June 18, 2019

Podcast recommendations (for just about anyone)

Since I discovered the podcast in 2014, and listened to Serial, I've listened to thousandsssss of podcast episodes. And I've subscribed to, I'm sure, a hundred podcasts in the last five years. Right now I follow a smattering of different topics: some religious, some political, some pop culture, some book-related, etc.

Here are five recommendations and I'm recommending each of them for different reasons.

I listen to all of my podcasts in the Apple Podcast app, but I'm just going to link to the sites.




Mean Book Club.
I found this when I was looking for book podcasts. I was sick of my usual ones.

Pros: I love a good hate read. I can tell more about you by which books you don't like than by the books you do like, so let's skip the "what's your favorite book?" question and go straight to "what don't you like?". These ladies aren't necessarily going into it looking for a hate read, but they're reading a popular book and then ripping it apart, explaining the pros and cons in a true deep dive. I like that each podcast is over an hour. It gives a lot of time for real discussion.
They did a Girl, Wash Your Face episode that was particularly enjoyable.

Cons: They don't release new episodes that often. Also, I don't care what format they used to read the book and what kind of wine they're drinking while they discuss it. But I like that they add those details without going too far off track.




Relatable. 
I found this through a Twitter post.

Pros: I've been following Allie Beth Stuckey on Twitter since last summer. I like her. I like that I come away feeling knowledgeable and convicted. She's easy to listen to and she's organized about it and stays on topic. She gives sound Biblically-based reasoning for the dilemmas that we're facing in our culture.

Cons: I, personally, don't have a con. If you're not a Christian, you might not prefer it, but I would challenge everyone to listen to at least an episode or two. If you scroll through the titles, you can find at least one to interest you, I'm sure. And, sometimes, if you listen to things you don't agree with, at least you'll gain an understanding of the other side, right?




Here to Make Friends.
I can't remember how I found this. Probably on a blog??? But I've been listening since 2016.

Pros: I love that Claire and Emma are well-versed and knowledgable about the franchise and about what happens in each episode. I don't know that I've ever noticed a detail that they've gotten wrong? I know I'm going to get a reliable summary of the episode with reliable commentary without them going off on a turkey trail talking about what food they're cooking for dinner (Rose Pricks), bleeping out funny anecdotes/swear words and interspersing random music (I Hate Green Beans), or getting major details like names, places, etc wrong (also Rose Pricks).

(I don't listen Rose Pricks these days because I couldn't listen to them do impressions and laugh-gasp hysterically at nothing anymore. I also don't listen to AfterBuzz because the voices of some of the hosts had started to push me over the edge.)

Cons: There's a heavy political leaning. I like that they have an angle and that approach is looking at The Bachelor through a feminist lens. It's purposeful and that's cool. But the world's problems are not caused by conservatives and/or religious people. I think it's IMPORTANT to listen to people you disagree with on certain topics, but I have this sneaking suspicion that Claire and Emma wouldn't agree with that. I feel like I should be to talk to people about the Bachelor (something so dumb and meaningless) without it having to always be about the political side of things.



The Balanced Life.
Since I follow TBL Pilates website, this was forwarded my way in emails.



Pros: It's a great premise: I like listening to other people explain how they do it. Accomplishing work, childcare, home life, etc is a feat when you're trying to "do it all". So it's a really nice idea that Robin is interviewing women who listeners would have an interest in learning from. Robin is good at asking questions/conversing with her guests. It doesn't come off as unnatural.

Cons: I hatehatehate throwing around the word "privilege" because "privilege" means different things to different people. But, in the women she's interviewed so far and in Robin herself, there's an enormous amount of "privilege".
Everyone lives in Southern California. And everyone has some degree of money that is on a scale different than most of the listeners, I'm betting. I say this because they all own their own businesses and are able to live in Southern California. It's hard to explain. But after following Robin for five years now, sometimes there's moments when she loses me. This could very well be one of those moments. (i.e. She seems to only make cauliflower rice when meal-prepping, she only drinks decaf but talks about "coffee" a lot, and she recommended Rachel Hollis' new book :/ )



Sheologians.
I found this on a Twitter post.

Pros: These two women talk about a variety of topics from a religious viewpoint and some of it is very convicting and some is very informative and some just makes me feel better and comforted (like this episode on the enneagram).

Cons: If you're not willing to listen to someone talk about religious topics and how they relate to modern culture, it's not for you. However, just know that they are very unorganized in how they go about their recording and Lord-help-you if you don't fast forward through the first 15 minutes of each episode: you'll have to listen to them laugh about inside jokes or talk about grilled cheese sandwiches or something. It's borderline ridiculous actually. Maybe it's the teacher in me that is just driven crazy by this but it's a huge turnoff. Once they get to the meat of the topic, it's usually pretty good.


What podcast should I dive into next? Obviously I'm always looking for a new one. 

4 comments:

  1. I always love your podcast recommends... you got me listening to Mean Book Club & I LOVE It. I went back to listen to the very beginning. Loving it - hate they dont post a lot.
    Also going to see if I can find Relatable & you KNOW I'm always down for a good Bachelor podcast!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I just started Skimm'd from the COuch (based off the Skimm newsletter) and I really enjoy it. They talk to female business owners, CEOs, big deal women and talk to them about the not-so-pretty parts of how they got where they are (the creator of Bumble, etc.) How the woman who created Spanx went through some struggles before her business took off. Each episode is maybe 22-25 minutes long so it's easy to run through them.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Haha...totally agree about the Sheologians podcast. I’ve listened to a few and learned real fast to just skip those first 15 minutes. It’s not borderline ridiculous...it IS. Lol

    ReplyDelete
  4. I don’t know why I still haven’t listened to Relatable! I’ve been meaning to. I love Allie. Confession: her voice is kind of nasally and I’m afraid it’s going to ruin the podcast for me. I have issues.

    Ugh Sheologians. I love their content once they get to the point. But those first 15-20 minutes make me want to rip my hair out. I don’t listen to them much anymore because they can be so obnoxious. That enneagram episode was amazing, though.

    ReplyDelete

Comments make my day!