Pod-Alization: Spotify Gets "Distractible"; Ambie Award Winners; *IN SYNC Podcast Premieres In April

  Spotify announces partnership with “Distractible” and “Go! My Favorite Sports Team” podcasts

Spotify has announced an exclusive video partnership with hit podcaster and content creator Markiplier of “Distractible” and “Go! My Favorite Sports Team.” A first for both podcasts, video episodes will launch exclusively on Spotify, with “Distractible” video episodes available to stream on the platform starting today.

Markiplier, Wade Barnes, and Bob Muyskens will continue as hosts of the chart-topping comedy podcast “Distractible,” with Markiplier and Tyler Scheid hosting the sports companion podcast, “Go! My Favorite Sports Team.” All back catalog and future audio episodes for both podcasts will remain widely available. As part of the deal, Markiplier will also launch additional exclusive video content on Spotify. 

“Distractible” has been a widely popular podcast on the Spotify platform, where it reached the #1 spot on Spotify’s podcast charts the week it first debuted on the platform in May 2021 and continues to consistently remain in top charts. “Distractible” is inspired by Markiplier, Barnes, and Muyskens’ gaming livestreams, where the trio exchange stories and funny, often thought-provoking, off-kilter discussions that have garnered a cult following of deeply loyal fans.

Since launching in 2022, Markiplier and Scheid’s podcast “Go! My Favorite Sports Team” has also built a rabid fanbase. The comedic, irreverent show provides diehard sports fans and novices alike with entertaining commentary on the world of sports, through the complementary viewpoints of Markiplier, “the guy who doesn’t know sports,” and Scheid, who has a master’s degree in Sports Administration.

 In addition to being a top podcaster, Markiplier is one of the most-followed creators on YouTube, where he has been sharing a mixture of gaming-related content, animated videos, comedy sketches, and vlogs under the name Markiplier since 2012. His videos include frequent collaborations with longtime friends and fellow creators Barnes (LordMinion777) and Muyskens (muyskerm), with the trio known in particular for their gaming livestreams, which were the original inspiration for the “Distractible” podcast.

Ambie Award Winners presented -- "And the winner is..."

 The Podcast Academy, a group of 1,000-plus industry creators and executives, awarded Campside Media and Sony Music Entertainment’s Chameleon: Wild Boys with the top honor at this year’s 2023 Ambie Awards.

The ceremony was hosted by comedian Larry Wilmore in Las Vegas’ Westgate Resort and Casino and live-streamed on Twitch. Earlier in the evening, Lava for Good’s Bone Valley and Sonoro and Futuro Studios’ Ídolo: The Ballad of Chalino Sánchez both received two awards (Bone Valley in the documentary and reporting categories, Ídolo in the nonfiction scriptwriting and society and culture categories), making them tied as the most-awarded shows of the evening.

Though Audible entered the evening with the most nominations, the audio company was shut out at this year’s awards ceremony.

The Podcast Academy also honored Stuff You Should Know with the governors award in recognition of the show’s impact on the industry. Appearing onstage with producer Jeri Rowland and co-host Josh Clark, Stuff You Should Know host Chuck Bryant said it was “fun to see how far the medium has gone” since the show first launched in 2008.

 The iHeartPodcast Awards are returning in 2023, and once again, the very best in podcasting will be celebrated during the annual awards show on March 14th.

 Some of my favorite categories include:

Best Knowledge, Science or Tech Podcast

Climate of Change
In Machines We Trust
IRL: Online Life is Real Life
Ted Radio Hour (WINNER)
Threshold
Unexplainable (Should Have Won)
Why It Matters

Best Interview Podcast

9 to 5ish with theSkimm
Design Matters with Debbie Millman
Direct Deposit
Rethinking (For me, a close second)
The Assignment with Audie Cornish (WINNER)
The Lede
Why Is This Happening? The Chris Hayes Podcast

 Best History Podcast

Against The Odds
Fiasco: The AIDS Crisis
History Daily
One Year: 1986 (great concept; great execution)
Reclaimed: The Story of Mamie Till Mobley
Slow Burn: Roe v. Wade (WINNER)
SNAFU with Ed Helms

 

 *IN SYNC podcast premieres in April and plays a sweet melody

 Great moments in TV and film are often punctuated and accentuated by the accompanying music not written for that piece of content. Think of the long-running and water-cooler popular The Sopranos on HBO. Season one, episode seven featured the song, White Rabbit by Jefferson Airplane to depict the hopelessness of drug addiction. In the sixth and final season and last episode of the show, Don't Stop Believin' by Journey plays as the screen fades to black, and Tony Soprano’s fate is left up to our own imagination.

So if you're into music in TV or film, a new podcast --*IN SYNC -- is a podcast for anyone who loves a perfect on-screen needle-drop. 

With their extensive experience in music and podcasting, cultural critic Rachel Brodsky and filmmaker/podcaster Aviv Rubinstien have joined forces to create the brand-new *IN SYNC Podcast. 

A historiography celebrating your favorite music moments in TV and film, *IN SYNC looks at one great song-to-screen sync per episode and breaks down the cultural impact. The co-hosts are often joined by guests, such as the music supervisors behind these highly memorable music moments. 

On April 11, Gotham West Studios will launch the first episode centered around Sia’s “Breathe Me” closing out cult TV show, Six Feet Under. Combining the masterful storytelling and the emotional power of music, *IN SYNC is an episodic deep dive into music history and fandom.

 Rachel Brodsky is a freelance culture writer, critic, and reporter living in Los Angeles. She is a staff writer/editor and Pop Columnist with Stereogum and was previously on staff with The Independent, Grammy.com, SPIN, and MTV. Her writing about music, TV, comedy, podcasts, film, gender, and lifestyle has been published by outlets including the LA Times, InStyle, The Guardian, Vulture, Nylon, GQ, UPROXX, Paste, Rolling Stone, Entertainment Weekly, and more.

Aviv Rubinstien is a Philly native filmmaker and podcaster living and working in Los Angeles. He has written and directed several genre-jumping feature films both in the United States and Southeast Asia. He teaches screenwriting and filmmaking at Emerson College, and Hussian College Los Angeles and formerly New York Film Academy, and the University of Rhode Island. Aviv leads a double life as a musician, lead singer of rock and roll band Jacob the Horse.

Celebrate your favorite music moments in TV and film with this new podcast. How do you separate the music from the content? For instance, the Steppenwolf song Born To Be Wild will be forever tied to the 1969 counterculture film Easy Rider.

 You don't. They're inexorably linked. Find out how and why on this upcoming podcast.

*IN SYNC launches on April 11 via Gotham West Studios. You can listen to the trailer and download the show now to your podcast feed.

How about Stuck In The Middle With You by Stealers Wheel in Quentin Tarantino's hit film Reservoir Dogs? Or Tubular Bells by Mike Oldfield for The Exorcist. The possibilities are endless.