they’re just like that thing that you love without any of the intimacy and with a load of people shouting and laughing in the background.

EMMA: I completely agree, but please redact this and pretend like we never said it after we’ve done our first live podcast episode.

Is there anything you found annoying as a podcast listener…but then understood when you started making your own?

DAN: I hate live podcasts, and I hate how many adverts are in a lot of them…but I obviously completely understand why they exist.

EMMA: Waiting for content can be frustrating when you love something, but I know how much work and prep it takes to make something good.

Which one podcast episode of your own means the most to you?

DAN: I loved the Emily Dickinson episode because I remember it being the first one that I was able to really enjoy in the moment and was a bit less nervous. And it was just genuinely fascinating chatting about her.

EMMA: I loved doing the Paul Robeson (actor, singer, civil rights activist) episode of the BBC pod I work on You’re Dead To Me. I turned into a complete Robesonite and I’m completely obsessed with him. He’s my Roman Empire. Dan caught the Robeson bug from me, and there is a song on Dan’s album about him and his equally fascinating wife Eslande Robeson. I’m so excited for that episode of Muses!

Which one podcast episode (not of your own) has had the biggest impact/influence on you?

EMMA: I really liked Blindboy’s interview with Bernadette Devlin McAliskey…I really love Northern Irish political history and this a pretty mainstream podcast doing something overtly political and entertaining (which is BBBC’s [Blindboy Boatclub] whole deal, to be fair), and I bloody loved it.

Finally, what are your plans for the podcast moving forward?

DAN: I love doing the homework that Emma sets for me at the end of each episode to write brand new songs on different people from history…so please listen so we can make more episodes about those songs, and hopefully speak to other artists too.

Where can the Pod Bible readers find out more about you?

DAN: You can find me on Instagram @bastiledan and Emma @emmanagouse.

Listen to Muses: An Ampersand Podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and other popular podcast apps >>

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Who are you and what’s your podcast about?

My new series is called Sonic Fields. It’s a year-long deep dive into British music festivals and is my second podcast story. My first was this small idea that ran away with itself and became a 5-part series called There Are No Greater Heroes. It’s about this band Tony, Caro & John and their strange musical survival.

I basically got the bug and after that, I knew I wanted to do something about the music festival. They’ve held this special place for me since childhood and I think we slightly underestimate our relationship with them in Britain. I wanted to shine a light on it.

I didn’t expect I’d end up telling a story going back 60 years, but this path revealed itself that was too fascinating not to explore.

The series is in two parts. Part 1 is a journey through British festivals past, through meeting the people that have shaped its story. Part 2 is this summer adventure I had in 2023, where I went to a bunch of them and tried to figure out their place in our culture now. And my own place within it all!

Sam Tyler

What’s the first podcast you ever listened to?

It was definitely a long form interview one. That’s what I thought podcasts were to begin with. WTF or Distraction Pieces were early favourites. When you hear two interesting people really in tune with each other and speaking truthfully, that’s pretty irresistible.

Why did you decide to start podcasting in the first place?

I really connected with this intimate and patient storytelling I was hearing in some podcasts. S-Town was a huge one for me. I listened intently to the shows I loved. Then one day the penny dropped that you could actually meet people and ask them about their lives. And record it with some simple equipment at basically no cost. All that was left was to try it.

Which podcasts do you take inspiration from?

I don’t think I’d ever have given it a crack if it wasn’t for Jon Ronson. I heard him telling these intricate human stories and it really moved me to have a go. He’s a master at what he does, but what he does doesn’t feel out of reach. It made me want to try. That says a lot about him I think.

Besides that Blindboy is an unmissable weekly companion.

Who’s your dream guest for the podcast?

All the interviewee’s for Sonic Fields are in the bag now. But a dream guest for a future podcast… David Lynch would be hard to top. I have no idea how that would go.

Sam interviews Penny Rimbaud – musician & writer / founder of Crass

What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learnt so far as a podcaster?

If you’re drawn to a story or an idea and you can’t really explain why, you’re on the right track.

Which episode would you say is the perfect introduction to your podcast?

Episode 2 is the explosive moment that kicks off the whole series. I tracked down this man called Ray Foulk who put on the original Isle of Wight music festivals. He shared this unbelievable inside story of the 1970 festival, when 600,000 hippies poured onto the island.

The joys, conflicts and big questions around freedom vs public order (that keep recurring in the series) are all on show here.

Where can the Pod Bible readers find out more about you?

@incrediblesocietypresents on Instagram. The one-stop shop for anything I put out, including live music nights with my mate James.

Listen to Sonic Fields on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and other popular podcast apps >>

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Who are you and what’s your podcast about?

