EARIOS is New Podcast Network Founded by Women for Everyone

Los Angeles CA, USA—Launched on July 1, Earios is a female-founded podcast network dedicated to content created by women, for everyone. Co-led by actors, writers and producers Amanda Lund and Maria Blasucci, along with filmmaker and ex-agent, Priyanka Mattoo, the network will feature electric hosts and cover topics from comedy and news to lifestyle, entertainment and sex. Earios is powered by Acast, the largest global podcast company, through commercial support, insights & analytics, hosting & distribution.

Earios was born when Lund and Blasucci, who host their own independent shows, pitched new show concepts to other networks last year. They realized that few networks were actually founded by women, even though over 30 percent of shows are hosted or co-hosted by women and that women make up almost half of podcast listeners. Recognizing the need to bridge the gap between network ownership, creators and listeners, Blasucci and Lund recruited Mattoo and began to build what did not exist.

“All the podcasts I listen to are spread out among some awesome networks, but there wasn’t one that really spoke to Maria’s or my sensibilities and that felt like we were part of that community,” says Lund. “Maria and I also have spent years being beholden to gatekeepers as actors and writers. We knew that we had to carve out a space for ourselves and our fellow amazing women creators as we noticed podcasting becoming more like film and TV so creating Earios scratches this itch.”

“Nearly all of the networks that host, develop and promote popular shows are run by men. So a lot of content pitched by women is not bought or promoted. We wanted to make it easier for women to share their ideas with a like-minded community,” says Mattoo, who was also pregnant with her daughter during the incubation period of Earios. “I have to admit that, while I love working with Amanda and Maria, and I love to help women achieve their creative dreams, the baby girl in my belly played no small part. I felt compelled to make this happen, for her.”

Last summer, Earios successfully raised funds through a Kickstarter campaign with the goal to raise enough money to launch with six to eight shows. However, the founders smashed their goal and Earios will now launch 12 shows this year, including ones from comedy icon Margaret Cho and musician Feist.

Earios also found a partner in Acast, the world’s largest podcast company. “It was important to us to find a partner like Acast who also believes in bringing female voices to the forefront,” says Mattoo. “They’re as excited about the slate as we are - and they’ve been our greatest champions.”

Earios will launch with four shows this week. New shows will launch every couple of weeks.

Shows launching July 1 are:

• Filling the Void hosted by Lesley Arfin

Lesley Arfin, the creator of the hit Netflix series LOVE, talks to her eclectic group of friends about the things they do for pure, simple joy. Did you know Diablo Cody is a roller coaster fanatic? Or that Kate Berlant is obsessed with making sourdough bread? You might call these hobbies - Lesley calls them filling the void.

• Foxy Browns hosted by Camilla Blackett and Mattoo

Writers Priyanka Mattoo (vulture.com) and Camilla Blackett (New Girl) will explore what beauty and wellness mean from their perspectives as women of color and immigrants. Some days they’re ranking eye creams, others they’re deconstructing Western beauty standards.

• Web Crawlers hosted by Melissa Stetten & Ali Segel

Social Media stars Melissa Stetten and Ali Segel go down an internet rabbit hole to explore the strange and mysterious world of the dark web. From hauntings to murders to unexplainable disappearances, these internet sleuths will leave no message board unread.

• The Big Ones hosted by Blasucci and Lund

Comedians Amanda Lund and Maria Blasucci discuss life’s biggest moral dilemmas. The questions can be complicated but they’re always fun to discuss because they force you to look deep, deep withinside ™ yourself! Will you like what you see?

Shows to come are:

• The Margaret Cho

Each week comedy icon Margaret Cho interviews one celebrity you know and love, and one person she believes is the next big thing.

• Pleasure Studies

In this impressionistic podcast that accompanies her upcoming album and tour, indie pop darling Feist strings together interviews with professional athletes, new mothers, artists, and even polyamorous pornography performers wherein they examine facets of modern life. This podcast dares us to ask larger questions about how we overcome loss, define partnerships and let go of pain.

• Mother of All Shows

Hosted by actor/director Kimmy Gatewood (Glow), this hybrid of investigative journalism, comedy, and thought-provoking interviews will shine a light on what it’s like to be a modern parent. From breastfeeding to work-life balance, this podcast will educate, challenge, and entertain you.

• The Alarmist

Actor/writer Rebecca Delgado (The Good Place) sits down with a guest to analyze and scrutinize history’s greatest disasters, from the sinking of the Titanic to the break-up of The Beatles, to find out what went wrong and who is to blame. (It wasn’t Yoko!)

