“Teenager Therapy”, hosted by five rising seniors at Loara High School in Anaheim, Calif., has become a breakout hit. The podcast show features five teens having loose, sincere conversations about mental health, school and family, friendships, and more. Sometimes they interview big names, including Loren Gray. But typically, the show is more of a free-form discussion.
“There are episodes where we offer advice about teenage life, and there are episodes where we simply talk about our experiences,” said Gael Aitor, 17.
He got the idea for “Teenager Therapy” in 2018 after hearing “Couples Therapy”, a podcast by the YouTuber Casey Neistat and his wife. The then 15-year-old rounded up four friends to record the first episode of “Teenager Therapy”. “The first two tries were terrible,” Mr. Aitor said. “The third time we were happy with it, so we posted it online.”
Building a podcast audience is no easy job, especially since the group of high schoolers had no marketing budget. To attract listeners, Mr. Aitor repurposed an old Instagram account, which had 20, 000 followers.
Within a few months of posting their first episode, “Teenager Therapy” had over 100, 000 downloads — a number it can take years for self-governing podcasts to hit. From there, the show kept growing. But part of the great popularity of the show is that it’s produced for teenagers by several hosts from the same age group. “People often say, ‘I don’t know who to tell but you guys,’” said Mr. Aitor. “We never really scripted (写脚本) anything or planned it out.”
Maya Gabay, 16, a rising high school junior, said the podcast was now her favorite show. “The podcast never holds back on anything,” said Ms. Gabay, who, like many other young listeners, considers it as their lifeline. The podcast has helped her process things going on in her life, including problems with friendships. “It’s really great to see kids my age doing something like this,” she said.
【小题1】What does “Teenager Therapy” usually do for its listeners?| A．It connects teenage patients with doctors. |
| B．It holds discussions about teenage topics. |
| C．It helps develop teens’ communication skills. |
| D．It allows teens to make friends with big names. |
| A．Why Gael brought together his four friends. | B．Why Gael continued his podcast. |
| C．How the listeners were attracted. | D．How the podcast show started. |
| A．It is made for teens by teens. | B．Its hosts are good at marketing. |
| C．Its programs are all carefully planned. | D．It won support from “Couples Therapy”. |
| A．It needed to make improvements. | B．It would train more kids like her. |
| C．It was an important part of her life. | D．It should pay more attention to friendships. |
