😳 Full body blushing 🍑 Olaf will stop the world and melt with you ⛄️ interview w/an immortal tortoise 🐢
🍭 👂 "Let's get dangerous" —Alex Steed 🌈 🤸♀️
Bonjour.
Today is Monday, March 25. I’m on my way to Podcast Movement! Come say hi! In case this issue is too long…an interview with a 192-year-old (seriously) here, we’re only getting three of these this year and here’s one of them, bring your ears to a strip club here.
xoxo lp
👋q & a & q & a & q & a👋
Milly Tamarez and Alise Morales
Milly Tamarez and Alise Morales are the hosts of Go Touch Grass.
Tell me about Go Touch Grass in ten words or less.
We log in so you can log off.
Why are you the perfect hosts for it?
AM: Milly and I are both chronically online and love sending each other the crazy stuff that comes across our FYPs. We figure if we’re already going to obsessively follow every 50-part TikTok series, we might as well share the information with other people so that they can go and do more productive things with their lives.
Tell us about the Go Touch Grass listeners.
AM: We’ve got two types of listeners – the people with the same chronically online disease as us, and people who are not online at all but want to hear about all the drama that’s going on so they can keep up with the conversation, typically with their teenage kids. We are a bridge between offline moms and their teenage kids.
What are your three favorite “touching grass” activities?
AM: Milly and I both love movies (though I guess technically that’s trading one screen for another) and are almost through all of the Oscars Best Picture nominations. We also both have dogs who force us out of the house to literally touch grass (i.e. pick up their shit). We’re also both watching The Traitors now that Milly gave me her Peacock password.
What’s the process for putting episodes together? Are you pulling together things all week?
MT: Throughout the week Alise and I will be on the lookout for articles, videos, and conversations for topics for the next show. Our formula is finding topics that are trending but also that make for rich conversations. The beautiful thing about the web is that most things that cause discussion have overlapping points and are at the intersection of societal issues. For example a viral clip of Kim Kardashian saying “everyone needs to get off their ass and work” well that touches on female entrepreneurship, the exploitation of workers by the 1%, what does “work life balance mean” and how white women can literally make billions appropriating the aesthetic of black women.
Do you think being a podcaster is cool?
MT: I love podcasting as a medium and as an art form. I put alot of care into what I do but I feel like when people hear I’m both a comedian/podcaster they think it’s just a joke job. I feel like this is due to the market has been overly saturated with people who are just using podcasting as a tape recorder to their normal conversations. That’s not what we’re doing, every podcast takes hours of research and skill to think of how to break down topics in an engaging and entertaining way. Seeing every single celebrity and reality star make a podcast doesnt help either. At the end of the day the lack of work and care other people give to their pods shouldn’t effect how I feel about the work I do but I am a flawed human and Its still a struggle lol.
What’s a podcast you love that not enough people know about?
MT: I love This Is Uncomfortable. it’s one of my favorite pods. The way money effects everything around us is so true and so important to discuss
🚨If u only have time for 1 thing🚨
Everything Is Stories lets you hear a story straight from the narrator’s mouth, so it kind of feels like you’re listening to a friend at a bar. The production-level is top-notch, this kind of editing and producing isn’t easy! The episodes take their time, many are more than an hour long but don’t feel like it. A cowboy goes to jail for cattle rustling. (His biggest foil? He’s diabetic.) An embalmer puts to rest the body of a terrorist. (This guy is 100% the main character in his own movie.) But the one I want to point you to was a story from Dora Rodriguez, a woman from El Salvador who left her family and risked her life to come to the US, crossing the desert with a coyote. This one was gripping until the very end, and felt like a rare opportunity to hear how terrifying this is from the perspective of someone who survived to tell the tale, but almost did not. (Half of the people she traveled with died.) Just when you think this story is over, it’s not. Everything Is Stories is an intense listen and really allows you to wander around in someone’s life for a bit. Warning: the ad breaks are super intrusive and jarring.
hell yeah
✨I’m speaking at Podcast Movement Evolutions on Thursday, March 28 at 11:15am. Would love to see you there!