I am a broadcaster called Matthew Bannister. I have presented programmes on BBC Radios 1, 2, 4, 5Live, World Service and Local Radio, but in 2018 I finally designed my perfect job: the Folk on Foot podcast. In each episode I go walking and talking with a top UK or Irish folk musician in a landscape that has inspired them. And to make it even more beautiful, they sing and play on location. We’ve travelled the length and breadth of the country from Shetland and Orkney in the North to Faversham, Port Isaac and Dartmoor in the South and from Galway Bay in the West of Ireland to Robin Hood’s Bay and Spurn Point in the East of England. Our guests read like a Who’s Who of contemporary folk, ranging from Eliza Carthy, Seth Lakeman and the Unthanks to Johnny Flynn, Richard Thompson and Sandra Kerr, plus nature writers like Robert Macfarlane, Raynor Winn and Amy-Jane Beer.

Folk on Foot host Matthew Bannister

What’s the first podcast you ever listened to?

The Guilty Feminist. It taught me so much!

Why did you decide to start podcasting in the first place?

Podcasting is a wonderful way to test out an idea and see if an audience likes it. You don’t need to get commissioned and you can make the episodes as long or as short as they need to be. I didn’t have to convince anyone else that Folk on Foot was a good idea before we launched. I just put it out there. Fortunately lots of other people loved it as much as I do and we now have a wonderful supportive community of Folk on Foot members.

Which podcasts do you take inspiration from?

I love Catherine Carr’s Where Are You Going? – she just accosts complete strangers and finds out their fascinating hidden stories with such charm. During lockdown I listened to The Stubborn Light of Things by the novelist and nature writer Melissa Harrison, who took us for immersive and enlightening walks in the countryside when we were confined to our homes. I’m delighted to say we’ve just recorded a Folk on Foot episode with Melissa and the composer and musician Laura Cannell walking, talking and playing in rural Suffolk. (You will hear nightingales singing in the background as Laura plays her bass recorder.) I was delighted recently to be a guest on The Plodcast with Fergus Collins which is always a great listen. We had a wonderful walk around the remains of a Roman settlement at Silchester. Anyone who needs more inspiration to get out and engage with the natural world should check out Liv Bolton’s brilliant The Outdoors Fix.

Who’s your dream guest for the podcast?

I have already walked and talked with many of my heroes and heroines, including the Scottish singer, songwriter, storyteller and theatre maker Karine Polwart and the great guitarist and songwriter Richard Thompson (founder of Fairport Convention). I have been a fan of his music since I was a teenager, so to walk around his old haunts in Muswell Hill and hear him play in the garden of the house called “Fairport” that gave the band its name was a dream come true. I have my sights set on persuading the wonderful Shetland fiddle player Aly Bain to record with us soon and if the amazing singer and musician Rhiannon Giddens is reading this, there’s a standing invitation to come for a walk with us.

What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learnt so far as a podcaster?

The biggest challenge isn’t making wonderful episodes – it’s the sheer continuous hard work you need to put in to make sure anyone notices they’re out there.

Which episode would you say is the perfect introduction to your podcast?

There are over 70 episodes of Folk on Foot, so you could either begin at the beginning with the irrepressible trio called The Young’Uns taking us for a musical walk on the historic Hartlepool Headland – then work your way forward – or you could start with the latest episode featuring the singer and fiddle player Frankie Archer taking her 21st Century approach to folk using loop pedals, drum effects and samples out into the countryside around the town of Consett in County Durham where she grew up. Then work your way back. Either way there are so many treats in store!

Singer, fiddle player, and the latest guest on Folk on Foot, Frankie Archer.

Where can the Pod Bible readers find out more about you?

At our website: www.folkonfoot.com or @folkonfoot on Instagram, Facebook, X/Twitter and TikTok. Our episodes are available, as they say “wherever you get your podcasts”.

Listen to Folk on Foot on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and other popular podcast apps >>

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We’re big fans of Changes here at Pod Bible. Could you tell any readers who may not have tuned in yet what they can expect?

Changes is a podcast that interviews all different types of people with the regards to the biggest changes they’ve been through in their life by zooming in on their big changes. Whether that’s changes that have happened to them or changes they have implemented; you are getting into the really knotty, interesting, meaningful parts of their lives.

Changes came third in the Interview & Conversation category in the 2023 Pod Bible Listener Polls (voted for exclusively by listeners). What is it about the show that you think people find so engaging?

I was so happy to win that award, to get to the top third in such good company as well – it meant the world. I hope that what people find engaging is the choice of the guests. We try to choose our guests because of the stories they have to tell – so the hope is that everyone has an interesting story; something that is remarkable, something that is compelling to listen to.

