Jad Abumrad, Radiolab Creator and Peabody-Winning Producer, on Tools, Habits, and Creative Process
In a weekend questionnaire, the podcast pioneer discusses his essential tools, digital preferences, and creative obsessions.
What happened
The Verge interviewed Jad Abumrad, creator of Radiolab and host of Peabody Award-winning shows Dolly Parton's America and Fela Kuti: Fear No Man. Abumrad answered questions about his indispensable tools (a springy travel pillow, the Fantastical calendar app, and the Granite granular synthesis audio plugin), his digital habits (14 open browser tabs, pinned to NYT, Ground News, ESPN, and academic resources), and his creative preferences (Bandcamp and Andrew Huang's YouTube as happy places online; the Finnish composer Kaija Saariaho and UK dubstep as current obsessions). He also discussed devices he valued (a 1997 Motorola flip phone and a butterfly knife he saved up for over a decade) and a frustration with smartphone notification culture.
Context
Abumrad retired from Radiolab in 2022 after establishing it as a foundational influence on modern podcasting—a show that moved beyond simple conversation or repackaged radio to employ cinematic sound design and original music. He has since remained active in composition, teaching, and production. His detailed responses reveal someone deliberately managing his relationship with technology: seeking focus through meditation and phone-bricking, preferring dumb-phone functionality, and valuing tools that reduce rather than amplify cognitive load. His creative toolkit—both physical instruments like gamelan strips and digital audio plugins—reflects a continued investment in sound and sonic storytelling as his primary expressive medium.