🍹 Gay summer camp 🏕️ mosh pits 🎸 cruising 😘 a little birdhouse in your soul 🐦
🍭 👂 TRUST ME! 🌈 🤸♀️
Bonjour.
Today is Monday, July 24. In case this newsletter is too long…take an audio tour of the world’s best gay summer camp here, beautiful stories never told here, think about beige flags here but do not tell me what yours are.
[I will never charge you to read Podcast the Newsletter. If you’d like to buy an ad, inquire here.]
xoxo lp
ps If you are pleased with Podcast The Newsletter, please spread the word.
👋q & a & q & a & q & a👋
Gabe Dunn & River Butcher
Gabe Dunn (he/they) is a writer, podcaster, YouTuber, actor, and filmmaker. River Butcher (he/him) is a stand up comic, actor, writer, producer and podcaster and baseball fan. Together they host The Knew Guys, a podcast about masculinity from the trans-guy lens. On each episode, they interview a guest about their relationship to gender, and explore relevant topics and events in the LGBTQ (usually the trans and/or transmasc) community. Follow Gabe on Instagram here. Follow River on Twitter here and Instagram here.
Describe The Knew Guys in 10 words or less.
Gabe: A show about gender for everyone by two trans guys.
River: A show about becoming yourself with two very different trans guys.
What does the name mean to you?
Gabe: It means something different to River, but for me it means that we are new to being guys, but not in a way that warranted actually using the word “new” so “knew” became a cheeky way to say “we’re trying to know more about ourselves and the world” and hopefully after listening you will also know some (k)new parts of yourself and know more about the people around you who might be different from you.
River: So this name came to me because I first thought of “The New Guys” which I think is a pretty obvious title for a show with two trans guy hosts but then for me the “Knew” was a quick fix to make it different, because for me, I always KNEW I was something different than what people were telling me. And also, it’s something that we ask each other in the queer experience (not just trans) when we first meet each other or go on dates, “When did you know (you were queer/gay/trans/bi/etc)?” So it’s like, very much this doorway word for me to experience and understanding. Despite being a past tense word, I think the pun or wordplay of it also sounding like “new” keeps the experience expansive and not static.
What is your relationship like? What do you each bring to the table?
Gabe: I’ve always seen River as a queer role model and a big brother figure, even before we both transitioned. And then it was nice to see our timelines come together in this even bigger way. I’d worked with him before and he’d even directed me in his show (where I was very intimidated, through no fault of his own)! So when River told me about his idea for the show and asked me to co-host it with him, I was so honored and excited because he wanted to hang out with me literally at all. (He might hate that I said that!) So I think it makes the show great because my energy is very little brother and River’s is very big brother. He is zen and I am manic. We’re covering all the trans guy bases.
River: What Gabe said is very sweet and I have always respected Gabe’s sort of, portfolio of work, that I feel is very different from mine, so I thought we could have conversations that some folks might think would be us agreeing all the time because of how we present to the world, but in reality we are very different in many ways (that continue to unfold). I did not realize just how able Gabe is to get production done in podcasting, so I am very grateful for his talents and abilities there! He has really gotten the show running which, as someone who has been working primarily on the road from only a phone, I appreciate tremendously.
Who is the podcast for, and what do you want people to get out of it?
River: Ultimately it’s for anyone. I have heard so much good feedback from many people who are not trans and not queer, which is always fun, because they need fun, queer things too! And I also think that indirect experience with each other can help us evolve, grow, and accept and understand each other better. I want people to open their minds about what it can be to be trans, queer, etc., and to understand that there is no monolith of queerness or transness, and we actually represent the opposite of that. And you don’t have to fully understand or grasp anything to grow and learn. That is how I began to accept myself as trans; I didn’t have to know everything about myself right away to take my first steps.
What’s your goal for the show (something about community, making Knew Guys action figures or a theme park?) and how can we help you get there?
River: My goal is that people listen and enjoy it. I would love to do it in a studio with video, so our amazing producer Logan Castrodale can have a sweet setup as well.
What’s a story or something about you you are eager to share on The Knew Guys that you haven’t been able to share in your other work?
Gabe: I don’t get the opportunity to talk about trans stuff with another trans guy basically ever. Especially to be able to have these conversations in a public forum for other people, both trans and cis, to consume and learn from is so exciting to me. And River and I talked about how trans guys aren’t represented in the media, and especially not two with two very different experiences and backgrounds and lifestyles. I’m eager to discuss what I’m actively going through (because it’s all happening so right now and in the moment) like testosterone side effects, social transition, and name change paperwork, all of that – with a trans co-host and for a trans audience.