My interview technique is to kind of lean back, I don’t get too busy, so I like to allow the interviewee to feel really relaxed and talk as much as they like and then use the editing process later to hone and shape that into more of a structured conversation. I hope that it’s engaging – our episodes aren’t ever really long as we’re conscious of people’s time and how long they have to listen to something at any given go.

The other thing is trying to zoom in on our listeners’ needs, and how they would like to be served, and thinking in terms of What can they hear that will make them feel more connected to the world, and to themselves, and also help them to be able to navigate change in their lives better?

Has making the podcast changed you in any way?

Changes has really changed me, I suppose. First of all, it was the kind of backdrop through a period of huge change in my life from when I decided to leave BBC Radio 1 and venture into the world of writing and writing novels. So Changes has been there all the way through that. It served me really well in terms of just being able to pick the people I really really want to talk to and hear from – so my own instinctive curiosity has been served, which is amazing.

Then in terms of how I’ve changed, I suppose I’ve just learned so much. When you have these conversations with people and you really dig into people’s human experiences, you cannot help but broaden your own minds, you know? You’re learning what it is to live, what it is to be a human. The more experiences you learn from, the bigger your own mind is, but also the more empathetic you are. Learning different perspectives, I think, is a really big priority for changes. Learning how other people see the world and how other people are treated in the world and being able to really hear those voices that maybe don’t get heard that much gives you a sense of empathy and awareness of real human experience. To me that’s a really valuable thing, that’s definitely something I’ve got and that has changed me on starting it out.

Alongside Changes you also make Sidetracked with your old friend Nick Grimshaw, we imagine you two could talk about anything and make it an enjoyable listen but what’s your main focus?

The main focus for Sidetracked is just us having fun and talking about music. It’s an extension, a vehicle basically for our friendship to exist in audio form (an extension of our friendship in audio form). And it’s very much supposed to be a natural, unforced look through the week in music. So anyone we want to talk about, no matter how absurd or silly, is what we do. I really like it for that reason because it’s completely authentic to who we are as people and what our friendship is.

What’s it like to be working with Nick again?

It’s amazing to be working with Nick, I’m really really enjoying it. I also love the contrast between Sidetracked – which is all done by the BBC Sounds team – versus Changes which is run by me and my own production company, so I can just go in, have a laugh and leave every week and that’s really nice.

It’s absolutely amazing to be working with Nick again, it’s something I’ve been trying to figure out for a few years now so it’s great we’ve been able to do this.

Finally, with such vast experience in presenting on the radio and now in podcasts, what advice would you give to any aspiring hosts who may be reading?

I think the most important thing in broadcasting is truthfulness, is honesty, it’s having your listeners believe that what’s coming out of your mouth is something that is truthful and honest to who you are. So whatever you choose to do, whatever you choose to cover, whatever you choose to talk about, make sure that it is coming from a place of real passion and real curiosity on your part. I think that if that’s your bottom line – you’re off to a really really good start.

Listen to Changes on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and other popular podcasts >>

The post Annie Mac: “Changes has really changed me” appeared first on POD BIBLE.

The Intelligence

My favourite way to stay up to date with world news. The features are balanced both in terms of perspective and spread across the world and I like the format: two news stories plus a slightly alternative feature. Listen now >>

The Moth

The Moth is about keeping the curture or storytelling alive, Everyone today talks about storytelling and getting the narrative right, from company values, to personal branding and marketing. The only way to become a better storyteller is by listening to amazing storytellers. Listen now >>

Ted Talks Daily

I love being exposed to new ideas and new ways of thinking. And the best part about Ted Talks Daily is the variety of lengths, from 5 min to 20 min. I feel so much better spending a coffee break recharging with a Ted Talk rather than mindlessly scrolling social media. Listen now >>

Who Hurt You? (Previously known as Made Of Human)

First reason to listen: Sofie is hilarious. The second reason is that everyone at some point asks the question “How do I do life well?”. I love the variety of perspectives and issues she highlights, as well as the feeling that I’m listening to an intimate conversation between friends Listen now >>

Desert Island Disks

Amazing guests lead to amazing content but you also finish with a sense of familiarity after learning about the person’s music choices, favourite book and comfort items. It’s a sense of knowing a person you could never capture just by reading an article about them. Listen now >>

The post What podcasts does Stef Reid MBE listen to? appeared first on POD BIBLE.

Who are you and what’s your podcast about?

I’m Lisa Wright, Features Editor at DIY Magazine (where we’re all about music, contrary to what certain people sending us soldering tips might think…). Our podcast Before They Knew Better – which I host alongside producer Giles Bidder – takes the famous music and music- adjacent faces you might see on our pages and grills them about their childhood and teenage years, before they became the cool pop stars they are now. In each episode, guests bring in a song, a photo and an object that relates to a specific moment or memory of growing up: amusing anecdotes (hopefully) occur!

