Audio Up Media

Audio Up Media is a podcast studio and network in Los Angeles, California, founded in 2020 by Jared Gutstadt. Its collaborators include Stephen King,[1] James Ellroy,[2] Machine Gun Kelly,[3] Michael Cohen,[4] Anthony Anderson,[5] Miranda Lambert,[6] JaVale McGee[7] Maejor,[8] Anna Delvey,[9] and Jason Alexander.[10]

Audio Up Media
TypePrivate
IndustryMusic and entertainment
Founded2020, United States
FounderJared Gutstadt
HeadquartersLos Angeles, California
Websitehttps://www.audioup.com/

The majority of podcasts are scripted musicals with original scores. "We start with the songs and then we build the stories around them," Gutstadt says.[11]

In 2020, Gutstadt was awarded Adweek's "Podcast Innovator of the Year" and "Podcast Producer of the Year."[12][13]

Investors include The Weeknd, Wassim “Sal” Slaiby, Larry Rudolph, Entertainment One CEO Darren Throop, producer Will Ward, and Howard Draft, as well as media companies SiriusXM, MGM/Amazon, Primary Wave and Reservoir Media[14][15][16]

History

In 2019, Gutstadt conceived the idea for podcast studio while recording Bear and a Banjo with Jason "Poo-Bear" Boyd.[17]

In what series narrator Dennis Quaid describes as "a true fiction of American music," Bear and a Banjo follows the unlikely duo of Bear (Boyd) and Banjo (Gutstadt), who are placed in pivotal moments of American musical history à la the 1994 film Forrest Gump.[18]

Bear and a Banjo was named one of Variety's Best Music Podcasts of 2019.[19] The accompanying album was produced by T Bone Burnett with a lyrical contribution from Bob Dylan.[20]

Notable Shows

Mea Culpa

In September 2020, Trump's former lawyer Michael Cohen launched the podcast Mea Culpa as part of his "redemption tour" with Audio Up and Meidas Touch.[21]

The podcast hosts a variety of guests including Ben Stiller, Rosy O'Donnell, and Stormy Daniels. It is hosted from Cohen's home where he is currently under house arrest. By August 2021, Mea Culpa received more than 10 million downloads.[22]

Make It Up as We Go

Released in October 2020, Audio Up's first scripted podcast follows the story of an aspiring young songwriter, played by Scarlett Burke, who moves to Nashville to chase her country music dreams.

Written by David Hudgins (Friday Night Lights, Parenthood, and Game of Silence) and Brooks Hudgins, Make It Up As We Go's cast also includes Billy Bob Thornton, Dennis Quaid, Craig Robinson and Bobby Bones. Lindsay Ell and Miranda Lambert make appearances as themselves in addition to contributing original music.[23]

A Webby Award nominee,[24] the show received a 4.8-star review on Apple Podcasts[25] before it was greenlit for a second season.[26]

Halloween in Hell

The four-part series, released in October 2020, features Machine Gun Kelly, 24kGoldn, Dana Dentata, iann dior and Phem who compete in a musical competition with the devil, played by Tommy Lee.

The podcast amassed over one million streams in its four-week run.[27] It also resulted in MGK's single "Love Race" which peaked at No. 9 on Billboard and was co-written by Gutstadt.[28]

Strawberry Spring

Stephen King partnered with Audio Up Media, iHeart Media, and producer Lee Metzger (The Voice) to create Strawberry Spring, a scripted podcast based on a story from King's 1978 collection Night Shift. The series follows a journalist (Garrett Hedlund) as he hunts for a serial killer named Springheel Jack. Upon its release Strawberry Spring went to No. 1 across all scripted podcast platforms and has stayed at No. 1 for the entirety of its run.[29]

Sonic Leap

Sonic Leap stars Hero the Band, Anthony Anderson, Donnell Rawlings, Trippie Redd, and Blanco Brown in a time-traveling scripted podcast about four brothers who were born in the wrong time in musical history. The show was conceived by Gutstadt and written and directed by Zach Selwyn for an April 2022 release.[30][31]

