Your Guide to Rhode Island Podcasts and Podcasters
Pass the time spent stuck on 95 during your morning commute with one (or all!) of these Rhode Island ran or themed podcasts.
Via Canva.
Looking for a way to spice up your daily morning commute? Lucky for you, we went ahead and rounded up some of the most interesting podcasts about the Ocean State and/or hosted by bonafide Rhode Islanders — there’s so much more out there on the airwaves than just “Crimetown” (though, of course, that’s made the list, too). From episodes dedicated to the state’s quirkiest antics to monthly sex education updates to deep dives into the American Girl doll fandom, your ears are in for a real treat.
Are we missing someone? Email your tip to Digital Editor Kait Murray at kmurray@rimonthly.com!
The 401 Podcast
About: Rhode Island Sports Journalist and basketball scribe Kevin McNamara chats with guests from the Ocean State sports scene and beyond.
Rhody connection: McNamara is a Providence resident.
Episode length: Approx. 20-30 mins.
Listen here: Website, Apple Podcasts
Learn more about McNamara here: kevinmcsports.com
All My Relations
About: All My Relations explores Native hosts Matika Wilbur’s (Swinomish and Tulalip) and Adrienne Keene’s (Cherokee Nation) relationships to land, creatural relatives, and one another. Each episode invites guests to delve into different topics facing Native peoples today though joyful yet meaningful conversations.
Rhody connection: Keene is an Assistant Professor of American Studies and Ethnic studies at Brown University in Providence.
Episode length: Varies, 25-60+ mins.
Listen here: Website, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts
Learn more here: allmyrelationspodcast.com
Anchored the Podcast {Discontinued}
About: Anchored is “a Rhody-themed, podcast-styled, low sodium option for the Ocean State’s sea-saltiest opinions.” The bi-weekly podcast walks listeners through the back story of what’s making news in Rhode Island today.
Rhody connections: Hosts Shay and Elise are two former Rhode Island tour guides.
Episode length: Approx. 30 mins.
Listen to past episodes here: Spotify
Around the Buoy
About: From sailboats and super yachts to wooden boats and classic cruisers, Around the Buoy tells stories of life on the water for those behind the helms.
Rhody connection: The podcast is recorded in Newport.
Episode length: Approx. 60-90 mins.
Listen here: Apple Podcasts
The Bartholomewtown Podcast
About: Host and local singer-songwriter/media personality Bill Bartholomew discusses politics, news, music and more on a weekly basis. Recent episodes cover the upcoming general election, Rhode Island’s recent legalization of marijuana.
Rhody connection: Bartholomew is based in Providence.
Episode length: Approx. 15–40 mins, some special coverage episodes extend to an hour.
Listen here: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts
Bear in Mind
About: “Bear In Mind” brings in expert guests from the medical field to tackle depression, anxiety, suicide and other must-talk-about topics.
Rhody connection: The podcast is produced and hosted by the general psychiatry residency program at Brown University’s Warren Alpert Medical School.
Episode length: Approx. 30–60 mins.
Listen here: Website, Apple Podcasts, Spotify
Bitches Taking Pictures
About: Marisa Bettencourt and Melissa Lacouture, the talented photographers behind M.Studios, talk their experiences in the wedding photography business — the beautiful, the bad, and the sloppy. The podcast has not updated since May 2022 (perhaps the gals went on break for wedding season?), but there are thirteen fun episodes to binge in the meant time.
Rhody connection: M. Studios is based in Newport.
Episode length: Approx. 45 mins.
Listen here: Spotify, Amazon Music
The Chuck and Brad Podcast {Discontinued — see their new venture, Funbearable, below}
About: This podcast follows the creative lives of eponymous comedians/writers/filmmakers Chuck Staton and Brad Rohrer as they discuss modern pop culture topics and the tricky landscape of being independent artists and performers. Since the podcast started in 2009, Staton and Rohrer have recorded more than 400 episodes and conducted more than 150 guest interviews.
Rhody connections: Both hosts are based in Providence, and the Creative Capital (along with Rhode Island in general) is often used as fodder for their podcast subjects.
Episode length: Varies, 60–90+ mins.
Listen here: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher
Clever
About: As the website states, “Clever is a podcast about the creative visionaries who shape our world and culture.” In each episode, multi-hyphenate (artist, designer, maker) host Amy Devers has candid conversations with these visionaries and reveals the core details behind their creative journeys. Recent guests include artist Nancy Baker Cahill and “Queer Eye” star Bobby Berk.
