Amena: I wish I knew beforehand that my opinion and experiences really do matter. At first, I was pretty quiet. I’d let the other co-hosts take the wheel during interviews and discussions. But I soon realized that one big purpose of podcasts is to let your personality shine. Nobody is judging me, so why not say what I’m thinking? I wish I understood the value of my words sooner. 

¿Por qué querían usar el formato de audio para contar su historia? 

Hanan: Growing Up Halal is a story of growing up Desi-American Muslim (or just Muslim) and the nuances that experience comes with. By using audio to tell that story, we felt it brought our audience closer to us. I think working on this podcast has been able to unite our listeners, helping them realize how much they had in common. It even helped bring our team closer, too. 

¿En qué podcasts buscas inspiración?

Sulphia: The first podcast I ever listened to was “Teenager Therapy” my sophomore year of high school. I remember listening to it on the bus and feeling comforted by their relatable conversations, especially because I was the same age as the hosts. These days, I’m inspired by “Get Real w/ Ashley, Peniel, and Junny” and “How Did I Get Here w/ Jae and AleXa”, which are both under Dive Studios. Aside from having some of the wittiest and authentic hosts ever, they have such creative promotional content. To whoever is editing Dive Studios’ YouTube videos and Instagram reels, I am your number one fan!