✨Thank you, Devin! ❤️😍❤️😍❤️
✨Why podcast marketing is like riding a bike, and other wise things [an interview w/Darknet Diaries' Jack Rhysider via Podcast Marketing Magic.]
✨Arielle Nissenblatt spotlighted Beyind All Repair in her newsletter and podcast.
💎BTW💎
🎙️Articles of Interest is kind of on hiatus, and Avery popped up on the feed to explain why—she is writing a book and will produce three pieces for the show this year. The first one is here, and it’s fitting. In a year she isn’t making a lot of audio, it’s one about the lack of clothing, nudity, and it was so rich with eye-popping thoughts I had to keep rewinding. It starts with Avery and her producer naked at a comedy show to examine their discomfort. Why are they uncomfortable? Avery then talks to experts who explain shame, blushing, and social rules, why we don’t have fur, how clothing might have created agriculture, why we look like babies, what the history of lice tells us about clothing, colonialism, and more. Avery takes us on this journey to help us answer that first question…why are we uncomfortable to be naked in public? We would have to shed so much shame, power, perfection, race, and everything we have ever learned, in order to feel comfortable being naked on, let’s say, the subway. This discomfort is internal, which is why we needed Avery to go back thousands of years to explain it to us. And everything ties back to why we love material things in the first place. This episode felt like a fun bonus I didn’t know we were getting, but it also felt crucial to Articles of Interest as a whole. Listen here.
🎙️On Creature Preacher, animal communicator Nancy Mello helps people communicate with their pets simply by looking into their pets’ eyes. (She can talk to pets who have passed, too.) If you’ve listened to Creature Preacher before, you know how scary good she is. And how cute it is to eavesdrop on these Where Should We Begin-like sessions. But the episode with Jonathan, a 400 lb tortoise hatched in 1832, is one for the books. Jonathan has seen empires come and go, watched wars start and finish, pandemics sweep through the world. Nancy is able to tell us what it was like for him in 1832, the cruelty he experienced, his likes and dislikes (he doesn’t like it when women have their hair down…is this because of his past tormentors?) and what he thinks of his friend Joe, who cares for him. Jonathan is funny. This episode made me cry. Also. I’m saving this fact for Arielle’s end of the year “what I learned on a podcast” edition of Feedback with Earbuds: tortoises are immortal. They just die when they wear out. Google them and you won’t be able to stop looking at these cuties! Jonathan, call me! I want to talk, too! Listen here.
🎙️I’m not trying to turn this into a You Are Good newsletter (I wrote about their My Best Friend’s Wedding episode last week) or a Vanessa Zoltan newsletter (I wrote about her show Hot and Bothered last week) but Vanessa was on You Are Good to talk about Disney’ Frozen and it just checked so many boxes for what I think makes a great podcast episode. First of all, Alex begins by kind of accidentally saying, “let’s get dangerous,” which is from the Darkwing Duck theme song which is so weird and one of those reasons why I love Alex. But then we learn that Sarah, Alex, and Vanessa are Frozen-appreciators, able to find beauty and meaning in the movie that I missed when I saw it. Vanessa, fortunately, has seen Frozen 2 which might or might not be semi-crucial to understanding 1. And per usual so many funny phrases spill out of Sarah’s mouth, she says jokes with such nonchalance and ease I am jealous. Listen here.
🎙️Jockular is a new sports/culture show from queer best friends Katie Kershaw, Tien Tran and E.R. Fightmaster that feels like a gay group chat with less focus on stats and numbers side of sports and more focus on my favorite things—the storytelling side, the women’s side, the really funny side, and the side that talks about how the power of hot people brings people to sport. Honestly I’m getting Handsome vibes, but with more power slapping. You do not have to love sports to enjoy. Episode one is a treat, about the sports moments that made Katie, Tien, and E.R. gay. Listen here.
🎙️Are you also old and able to remember what your AIM away message was? I do, it was “I love Christmas!” forever and all year round, which people made fun of, but I do. Shut up. The Secret Adventures of Black People is a great show but I feel like I was really treating myself to Nichole’s Christmas series, which asks people in Ireland, England, France, and Jamaica, what Christmas is like for Black people around the world. (And also, whether or not they even refer to themselves as Black in those countries.) Episodes are beautiful little interviews filled with traditions and recipes and memories that will make you feel all cheesy inside, and they’re great examples of what this show does so well—illustrate the countless ways there are to be Black. Start here.