Pretend you were going to make another podcast. Your budget is $1M and you don’t have to worry about the logistics or if anyone would like it. What would it be?
River: River talks for an hour once a week about what he likes, doesn’t like, and how he feels.
Who do you most want to interview?
River: Well, we had my dear friend Daniel Sea as a first guest and that was a dream, so I’m pretty open to anyone at this point. I would love to interview trans people in Akron Ohio.
What’s a podcast you love that everyone already knows about?
Gabe: You’re Wrong About, with the new episodes hosted by Sarah Marshall by herself have been so lovely and empathetic and full of wisdom. Check those out!
River: I second Gabe. Sarah’s podcast is honestly the only one I listen to. Sorry, other podcasts.
Are there too many podcasts?
Gabe: Not at all! I think there’s a lot from one demographic but the point of the medium is there’s a lower barrier to entry and so more and more marginalized people can make shows for groups that don’t have shows for them. There are too many of maybe a specific kind of podcast, but for queer people? Make hundreds more! Please!
River: I agree with Gabe however I will say: yes, there are too many corporate podcasts. Podcasting has basically become television, and it’s getting harder to make indy podcasts. So make more indy podcasts!
What’s your favorite thing about making a podcast?
River: I’ve literally set up my whole life to talk for a living, so I love to talk. That’s my favorite part.
What’s the worst?
River: Scheduling. I have a very difficult time with it, especially while traveling. I appreciate Gabe and Logan’s patience immensely.
Hot take:
River: Trans people are both incredibly magical/spiritual and boring as anyone else.
Self-care ritual:
River: I spend at least 20-40 minutes of quiet time in the morning, every morning - writing, meditating, reading, contemplating, doing yoga/stretching. I reach out to someone to see how they’re doing. I have a gratitude practice. I also go to the gym most days for at least an hour to move heavy things around and sweat.. I try to drink 32 oz of water and get 7 hours of sleep. If you showed this list to me 6 years ago I would either be shocked, or completely cynical, but likely both.
🚨If u only have time for 1 thing🚨
Finding Fire Island is a sparkling, engaging audio tour of Fire Island, with Joel Kim Booster, Margaret Cho, Matt Rogers, DJ Lina Bradford, Brian Moylan, Ben Rimalower, Paul Rudnick and more as your guides. Host and EP Jess Rothschild takes you through the interviews, offering histories, raunchy memories, clear instructions for the different types of parties and etiquette, the fashion…everything you would need to know before you visit to have the best experience. And everything you would need to know to appreciate Fire Island for the party haven that it is. Each episode is peppered with stories from the people who have made it fantastic, painting Fire Island as a place people come visit to be free and themselves. If you loved Joel Kim Booster’s Fire Island, this will feel like the audio extension, a colorful audio map you’ve been waiting for. I absolutely relished every second, licked every second off my fingers, yummy yummy yum yum yum.
hell yeah
✨ Tink turned four and I wrote about how she got there (with lots of help from her friends.)
✨ Read my Lifehacker piece 12 Ocean Disaster Podcasts That Will Ruin Your Beach Vacation.
✨ Loved this piece in The Bingeworthy about tracking our listening (with Julie Shapiro!)
✨ Read about simplifying the user journey in Podcast Marketing Magic.
✨Arielle Nissenblatt spotlighted Near Death in her newsletter and podcast.
💎BTW💎
🎙️Ughhhh I love Never Told, an eight-part anthology of stories “never told before,” written and performed by writers, so much. The writing is so very good I found myself falling in love with each storyteller. Beautiful descriptions with funny, thoughtful, imaginative details and audio that makes the words come to life make each episode of Never Told a beautiful little escape. Episodes are about teenage abortion, Parisian hook-ups, musical odysseys, fantasy friendships, trying to master yoga poses, loss, grief, rage and a night of strange encounters. A debrief interview at the end with the author will help you really understand their intent. Notes on a Break Up is a funny, emotional reflection on what it’s like to be an Asian woman dumped by a white man who seems to be collecting Asian women. The Woman In My Head is about a fictional inner super hero living in author Emma Jane Unsworth’s imagination, which is a lesson on the adventure we go on when we allow ourselves to find the place between our real selves and our imagined perfect selves. I heard (somewhere, I can’t remember where, maybe I’m making this up) that there will be a similar version of this show that is more horror-skewing coming out later this year. It’s stuff like that (I am not joking) that makes me excited about the future. Listen here.
