In 2021, U.S. adults spent over 13 hours per day on media. In fact, an estimated 80 million Americans are weekly podcast listeners. The guests of our award-winnning interview series Velocitize Talks routinely share their recommendations for both books and podcasts, from industry-focused shows to entertaining ear candy. Read on to find out what Velocitize Talks guests are listening to, and receiving inspiration from, right now.
Read the first installment of what Velocitize Talks guests are listening to here.
1. Lovett or Leave It
Ben Ostrower, Founder & Creative Director, Wide Eye: “It’s a good balance between my interest in politics but also by dealing with incredible stress around it, too. So a political comedy podcast is kind of a perfect mix for me.”
Lovett or Leave It is a Webby award-winning weekly podcast hosted by former Obama speechwriter, Jon Lovett. He hosts a panel of comedians, actors and journalists breaking down the week’s biggest news with humor and sharp wit. It also tackles issues like women’s and LGBTQIA rights, student loan forgiveness, gun control and school board tussles.
2. The Daily
Johanna Weber, former VP, Sponsorship Marketing, NPR’s National Public Media: “Being in DC and pretty inundated in politics, I want to stay abreast of what’s happening in the world so I do a nice mix of NPR Politics podcast and The Daily from the New York Times, a really wonderful show.”
Jamey Boike, Founder, Revere: “My ritual is the New York Times Daily every morning. I feel like I haven’t started my day if I get to work and I have a call but I couldn’t listen to the Daily.”
Launched in 2017, The Daily is a 20-minute weekday podcast hosted by Michael Barbaro and Sabrina Tavernise. It is based on interviews with New York Times journalists, who summarize and comment on stories, complemented by related recordings and/or original reporting.
3. 99% Invisible
Kurt Voelker, VP, Business Strategy & Growth, Forum One: “It’s about the connection of design’s impact on really anything and everything.”
99% Invisible is the award-winning narrative podcast hosted by Roman Mars about the thinking that goes into the things we don’t think about; for example, the unnoticed architecture and design that shape our world. Lauded as a podcast that will likewise inspire and change the way you think about human behavior, it discusses the sound, technology, architecture, history and infrastructure of our lives.
“Roman Mars lights the radio. In addition, his pieces conjure other worlds, grapple with big ideas, make sound three dimensional. They are also smart and funny and original,” according to The Kitchen Sisters, Peabody Award-winning producers for NPR.
4. Everything VR & AR Podcast
Jordan Higgins, Head of Immersive Experience, U.Group: “Sophia and Tyler, the hosts of the podcast, connect with the deep industry pulse. They’re right on the front lines of talking to people who are building some of the coolest stuff in immersive technology.”
Sponsored by the VR/AR Association, the weekly Everything VR & AR podcast features conversations with technologists, enthusiasts, and companies that have real-world deployments of immersive technology. Guests include leaders in gaming, entertainment, enterprise, education, military and government, healthcare, software and hardware.
5. 2Bobs
Jeff Walpole, Co-Founder & CEO, Phase2 Technology: “Blair Enns and David C. Baker talk about agency woes across the board. I love this; my colleagues love it. I send it to my competitors and say, you’ve got to listen to this. It’s fantastic!”
2Bobs is named after a reference in the movie Office Space to being “one of the Bobs.” In each 2Bobs episode, the hosts take turns interviewing each other on a particular creative entrepreneurship theme. One review calls it “one of the best podcasts for agency partners & professionals…they keep it fresh and fun, and I love their approach to new business and client management.”
6. Perpetual Traffic Podcast
John Schuster, CEO & Founder, JohnFSchuster: “If you are into Facebook ads, [check out] Digital Marketer, great company and great podcast.”
Perpetual Traffic is a semiweekly podcast that shares paid marketing strategies for acquiring leads and sales for your business. The show defines paid traffic as the act of putting your product, service or message in front of your target audience. Guests are business owners who share their struggles and triumphs with digital marketing and online advertising. Topics subsequently discussed are Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Twitter, Google, and LinkedIn advertising for your business.
7. SportTechie Podcast
Anthony Richardson, Head of Digital, SportsTG: “I really love SportTechie. I think that’s very relevant. It brings together great content across a range of different technology issues.”
SportTechie is a weekly podcast devoted to the intersection of sports and technology. Episodes focus on the latest sports technology news and interviews with thought leaders in this space. Recorded in 2019 to 2021, the podcast is athlete-centric and focused on entrepreneurial journeys.
8. Throughline
Amy Balliett, CEO & Founder, Killer Visual Strategies: “Throughline is an NPR podcast that basically goes over all of the history of a certain topic or event to tell us why we are where we are today. So oftentimes it will pick apart why politics might be the way it is today or why an industry is the way it is today and it will jump back a hundred years and take you through that domino effect that got us here. I find it to be really exciting to dissect industries and current cultural dilemmas.”
Throughline from NPR is a weekly podcast that looks back in time in order to understand the present. Above all, it incorporates historical events and moments that shape our current world. As the first history podcast from NPR, it won a Peabody Award in 2021 for an episode about the history and culture of Afghanistan.
9. Disgraceland
Chas Lacaillade, CEO, Bottle Rocket Management: “Disgraceland is a music-based podcast; it’s quite good.”
Disgraceland is a true crime podcast about “musicians getting away with murder and behaving very badly.” It has also been named by Apple Podcasts and Variety as one of the best music podcasts. It entertains its guests with a half-hour long episode every other week that isn’t a historical recount of what happened but a “slightly buzzed guy at the end of the bar who has seen some sh*t” storytelling.
What are you listening to? Care to share? Let us know in the comments.
Photo by Sebastian Pandelache on Unsplash