1. 2 Dope Queens: I had to start out with my two favorite black female comedians, Jessica Williams and Phoebe Robinson. I’ve been listening to this podcast since it first came out and it never fails to bring me joy and make me laugh aloud in the Middle Ground when I am alone. Phoebe and Jessica are hilarious comedians in their own right, but they also bring in amazing talent to work alongside them, which is amazing to me because I get to hear about so many other comedians I never would have heard about otherwise, as well as awesome familiar names like Ilana Glazer and Jon Stewart, as well as incredible guests like Gabrielle Union and Jon Hamm.
2. Women of the Hour: As controversial of a figure Lena Dunham is, I really enjoy this podcast! I started listening to it last semester in my down time and on my commute to school, and maybe I was just having an emotional semester but I cried to some of those episodes! They were so inspiring and encouraging to hear about as a woman, and she talks about so many amazing topics like friendship, body image, solitude, and cats! She’s also had some awesome guests, including Janet Mock, Ashley Ford, Jemima Kirke, Gina Rodriguez, and Geneva Reed-Veal.
3. Girlboss Radio: Guys, Sophia Amoruso is the ultimate #GIRLBOSS. She built an entire clothing empire out of an eBay vintage shop, and then turned the best hashtag ever into a media company that puts out really amazing content. On her show, she interviews women in various industries and talks about the real-life career moves they made to get to where they were, not just the glossy story of their current #GIRLBOSS status. Sophia recently rebranded the podcast, and although the past episodes were amazing, these new episodes with Roxanne Gay, Gwyneth Paltrow, and more have such amazing wisdom in them straight from the legendary women we all love.
4. At Home With…: My two favorite bloggers and YouTubers Anna Newton and Lily Pebbles started a podcast this summer where they go into various women’s homes and talk to them about their life and careers. They interviewed some amazing women, mostly in the fashion and beauty industry, who are all based in England, so it is very interesting to see how their routines and steps of success are similar or different to ours. Plus their accents are heavenly.
5. Rookie: Tavi Gevinson hosts the podcast named after her hugely successful website and yearbook series which gives teenage girls a platform to discuss everything that makes them unique and important. Tavi does not just interview females; she has also had men like George Saunders on her show to showcase their work and their impact on herself and other girls. But she mostly interviews awesome women like Lorde, Winona Ryder, Cecile Richards, and Condola Rashad.
6. Sooo Many White Guys: Maybe this is cheating, but I’m going to do it anyway. Phoebe Robinson has her own podcast in which she injects the awesomeness of women of color into the mostly white male space that is podcasting. At the end of every season she has a “token white guy” that she brings on to meet the quota of diversity for the show (haha), but she interviews so many amazing women like Gina Rodriguez, Lizzo, Abbi Jacobsen, and Issa Rae. However, my favorite interviews she has done have been with semi-problematic figures like Charlamagne Tha God and Lena Dunham because she does a great job at interviewing them in a critical manner without being demeaning or insulting.