Signal Awards for podcasts announces new General Manager, Jemma Rose Brown

The Signal Awards, which celebrates excellence in podcasting across multiple industry-vetted categories, has announced that 13+ year industry veteran and former On Air Fest Co-Creator Jemma Rose Brown will serve as its new General Manager.

In her role, Jemma will lead all strategic business efforts for the awards program and carry out its core missions to honor excellence in podcasting and enable discovery within the industry. The 3rd annual Signal Awards winners will be announced on October 15, 2024, and the awards ceremony will occur shortly after. The Signal Awards have quickly become the industry’s most sought after award, with over 2000 entries last year alone and more than 130,000 podcast fans voting for the Signal Listener’s Choice award.

The Signal Awards tapped Jemma from creative agency work x work, where she’d previously served as the longtime Director of both the agency’s strategic operations and On Air Fest, the premiere creative festival for podcasters.

While at On Air Fest, Jemma steered programming and partnerships for nine consecutive festivals in New York and Los Angeles, curating talent including Francis Ford Coppola, Jason Derulo, Ira Glass, Roxane Gay, and Jenny Slate among others. At work x work, Jemma was the agency’s lead strategist; executing campaigns and brand-building with some of the world’s most innovative companies including Meta, Spotify, IBM, Target, Patreon, Sonos, and MoMA. She also served as the EP of podcasts like Object of Sound hosted by MacArthur ‘Genius’ Hanif Abdurraqib.

“Podcasting is a wildly creative and influential medium that continues to shape our cultural landscape,” said Jemma Rose Brown, General Manager of the Signal Awards. “I’m thrilled to step into this role at Signal to help recognize the most innovative work being made today, and expand the impact of the Signal Awards in our industry.

The Signal Awards are selected by a jury that represents the best-of-the-best in podcasting, with notable names including: Jessica Cordova Kramer (Founder, Lemonada Media); Sarah Pappalardo (Co-Founder, Reductress); Debbie Millman (Design Matters); Deray McKesson (Host, Pod Save the People; Co-founder & Executive Chair, Campaign Zero); Michael Gluckstadt (Director of Podcasts, HBO & HBO MAX); Ray Chao (SVP & GM of Audio & Digital Video, Vox Media); Nikki Silva (Co-Host, The Kitchen Sisters Present from PRX); Trent Gilliss (Founder, The On Being Project); June Cohen (Co-Founder, Wait, What?);Jody Avirgan (Host, This Day in Esoteric Behavior); Anna Hossnieh (Executive Producer, iHeartRadio Comedy); Jenny Kaplan (Co-Founder and CEO, Wonder Media Network); Maurice Cherry (Host, Revision Path podcast); Rachael King (Founder, Pod People); Trevor McNeal (Global Social Lead Podcasts, Amazon Music); SuChin Pak (Co-Host, Add to Cart); and Rae Votta (Global Editorial and Publishing Podcasts, Netflix)

Winners recognized in the 2nd annual Signal Awards unveiled last fall include some of the most notable and inspiring figures in podcasting and entertainment, including Michelle Obama, Oprah Winfrey, Eva Longoria, Doja Cat, Questlove, Hoda Kotb, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and Jon Stewart, along with notable podcast studios and networks including Wondery, Crooked Media, Lemonada and iHeartPodcasts. Signal also celebrates independent producers and emerging series in various categories, including Best Indie Podcast, Best Emerging Podcast, Best Experimental Podcast, and more, as well as numerous below-the-line and craft categories.

Submissions are now open for the inaugural Signal Awards and the Final Entry Deadline is June 28th, 2024. Enter on the website.

About The Signal Awards

A new, comprehensive award initiative for podcasts, the inaugural Signal Awards will recognize the breadth of Podcast and Digital Audio work from around the globe by honoring the organizations, brands, and professionals creating and shaping the industry. The hope is that by honoring and championing this work, The Signal Awards can help set a standard of excellence and play a significant role in supporting the future of the podcast industry.