‘Crime Junkie’ Host Ashley Flowers on Her Show, COVID, and Female Voices in Podcasting

The world of podcasting has grown a big quantity in previous few years. In 2020, the Edison Analysis Infinite Dial report confirmed that month-to-month podcast listenership was as much as 37 %; this yr’s report revealed that 80 million People now hearken to podcasts.

One of many many podcasts that individuals hearken to these days consists of Crime Junkie. Hosted by childhood finest associates Ashley Flowers and Brit Prawat, Crime Junkie touches on totally different true crime circumstances every week, with the 2 of them discussing every case intimately; these vary from lacking individuals circumstances to unsolved homicide circumstances to updates and way more.

Nonetheless, the podcast isn’t your typical true crime program. Relatively than solely communicate on the circumstances themselves, Flowers mentioned that she all the time needed to have the ability to encapsulate the expertise of being a “crime junkie.”

“I really like crime documentaries, and I all the time wish to go down the rabbit gap of net boards and browse books in regards to the circumstances … What I needed the present to be was that should you had been against the law junkie, and also you went out to learn and watch every part there was [about a case], I may distill it for you in 30-40 minutes,” she mentioned. “It’s as should you had been to do all of this your self, that is what you’ll stroll away with in figuring out in regards to the case.”

Life Earlier than ‘Crime Junkie’

Earlier than the Crime Junkie podcast began in 2017, Flowers had all the time been fascinated with the true crime area from a younger age. After receiving her diploma in biomedical analysis from Arizona State College, working in genetics analysis on the College of Notre Dame, and dealing for a number of startup firms, she joined the Board of Administrators for her native Crime Stoppers group.

“I’ve all the time beloved to volunteer, so at that time in my life, I used to be carried out with college and had volunteered for lots of various issues, and I used to be like ‘I wish to do a volunteer factor within the area that I really like,’” she mentioned.

Whereas with Crime Stoppers, Flowers mentioned that they gave her some initiative to work on model consciousness for millennials as she was the youngest particular person on the board. She then partnered up with an area radio station for a real crime section the place she would talk about a real crime story each Monday morning; in trade for the section, the station would promote for Crime Stoppers.

Ultimately, Flowers’s section turned the preferred one for the radio station, however within the background, she additionally beloved listening to podcasts.

“Ever since I discovered Serial, I couldn’t get sufficient. I used to be consuming as many [podcasts] as I may, however there simply wasn’t a present that I may discover or that I actually needed to listen to,” she mentioned. “Once I was doing the radio factor, it by no means even occurred to me that I may very well be the one to inform these tales, however when the radio station section turned fairly in style, I used to be like ‘Possibly I could make the present that I wish to make and inform the tales in additional of the way in which that I wish to inform them.’”

Welcome to the World of ‘Crime Junkie’

Flowers approached Prawat together with her concept, saying that she was “probably the most pure selection” for a co-host from the start.

“[Brit] and I’ve actually been finest associates for the reason that day we had been born; we had been born on the identical day and our moms had been finest associates. She was really my finest good friend on the earth so I mentioned, ‘Let’s give this a go,’” she mentioned.

Crime Junkie premiered on December 17, 2017. Airing each Monday, every episode runs anyplace from 30-40 minutes, and even so long as an hour; in some circumstances, episodes such because the Laci Peterson case have been cut up into two episodes. As well as, Flowers and Prawat will submit brief replace episodes if there are any new leads or captures concerning a case they lined on the podcast.

Relating to engaged on a brand new episode, Flowers describes the preparation for it as “large.”

“We’ve got an entire staff of individuals now, so I’d say everybody’s time that goes into it, from researching, writing, recording, enhancing and placing it out into the world—not together with any of the advertising and marketing—I feel is definitely 60 to 80 hours of labor,” she mentioned. “I knew I may do it for a short time alone, nevertheless it was actually laborious. And thank goodness I’ve the staff that I do now, as a result of there isn’t a manner that I may produce what we’re doing now alone.”

