The top 5 podcast episodes I listened to in 2024
506 minutes of the best content I've heard in the past 12 months
I’ve listened to 1000-plus hours of podcasts this year.
Every day I take in at least 3 hours of recorded audio.
3 hours x 7 days x 52 weeks = more than 1000 hours
My earbuds are in whenever I’m doing a mindless task, like eating breakfast alone, brushing my teeth, vacuuming our apartment floor, or ironing my wife’s work shirts.
While I’m only subscribed to 3 feeds, I regularly check-in on 25 other podcasts. I keep a handwritten list of shows I like taped to my desk.
I don’t subscribe to everything because I’d have way more than I could ever listen to.
I tend towards in-person, less formal, long-form conversations more than highly produced content with a narrative arc, multiple interviews, and musical interludes.
I try to keep away from current events-style podcasts. Too much “news” makes my head spin, and I’m not built to stay up on it all: politics, technology, world events, etc.
I prefer timeless (“evergreen”) content that makes little reference to the here and now.
That’s my taste in podcasts.
A note on The Joe Rogan Experience
Joe Rogan is the Oprah of the 2020s.
He’s a master interviewer who gets interesting people to come talk to him.
It’s crazy that a supporting actor from NewsRadio, the former host of Fear Factor, a martial arts enthusiast, standup comedian, meat-eating, pot-smoking, bowhunter is among the most trusted media figures in America.
But that’s the compounding power of talking openly and honestly on-air 10 hours a week, week after week, month after month, year after year, for 2200-plus episodes.
Sure, Rogan spouts some nonsense, but he will at least walk you through his thought process on each issue.
While The Joe Rogan Experience might be the most important podcast in the world, I can’t put any its 2024 episodes on my top 5 list for two reasons.
One, large chunks of many episodes go deep into of-the-moment “news” content, making them un-evergreen.
Two, in each episode, it’s always likely Rogan will go on and on about:
all the great talents working in modern standup comedy
the best mixed martial arts fighters of all-time
why drugs should be legal in the US
how to eat and exercise well
muscle cars
aliens
AI
If you’re interested in the topic, and you’ve never heard Rogan’s take, that 20-minute part of the podcast is usually awesome.
If you’re interested in the topic and have already heard Rogan’s take, that 20-minute part of the podcast can still be interesting.
But, if you have zero interest in the topic and you’ve heard Rogan’s take 13 times already in other episodes, that 20-minute part is a drag.
I wish The Joe Rogan Experience had a “skip Joe’s rant” button.
I love the show, and I check its feed every day, but the episodes blur together a bit, so it’s hard to hold up one and say, “This one’s the best!”
Onto the top 5 podcast episodes I listened to this past year!
5. Lex Fridman Podcast - Gregory Aldrete: The Roman Empire - Rise and Fall of Ancient Rome
September 12th, Episode #443, 220 minutes
Background: Aldrete is a history professor at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay.
Why I love this episode: First of all, the audio version of this episode only has ad reads at the start.
Fridman is good at interviewing academics. He asks clear questions and lets them talk.
He moves Aldrete back and forth, from general to specific, allowing the historian to develop a broad picture of Ancient Rome, then zooming in on specific areas.
Aldrete is a very good storyteller. He mostly avoids big words. When he introduces a Latin term, he explains it’s meaning.
If you have no knowledge of Ancient Rome, but you’re curious, this is a great place to start. Listen to it in 40-minute chunks. It will fill your whole week.
My favorite parts:
The description of aristocratic Roman children wearing the death masks of their ancestors in a funeral procession.
How the early Roman military used a “hydra” method to conquer other peoples.
Aldrete’s hands-on investigation into linen and rabbit glue-based armor.
“You need a law code to enable people to live in groups.”
Roman attitudes towards business, their underdeveloped economy, and how they messed up tax collection in their provinces.
Links:
4. The Art of Manliness - A Butler’s Guide to Managing Your Household
March 11th, Episode #973, 49 minutes
Background: The Art of Manliness (AOM) is one of 3 podcast feeds I’m subscribed to. They offer a good mix of practical and philosophical content.
I have been listening to AOM for a decade-plus. Couple Brett and Kate McKay run the show. Brett hosts, while Kate does everything else (producing, editing, etc.).
I can keep up with their release schedule. There are only 2 episodes per week (Monday and Wednesday), with each running between 30 to 60 minutes.
AOM mostly features interviews with writers because Brett has said that they are more interesting to talk to than other people out there (YouTubers, influencers, etc.).
The most impressive part of each AOM episode is that Brett seems to have read the entire book that each guest is promoting. Some guests comment on the types of questions he asks. It sounds like they are used to boilerplate interviews.
Charles MacPherson worked as a chief butler, is the founder of a school to train butlers and household managers, and has written several books on buttling.