Rhody connection: Devers is a RISD alum-turned-faculty member and currently resides in Providence.
Episode length: Approx. 60 mins.
Listen here: Website, Spotify, Google Podcasts, YouTube, Apple Podcasts
Learn more here: cleverpodcast.com
Club Ambition Podcast, a.k.a. CAP
About: Each week, an ambitious crew covers impactful cultural topics on both a local and a national scale.
Rhody connection: Club Ambition is a media company based in Providence. The hosts regularly have Rhode Islanders come on as guests, like local influencer Laura Afonso of BunsandBites, and discuss trending Rhode Island topics such as Ed Cooley’s controversial departure from Providence College.
Episode length: Varies, 90–120+ mins.
Listen here: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Stitcher
Photo vis Crimetown/Gimlet.
Crimetown: Season 1 {Limited Series}
About: It may not be a Rhode Islander-ran or narrated operation, but we can’t skip the award-winning podcast that put Rhode Island on the map in 2016. Season one highlights Providence’s illustrious history with organized crime and corruption, and pays special attention to former Providence mayor Buddy Cianci and crime boss Raymond Patriarca. You can learn more about the famed podcast in our Rhode Island Monthly profile here.
Episode length: Approx. 30 mins.
Listen here: Website, Spotify, Apple Podcasts
Crime Weekly
About: Join retired police detective and private investigator Derrick Levasseur and true crime Youtube creator Stephanie Harlowe as they discuss high profile crimes both new and old. Learn more about the two hosts and their latest crime-fighting venture, Criminal Coffee Co., in our profile here.
Episode length: Varies, 90–120 mins.
Rhody connection: Levasseur was born in Providence and worked for the Central Falls Police Department for more than a decade. He still lives in Rhode Island and co-runs Criminal Coffee Co. with Harlowe out of a space in Cumberland.
Listen here: Website, YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeartRadio Podcasts, Google Podcasts
Design Me a House {On Hiatus}
About: In the podcast’s bimonthly episodes, architect/designer/author Katie Hutchison and textile designer/educator Dawn Oliveira share insight into home design and design for the home while also aiming to demystify and humanize the subjects. Read more about the podcast and Hutchison in our Rhode Island monthly profile here.
Rhody connections: Hutchison is a RISD graduate, and her architecture/design/photography studio is based in Warren, while Oliveira’s textile business is based in Bristol.
Episode length: Approx. 30–40 mins.
Listen here: Website, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher
The Detailed Diary Podcast {Discontinued}
About: Looking for tips on how to successfully run a small business? Danielle Holleran, founder and owner of the chic and popular Details and Swirls, shares inspirational secrets, stories and more in her Detailed Diary Podcast.
Rhody connection: Holleran is Rhode Island born and raised.
Episode length: Approx. 30 mins.
Listen here: Website, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher
Dolls of Our Lives {Discontinued}
About: Join Allison Horrocks and Mary Mahoney as they explore the wild world of the American Girl fandom and revisit the beloved series book by book. In each episode, the hosts use their knowledge as professional historians along with their finely tuned instincts as amateur pop critics to dive back into the ‘90s.
RI Connection: Co-host Allison Horrocks lives in Lincoln and is a public historian who serves both Rhode Island and Massachusetts.
Episode length: Approx. 60 mins.
Listen here: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher
Funbearable
About: The comedic podcast tackles movies, pop culture and existential dread.
Rhody connection: Two of the hosts, Brad Rohrer and Chuck Staton (see Chuck and Brad Podcast listing above), live in Providence.
Episode length: Approx. 90-120 mins.
Listen here: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Google Podcasts, Stitcher
Haunted Road
About: Host Amy Bruni, star of Kindred Spirits and Ghost Hunters, takes listeners on a guided tour of America’s most haunted places.
Rhody connection: Bruni resides in Newport. Learn more about her in our Rhode Island Monthly profile here.
Episode length: Approx. 30–40 mins.
Listen here: Website, Apple Podcasts, Spotify
Photo via Kate Hanley.
How to Be a Better Person
About: How to Be a Better Person is a daily podcast that delivers quick, inspirational pieces of advice aimed towards helping listeners shape into better versions of themselves. In each episode, author Kate Hanley shares one simple thing that the listener can do in the next twenty-four hours to rise above. Read more about the podcast in our Rhode Island Monthly profile here.
Rhody connection: Hanley calls Providence home.