Not Just for Leisure

Moreover, Flowers mentioned that her objective for the present is to have a message of training and advocacy. Whereas it’s leisure for a number of folks, she all the time works in making an attempt to relay the knowledge she gives in a manner that additionally impacts the area that she is in.

“I would like to have the ability to stroll away from this once I’m carried out with Crime Junkie sometime and actually really feel like I used to be in a position to transfer the needle in true crime,” she mentioned.

“Whether or not that’s with non-profits or with advocacy, no matter that’s—that’s the primary objective.”

Working Round COVID

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit the world final yr, Flowers defined that the podcast trade was truly hit laborious.

“It’s actually humorous as a result of I’ll discuss to individuals who aren’t within the podcasting area and the belief all of them make is, ‘Oh, your obtain numbers should’ve gone via the roof,’ as a result of folks had been on the lookout for leisure, nevertheless it was truly the other,” she mentioned.

“We misplaced all of our commuters firstly of COVID. Everybody was binging TV exhibits and issues that they may activate at residence and watch. It took a very long time for folks to get again to their regular habits.”

Flowers revealed that Crime Junkie noticed a 20-30 % drop in its listenership, however has since gained it again as folks returned to their regular routines. She additionally added that she and her staff had been virtually ready for the pandemic from the start.

“Brit and I’ve by no means recorded in the identical area, her and I’ve all the time recorded individually. She lives in South Bend so she truly reside a few hours away from me, and enhancing could be carried out from anyplace, so we had been so fortunate,” she mentioned.

“It was a bummer to not see every other folks from my workplace, however every part we did, we had been in a position to do safely from residence and preserve issues operating easily.”

Feminine Voices in Podcasting

Along with Crime Junkie, Flowers additionally runs her enterprise, audiochuck, which is a female-focused podcasting firm. Together with Crime Junkie, she and the corporate produce various podcasts, comparable to Counterclock, Anatomy of a Homicide, and Full Physique Chills.

Flowers defined that audiochuck was all the time meant to be a enterprise for her, and she or he even had the LLC for it earlier than Crime Junkie premiered.

“I technically based audiochuck earlier than I began the podcast. I gave myself mentally a yr to see if I may make it work. And I knew that I don’t do something midway, I used to be going to place every part into this whereas working a full time job, and that wasn’t going to be sustainable endlessly. I gave myself a yr to make it work and thank goodness it did.”

As she runs a female-focused firm, Flowers mentioned that in relation to having these voices in podcasting, there are just a few tales that you must have ladies to inform.

“The perfect instance I can consider is we simply launched a present known as O.C. Swingers, which is about alleged rape allegations which might be presently working their manner via the court docket methods in Orange County. On the peak of ‘Me Too,’ it is a story that I don’t assume may very well be instructed effectively by a person, however it’s a dialog that should occur,” she mentioned.

“Males have to be concerned within the dialog, however I feel a girl wants to inform it. With out having these voices, I feel tales which might be vital for folks to be speaking about don’t get heard.”

Three Ideas For These Desirous to Begin a Podcast

If anybody desires to begin on their very own podcast journey, Flowers has three suggestions for you.

Primary: don’t wait to begin a podcast.

“Ultimately, it’s going to grow to be a kind of mediums like radio and TV the place you need to be with a giant community. So if you wish to begin independently by yourself, cease fascinated by it and do it.”

Quantity two: discover a area of interest.

“Although true crime was tremendous in style once we got here into this area, some folks mentioned that the very last thing we would have liked was one other true crime podcast. However we made a present that nobody was making, and I needed to listen to it. If there’s a present on the market that you would be able to’t discover, you’re most likely not the one one on the lookout for it. Even when it’s not a singular style, have a singular angle or manner of telling your tales.”

Quantity three: have good audio high quality.

“Way back are the times the place we are able to get away with our laptop mics. It’s tremendous simple to have first rate high quality. Even should you’re recording in your closet with a $60 microphone from Amazon, that may nonetheless sound wonderful.”