Holly Brown

“I’m Holly Anabel Brown! I’m an LA-based stand-up comedian, a podcast person at Tink Media, and now ALSO the host and creator of a new darkly comedic narrative show about my whole dang life, Everybody Knows But Me.”

Describe the show in 10 words or less.
Family secrets meet 90s sitcoms in a darkly comedic narrative.

Now you have more than 10 if you want them.
Hooray! The show starts as an investigation into a family secret I’ve been avoiding - my dying father’s confession that he had two sons everyone in the family knew about but me. Casual! But as I dig deeper, it’s really a story about my unique upbringing, filled with way more secrets than I ever realized - all told through the lens of 90s sitcom nostalgia to honor my dad’s work on 90’s sitcoms, my lifelong obsession with them, and to unpack family dynamics through those familiar archetypes.

Can you talk about the structure a bit?
Every episode opens with a sitcom-style cold open! A fictionalized version of a very real moment from my life.

Season 1 is a limited narrative series telling my story, but as I started opening up, I realized how many people are carrying their own versions of family secrets like mine. So once the narrative portion concludes, we’ll shift into a 90s-style talk show format (think Ricki Lake, Sally Jesse Raphael), where I sit down with guests to unpack their family secrets, reduce the shame around them, and, my favorite thing, find funny in the discomfort. 

Did you have someone in mind when you were making it?
Me! Truly. My most listened to genres are comedy chat shows, narrative series (often a little true crime-adjacent), and millennial rewatch podcasts. So I thought why not combine all three into one super mega Holly podcast? I have a hunch I’m not the only nostalgic millennial in this insane year of 2026 who loves comedy but also doesn’t mind getting DARK. 

How has this podcast changed you?
My. God. Or, as Uncle Jesse would say - have mercy.

So unbelievably much. As a comedian, I’ve always processed things through a dark lens, and I’ve been really inspired by people like Mike Birbiglia and Mae Martin, who live in that space between comedy and deep sincerity. I’ve always wanted to do something like that, but I was terrified. Like, would it unravel me?

It ABSOLUTELY did. But I like who I am on the other side a lot more.

You’ve been sharing it around a bit. What’s the feedback been like? Any particularly fun or harsh feedback? (I think it sucks, by the way.)
It’s been a rollercoaster. Turns out there are colleagues I admire (eek scary!) who…like me, they really like me! We had an incredible moment where we got to share a sneak peak on stage at SXSW to hundreds of people, immediately received amazing feedback, was riding so so high and then someone approached me (from the tech world) who had some strange, strong opinions to knock me down a peg. I’ll accept any feedback, but if it’s pretty clear you aren’t even a podcast listener, I might not be making this show for you and that is a-okay with me.

You had a lot of emotional conversations to get all this tape. Which was the best?
I’ve had conversations with family members I never thought were possible - my aunts, my uncles - but most importantly, my siblings. Talking openly about all of this has changed us in really beautiful ways. There’s a level of understanding now that I didn’t know existed. To feel truly seen by the people you love most, there’s nothing like it.

Which podcast is it like?
It’s like Dead Eyes meets Inconceivable Truth with the genre-bending tone of Kevin Can F**k Himself (not a podcast, I know! don’t hurt me!).

What makes it different from…any other podcast?
Everything turned real life into these cinematic scenes, and we wanted to build on that by fully straddling comedy and drama. We want to make you laugh and squirm.

And the sound design really brings that to life. It’s immersive, weird, and helps build this very specific “fucked up sitcom” world.

What was the aha moment? “This is a show!”
Truly - listening to Matt Katz’ Inconceivable Truth!

I finished it and had the most cliché realization of “wait. I’m a performer. I work in podcast marketing. And I have a big, messy family secret I’ve always wanted to unpack.…could I just…do this?”

Was it hard to get on the podcast mic for the first time? You are used to being behind a COMEDIAN’s mic but not a podcaster’s one. What’s the difference?
At first, yes. It was intimidating to not be able to read the room, or have my usual safety net of jokes to pivot to. But it turns out, there’s even more freedom in just your voice. You can guide people more intentionally. You can sit in the uncomfortable moments longer. You can really control the experience in a way that really surprised me.

If you had $100K budget for marketing alone on this show what would you do?
EASY.

I would recreate iconic sitcom openings, but completely warped. Like a shot-for-shot Full House intro where something is slightly off in every frame. A Step by Step rollercoaster moment that gets progressively more unsettling. If you thought Too Many Cooks was dark, just wait.

You are a funny, creative, talented wild woman who is also one of the best podcast growth experts in the biz. What has it been like making a show with those two things going on in your head?
WELL SHUCKS, this is far too kind! I feel so lucky that my job lets me study what works across so many incredible shows. I’ve been able to be really intentional about the listener experience - from how we rolled out trailers to how we’ve teased things on social.

And I can adjust in real time based on what’s working (hi, video for narrative series - I’m coming for you!).

What’s a podcast you love that everyone knows about?
Pod Meets World. I am a Boy Meets World fiend.

I’ve never come close to a parasocial relationship until this podcast. They’re not perfect, I don’t agree with every opinion they have, but they have the best recap structure I’ve ever heard and I love them so much!! I NEED Will Friedle on my show!

What’s a podcast you love that not enough people know about?
Talk Girl! Look, I’m in a millennial mood. I’m sorry!!

Anything I didn’t ask you that you wanna say?
I just want to say how grateful I am to my Tink family.

Without their support, encouragement, and belief in me, I genuinely don’t think I would’ve had the confidence to do this. They’ve truly changed my life.

WELL, SHUCKS!