What happens when you take story ideas straight from a child's imagination and put them in the hands of some equally creative, fun-loving, musically inclined adults? You get Story Pirates-a children's media company turned podcast with stories by kids, for kids.
According to creative director Lee Overtree and CEO Benjamin Salka (a.k.a. Jamie), Story Pirates started off performing children-inspired musicals in schools and theaters as a live touring group in 2004 and eventually evolved into a radio show, bringing heartwarming and engaging stories to even more listeners. More recently, the company transitioned into a podcast that has spawned several music albums.
So how does it work? Youngsters from all over the world submit their ideas to the Story Pirates website, then the creative team (comprised of world-class actors, comedians, improvisors, and musicians) selects and adapts them into podcast episodes filled with sketch comedy and musical theater. Episodes even have special celebrity guests each week.
Kids (and parents!) love the original songs sprinkled throughout the show. So, to give fans more of what they love, Story Pirates released two albums-Backstroke Raptor and Nothing Is Impossible-which take the best songs and remix them into standalone versions that are easy to find and play in album format on Spotify.
We sat down with Lee and Jamie to talk about what makes the Story Pirates podcast and albums such a beloved phenomenon.
What do you think it is about podcasts that makes them a great storytelling medium for kids? Lee: Well, audio amplifies imagination, right? It allows the listener to engage in a way that a visual medium doesn't. You have to be involved, and for kids who are eager to live in a participatory world, a medium like podcasting is very natural for them.
What's the most surprising thing you've learned since embarking on this podcast and album journey? Jamie: The thing that surprised me most is just how authentically people are responding to what we're putting out there. Story Pirates has been a slow, steady build-the live show started in 2004. But the last couple of years have been astronomical in terms of the growth. We hear from people who drove eight hours to see us in person or even flew in from Australia. I think it's because families are responding to what's different about what we're doing. I think it feels more playful, more connected, and more joyful than what they expected.
How do you differentiate between the albums and podcast? Jamie: One of the things people love so much about our podcast is the music. But the podcast runs anywhere between 22 minutes and a half hour, and the songs are wrapped up in the whole show. So if you get obsessed [with a song], you have to rewind and fast-forward to find your favorite part, whereas with the album, you just get right to it.
Lee: The albums that we put out through Gimlet are the best songs from the podcast remixed and remastered. So most of the songs on the album are ones you've heard in a different form on the podcast. For example, Lin-Manuel Miranda wasn't on the podcast version of The Wizard Who Could Just Go Poof, but he was on the album version.
Speaking of Lin-Manuel, who are some of the other guests that you've had on the show, and who are your favorites that you've worked with so far? Lee: We've been really lucky, and it's sort of gone from us reaching out to our contacts in the comedy community to people reaching out to ask to be on the show because their kids listen. We've had lots of great people, like John Oliver, Claire Danes, Dax Shephard, and David Schwimmer. And we have some more really exciting guests coming soon.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
01/04/2026
January 4 2026, 18:00 (PST) DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION
Douyin Users Can Now Create And Share Videos With Stun...
13/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
13/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
13/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
13/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
13/01/2026
Luxembourg, December 17, 2025 - SES S.A. ( SES or the Company ), a leading spa...
12/01/2026
Sports and Music Unite: A Look Back at the Operationally Ambitious FIFA Club Wor...
12/01/2026
Nielsen Panel Discussion Highlights World Cup Impact for FOX, Telemundo, MetLife...
12/01/2026
FIFA President Infantino Highlights How AI Will Impact 2026 FIFA World Cup and B...
12/01/2026
Baltimore Ravens' Jack Dana on Telling a Better Story With Media Management ...
12/01/2026
FOX Sports' Brad Cheney on Spectrum Debate's Impact on the Sports-Produc...
12/01/2026
Spotify's new co-CEOs, Alex Norstr m and Gustav S derstr m, start off the new year with a message of renewed leadership, creative responsibility, and what&#...
