Side Projects Podcast

Welcome to Tum Town. Long time listeners will know that we often center our distaste for marketing slop and feral commercialism around a few brands, namely Crumbl, Blank Street, and MrBeast. So in our final episode of the year, we decided to actually try the stuff for ourselves and review it live. Stay until the end for a small crumb of analysis on brands trying to “tap into culture.” Here’s what...

We talk about how Saudi Arabia has renewed Dakota Johnson’s faith in film and Clara eavesdropping on Gen Alpha sleepover semantics. We also dive into the broader implications of younger consumers’ preference for Buy Now, Pay Later, Gary Vee evangelizing livestream shopping, and how frictionless access to credit has allowed the creator economy and the trend ecosystem to rise at scale.  Hosted...

Amy Francombe is a contributing editor at Vogue Business and writer of the amy_coded newsletter on Substack. We talk about why news is out and gossip is in, moving from a post-truth society to a post-meaning one, how unplugging became luxury’s most valuable currency, entertainment vs. conversion, why engagement metrics are junk, whether or not it cheapens a brand to have TikTokers sitting front ro...

We talk about Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy’s desire to “go back to an era where we didn’t wear our pajamas to the airport,” real bread lines at Meadow Lane, only doing charity if it’s a good content opportunity, and being “ghosted” by brands. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Annie Rauwerda is a comedian, long-time Wikipedian, and founder of the must-follow @depthsofwikipedia Instagram. In this special live episode, we ask her about the current right-wing attacks on Wikipedia, the Wikimedia awards, what it takes to be a Wikipedia editor, “ Corn ” being such a controversial entry page, muffins, why she’s optimistic about the next generation of internet users, and a wond...

The crew unpacks Zohran Mamdani’s electoral victory and what it says about a younger generation of New Yorkers who are looking to claw back a sense of agency, power, purpose, and connection beyond the “brand universe.”  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Anu Lingala is a trend strategist and founder of the must-read Substack, WHAT’S ANU . We get a crash course in trend forecasting methodology, and then move on to who killed cool , the collapse of the irony/sincerity cycle, why people are trying to escape being seen by brands, Anu’s new theory on “ trend bipolarity ,” why we need to return to the basics of brand strategy, Anthony Bourdain, sharehol...

This week on the pod we unpack what stunt movie marketing, the rise of fan edits, exclusive Glen Powell pics, and the not-advertising-advertising of the Louvre art heist reveal about what it takes to make a film relevant. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Daniel-Yaw Miller is an award-winning journalist and writer of the newsletter, SportsVerse . We talk to him about whether or not streamers and influencers are welcome disruptors or interlopers, not watching upstart sports leagues out of principle, what makes Stone Island a “smart collaborator” brand, depth vs. breadth, Loewe and On’s partnership with stone skipping GOAT Kurt Steiner, and NIL.&nbsp...

Everything is an ad and no one is paying attention. Trey and Eli discuss if it’s possible to cut through in an era of calcified apathy, ad blockers, toilet TV, and “brandspeak” afflicted gen pop.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

AJ Wolfe is a blogger and author of Disney Adults: Exploring (And Falling In Love With) A Magical Subculture . We dive into Disney Adult culture, what’s behind a sort of religious fervor for the House of Mouse, how Disney is shifting its business priorities and offerings to meet an older, childless consumer base, why “the worst part about being a Disney Adult is other Disney Adults,” why you don’t...

We—and the rest of New York—have a few thoughts on the sprawling, million dollar subway campaign for “Friend,” the AI-powered companion pendant that listens to whatever you’re doing and offers a running commentary on your interactions. It’s yet to ship a single product. Plus, Meta’s new “Vibes,” Palantir tote bags, ChatGPT and Claude’s new marketing pushes, and we ask “why do some brands have so m...

Christina Loff is the Head of Lifestyle on the partnerships team at Substack. She also writes her own newsletter called The Dry Down Diaries . We talk to her about recruiting new writers to the platform, not being held to an algorithm, leaning into “founder-led” brand stories (but not every brand should be, or needs to be on the platform), bathhouse readings, and the importance of downloading the...