Why did you decide to start podcasting in the first place?

When we’re interviewing people for the mag and website, the stories naturally tend to be about the album someone’s releasing/ the tour they’re about to start etc. We wanted a chance to speak to loads of the artists we love about something completely different and to hear stories that they’ve probably never had a chance to tell before in a regular music chat. On a personal level, I love interviewing people and feel sad that word counts mean you sometimes have to chop a lot of the silly/ off-piste/ more conversational stuff out; with podcasting, you don’t!

What was the first podcast you ever listened to?

Probably The Adam Buxton Podcast, I think. He’s such a maestro at making a conversation feel really natural and easy, even though half the time I’m sure he’s probably only met the guest for the first time five minutes ago. I love how he knows exactly how much of himself to put into the chat, where his personality and point of view is still completely present, but he never makes it too much about himself. A true legend of the game, and hilarious to boot.

Which podcasts do you take inspiration from?

We had a few iterations of format ideas for the podcast in the beginning, but I’m completely unashamed to have looked entirely to Off Menu when it came to what we knew could work: a clearly defined framework, but with room for going rogue and tailoring to people’s personalities and quirks on each episode. We’ve recorded an episode of Before They Knew Better with James Acaster that’s coming out soon, and I’m pretty sure we fangirled hard about how much of an inspiration his legendary pod has been.

Who’s your dream guest for the podcast?

I’m super chuffed with the guests who’ve been kind enough to trust us and sign up for the first season; we’ve already released episodes with Sigrid, Olivia Dean, Bastille and Mae Muller, and we’ve got loads of top tier guests lined up for the rest of the year. In terms of dreams though, I’m going through an absolute Robbie Williams renaissance right now (I say right now, I mean since I was about nine years old) and I think he’s the perfect sort of personality for this podcast: cheeky, silly, sentimental and with undoubtedly some glorious stories up his sleeve.

What is the biggest lesson you’ve learned from creating the podcast so far?

I think just to let the conversation go wherever it goes and to really lean into the personality of whoever you’re talking to. This sort of interview isn’t about hard-hitting news journalism and trying to get a specific angle out of someone; whereas for the magazine, I’ll have prepared a whole set of questions, the podcast works best when you leave things up to the moment and go with the flow. That, and not to stress if you say something silly cos the edit is your friend (thank you Giles xox).

Listen to Before They Knew Better on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and other popular podcast apps >>

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Who are you and what’s your podcast about?

I’m a DJ on BBC Radio 6 Music, fascinated by audio and music. My podcast How To DJ explores the life stories, techniques, minds and experiences of much loved radio and club DJs.

What was the first podcast you ever listened to?

The Ricky Gervais Show. I loved Ricky, Stephen Merchant and Karl Pilkington on XFM and this felt like bonus extended versions of that brilliant show.

Why did you decide to start podcasting in the first place?

I was fascinated by the one-to-one of radio as a kid and my ambition (other to to play left midfield for Shrewsbury Town) was to be a music radio presenter. I’m lucky – because that’s what I’ve always done – I’ve never had any other job. As such a huge fan of radio as a medium and as such a massive music fan I wanted to create a podcast where I got to ask DJs about their craft. For me, storytelling is key to all audio and I wanted to find a way of getting DJs to tell their inspiring life stories.

Which podcasts do you take inspiration from?

The Boiler Room podcasts are fantastic. I listen to loads of music shows on BBC Sounds and love Lauren Laverne’s Desert Island Discs. I should also mention my wife – Clare Nasir. Clare’s a meteorologist and the Channel 5 weather presenter. She hosts a podcast called Weather Snap. If you like weather, you’ll love it.

Who’s your dream guest for the podcast?

So many of my dream guests have already appeared on How To DJ. From Carl Cox to Tony Blackburn, Fatboy Slim to Greg James and Mark Radcliffe to Jodie Harsh. I’ve been lucky – when we invite guests to come on, they seem to say yes!

Which episode would you say is the perfect introduction to your podcast?

Greg James, Mark Radcliffe and Nicky Horne talk in great detail about the art of radio and from the club DJs, Carl Cox and Jamz Supernova really demonstrate that there are no shortcuts to the top – that hard work really pays off.

Where can the Pod Bible readers find out more about you?

I’m on 6 Music every day!

Listen to How To DJ on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and other popular podcast apps >>

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A couple of weeks ago, I suggested Pilot Season 2023 as the ‘New Pod of the Week’ in our newsletter. But it’s not quite accurate to call it a ‘pod’ given that Pilot Season 2023 is launching 5 separate productions into the world. The new show by Unedited is showcasing five ‘pilot episodes’ of shows that cover a wide range of topics, from hidden statistics of curry houses, to Reading Festival, and sneakers.

