Heading into midterm week can cause high amounts of stress and pressure for all students, no matter the course load. This week’s podcast recommendation is meant to bring a little laughter and relatability to a time of high stress and anxiety. Research shows that taking 10-minute breaks every hour during a long day of studying can greatly impact the quality of one’s comprehension. This is the perfect time to pop in some headphones and turn on The Toast.
The Toast is a pop culture podcast that’s run by two sisters, Jackie Oshry and Claudia Oshry, who both grew their social media presence over the past few years. Each week, the sisters release a few episodes discussing the headlines found in popular tabloids like PEOPLE magazine and Page Six. The sisters share a variety of content across Instagram, TikTok and their podcast. The two sisters share similar interests within fashion, fitness and pop culture. Their Instagram and TikTok content consists of makeup tutorials and brand deals, while their podcast digs into pop culture and trending topics. The two share their opinion on Taylor Swift’s setlist, catchphrases and even Mickey Mouse.
One of their other successes comes from their own podcast network, Toast News Network, which is home to about eight other separate podcasts that are mostly run by women. Toast News Network focuses on promoting women’s voices in the podcasting world. This goal is something that the Oshry sisters feel very passionate about and they cater the majority of their content towards young women.
Their recent episode, “Women in Media,” touches on five major celebrities and their most recent accomplishments and relationships in 2024. This episode highlights themes of success and hard work and how these women got to where they are today. In addition to covering celebrity drama, they also frequently bring in guests such as popular internet personalities, like Jake Shane and TikTok couple Pookie and Jet. The guest episodes add a new level of excitement, and the sisters take turns asking guests their opinions on celebrity relationship drama and artist announcements. In another recent episode, “Tuesday Fully Loaded with Pookie and Jett,” the four give their opinion on Kacey Musgraves’ fashion line and Ina Garten’s new memoir, ‘Hardest Thing I Ever Did.”
The Toast makes finding something one would like to listen to simple. Within the show note captions, they put a list of topics and the timestamp of where to find that topic within the episode. This makes it easy to quickly find 10 minutes of something that will pique one’s interest and engage one’s mind in topics other than schoolwork. Maintaining a healthy mental space is half the battle during midterm week. It’s important to come up with a study plan that maximizes one’s energy and capacity, while also designating time to relax and take a break. The Toast is the perfect podcast to listen to during a study break to keep up with the Hollywood drama and give one’s brain time to relax and recharge. Happy listening.