• Sex for Money

You know Aasha Davis from hit shows like Friday Night Lights and Drunk History, but what you don’t know is that she loves to talk about sex! Aasha hosts this fun and lighthearted game show centered around demystifying our sexual experiences. Each week two contestants play educational yet ridiculous games in hopes of winning a cash prize!

• Spermcast

Actor, writer, and comedian, Molly Hawkey wants a baby. The only problem is she’s 39, single, and not exactly ready for motherhood. So she’s on a quest - a quest for a sperm donor, and a quest for some personal growth. Each week you’ll hear interviews with potential donors, but she’ll also seek guidance from the pros: doctors, financial advisors, tarot card readers…whatever it takes. By the end of this series, if all goes according to plan, she’ll find her donor and inseminate herself.

• We Need to Talk about Britney

What does it mean to be famous? What about Britney Spears famous? Do you find yourself comparing each moment of your own life to each moment of Britney’s life? Because even if you’ve never shaved your own head while the paparazzi watched from the barbershop window, we’ve all been there. Join writer and actress, Jen Zaborowski as she sits down with guests to break down Britney’s life and works all while trying to figure out why Jen’s so obsessed with Britney Spears. Sometimes we just NEED to talk about Britney!

• The Complete Christmas

Co-founder of Earios, Amanda Lund, brings 1960’s love and marriage expert Marabel May to life in the highly-produced audio fiction series, The Complete Woman. This Christmas, Marabel May is back to enforce her suffocating rules of conduct on your holiday celebration. As if you weren’t on the verge of a breakdown already!

About EARIOS:

Earios is a podcast network built by women, with funny, smart and inclusive programming for everyone. Our shows range from interviews to fiction, and all the creative forms in between. The network was incubated in 2018 and launched in 2019 by entertainment veterans Maria Blasucci, Amanda Lund and Priyanka Mattoo. Follow @EariosNetwork on Twitter and Instagram. https://www.earios.net/

About Acast:

Acast is the world’s largest podcast company. Since 2014, Acast has been the engine powering audio for creators all over the world. At its core, Acast connects audio makers with the financial support they need to create amazing content while also delivering the audience they want. Acast works with podcasts globally including Forever 35, The Lady Vanishes, My Dad Wrote a Porno, David Tennant Does a Podcast With…, Ask A Clean Person, Hollywood Crime Scene, Watch What Crappens, and Fat Mascara as well as those of publishers such as the BBC, Vogue, The Economist, and VICE. As a global business, Acast has offices around the world from Stockholm to Sydney and a team of 150+ talented audio lovers working diligently to create a sustainable audio and voice ecosystem to ensure that the audio industry continues to grow and flourish. Acast was founded by Karl Rosander and Mans Ulvestam together with co-founder Johan Billgren.

About the Founders:

PRIYANKA MATTOO was formerly a comedy agent at UTA and WME, where she worked with established actors, as well as signing and nurturing new talent like Ellie Kemper and Kumail Nanjiani. Priyanka left representation to partner with Jack Black’s at their production company, Electric Dynamite, and moved on to write and direct. Priyanka holds degrees in Italian and Law from the University of Michigan. She grew up in India, England, and Saudi Arabia, before moving to the U.S. in high school, and now lives in LA with her husband and kids.

MARIA BLASUCCI is an actor, producer, and comedy writer. She is best known for her roles on shows such as HBO’s Family Tree and Ghost Ghirls on Yahoo Screen. She was an associate producer on the 2016 film, Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising. She currently stars in the Comedy Central series Drunk History and can also be seen on Netflix in the films Mascots and Patchwork. Maria has been active in the podcast community for the last eight years. She and Amanda Lund co-host the weekly podcast, The Big Ones. She is a frequent guest star on various popular podcasts including Paul F. Tompkins’ Spontaneanation, Matt Gourley’s I Was There Too, and The James Bonding Podcast in addition to being a supporting actor on the HOWL original series created by Amanda Lund, The Complete Woman

AMANDA LUND is an actor, comedy writer, and producer. Amanda has appeared in many television shows including Fresh Off The Boat, New Girl, Brooklyn 99, and Parenthood as well as the feature film, Goosebumps and has developed TV pilots for Syfy, Fox and Comedy

Central. She was an associate producer on Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising with her friend and writing partner, Maria Blasucci. Amanda is very active in the podcast world; she co-hosts The Big Ones and appears regularly on Spontaneanation and Superego. She is also the proud writer and creator of the critically-acclaimed audio series, The Complete Woman, Complete Joy , and The Complete Wedding.