🎙️On We Can Do Hard Things, Glennon, Abby, and Amanda had a stripped-down, casual conversation about beige flags, things the people in our lives do that make us go “Hmm … okay.” They aren’t red flags, they aren’t green flags. They’re just weird flags. I have so many I could write a book about them. (I brought this up to my husband for a 45 minute discussion that was mostly him saying, “I’ve always wondered why you……refuse to sit at a desk…drink mild coffee right before you nap….won’t wear new clothes until at least a month after you’ve purchased them……” It’s fun to think about what our beige flags are, and the beige flags of our partners and friends, but I liked this podcast episode in particular because listeners wrote in with their own beige flags. It’s an intimate look into relationships, the strange things our partners do that we love them for anyway. It’s also a reminder how special those tiny moments are in relationships. The creative rituals that unfurl as we share our lives with someone, or just get to know them very well. This episode made me love people. I have spent the last week asking everyone I know to identify their beige flags and in my dream last night Justin said to me, “Lauren your beige flag is asking what everyone’s beige flags are. Stop it.” So do not, in the comments, tell me what your beige flags are, even though I am very curious. (But please do.) Listen here.
🎙️If you loved Dave Chapelle’s rip roaring set about trans people, you’re going to love The Girl God Experience, hosted by trans comedians Grace Freud and April Clark, who claim to have written it. (They didn’t, but have a delightful sketch about the fake lines they “wrote” that Chapelle found “too edgy.”) Girl God is their comedy duo, which has been quickly gaining traction with a national tour, and The Girl God Experience is their playground, their place for improvisations on a fake review of Asteroid City, April’s new fake app, a method of conversion therapy that’s “100% effective” and more. Like the name promises, this is an experience, an experiment. It is not a chat show. I was listening a little fast and had to slow it down because the jokes were coming too fast. Funny guests join but it doesn’t matter. Grace and April have chemistry that sparks fire. Believe every word they say. Listen here.
🎙️On Déjà News, Rachel Maddow and co-host Isaac-Davy Aronson help us better understand the headlines by flipping back in our history books to see if things like stolen elections and wars on woke have ever happened before. The latest episode is about reverse freedom rides, a practice in the 60s spearheaded by segregationists in the South to send Black people to northern (and western) cities. They’d send them off with a one-way bus ticket, promises of job security, and that Kennedy was waiting to greet them (in Martha’s Vineyard, or wherever) but it was all a lie, and really just an unprecedented exercise in cruelty. In this episodes’s déjà we look to Ron Desantis and Greg Abbott sending migrants to the north, with similar promises and word-for-word rhetoric from the 60s. It’s a history lesson and a chat with Reverand Juan Carlos Ruiz of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, who has been housing some of these migrants in his Brooklyn church. This episode was kind of sickening but I’m so glad I listened to it. It’s one I haven’t been able to get out of my mind. Listen here.
🎙️Each week on Fixing Famous People, Television Producers Chris DeRosa and Dominick Pupa take on celebrity clients who need lots of PR help, and pitch ideas of how to fix their crumbling public image. A funny guest comes on to vote on whose idea is best. So it’s a hilarious takedown and a game! Jess Rothschild of Hot Takes, Deep Dives, and Finding Fire Island (this is how I found out about Fire Island) joined to take on Ellen. Focusing on only Ellen’s cruelty is way too easy. There’s more you may have forgotten about—her adopted dog (that she returned,) scaring people, her incessant greed, her sterile nature, and that awkward Dakota Johnson interview that pretty much lit the match. It’s petty and amusing, but Chris and Dominick actually have good ideas and give insight to how the celeb PR machine is (or could be) working. Listen here.
