Tag: Savereign

‘Girlish’ Cohosts Name Gainesville, Florida-Based Curia on the Drag as Spotify and Anchor’s Next Making Space Podcasting Location

January 30, 2023

Olivia Noel and Gage Adkins, hosts of Girlish, outside curia on the drag - Rhyme&Reason-LexiRead-10

Photo credit: Lexi Read

As trans content creators, Gage Adkins and Olivia Noel know firsthand the power of storytelling in digital spaces. Around 2015, both women started separately producing video content on YouTube about their transitions. They each slowly built up online support networks, and then found each other. But when they started searching for podcasts on trans identity, they couldn’t find any. So they created Girlish in 2019 as an attempt to tell their stories, create space for trans listeners and creators, and bring awareness to their experiences. 

Over three years later, Girlish is still holding strong, and the number of LGBTQIA+ podcasters has grown. But it’s still not enough. “When we first started our podcast, it was really overwhelming because we lived on opposite coasts of the U.S. and had no equipment to make a professionally recorded podcast,” Gage told For the Record. “I think our first episode was recorded using our phone audio, so it was pretty bad. But there are so many people out there with really good ideas who want to share their voice, but just don’t know how to go about it.”

Spotify believes that the audio industry has a responsibility to increase access to podcasting knowledge, equipment, and materials for marginalized creators. We are continually looking for ways to nurture and develop emerging voices through tools and programs that make podcasting possible for anyone, anywhere. Making Space, our latest creator program, aims to elevate underrepresented voices by providing free, studio-quality podcasting gear to communities. We started by setting up South Carolina-based plant shop Savereign with an in-house podcasting studio. Next, we’re outfitting Curia on the Drag, a café close to Olivia’s heart, in Gainesville, Florida.   

“Curia defines itself as an urban oasis,” Olivia explained. “The experience you have there feels very much like a community-centric business. They have a plot of two-and-a-half acres of land where they have a plant-based coffee shop along with a plant-based food truck. They have a little retail store with local artists’ jewelry, clothing, art, and stickers. Overall, it has an ambiance that gives you the feeling of being safe. You can tell the community means a lot to them when you walk in and see flyers stapled to a cork board at the register with local resources for the LGBT community and marginalized groups. If you told me when I was 15 that a drag brunch was going to be a thing that was popular at a coffee shop near where I lived, I would have laughed. But I’m so thankful that this place exists, because it’s crucial.”

Rhyme&Reason-LexiRead-8 with Olivia Noel and Gage Adkins of Girlish

Oliva Noel and Gage Adkins at Curia on the Drag

Curia stands to prove itself as a comfortable and reliable podcasting studio for new and existing creators, but its promise of safety and security for members of the Gainesville and surrounding area community makes it the perfect hub for stories of all kinds to be shared.

“When you’re queer or trans in the South, you find safety in the smallest things—whether that’s Pride flags on storefronts or a friend of a friend of a friend with a trans aunt,” said Olivia. “Curia stands out because they provide security through their messaging and actions. Making Space further highlights an area to those around in the neighboring towns so that people like newly out college freshmen can find a community that supports them. It’s silly, but Florida really is like that—you have to find these little pockets and areas where you can go and be yourself.” 

The Making Space launch also marks a moment of transition for Olivia, who has been living in Seattle for the last few years and is now returning to uncertainty in her home state of Florida. “Within the South, it’s important to try to locate your community near you, whether that’s support groups or local organizations trying to fight for your cause. It’s super important and we have to bring attention to it. You are not alone in this. There are so many of us, and we’re going to fight for our rights.”

Gage grew up in Seattle and now lives in LA. “I had a really different experience,” she explained. “It was really easy for me to access health care, and people around me were not outwardly trying to harm me. Making Space enables us to support those who want to find community in a state or area where there doesn’t seem to be one. Even if people aren’t necessarily interested in podcasting, I think it’s always important to try to find a safe space.” 

As important as Gage and Olivia both know that Curia will be for LGBTQIA+ podcasters in Florida, they also want to encourage queer podcasters everywhere to take to the mic without hesitation. “You’ll get there if you put in the work and you’re consistent,” explained Gage. “That takes precedence over what type of microphone you have, or what type of camera you have. It’s more about the passion and the direction and the way you’re using your voice.” 

