Millions of people have been listening all year long, and now, their favorite podcasts are about to be celebrated during the 2022 iHeartRadio Podcast Awards.
The iHeartRadio Podcast Awards are returning to the iHeartRadio Theater in Los Angeles on January 13th, 2022, and will honor the very best in podcasting throughout 2021, and the most innovative talent and content creators in the industry. Podcasting saw a huge surge, not only in listening, but also in podcast creation throughout the COVID-19 Pandemic ā over 160 million people have listened to a podcast this year alone.
As in previous years, the fans will be deciding the winner of the coveted Podcast of the Year award by voting via Twitter. Nominees in this category include "Code Switch," "Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend," "Crime Junkie," "Louder Than a Riot," "Office Ladies," "SmartLess," "Stuff You Should Know," "The Daily," "The Midnight Miracle" and "You're Wrong About." Voting kicks off on December 13th and runs through January 2nd, 2022.
Winners in other categories ā which span across entertainment, comedy, crime, news, sports, food and more ā will be decided on by a judging panel composed of blue-ribbon podcast industry leaders, creatives and visionaries. The 2022 iHeartRadio Podcast Awards will also include two new categories: Best Emerging Podcast and Best International Podcast.
Several winners from last year's iHeartRadio Podcast Awards have again gained nominations in their respective categories including "Office Ladies" for Podcast of the Year, "The Read" for Best Comedy Podcast, "Crime Junkie" for Best Crime Podcast, "Pod Save America" for Best News Podcast, "All The Smoke" for Best Sports Podcast, Conan OāBrien for Best Overall Host ā Male, Nicole Byer for Best Overall Host ā Female, "Pop Culture Happy Hour" for Best Pop Culture Podcast, "Therapy for Black Girls" for Best Wellness & Fitness Podcast, and more. See the full list of nominees for the 2022 iHeartRadio Podcast Awards below.
Podcast of the Year (Socially Voted Category)
- āCode Switchā (NPR)
- āConan OāBrien Needs a Friendā (Team Coco)
- āCrime Junkieā (audiochuck)
- āLouder Than a Riotā (NPR)
- āOffice Ladiesā (Earwolf/Jenna Fischer & Angela Kinsey)
- āSmartLessā (Wondery/Amazon)
- āStuff You Should Knowā (iHeartRadio)
- āThe Dailyā (The New York Times)
- āThe Midnight Miracleā (Luminary, Dave Chappelle, Talib Kweli, and Yasiin Bey)
- āYouāre Wrong Aboutā (Sarah Marshall)
Best Comedy Podcast
- āComedy Bang Bang: The Podcastā (Earwolf/Scott Aukerman)
- āLas Culturistasā (Big Money Players)
- āMy Brother, My Brother, and Meā (The McElroys)
- āSmartLessā (Wondery/Amazon)
- āThe Readā (Loud Speakers Network)
Best Crime Podcast
- āCrime Junkieā (audiochuck)
- āDr. Deathā (Wondery)
- āJensen & Holes: The Murder Squadā (Exactly Right)
- āScam Goddessā (Earwolf/Team Coco/ Laci Mosley)
- āTo Live and Die in LAā (Tenderfoot TV/Cadence13
Best Music Podcast
- āBroken Recordā (Pushkin Industries)
- āLouder Than A Riotā (NPR)
- āQuestlove Supremeā (iHeartRadio)
- āSong Exploderā (Hrishikesh Hirway)
- āToxic: The Britney Spears Storyā (Witness Docs)
Best News Podcast
- āPod Save Americaā (Crooked Media)
- āThe Dailyā (The New York Times)
- āThe Rachel Maddow Showā (MSNBC)
- āToday, Explainedā (Vox)
- āUp Firstā (NPR)
Best Sports Podcast
- āAll The Smokeā (The Black Effect)
- āPardon My Takeā (Barstool Sports)
- āSummer of Goldā (Dear Media)
- āThe Bill Simmons Podcastā (The Ringer/Bill Simmons)
- āThe Herd with Colin Cowherdā (iHeartRadio)
Best Overall Host ā Male
- Conan OāBrien (Team Coco)
- Michael Hobbes (Independent)
- Sam Sanders (NPR)
- Sean Hayes (Amazon/Wondery)
- Wesley Morris (The New York Times)
Best Overall Host ā Female
- Anna Sale (WNYC)
- Kara Swisher (The New York Times)
- Laverne Cox (Shondaland Audio)
- Nicole Byer (Team Coco)
- Sarah Marshall (Independent)
Best Business & Finance Podcast
- āBloomberg Businessweekā (Bloomberg)
- āBrown Ambitionā (Westwood One)
- āBusiness Warsā (Wondery)
- āEarn Your Leisureā (The Black Effect/iHeartRadio)
- āHow I Built This with Guy Razā (NPR)
Best Pop Culture Podcast
- āKeep It!ā (Crooked Media)
- āPop Culture Happy Hourā (NPR)
- āStill Processingā (The New York Times)
- āThe Readā (Loud Speakers Network)
- āYouāre Wrong Aboutā (Sarah Marshall)
Best Food Podcast
- āDoughboysā (Headgum & Doughboys Media)
- āBon AppĆ©tit Food Peopleā (Bon AppĆ©tit)