We delve into Kyle Raymond Fitzpatrick’s apt and unrestrained diatribe on the “ era of ad-based psychosis ” in his newsletter The Trend Report , and what happens when we leave people with nothing other than products, branding, or a community manager in the comments section to bind their entire identity to. On the brighter side, stay to hear about a hamster riding a motorcycle, Owen Cooper and the...

Derrick Gee has established himself as one of the internet’s most authoritative voices and purveyors of taste in music, amassing almost two million followers across TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram. His Sydney home/studio (shoes off, please) is also the backdrop for his show “ Solid Air ,” where he’s welcomed Lorde, beabadoobee, MJ Lenderman, Jamie xx, and more. We discuss the road to becoming a Pro...

In this episode, we discuss AI’s increasingly complex role in advertising, from the way it's used to churn out social feed filler, to how consumers react when they find out the “authentic” campaign they loved was never real in the first place. We talk about the Oasis concert over the weekend—bucket hats and pre-rolls included—J.Crew’s faux-vintage lookbook, and Skechers’ sketchy subway ads. ...

On this episode we’re joined by our Day One colleague, Jordan Stone. We start off with a quick examination of the global elites’ music tastes, recently uncovered via the ‘ Panama Playlists ,’ and then move on to debate what we have to gain, or lose, when we have a more critical, curatorial lens to the ad world and culture at large. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Belly buttons, Morse code, Miami Dolphins colorways… We’re talking Taylor Swift’s Showgirl Era™. But beneath the bright orange or purple glitter and brand commenting chaos, the creator economy is still grinding away — and not in a good way. We break down why it feels like a “race to the bottom for human dignity,” per ZINE’s Matt Klein, how brands are fracking culture for quick hits, and what a mor...

Thom Bettridge is the editor in chief of the newly-relaunched i-D magazine. He’s previously held stints at 032c, SSENSE, Highsnobiety, and Interview. We talk about building off of the publication's 45+ year legacy, scouting unknown talent, the importance of actually talking to people, how Gen Z insights are just Millennial insights, and why he launched his own Substack, CONTENT . Hosted on Acast....

Clara’s seeking out angel investors for a pretzel brand by women, for women. Plus, a discussion around why brands just can’t help themselves from using bleak insights as jumping off points for gimmicks. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dan Frommer is the founder of The New Consumer: a publication which draws upon his expertise as a business and tech journalist to examine how and why people spend their time and money. He joins us to talk through some of the takeaways from his recent 2025 Mid-Year Report . We cover Gen Z’s uneasiness on AI, why people would rather meet their favorite podcaster in the wild than an A-list movie star...

Trey kicks things off with a quick (hopefully final) recap of the Coldplay “Jumbotron Incident” and a momentary return of monoculture. You can’t just cheat in today’s surveillance culture, sorry. Then, Clara shifts gears to talk about the new “gentle-jacked” Superman, and how the film’s refreshingly earnest plotline highlights a much-needed cultural shift away from irony-pilled junk. Finally, Eli...

Rachel Janfaza is a writer, political analyst, and founder of The Up and Up : the authoritative newsletter tracking the cultural and political forces influencing Gen Z. We discuss how Covid split Gen Z in two, why MAGA appeals to young women, wedge issues, voting against your interests, whether or not young voters who shifted right in 2024 are up for grabs, purpose-driven branding, and a wish...

We discuss snack jail (aka CVS’s shopping-proof shelves) and Crumbl’s Moonbeam Ice Cream Cookie, inspired by the Benson Boone song “Mystical, Magical.” Plus, the Cannes Lions have been marred in controversy over the past few weeks, following several exposés around wonky data and AI-filled case study videos. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Zito Madu is an author, sports journalist, and cultural critic. We talk about why there are empty seats at the Club World Cup, why sports betting is here to stay, losing a multi-million dollar contract on a three figure parlay, how pay-to-play sports eliminates a diversity of playing styles, why we need to bring more whimsy back to sports marketing, and the joy of seeing waterfalls. Host...