Heading into my 6th year in the podcast industry, there’s a lot that I’ve seen and there’s more I would love to see especially when it comes to…you guessed it – Caribbean Podcasting.
I love Track & Field and I also love the NBA. For this article – let us focus on the NBA for a minute. There’s a whole ecosystem in the NBA other than the players and coaches. Sure the players and coaches get the lime light but basketball fans know, there’s operations, analysts, statisticians, the medical team, etc. that are essential to supporting the roles of the players and coaches.
The same applies to podcasting. While I’m excited that there are new shows and hosts, I would love to see more people in roles that support the industry.
And while Caribbean Podcasting is still in the nascent stage, I don’t it’s too early to begin exploring opportunities for entrepreneurs and roles beyond hosting in Podcasting and Audio.
2 Immediate Needs
What roles would I love to see? Well I’m going to selfishly address my pain points over the pass 6 years.
- AI & Software: There are a lot of AI tools and software for transcription. I’d love to see a technologist or entrepreneur of Caribbean Heritage attempt at creating a product that is trained to recognized our voices and accents. Check out this article I wrote a few years ago about why diversity in these AI tools is important.
- Music: Finding royalty free music that represents the diverse discography of the Caribbean is hard. Most of what’s available is a touristy/cliche version of Calypso and Reggae. Options are limited that people like me who are native to the culture feel is truly authentic. So for years I’ve settled on the closest thing. A few months ago while working with a client – they were looking for a particular type of music but I couldn’t find anything suitable. The client was disappointed but they also understood the landscape. Aspiring Caribbean beat makers can take advantage of the many platforms like Audio Jungle or Premium Beat where they can create music that can be used in podcasts and other mediums for a reasonable price. There just needs to be more royalty free music Caribbean creators selling their work!
Hope for the Future
As the larger podcast industry continues to develop and grow, I’m always hopeful about the possibilities for the Caribbean Podcast Industry. And once I discover quality service and tools, I will definitely share.