Episode length: Approx. 10 mins
Listen here: Website, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher
Learn more about Hanley here: katehanley.com
Humans in Public Health
About: How should we prepare for the next pandemic? How is noise pollution affecting my neighborhood? And how can we prevent opioid overdose from a public parking lot? This award-winning monthly podcast humanizes the latest public health research for a broad audience.
Rhody connection: The podcast is produced by Brown University and hosted by Megan Hall, an audio journalist and health policy expert with an MPH from Brown University.
Episode length: Approx. 15 mins
Listen here: Website, Apple, Spotify
Let’s Chat! With Chris Revill {Discontinued}
About: In Let’s Chat!, host Chris Revill uses his behavioral health background and pop culture obsession to explore different subcultures, often connecting with guests from the wrolds of punk rock, podcasting and more. Revill is currently taking a break from recording, but in the meantime, there are nearly 250 episodes to catch up on.
Rhody connection: Revill is a resident of Providence.
Episode length: Varies, approx. 60–90+ mins
Listen here: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music
The Matt Allen Uncut Podcast {Discontinued}
About: The Matt Allen Uncut podcast features longform discussions between WPRO’s Matt Allen and fascinating people in Rhode Island and beyond.
Rhody connection: Allen is based in Providence.
Episode length: Approx. 60 mins
Listen here: 997WPRO, Spreaker
Mary and Blake Media Podcasts
Mary and Blake are not a podcast, but rather a Rhode Island-based online media content company responsible for several wildly successful podcasts. A former The Rhode Show host, Mary Larsen created her first podcast, ParentCast, with husband Blake Larsen after the birth of their first child, Rhys. Realizing they were pretty good at this whole podcast thing, the couple turned the dining room of their small Providence apartment into a makeshift podcast studio. They went on to create a few more shows and Mary and Blake Media was born. Now, with more than 100,000 readers and listeners, the two has built a full-time podcast studio and employ a team to deliver quality entertainment on the regular, including:
Bridgerton with Mary and Blake
A podcast dedicated to the hit Netflix show, “Bridgerton.”
House of the Dragon with Mary and Blake
A podcast dedicated to HBO’s smash “Game of Thrones” prequel series, “House of the Dragon.”
A show dedicated to the hit television series, “Outlander,” on Starz.
Wicked Rhody (with co-host Ben DeCastro) — discontinued
Though it’s no longer in production, there are seventy fun episodes dedicated to Rhode Island places, food, music and more to peruse.
Find the full list of Mary and Blake podcasts at maryandblake.com.
Monetize the Mic {Discontinued}
About: Hosts Jessica Rhodes and Margy Feldhuhn are the dynamic duo behind Interview Connections, the first and leading podcast booking agency. In this podcast, Rhodes and Feldhuhn teach listeners how to get booked on podcasts as a guest, how to be a great podcast host, and hot to leverage the power of podcast interviews to grow your business.
Rhody connection: Rhodes’ and Feldhuhn’s company, Interview Connections, is based in Smithfield.
Episode length: Varies, approx. 15–60+ mins
Listen here: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube
Photo by Brittanny Taylor/ courtesy of Nikki Groom
Movement Makers {Discontinued}
About: Movement Makers is a top-rated podcast for people who are serious about amplifying their impact to create a better world. Inspired by her work helping high-potential leaders connect the dots between their purpose and their work, host Nikki Groom brings you thought-provoking conversations about topics that disrupt the usual ways we think about business and leadership, and provide you with the inspiration you need to make a difference.
Rhody connection: Though Groom originally hails from the U.K., she has lived in Rhode Island for the past fifteen years, most recently settling in Newport in 2020.
Learn more about Groom here: nikkigroom.com
Raising Anchor
About: This brand new weekly (semi-weekly in the off-season) podcast covers the day-to-day activities of Rhode Island FC, USL and soccer-related news in Rhode Island in an unaffiliated capacity.
Rhody connection: Host Matt Entrekin hails from East Providence while his co-host Jason Carey is a Rhode Island transplant.
Episode length: 60–90 minutes
Dan Cotter and Max Messier Richter of the Rags to Dishes podcast. Photo via Rags to Dishes.
Rags to Dishes
About: Max Messier Richter and Dan Cotter are former restaurant colleagues and friends who created Rags to Dishes in the middle of the pandemic to discuss issues that the hospitality industry faces and provide an inside look into what really happens in kitchens and dining rooms across the state. Read more about the podcast in our Rhode Island Monthly profile here.
