Nicole Byer and Sasheer Zamata turn to the stars to explain their Best Friends connection

Best Friends With Nicole Byer and Sasheer Zamata
Sasheer Has To Wait 89 Years (Or A Year And A Half) with Heidi Rose Robbins

This sparkly podcast from Earwolf is hosted by actor/comedian Nicole Byer and former SNL cast member Sasheer Zamata, best friends who give listeners a peek at all that relationship entails. In this episode, Zamata discovers her birth time and is finally able to meet with poet and astrologer Heidi Rose Robbins to read her birth chart. Byer and Zamata wonder what, astrologically, might be the reason behind their deep-ass friendship; could similar birth times be involved? Can the placement of the planets really help predict friendship, love, or career changes? Are Geminis actually two-faced? Will Nicole find love in 2021? If you are new to astrology, or want a more in-depth understanding of planets and placements, the conversation does an awesome job breaking it down. [Morgan McNaught]

We Called Your Mom
Lydia (Sam Richardson’s Mom)

Comedian Beth Stelling recently launched this podcast with her mother, Diane, to host conversations with the moms of other artists—and the various matriarchs make for delightful, insightful guests. It’s sometimes easy to forget that mothers have lives beyond their kids, but while the premise of the podcast does center a lot of the conversation on the moms’ artistic offspring, it offers as much perspective on the mothers as it does on their kids. In this episode, Beth and Diane interview Lydia, the mother of actor/comedian Sam Richardson (Veep, Detroiters). Hearing Lydia talk about raising Richardson reveals her passion for African art, her time spent in Ghana and London, and more. Of course, as a proud mom, Lydia also shares a lot about Richardson’s childhood and the parallels between his youthful passions and current success. Structurally, the podcast has a unique formula: Diane functions as a peer to the interview subjects, especially as a mom proud of her own daughter’s professional successes, creating an endearing listening experience that’s sure to inspire its audience to give their own moms a call. [Jose Nateras]

Were You Raised By Wolves?
Cutting Lines, Answering Phones, Picking Berries, and More

Etiquette might be the house specialty on this podcast (a sort of Miss Manners for the digital age), but this is truly a show about communication, as an early digression about Thomas Edison’s popularization of the world “hello” underscores. Comedian Leah Bonnema, who obsesses over her past instances of rudeness, and journalist Nick Leighton, who seems to actively work to stop himself from going full asshole in frustrating situations, join forces to umpire the interplay between a world full of hurried, self-interested humans. There’s no shame in politely asking about birthday freebies, the hosts counsel, nor is it uncouth to set expectations when wishy-washy Facebook Marketplace types won’t commit to a timeline. The bulk of this week’s episode is dedicated to line-cutters, the worst sorts of people who violate one of humanity’s rudimentary social agreements. Lines are so central to our communal existence that they remain present even amidst social distancing; sometimes, though, no communication is the best path forward in cases of intentional, unapologetic line-cutters, difficult as it may be to stay silent. [Zach Brooke]