NEW YORK and LOS ANGELES, Oct. 11,
2021 /PRNewswire/ -- SiriusXM Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:
SIRI), the leading audio entertainment company in North America, announced today that its
subsidiary, Sirius XM Radio Inc., has entered into a new
creative programming and strategic agreement with Audio Up,
an innovative podcast and audio entertainment production
studio.
Under the agreement, Audio Up is expected to create new original
scripted podcasts for SiriusXM and its owned audio platforms -
which include the SXM App, Pandora, and Stitcher - while also
collaborating with SiriusXM to develop new audio entertainment
concepts and forge new promotional and distribution synergies
across SiriusXM properties, furthering SiriusXM's place as a leader
in podcast hosting, production, distribution, analytics, and
monetization.
The agreement gives SiriusXM an exclusive "first-look"
co-production option for new Audio Up original podcast concepts,
with accompanying options for exclusive distribution across
SiriusXM properties, as well as exclusive rights to manage and sell
advertising inventory and sponsorship in connection with any
podcast produced for SiriusXM through its SXM Media combined sales
organization.
In addition, Audio Up announced today that it has completed a
$12 million Series B funding round
led by SiriusXM. Andrew Moss,
SiriusXM's Senior Vice President, Business Affairs and Programming
Operations, has also joined the Board of Directors of Audio Up.
Audio Up, established in 2020 by Jared
Gutstadt, creator of the Jingle Punks creative music agency
and Adweek's 2020 Podcast Innovator and Producer of the
Year, is a podcast content production studio that has built a slate
of distinctive, original scripted audio entertainment featuring
marquee names across music (Machine Gun Kelly, 24kGoldn,
Miranda Lambert, Nelly),
Hollywood (Anthony Anderson, Garrett Hedlund, Jason Alexander,
Gary Busey), publishing (James
Ellroy, Stephen King), and more.
Forthcoming new Audio Up original podcast series include
The Playboy Interview, which presents
teleplay-type reenactments of some of the most iconic Playboy
Interview conversations in history, featuring Taye Diggs as Muhammad
Ali, Rosanna Arquette as
Betty Friedan, Gina Gershon as
Oriana Fallaci, among others.
A variety of original podcasts from Audio Up's back catalog will
also be re-presented across the SXM App, Pandora, and Stitcher,
including:
- Halloween in Hell: A
first-of-its-kind, 4-part scripted music/horror mini-series set in
a fictitious satanic reality show, featuring multi-platinum artists
Machine Gun Kelly and 24kGoldn. Other shows in Audio Up's hit "In
Hell" podcast franchise include Valentine's Day in
Hell and Prom in
Hell.
- The Ballad of Uncle
Drank: A dark-edged musical comedy
starring country hip-hop superstar Nelly and Hollywood legends Gary
Busey and Luke Wilson that
tells the tragi-comic story of fictional "beach-country" singer
Uncle Drank (Busey), with an original soundtrack on Warner Records featuring songs from Nelly,
Blanco Brown and others from the
country music realm.
- Bedtime Stories of the Ingleside Inn: A
scripted audio docu-drama starring Lance
Bass (who also produces, alongside Oscar-winner Michael Sugar), and Jason Alexander as Mel
Haber, the legendary 70s-era Palm
Springs hotelier who brought glitz and glamour to the
desert, attracting a slew of iconic regular guests including
Frank Sinatra, Liz Taylor, and Howard
Hughes.
- Sonic Leap: The completely
made-up backstory of real-life rock act "Hero the Band" – four
Atlanta-based fraternal brothers
who get sent back to 1985 to "change their future and the future of
music." Actor Anthony Anderson makes
his podcast acting debut in this nostalgic scripted musical series.
Rap star Trippie Redd co-stars and contributes music. The series
unlocks the debut album from the Atlanta-based band, to be released on Audio Up
Records.
- Make It Up as We Go: The
first-ever scripted country podcast musical, which tells the story
of an ambitious young female singer (portrayed by series co-creator
Scarlett Burke, who also contributes
original music) who heads to Nashville's male-dominated country hit factory
to make her fame. Executive-produced by Miranda Lambert, who plays herself in the
series. SiriusXM will re-distribute Season 1 and premiere the
forthcoming 2nd season featuring Garrett Hedlund and award-winning Nashville songwriter Liz Rose.