Rhody connections: Both hosts currently reside in Rhode Island, and the podcast itself focuses on the Rhode Island dining scene and industry.
Episode length: Approx. 60–90 mins
Listen here: Apple Podcasts
The Rhody Strength Podcast
About: Dr. Matt Sweeney of Strength & Sport PT chats all things fitness with local gym owners gym, athletes and people in the Rhode Island health and fitness world.
Rhody Connections: In addition to being based in Rhode Island and featuring local guests, the host’s physical therapy service has two locations in Middletown and Providence, respectively.
Episode length: Approx. 60 mins
Listen here: Spotify, Apple, YouTube
Learn more here: strengthandsportpt.com
Mother-daughter duo Christine and Shannon Curley. Phot via Sex Ed Debunked.
Sex Ed Debunked {On Hiatus}
About: Mother-daughter duo Christine Curley and Shannon Curley take on all the subjects you should have learned about in Sex Ed class. Each thirty-minute episode focuses on and “puts to bed” a different myth related to sex by either drawing on their own experiences or bringing in an expert. Read more about the podcast in our Rhode Island Monthly profile here.
Rhody connections: Shannon grew up in North Kingstown but now lives in Providence, while Christine still lives in North Kingstown. Christine also teaches psychology Rhode Island College.
Episode length: Varies, 30–60 mins
Listen here: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music
The Skein Scoop {On Hiatus}
About: Catch up with Lori Land and Justine from the Skein Yarn Shop in East Greenwich. In the quirky biweekly episodes, the hosts discuss knit works in progress, give inventory updates, hold giveaways, perform candy taste tests and more.
Rhody connection: Land and her shop both reside in East Greenwich.
Episode length: Approx. 60 mins
SUCKERS
About: “Bachelor” franchise stars Jared Haibon, Dean Bell and Caelynn Bell are on a never-ending quest to make navigating the difficult world of dating and marriage less, well, sucky. The three regularly invite love experts, psychics and celebrities to join them in discussing and discovering the secrets to a successful relationship.
Rhody connection: Haibon grew up in Warwick and has since settled down in South County. He and wife Ashley Iaconetti (also of “Bachelor” fame) own and operate Audrey’s Coffee House and Lounge in South Kingstown.
Episode length: Approx. 45 mins.
Listen here: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio Podcasts
Two Guys on Block Island
About: Hosts Rich Tretheway and Marc Scortino discuss life the seven miles-long by three-miles wide rock (a.k.a. Block Island) they call home, from coexisting with eccentric neighbors to dealing with hoards of tourists in the summertime.
Rhody connections: Tretheway and Scortino are Block Island natives.
Episode length: Approx. 60–90 mins
Listen here: Spotify
Wedding Secrets Unveiled!
About: As the name suggests, Wedding Secrets Unveiled! Is a podcast that guides listeners through the craziness of wedding planning and bestows them with expert advice. Host Sara Zarrella is the owner and lead Photo-Novelist for Sara Zarrella Photography, a multi Best of Rhode Island winner.
Rhody connection: Zarrella is a native Rhode Islander, and her wedding photography business serves couples throughout the Ocean State.
Episode length: Approx. 40 mins
Listen here: Website, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher
Woke Up in a Bar
About: Each episode focuses on the local restaurant and bar industry, and how local bartenders ended up working behind the bar.
Rhody connection: The podcast is recorded inside lucky Enough on the West End of Providence, and is hosted by Rhode Islanders Vito Lantz and Priscilla Benkhart. Learn more in our Rhode Island Monthly profile here.
Episode length: Approx. 60 mins.
Listen here: Spotify, Apple Podcasts
Working It Out
About: Comedian Mike Birbiglia chats with a different comedian or creator (including big names like Michael J Fox, Jimmy Fallon and Drew Barrymore). Together, they work through original, untested material as well as occasionally uncomfortable topics.
Rhody connection: Birbiglia’s production office (along with his brother) is in Providence.
Episode length: Approx. 60 mins
Listen here: Website, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher
Learn more about Birbiglia here: birbigs.com
Weird Island
About: A newer podcast that started in 2021, Weird Island brings listeners some of the strangest stories about and related to Rhode Island that they likely have never heard before. Host Sara Corben dives into Ocean State unsolved mysteries, conspiracy theories, weird historical tales and even murders.
Rhody connection: Corben is a resident of Pawtucket.
Episode length: Approx. 20 mins
Listen here: Website, Apple Podcasts
