[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Article originally appeared on Power Press Podcast on March 22, 2016.
2 Fierce Female Podcasters You Should Be Following
Forget the image of podcasting as an old boy’s club: the visibility of women in the community seems to be on the rise – and many of us have been here from the beginning. Here are two female podcasters – who just happen to be Blubrry customers! – you’ll want to keep an eye on:
Podcaster: Kitzie Stern, Host, New World Kirtan
About The Podcast: A show that explores Kirtan, a spiritual practice focused on singing meditation. The show is both personal and practical, featuring music to accompany Kirtan practices as well as relatable glimpses into Stern’s life.
Why You Should Listen: “Kirtan is just a really easy, accessible way to get your mind to quiet down during a time when we desperately need ways to quiet our minds.
A New Way To Reach An Audience
Like many podcasters, Kitzie Stern initially turned to podcasting as a way to serve an existing audience. An experienced voiceover artist, Stern also had a deep personal interest in Kirtan chanting, a form of singing meditation that originated in India thousands of years ago. “I got this idea that I could do a podcast of songs and it would be like a setlist for my local Kirtan group to use for their chanting practice,” Stern explains. Because of its auditory nature, a podcast was a natural extension of a guided in-person Kirtan experience, but Stern also saw an opportunity to use podcasting to demonstrate her voiceover abilities.
Though it was originally targeted at a specific audience, as often happens Stern’s podcast took on on a life of its own – though Stern didn’t realize until about a year after the show launched. “On New Year’s Eve, just for kicks my husband and I thought we’d check download numbers, and found that it had been downloaded thousands of times. all over the world. I didn’t think I was talking to anyone besides people in Corvalis!”
Unexpected Opportunities
Stern considers her podcast a service to the Kirtan community, and while monetizing New World Kirtan directly isn’t a goal of hers, she can’t deny the benefits she’s received via the podcast, on both the personal and business sides of the table. In addition to the connection she’s been able to make with listeners across the globe, Stern has been invited to attend Kirtan and other spiritual festivals and events as a direct result of her podcast, and it’s also helped her create a thriving specialty in her voiceover career. “Voiceover is really a specialized kind of field, so I branded my voiceover site to take this side of myself into consideration…and now, I’m getting more of the kind of work that I really want to do,” she explains.
Advice To Newbies
After publishing hundreds of episodes, Stern enthusiastically encourages would-be podcasters to jump in with both feet. “I’m 63, and worked in radio for a long time. To be able to do your own show without having the constraints of being on a radio station – I can’t tell you how wonderful it is,” she says. “It’s an unprecedented time for podcasters, and people are really catching on to what a great medium this is.”[/vc_column_text][vc_button title=”Read More” target=”_blank” href=”http://www.powerpresspodcast.com/2016/03/22/female-podcasters/”][/vc_column][/vc_row]