Alongside managing turbulent remote learning this past fall, Junior Djeneba Sanogo has used her initiative and creativity to start her very own podcast. 

“I’ve always wanted to start something, and I like talking,” Djenaba said. “But whenever I talk to someone, they can’t sit there and listen for a long time without me boring them. So I feel like with a podcast, you can talk as much as you want and there’s no one there to complain.”

I had personally always thought producing a podcast is a costly, time consuming, and inaccessible project, especially for a high school student. Yet with the aid of Anchor, a free podcast program, and those around her with podcast and recording experience, Djeneba was able to materialize her podcast aspirations.

“My brother has a studio [for recording other people’s podcasts] so I just asked him.” 

Through a networking event at an after school program she attends, Djeneba also got assistance from a podcast producer.

“He said to make an anchor account … and once you put your audio onto anchor, it will upload it onto Spotify and Google Podcasts for you [for free].”

Junior Chloe Kleid, a listener of Blossom with Me, finds it impressive that there are accessible online resources for pursuing podcasts and other creative projects. 

“The internet really gives us so many opportunities and it’s great to take advantage of that,” Chloe said. “I think it’s good to be creative and make something like a podcast, to talk about what’s on your mind. It’s healthy, too, kind of like journaling, but verbally, I guess.”

Publishing a podcast is one challenge, but the naming is key to setting the tone and capturing an audience. 

“I didn’t know what to name my podcast,” Djeneba recalls. “I called family friends asking what the name should be, and everyone liked ‘blossom’… but on Youtube, ‘Blossom’ was already taken”

Djeneba has started this podcast from a relatively young age and will probably continue creating episodes in the long run, so someone suggested “Blossom with Me”. This fits in aptly with the ideas of growing, learning, and challenging your existing views, which is what the podcast partially aims to facilitate.

“So like, ‘Grow with Me’, but ‘Blossom’ sounds cuter.”

Since starting a couple of months ago, Djeneba’s weekly uploads have covered a wide array of topics. From tips about virtual learning and friendship, to current events, she doesn’t restrict herself to a particular genre. 

“I would say the topics I talk about are pretty random,” said Djeneba. “With most podcasts, they’re pretty structured – but for me, I talk about anything that’s on my mind because I don’t want to limit myself.”

Djeneba’s podcast harmoniously blends authentic, casual conversation with well researched information that magnifies different perspectives. The episodes are short – between five and ten minutes long – which make them perfect for a quick dose of entertainment or learning, say, during a break between schoolwork. Some weeks, such as a recent episode about the various opinions on the Covid-19 vaccines, require more research and planning than other weeks. She welcomes any suggestions for topics through the email [email protected].

“I like how she chooses topics that are relevant and interesting … especially now during quarantine it’s nice to hear about real people’s opinions about what’s going on in the world,” Chloe said. “I appreciated the episode about pre-med because she did an interview with someone in med-school. I think it’s a really valuable episode for kids our age who are thinking about careers.”

The pandemic may have allotted Djeneba more time on her hands to pursue this project, but social distancing certainly limits how she is able to develop it.

“I want to have more guests, like my friends and family members, but since it’s still the pandemic, I can’t or don’t really want to do that right now.” 

Listen to Blossom with Me on Spotify, Google Podcast, or Youtube. Djeneba posts new episodes every Monday.