My Favourite Podcasts Right Now | July 2019

Like most of the world, I have been bitten by the podcast bug.

I have gone through this a few times before though. I’ll finally think that I’ve understood how good podcasts are and add a heap to my library to binge listen, only to stop listening shortly after “falling in love”. I realised after a few attempts that I was just trying really hard to be into something everyone else was super into.

I didn’t get it. I wanted to get it, and I just couldn’t.

I found myself wondering if everyone was just talking shit in an effort to look cool instead of genuinely believing podcasts were the big thing. I fell victim to this myself a bit, writing a blog post a couple of years back talking about my favourite podcasts only to give up trying to love them like a week after putting that post live.

I did finally find the love for them though. 2019 has been the year of podcasts for me, and the reason why is really simple. I actually found things I enjoyed listening to. Sounds basic, but hear me out.

In the past I would just go and listen to all the top podcasts on the charts, figuring that they must be great because they’re at the top, and totally ignoring that content wise they really weren’t my thing. One day I decided to listen to The Daily because one of my favourite people online Madeleine Walker of ‘The Twenties Club’ talked about it constantly, and the topics always sounded interesting. I was hooked from the first listen. From that point I trusted her judgment, and listened to The High Low, a podcast she talked about with equal regularity to The Daily. Again I fell in love and from there it grew. I followed a big handful of podcasts based on recommendations from my very favourite bloggers, instagrammers and youtubers - the people whose content I consume daily already. I figured that since I enjoy what they put out into the world, the stuff that inspires them and that they find interesting would likely be as interesting.

It’s changed my life a bit. I can go for a run and hear about the daily news, drive to work and learn more about business, edit photos and listen to people I relate to chat about work and life, or cook dinner listening to discussions that challenge how we think about the world. And I enjoy all of it very genuinely, because it’s either done by or recommended by people whose content I already love. And honestly, I haven’t branched out much into the charts on my own. I have been following people based on recommendations thus far and it’s been working wonders, so why stop.

So for those of you who maybe haven’t been bitten by the podcast bug, I would take this approach. Find the people you follow elsewhere, and anytime they mention a podcast give it a try! I thought I would share a few of my favs in the hopes that I can do that for you, but if none of these take your fancy go for a snoop through your insta feed and see what you find!

‘The Daily’ by The New York Times

You will probably have heard of ‘The Daily’ being that it is such a heavily downloaded podcast and so many people load it up every morning to get their news fix.

‘The Daily’, run by the ever talented New York Times, dives into some of the most intense and topical news of the day, covering everything from the abortion restrictions in Alabama, to the political state of Europe.

It’s particularly greta because every episode focuses on one topic, doing a proper investigation into the topic and ensuring you come away better understanding not only what is happening but why.

‘The High Low’ by Dolly Alderton and Pandora Sykes

Dolly and Pandora, two of my favourite ladies on the internet, run one of my favourite weekly podcasts covering the news through to their loves of the week. Covering everything from the political landscape to the more light hearted, it is the perfect mix to make you feel like you’re engaging with the real world but with something a bit brighter to bring you back. Plus they have the best book recommendations, so if you’re a reader it’s worth listening to them chat just for that.

Their chemistry together is so charming and fun and as a result it always feels like you’re sitting having a glass of wine and a fat chat with friends. It’s a joy to listen to every week and I feel a bit lost when they take their month long breaks during the year.

‘Pretty Basic’ by Alisha Marie and Remi Ashton

Anyone who has been watching YouTube for a while will have heard of Alisha Marie or Remi Ashton. I consider them to both be part of the OG youtuber crew. If i’m honest though, I never really watched their content until very recently. They both recently changed a lot of the kind of content they were releasing, focusing more on being more themselves. It was at that point I began to relate to them, and even more once I started listening to their podcast and fell in love with their friendship dynamic.

Both of them are going through a lot of the same stuff I am so it’s the most wonderful, reassuring and motivating thing to listen to every week. Listening to these best friends cover things from relationships and friendships to the business of youtube makes you feel like you’re part of the friend group. I am, as I write this, half way through their latest episode and am very much looking forward to my commute home with them keeping me company.

‘Curious’ by Josh Peck (yes, the Josh Peck)

Josh Peck seems like one of the most genuine and charasmatic people ever, and the more I listen to this podcast the more firmly this opinion sticks for me. The concept of his podcast ‘Curious’ is that he just wants to have genuine conversations and ask all the questions he wonders about people, and their lives, so as to learn more about who they are and what they do. The questions he asks are really engaging, sometimes really personal, but always with the utmost respect for the person he is talking to, and always with real interest in the answer. From youtubers and traditional celebrities, to people from his life, the guests vary but every episode is interesting in its own right.

On the Line with Estee Lalonde

I’ve been half following Estee for a really long time (I know that sounds really bad, there are just so many people on YouTube I keep up with), but one of my favourite projects she has ever done is her podcast. I’m so genuinely interested, as she is, in the people she interviews and their stories, that I am as fixated on their answers as much as she is. It covers so many topics, but the ones I love the most are people who have started businesses so as to learn more about the process and what their experience with the whole thing has been like. Her guest list features more beauty, fashion and lifestyle people, from business owners to influencers, which is always a world I’ve found interesting. Just like Josh Peck though, she very genuinely wants to know the answers to all her questions and that is a big part of what makes it special.

What i’m trying next

Whilst I only have a few podcasts I listen to consistently, I have a bunch I have subscribed to that I’m really keen to try out. As I outlined in the beginning of this post, every time someone whose content I love recommends something or releases a podcast, I subscribe so I have something new to try when I’m out of podcasts for the week.

These are a few new ones that I’ve saved recently and am excited about trying. I’ll come back to you and let you know whether they make their way into the rotation!