🎙️On Celebrity Book Club, Steven Phillips-Horst and Lily Marotta spent an entire episode hilariously excavating the emails exchanged between Natalie Portman and Jonathan Safran Foer, something I had totally forgotten about. At first I felt a little icky, trying to remember who released these emails. I’m so grateful to have them, but what an invasion of privacy!!! Until I remembered that Natalie and Jonathan released the emails themselves for a T magazine profile because they find themselves so goddam charming. So now we can go on to completely enjoy the episode guilt-free. Listen, I have read these email exchanges multiple times and could read them every day as my morning wake-up routine but you simply must enjoy the commentary from Steven and Lily. It’s chef’s kiss. You absolutely need someone to walk you through each line and point out what makes it so out-of-touch and insane. And remember, you can enjoy the slandering with a good conscience because Natalie and Jonathan released the emails. It’s not a celebrity memoir technically, but maybe one of the most entertaining things celebrities have ever written. Listen here.
🎙️Season one of When People Decide was all about ballot initiatives, telling the stories of people who have organized initiative campaigns across the country. It’s back with season two, this time focusing on how citizens and government leaders are working together to strengthen democracy at the local level. Host Jenna Spinelle explains how hard it is (because it is) but also how doable it is. It’s incredibly empowering. She kicks off the episode with an anecdote about people dangerously speeding through her neighborhood—a car plowed through a set of mailboxes. Instead of complaining about it (my move) she worked with her neighbors to actually do something about it. It’s great storytelling with actionable advice. By taking us through what she did, we see how we can democratize our communities with a spark that can (if we work hard…and go to a ton of meetings) snowball into change. Listen here.
🎙️Decoder Ring had a beautiful, part spiritual and part educational ode to mosh pits. Katie Shepherd takes us into the first mosh pits, which originated from people misunderstanding Darryl Jennifer, bass guitarist for Bad Brains, who was singing "mash" in the song "Mash down Babylon” and got popular after Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit.” I think of mosh pits as violent, but as Katie explains, when done correctly, they’re bound by camaraderie and etiquette. There is an inner peace in that storm of like minded people, and when you’re in it, it’s an incredible force. When you’re out of it, it’s back to sucky reality where your boss sucks and you’re broke and you’re all the kinds of angsty that made you want to mosh in the first place. There is a science to it, too. Just as birds flock in nature, we all will form circles in a mosh pit. Sounds Gay had a great episode about mosh pits. All girls to the front. Listen here.
🎙️Slate’s Outward only comes out once a month, but I always look forward to it. July’s edition examined the queer practice of cruising—for sex and sex work—in public space. Christina Cauterucci, Jules Gill-Peterson, and Bryan Lowder talk to Marcus McCann about his new essay collection Park Cruising, which explores its pleasures, politics, and complexities. I learned so much about cruising in this short conversation, and how the act of it teaches people to be more attentive to other people’s needs when it comes to sex, whether that be in the bushes or the bedroom. Kind of like a mosh pit, it’s community. It’s connecting. And cruising has taught people how to be themselves. Listen here.
🎙️Speaking of learning about how to be yourself, see They Might Be Giants, a band that taught me that being weird was okay and maybe even cool. (In 1992, “Apollo 18” had just come out, and it was the only tape we had for our week-long Colorado road trip. We listened to it endlessly.) 60 Songs That Explain the 90s spent an episode talking about Birdhouse In Your Soul—its meaning, host Rob Harvilla’s relationship with it, and then Open Mike Eagle popped on (one of the only hip hop guys who loves TMBG?) for a love fest about the writing and sound, the specific talents of John Flansburgh and John Linnell, and sure…what this song is about. But who cares? It’s only like the catchiest songs ever made. Listen here.
🎙️The They Might Be Giants Johns were also on a rather unhinged episode of Office Hours Live. It’t not particularly unhinged, just normal unhinged for this show, with lots of tangents and funny sound drops. The Johns take us through their 40 year partnership, it’s a little window into how the wacky sausage is made. Listen here.
🎙️I cannot talk about They Might Be Giants without mentioning one of my favorite podcast episodes of all time, from Strong Songs, a breakdown of TMBG’s “Fingertips.” Kirk Hamilton picks apart the twenty one micro-songs that it’s made up of. It’s a beautiful, thoughtful audio documentary that’s a must-listen for TMBG fans, or anyone curious about their work. Listen here.
🎙️There Are No Girls on the Internet’s Bridget Todd was guest on Western Kabuki for a conversation about Elon Musk that was equally fun and insightful. We’re all feeling that Twitter (X? ew) is worse, but this is a conversation that gets to the bottom of how that happened, and how hard it is to explain to people who aren’t chronically on the site. Listen to that here. Meanwhile, over on Search Engine, PJ Vogt has an episode with Hard Fork’s Casey Newton as guest that covered the top three theories for why Elon Musk has begun to act strangely. Was it the money? The Ketamine? Or are we living in a simulation? That last one will send you to space for a bit, pun not intended. Listen to that here.
