I started the Parker’s Pensées Podcast back in August 2020. Now many of you know me through this Substack publication or through my YouTube channel, ParkNotes, but I started my public philosophy journey with a Wordpress blog called Parker’s Pensées and then a podcast by the same name (I did have an unreasonably successful frog video prior to all of this which garnered 38 million views but that’s not philosophy).
When I started my podcast I had two other podcasters in mind, Joe Rogan and Stephen West of
I heard some of Rogan’s early stuff when I was in high school but he was pretty unhinged and I couldn’t take it. He’d have advertisers like fleshlight and I don’t think I ever made it past one of those ad reads. But as YouTube grew, I’d see more clips of him talking about how much he admired wrestlers. I’ve been wrestling since first grade, so naturally I had to check out more of what the wise and noble Joe Rogan had to say. So, I started listening to his podcast more regularly in 2012. I still couldn’t stand too many of his convos with comedians but I loved his episodes with academics. I loved how Rogan’s episodes were just conversations, sort of like an office hours visit, where Rogan would usually have at least perused his guest’s work and come up with some questions beforehand but he’d most often just pull the thread and go where his curiosity lead him. I wanted to be like that.
I also loved Stephen West’s nonchalant exposition of the greatest philosophers of all time on Philosophize This!. It’s obvious that Stephen does a ton of research for each episode of his podcast but he presents the philosophers, their ideas, and the broader stories of their context in a really chill and conversational way. He’s not trying to flex on his audience. You can tell he really just likes philosophy and wants to tell you about what he’s learned. This mode of philosophizing really struck me as the way to do it. Research the crap out of something and talk about it in a chill way that makes it accessible to non-specialists.
So, I eventually started my own podcast after listening to Rogan and Stephen West and sought to blend their two approaches to talk with some of my own favorite scholars about their favorite ideas. I thought my podcast would blow up and I’d be doing that for a living. That has not been the case haha. I pay the bills as a notebook Czar and now as an essayist and sort of as a science fiction author—all great things and I’m super grateful for all the support I get! But with those other things paying the bills, I haven’t had the same amount of time to invest in the Parker’s Pensées Podcast that I used to.
I thought about shutting down shop on the podcast last year and just focusing on the other projects that have been finding more success. But I’m a contrarian and reflecting on that thought just pissed me off. I’m not going to bail on something I’ve worked so hard to establish, even if it’s not finding the success that I originally hoped for. The research for the podcast, while time consuming, actually gives me a lot of life. I’m continually forced to learn new things and have fascinating conversations with people who dedicate their lives to ideas. It’s all a net positive even if it hinders some of the other stuff I have going on.
So, I’m not giving up on the pod. Would it be really, really nice if it ever ended up taking off and helping to pay some of the bills? Yes, totally and please! But even if not, I’m still going to do it because I love it too much to stop and it’s too personally rewarding.
Talking with Stephen West was a total motivational boost and a sort of reconfirmation. Like I said, he was one of the major influences for my project, so it was immensely rewarding to finally get him on to talk about philosophy. It was an extra bonus to hear him say he listens to my podcast and enjoys my work.
So, if you’re a fan of the Parker’s Pensées Podcast, then check out the latest episode below. If you’ve never heard of it, here’s a pretty good intro into the project. If you want to support it, you can do so on Patreon or YouTube members—that would be huge! Or you can just support my work here and help me keep the lights on that way too.
I found you through your ParkNotes channel. I don’t remember what exactly was I looking for back then, I just know I’ve been hooked on your channel since.
Then, I started to follow your journey here and the pod. It even got me interested into philosophy even more (I had a nag about wanting to dive in but never did). Now, all I want to consume is philosophy stuffs. So your idea of Easter egging philosophy into your ParkNotes channel has worked.
I may be in the minority, but I actually discovered your work through your philosophy on Parker’s Pensées. I support you here, but it’s mainly the philosophy (and theology) that keeps me around. So, glad to hear you’re not stepping away from that. Please know that your hard work does not go unappreciated!