Friends for longer than we care to admit, during the pandemic, Erika Amstadt Hirschfield and I thought it might be fun to create a podcast. We’d talk about sports, fashion, pop culture, Gen Z, and more. We’d look cool chatting on Zoom on a Yeti Microphone. Little did we know it would actually happen. With a lot of work behind the scenes from our producer, Jack Helig, The Spin Chicks podcast is finally ready to be unveiled.
First, What’s The Spin Chicks Back Story?
Erika and I met when we were working in Chicago. I was a post-graduate intern at the Big Ten Conference and she had just started at the Great Midwest Conference (now Conference USA). We met in a meeting at the Big Ten and we clicked immediately. We hung out outside of our offices. We’d talk fonts, boys and industry gossip. Erika’s homebase has long-stayed Chicago while mine has gone from the Windy City to South Carolina, Northern California and Florida.
Why Did We Click So Quickly?
Maybe it’s because we both have an undergrad and a masters from our chosen universities in Illinois. I went to Illinois State University and Erika went to University of Illinois. Both of us also worked for our Sports Information Offices in college. We love sports. In addition we love pop culture and country music.
Erika and I both met Jack throughout our careers and have kept in touch. Erika met him when he was at USF. I met him through Wendy Knowles at a COSIDA Convention. Hot Tip: Jack is a girl dad. At times, Jack is the glue that keeps us together! That would make for a funny podcast intro someday: She said, She said.
Why The Spin Chicks?
Sometimes the name is the hardest part. For us – it was easy. We loved “The Spin Chicks” right out of the gate in July of 2020. We talked a lot about what Spin stands for:
- Savvy
- Passionate
- Intuitive / Impactful / Impressive
- Noteworthy
Being called a chick is fine with us. We’re Midwest – we don’t take things too seriously. Chick is just a fun way of saying ‘Cool Woman’. It’s not insulting to us.
The Three of Us Are Big Planners.
The three of us are big planners. I write this laughingly. Erika and I started planning before we even talked to Jack about working as our producer. Once Jack signed on, we developed a series of spreadsheets with way too many assignments. Think: Pandemic. We had a lot of time on our hands I guess? There were so many things to do:
- Select music
- Color scheme
- Design a logo
- Sign up for social media platforms
- Design templates to post on social media platforms
- Create a guest list
- Collect photos from our guests (decide the best way to do this
- Write scripts
- Practice. Practice More. Practice Even More.
- Order Equipment
- Test out equipment. Return most of it.
- Decide on the Intros and Exits
- Would we record it on YouTube too?
We even created a website at the beginning. But after a few months we scrapped it. We decided we didn’t want that level of commitment.
Say Yes to the Yeti Microphones
Jack highly recommended we use a YETI microphone. We loved the look and there was no debating his expertise (on this subject alone). The problem was finding them. Everyone was launching a podcast or using them for gaming during the Pandemic.
Erika is a broadcast journalism major. I like to talk. Recording a podcast should be easy! Hot Tip: recording a podcast is really not as easy as it looks. Jack put us through so many practice podcasts. Erika and I can talk for hours on the phone or Zoom about anything. But hit RECORD and we FREEZE. Literally FREEZE. So Jack made us practice, A LOT!
Say No to the Headphones
From the outset, we knew we wanted Yeti mics. Check! We also talked about headsets. A lot of people use them to record podcasts. Did we need them too? Before we settled on that answer, I ordered 15 sets of headphones from Amazon to try them out. Many of them weren’t good. A few of them were pretty expensive. After a lot of conversation, we finally decided we would go without headphones. When we record, we make sure the house is quiet and close our office doors and go. It’s worked for us so far.
What’s Our Angle?
As seasoned pros in the sports, public relations and multimedia business – we are the perfect combination of savory and sweet. I won’t tell you who is savory and who is sweet – you be the judge! A witty duo behind our Yeti Microphones, we share our experiences working in athletics, tackling the work-life balance and how to thrive in an ever-changing industry. We also share our behind the scenes experiences in locker rooms, competition arenas and in dealing with situations head-on.
Spirited. Practical. Influential.
We are all about spirited conversation, the power of being practical, the art of influence and the value of knowledge. We also jump in with some good old fashioned girl talk because when we aren’t working, we are trying to live our best life.
Our Talent Pool
We have already draw from our professional backgrounds in terms of guests. They have been great! And trust us, we have some really good guests on tap. But we are ready to expand our horizons too. If you are interested in becoming a guest – please reach out. If we know you, I bet we’re already interested. Don’t be shy if we don’t know you – we love making new friends.
Follow The Spin Chicks on Social Media
Thanks again for your support! Tune in and listen to The Spin Chicks. In addition to being on Apple, we are on Spreaker and a number of other places. Give us a follow too!
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