Uncle Drank: the Totally Hammered Podcast

The 8-part comedy music special stars Will Sasso as Uncle Drank, a free-spirited beach musician, who is "one-part Kenny Chesney and one-part Kenny Powers," and an accompanying album featuring Uncle Kracker, Snow, and Trinidad James.[32]

The podcast was released in August 2022 on Sirius XM with contributions from Luke Wilson, Brian Kelley of Florida Georgia Line, Chelcie Lynn, Kinky Friedman and Billy Zane.[33]

Hollywood Death Trip (2021)

Hollywood Death Trip stars famed crime-fiction writer James Ellroy (L.A. Confidential, The Black Dahlia) narrating his own true-life crime reporting of memorable mid-century murders.

The podcast was picked up by Audible Originals and was released on July 7, 2022.[34][35]

Playboy Interview (2021)

The series is based on the classic Playboy Interview, which started in 1962 with Alex Haley's conversation with Miles Davis.

The podcast features Rosanna Arquette as Betty Friedan, Taye Diggs as Muhammad Ali, Gael García Bernal as Salvador Dalí, Michael Shannon as Tennessee Williams, Shea Whigham as John Wayne, Maya Hawke as Helen Gurley Brown, Kevin Corrigan as Frank Sinatra, and Gina Gershon as Oriana Fallaci.[36][37]

Bedtime Stories of the Ingleside Inn (2022)

Jason Alexander stars as Mel Haber, the legendary owner of the Palm Springs Hollywood getaway "The Ingleside Inn." In what can be described as a historical musical fiction, Haber's autobiography served as a launching pad for this series, which was produced by Academy Award winner Michael Sugar (Spotlight) and co-stars Michael McKean, Richard Kind and more.

Haber was known to entertain guests like Frank Sinatra, Liz Taylor and more during his nearly 40-year-run as the sole owner of the establishment.[10]

