‘Call Your Girlfriend’ co-host Aminatou Sow: I started podcasting because men told me I couldn’t

If you want to get Aminatou Sow* to do something, just tell her she can’t.

"We were told by a man that women don’t make podcasts," Sow said on the latest episode of Recode Media with Peter Kafka. "Nothing motivates me faster than telling me that women don’t do a thing. Turns out, it’s not that hard."

Sow, a digital consultant by day, co-hosts the weekly show "Call Your Girlfriend" with Ann Friedman, a magazine journalist and her "long-distance bestie." The show, which launched in 2014 before the "Serial" podcast boom, has reached as high as No. 28 on iTunes’ top podcast charts, a climb that took the hosts by surprise.

"We did not set out to make a popular podcast," Sow said. "I think if that had been the case, we would have failed. We were really just trying to learn how to do this thing and the mechanics of it. And the pleasant surprise is that people came along for the ride with us."

So, how do you go from not knowing how to make a podcast to being heard by thousands? Sow admits that she and Friedman "kind of cheated" because their network of friends and colleagues happened to include several tastemakers who would spread the show around — including "Girls" star Lena Dunham.

"Ann has been a longtime writer and editor in D.C.," she said. "I worked in social media and social media marketing for a long time in D.C. It just turned out that when we launched a podcast, we were like, ‘Hey guys, this is this new thing that we’re doing,’ and some of our best friends were media influencers."

"I know Lena [Dunham] through Brooklyn and just being ladies in New York," Sow added. "She’s great."

You can listen to Recode Media in the audio player above, or subscribe on iTunes, Google Play Music, TuneIn and Stitcher.

If you like this show, you should also sample our other podcasts:

• Recode Decode, hosted by Kara Swisher is a weekly show featuring in-depth interviews with the movers and shakers in tech and media every Monday. You can subscribe on iTunes, Google Play Music, TuneIn and Stitcher.
• Too Embarrassed to Ask, hosted by Kara Swisher and The Verge's Lauren Goode, answers all of the tech questions sent in by our readers and listeners. You can hear new episodes every Friday on iTunes, Google Play Music, TuneIn and Stitcher.
• And finally, Recode Replay has all the audio from our live events, such as the Code Conference, Code Media and the Code Commerce Series. Subscribe today on iTunes, Google Play Music, TuneIn and Stitcher.

If you like what we’re doing, please write a review on iTunes — and if you don’t, just tweet-strafe Peter. Tune in next Thursday for another episode of Recode Media!

* Disclosure: Sow previously consulted for Recode, helping to program the 2016 Code Conference.

This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

Contributions are a key part of the future of Vox

Readers rely on Vox for clear, nuanced coverage that not only illuminates the issues, but poses solutions, too. And we rely on help from our readers: Advertising and grants cover the majority of our costs, but we count on contributions to help us close the gaps in our budget. In fact, we’re looking to reach 95,000 individual contributions before the end of the year. Will you make the next contribution right now? Our average gift is just $20 — and it goes a long way in helping us keep our work free. Vox is here to help everyone understand what’s shaping the world — not just the people who can afford to pay for a subscription. We believe that’s an important part of building a more equal society. Join that mission by making a contribution today.

One-Time Monthly Annual

$5/month

$10/month

$25/month

$50/month

Other

$

Yes, I'll give $5/month

Yes, I'll give $5/month

We accept credit card, Apple Pay, and Google Pay. You can also contribute via