PodMov Daily: Friday, September 20

Episode 48: Your Friday Freestyle

The Artistic Multimedia Podcasting of London’s Beloved George the Poet

George Mpanga, better known as George the Poet, is one of the UK’s brightest stars in the arts. The rapper and spoken word artist’s show Have You Heard George’s Podcast? swept the 2019 British Podcast Awards, winning five categories in total. The show is “a genre-defying piece of audio that pushes the limits of what a podcast can be,” writes Tara Joshi for the New York Times.

After being disappointed that an episode of NPR’s How I Built This lasted only 30 minutes, Mpanga came to a realization: “Podcasting is how you position yourself so that people listen for longer and listen deeper.” Joshi’s profile of the Poet covers the fascinating figure’s rise to prominence and recent performance at the London Podcast Festival.

Cryptocurrency Podcasting: Peter McCormack on What Bitcoin Did

Peter McCormack, host of What Bitcoin Did, has done “especially well” as one of the cryptocurrency industry’s podcasters. The show has seen more than 2 million downloads since its launch in the latter half of 2017. Forbes contributor Benjamin Pirus interviewed McCormack about the intersection of cryptocurrency and podcasting, secrets to success, and why in-person interviews are worth the effort.

“If you’re just going to do the same set of interviews everyone else has done, you’re going to struggle to steal market shares,” McCormack says. “Just asking questions doesn’t make you an interviewer.” Acts of preparation and patience, like “studying interview crafting and different ways to construct” the conversation, are worth much more.

Take a Hike: Mark Your Audio On the Move with EditPoint

Ah, the endless benefits of stepping away from the computer. Matthew McLean of The Podcast Host explains and reviews EditPoint, an iOS app that allows creators to edit with their ears rather than their eyes. Its review interface has customizable “labelled buttons, which add timecoded markers like ‘too loud’, ‘lengthen gap,’ and ‘delete.’”

In addition to those making complex audio fiction projects, podcasters running long-form interviews could also find this tool “extremely useful,” McLean points out. “You could use EditPoint to review raw versions of interviews whilst out walking, highlighting everything that’s staying in, and everything that you’d like to tidy up or cut out.”

A Podcasting Moment of Peace: George’s Day Has Been Made

This Friday we leave you with a joyful video of gratitude from George the Poet. “I appreciate every single word that has ever been written about my podcast, but didn’t expect to make it to the New York Times.” George Mpanga’s story has value for every podcast creator and listener.

Congratulations, George, and to you, reader, for being part of the movement.

Love,

Team PM

Here’s what else is going on:

• For science: James Cridland of Podnews has shared a YouTube video in which he tries out Descript’s new Podcast Studio tool, “an audio editor that works like a word processor.” Narrating each step, Cridland shows how the program smoothly trims an audio recording.
• Deutschland ahoy: Acast’s Stefan Zilch, regional managing director for Germany, is confident that the platform’s “unique, established” tech will bring in paid subcribers. Zilch tells Red Herring: “I believe people will pay for content that they love — even if it’s just a euro or two.”
• High score: Film composer David Rosen finds that his podcast Piecing It Together has enriched his career in ways he had never imagined. Rosen speaks to Las Vegas Weekly about the show, which “analyzes movies through the lens of what other films might have inspired them.”
• Almighty dollar: Yet again, Ira Glass takes on the “interesting and difficult challenge” of public radio funding. Glass will run an experimental campaign on “about two dozen” stations. The pitch: Become a new sustaining member for a donation of just $1 per month.