References
  1. Ehrlich, Brenna (July 20, 2021). "Stephen King Gets into the Podcast Game With a Series Based on 'Night Shift'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved October 6, 2021.
  2. White, Peter (April 14, 2021). "James Ellroy Moves Into Podcasting With 'Hollywood Death Trip' Via Audio Up". Deadline. Retrieved October 6, 2021.
  3. "Machine Gun Kelly shares new collaboration with Tommy Lee and 24kGoldn". NME. November 13, 2020. Retrieved October 6, 2021.
  4. Mangan, Dan (March 2, 2021). "Former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen wields podcast in fight against ex-president". CNBC. Retrieved October 6, 2021.
  5. White, Peter (April 8, 2021). "Anthony Anderson To Lead Scripted Podcast 'Sonic Leap' From Audio Up". Deadline. Retrieved October 6, 2021.
  6. Hudak, Joseph (August 3, 2020). "Miranda Lambert to Detail Female Experience in Country Music in Scripted Podcast". Rolling Stone. Retrieved October 6, 2021.
  7. "JaVale McGee Explores His Alter Ego In His Podcast 'Finding Pierre'". UPROXX. August 25, 2020. Retrieved October 6, 2021.
  8. Perloff, Catherine (August 8, 2022). "Maejor Frequency Listened to the Universe to Create Podcast". www.adweek.com. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  9. White, Peter (May 30, 2023). "Fake Heiress Anna Delvey To Launch Weekly Podcast Series & Drop Debut Single". Deadline. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  10. White, Peter (May 12, 2021). "Jason Alexander & Lance Bass Lead Scripted Podcast 'Bedtime Stories Of The Ingleside Inn' For Audio Up & Sugar23". Deadline. Retrieved October 6, 2021.
  11. Willman, Chris (June 25, 2021). "Jared Gutstadt of Audio Up on the New Podcasting Revolution: 'We're Making Movies for Your Ears'". Variety. Retrieved October 6, 2021.
  12. "Jared Gutstadt of Audio Up Media named as Adweek's Podcast Innovator of the Year!". Primary Wave Music. October 27, 2020. Retrieved October 6, 2021.
  13. Griner, David; Gamboa, Julian (October 26, 2020). "Adweek's Podcasts of the Year for 2020". Retrieved October 6, 2021.
  14. Hayes, Dade (May 7, 2020). "MGM Takes Stake In Audio Up, A Podcast Producer And Network". Deadline. Retrieved October 6, 2021.
  15. "Audio Up Rides the Wave". HITS Daily Double. Retrieved October 6, 2021.
  16. Spangler, Todd (December 15, 2022). "Podcast Media Company Audio Up Raises Nearly $10 Million in Series C Funding". Variety. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  17. "Learn All About the 'Bear and a Banjo' Podcast, Starring a Fake Band Playing New Music Throughout History". Billboard. Retrieved October 6, 2021.
  18. Mamo, Heran (October 21, 2019). "Learn All About the 'Bear and a Banjo' Podcast, Starring a Fake Band Playing New Music Throughout History". Billboard. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  19. Trakin, Roy (December 23, 2019). "The Best Music Podcasts of 2019". Variety. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  20. Thomas, Victoria (December 6, 2019). "'Bear and a Banjo' Soundtrack Releases "Gone But Not Forgotten," Featuring Lyrics by Bob Dylan". American Songwriter. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  21. "Michael Cohen launches podcast; Rosie O'Donnell is 1st guest". ABC News. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
  22. "Michael Cohen Crosses 10 Million Mark With 'Mea Culpa.'". Insideradio.com. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
  23. "Lindsay Ell's Love of Podcasts Drew Her Deep Into the Country Musical 'Make It Up As We Go'". American Songwriter. November 19, 2020. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
  24. "New Webby Gallery + Index". New Webby Gallery + Index. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
  25. "Make It Up As We Go on Apple Podcasts". Apple Podcasts. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
  26. Hocker, Lauren (September 20, 2021). "Edit File: Scarlett Burke". nashvilleedit.com/. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
  27. Dowd, Rachael (November 13, 2020). "Hear MGK join Tommy Lee and 24kGoldn for new collab "Climb"". Alternative Press. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
  28. "Machine Gun Kelly". Billboard. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
  29. Angermiller, Michele Amabile (September 24, 2021). "Stephen King's 'Strawberry Spring' Podcast Enlists Poo Bear for Original Song, Score". Rolling Stone. Retrieved October 1, 2021.
  30. Millman, Ethan (June 25, 2021). "How to Break a New Artist: Start a Fiction Podcast?". Rolling Stone. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  31. Sonic Leap.
  32. Paltrowitz, Darren (October 13, 2022). "Will Sasso On The New Audio Up Podcast "The Ballad Of Uncle Drank," Conrad Thompson, Guest-Hosting For WWE & More". The Hype Magazine. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  33. Willman, Chris (August 18, 2022). "Audio Up's 'Uncle Drank' Comedic Country Podcast Gets Beachy With Luke Wilson, FGL's Brian Kelley, Uncle Kracker Aboard". Variety. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  34. Sawyer, Miranda; @msmirandasawyer (July 10, 2022). "James Ellroy: 'I'm trying to have a strong third act. I'm in competition with Philip Roth'". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  35. White, Peter (September 8, 2021). "James Ellroy Adapting His 'American Tabloid' Novel Into Scripted Podcast Series With Audio Up". Deadline. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  36. White, Peter (June 24, 2021). "Rosanna Arquette, Taye Diggs, Gael Garcia Bernal, Maya Hawke To Star In 'Playboy Interview' Podcast". Deadline. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
  37. McGahan, steve appleford and Jason (January 19, 2023). "Playboy's Iconic Interviews Come Roaring Back to Life". LAmag - Culture, Food, Fashion, News & Los Angeles. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
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