12/01/2026
At Spotify, we listen to a lot of music. And every year, our global editors and artist partnerships teams come together to spotlight the emerging voices we beli...
12/01/2026
Spotify's global editors and Songwriter & Publisher Partnerships team spend their days immersed in new music, tracking the writers behind the songs breaking...
12/01/2026
Nominations open for the fifth Australia for UNHCR - SBS Les Murray Award for Re...
12/01/2026
Australia and New Zealand VP Alan Clements shares L3Harris' leadership insig...
12/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
12/01/2026
Berklee International Folk Festival Celebrates 40 Years Featuring Grammy-winning alumna Arooj Aftab, the milestone concert and weeklong festival marks four de...
12/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
12/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
12/01/2026
X-Rite and Rhopoint Launch Rhopoint PANTORA Aesthetix to Streamline Creation of...
12/01/2026
12 Jan 2026
VEON's Kyivstar Launches 5G Pilot in Lviv Lviv, January 12, 2026 - VEON, a global digital operator (Nasdaq: VEON), today announces that Kyivsta...
12/01/2026
Monday 12 January 2026
The ultimate betrayal: Harry and Jamie Redknapp, Paul Me...
12/01/2026
Rohde & Schwarz opens larger office in Japan to increase its support for the Jap...
12/01/2026
Back to All News
WWE By the Numbers: Celebrating One Year on Netflix
From left to right: Rey Mysterio, Intercontinental Champion John Cena and Sheamus celebr...
12/01/2026
Welcome to the AVECO team: introducing new members of management
At AVECO, we are continuing to implement our #newAVECO strategy, which aims to build an even s...
12/01/2026
For the first time in the nine-year history of Dancing with the Stars, the first...
10/01/2026
By Bailey Pennick
One of the most exciting things about the Sundance Film Festi...
10/01/2026
This year, podcasts are making their Golden Globes debut with a new category honoring the medium's leading shows and creators. To mark the occasion, Spotify...
10/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
10/01/2026
Back to All News
Connection and Youth Defined: The Ramparts of Ice Brings a Hea...
09/01/2026
Rock-It Sports' Deron Brown & Laura Rowlands on Launching a New Brand, Suppl...
09/01/2026
Warner Bros. Discovery's Chris Brown on the Broadcaster's First French O...
09/01/2026
NFL Playoffs 2026: CBS Sports Travels to Jacksonville With Packed Arsenal of Pro...
09/01/2026
NFL Playoffs 2026: NBC Sports Is Set To Roll Out New Scorebar, Insert Graphics T...
09/01/2026
NFL Playoffs 2026: Prime Video Production Team Caps Historic Season With Iconic ...
09/01/2026
NFL Playoffs 2026: FOX Sports Kicks Off Postseason Slate With Two-Game Wild Card...
09/01/2026
NFL Playoffs 2026: ESPN's Run Brings Monday Night Football' Flagship Op...
09/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
09/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
09/01/2026
SMPTE , the home of media professionals, technologists, and engineers, today introduced the board officers and regional governors who will serve terms beginning...
09/01/2026
Globecast, the leading provider of broadcast, media and entertainment managed services, today announced the appointment of Chris Pulis as Group Chief Technology...
09/01/2026
The Hollywood Professional Association (HPA) today announced several updates to its board of directors. As part of HPA s annual governance cycle, new leadership...
09/01/2026
SDVI, the leading platform provider for cloud-native media supply chains, today announced that Simon Eldridge has been appointed chief operating officer. In thi...
09/01/2026
Cobalt Digital, the leading designer and manufacturer of award-winning ST 2110 and SDI signal processing products, and a founding partner in the openGear initi...
09/01/2026
iWedia, a global leader in connected TV software solutions, announces that its market-proven ATSC 3.0 software stack is powering the broadcast functionality of ...
What happens when you take story ideas straight from a child's imagination and put them in the hands of some equally creative, fun-loving, musically inclined adults? You get Story Pirates-a children's media company turned podcast with stories by kids, for kids.
