“I had no idea that was happening” is a phrase that gets thrown around quite a bit in Bloomington’s social circles. Whether it’s a low-key musical performance, an axe throwing tournament or an honest-to-God typewriter type-in, no one would blame you for missing a few of the goings on around town.
The Btown Lowdown is a new podcast made for the FOMO-afflicted, by them, all with the intent to find out more about south-central Indiana.
“Once you start paying attention, there really is a lot going on,” said Btown Lowdown Co-Host Jennifer Richler. “There’s a lot of quirky, slightly offbeat kinds of things going on that you might not hear about. There are big things like Lotus – everyone knows that Lotus is going to happen… [and there’s] the kind of thing you would maybe not hear about, but once you do, maybe you think that sounds like fun.”
Each week, Richler and co-host Jeremy Shere run down happenings all over the city, accompanied with interviews with event organizers, like finalists in the Bloomington Comedy Festival or Janae Cummings with Bloomington Pridefest.
The Btown Lowdown isn’t affiliated with the city or a local group. It’s just two longtime residents who wanted to take their passion for Bloomington public.
“I think the more time you give it, the more chance you give it, the more you realize, well, it is a small town but it’s a college town. And there’s actually quite a lot to do. The pace of living suits us,” Shere said. “There’s nothing pulling us away.”
Kesem, Shere's dog and "official co-mascot" of the podcast, sits in on our interview. (Photo: Payton Knobeloch)
For Shere, the Btown Lowdown came out of necessity. He had been looking for a Bloomington-centric podcast for the past few years but wasn’t able to find one, so he took it up on himself. Before moving forward, he consulted his tried and true litmus test for ideas.
“I mentioned [the show] to my wife. Typically, when I tell her ideas, her response will be like, ‘Hmm, yeah…’ But this one, she was enthusiastic,” Shere said.
Shere, who’s lived in Bloomington for over 20 years and works for Cook Medical, and Richler, a 10-year resident and freelance writer, have been good friends for about a decade. When Shere was putting the show together, Richler was an easy choice for a co-host.
“As a journalist, [I’m] interested in exploring other media, and audio is something that I haven’t done a lot of at all. But I’ve been wanting to find a way to break into that,” Richler said.
Shere also has experience as a radio and podcast producer, and he’s been sharing his tools of the trade with Richler.
As the Btown Lowdown moves forward, Shere says he and Richler want the show to grow as large as it can while still keeping its hyper-local focus. They said they want their podcast to be mentioned in the same breath as local publications like Bloom Magazine (Shere mentioned it was one of their show’s inspirations) and The Herald-Times as a source of info for Bloomington residents.
Guests coming down the pipeline include this coming episode’s interview with Jenny McKnight, the director of Cardinal Stage’s production of The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, and an upcoming sit-down with Lotus World Music and Arts Festival Executive Director Sunni Fass.
They also want to feature everyday people effecting positive change on the community. One particular example was a man who transports his high-end telescope to events around the city, letting kids get a free, up-close look at the night sky.
There are plenty of other notable Bloomington residents Richler and Shere want to get into the studio as well. For Richler, it’s the people behind Green Camino, a compost collection service. And for Shere, it’s a toss-up between writer Scott Russell Sanders and drummer Kenny Aronoff.
“There’s a lot of people who either live here part-time or full-time who are surprisingly a big deal,” Shere said. The same goes for another dream guest, musician John Mellencamp. “Everyone I know has seen him except me,” he joked.
But until those guests are in front of a mic, they just want the show to be as engaging as it can be while showing a little love to the community where they’ve put down roots.
As Richler puts it, “We’re not looking to go anywhere else.”
Featured image: Co-hosts Jeremy Shere (left) and Jennifer Richler discuss the podcast in their studio. (Photo: Payton Knobeloch)
