Spotify is about music first and foremost, and it’s a great platform for discovering new artists, creating playlists, and getting a sneak peek at new tracks. But it also has a wide selection of podcasts about comedy, politics, science, parenting, and of course, music.
We scoured the Spotify podcast archives and chose the best ones, ranging from the funny to the educational to the thought-provoking that you can add to the mix next time you fire up the app on your Android, iPhone, iPad, or desktop. These podcasts are available on other platforms, but these are the top twelve that Spotify has to offer, in no particular order.
Endless Thread — For Hardcore Redditors
This show mines Reddit for topics and centers each episode around a story or a few related stories. One episode centers on Ken Bone, the famous question-asker from one of the 2016 election debates. Others are all about death, school, and a small town with a very strange and troubling official seal.
The hosts do the digging into Reddit’s endless threads so we don’t have to.
You may never resurface from the threads.
Invisibilia — A Popular Podcast for the Brainy
Latin for “invisible things,” Invisibilia explores all the unseen forces that affect our decisions and our beliefs. Episodes look at how two people can look at the same thing but see different realities and whether our personalities are constant over time. You’ll find that many of our assumptions about life are flawed.
This podcast will consistently blow your mind.
It will make you question everything!
Popcast — For Lovers of Pop Music
The paper of record’s pop music team discusses new artists and tunes, and what’s the what in pop culture news.
We often think of pop music as mere fluff; this show reveals its effect on our culture, from American Idol to R. Kelly and everything in between.
It might make you feel old (Cardi B is only 25!!)
Larry Wilmore: Black on the Air — For Those Who Like to “Keep it 100
Comedian Wilmore, the one-time host of The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore, and former senior Black correspondent on The Daily Show hits the podcast waves with interviews about politics, current events, and journalism.
It’s an engaging way to keep up with what’s going on in the world without pulling your hair out.
It’ll make you wish he was still on TV.
Rolling Stone Music Now — For Those Who Want a Backstage Pass
This podcast takes everything that the iconic magazine offers: interviews with the hottest artists and in-depth feature stories and remixes it with episodes about the late Tom Petty, songwriting, Sammy Hagar, and more.
It’s fun to relive the past with old interviews with musicians who have died, and new interviews with classic bands like Van Halen.
With so many prolific musicians dying off, many of the latest episodes might get you weepy.
All Fantasy Everything — For When Fantasy Football Isn’t Enough
This podcast takes the concept of fantasy sports and applies it to all manner of topics such as movie tropes, celebrity meltdowns, and breakfast food. Host and comedian Ian Karmel brings in a panel to pick and fight over their favorites in each category.
In the stressful world that we live in, it’s soothing to listen to low-stakes arguments about things people wish they were into or the best one-word movies.
The show will make you laugh, but it might not make you any smarter.
With Special Guest Lauren Lapkus — For Improv Lovers
Lauren Lapkus’s podcast switches the roles of host and guest. Each episode features a different host, and Lapkus is always the guest. The twist is that she shows up as a different character each time – sometimes one suggested by the host – and the whole thing is improvised from there.
The improv-style of the podcast means that no one knows where the episode will go; hilarity ensues.
Binge-listening to episodes older than six months requires a subscription to Stitcher Premium ($4.99 per month).
Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls — For Present and Future Feminists
Forget fairy tales with so-called happy endings; this podcast tells stories about famous women who did incredible things, narrated by other prominent women, such as Melinda Gates and Jody Kantor. Subjects include Billie Jean King and Ada Lovelace.
What’s not to love about learning about strong women who made history? (Especially those who’ve been forgotten.)
You start to look at your own life, and well. . .
Sleep With Me — A Podcast for Insomniacs
Host and fellow insomniac Drew Ackerman tells bedtime stories to help the sleep-challenged feel less alone. The stories get progressively more boring as the episode goes on in hopes that listeners will drift off before the end.
Being an insomniac is lonely and stressful; this podcast takes some of the edge off.
May fail to put you to sleep, and then it is just rambling.
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