🎙️Ologies is a consistently great show, and when Alie steps outside the usual format I think the episodes are extra great. (I loved this one literally one from year ago where she stumbled into a bunch of scientists at the airport and asked them to tell her about the posters they were carrying.) On the latest episode she revealed that her doctors gave her a hysterectomy because they thought she might have cancer. She doesn’t thank god, but details every single moment of her experience with the hysterectomy. I mean it! She had been dragging her mic to dr appointments for weeks, with no idea what her diagnosis would be. This episode is deeply personal, riveting, funny, and truly full of information about uteruses that we should all know but probably don’t. Listen here.
🎙️Imperfect Paradise ran a story about the labor movement in the sex industry by following dancers in a North Hollywood strip club. Emma Alabaster brings you into The Star Garden Topless Dive Bar (it truly feels like your ears are in the club) introducing you to the dancers and letting you listen in as they fight to unionize. Unionizing, though, was only the beginning of what ended up being a long-waged battle. This is a really entertaining piece of journalism that teaches you why a union might not be best for marginalized workers and how a cooperative might be. And Emma takes us to one of these events under a cooperative. Not only did it seem like a good business model for the dancers, it sounded like a better show—more inventive than what you see at a strip club. There was an element of storytelling and performance, it was almost burlesque-like. Start here.
🎙️Back in 2011, two comedians posed as investment bankers protesting the Occupy Wall Street movement, which turned into an actual movement, Occupy Occupy Wall Street. Ever since, Jason Selvig and Davram Stiefler have been trolling conservatives at their own rallies and campaign events to capture really outrageous footage, which you can now listen to on their new podcast The Good Liars Tell the Truth. They offer progressive news reporting and unpack their best pranks. The audio of their January 6th episode was chilling at some points—I actually thought it was a really good walk-through of what their experience was like that day. And did you know that some people believe that Jim Carrey has secretly been playing Joe Biden for years? I didn’t but now I do, and we actually get to hear from those people. This show is a really fun way to break out of the progressive bubble you might be in and hear the craziest shit happening on the other side. Listen to this one.
🎙️Emily Fleming and Jordan Morris launched Free with Ads, where they “dive into the internet’s bargain bin” to wrangle up movies you can watch online for free, with ads. This is not a film podcast as much it is a comedy podcast—Emily and Jordan are hilarious and on the episode about The Birds, for example, they discuss such topics as: the correct number of birds in the film, the tallest person in the film, how old everyone is and how old they are supposed to be, the hunk of the movie, the worst hat in the movie, etc. Their producer is Matt Lieb, reason enough to listen if you ask me! (He jumps on mic sometimes.) Listen to Free with Ads if you want to hear comedians talking about things that just so happen to be movies. I also recommend the episode about The Birds, it actually made me want to watch it. (This wasn’t true about the other episodes I listened to.) Listen here.
🎙️I listen to The Journal every day and it wasn’t until a friend mentioned a recent episode about gambling that I realized I had texted that same episode to a few people and brought it up in several conversations. So now I am recommending it to you. For “How a Psychiatrist Lost $400,000 on Gambling Apps” Kavita Fischer gets totally honest and vulnerable to explain pretty much step-by-step how she went from downloading a casino app from DraftKings to losing almost everything. I think it’s easy to be judgmental about a story like this until you hear someone like Kavita take us down the slippery slope and honestly open up about how fell down, from the creepy communication she had with representatives she had from DraftKings to the insidious things the app does to get people to keep playing. Listen here.
🎙️If you’re watching 3 Body Problem, try 3 Body Podcast, where Dr. Maggie Aderin-Pocock and Jason Concepcion let you geek out about the show by talking to the people behind it. There are also conversations with NASA scientists and ex-CIA operatives to get an idea of what it’d be like if 3 Body Problem actually happened. And trust me, this show is pretty complicated. We need the help. Listen here.
🎙️I love you!
The Will Tell Overture*
*Wil did not suggest or approve this title…respond to this email with other ideas!!! (Thanks to Anna Phelan for this one!)
