Podcasts: Old-Fashioned or Refreshing?

Today I want to focus on a new hobby that I have discovered fairly recently which is listening to podcasts! I can't believe that I didn't start looking into them much earlier because I enjoy them so much now. I have to say, I don't listen to that many at the moment but the ones I do listen to, I can highly recommend!

The advantages of this format is that 1) you can do other things while listening, which is a huge plus if you compare it to watching videos. I always feel like, I miss important things when I watch YouTube videos but am not actally glued to my laptop screen. 2) The ones I listen to are either recorded by  people who I already know (from YouTube) and am interested in or they contain certain topics which I'm eager to learn about or hear other perspectives on. 3) They ususally have a well thought through structure which I find quite comfortable to listen to, and are less random as some videos might be. It's a nice format to hear about any kind of topic which, at least in the podcasts that I will present to you here, really make you think. They are more than just some content that you'll pay no further attention too after it's finished. 

So, I hope you'll enjoy this post and potentially get to know some podcasts that you hadn't heard of before and might spark an interest!

1. Ladies Who Lunch

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Now, this is thefirst podcast I ever listened to, which was about a year ago. I found it through one of the hosts, Ingrid Nilsen, who is also a YouTuber who I have followed for years. Herself and Cat Valdes used to upload a new episode every week about many topics around social life and mental struggles. I think, they are on a break at the moment as I haven't seen new episodes for quite some time, but still, there are over 60 episodes you can listen to if you are interested. The topics range from relationships, friendships, identity, sexuality to mental health and so many more. Each episode is nicely structured, the two hosts take their topics very seriously, they bravely share their knowledge and experience, provide advice for their listeners and even invite knowledgable guests to their show. What I like most about this podcast is the way they choose their topics and inform themselves about them in great detail. It feels like a very professional and yet intimate conversation which I believe can potentially help many people who are in similar situations in life and need some advice but don't want to seek professional help just yet or are scared to talk about it with the people in their lives.

2. At Home With

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This is a podcast by Lily Pebbles and Anna Newton (alias The Anna Edit on YouTube), which first season launched this year. It contains ten episodes in which they visit famous #girlbosses in their homes and discuss topics like their career path, passions, holy grail products and their homes. If you listen to it on acast.com, you can also look at the photos that are added during the episode, which show different corners of the current home the episode is set in and are a nice extra feature for nosy people like me. Unfortuntely, since there are only ten episodes available at the moment, I desparately wait for another season to listen to but until then, I guess we have to be patient. Each episode follows a rough structure but otherwise the hosts follow the natural way the conversation leads which gives the impression of a not too planned and artificial course, giving their podcast a very nice and casual vibe. I love Anna's and Lily's personalities anyway, which is why I have watched them also for many years on YouTube and from time to time check out their blogposts, and this is why I would recommend listening to everyone who is interested in learning about the lives of very successful females and potentially getting to know them as additional examples to emulate or take inspiration from.

3. Happy Mum Happy Baby

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No, I'm not a mum, I won't be a mum any time soon but I love learning everything about pregnancy, babies, motherhood and parenting, and I have always imagined one day having a family myself. I find these topics so interesting and eye-opening and many different categories included in this particular podcasts are still taboo topics in todays society or are being airbrushed. This leads to many parents thinking they are failing at parenting or they aren't giving their child what it needs because they don't know that every single parent is struggling at one point or another with something but they just don't talk about it and instead pretend to have it all figured out on the outside. 

This podcast is hosted by Giovanna Fletcher, bestselling author, YouTuber, mother, and wife of Tom Fletcher, who many might know from his band McFly. The podcast is actually named after her first non-fiction book of the same name, which I think came out this year as well. I don't actually know her (what you would consider "know" from social media) as the other presenters I mentioned earlier but she seems to be a very lovely person who I'm happy I found - better late than never, right? In each episode, she invites a mother, who she discusses different topics with, all about motherhood. The first season has just ended with one episode left for me to listen to, including her husband as her guest - I tend to mostly find podcasts which are currently not being continued or just finished, don't I! To every baby-crazy person who reads this, I highly recommend listening!

4. The Heart of It

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A fairly new podcast hosted by Estée Lalonde, another YouTuber and blogger who I have been following for years, who discusses various topics on this podcast. Each episode is dedicated to a certain topic which is meaningful to her and might be interesting to many people to hear about. They all include a segment in which she interviews a guest about this topic. My favourit episodes so far are called Feminism, Strenght and Identity. She posts a new one every week and I'm excited for the next one. Because the podcast doesn't necessarily follow a certain common thread, every week is a surprise! Another difference to the other podcasts mentioned in this post is that The Heart of It is more or less a one-woman-show with only segments of guest appearances that are incorporated into her format so that it gives her the opportunity of commenting on the conversation multiple times during the conversation without disrupting the interview, and reflecting on the other person's perspectives afterwards. Thumbs up from me, Estée!

5. The Show People Podcast

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Another topic entirely to the ones mentioned before: the Show Business! I don't know about you but musical theatre is a topic which I'm very interested in. I have only seen two musicals so far which were The Lion King in Hamburg and Starlight Express in Bochum. I have also seen and own the DVD of Les Miserables and love the soundtrack. I do have a thing for musical songs and love the experience to see them. When I saw The Lion King, I knew the songs because who hasn't seen the film? - but the atmosphere is just something else. The actors dedicate themselves so much for their parts and the way in which they sing their songs are mind-blowing and overwhelming (I have to admit, I actually cried during that performance and I'm not ashamed!) It was amazing and I would definitely go and see it again, maybe in English next time. Starlight Express, (weirdly I don't remember much of at all although it wasn't as long ago as The Lion King) has also been a nice experience and I'm hugely impressed by the rollerskating skills of the actors, I wasn't as impressed by the storyline, I guess. It's less emotional/overwhelming as I imagine musicals as Wicked, Les Miserables, or Billy Elliot to be and I think, I'd enjoy this aspect of a show the most. I notice, I'm rambling.

Back to the topic: In this podcast, host Andrew Keates invites a guest to each episode, who is part of the show industry, to talk about their career path and topics associated with the industry. The episodes have a fixed structure but this makes them very easy to follow and incorporate some fun as well. I found this still young podcast only about two weeks ago since his current guest at the time was Rob Houchen, who I knew of before (again from YouTube) and I saw a tweet saying that he was part of the podcast. Since then, I listened to every single episode that is available to date although I didn't know a single one of the other guests before but the conversation and the topics are just so interesting to be and I don't think you would hear about them in too many other places.

So if you are enjoying the world of theatre and hearing about topics related to it as much as I do, check it out!

Concluding, I must say that podcasts are by no means an old-fashioned, irrelevant format but actually a resource for knowledge and entertainment with topic options for everyone!
Finally, if you think, "Well, podcasts have been around forever. Why have you not heard of a lot of them before?", then please tell me if you know and listen to the ones I have mentioned above, or tell me about your favourites or ones which you think I should check out! I'd love to know!

♥