Shameless Media's new 'Inherited' podcast is changing up a 'saturated' space

Shameless Media's new podcast, Inherited, releasing this week, aims to shine a new light on Australian talent and in doing so, also shines a new light on a tried and tested format. 

The Shameless Podcast, hosted by co-founders of the women's media company, Zara McDonald and Michelle Andrews, used to conduct typical interviews with Aussie talent that is still seen to this day across all major popular podcasts.

"In 2021, we realized we were tiring of the format on Shameless," McDonald told Mediaweek.

"However in the time since then, Michelle has been at me to get back to it, but if I'm honest, I've always found the interview space quite saturated.

"I think the reason we stopped doing interviews is because in Australia, it's quite a small pool of talent, you'll often see a similar person, maybe on a publicity tour, doing a lot of the same shows.

"I thought, if we're going to bring back interview content, we need to be bringing it back with an idea and a concept that you would still listen to even if the person has been interviewed 100 times. 

"We want it to feel like you're getting something different, and that's what Inherited is."

Inherited is based on the premise that what one inherits in life is so much more than money, and no matter what stage in life you are, one has already inherited so many things.

"We break down the episodes into recipe, rule, relic and ritual, and we have each guest bring onto the show four different things that fit into each of those categories," Andrews added.

"It's so they can also talk about different chapters of their lives. It's very introspective, wholesome and honest."

While Shameless found its start in the world of podcasts, it now has expanded into pop-culture newsletters as well as out-of-home advertising, with prominent billboards seen in Melbourne and even New York City.

'The Bourke'

Shameless bought ad space on oOh!Media's six-story site in Melbourne's CBD, 'The Bourke' and the billboards for Shameless seen in New York were organised in collaboration with Spotify.

"When it comes to advertising, the goal we've been working to over the last few years is making sure people know that Shameless Media is so much bigger than just the Shameless Podcast," McDonald said.

'The Bourke'

"It's also reminding people that we're not a little kid in this space anymore, we're adults sitting at the table too, with a fully fleshed network.

"I think the most simple way to communicate that is through the most traditional form of advertising there is. Yes, we are audio first, yes, we are digital first, but we still can see the value of traditional forms of media in legitimizing you as a business."

Shameless New York billboards

Going into 2025, McDonald and Andrews say the focus will be to consolidate their growing roster of shows and also take their 'Everybody Has A Secret' show live down the East Coast to get it in front of the show's passionate listener base.

"I think long term, we plan on being one of the biggest [independent] networks in the country," Andrews said.

"[At the same time], we're not going to be the kind of company that churns out a bunch of podcasts every year, it's just not who we are.

"Our strategy is to be as mindful and thoughtful as possible."

The Inherited podcast is out now with first episode guest, Olympic Gold Medalist Jess Fox.