Serial-ously worth a listen: Check out these podcasts for engaging stories

By: Albie Nicol

Getting In: Your College Admissions Companion

For millions of American teenagers and their parents, adolescence is increasingly defined by one all-consuming goal: Getting into the right college. “Getting In” is a real-time podcast following a diverse group of New York-area high school seniors through the exhilarating and harrowing process of applying to college. When I first started listening to this podcast, I felt disheartened. It seemed very focused only toward seniors, so I was a bit concerned that it wouldn’t be helpful to me. However, I continued to listen, and there’s even an episode entitled “Juniors, Start Your Engines.” That episode plus “Early Decision Crunch Time” are probably my favorite two episodes, and the most helpful for juniors. I would recommend this podcast because it’s a testimony from experts, high school seniors and their families about the process of applying for college and topics that stem from that.

Lore

Lore is a bi-weekly podcast about the history behind scary stories. The people, places and things of our darkest nightmares all have real facts at their core. Each episode of Lore looks into a uniquely scary tale and uncovers the truth of what’s behind it. I really love Lore because it gives you both reality and fantasy, and it debunks the connection between the two. It’s like a horror movie coming out every other week, but a bit less scary. This podcast will keep you on your toes for the almost half hour episode, and it’s never repetitive or boring; there’s always new information and a new ‘lore’ to learn about.

Strangers

Strangers is just that — episodes telling a different person’s story each time of how they ran into someone, and it changed their lives. Each episode is an empathy shot in your arm, featuring true stories about about the people we meet, the connections we make, the heartbreaks we suffer, the kindnesses we encounter and those frightful moments when we discover that we aren’t even who we thought we were. I recommend this podcast because we all have some situation where we awkwardly met someone or keep on running into the same person, and it somehow changes our lives — whether for good or for bad. Each episode is honest and raw. You feel like you are having coffee with the narrator, and who doesn’t need a bit more honesty in his or her life?

Mystery Show

If anyone is the Truest Detective, it’s Starlee Kine. Simply put, Kine’s Mystery Show solves mysteries. but not mysteries in the vein of Serial. Kine investigates the odd, banal deeply human mysteries — like who an intricate belt buckle originally belonged to or how tall really is Jake Gyllenhaal. Kine’s investigations are never quite linear — she hops through time, people and sidetracks into the depths of humanity with complete strangers. It’s addictive, heartbreaking and will leave you wondering what lingering life mysteries that Kine can solve for you. I’d recommend this podcast because it’s full of knowledge that’s on a basic level, but something you might not know because we don’t think about it. It’s a perfect way to become more knowledgeable.

The Ensemblist

The Ensemblist is an inside look at the experience of being a Broadway performer — from the first rehearsal through performing eight shows a week and beyond. Whether you’re an experienced theater professional or just a passionate fan, The Ensemblist will give you the opportunity to get to know new performers and the great work they do onstage, while also shedding light on some of the hidden gems of Broadway. I would recommend this podcast because even if you aren’t a huge theater nerd, actors are so different and have different hobbies and passions besides theater that they discuss in the podcast episodes. You also get to hear funny stories about shows and other theater people, and it’s just a great and entertaining podcast.