I was so intrigued by the idea, that when Unedited got in touch to offer an interview with Bernard P. Achampong (Founder of Unedited and genius behind Pilot Season) I HAD to say yes, and find out how it was behind the scenes on this new style of format…

Pod Bible: It seems like there are more and more worthy podcast ideas vying for funding and attention. Was that part of the reasoning behind Pilot Season?

Bernard P. Achampong: Pilot Season was a response to the question of how do we, as a production company, stand out. The challenge with a lot of industries is that they’re quite rigid and there’s little flexibility across genres. So if you come in as a comedy producer, the tendency is you’re looked at as a comedy producer only throughout your career – unless you then make a breakout hit in True Crime, for instance, and then you become the True Crime, and maybe Comedy guys. For Unedited, we came in, after May 2020, when the agenda was strongly steered towards diversity and inclusion. What that doesn’t do is give us a clear editorial or genre identity. So we become the diversity guys, but not the immersive sound design guys or the social history guys.

With Pilot Season, we wanted to give a more distinctive voice to Unedited rather than just being the Black-owned company that does ‘black’ stuff. Unedited is a company that does great stuff and just happens to have a culturally diverse team.

PB: How important is it for podcasts to have this kind of development space?

Bernard: With so many content options, it’s becoming more and more important for audio companies to have their own unique voice. With the devices that we all have in front of us, like our mobile phones, smart TVs and other connected devices, the democracy around consuming content is a lot flatter. You can as easily watch a Netflix series as you can listen to a BBC Sounds show. So for production companies, that distinctiveness is becoming more and more important. It’s like a badge of authenticity. Back in the day, we would talk about NPR and listeners knew what NPR stood for in terms of its values. I think production companies like Gimlet, Somethin’ Else or Unedited, need to have that distinctiveness in order to be able to cut through to audiences on all platforms.

PB: How did these shows come to Unedited? Were they pitched to you or were these in- house ideas?

Bernard: All of these are ideas that have originated in-house. Most have been through the journey with different commissioners, a couple received some development funding – we backed ourselves with the others.

PB: I certainly want to hear more of these shows! What would be the process now to getting a series made? How soon might we hear them?

Bernard: The pilots are available for commissioning, licensing and fund partnerships. We are offering these to broadcasters or streaming platforms, or for funders to come directly to us to create them. We’re still limited by the amount of resources we have to create these series’ and that takes us back to speaking to the BBC, Apple, Spotify and Audible. However, what we have done is the proof of concept stage. Once you get to hear it, you go, “Okay, I know what I want to change” or “I know what I want to do and I know where it’s going to live”, rather than having to do that off a sheet of paper and work a bit in the dark.

PB: How can listeners support the podcasts?

Bernard: Listen and share. Share it with people that you know, comment and like on podcast platforms and give us feedback about the things that work for you. As we go into series production, God willing and fingers crossed, all of that feedback, we’ll have a lot of insights from listeners, which will help to shape the ideas.

PB: Anything else you’d like readers to know?

Bernard: I feel that Pilot Season should give the industry permission to be bolder. The audio industry, especially in the UK, has lived in the shadow of the behemoth of the BBC, which is not a bad thing. The BBC has been established for over 100 years in terms of industry standard, and sometimes above industry standard, for the craft of audio including scripting, writing and production performance. The BBC has created such a high bar, which is unnatural in most territories. It doesn’t exist in most territories. So other territories have had to be a lot more entrepreneurial. Now in the UK, we’ve got a space where other territories are opening up to us, and I still think that the UK is the best place to make audio in the world. For other production companies to exist, and attract business from other parts of the world, we have to become a lot more entrepreneurial. We have to embrace that spirit of selling and creating original ideas for not just broadcasters but also brands and other forms of funding. We’ve got to be really smart about how we attract people to our industry.

Listen to Pilot Season 2023 now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and other popular podcast apps >>

Connect with Bernard Achampong on LinkedIn. Thanks to Chris Mitchell for transcribing this interview.

The post Bernard P. Achampong: ‘Pilot Season’ is a more distinctive voice to Unedited appeared first on POD BIBLE.

Greg and Stuart both have music journalism backgrounds and an ingrained knowledge of the podcast world. Stuart explains how and why their journey with Franz Ferdinand began:

Stuart: Having worked together on independent music magazine Loud And Quiet for years, myself and Greg launched the production company New Allotment in 2020. We have learned how to make podcasts since 2016 and we wanted to set up a podcast production company that could make shows about artists away from Loud And Quiet editorial. We know Domino, Franz’s record label, really well, and they came to us with news that in 2022 they’d be releasing a greatest hits collection for Franz Ferdinand titled Hits To The Head. They told us about this idea to tell the story of the band in a podcast and asked if we’d be interested in making it. Of course we bit their hand off!

