What podcasts are you listening to these days?
My favorite question to be asked
This is in fact the question people ask me the most on TikTok.
That and “how do you listen to and read so many things?” THAT question is harder to answer because I genuinely have no idea (see: my video on high need for cognition). But as for what’s in my podcast rotation these days, would love to share!
Now, before we begin: the cool thing about podcasts (I mean, one of the many..) is that I go through waves of what I’m listening to and following. And then I proceed to forget all about those podcasts and move onto the next wave. I don’t even realize it’s happening until I see someone post about a podcast on IG or TikTok and realize it’s been months since I listened to that one.
SO- these are some of the podcasts I’ve found myself listening to a lot these days in my summer 2024 ‘wave’. Please let me know if you like these (or hate em), have other similar recommendations, or just any thoughts you have!
Figured I’d post this here as opposed to TikTok to make this a cheeky exclusive thing ;)
Nine Podcasts currently in my rotation
Vibe Check
This podcast is incredible a) because the chemistry between Sam, Saeed, and Zach is TOP NOTCH and b) they mix big idea topics (politics, culture, society) with their chatty, humorous flow and it’s so easy to listen to them. And to develop parasocial feelings towards them OOP—
Power User with Taylor Lorenz
What I think is Taylor’s secret sauce is that she is O N L I N E. I often find that tech journalists take too broad of a pov when talking about tech and I always want them to go deeper, more niche, more topical. Taylor is known for focusing on the things that other tech journalists don’t (or didn’t—they’re catching on) take seriously. Some of her recent episode topics include: Brain rot, Snark subreddit, Filming strangers in public etc. The episodes are paced really well and feel relevant and informative.
This is uncomfortable
I really enjoy conversations about money but not from the personal finance perspective, necessarily. I want to know how money impacts our feelings, emotions, relationships, understanding of ourselves and the world. This is the perfect podcast for that! Also, Reema, the host, is a really good host; she balances her serious reporting with sounding like a normal person in a way that I don’t think is super common.
On the nose
Ok this one is maybe the most niche on the list, but I wanted to include it here because it has featured prominently in my rotation this year. I have found much solace in the On the Nose podcast, as I process my Jewish upbringing, connection to Israel and Palestine, and where this all fits in anymore (or at all…) I think this is a podcast that is readily interesting, even if you aren’t Jewish, so if you are curious about the Jewish left, I highly recommend.
**also, I am interested in continuing to broaden the podcasts I listen to on Palestine, Gaza, and any of the many angles of this conversation. If you have good recommendations, please do share them. The podcasts could be in English or Arabic, as I can follow along (shway shway lol) with Arabic podcasts (in Shami dialect) as well.
How to Know What’s Real
I loooove this podcast series from the Atlantic. Every season they change the topic but you can see the previous seasons in the podcast feed. They did one on community, another on time. It’s such a fresh angle to these oft-discussed topics. For example: How to Know What’s Real talks a lot about AI (a topic that I already am tired of tbh) but the different ways they interrogate AI, and how to know what is real and what is fake is soooo interesting and new
Culture Study Podcast
Ok I’m going to be honest: I think Anne Helen Petersen’s Substack (also named Culture Study) is better than the podcast. I think she and her producer are just getting their footing with this new medium so I keep listening. Also, the topics they discuss are soooo niche which is something I’ve always respected and appreciated about AHP; she takes all of culture’s little things seriously and worth critiquing, when many people say (they say this to me all the time on TikTok too): “it’s just not that deep.” So if THAT sentiment repulses you—if you feel everything (or almost everything) is worth analysis—you’ll find this podcast compelling.
Celebrity Memoir Book Club
It’s so wild— I don’t listen to any other podcast that is explicitly about books (because while I’m a reader, book conversations often don’t float my boat) but Claire and Ashley, the two hosts, have created something captivating here. I don’t know what it is, but they have the perfect mix of cutting critique, humor, and levity. You can absolutely listen to the episode without having read the book, because they go through the book with you, but in a way that holds your attention the whole time (ie. they only discuss the juicy parts of each book). I recommend the Olivia Munn episode if you want to hear their takedown of her, or the Viola Davis episode if you want to hear how they deal with an actual serious memoir (they can do both really expertly)
The Ezra Klein Show
This might be the most heady recommendation of the bunch but I think it’s really worth it. I don’t queue up every episode because some of them are more boring to me (lol) but there are many many conversations he has that blow me away. Like I continue to think about and quote them for weeks after. I think Ezra Klein is up there for me as one of our more prolific and brilliant thinkers and he is an INCREDIBLE podcast host. I admire how interested he is in each of his guests and I think it really shines through in the quality of each episode.
Closet Confessions
I cannot explain to you how funny the two hosts are together. This is one of those rare podcasts where I will LAUGH OUT LOUD as I’m listening. They’re British so the banter is next level. Candice and Sarel just have the secret sauce; they go deep and serious one minute, and then light and jokes the next. It’s the cliche of ‘they feel like your friends’, but I’M SORRY IT’S TRUE. Someone recommended this to me randomly last year and I gave it a listen and almost instantly I was hooked.
There you have it! Nine podcasts that are firmly in my rotation this season. Please let me know what you think and if you have feedback, thoughts, recommendations. Recommending podcasts to people and hearing their reactions is my love language so please do report back.
Thank you (and also, I really do want to get back into this Substack so expect more posts 🤞🏼)
-Miriam
Thanks for the recs - adding to the rotation. I love Normal Gossip podcast