Do people actually like live podcasts? Live podcasts are a thing, which is both a super non-observant thing to say and also a weird thing to truly think about. It’s hard to adequately — or fairly — discuss a proxy to compare it to, because nothing would quite do it justice. For example, you listen to music, so it’s not weird to see your favorite band play live in concert. But without celebrity fanfare, the simplest way to describe a live podcast is you’re watching two or more people talk to each other about a given topic. Nothing about the statement really screams “spectator sport!” This is a reason I’ve held off for so long without seeing a live podcast. I didn’t get it.

Until SXSW earlier this month, when I saw not one, but two live podcasts. Though there were some similarities, the two podcasts were extremely different examples of what you could and should expect from the experience. With SXSW in town, there were loads of live podcasts to choose from, but I ended up going to Pod Save America and The Bill Simmons Podcast with Bill Hader as his guest.

I understand why live podcasts exist. They’re a great money maker for popular podcasters akin to a band going on tour. They’re also a good venue to engage with fans, and especially for Pod Save America (and other political podcasts), a good way to localize the conversation. Make money, engage with fans, rinse and repeat.

But again, do people like live podcasts? Only a small fraction of people get to attend the live podcast while the vast majority get FOMO and listen to a poor quality episode. So what exactly is the point?

Attending a Live Podcast

Pod Save America

I saw Pod Save America at the Austin City Limits Live theater with more than 2,000 other people. It’s not exactly an intimate experience. Last time I was there I saw Dave Chappelle. For every podcast analyst talking about how podcasts are the ultimate intimate content medium, this venue didn’t support that. Pod Save America started at 7pm and Lovett or Leave It started at 10:30pm in the same venue therefore everything was regimented and not free-flowing as you might expect.

I’ll also say the “seams” were visible throughout the podcast. It wasn’t hard to see how choreographed and outlined their conversation was. With five co-hosts on stage at the same time, combined with rigid time limits, I get why their conversation had to be so structured. In order to discuss everything they wanted to, play games, take audience Q&A, and interview their guest, it HAD to be pre-ordained. However, for a podcast — any podcast really — that’s successful because of the hosts natural conversation and chemistry, I think this dampered the experience.

Host Jon Favreau was the conductor. Armed with an iPad on his lap, he dictated the prompts and what I imagine are the talking points, to the front monitor for the rest of the hosts to play off of. He also played the role of moderator, often calling on specific hosts to answer or chime in on specific questions. The added technology is also likely crucial for them as a political podcast to self fact-check before speaking to the audience. Either way, to a cynical audience member (read: me), it wasn’t hard to picture them meeting like a pre-game professional wrestling match. “First you say this, then I’ll come back and say this, then you’ll chime in and say that.”

The real MVP of the night was Jon Lovett, the unquestionable comedian of the group. Without his ad-libbed quips and witty banter to bring the talking points into a comprehensive conversation, I wonder if the live podcast would receive more criticism.

My favorite part of the night is when Congressman Beto O’Rourke joined Favreau and Dan Pfeiffer on stage for an interview. O’Rouke had just won the Democratic Senate primary that week and will now face Ted Cruz for a Texas Senate seat. In liberal-leaning Austin, he was immediately a fan favorite. This was the only time of the night I felt like the conversation was natural and not predetermined. O’Rourke was insightful, sympathetic, charming, and articulate in every way you’d want and expect from a rising politician. He also wasn’t afraid to joke around and poke fun at himself and his opponents.

Overall, it was an entertaining experience — both unexpected and not surprising at the same time.  

The Bill Simmons Podcast

Seeing the Bill Simmons Podcast was an entirely different experience for numerous reasons. For starters, Simmons held his podcast at the Vox-hosted SXSW party, The Deep End, a free weekend-long party. You didn’t even need to have a SXSW badge. What this amounted to is likely familiar to anyone who’s attended SXSW in the past: a very long line.

In order to ensure I could get a good spot, I arrived to the party around 2:30pm for the expected podcast start time of 4:00pm. Simmons didn’t start until 4:45pm. So yes, I waited over two hours to watch two people sit around and talk to each other.

Despite the long lines and wait time, the setting was more ideal for a podcast. Showing up early ended up being the right call, the podcast lounge (inside the party) only held around 75 people or so. The open bar didn’t hurt either. Not worried by time limit, obviously, combined with the increased flexibility of a two-person podcast (one of whom happens to be Bill Hader) allowed the podcast to be much more free-flowing and conversational. Which, in my opinion, resulted in a more enjoyable experience. Also, Bill Hader is a national treasure.

Listening to a Live Podcast

Opposed to podcast trailers, I actually listen to live podcast episodes …. but I don’t want to. It turns out the investments you make on quality podcast mics and a studio, combined with the countless hours you spend mixing and editing the podcast make it better. Who knew?

I will add the caveat that I think maybe one out of every ten or so live studio albums is good. This could be a personal problem.

Adjectives I’ve heard complimenting live podcast episodes include “raw”, “real”, “unscripted”, and “authentic.” I’d argue “raw” isn’t necessarily a good thing for all the reasons I outlined in the previous paragraph. I’d also say if you’re describing a particular live podcast as “real” or “authentic”, does this mean the inverse is also true? The non-live episode isn’t real or authentic? If so, maybe you should reevaluate that specific podcast. And lastly, I think “unscripted” is debatable. From my (admittedly) limited experience seeing live podcasts, my hunch is that they are no more or no less scripted live than they would be in a studio. Also, for podcasts with a regimented time schedule like my experience with Pod Save America, they might be even more scripted than usual.

To make sure I wasn’t alone I conducted a perfectly scientific Twitter poll to temperature gauge how others felt as well. In hindsight, I should have phrased the question differently. Instead of asking whether you listen or not, I should have asked about preferences.

Only 41% of those polled said they enjoy listening to live podcast episodes. So what does this mean? Where do we go from here? In an industry starved for additional revenue routes, I’m surely not advocating podcasters stop going on tour. That said, I do think there needs some proactive thoughts and measures to the far greater chunk of their audience who’s unable to attend live. Ensure quality sound and spend time editing like you would for any other episode.

Related posts:

Podcasts: The New Talk Radio? If You Love That, You’ll Enjoy This (Podcast Recommendations) The 10 Best Patriotic American Podcasts for Fourth of July
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