Building A Podcast Network
For shege reasons, two conspirators hatched an idea to start a podcast show in Accra, Ghana. The uninspired show was to be called The D&C Show. The structure was hastily decided on, recording times agreed, there was an artwork ready for roll out and everything. Now, it remains unclear whether Aunty Fate was looking out for them but their show idea never saw the light of day other than a test audio recording that resides in a forgotten shared Google Drive folder. Through a series of surprising events, what eventually became the Gold Coast Report (GCR) podcast network started with not just one bad podcast show but four good ones :) What can we say? Ambition has never been in short supply.
Friends and acquaintances expressed interest in being a part of whatever GCR was becoming, there really wasn’t much convincing needed and on that landmark day in February, almost two years ago, a group of first-time podcasters sat across each other, fluffed their opening lines (repeatedly!) and recorded the first episodes for After The Whistle, The Other Room and Free Your Mind. The fourth show, The Untitled Startup never quite took off — the debt to Aunty Fate after all, had to be paid.
Growth And Change
The impact the last few years have had on the team cannot be understated. Collectively as first-time podcasters, we experienced a series of firsts. Together we had guests cancelling on us, episode recordings getting damaged and never seeing the light of day, existential life crisis wondering why we were devoting our weekends to this, the rush that comes from having strangers validate your opinion and saying goodbye to those we started our podcast hosting journey with. But losing some of our early co-hosts presented us the opportunity to meet and integrate new hosts who have not only bought into what GCR started, but drive what the network is today with the energy they bring to each recording.
For us at GCR, we are constantly looking for ways to not only improve but build a community that supports podcasters. We did not have anyone show us the ropes and are committed to ensuring new podcasters never have to experience that feeling of ‘doing this all by themselves’. The podcasting community in Ghana — hosts and listeners are all pretty awesome. To our podcast listeners, we are incorporating the changes you have requested over the course of last season and to our fellow non-GCR podcast hosts, we appreciate the amazing content you put out. We love it when the bar keeps getting raised and rather enjoy the competitive nature of our community! Here’s to another fantastic year of podcasting!
Looking Ahead
In 2019, we are looking to experiment with new show formats and help new hosts work out how to present their ideas. You are all in for a wild ride! The Unartiste Podcast joined the GCR family at the end of our first year and our expansion continued last year as we grew by adding three new show; Sincerely Accra, After Work Special and Opinions Are Mine, all of which had incredible debut seasons. Chale listeners? We got you!
And to GCR podcast hosts, past and present, you have all had an invaluable contribution to building this network. We remain resolute in rewarding the trust placed in us and remain focused in becoming Africa’s premier podcasting network!
