The Story of What’s Up Dunwoody: A Community Podcast Is Born
In early 2018, I had the thought of creating a podcast that would connect me with the Dunwoody community while helping me grow my real estate career. I was a huge podcast listener and understood how fast the medium was growing quickly. I shared the idea with my brother-in-law, Justin Dike. Justin offered to help and share his little bit of podcasting knowledge… what I really needed was his confidence. We didn’t necessarily have a plan, but Justin urged me to get over myself and just create the content. I reluctantly sat down with him in late February and recorded 3 episodes. We used cheap microphones and bantered back and forth over a few beers. After listening back, we decided those sucked, and we recorded 3 more.
My reluctantly suddenly turned into excitement. This was fun. Justin explained to me how to set up an rss feed, and we went to put the episodes online. Justin typed in 01, and before he started with the title I blurted out, “you have to put 001 because we are going to make more than a hundred.” That was the moment that Justin realized what he signed up for.
Quick Growth: Filling a Hyperlocal Niche
What began as a simple project, quickly resonated with our neighbors. We had tapped into a need for hyperlocal content that spoke directly to the community, and What’s Up Dunwoody quickly gained traction as a trusted source of information. Our early episodes were straightforward—just two guys chatting about community news—but the response was more than we expected, and one man in particular was a fan.
Heyward Wescott sent me a Facebook message saying he’d love to meet. We showed up at Marlow’s not knowing what to expect. Heyward explained that he was a long-time Dunwoody resident and loved the fresh blood we brought to an old city. He shared his thoughts on how Dunwoody needed fresh ideas and mentioned how he’d love to have a roof-top bar in the city. Now we had our mission—a rooftop bar for our new friend. Heyward also gave us a short list of community members that we should feature with an interview. That was the last time we ever needed to ask for guests.
The Power of Podcasting: Building Community Connections
Podcasting became more than just a platform for telling a story; it became a way to build connections within the community. Through our episodes, we fostered relationships between listeners and the people who were trying to make a positive impact in the community. The casual format allowed us to engage listeners in a way that felt personal. Justin and I were the furthest thing from professional, and that’s what the listeners connected with the most.
We started getting asked to speak to different local groups including the Dunwoody Bar Association and the Dunwoody High School Finance Academy. Mayor Denny Shortal praised us from stage at the State of the City event in 2019. Best of ATL named us best podcast in Atlanta. Most important to us, after over 260 episodes, we’ve sat down with some really cool people that we would have never met otherwise.
Basically everyone from Dunwoody City Hall
150+ local business owners and non-profits from around town
Georgia State House Reps Mike Wilensky, Beth Moore, and Long Tran
Dekalb Commissioner Nancy Jester
Former and current Dunwoody Mayors Ken Wright, Mike Davis, Denny Shortal, and Lynn Deutsch
Comedian Paul Ollinger
Third Rail Studios President Dan Rosenfelt
Doraville Mayor Donna Pittman and Joseph Geierman
GDOT Commissioner Russell McMurry
AJC Political Reporter Greg Bluestein
Attorney General Chris Carr
Mother of Dunwoody Bev Wingate
Channel 2 News Reporter Mike Petchenik
ATL Magazine writer Katja Ridderbusch
Dekalb Sheriff Melody Maddox
Author Peter Kageyama
Owners of local publications Rough Draft and Dunwoody Crier
Chef/Owner Ford Fry
Northpoint Ministry and author Jeff Henderson
… to name a few.
Adapting to the New Normal
2020 was a difficult time for in person podcasting. We always enjoyed recording back-to-back episodes at my house, because we got to meet with someone on-site and then introduce them to the next interview guest. For a few months we recorded in our garage or met at Justin’s neighborhood clubhouse at Georgetown.
In mid-2022, Justin stepped back from the podcast to focus more on his growing company PoolDues.com. He spent 4 years helping me with my dream, and I will be forever grateful. We spent a lot of time together and made some amazing core-memories. Plus, at that point we had accomplished our goal of getting Heyward a #DunwoodyRooftopBar. Now there’s a few of them around town, and we’ll take full credit.
Justin’s departure led to a shift in my approach. Post pandemic, guests were used to having conversations on zoom, so I began meeting with guests virtually on Riverside.fm and recording the video as well. This streamlined the process and gave the listener something to watch if they desired. Digital marketing was going to video, and podcasts were starting to become a little over-saturated.
The Future of the Brand: Shifting Focus to the Website
Today, What’s Up Dunwoody is a dynamic media company that continues to grow and adapt. While the podcast remains central to our mission, we’ve expanded our focus to the website, which now serves as a comprehensive resource for all things Dunwoody. I’m really enjoying being able to tell my story now, as well as the countless community members that we will continue to feature here. Whether you’re a longtime resident or new to the area, What’s Up Dunwoody offers valuable insights and connections that help you feel at home in our community.
