Women of color have been breaking ground in podcasting well ahead of the latest boom. But there’s plenty more to be done — a recent study showed that only 22 percent of podcasts are hosted by women, and the number’s even smaller when it comes to women of color. To move towards equity for women of color in podcasting, Spotify is launching the Sound Up Bootcamp, a weeklong intensive program for aspiring female podcasters of color. Over the course of five days in New York City, ten hand-selected attendees will learn about the art of podcast creation, from initial ideation to editing, producing, and marketing from experts in the field. On the final day, attendees will have the chance to pitch their podcast ideas to a panel of experts and professionals — and the top three pitches will have the pilot process funded, up to $10,000. All expenses for the week will be paid by Spotify.
Training for the week will be led by radio and podcast veterans Rekha Murthy and Graham Griffith. Rekha and Graham have spent decades working with the industry’s top shows, and smaller ones too. They are passionate about raising up new voices and helping podcasts reach new, big, and devoted audiences.
When and where: June 25-29, 2018, at Spotify’s New York City offices.
Who’s eligible: Anyone who self-identifies as a woman of color, is passionate about podcasting, and has a great idea. No prior experience is required — we’re looking for the best ideas. Attendees are required to attend all five full days of programming, as well as after-hours events on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday (including mixers and dinners). Please note, programming will be targeted towards first-time and amateur podcasters.
What does it cost: The program is free.
What does it include: Five days of workshops, panels, and activities around podcasting, led by experts and professionals. Travel to New York City, six nights of hotel, and breakfast and lunch each day are included.
When are applications due? By 11:59pm EST on April 10, 2018
Hello! I have spent days creating a pitch for this opportunity and have been overly thrilled at the chance to be apart of something likes this. Starting a podcast has been a dream of mine for years, I unfortunately came across several of issues while trying to submit this application in which I had to restart and refresh the page losing all data. When i finally submitted the application at 11:57pm, a page came up saying that it was unable to contact the server and again it refreshed and erased all of my work. By this time I had already missed the deadline to refill it out and submit again. The only good thing is that after it happened the first time, I began saving the information in a Word Document. This opportunity means the world to me and I am writing to see if you are able to connect me with anyone from the Spotifty Bootcamp or who is coordinating this program that may accept my application via email. If so, please contact me through email brittanyalexandra11@gmail.com.
Hi Brittany,
Apologies that we are just seeing this comment.
Have you tried it again? Did it work and were you able to submit?