Why I love this episode: It’s a nuts and bolts episode that summarizes the history of buttling, how much butlers make, the “butler’s book”, and how to maintain your home.
Key takeaways:
How to find good contractors.
How to keep a home inventory.
The difference between “housekeeping”, “housecleaning”, and “deep cleaning.”
Why you should clean your dishwasher.
The best way to clean a shower.
Links:
* This episode is not on YouTube.
3. Founders - Li Lu
August 25th, Episode #362, 38 minutes
Background: Founders is not an interviewer-guest, question-answer type of podcast.
It’s a one-man operation.
David Senra reads a biography, takes a lot of notes, then summarizes what he learned in a podcast. Each episode is just Senra talking. He releases one podcast per week.
Each episode focuses on one “founder”, usually a well-known entrepreneur or someone who has been very successful in their particular field.
Founders has episodes on Napoleon, Coco Chanel, Steve Jobs, Estee Lauder, John D. Rockefeller, Quentin Tarantino, and dozens of others.
Why I love this episode: This one’s a bit of a downer, but it’s inspirational, too.
Li Lu grew up dirt poor in Communist China during the 1960s and 1970s. He barely knew his parents, experienced all kinds of tragedy, but worked hard and got to college.
Li was a student leader at the 1989 Tiananmen Square Massacre and wanted by the government afterwards. He escaped to the US, learned English, and graduated with 3 degrees from Columbia. Li is now an investor and businessman worth millions.
When you feel bad about yourself or your situation, give this episode a listen.
Your life could always be a whole lot worse.
Memorable quotes:
“I dreamt of eating lizard meat.”
“[T]he government sends the directors of the Neighborhood Committee [the Zhang family] ration tickets. Ration tickets were required to buy such things as meat, fish, and vegetables. But if the Zhangs did not like you, they could simply tell you that they didn’t get enough tickets from the district government...”
“Is competition a good thing?”
Links:
2. Matt and Shane’s Secret Podcast - Blonkies (feat. Theo Von)
January 9th, Episode #476, 85 minutes
Background: Matt McCusker, Shane Gillis, and Theo Von are standup comedians.
Why I love this episode: This is the funniest podcast I’ve heard all year.
Of course, you might think it’s a stupid waste of your time.
Each of us has our own sense of humor.
The boys sit around and talk nonsense. I’m about the same age as McCusker, Gillis, and Theo Von, so I get their cultural references.
McCusker and Gillis have great chemistry and are funny as a pair, but the addition of Theo Von takes this episode up a notch.
He makes weird and hilarious connections, has a unique angle on the world, and often delivers his jokes in a slow-ish way that disguises just how sharp he really is.
Imagine 3 pitchers warming up for a baseball game and two of them only toss 96 mph fastballs while the other guy floats in nothing but knuckleballs.
That’s the dynamic between McCusker, Gillis, and Theo Von.
The best bits:
Childhood stories about neighborhood kids and animals they knew.
Discussing old World Wrestling Federation (WWF) storylines.
An Austin Powers parody movie called Autism Powers.
Mike Pence probably collects Christmas villages.
Links:
1. Modern Wisdom - Rory Sutherland: Hidden Psychology of the World’s Best Advertising
January 22nd, Episode #735, 134 minutes
Background: Chris Williamson is the host of Modern Wisdom.
Rory Sutherland is an advertising executive and vice chairman of Ogilvy & Mather.
Why I love this episode: Sutherland is a ball of energy and full of ideas. As a podcast guest, he goes off on constant tangents (and tangents of tangents), if you let him.
Williamson doesn’t let him. He’s very good at asking a clear question, letting the Sutherland top spin off, and then reining him in at just the right point.
It helps that this was recorded in-person and that the pair have already done multiple episodes together, so they have good chemistry.
Some of my favorite Sutherland quotes:
“You noticed that wonderful thing where people, as I predicted, were hacking autonomous taxis in San Francisco…”
“A huge generation of the most successful comedians are also amateur evolutionary thinkers…”
“Colonel Sanders was 65 when he founded Kentucky Fried Chicken.”
“One of the sources of my creativity was obsessively reading Sherlock Holmes short stories as a fairly young kid.”
Links:
To wrap up
Just like you can tell a lot about a person by the types of books, movies, music, and art they like, I think you can tell a lot about a person by the podcasts they enjoy.
I hope that at least one episode of the 5 has piqued your interest and you’ll give it a go!
Nice list Scott! Totally agree with your Rogan take. I've never listened to AOM, I think I'll give it a go soon.
I've been a big fan of Lex Fridman for a long time. That was a great episode with Professor Aldrete. I'm always amazed by how much hatred Lex gets online. If you've noticed this as well, why do you think that is? He just seems like a very positive, kind, intelligent person. I've never been able to figure it out.