Podpah earns R$ 18 million in 6 months and hits 2 billion views: Igão and Mítico want more

The yellow walls with the autographs of more than 500 personalities who passed through the Podpah headquarters, in the upscale neighborhood of Pinheiros (west zone of São Paulo), are one of the evidences of the success of the podcast led by Igor Cavalari, Igão, 27, and Thiago Marques, the mythical, from Pará, 32.

In their three years on the program, the two have already taken to their domains and interviewed personalities as distinguished as Mano Brown, Luciano Huck, Cauã Reymond, Maisa, Gabigol, Drauzio Varella and President Lula, six months before the PT official made his candidacy to the position he holds today —the program reached almost 300,000 simultaneous viewers, one of the records until then.

Igão considers that the secret to taking who they want to the program is the certainty that the interviewees have that they will be in good hands. “We’re two kids who don’t like to confront anyone. That’s why many end up opening up,” he says.

With long interviews (most of them last more than two hours) and an atmosphere of absolute informality, more or less like a chat at a bar table, Podpah reached impressive numbers: there are more than 2 billion views on its YouTube channel, where there are almost 1,000 contents available. Revenue is consistent with such visibility. In the first six months of 2023 alone, the program generated revenues in excess of BRL 18.5 million.

And they want more. Under the eyes and directions of CEO Victor Assis, the fifth program in its schedule has just premiered, the Podpah Visita with Pedro Scooby, they plan a themed party with a trap and rap lineup for 3,000 people in October (the PodParty), the first attempt at events area, which they also realized to be an interesting niche. Read below the interview with Igão and Mítico to the F5:

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What is the secret for artists to open up to you so much?

Igon – The artists are happy, because they know that we are good. These are real conversations. Sometimes we talk about a lot of things, we open a lot of parentheses, we suggest theories and we don’t conclude anything. It just flows. We’re two regular kids who don’t like to confront anyone. Most of the intimacies that the guests talk about came from them, they have a beer and are at ease.

Mythical – When the guest arrives and we see that he is tense, we go to greet him and say, eye to eye, that we don’t want to know about his controversy and that we don’t care who he dates. I feel that the person is disarming. Many forget until it’s filming.

Before, you drank more during conversations. Why did they stop? Fear of cancellation?

Igon – We are concerned about being responsible, but we are not here to educate anyone. Before we drank more in life in general, but now we are decreasing by 90%. It was natural.

Mythical – There were a lot of MCs here with a bottle of whiskey. They thought it was an offense if we didn’t drink. We’ve been maturing, worrying more about the image, with the brands that sponsor us. I don’t think it’s time to drink anymore. I would die of shame.

Are you best friends? How did that friendship evolve?

Igon – I once called Místico to make a video on my other channel and he came up with the idea for the podcast. There is never any bullshit between us, on the contrary, we respect each other a lot. When I see that he’s a little pah (head down) I keep to myself, we already look at each other and we know, we understand each other that way.

Mythical – In 2015, I came to live in a shack in SP and we became partners. When I called him to Podpah we still didn’t have that strong friendship. I needed someone on my side who understood the streets, a guy from the periphery. And Igão is that guy. Nowadays we even look like husband and wife, we just don’t do the good part of husband and wife (laughs).

Místico came from the outskirts of Belém (PA), and Igão from Osasco. Today you have money and prestige. How not to be dazzled?

Igon – Whoever is from the periphery and sees me with a big car is happy for me. What we do is always remember who we are and where we come from, keep friends and family close. Podpah never aimed at money, if we earn a lot it’s precisely because we never aimed at money. Selling Podpah today is easier, but in the beginning the brands didn’t know if those two kids were reliable.

Mythical – I’ve always said to Igão: if this stuff grows and gives money, let’s not be idiots, because every partner fights. We share everything. I came from the Belém quarter and I’m thinking of giving back and helping my state. If I manage to reach 50 with a high level of money, I could go to the governor and say: ‘Excuse me, I have enough money to help my state’. We’ve already discussed this: if we get to a point where we have a lot of money, we’re not going to be shit. I want to give back to my family and my people.

You were almost an arm of (podcast) Flow. Why did you decide to be independent?

Igon – This decision was taken thoroughly by us. It was our future at stake and the project of our lives. We wanted to make the decisions. Mythical and I weren’t even close friends, but we became friends. It wasn’t about money, it was about owning your own nose, taking care of our son.

Mythical – It was nothing against the guys, but we already noticed that there was potential in the first month of Podpah. We also knew that it wouldn’t just be a podcast, Podpah could go further. I’ve been a DJ, I’ve done vlogs, series, theater, so it’s easy for me to recycle myself.

In December 2021, Lula was interviewed by you. Do you think they influenced his victory in the elections of the following year?

Igon – Winning I don’t know, because when he came he wasn’t even a candidate. But we were happy to welcome a guy of this magnitude.

Mythical – There was a young crowd that didn’t know him and started to know him. Those who already liked it had identification. It was at a time when a lighter speech was needed.

How far do you want to go? What still remains to be conquered?

Igon – The future is to pay attention to our audience, to the peripherals, we do everything to enter on all fronts. I really want to have a Domingão do Igão, whether on TV or YouTube. I want to become a major communication power in the country.

Mythical – I see myself working in entertainment forever. Luciano Huck said he has time to do everything, so it’s possible to reach that level. I see myself on stage, the crowd screaming… Will we ever get to that?