"Podcasts have only scratched the surface of their potential as
a powerful driver for discovery, and an entertainment medium with
virtually no creative boundaries," said Audio Up CEO and Founder,
Jared Gutstadt. "With the
vast reach and wide diversity of listeners that SiriusXM, Pandora
and Stitcher together represent, we not only have a massive new
multi-platform outlet for our original programming, but in SiriusXM
we have a creative ally who shares our ambitions to keep pushing
podcasting forward."
Audio Up is expected to be an additional creative driver for
SiriusXM in connecting artists, labels, brands, and creators of all
types in developing new audio entertainment programming across
SiriusXM channels, and exploring new possibilities for original
scripted, podcasts and branded audio content opportunities for
advertisers.
"Whether it's inventing a new breed of boundary-breaking
original podcasts or developing innovative audio concepts that let
brands and creators connect with listeners in new ways, Jared and
Audio Up have become the place where talent meets technology," said
Scott Greenstein, President
and Chief Creative Officer of SiriusXM. "Audio Up is known for
creating podcasts that combine music, entertainment, and rich
storytelling to create bold new listening experiences, and we're
thrilled to welcome them to our extended SiriusXM family."
The agreement follows SiriusXM's acquisition of leading podcast
platform Stitcher and its execution of several high-profile
exclusive podcast content deals, including the acquisition
of Roman Mars' 99% Invisible podcast and
the launch of Seth Rogen's
original podcast series, Storytime With Seth
Rogen.
About SiriusXM
Sirius XM Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: SIRI)
is the leading audio entertainment company in North America, and the premier programmer and
platform for subscription and digital advertising-supported audio
products. SiriusXM's platforms collectively reach approximately 150
million listeners, the largest digital audio audience across paid
and free tiers in North America,
and deliver music, sports, talk, news, comedy, entertainment and
podcasts. Pandora, a subsidiary of SiriusXM, is the largest
ad-supported audio entertainment streaming service in the U.S.
SiriusXM's subsidiaries Stitcher, Simplecast and AdsWizz make it a
leader in podcast hosting, production, distribution, analytics and
monetization. The Company's advertising sales organization, which
operates as SXM Media, leverages its scale, cross-platform sales
organization and ad tech capabilities to deliver results for audio
creators and advertisers. SiriusXM, through Sirius XM Canada
Holdings, Inc., also offers satellite radio and audio entertainment
in Canada. In addition to its
audio entertainment businesses, SiriusXM offers connected vehicle
services to automakers. For more about SiriusXM, please go
to: www.siriusxm.com.
About Audio Up
Audio Up Media is a podcast content
production studio, housing a world of infinite, audio-based
properties. Headed by Audio Up CEO and Adweek's 2020 Podcast
Innovator of the Year and Podcast Producer of the Year recipient,
Jared Gutstadt (formerly of the
Jingle Punks), Audio Up is building an ecosystem of premium
entertainment content within the music and audio space. From
fictional scripted podcasts, which include a Marvel-like universe
of musicals, where the records themselves become the story
foundation, to one-on-one interview formats, Audio Up's goal is to
create a new and innovative form of IP. They are bringing
audio blockbusters to life and taking this media from black and
white, into technicolor. Current properties include the riveting
top 20 crime podcast Where The Bodies Are Buried,
Michael Cohen's new chart-topping
podcast Mea Culpa, and recent Webby honoree
in Podcasts: Interview/Talk Show, Going
to Bed with Garcelle with Garcelle Beauvais.
Scripted projects include 2021 Webby nominee Make It Up As We
Go with Scarlett Burke,
Miranda Lambert, Lindsay Ell and other huge country
entertainment; recent Webby honoree for Best Limited Entertainment
Series Podcast Halloween in Hell with Machine Gun Kelly,
24kGoldn and iann dior; and Strawberry Spring, the
first-ever adaptation of the classic short story by Stephen King, and current number one trending
podcast globally, according to charitable, starring Garrett Hedlund and Milo
Ventimiglia.
Source: SiriusXM
SiriusXM media contact:
Patrick Reilly
patrick.reilly@siriusxm.com
Audio Up media contact:
Greg
Cortez
greg.cortez@42west.net
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SOURCE Sirius XM Holdings Inc.