NEW YORK (CelebrityAccess) — iHeartMedia announced plans to host the first annual live iHeartRadio Podcast Awards.
The awards will take place at the iHeartRadio Theater Los Angeles on Friday, January 18, 2019 at 8 p.m. PT, and will be the first major live ive awards event voted by the listeners to focus on the world of podcasting.
Hosted by Holly Frey, co-host of “Stuff You Missed in History Class,” one of today’s biggest history podcasts; Charlamagne Tha God, nationally-syndicated on-air host and co-host of “The Brilliant Idiots” and “The Breakfast Club” podcasts; and Bobby Bones, top Country radio host, multiplatform personality and host of the leading Country music focused podcast “Bobbycast” and creator of the Nashville Podcast Network, the event will run 90 minutes and will include a live audience with a live stream hosted by on-air and TV personality Mario Lopez. Presenters include Payne Lindsay (“Up & Vanished”), Aaron Mahnke (“Lore”), and Jake Brennan (“Disgraceland”), with more to be announced.
Fans will be able to vote for the winners in 17 of the 22 categories to be featured in the awards with podcasts “Atlanta Monster,” “Dirty John,” “Hardcore History,” “Joe Rogan,” “Radiolab,” “Serial,” “Slow Burn,” “Stuff You Should Know,” “The Daily” and “The Habitat” nominated for Podcast of the Year.
The other awards will be determined by a panel of podcast industry figures, including Marc Smerling, “Crimetown”; Jake Brennan, “Disgraceland”; Alex Blumberg, Gimlet; Conal Byrne and Chris Peterson, iHeartMedia; Aaron Mahnke, “Lore”; Anya Grundmann, NPR; Max Cutler, Parcast; Owen Grover, Pocket Casts; Maggie Taylor, PRX; Chuck Bryant and Josh Clark, “Stuff You Should Know”; Holly Frey, “Stuff You Missed in History Class”; Donald Albright and Payne Lindsay, Tenderfoot TV; Sim Sarna, Unqualified Media; and Hernan Lopez, Wondery will determine the winner in five major categories: Podcast of the Year, Breakout Podcast, Best Branded Podcast, Best Social Impact from Podcast/Host and Podcast Innovator Award.
Since the introduction of podcasts more than a decade ago, the entertainment industry has seen a steady increase in listenership and popularity across the medium, with over 44 percent of Americans having listened to a podcast.
Today, podcasts have twice the double the reach of satellite radio and the iHeartRadio Podcast Network has seen a nearly 200 percent year-over-year growth in podcast listening in the past year.