- āGastropodā (Independent)
- āHome Cookingā (Samin Nosrat/Hrishikesh Hirway)
- āThe Splendid Tableā (American Public Media)
Best Wellness & Fitness Podcast
- āBody Stuff with Dr. Jen Gunterā (TED Audio Collective)
- āMaintenance Phaseā (Aubrey Gorden/Michael Hobbes)
- āOn Purpose with Jay Shettyā (Jay Shetty)
- āPOOG with Kate Berlant and Jacqueline Novakā (Big Money Players)
- āTherapy for Black Girlsā (Joy Harden Bradford/iHeartRadio)
Best History Podcast
- āDan Carlinās Hardcore Historyā (Dan Carlin)
- āDark Historyā (Audioboom Studios)
- āLoreā (Aaron Mahnke/Grim & Mild)
- āRevolutionsā (Mike Duncan)
- āThroughlineā (NPR)
Best Kids & Family Podcast
- āBrains On! Science Podcast for Kidsā (American Public Media)
- āCircle Roundā (WBUR)
- āGoodnight Stories For Rebel Girlsā (Rebel Girls)
- āStory Piratesā (Gimlet)
- āWow in the Worldā (Wondery Kids)
Best Fiction Podcast
- āBlackoutā (QCODE/Endeavor Content)
- āBridgewaterā (iHeartRadio/Grim & Mild)
- āEdith!ā (QCODE/Crooked Media)
- āIn Strange Woods: A Musical Podcastā (Atypical Artists)
- āWelcome to Night Valeā (Night Vale Presents)
Best Science Podcast
- āHidden Brainā (Hidden Brain Media)
- āInvisibiliaā (NPR)
- āOlogies with Alie Wardā (Alie Ward)
- āStarTalk Radioā (Neil deGrasse Tyson)
- āStuff To Blow Your Mindā (iHeartRadio)
Best Technology Podcast
- āPivotā (New York Magazine)
- āRabbit Holeā (The New York Times)
- āReply Allā (Gimlet)
- āScience Vsā (Gimlet)
- āThere Are No Girls On The Internetā (iHeartRadio)
Best Ad Read
- āChatty Broads with Bekah and Jessā (Independent)
- āConan OāBrien Needs a Friendā (Team Coco)
- āLiterally! With Rob Loweā (Stitcher/Team Coco)
- āMy Brother, My Brother And Meā (The McElroys)
- āSmartLessā (Wondery/Amazon)
Best Political Podcast
- āFiveThirtyEight Politicsā (FiveThirtyEight/538/ABC News/Nate Silver)
- āGaining Ground: The New Georgiaā (Tenderfoot TV/Crooked Media)
- āPod Save Americaā (Crooked Media)
- āThe NPR Politics Podcastā (NPR)
- āThe Rachel Maddow Showā (MSNBC)
Best TV & Film Podcast
- āChatty Broads with Bekah and Jessā (Independent)
- āHow Did This Get Made?ā (Earwolf/Paul Scheer/June Diane Raphael/Jason Mantzoukas)
- āOffice Ladiesā (Earwolf/Jenna Fischer & Angela Kinsey)
- āPop Culture Happy Hourā (NPR)
- āThe Bechdel Castā (iHeartRadio)
Best Spanish Language Podcast
- āAnything for Selenaā (WBUR/Futuro Studios)
- āCuentos IncreĆblesā (Sonoro)
- āLatinx Therapyā (Adriana Alejandre, LMFT)
- āLeyendas Legendariasā (Sonoro/All Things Comedy)
- āRadio Ambulanteā (NPR)
Best Advice/Inspirational Podcast
- āDare to Lead with BrenĆ© Brownā (Spotify/Parcast)
- āDonāt Ask Tigā (American Public Media)
- āSuper Soulā (Oprah)
- āUnlocking Us with BrenĆ© Brownā (Parcast Network)
- āWe Can Do Hard Things with Glennon Doyleā (Glennon Doyle/Cadence 13)
Best Beauty & Fashion Podcast
- āAdd to Cartā (Lemonada Media)
- āForever 35ā (Kate Spencer/Doree Shafrir)
- āGloss Angelesā (Kirbie Johnson/Sara Tan)
- āNatch Beautā (Jackie Johnson)
- āThe Business of Fashionā (Independent)
Best Travel Podcast
- āArmchair Explorerā (Aaron Millar)
- āJUMP with Traveling Jackieā (Independent)
- āLetās Go Togetherā (Travel & Leisure)
- āWomen Who Travelā (CondĆ© Nast Traveller)
- āZero to Travelā (Jason Moore)
Best Spirituality & Religion Podcast
- āAlmost 30ā (Krista Williams and Lindsey Simcik)
- āMay I Elaborate? Daily Wisdom from JB Smooveā (Team Coco)
- āOn Being with Krista Tippettā (On Being Studios)
- āTara Brachā (Tara Brach)
- āThe One You Feed with Eric Zimmerā (Wondery)
The Best Green Podcast
- āEV News Daily ā The E-Mobility Podcastā (Independent)
- āFactually! With Adam Conoverā (Earwolf)
- āHow To Save A Planetā (Gimlet)
- āLiving on Earthā (PRX)
- āScience Rules! With Bill Nyeā (Stitcher & Bill Nye)
Best Branded Podcast
- āCamp Monstersā (REI Co-Op)
- āHumans Growing Stuffā (ScottsMiracle-Gro)
- āInside Trader Joesā (Trader Joeās)
- āNow, Whatās Next?ā (Morgan Stanley)
- āYour Attention Pleaseā (Hulu)
Best Emerging Podcast
- āFilms To Be Buried With with Brett Goldsteinā (Independent)
- āMaintenance Phaseā (Aubrey Gorden/Michael Hobbes)
- āMurder in Allianceā (Obsessed Network)
- āRevolutionsā (Mike Duncan)
- āRotten Mangoā (Stephanie Soo/Audioboom)
Best International Podcast
- āAsĆ como suenaā (AsĆ Como Suena)
- āCreepsMcPasta Creepypasta Radioā (Creeps McPasta)
- āFuera de Seriesā (Fuera de Series)
- āMamamia Out Loudā (Mamamia)
- āMorbidologyā (Morbidology)