Seated in a room with walls covered in ominous writings and illuminated by red lights, Abu Mamu listens intently to ghost stories from callers.
The tales vary from spotting a dark figure on a CCTV recording to a strange dream about being stuck in an otherworldly realm to a ghost sitting on a man’s chest.
Sometimes the background music changes to elevate the sense of horror in the Nina Bobo Podcast hosted by Abu Mamu, whose real name is Abu Musarrif Abu Bakar.
The podcast, which is streamed live on the Laparpo Production YouTube channel, invites viewers to call and relate their scary experiences or stories that they have heard from others.
Its director Jarvis Chan shared that the idea for the series was conceived before the first movement control order (MCO).
“We foresaw that our production could be affected, so we decided to start a series about ghost stories to entertain our followers during the pandemic,” he said.
Prior to making podcasts, Penang-based Laparpo Production mostly released videos of exploring haunted places, and foodie adventures with local celebrities.
“So from our Nina Bobo exploration series, we thought of starting a podcast series in which Abu Mamu will share the scary stuff that happened to us when we visited those haunted places,” Chan said.
Initially, the podcasts started as audio-only recordings, as Chan felt that most people only listened to them while they were driving.
However, as the MCO was extended and people spent more time at home, he realised that those tuning in to podcasts would want a different experience.
“When you’re driving, you tend to be more focused on an audio-only format because your hands are supposed to be on the steering wheel. You can’t take your attention away from the road.
“But when you’re listening at home, chances are it’s easier for you to deviate from a podcast,” he said.
He felt that a different approach to the traditional podcast format was necessary to retain followers.
“We experimented with having Abu Mamu present the show from a set and it resonated with our followers.
“It was more engaging as well because viewers can send messages via a chat box and that is how we got the idea to let our listeners call in to share their stories,” he said.
According to Abu Mamu, the channel has received positive feedback from listeners who were grateful they had something to keep them occupied while staying at home.
“We feel blessed because the show started as a way for us to thank them for their support,” Abu Mamu said.
Though it’s a livestream, Abu Mamu said the show doesn’t screen its callers.
“To be honest, it’s because we have no choice and we’d be happy to take any calls. We trust that our callers, who are mostly our fans, would have interesting horror stories to share,” he said with a laugh.
Listen up
In a 2020 report, Spotify stated it has seen a change in listening habits in the first quarter of last year, with more people now enjoying their music and podcasts from their TVs and gaming consoles instead of the website, wearable devices or while in the car.
This trend, which has affected podcasts more than music, is due to a significant change in people’s morning routines, it said, as “every day now looks like the weekend”.
Listening time around home-based activities such as cooking, family time or doing chores have increased by double digits, it claimed.
“We’ve also seen an uptick in consumption of podcasts related to wellness and meditation,” the report stated.
Samantha Lee, a marketeer from Selangor, became a fan of meditation podcasts due to spending more time at home.
“I could tune in for up to two hours a day. I found that some sessions with soothing voices helped to make me feel calm as I have high anxiety,” she said.
She also enjoys listening to podcasts by Korean hip hop artiste Tablo in which he invites guests to talk about how they are weathering the pandemic.
“They have shared some really relatable experiences. There are times when I don’t even pay attention to the sessions because I just want some background noise to accompany me when I work. I feel it gives me a sense of normalcy at home,” she said.
Britain-based public health researcher Aimee Lee is an avid podcast listener who decided to launch her own series this year with her friend Joshua Teh who works at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Malaysia as a sexual and gender-based violence protection associate.
Called When All Is Read And Done, it was inspired by the discussions Aimee had with friends in an online book club about various social issues.
“Aimee basically said, ‘Do you want to start a podcast?’ and that was it. We thought about the name, logo and topics, and talked about how the podcast shouldn’t be a series on book reviews,” KL-based Teh said.
Instead, they wanted it to be about two avid readers coming together to discuss and help listeners make sense of current social issues with book recommendations that are relevant to the topic.
“When we decided to start this series, we talked about how to be different and what is our value to listeners. We felt that we can share information and our thoughts based on our professional backgrounds,” Aimee said.