From concept to release, what was the process like? How much research, how much production work, and how did you find the whole process?

Stuart: First and foremost we worked out the format of the show – the best way to tell the story, in how many episodes, will it be narrated, will it feature the interviewer’s voice; big questions that would then inform everything.

We had a brilliant lead researcher in Fergal Kinney who mapped out the story of the band in a document informed by Domino’s press archive, and that then allowed us to work out who we’d interview. We then interviewed all the contributors throughout October, November and December. January was a month dedicated to editing, which was where the actual story telling started. We had 30 odd hours of audio to get down to around 2.5 hours over 4 episodes. We were also writing the narration script as we went, which we knew was going to be recorded by Rose Matafeo once we had everything in place and were happy with the edits.

It really was a mammoth job, which we realised most in the edit. Personally, I found that part really rewarding. It was like a giant puzzle, fitting together the audio we had (of course we had little idea what people were going to say on record beforehand) and making it come alive with the band’s music. Of course it helped that the story itself is so compelling, and that everyone we spoke to were so good at telling it. It was just a joy to be honest. Personally I didn’t stop to think how intimidating it was, which is probably for the best. It was all there for us to slot together, and I think a lot of that came from our early research and planning our episodes and interviews properly.

The response from the podcast world has been significant, how has the audience reaction been, and crucially, what has the band’s feedback been like?

Greg: It was really pleasing to see such an immediate, positive reaction from Franz’s huge energetic international fanbase. Even within the first couple of hours of release seeing comments and listens coming in from every corner of the world. That meant within the first couple of days of release the podcast made its way up the charts, reaching the top of the Apple Podcasts Music chart and featuring highly on others. It’s also been a thrill, a couple of months since release, that people are still coming across the podcast. Because of its evergreen nature we hope it’s a podcast people will come to discover and enjoy for years to come. Rightfully there’s lots of interest from the music community in making podcasts, but I think this was a great example of the right band, a compelling story and the ideal format. We hope to work with other collaborators to do more of it.

Why this podcast – what was it about Franz Ferdinand and their story?

Stuart: It felt like a perfect one for us. Greg and I were both at university when Franz broke, and they really did change British guitar music. Take Me Out charting at 3 after a long period of terrible nu metal and lots of straight up pop being in the charts was really exciting. That was 2003, and even since then not many bands have blown up in that way, so quickly. There’s a lot of appeal in that story alone – what’s it like to be in a band that goes from playing in a friend’s house to opening the Grammys in a year? But beyond that I’ve always been fascinated with what happens after that. How do you keep that going? What’s it like to constantly tour as much as Franz famously have? How does it feel when a member leaves?

I loved hearing about it all, and the band were very open about it, which we were really thankful for. We thought it was important to interview them all separately for that reason. It added to the production time of course, but meant that everyone could speak freely. While editing, I must have listened to the featured songs a thousand times, and yet I still really like them.

As a four part series, how does the podcast break down – with each episode what can we expect to hear and learn?

Stuart: We start in Glasgow with the band forming. Bob and Alex are trying to get a band together when they meet Nick at a party who lies to them in order to join. Nick says he’s a drummer but he really isn’t. There’s a highlight in this episode where Alex retells how he and Nick met having a fight over a bottle of vodka. We’ve also got some rare early recordings and demos in this first episode, as the band talk about their formation, playing gigs at art school house parties and getting interest from the music industry.

Episode two is all about the recording of their debut album, the impact of it and the single Take Me Out, what went into that unusual song and the extremely glamorous world it suddenly thrust the band into. Expect stories of meeting David Bowie and parties in Hollywood.

There was a lot to pack into episode three and the band reached breaking point, resulting in a punch up in Paris, and they recorded two more albums whilst barely taking a breath from world tours. Episode 4 is the band patching themselves up and reinventing themselves for what’s going to come next. Two members leave and three join. It’s a hell of a story really. Like I say, few bands have had the highs of Franz this century. And we hope that in hearing them tell the story people will get a real sense of that time in British music, and just how important Franz Ferdinand’s songs are. It helped, of course, that we had Rose narrating the series, who was the icing on the cake.

Words So Leisured – The Story of Franz Ferdinand can be found on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and all good podcast platforms.

Main photo credit Franz Ferdinand by David Edwards.

The post Words So Leisured – The Story of Franz Ferdinand appeared first on POD BIBLE.

PB: IF YOU COULD GO BACK TO JUST BEFORE YOU RECORDED THE FIRST EPISODE OF YOUR PODCAST AND GIVE YOURSELF ONE PIECE OF ADVICE, WHAT WOULD IT BE?

