The show’s name says it all: Kyle Brandt’s Basement is not your typical sports show. Driven by one of the most unique voices in sports, the podcast plays with the conceit of sports media to maximum effect. Kyle, already talking about sports on multiple platforms each day, wanted to create a new kind of show, one less about him, and more about a shared love of sports among fans.
Rather than offering just his insights, Kyle Brandt shares his opinion on other commentators’ hot takes and shows, offering a unique meta-analysis of sports commentary as a whole. With its visually unique spin on the traditional podcast format, animations, sound effects, and multimedia often accompany Kyle’s delivery, pushing the boundaries of audio storytelling.
The meta nature of the show combined with Kyle’s trademark charm has created a triumphant podcast. It is the earnestness of the show, the unfussiness of the setup (sometimes being broadcast from the passenger seat on a road trip), and the charm of the host that drives fan engagement. It’s a testament to the fact that sports media shouldn’t be restricted to whatever is going on on the field—it can diverge into other genres, and connect with fans’ genuine interest in other areas.
Kyle’s vision for the show demands that he hosts alone, and his fans supply the rest of the energy another talking head may have offered instead. The team isn’t interested in going viral for the sake of going viral—Kyle aims to connect with listeners, first. In anticipation of the Super Bowl, for example, Kyle decided to extend some love to Eagles fans ahead of the game by including them in his daily show’s daily roundup of what he finds hilarious. The moment wasn’t a social media explosion across the country, but it found its way to small communities online of local Philly fans, who found a new love for the show, and embraced Kyle’s commentary.
Kyle himself can usually be seen engaging the audience by throwing darts or shooting hoops in a space that’s more intimate than your typical studio—literally his basement. Fan engagement is the engine that keeps the show running; on-air conversation between Kyle and listeners adds to the show's unfiltered, behind-the-scenes feel. Kyle set out to deliver a podcast experience that defies expectations and gives him maximum creativity to explore sports– all in the comfort of his own home.
Kyle Brandt’s Basement segments capitalize on his stand-out sense of humor and contagious energy. These moments have been designed to specifically engage the audience’s attention directly, giving the modern sports fan their own unique ownership of the conversation.
In “Social Media Cemetery” and “Death Star” fans respond to the show with trends (think memes, GIFs, and viral moments) that they can’t stand. Kyle discusses these and decides what dies, what’s blown up (a la Star Wars) or what survives. Popular “Say Anything” segments entail Kyle responding to a fans' unfiltered hot take on a topic of their choice, recorded via voicemail.
“Josh Allen Film Festival,” in which Kyle assigns Buffalo Bills QB Josh Allen a movie to watch before he was born and report back with his thoughts, has become a fan favorite that reliably drives maximum engagement on social media.
These segments recognize that the show does not unfold in a vacuum—it interacts and incorporates common media to talk to fans in a way few shows do. The modern fan consumes more media content than ever before, and Kyle’s show does more than acknowledge it, it embraces it, and uses it to bring fans into the fold.
Kyle Brandt’s Basement airs daily, offering fans the high-touch experience they crave. The show ultimately garnered 456,390 audio downloads and 3,438,381 YouTube views in its first season.
Antics aside, Kyle’s in-depth NFL knowledge and passion for the game are solid springboards for the show’s success. Some of our reliably best-performing video episodes were the weekly Sunday NFL recap episodes. Those 15 episodes gathered 557,241 YouTube views, averaging 37.1K views per episode. This success extends to socials as well. Especially popular are moments in the “Josh Allen Film Festival” segments, which generate massive buzz for the QB’s questionable commentary on movies like The Princess Bride or Super Troopers. The Super Troopers segment was so popular, the movie’s cast even got in on the Twitter fun.
Kyle Brandt’s Basement is at its best when Kyle is set up to deliver the sharpest, funniest, most challenging response to other people’s opinions. It’s no surprise that the best-performing audio episode of the show this season was also Josh Allen's second appearance after he beat the Rams on Thursday Night Football in Week 1 of the NFL playoffs. This episode was downloaded 10,303 times.
The show’s best-performing YouTube episode shared Kyle's heartfelt reaction to Damar Hamlin suffering a cardiac arrest in early January. His empathetic, informed play-by-play displayed Kyle’s clear compassion during a difficult moment and attracted 124,225 viewers. Fans blew the episode up, eager to connect with someone speaking candidly about the event, finding comfort in Kyle’s signature warmth and honesty.
