British band the Buggles may have declared the radio star dead in 1979, but don’t tell that to Devon Alter.
Alter, a freshman mass communications major, is the booming voice behind the local podcast “18 and Balding,” an auditory journey that aims to give listeners a humorous peek into conversation between good friends.
The podcast plays like a radio show, complete with guests, interviews, segments and amusing musical interludes. Each episode is roughly 30 minutes long and revolves around a defined topic.
“I choose the general theme based on who my guests are and their interests, as well as how relatable said interests will be to my audience,” Alter said. “Each episode I change the name to fit the theme.”
Previous episodes include “18 and KPop” and the Valentine’s Day special “18 and Friendzone.”
Devon records the podcast at his home with a few high school pals that help with sound and editing. Friends also occasionally appear on episodes.
“I had my friends Miranda and Amanda on to talk about the sensation of PSY and Korean pop music,” Alter said. “I choose my guests based on how big of a personality they have as well as if I feel they will bring an interesting, well-spoken perspective on the podcast.”
The improvised show aims to let its audience in on conversations that could be had in between classes with a familiar face. “18 and Balding” invites anyone who wants to feel like they have best friends with them for 30 to 40 minutes to take a listen. It is this kind of real and often random conversation that drives the podcast.
“I believe that casual, unscripted humor is the best kind,” Devon said. “[It’s] most genuine to audiences.”
Though Devon has received comments on his voice and its “radio-like potential” since his middle school days, he has only recently employed it to host “18 and Balding.”
“I initially came up with the idea to create a podcast after I had gone to a radio open mic tryout about a month ago,” Devon said. “[I] was asked by a fairly important man there if I had a podcast he could listen to. I decided there was no time like the present to start building some sort of following.”
“18 and Balding” is both an extension of Devon’s passion for radio broadcasting and an auditory portfolio of sorts.
“My goal for the podcast is to be able to continue it throughout my college career and hone my skills in hosting successfully funny and interesting shows,” he said. “When it comes time to be given an opportunity in radio, I can point to ‘18 and Balding’ and show that I have what it takes.”
This is his passion, after all.
“I aspire to be a radio talk show host who entertains and brightens up people’s days as much as I can. Entertaining people and talking is what I love.”
Perhaps it is this friendly and relatable conversation that draws listeners. In a visually oriented culture, the appeal of an audio show is rather simple: familiarity.
“The best, most genuine humor comes out of good friends just talking about stuff,” Devon said. “It’s a good show when someone can listen to it and feel like they are in a room of a couple of good friends, and laugh it up with them.”
For more information on “18 and Balding,” visit 18andbalding.com. The podcast is available for free subscription on iTunes.
Photos by Thomas Boyd.
Note: This article was amended from a previous version to include a URL for the podcast. Alter launched the site shortly after this article was published.