EB: Don’t laugh too loudly. It makes me cringe when I hear my laugh. I guess I get carried away, which is only a good thing.

WHAT MAKES A GREAT GUEST?

Someone willing to have a conversation and allow that conversation to go wherever it may go. To not follow the usual premeditated answers that have been practised for a press tour. That’s why I love getting people out of that cycle.

WHAT MAKES A GREAT HOST?

Passion, genuine passion. I also think not being too informed on the subject. I’m a music and film fan, I know stuff but not everything and I like to learn from every guest, which I definitely do.

WHAT’S BEEN YOUR WORST PODCAST MOMENT?

When I got home after interviewing directors Valerie Farris and Jonathan Denton who had just released, Battle of the Sexes and something happened to the audio, there was this constant whine that meant it was unusable. I crawled to the PR people and asked if there was anyway I could get another 20 mins with them. Knowing they were off to Europe to do more press, I was willing to jump on a plane or train to do it. Thankfully they had another screening the following night and very kindly said come along and we can chat after that. They were such good sports and very gracious and generous with their time.

WHAT IS IT ABOUT PODCASTS THAT APPEALS TO YOU?

The good ones are very intimate and the best ones make you feel involved in the conversation, like you are in the room with them. The worst ones are where you can tell that the host/s just love the sound of their own voices and their opinions are the only opinions. Immediate turn off for me.

WHAT IS YOUR PODCAST/PODCASTER PET PEEVE?

Well it’s a funny one. The biggest compliment should be when people try and imitate what you do, but it doesn’t stop you from feeling a little pissed off that someone has basically ripped off your idea. They just wish they’d come up with it first and did it half as well as you do.

IS THERE ANYTHING YOU FOUND ANNOYING AS A LISTENER BUT THEN UNDERSTOOD WHEN YOU STARTED MAKING YOUR OWN?

Not really no. It’s such a wonderful world and opportunity for people to explore and share their passions and stories. Mine came out of sheer frustration. I did a similar show on 6Music, my idea that I came up with, they wouldn’t give me a regular slot, as I knew I could give them a really good guest every week. So I said, fuck it, I’m going to do it myself. That is the amazing thing about podcasts.

WHICH ONE EPISODE OF YOUR OWN MEANS THE MOST TO YOU?

Well there are two. The episode we recorded with Jon Favreau was our first ever and I am forever in his debt for being so enthusiastic and willing to jump on board with us. And then our very first episode with Ben Wheatley, he’s such a great supporter of the podcast, we appreciate his love so much. He’s been on three times now!

AND FINALLY, WHICH ONE EPISODE NOT OF YOUR OWN MEANS THE MOST TO YOU?

Oh man that’s a hard one. The one that has made me laugh the most and that I’ve probably listened to the most would be The Adam Buxton Podcast episode with Louis Theroux, the one where they drink an energy drink and get more and more wired the longer the chat goes on for. Genius and a great one to listen to on the tube, laughing out loud and making people think you are mad.

Listen to Soundtracking with Edith Bowman on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and other popular podcast apps.

The post The Gospel According To… Edith Bowman appeared first on POD BIBLE.

In Hauser & Wirth London, Axel Kacoutié and Lou Mensah sit in front of a Amy Sherald painting titled “For love, and for country” (2022). The piece is part of an exhibition called The World We Make and it’s Amy’s first solo show in Europe. The piece is also the subject of ‘Interludes: Dream Recurred’, the fourth episode in the new season of the Shade Podcast, which this live podcast experience is launching.

Interludes is a collaboration between multi award-winning sound artist Axel Kacoutié and Shade, where six contemporary artists answer the question: What does healing sound like?

Lou Mensh and Axel Kacoutie. Photo credit: Kid Circus

In previous seasons of the Shade Podcast, host Lou would hold interviews between artists and herself regarding how art has moved through their life. It would result in conversations about what art means personally, but also beyond one person. A particularly harrowing season of Shade was after the Black Lives Matter protests of summer 2020 – season four reflected on how the media responded to the uprising.

Speaking to Lou before the show, she told me that though those conversations were timely, she felt that after this response the audience needed a place where they could find some sort of solace. “I just thought next season I want it to be a gift to the audience and for people who are listening, something that can hold them, comfort them and acknowledge the need for everyone just to take a step back – to take some respite and some selfcare. I just wanted to create a small space through this series with Axel that would help people do that.”

This is evident through Axel’s sonic response. At the launch, they play us a snippet of the episode ‘Dream Recurred’ – Amy discusses the piece “For love, and for country”. Her images depict Black Americans in ordinary everyday situations and also reimagines them in historical moments: This piece in particular was a recreation of the photograph VJ Day in Times Square (1945). She fondly mentions friends she cares deeply about and wanting them to be represented, and it is followed by Axel using audio of Amy simply repeating the words “love is love” – the words linger in the air and the audience take them in. After sitting in comfortable silence for some seconds, Axel explains why the use of repetition not only emphasises the statement but reminds us how grounding the listening experience can be.

