The move of the 2024 iHeartPodcast Awards to SXSW will come with a highly competitive battle for Podcast of the Year. The nominees for the annual awards show, including the listener-selected prize for top podcast, have been announced for the show set for March 11 at the SXSW Conference and Festivals in Austin.
Podcast of the Year nominees include Crime Junkie, The Daily, My Favorite Murder, New Heights, Normal Gossip, On Purpose with Jay Shetty, The Retrievals, Scamanda, SmartLess, and Wiser Than Me with Julia Louis-Dreyfus. Fan voting on iHeartPodcastAwards.com will run through February 18 and it will pick the winner.
There will be no waiting to find out the winners of a few of the categories. The 2024 Social Impact Award is going to reporter and producer Maggie Freleng and music executive and activist Jason Flom for their work at Lava for Good. Its podcast Wrongful Conviction features cases from the Innocence Project.
The winner of the 2024 Pioneer Award will go to Jonathan Goldstein, audio industry veteran, author and podcast host of Spotify Studio’s Heavyweight.
And the Awards will also honor the Ramble podcast Rotten Mango with the Innovator Award. The Innovator Award celebrates the voices that are breaking new creative ground in podcasting, and iHeart says Rotten Mango continues to show unique storytelling through both audio and video.
The awards, which will honor the very best in podcasting from 2023 and celebrate the most innovative talent and content creators in the industry, will honor podcasts across 29 categories. Nominees across categories include podcasts from all creators, distributors and platforms with a judging panel composed of blue-ribbon podcast industry leaders, and creatives who will determine the winners in categories including comedy, crime, news, TV and film, sports, food, and business. Here’s who made the list—
Podcast of the Year:
Crime Junkie
The Daily
My Favorite Murder
New Heights
Normal Gossip
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
The Retrievals
Scamanda
SmartLess
Wiser Than Me with Julia Louis-Dreyfus
Best Business & Finance:
Direct Deposit
How I Built This
MoneyWatch with Jill Schlesinger
Networth & Chill with Your Rich BFF
Planet Money
Best Comedy:
Baby, This is Keke Palmer
Handsome
SmartLess
This Is Important
Why Won't You Date Me
Best Crime:
Crime Junkie
The Girlfriends
The Retrievals
Scamanda
Something Was Wrong
Best Pop Culture:
Las Culturistas
I've Had It
Just B with Bethenny Frankel
Search Engine
Watch What Crappens
Best Food Podcast Award:
Cereal Killers
Hungry for History
Recipe Club
The Splendid Table
Sporkful
Best Wellness & Fitness:
Huberman Lab
Maintenance Phase
The Mel Robbins Podcast
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
Therapy For Black Girls
Best History:
Mobituaries with Mo Rocca
Revisionist History
Slow Burn
Throughline
You're Wrong About
Best Kids & Family:
Good Inside with Dr. Becky
Kids Short Stories with Mr. Jim
Sound Detectives
Story Pirates
The Suga
Best Music:
Disgraceland
Million Dollaz Worth of Game
Popcast
Questlove Supreme
Song Exploder
Best News:
The Daily
Pivot
Pod Save America
Today Explained
Up First
Best Fiction:
Ad Lucem
Full Body Chills
The Mantawauk Caves
Radio Rental
The Space Within
Best Sports:
Around The NFL
Club Shay Shay
The Dan Le Batard Show
New Heights
Pardon My Take
Best Science:
Hidden Brain
Inner Cosmos
Ologies
Radio Lab
StarTalk
Best Technology:
All-In
Hard Fork
Lex Fridman Podcast
TED Radio Hour
Vergecast
Best Ad Read:
Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend
Heavyweight
How Did This Get Made?
Say More with Dr. Sheila
SmartLess
Best Overall Host:
Joe Budden (The Joe Budden Podcast)
Jonathan Goldstein (Heavyweight)
Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Wiser Than Me)
Laci Mosley (Scam Goddess)
Nicole Byer (Why Won’t You Date Me?)
Best Overall Ensemble:
The 85 South Show
Handsome
New Heights
SmartLess
Today, Explained
Best Political:
The Ben Shapiro Show
CNN Inside Politics
Countdown with Keith Olbermann
NPR Politics Podcast
Pod Save America
Best TV & Film:
Drama Queens
Films to be Buried With
Give Them Lala w/ Lala Kent
How Did This Get Made?
Pop Culture Happy Hour
Best Spanish Language:
La Brega
Cassettes
Duolingo Spanish
Leyendas Legendarias
Transportista: Who Murdered Captain Coral? (Spanish version)
Best Advice/Inspirational:
Getting Curious
Dear Chelsea
Michelle Obama: The Light Podcast
This Keeps Happening with Vienna Pharaon
We Can Do Hard Things with Glennon Doyle
Best Beauty & Fashion:
Add to Cart with Kulap Vilaysack & SuChin Pak
Articles of Interest
Fool Coverage with Manny MUA and Laura Lee
The Goop Pursuit: Healing in a Sick Society
Lipstick On The Rim
Best Travel:
As Told By Nomads
Atlas Obscura
The Travel Hacking Mom Show
Travel With Rick Steves
Women Who Travel
Best Green:
Climate of Change
Discarded
Living on Earth
TED Climate
Sea Change
Best Spirituality & Religion:
The Bible in a Year with Fr. Mike Schmitz
The Bible Recap
Elevation with Steve Furtick
On Being with Krista Tippett
Women Evolve
Best Branded Podcast:
Crimson Hearts Collide (Hallmark Media)
Love In Gravity (ViiV Healthcare)
Mind the Business (Intuit Quickbooks)
Symptomatic (Novartis)
Townsizing (HGTV)
Best Emerging:
Classy
Handsome
How to Destroy Everything
I’ve Had It
The Really Good Podcast with Bobbi Althoff
Best International:
CTV Question Period with Vassy Kapelos (Canada)
Dichosa Sexualidad (Mexico)
The Fold (New Zealand)
The Imperfects (Australia)
Rocio Cordova (Mexico)
“As the podcast industry continues to rapidly grow, this past year has clearly proven that podcasters are always innovating in the audio space and finding new ways to reach and engage new audiences,” said Conal Byrne, CEO of iHeartMedia’s Digital Audio Group. “The nominees for the 2024 iHeartPodcast Awards reflect the results of honing that creativity and we’re thrilled to celebrate and once again empower these creators and elevate the podcast industry together live in person at SXSW.”
After pivoting to a virtual event during the pandemic, this year’s show returns to an in-person event. The 2024 iHeartPodcast Awards will also live-stream video of the show via a partnership with YouTube on iHeartRadio’s YouTube Channel. The ceremony – to be held at the Fairmont Hotel on Monday, March 11 at 8pm CT -- will also broadcast live on select iHeart-owned radio stations nationwide. Sponsors include The Hartford, YouTube, and Planet Oat.