Page 24 - Forbes - USA (March 2020)

Podcasts Cont.
M y Favorite Murder
was born, fittingly, at a
Halloween party in the
Los Feliz neighborhood
of Los Angeles in
2015. The gathering was thrown by a
22 mutual friend of the podcast’s future
cohosts, Karen Kilgariff (page 21, left),
a standup comic and comedy writer,
R
E and Georgia Hardstark, a host on
N the Cooking Channel. The women
N
U had met before. But “it wasn’t until
R
T this party that we realized we were
N both really into true crime and didn’t
O
R have anyone else to talk to about it,”
F
says Hardstark, 39. They stationed
themselves in the kitchen, ignoring the
other guests and swapping tales of gore.
“Which is stuff I like to do at a party.”
“It was a perfect moment,” Hardstark
adds. “I met someone who . . . didn’t want plans for its own network after years of
me to shut up about murder.”
Millions of others, it turns out, didn’t
want them to shut up either. Listeners
can’t get enough of the pair’s darkly
humorous tales about murderers
like Scott Scurlock, the Hollywood
Bandit, and Robert Hansen, the
Butcher Baker of Anchorage, Alaska.
Today My Favorite Murder gets 35
million downloads a month, and last
year it was the seventh-most popular
podcast on Apple Podcasts, ahead of
repurposed programming like NPR’s
Fresh Air and This American Life.
The duo’s little true-crime empire
is growing. In the past year, they’ve
performed 40 live shows; published a
New York Times bestseller (Stay Sexy &
Forbes Finds
SIGN OF THE TIME
SIGN OF THE TIME
As Chinese zodiac signs
As Chinese zodiac signs
go, the Year of the Rat may
go, the Year of the Rat may
not be as alluring as, say,
not be as alluring as, say,
Horse, Tiger or Dragon, but
Horse, Tiger or Dragon, but
that hasn’t stopped luxury
that hasn’t stopped luxury
watch brands from finding
watch brands from fi
nding
considerable beauty in the
considerable beauty in the
little rodent. Plus, rats do
little rodent. Plus, rats do
have some good qualities.
have some good qualities.
Those who fall under the
Those who fall under the
sign—which occurs every
sign—which occurs every
12 years—are said to be cun-
12 years—are said to be cun- Year of the Rat
ning, charming and thrifty.
ning, charming and thrifty. special edition
And since it comes first in in white gold by
rst in
And since it comes fi
the zodiac, you’re already Blancpain (price
the zodiac, you’re already
ahead in the rat race. on request)
ahead in the rat race.
F O R B E S . C O M
Don’t Get Murdered, a nod to their show’s The hosts on our first-ever ranking
DOWNLOADING DOLLARS
catchphrase); signed a development
deal with podcast publisher Stitcher
on everything from basketball and
worth at least $10 million; and built a of the top-earning podcasters opine
baseball to movies and murder.
55,000-person fan club—members pay
$40 annually for exclusive episodes and
access to presale tickets to live shows.
In other words, the duo is killing it,
and their earnings show it. They made
an estimated $15 million in 2019,
placing them at No. 2 on our inaugural
ranking of the top-earning podcasters.
It’s a boom time: Advertisers likely spent
close to $700 million on pods last year,
according to estimates by PWC and the
Interactive Advertising Bureau, a nearly
sevenfold increase in four years; Spotify
spent $250 million to acquire podcast 1. JOE ROGAN
networks Gimlet and Parcast. Apple, The Joe Rogan Experience
2019 EARNINGS: $30 MIL*
reportedly, is hot on Spotify’s heels with Topics:
UFC, politics, standup comedy
doing nothing. “People are realizing that
podcasting is special,” says Kilgariff, 49. 2. KAREN KILGARIFF AND
GEORGIA HARDSTARK
“I think people are isolated and really
My Favorite Murder
lonely.” And in the case of My Favorite $15 MIL
Murder, “it’s nice to listen and process True crime, pop culture
terrible [things] together. There’s
3. DAVE RAMSEY
something really cathartic about that.”
The Dave Ramsey Show
Another recent endeavor for Kilgariff $10 MIL
and Hardstark: their own podcast Personal finance
network, Exactly Right. They’ve greenlit
five shows, including This Podcast Will 4. DAX SHEPARD
Armchair Expert
Kill You, a series about infectious diseases $9 MIL
hosted by two epidemiologists. “It’s very Hollywood, current events
fun and cool and old-fashioned show
5. BILL SIMMONS
business to discover talent,” Kilgariff says. The Bill Simmons Podcast
“We’re lucky because ours is popular that $7 MIL
we have this fuse, and we can connect Sports, Hollywood
this fuse to people who deserve it.”
*ALL PODCASTER EARNINGS ARE FORBES ESTIMATES
MICHAEL S. SCHWARTZ/GETTY IMAGES
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M A R C H 2 0 2 0