Credit : Amy Sherald ‘For love, and for country.’ 2022

“I feel like there’s a lot that the body and ear can do and need and I wanted to speak to that intuitive response,” they continue, “to follow how sound and music works to encourage and evoke a stillness,” a stillness that is often difficult to find in podcasting.

Lou talked briefly about how as the Producer she broke the housekeeping rules of podcasting – there is no traditional intro and outro, no break for ads and sponsors. Lou wanted all of that removed, “I wanted it to be an audio but also a physical and an emotional space to rest. For people to just relax. In audio there’s a lot of talk, a lot of chat, there’s a lot of fast energy. There’s a lot of slick audio making but I feel like it misses that capacity to hold people emotionally. I just felt like it was something I would try and do.” I felt like this approach of break in structure from Lou and these moments of quietness and minimalism for Axel worked well together – healing itself is such a nuanced and deeply personal topic; it is never linear therefore giving the listener a moment of reflection and breaking tradition feels just.

For those who have been listening to Shade for a while, you may remember the first glimpse of collaboration between Axel and Lou was the final episode of the 2021 four-part series of conversations exploring anti-racism in the arts, co-curated by Shade and Convergence. They’ve wanted to work together since, both confirming that it had been a year long process to get Interludes made. However, to add a timeline to projects like these is reductive. In some of the Interludes episodes, the sounds Axel used draw inspiration from projects that were made ten years ago, “It’s all part of the healing process that being able to give life to things that you thought would never see the light of day,” Lou adds, “I’ve been working in the arts for nearly 30 years so there is no way that all the things I’ve experienced and been a part of, have not been a part of this series because they have, so it’s a lifelong process of memories and inspirations.”

This project was as much for the creators as it is for the listener.

Listen to Interludes on The Shade Podcast now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and other popular podcast apps.

The post REVIEW // Shade Podcast LIVE – Interludes appeared first on POD BIBLE.

One of the beautiful gifts of the continued rise of podcasts has been the new voices they presents us with. But one of the less acknowledged joys is the new platform podcasts have provided to voices that had always been there, but had maybe drifted from the regular pundit or opinion piece guest list of the mainstream media.

Benjamin has been waxing poetically since the 80’s so it should come as no surprise that he steals the show on podcast after podcast. Here are just a few of our favourite episodes he’s featured on….

BLOOD ON THE TRACKS
Michaela Coel, Benjamin Zephaniah, Bez, Mike Bubbins // Jan 2019

On Blood On The Tracks, Colin Murray gathers together four music obsessives to debate their favourite tracks. The exceptional blend of guests on this episodes are asked to pick a song that gets people dancing, the best song under two minutes and modern day classic. As you’d expect from a performance poet, Benjamin’s picks captivate throughout. Listen on your podcast app >>

BUNK BED
Benjamin Zephaniah // Apr 2019

Benjamin’s dulcet tones provide perfect bedtime listening to his appearance on Bunk Bed (the BBC Radio 4 show that emulates those wondering bedtime conversations held with a sibling or friend) isa real joy. From tai chi breathing exercises to pillow positioning tips, you’d do well not to drop off before the episode’s conclusion. Listen on your podcast app >>

EVERYTHING UNDER THE SUN
What Would We Do if We Didn’t Have A Prime Minister? // Dec 2019

On each episode of Everything Under The Sun, host Molly (the first ever QI elf) is joined by a guest to answer a question sent in by a curious child. The vastness of Benjamin’s career means he has different experiences to draw upon for different kinds of podcast and his time as a children’s book author comes into okay beautifully on this show. [Ed. this seems particularly topical in October 2022…] Listen on your podcast app >>

BLACK BRITANNIA
Benjamin Zephaniah // Aug 2020

Discussions about police brutality and the Black Lives Matter movement featured heavily in podcast conversations in 2020, and rightfully so. In this podcast, Benjamin shares his direct experiences of police brutality, the parallels between the US nad UK and how long these issues have been ignored. Listen on your podcast app >>

DISTRACTION PIECES
Benjamin Zephaniah // Nov 2020

Scroobius Pip is as master of getting his guests to relax and open up and when it comes to telling an engaging story, Benjamin Zephaniah doesn’t need to be asked twice. The conversation flows in all kinds of directions, from coping during the pandemic to his issues with the meat industry, and his interactions with Bod Marley to being in Peaky Blinders.  Listen on your podcast app >>

Main photo credit: REX / SHUTTERSTOCK

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