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Gone are the days of leafing through magazines to learn intimate details about your favorite actor, actress, TV host, singer, or girl group. Nowadays, fans can feel closer to celebrities through various social media channels, from Twitter to Instagram to YouTube.
Celebrities have also entered the realm of podcasting, making their accessibility and ubiquity ever-increasing. As someone who’s taken the time to listen to some of these celebrity-hosted podcasts, I can honestly say many of them are worth the hour-long listen on a regular basis.
The content is what’s most surprising about celebrity-hosted podcasts, as well as the amount of thought and organization that goes into each episode and every show. There’s very little juicy gossip that might make Perez Hilton salivate. Instead, I’m loving the in-depth interviews with exciting guests, amusing banter between friends, and interesting behind-the-scenes on shows and movies they were on. You too might be surprised at what you might discover about your favorite famous person in these celebrity-hosted podcasts.
Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard
For me, the show that started my intrigue in celebrity-hosted podcasts is Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard. The comedian, who appeared in on-screen titles such as Zathura: A Space Adventure and Parenthood, found his biggest success in his attic while interviewing fellow celebrities like his wife Kristen Bell, authors like Yuval Harari, and field experts such as Jane Goodall.
Like many celebrity-hosted podcasts, it follows an interview format and has episodes that range from 60 to 120 minutes. Yes, an episode of Armchair Expert really runs that long but the engaging and deep conversation between Dax, co-host Monica Padman, and their esteemed guests just whizzes by. His humor puts even the most serious of guests at ease, and makes the topics—which range from parenting to world issues, like global warming—easy to digest even for non-experts (or non-armchair experts) like me.
Listen here on Spotify:
Talking Sopranos
There’s a growing genre in podcasts: rewatch podcasts. In case you haven’t encountered any, it’s a show where the hosts discuss every episode of a certain show. Rewatch podcasts are best hosted not by fans but by people who actually worked on a television series—and what better place to start than one of the most TV shows of all time, The Sopranos?
If you’re a fan of the hit HBO crime drama about a mobster who seeks therapy, Talking Sopranos is going to be your next favorite in a growing sub-genre of celebrity-hosted podcasts. Every episode is helmed by Michael Imperioli, who played Christopher Moltisanti, and Steve Schirripa, who was Bobby Baccalieri in the show. The two actors not only take a deep dive into every single episode of The Sopranos, they also interview castmates, directors, and other crew members who helped make the show happen. If you want to geek out to The Sopranos, this is the celebrity-hosted podcast for you.
Listen here on Spotify:
I Weigh with Jameela Jamil
Jameela Jamil’s career as a radio host for BBC has equipped her with the necessary skills to command a podcast—and a hit one at that. And her activism has given her a plethora of important topics to discuss.
On I Weigh with Jameela Jamil, the multi-talented performer adds her point of view to necessary conversations concerning women’s health and wellness, feminism, racial inclusivity, and success. Though the show is a celebrity-hosted podcast, the episodes never make you feel alienated. Jameela’s experiences and her guests’ are as relatable as a friend’s or your own, and the podcast feels like it’s a discussion unfolding in someone’s living room.
Listen here on Spotify:
Office Ladies
Looking for another rewatch podcast or just an entertaining celebrity-hosted podcast? Jenna Fischer and Angela Kinsey, a.k.a. Office Ladies, are here to satisfy your needs. The two The Office alums, who rose to fame as Pam Beesly and Angela Martin in the sitcom, break down every episode of the show in their rewatch podcast. The celebrity-hosted podcast also welcomes many, many interesting guests—from co-stars and guest stars like Steve Carell, producers Mike Schur and Greg Daniels, and superfans like Billie Eilish.
If you’re a The Office geek like me, Office Ladies is the celebrity-hosted podcast you need for your next rewatch. How else are you going to learn interesting tidbits, like the fact that Dwight’s exercise ball wasn’t supposed to explode? Or that scenes from the episode Diversity Day were actually used in an instructional video what not to do in a workplace? Or that the whiteboard contained hidden messages?
Listen here on Spotify:
Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend
Conan O’Brien’s quick wit and thoughtfulness make him a natural behind the desk of talk shows. To my genuine surprise, these qualities also translate well in a podcast that doesn’t tell the audience when to laugh and to hold for applause.
His weekly podcast, Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend, is a delight to listen to even if you weren’t a fan of late night talk shows. He interviews many famous people, making this one of the most star-studded celebrity-hosted podcasts ever. I’ve listened to episodes featuring known friends of his like Bill Hader and Mila Kunis to award-winning actors like Bryan Cranston. Unlike talk shows, the conversations aren’t scripted and the episodes digress into unexpected territories between friends just having a good time.
The show also has shorter episodes featuring guests who aren’t famous, which are categorized as Conan O’Brien Needs A Fan. People from all walks of life get interviewed by Conan about anything and everything. And honestly, they’re every bit as entertaining and funny as the substantial celebrity interviews, which only speaks volumes of Conan O’Brien’s enviable ability to hold a conversation with anyone.
Listen here on Spotify:
Celebrity-hosted podcasts are definitely gaining steam as its own subgenre. They are surprisingly well-structured, thought-provoking, and endlessly entertaining for people who can’t get enough of celebrity culture. Although these five are my current go-to shows, I’ve also started listening to Scam Goddess, Storytime with Seth Rogen, Questlove Supreme, Dua Lipa: At Your Service, and SmartLess. The list of celebrity-hosted podcasts to listen to is getting longer every year, and I can’t wait to see what else famous people have in store for fans.
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