Charlamagne Tha God Says Podcasts and Radio Work Best Together.

Charlamagne Tha God brought his trademark candor to the IAB Podcast Upfront, telling advertisers that the real key to success isn’t chasing trends or hiding behind “brand safety,” but showing up authentically and consistently. The founder of the Black Effect Podcast Network and co-host of the syndicated radio show and podcast “The Breakfast Club” urged brands to stop overcomplicating campaigns and focus on making meaningful connections.

 “Sometimes we complicate the advertising,” Charlamagne said. “You have a product, you want your product in front of as many people as possible.” And he said putting those ads into the podcast format achieves that goal, dismissing the idea that campaigns must be narrowly targeted. “There is no Black toothpaste. There is no Spanish toothpaste — toothpaste is toothpaste,” he told buyers, urging them to focus less on labels and more on audience size and connection.

Charlamagne also pushed back on how advertisers define safety.

“This whole concept of brand safety, that’s just subjective,” he said. “If you’re a brand, and you’re saying this person’s audience isn’t safe, but this person has hundreds of millions of followers—who’s really losing in that scenario?”

Instead, he told advertisers to lean into authenticity and only use a personality that cares about a product. Charlamagne pointed to his own mental health advocacy and natural partnerships with Calm and Talkspace as examples. By contrast, he warned that scripted reads with no connection “just sound basic” to listeners.

Charlamagne also reflected about his entry into the podcast business more than a decade ago during his stage at the IAB Podcast Upfront. Reflecting on his journey, Charlamagne said he entered podcasting almost as a backup plan.

“I started my own podcast back in 2013 with a comedian named Andrew Schultz. I was like, a podcast? I do morning radio. What do I need a podcast for?” he recalled. “And then I started to think about it and that I had been fired from radio four times. And so I his would be a good backup plan in case the radio thing didn’t necessarily work out.”

But what began as a hobby quickly revealed both an audience and advertiser interest. “You realize there is an audience for this — and you can make money. That’s what got me in the podcasting space,” he told marketers.

Charlamagne said the medium has not replace what he does on the radio as part of “The Breakfast Club,” which is based at iHeartMedia’s “Power 105.1” WWPR-FM New York and is heard on over 100 stations nationwide.

Charlamagne said that after PPM meters showed that too much talk hurt radio ratings, many stations became music-intensive. Podcasts have created an outlet for air personalities to show off some of their talents that could no longer make it to the airwaves.

“A lot of those personalities just moved over the podcast,” he said. “Podcasting just allows you to amplify some of radio’s best moments.” He also stressed that the two platforms work best in tandem.

Charlamagne closed by urging advertisers to think five years ahead and tie their campaigns to meaningful, real-world impact. He pointed to his work with iHeart and the Black Effect Podcast Network, including the annual Mental Wealth Expo and the Thrill of Possibility Summit for HBCU students. “Always attach yourself to something that actually matters, that’s meaningful. Like, have a real intention… sometimes you got to start thinking about intention and not just attention.”