The case for consistency
Starting a podcast is not hard, according to comedian Kavin Jay who first released The Macha Men series in 2018.
He teamed up with longtime friend Keren Bala Devan and they typically discuss topics such as Malaysian politics and history, and once even about the infamous Mona Fandey who was convicted of murdering a politician.
To date, Kavin said they have released more than 30 episodes.
“I feel it’s something that anybody can do. I remember just going online to purchase equipment like a mixer, microphone and that was it.
“The podcasts are essentially about Keren and I having a banter about a chosen topic. One of us will introduce the topic and the other will react to it. Nothing is scripted. Whatever reaction you’ve heard is all spontaneous,” he said.
During the first MCO last year, he noticed a surge in listenership for past podcasts.
“After a few months, the numbers returned to pre-pandemic levels and I believe it’s due to more people consuming content via video as they spend more time at home,” he said.
Though they live in different countries, Aimee and Teh said technology has made it easier than ever to work on their podcasts together though it does require constant communication online when deciding on the topics and discussion points.
“We get together every two weeks to record the session via a video call. Teh will then transfer it to an app to edit it. When we’re not recording, I also produce content for our Instagram page such as video trailers to promote the podcast,” Aimee said.
Kavin said the hardest part about maintaining a podcast channel is being consistent with content.
“Consistency is hard. As comedians, Keren and I travel a lot and we don’t have a plan in place to sit down and record every week,” he said.
Though they are not travelling as much now, producing content has become more challenging as they have to do it remotely due to MCO restrictions.
“We tried recording a live podcast session through Zoom and it felt weird. There was a delay when we reacted to one another because we were not in the same room.
“Overall, it was not an ideal format for us because it lacked the authenticity of spontaneous banter,” he said.
Aimee and Teh shared that maintaining consistency requires advance planning and sticking to recording schedules, and they also use the feedback from listeners to improve their podcasts.
“We’re very mindful of the length of our episodes and try to keep it to 20 minutes.
“We want our listeners to be able to complete the podcast by the time they reach their workplaces.
“To avoid rambling aimlessly or being syok sendiri, we prepare a document with key points to talk about during the recording,” Teh added.
Chan, on the other hand, enlists a five-man production team to oversee the set design, sound, camerawork and topics for the video podcasts that are more elaborate.
Paying for podcasts
Apple has introduced premium subscriptions for podcasts, giving 70% of the fee to the content creators.
Those who subscribe will be able to listen ad-free and access early or exclusive content.
Spotify too has announced that listeners can support creators by purchasing premium subscriptions for their favourite channels for extra content. It will pay 100% of the fee to the content creators until 2022, after which it will take a 5% cut.
However, Kavin is not sold on the idea and plans to keep his podcasts free.
“When we started the series, it was not about making money. It was just something we enjoyed doing.
“We’ve received great feedback from listeners who said we made them laugh and feel good about themselves. That is what keeps us motivated,” he said.
Aimee said she has turned off the monetisation feature for her channel, as they have just started out and the focus for now is building momentum and maintaining consistency.
However, she doesn’t preclude charging for the second season.
They have also started a channel for the podcast on YouTube and are still exploring ways to reach out to more listeners.
“I think YouTube’s algorithm is better at recommending our channel to more listeners despite it being relatively new. With Spotify, I feel the platform is only recommending popular or more established channels to listeners,” she claimed.
Laparpo Production, which has more than 200,000 subscribers, doesn’t include ads or sponsorships for its Nina Bobo Podcast, said Chan, as the focus for now is to entertain fans who have supported the channel throughout the pandemic.
“We have plans to produce more episodes and even start a Mandarin series,” he added.
If you want to get into making podcasts, Teh offers this piece of advice – take more time to plan the content for your channel, as the market is more saturated than ever.
Aimee shared that they also took the time to promote the podcast for one month on social media before releasing the first episode in order to build awareness and anticipation.
“The days of rambling non-stop are gone. Take your time to plan what you really want to talk about. Work on your content and don’t be afraid to bin recordings,” Teh said.
Meanwhile, Kavin said he mostly learned from trial and error.
“I have to admit, in the beginning we were full of ourselves. Over time, we strived to be informative and learned to stay focused,” he said.
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