I enjoy learning new things, but not being a regular student sometimes can make me feel like I am not learning enough. So, I dabbled with listening to podcasts.
Honestly, I did not think I would get into being a regular listener because I thought they were just boring, monotone radio stations. But, I think the podcast world is expanding rather rapidly.
On my commute to and from work I can break up a simple part of my routine by listening to a variety of storytellers, and I can learn some new information – whether that information is useful or fairly useless is unimportant to me. I am now a regular listener to some of my favorite podcasts, but finding the right ones to listen to was a bit of a challenge, at first.
Here are a few of my favorite podcasts, ranging in topics of comedy, thrilling true crime, investigations, language and news. Once you find your niche, discovering new shows can be fun and definitely offer a break from the noise of everyday life.
1. Small Town Murder
By far, my favorite podcast. I actually discovered this one on Spotify scrolling through the “comedy” tab. Obviously, seeing a true crime podcast under the “comedy” category caught my attention.
Yes, it is a true crime show, and it is told by two comedians from Phoenix. They remind me of a modern version of Statler and Waldorf (the two heckling characters from the "Muppets.")
How can murder and comedy go together? The narrator, James Pietragallo, shares statistics on the town of the week and tells us the details of the murder – from important backstories of victims and killers to the entire investigation and trials.
His co-host, Jimmie Whisman, seems to be hearing the information for the first time, making the comedy aspect genuine and hilarious. Nothing is scripted, and when these two get going, you will find yourself laughing out loud (and receive a few worried glares from other drivers when they see you laughing alone at a red light.)
One thing to mention is that you do have to have a fairly dark sense of humor (which is what drew me in.) The hosts never make fun of victims and family members, instead, focusing all heckling on the perpetrators and idiotic police investigations and courtroom drama.
2. Cults
True crime is a serious fascination of mine. As a psychology major in college, the idea that free-thinking human beings can become so brainwashed to believe and devote their lives to cult leaders, like Charles Manson, is so interesting.
This podcast gives in-depth information on the childhood of famous cult leaders, what caused these leaders to need to control other people, how they became so popular within mainstream society and their eventual demise, or fall from power.
We know some of the stories of the Manson Family, but I found out eerie and interesting details of his upbringing that I had never really heard about until listening to Cults.
3. Bodega Boys
As I have mentioned in the past, I love the television channel, “VICELAND,” because of their interesting and large variety of shows.
Desus and Mero have a show on “VICELAND” that is similar to that of other late night shows such as, "The Daily Show with Trevor Noah," "The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon" and "Late Night with Seth Meyers."
But, these two comedians add a chill and relatable element to the whole show.
They give us news and current events, with jokes.
Desus Nice and THE KID MERO use a similar delivery tactic in "Bodega Boys" as they do on “VICELAND,” except they don’t broadcast the same content featured on their television show, which is what makes this podcast fresh and entertaining.
4. How Did This Get Made?
A panel of popular comedians, Paul Scheer, June Diane Raphael and Jason Mantzoukas — sometimes featuring guest comedians — watch and then review some terribly made, obscure movies.
I have not heard of many of the movies that they talk about, but that doesn’t matter. Sometimes it is funnier not knowing about the movie because the extensive synopsis that we hear from the podcast is focused totally on the details from the hosts and some short audio clips from the actual movies.
They speculate the origin and rationalization of how these movies were ever pitched well enough to actually make it onscreen, asking the important question, "have you ever seen a movie so bad that it's amazing?"
5. Mental Illness Happy Hour
Listening to these topics and stories from other people who experience symptoms of mental illness can be oddly therapeutic.
I feel like I am not alone in some of my irrational thinking and find that my anxious habits are not as weird as I feel like they are.
On another note, learning more about different mental illnesses and how individuals express their symptoms not only offers interesting learning material but also shows listeners just how some symptoms of mental illness are expressed that may not be “textbook” behavior.
If you need an emotional pick-me-up, this podcast offers some great insight and can be quite empowering.
6. And That’s Why We Drink
“…The world is a scary place, and that’s why we drink.”
This podcast has a little bit of everything; two friends, sharing ghost stories and drinking two of the greatest drinkable inventions—wine and milkshakes.
Em and Christine, the hosts, offer details of true crime, creepy stories about ghostly encounters and murder.
They also give us some comedic relief because that’s what happens when friends get together and drink (wine, milkshakes or whatever, we're not picky) while trying to share serious details.
7. CoffeeBreak Languages [French]
This one is not particularly funny or overly dramatic, but it is helpful. The podcast is hosted by a guy with a heavy Scottish accent—which helps keep my attention—but he can certainly speak clear and fluid French like he was a native Frenchman.
What I love about this podcast is that the lessons are easy to understand and they are only about 20 minutes long. You can get your mind away from the tasks you have to complete by the end of the day and learn something new at the same time. This will help your mind relax and offer an energizing effect to get you to the end of your day, all tasks checked off of your to-do list.
Another cool part of this podcast is that Coffee Break has multiple podcasts that teach other languages. I know some French from studying it in college, but I need to polish up what I learned before I forget it all. This podcast helps me remember what I learned and then some. I also think that this podcast is great for beginners who have never learned a new language.
8. The Daily Show with Trevor Noah (Ears Edition)
This is basically the same show that is televised on Comedy Central, but you hear the uncensored version, don’t have to wait for commercials to end and get to hear the off-air content.
I typically do not watch "The Daily Show" because I fall asleep before I get to watch any of it or I lose track of time and miss it entirely. I love that the “Ears Edition” gives me the freedom to listen wherever I am, and I don’t waste time listening to pointless commercials.
I usually listen to the episode I missed the night before while I am getting ready in the morning, which puts me in a better mood because I started my day with news and jokes.
OK, so now that you have a decent list of podcasts to try out, just give some shows a shot and start listening.
You don’t need to listen to these shows if they are not interesting to you, but I do recommend that you scroll through the extensive lists and categories on your favorite streaming site.
I personally use Spotify for a few of the shows that I mentioned, and then was introduced to the app, “CastBox,” which is a really great source for thousands of free podcasts, all in one place.
I had a slightly difficult time finding shows that I liked, at first, because I would start a podcast and not like it, but I promise that you will find something interesting with the endless varieties of podcasts that are out there.
