Tara's Favorite Podcast Episodes of 2020
I listened to a lot of podcast episodes this year.
They kept me going through marathon training. They made me laugh when everything when my anxiety was through the roof. They brought me new perspectives on current events. They helped me process grief, fear, and anger when I couldn’t find any other way to do it.
Below, you’ll find a non-exhaustive list of my favorite podcast episodes of 2020.
These aren’t necessarily the best piece of audio storytelling or the hardest-hitting interviews of the year (although, some are). They aren’t necessarily the most profound or insightful conversations (although, some are).
They’re the podcast episodes that tugged at me for days after listening. And they’re the ones that made me feel seen and not so alone in a very lonely year.
They’re also the episodes that elicited a “Oh yes! That one!” response as I combed through my podcast listening app.
All of the links to these episodes go to Pod.Link so you can click through and then click the link to your listening app of choice.
The Coach In Your Head - Against The Rules
This episode of Michael Lewis’s Against The Rules podcast covers the origin story of coaching as a profession. It was a fascinating deep dive into how and why we started focusing changing the way we think about performance.
Andrea Jain on her new book, Peace Love Yoga - Yogaland
This Yogaland podcast episode combines three things I really love: the study of religion, critique of capitalism, and yoga. My favorite Glo yoga teacher, Jason Crandell, interviews scholar Andrea Jain on her work studying how yoga has become commodified through goods that “perform our anti-capitalism for us.”
Brene with Sonya Renee Taylor on “The Body Is Not An Apology” - Unlocking Us
I’d noticed Sonya Renee Taylor’s work before listening to this episode of Brene Brown’s podcast, Unlocking Us, but I had never actively engaged with it. This conversation cracked me open. One part that really stood out was a thread about “climbing the ladder” and dismantling the system by addressing our own drive to rise in our cultural hierarchy.
Decolonizing Professionalism & Work - That’s Not How That Works
This episode of That’s Not How That Works from Trudi Lebron and Weeze Doran was pretty transformative in my understanding of what “decolonization” actually is and how dominant culture requires us to conform. I really appreciated hearing both of the co-hosts personal experiences as well as their critique of business culture and the entrepreneurship.
I listened to a few things trying to explain the QAnon phenomenon (Rabbit Hole and an episode of Make Me Smart among them) but this episode of Reply All was next level. Not only did it try to actually answer the question of who and what QAnon is but it also provided insight into how it’s become such a cultural force. It was disturbing but incredibly enlightening.
The Case of the Missing Hit - Reply All
It’s hard not to pick every episode Reply All released this year—it is consistently amazing. But as I scrolled through their feed, this one jumped out at me. It’s about a song that a guy remembers distinctly—to the point that he can sing it from top to bottom and even produce a bad recreation of it—but his partner doesn’t. He insists it’s a hit, Spotify says it doesn’t exist. This episode is the story of the long and winding road to figure out what’s really going on.
The Flag And The Fury - RadioLab
This episode of RadioLab was a moving history of the former flag of Mississippi and the effort to create a new one. It was far-reaching while staying extremely focused. It was RadioLab storytelling at its finest.
I listened to this episode and then promptly turned around and listened to it with my 12-year-old. It’s a really beautiful science story about an octopus, her clutch of eggs, and the astonishing amount of time she spent waiting for them to hatch.
Fortress Conservation - Outside/In
As a lover of national parks, this episode of New Hampshire Public Radio’s Outside/In really got me thinking. It’s an exploration of how our colonialist perspective on “protecting” nature is its own form of environmental and anthropological harm. There weren’t any easy answers in this episode but it certainly opened my eyes to new questions.
Volitional Psychology (Procrastination) with Dr. Joseph R Ferrari
There were many episodes of Ologies that I enjoyed this year (both with and without my daughter listening). This one stuck out as I was reviewing the feed, though, because it hit so close to home! Plus, I love the gentle and genuinely helpful way host Alie Ward inserts her own experience & challenges into the conversation to get the answers she’s really curious about.
Ira Glass: A Podcast Legend Teaches Mike How To Make A Podcast
I love Mike Birbiglia. And I love Ira Glass. To hear the two of them talk about podcasting and storytelling was a real treat. Not only is it a really entertaining episode with a conversation between 2 long-time friends, it’s a helpful look at what makes for a good podcast!
Are We Imagining A Better Future Into Existence? with adrienne maree brown
I first tried listening to Jonathan Van Ness’s (of Queer Eye fame) podcast, Getting Curious, a couple of years ago and didn’t love his style. However, JVN has really come into his own since! I started listening again with this year’s Labor Day episode (all about unions and labor law) but this episode with adrienne maree brown really lit me up. I appreciate that JVN can bring a flamboyant energy to his earnest questions about life, justice, and growth.
A mind-bending conversation about quantum mechanics and parallel worlds - The Ezra Klein Show
Ezra Klein quickly became one of my favorite interviewers this year—and typically, he brings a well-researched perspective to every conversation. His genuine curiosity comes from a place of knowledge & understanding. However, Klein brought his same curiosity to this interview without the benefit of (much) knowledge or understanding! I learned a ton about quantum mechanics and why it matters thanks to Klein’s willingness to ask basic questions and admit when he didn’t quite get it.
Jenny Odell on nature, art, and burnout in quarantine - The Ezra Klein Show
I listened to this Ezra Klein Show interview with artist Jenny Odell after a couple of months of lockdown and it helped me process my own feelings and creative yearning (as well as lack thereof) during that time. I especially appreciated the permission to let fallow periods be fallow.
If you have a kid (under the age of 15? 18?), they’ve likely expressed an affinity for cute poop over the last 5 years or so. I know mine has. Which is why I loved this deep dive history of cute poop and it’s various iterations from Decoder Ring. (My kid loved it too!)
Whomst Among Us Has Let The Dogs Out - 99% Invisible
Clearly, I have an affinity for the unlikely history of things! This episode of 99% Invisible is all about the uncertain history of the song Who Let The Dogs Out. It’s fun and educational.
How to Check Your Bias: Women’s Voices with Amanda Montell - Permission To Speak
I’ve gotten to coach a number of women on how to use their voices to podcast this year. And almost across the board, they have a fear of words that are coded as “girl” words—“like” and “you know” chief among them. Many have worried about editing all of those out of their recordings—but I’ve always counseled to be conservative with the editing! We’re biased against our own voices and mannerisms as women podcasters. This episode of Permission To Speak with Samara Bay unpacks women’s speech patterns and why there’s nothing to be ashamed of.
Racial Justice from the Heart with Dr. Amanda Kemp - The Opt-In With Aurora + Kelly
This episode of The Opt-In really opened my eyes to whiteness in a new way—and it also introduced me to the Characteristics of White Supremacy Culture, which has become my go-to resource for better understanding my own patterns and the patterns of my communities. It was a really transformational & valuable conversation for me throughout this year.