Close Encounters Podcast

Close Encounters Podcast was a digital podcast series, hosted by Jack Stevens to promote his fifth studio album 'Close Encounters'.

Background & synopsis
‘Close Encounters Podcast’ was launched in October 2020 by Jack Stevens as a digital podcast series to promote his fifth studio album ‘Close Encounters’. Jack came up with the idea of the series as he felt disconnected from his peers during the coronavirus lockdown of 2020 and thought it would be a fantastic opportunity to reconnect and ask the kind of questions that musicians are not often asked by the media, the idea being it would be an unedited chat with nothing off limits and the focus be more on mental health, the business side of the music world and the pressures of being in the public eye.

The podcast was available to stream on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Podcasts and most recently has been added to BBC Sounds, with highlights of the series broadcast on BBC Radio 2 in November 2020.

Critical & Commercial Success
‘Close Encounters Podcast’ was a commercial and critical success with listeners praising Jack’s presenting skills and the content of each show, many felt that Jack was able to allow his guests to relax and open-up in a way they hadn’t before in more formal interviews and enjoyed hearing personal stories from the stars as well as finding out about friendships. Fans also praised the varied line up of the series, with Jack chatting too Syd Wolfe and Gabriel Dresden of whom he had previously been involved in ‘tabloid spats’ with.