Podcast Spotlight: Trends in Low Places

Have you ever seen a meme or something odd on social media that just left you scratching your head and saying, “how is this a thing?” Either I’m getting older and more out of touch, or the world is getting dumber with their trends. Both are probably true. Trends in Low Places is the podcast to discuss — and usually trash — these trends and fads. Think of it as the guiding light for today’s bullshit of entertainment.

Hosts Mike and Michael (don’t get them confused), discuss anything and everything ranging from RompHims to sex robots. The one thing they don’t like to talk about: Trump.

I’ve listened to several episodes and it’s as refreshing as advertised. It’s nice to listen to a light-hearted podcast and take a moment to rejoice in some of the most questionable popular trends. My only issue with the podcast is the name. Everytime I read or say “Trends in Low Places” the damn Garth Brooks song gets stuck in my head and I’m taken back to a seedy karoakee bar.

I got a chance to chat with Michael (not Mike) about the podcast and talk about where the idea came from, some of their least favorite trends, and how their podcasting journey is going. See below for our Q&A.

Listen: Apple Pocasts | Stitcher

Discover Pods: There has to be a good story behind how you decided to podcast about terrible current trends, right?

Michael: We have a slack channel with several of our friends where we will talk about random news stories that we find and trends on social media. We felt like we had a good thing going with that, and decided that we’d try a show that just looked at whatever topics were trending at any given moment and guess what it was based on the hashtag. In our first episode, we walked into accidentally making fun of One Direction’s Louis Tomlinson on the one-year anniversary of losing his mom to leukemia. After washing the egg off our face, we decided to put in a little more research and just talk about news stories and trends one of us has learned about.

DP: What are some current trends you simply can’t stand?

Michael: Trump. We try to avoid talking about The Cheetoed One unless it’s something really funny. We could do every show ranting and making fun of politics but there are enough people doing that, and it gets old after a while. Also the Tide Pod thing. What the hell is wrong with people? We try to focus on stories that make us laugh and are not mean-spirited. We want the show to be an escape for us and our listeners.

DP: What’s something every podcaster should know before they make the plunge?

Michael: It’s insanely fun to do especially with a great friend as a co-host, but also a ton of work to get people other than your friends to listen to and connect with. You should also remember that your mom will listen to it at some point, so be prepared for that discussion

DP: What was unexpected you experienced in your early podcasting days?

Michael: We probably should have expected more technical difficulties than we did, but I think we got a little complacent at the start by just how easy it was to actually start and maintain a podcast. We’ve wound up losing a handful of episodes into the maw of editing software, hardware failures or just random Internet outages.

DP: What’s the biggest challenge you face as an indie podcast?

Michael: I’m sure everyone says promotion, but that’s probably it – and it’s a weird thing for us to worry about. When we started, we kind of figured that no one but our immediate friends would listen (and that would be out of pity). It’s really weird to us that anyone listens to us at all, and we’d probably still do it even if no one did. But as we actually started to get some traction and realized that people beyond that group seem to like what we’re doing, it’s been a struggle to push beyond that first wave of people we don’t know.

DP: What are your five favorite podcasts?

Michael:

1. My Brother, My Brother and Me
2. The Dollop
3. Hardcore History
4. The Glass Cannon
5. Longest Days of Our Lives – A little self-promotion for our other podcast about the longest days of Jack Bauer’s life