Acast and Wisebuddah announce first ever LaunchPod winner

London, UK—Acast, the world’s leading podcast company, and award-winning production company Wisebuddah can finally reveal that hosts of ‘On Things We Left Behind’, Surer and Saredo Mohamed, are the winners of LaunchPod: the UK’s first ever podcast talent competition. The podcast will now have an entire series professionally produced, launched and marketed with Wisebuddah and Acast; giving them their chance to become UK’s next leading podcaster.

LaunchPod was established to discover talented creators and bring fresh podcast ideas to life. ‘On Things We Left Behind’ shines a spotlight on stories that explore the hidden afterlife of war and confronts the realities of exile from a first-person perspective. Surer and Saredo Mohamed, daughters of Somali refugees themselves, take a personal and in-depth look into the lives of those who were made to start all over, and meditate on the things that are left behind in war’s wake.

Surer Mohamed, co-host of ‘On Things We Left Behind’ said “Saredo and I are over the moon to be announced the winners of LaunchPod, we really can’t believe it. All of the pilots in the final were amazing, and we loved every part of the competition. With so many ideas for the different directions we can take the podcast, we can’t wait to work with Acast and Wisebuddah to bring the whole series together.”

The winner was selected from three finalist pilots that were made available to the public and

voted on by listeners. These results were taken into consideration by the judges – experts in the world of podcasting – when making their final decision. The judges included: Jamie Morton, My Dad Wrote a Porno; Imriel Morgan, ShoutOut Network; Caroline Crampton, writer of podcast newsletter Hot Pod; Adam Uytman, Head of Content, Wisebuddah; and Susie Warhurst, Global Head of Content, Acast.

Jamie Morton of My Dad Wrote a Porno and Head Judge says: “On Things We Left Behind is a beautifully produced show that proved real potential in exploring stories that aren’t being told anywhere else. Hearing unheard stories is exactly the reason why LaunchPod was created, and this podcast does this perfectly. It feels like a vital piece of audio that shines a light on a really important subject matters, that’s done in a tasteful and character-driven way. A well-deserved congratulations have to go to Surer and Saredo the winners.”

_“Throughout the LaunchPod competition, we’ve been astonished by the amount of untapped creative podcasting talent that the UK has. We had a very difficult job on our hands judging the worthy winner, but we are totally confident that the future of podcasting is bright. With Acast and Wisebuddah providing support for ‘On Things We Left Behind’, we can’t wait to see the public’s reaction” s_aid Susie Warhurst, Acast’s Global Head of Content

Adam Uytman, Wisebuddah’s Head of Content, added: “The quality of the finalists was exceptional, but 'On Things We Left Behind’ really stood out. It is powerful, insightful and compelling. Bringing the best stories alive is what we do, so we cannot wait to work with Surer and Saredo on the production of what promises to be an outstanding series.”

You can listen to the pilot of ‘On Things We Left Behind’ here.

About Acast: Acast is the world’s largest podcast company. Since 2014, Acast has been the engine powering audio for makers all over the world. At its core, Acast connects audio makers with the financial support they need to create amazing content while also delivering the audience they want. Acast works with podcasts globally including My Dad Wrote a Porno, Off Menu, Griefcast, David Tennant Does A Podcast With and The Adam Buxton Podcast as well as those of publishers such as the Times, the Economist, Guardian, VICE and Vogue. As a global business, Acast has offices around the world from Stockholm to Sydney and a team of 170 talented audio lovers working diligently to create a sustainable audio and voice ecosystem to ensure that the audio industry continues to grow and flourish. Acast was founded by Karl Rosander and Mans Ulvestam together with co-founder Johan Billgren.

About Wisebuddah: Wisebuddah was crowned Production Company of the Year 2018 at the Audio Production Awards. The company is one of the leaders in audio content in the UK, working with some of the world’s biggest brands, talent and broadcasters. It is one of the UK’s leading podcast producers. Its large portfolio of audio on demand includes The Gemma Collins Podcast (for BBC Radio 1); The Greatest Dancer Podcast (BBC Sounds) which accompanied the high-profile BBC One Saturday night entertainment series; Niki and Sammy’s Peachy Podcast (for BBC Radio 1), Heroes (for Attitude), The Dan Wootton Podcast (for The Sun) and Couch to 5K (for the NHS). Their true crime release, Beyond Reasonable Doubt, spent four weeks at number one in the iTunes podcast chart. Their large portfolio of work for Audible includes series Hysteria, Unlearn, A Grown-up Guide to Dinosaurs, The Appliance of Science with Bill Bryson and Get Happy, looking at the science of happiness. Also, one of the most trusted suppliers of content to the BBC, Wisebuddah supplies some of the broadcasters’ highest-rating shows including: BBC Radio 1’s Indie Show with Jack Saunders; The Michael Ball Show, Vanessa Feltz Early Breakfast, Claudia on Sunday, The Radio 2 Rock Show with Johnnie Walker, Sounds Of The 80s with Gary Davies and Johnnie Walker’s Sounds of The Seventies all for BBC Radio 2; BBC 6 Music’s Huey Morgan; Panjabi Hit Squad for BBC Asian Network and Highly Rated for Scala Radio. The company has five audio recording and post-production studios in central London, specialising in radio, podcasts, TV, advertising, audiobooks and ISDN sessions and a team of engineers with a combined experience of over 30 years in recording, mixing, editing and sound design. Wisebuddah has won countless New York Festival Awards, Sony Music Awards and ARIAs for its work.