💖 Behind the Bastards is back with another bastard: this time, it's creator of the Dennis the Menace comics, Hank Ketcham, the worst dad in the universe ever probably. (Probably not. But he's up there.) It's wild to come hot off the heels of episodes on Steve Jobs, another unbelievably bad dad, and see how much better he was by comparison. As always with BTB, these episodes balance the nightmarish content with a heaping dose of dry, sardonic humor. It's a great balance, and a cathartic listen for those who have had to deal with anything even a little similar.
💖ICYMI, my eternal heroes for discussing things I sound insane trying to talk with anyone else about, has dived into some of my favorite online drama: the mess that is the yarn, knit, and crochet world online. You might not immediately associate these cozy crafts with drama, and I hope you will be delighted to know you are so, so, so wrong. In this episode, host Candice Lim is joined by culture reporter Morgan Sung to dive into some of the biggest, baddest moments in this community, and it is SO FUN.
💖The Bechdel Cast has aired audio from their Barbie tour, with added discussions from hosts Caitlin Durante and Jamie Loftus after. It's The Bechdel Cast on Barbie -- what more is there to say? Go listen, obviously. It's brilliant, fun, and silly, obviously.
💖Switched on Pop did something new this past week. Instead of breaking down a contemporary pop hit or artist (and if you haven't listened to their series on Daft Punk, go listen immediately), the episode goes into Gershwin's "Rhapsody in Blue" and its journey to a new version of the composition by musicians Lara Downes and Edmar Colón. The episode goes into the song's history, historical context, and modern takes and interpolations. This one is probably more for the real deep music nerds out there, but for us, it's an absolute treasure. More of this please, Switched on Pop!
💖Likewise, All Songs Considered just dropped a beautiful conversation with artist Tierra Whack. The vibe here is similar to an episode of dearly beloved Depresh Mode; Whack discusses her history with impostor syndrome, newfound fame, and mental health struggles since the release of her critically beloved EP and visual album Whack World. It's a gorgeous and frank conversation, and it's so heartening to see more Black female artists able to open up about these struggles -- Rico Nasty, Doechii, and of course, Megan Thee Stallion come to mind. Don't miss this conversation if you love Tierra Whack, and if you don't yet, use this conversation to get into her incredible work stat.
💖The Recipe with Kenji and Deb is so rude for how hungry it makes me. I listened to their episode on meticulously testing recipe after recipe of pancakes this morning while waking up and had to immediately go make myself some frozen waffles, which while delicious, were absolutely not the same. Foodie or not, this is a fun conversation about the science of how food works, as well as the struggles that come with meticulously testing recipes. Even pancakes can be too much of a good thing.
📦 From the Archives 📦
I turned 40 last week and talking to the Tink team about songs that define us. My answer is Girls Just Want to Have Fun. It was #1 on the charts the day I was born, and I think is all I really want to do. I learned funness from my mother, who was always the person who said about everything, even boring things, “why can’t this be more fun?” “how can we make this situation the most fun ever?” I would love to get stuck at the airport with this woman. I have a daughter now. I want to be like that for her. I hope I am like that for everyone. All that said, I am reminded of one of my favorite episodes of Sentimental Garbage, maybe ever:
You have probably heard Cyndi Lauper’s Girls Just Want to Have Fun (which was #1 on the charts the day I was born) millions of times but have you thought about it, really thought about it? Sentimental Garbage covered the song in a sharp, fun, and academic way, which is really what this show does best. (After listening I thought host Caroline O'Donoghue could rename the podcast Girls Just Want to Have Fun.) It’s an examination of both Cyndi’s and the original version, which was sung by Robert Hazard, who is famously a man. This changes everything if you think about it. And Caroline and guest Tom McInnes think about it. It’s a conversation about fun, what Cyndi means when she’s talking about wanting to walk in the sun and the fortunate ones, and why when you hear Girls Just Want to Have Fun, you don’t want to dance to it, you just want to hug yourself. Know what I mean?) Girls Just Want to Have Fun doesn’t have many lyrics, but each one carries more than its weight. Caroline and Tom are even able to tie it to the writer’s strike.
I look forward to this newsletter every. single. week.