“I’m hoping this initiative highlights an area where people can go to be themselves,” added Olivia. “I hope one day the entire state can be our oasis, and not just Curia.”

Check out Gage and Olivia’s Anchor podcast, Girlish, and look out for future podcasts coming from Curia on the Drag soon.

How Spotify, Anchor, and Queer-Owned Plant Store Savereign Are Bringing LGBTQIA+ Stories to the Podcasting Mic

October 19, 2022

AJ shot by Will Crooks

Photo credit: Will Crooks

Greenville-based Savereign is more than a plant store in South Carolina. There’s plenty of potted and hanging greenery for sale, but the space also doubles as a community gathering place, with tables and chairs for coworking and a comfy couch to lounge on. The storefront was developed with a lot of intention by its owner, AJ, a queer Filipino-American who wants everybody to feel welcomed and loved.   

AJ moved to Greenville from Chicago with an ex-partner, but remained there following the breakup. “As I was starting my business and getting to know the community, I started to make individual connections with all these beautiful people who didn’t feel seen or heard at all,” AJ told For the Record. “The universe gifted me with a loud freaking voice. I felt there was a gap in queer representation, in people who were up and out and could speak up and stand up, in my area. So I decided to stay.”

He also set out to bring the community together through virtual spaces as well as his physical store. He started interviewing the people who made up his community, and in 2020, he created a podcast to highlight those individuals using Spotify’s podcasting tool, Anchor. 

“It’s very DIY. I’m not the most digitally inclined human. It was great to run into Anchor because it allows you to do everything all at once and it’s very intuitive and easy. It allowed me to just be able to go and not think about having to get equipment and materials.” 

Although podcasting is increasingly accessible, finding time and space to record, acquiring gear, and developing editing skills is still an involved process that can be even more unattainable for individuals with marginalized identities. So Spotify and Anchor’s latest podcasting initiative, Making Space, helps elevate underrepresented voices by creating accessible podcasting spaces within the LGBTQIA+ community. Through the program, we’re setting queer businesses up with the tools and resources they need to make podcasts. Savereign is the first stop. 

As the inaugural Making Space participant, AJ will receive a comprehensive podcast tool kit that includes a microphone, recording equipment, and educational resources—effectively giving him everything needed to create his own in-house recording studio at Savereign. Other creators in his community will also be able to access this space for free to begin recording their own shows. 

“I’m so excited because it’s all the things I didn’t know I could ever have or use,” said AJ. “Now we’ve got mics, a mixer board thing—there’s one or two other podcasters that I know here and they’re like, this is crazy and this is perfect. I’m excited to learn how to use that gear and record with them.” 

For AJ, bringing this studio to the community is a natural transition as he’s already been using Savereign’s Instagram to amplify local businesses and creators. 

“I see my work in retail as an art form,” explained AJ. “It’s something that is going to be seen and something that has the capacity to change perspectives. So for my ‘marketing,’ I wanted it to be personal to me. So you’ll see shots of me in there, but it’s mostly people within the community: people with businesses, queer individuals who are also making their mark here, and leaders. I wanted to get those people to also be seen through whatever form of voice or visuals I have on me. I’m one of those people who when I’m on the up, want to raise up everyone else around me because I wouldn’t be where I am without a lot of the people you see on my Instagram.”

Spotify is always looking for ways to help nurture new and emerging voices, and Making Space is an example of how we’re making podcasting possible for anyone, anywhere. By making professional-quality podcast equipment more accessible across community spaces, we can give creators a safe, inclusive place to have their voices heard, and can help drive a more diverse podcaster ecosystem. 

“The concept of ‘making space’ is to barrel down a lot of walls that are put up for a lot of us who are ‘different’” says AJ. “It allows us to make room for everyone who is making a difference and everyone who wants to cheer on those who are making a difference. The store’s intention from the beginning has always been a space for people to come in, to breathe in some fresh freaking air, and to feel at peace. And to feel loved. That’s what I feel whenever I’m around plants and it’s what got me into them. Taking care of plants allowed me to love myself. It gave me calmness; it gave me natural positive energy. That’s what I wanted for people. And that’s why I stayed. And that’s why we’re here.”