🎙️I love you!
📦 From the Archives 📦
[From February 28, 2020] Kaitlin Prest’s ability to vibrantly tell a story with sound is unparalleled, and my expectations for Mermaid Palace’s Asking For It, a queer, modern take on the Goldilocks tale, were very very very very very very high. I woke up very early on Tuesday morning to listen to it in the dark, alone, and I felt like I was in a theater being surrounded by sound. My expectations were exceeded. For the sounds Kaitlin Prest is famous for—the whispers, the phone calls, the sex, the raw conversation. But also for unexpected sounds. The show uses the music of a real band, The Hips, a duo of women who fit so perfectly into the show, it’s like they belong inside. I tried listening to the music alone and it sounded like completely different music. I love Goldie’s mom Dolly and if I had 1 minute with Kaitlin Prest, I would beg her for a Dolly spinoff show. If you haven’t listened to Asking For It, I am jealous of you. I recommend you find some special time to listen to it.
From the Desk of Tink
Today we’re talking to Michelle Khouri, CEO & Founder of Recordical and FRQNCY Media.
Describe Recordical in ten words or less.
A membership platform empowering audio creators with studios, equipment, and digital resources.
Who is Recordical for?
Recordical is for all audio creators seeking to turn their passion for sound into a thriving income. Our digital membership includes mini-courses, ebooks, workbooks, articles, and live webinars that are broad enough to apply to all audio creators and also include content tailored to some of the more common creator types, like podcasters, musicians, TikTokers, streamers, DJs, and voice actors. The point is to provide all the support audio creators need to thrive without having to sacrifice their artistic expression.
What do you hope your target audience takes away from Recordical?
Success, community, and joy! The creator economy is fresh. We think it’s booming now. With how much light is being shed on the injustices of industries that profit off the work of creatives and creators…we’re about to see a full-on revolution driving a true boom of the creator economy. I want Recordical to be the platform that helps drive massive financial success, artistic expression, and supportive communities like nothing we’ve seen in the audio industry.
What has surprised you the most, in the creation of Recordical?
We developed a solution to a pervasive problem - audio creators don’t have affordable or easy access to the space, equipment, and education they need to thrive. The need seemed very obvious to us (and to the nearly 1,400 U.S. audio creators we surveyed), so it was surprising to see how few people have consciously acknowledged that problem in their daily lives. It’s become clear to me that we - audio creators - have normalized the daily challenges we face. We’ve grown accustomed to having to hunt for information; beg advertisers to recognize our value; to break ourselves down into siloed personas rather than embracing our multifaceted (and multi-hyphenated) selves, which severely diminishes our networking and collaboration opportunities. We went back to the drawing board after noticing our solution-focused marketing was actually confusing people. It reminded me of Uber’s biggest struggles when it launched. People were asking “Why would we need this if we have cabs?” or whatever form of transport they were used to. And now, can any of us who’ve grown accustomed to Uber imagine losing that freedom of movement, that independence it lends us? So, the Recordical team is now spending more time on education. We’ll still shed light on the solution, but only after we’ve clearly defined the problem.
If you could personally demo a Recordical Studio to someone, who would it be and why?
Bad Bunny, hands down. He would bring such a fun, expressive vibe to the Recordical Studio, and I think he would love the aesthetic. It’s vibrant, colorful, and focused on audio quality just like he is. I could see us recording a new song or demo track, and then doing a BTS interview on the process streamed live on multiple platforms. Then we could cut the visuals of the experience into a mini-documentary, plus release it as a podcast episode. All from one studio session. Aw dang, now I’m amped about this…leggggo, Benito!
Who’s a dream partner or collaborator for you?
On Aug. 1, we are launching the Recordical Digital membership, which offers audio creators immediate value and access to resources. The big vision is to roll out a global network of Recordical Studios and Recordical Unboxed equipment lockers. So now my main focus is partnering with airports, and big hotel chains (think Marriott and Hilton) to bring a Recordical Studio and/or Unboxed locker tower to as many cities as possible. Our waitlist, which is where audio creators can request a studio or locker in their city, is growing and helps support our conversations with different potential partners. You’re invited to join and tell us if you want access to Recordical Studio and/or Unboxed!