Pop-Culturalist.com

Ashley Flowers is a household name in the world of podcasting. Combining her love for the medium with her passion for true crime, Ashley and longtime friend Brit Prawat launched the Crime Junkie podcast back in December 2017. Each week, they captivate listeners with unimaginable true crime stories that you have to hear to believe.

In less than three years, Ashley has transformed what was once a passion project into an empire. She’s paying it forward, guiding the next generation of storytellers, including Delia D’Ambra, host of CounterClock, a podcast that Ashley produced.

If that wasn’t impressive enough, she also recently launched Supernatural, a weekly podcast where Ashley takes a deep dive into the strange and surreal to explain some of the world’s most bizarre true crime occurrences. And let’s just say, it’s giving us full body chills.

Pop Culturalist caught up with Ashley for an in-depth conversation!

PC: How did you get started in podcasting?
Ashley: It started in 2014 when I found my first podcast Serial. I was working in medical sales and my company had me driving all over the country. Sometimes, I would spend eight hours or more a day in my car, and podcasts were the only thing that kept me sane.

I’ve always had a passion for true crime, so when I was looking for my next big move in life, it seemed natural to marry those two things that I was so passionate about.

PC: You and longtime friend Brit launched Crime Junkie back in December 2017 and now have millions of listeners. When you look back at your journey, has anything surprised you? Is there a moment that stands out to you?
Ashley: It still surprises me, even to this day, that we could come into a new industry as total unknowns and make a name for ourselves. Two and a half years ago, I probably couldn’t pay a stranger to listen to me talk for forty minutes, and now we have millions of people who tune in to hear our take on stories every week. That blows my mind! When our show first got to number one last year, that moment was so surreal for both of us. There are hundreds of thousands of shows, and two girls from Indiana made it to the top. That is truly why I love podcasting so much: anyone with a good idea and a stellar work ethic can make a name for themselves.

PC: You recently started Supernatural. Tell us about the podcast and what fans can expect.
Ashley: I am so excited about Supernatural! I have always been a bit of a conspiratorialist, and I love digging into the unknown—all the stories that don’t seem to have a logical explanation. My whole life, I’ve been sucked into shows like History’s Mysteries or Ancient Aliens and I eat it up! But I also have a science background, and I understand there are usually explanations for even the unexplainable. So I think what people can expect from Supernatural is a great balance of that fascination and fact. I tell these wild stories and present all the theories—the super-out-there theories and the ones rooted in facts—and listeners can decide for themselves what to believe.

PC: Did you feel any pressure, given the success of Crime Junkie?
Ashley: Totally. I think our listeners have high expectations of me, and I’m working really hard to meet them.

PC: How did this collaboration between you and Parcast come to fruition?
Ashley: I connected with Parcast’s founder, Max Cutler, back in 2018. Being peers in the industry, he and I became friends, and we were looking for a way to work together on something. It took a long time for us to find our thing, but I think it was worth the wait!

PC: You produced CounterClock, a thirteen-part series about the murder of Denise Johnson. What was it like collaborating with Delia D’Ambra? What words of wisdom did you share with her?
Ashley: Delia has been amazing to work with! She is truly one of the most hardworking and dedicated reporters I have met, and she has such a knack for getting to the bottom of a story and bringing out the most critical details. When we first started working together, I think the first thing I guided her on was connecting with an audience. Podcasting is such a different medium than traditional news, where she came from, and the audience has a totally different expectation from their host. Finding the balance of being true to herself as a reporter but also giving the audience someone to connect with was important for making Season 1 a success.

PC: Has it been a challenge managing all of your projects/podcasts? How have you been able to do that?
Ashley: Extremely challenging. I don’t think anyone can expect to build a company from scratch and have it not affect their life. I’ve given up a lot to focus on my work and building a company, and I make sacrifices every day, whether that’s sacrificing sleep to come into the office at 5:00 a.m. or sacrificing social events because I’m working late. This company and the shows I make are my babies, and I have to put 100% of myself into them. Now that the company has grown, I’m lucky that I’ve been able to bring on a team to help me, and they’ve been critical to the company’s success. The more help I bring on, the more projects I take on. I think I might be addicted to the madness that comes with juggling lots of projects at once because I don’t see myself slowing down any time soon.

Pop Culturalist Speed Round

PC: Guilty pleasure TV show?
Ashley: How I Met Your Mother

PC: Guilty pleasure movie?
Ashley: My Best Friend’s Wedding

PC: Favorite book?
Ashley: Dark Places by Gillian Flynn

PC: Favorite play or musical?
Ashley: Aida

PC: Favorite podcast?
Ashley: Decoder Ring

PC: A band or artist that fans would be surprised to learn is on your playlist?
Ashley: Saweetie

PC: Who would play you in the story of your life?
Ashley: Kaley Cuoco

To keep up with Ashley, follow her on Twitter and Instagram. Don’t forget to listen to new episodes of Crime Junkie and Supernatural every week!