Press Release: 2024 Iowa Podcast Awards Winners Announced
Logan Schultz, Founder/CEO
Upload Media Group
logan@uploadcr.com
319-550-1444
www.IowaPodcastAwards.com
www.UploadMediaGroup.com
2024 Iowa Podcast Awards Winners Announced
200 Attendees Celebrated Iowa-Based Podcasts at First-Ever Event on September 15th
Cedar Rapids, IA: This past Sunday, September 15th, roughly 200 attendees from throughout the state traveled to Cedar Rapids to participate in the first-ever Iowa Podcast Awards. Following a full day of networking, workshops, and live podcasts held at various locations throughout the city, the highlight of the event was the award show in the evening held at The Olympic Theater in the NewBo District. At this event, presented by the podcasting and digital content company Upload Media Group, 28 awards were presented to Iowa-based podcasts selected from a pool of nearly 100 nominees whose projects represent tens of millions of podcast downloads worldwide.
The big winner of the night was The Confused Breakfast Podcast who took home the award for Podcast of the Year as well as awards for Best Entertainment Podcast and Host of the Year (Ensemble). The Art of Climate Dialogue: Stories from Iowa, Giant-Sized Violence: A Toku Comics Podcast, and Great American Whiskey Cookers each took home two awards, and On the Pen: The Weekly Dose was the winner of the People’s Choice Award, which was selected based on over 4,300 fan votes received. The full list of winners can be found below.
“Podcasting is a booming medium because of its accessibility and low barrier to entry, but it is often a challenging medium to gain traction in,” shares Logan Schultz, Founder and CEO of Upload Media Group, the company producing the Iowa Podcast Awards. “We are happy to celebrate all of the nominees and winners, but the most successful part of the event was bringing this community together for the first time and empowering them to learn from each other and support each other. The future is immensely bright for podcast creators in Iowa.”
The event, which was created by Upload Media Group to “Celebrate, Elevate, and Unify the Podcasters of Iowa,” was generously sponsored by Cedar Rapids Bank and Trust, The Corridor Business Journal, Vault Coworking and Collaboration Space, The Olympic Theater, and CSPS Hall. Special thanks goes to NewBo City Market, Armstrong Development Company, and Studio 81 for their support.
Plans are already underway for the 2025 Iowa Podcast Awards in addition to future projects and programs designed to elevate and empower podcast creators throughout Iowa. Upload Media Group invites all businesses, nonprofits, and independent podcasters to follow along on social media and through their websites for upcoming announcements.
About Upload Media Group: Upload Media Group is a professional podcasting and digital content production company that has been “amplifying local voices” since forming in 2021. Today, Upload Media Group has an industry-leading podcast studio in downtown Cedar Rapids and produces dozens of podcasts on behalf of businesses, nonprofits, and community members throughout the Cedar Rapids/Iowa City Corridor. Learn more at UploadMediaGroup.com.
The official list of 2024 Iowa Podcast Award Winners:
Premium Awards:
Podcast of the Year: The Confused Breakfast Podcast
People’s Choice Award: On the Pen: The Weekly Dose
Honor Awards:
Community Impact Award: My Why: A YPN Podcast
Innovation Award: The Art of Climate Dialogue: Stories from Iowa
Advocacy Award: Southeast Iowa Today with John Bain
Emerging Podcast Award: The Man Stream Podcast
Talent Recognition Awards:
Host of the Year (Individual): Abena Sankofa, Black & Privileged in America
Host of the Year (Ensemble): The Confused Breakfast Podcast
Producer of the Year: Craig Hart, Sherlock Holmes: The Lost Legacy of Tilly Whim
Best Production (Editing, Design, Writing): Giant-Sized Violence: A Toku Comics Podcast
Best Original Score/Song: “Welcome to the Groove Life” from The Groove Life Podcast
Best Cover Art: The Art of Climate Dialogue: Stories from Iowa
Show Recognition Awards:
Episode of the Year: “It’s Morphin’ Time: On Losing Your Heroes and Trans-Forming Yourself through Power Rangers,” Giant-Sized Violence, A Toku Comics Podcast
Best Limited Series: “The Ragbrai Pre-Ride Series,” JustGoBike
Best Interview Podcast (Affiliated): Watts Happening with Gary Watts
Best Interview Podcast (Independent): Deck Diaries
Best Comedy Podcast: REMelations: Comedy Dream Interpretation
Best Business Podcast: Real Success with Nate Kaeding
Best Society and Culture Podcast: Breaking Barriers DEI&B Podcast
Best Entertainment Podcast: The Confused Breakfast Podcast
Best Sports Podcast: Washed Up Walkons
Best Fiction Podcast: Myths of Myria: A Live-Play D&D Podcast
Best History Podcast: Relevant or Irrelevant
Best Food and Beverage Podcast: Great American Whiskey Cookers
Best Pop Culture Podcast: Big Thunder Podcast
Best Wellness/Relationship Podcast: Beautiful View
Best Video Podcast: Great American Whiskey Cookers
Best Education Podcast: Music Ed Insights
