Spark
$1,997 / mo
Guests + strategy
1 booked guest/mo, monthly 1:1 with Mick + Ryan, SimpleCast ad support. You handle production.
On air · Now broadcasting
EST. 2026 · Independent
Press record.
We do everything else.
Your show deserves the guest nobody else can land, the strategy nobody else will sit down and run with you, and the sound that makes people stop scrolling. That's the network. You bring the voice. We bring the room.
A-list
Guests booked
1x / mo
Strategy session
Award
Winning production
Now playing
Episode 001 · "The independent podcast economy is finally growing up"
Featured shows now broadcasting Brand-deal pipeline live AI-assisted creator vetting SimpleCast hosting included Hosted by humans, scaled by tech Independent. Creator-first. Audio-obsessed. Featured shows now broadcasting Brand-deal pipeline live AI-assisted creator vetting SimpleCast hosting included Hosted by humans, scaled by tech Independent. Creator-first. Audio-obsessed. Featured shows now broadcasting Brand-deal pipeline live AI-assisted creator vetting SimpleCast hosting included Hosted by humans, scaled by tech Independent. Creator-first. Audio-obsessed.
Pillar 01 · Guests
A-list-caliber booking.
Real names, real reach.
The right guest changes everything. The download spike. The press pickup. The DM that turns into a brand deal. The episode that suddenly outranks shows ten times your size in search. We don't book whoever you can land, we book the names that move the needle, and put them on your calendar.
A-list
Guest caliber
100%
Outreach managed
Every tier
Booking included
Featured network guests
Founders, operators, and category leaders in your guest chair.
Why guests matter
- Discovery you can't buy. A category-defining guest pulls in their audience, their algorithm lift, and their search demand overnight.
- Credibility by association. The names on your feed become the proof that your show belongs in the same room.
- Deal flow follows. Sponsors, partners, speaking gigs, press: they all show up when the guest list does.
Why we do it for you
Booking the right guest is a full-time job. Research, warm intros, the three-week follow-up dance, calendar Tetris, the prep doc. Most creators burn out trying, or settle for whoever says yes first.
We run the outbound. You run the conversation. That's the trade.
Real names. Real reach. Strategy that compounds. Award-winning craft. Real names. Real reach. Strategy that compounds. Award-winning craft. Real names. Real reach. Strategy that compounds. Award-winning craft. Real names. Real reach. Strategy that compounds. Award-winning craft. Real names. Real reach. Strategy that compounds. Award-winning craft. Real names. Real reach. Strategy that compounds. Award-winning craft.
Pillar 02 · Strategy
Monthly 1:1 with
Mick and Ryan.
One hour a month, two operators who have actually done it, and the unsexy levers that compound: SEO-tuned episode titles, packaging that earns the click, format tweaks that lift retention, the brand-deal positioning that gets you on the radar. The growth plan you don't have time to build alone.
01 · Audit
Retention curves, drop-off points, and the data your host doesn't show you.
02 · Growth
Titles, thumbnails, packaging, and the SEO plays that get found on Apple, Spotify, and YouTube.
03 · Revenue
Brand-deal positioning, sponsor outreach, and SimpleCast programmatic ads working in the background.
Why strategy matters
Most shows plateau because nobody is looking at the dashboard with them. Strategy is the difference between recording 100 episodes and building a brand that compounds. SEO, packaging, sponsor positioning: these are the levers competitors won't touch.
Why we do it for you
Mick and Ryan have done this for their own shows and a long list of others. You get the playbook, in your inbox and on a call, every month, on every tier. No upsell, no "premium add-on." It's the table stakes.
Monetization is the long game. The work pays from day one.
Pillar 03 · Production
Award-winning craft.
The floor is high.
This is the moment your listener decides if they trust you. Mix, edit, sound design, cover art, multicam video, clips that travel. The same producers behind Mick Unplugged, Signal Award winning and Webby nominated work, now available to a small slate of shows that meet the bar.
Signal
Award winner
Webby
Nominee
Top-tier
Worldwide reach
Editing
Seamless
Sound design
Cinematic
Clip strategy
Built to travel
Cover art
Signature
Why production matters
Listeners decide in 30 seconds whether you sound like a real show or a weekend hobby. Sound, pacing, cover art, and clip craft are the difference between a one-time listen and a subscriber who tells three friends.
Why we do it for you
You shouldn't be inside a DAW at 11pm. Our team handles every frame and every fader so you can show up, press record, and walk away. The bar is award-winning because the people doing the work have already won them.
§ · Featured shows
Shows that sound like nowhere else.
A curated slate of independent podcasts in culture, business, sports, and beyond. New shows joining the roster every quarter.
§ · Manifesto
The big networks treat indie shows like inventory. Ad platforms pay pennies on the dollar. And going it alone turns artists into accountants.
§
We built Unplugged for the in-between. Past the experiment. Before the empire. Shows with audience, voice, and ambition that deserve a real partner.
§ 03 · Pricing
One flat fee. A whole studio.
Three tiers. Full production, guest strategy, clips, posting, and network membership included.
Signal
$3,997 / mo
Most start here
Everything in Spark, plus weekly production (up to 4 eps/mo), clips, and SimpleCast ad support.
Flagship
$6,997 / mo
Media business
Everything in Signal, plus 2 guests/mo, we post clips to your socials, and SimpleCast ad optimization.
§ 04 · The founders
Two hosts who got tired of waiting.
Ryan Hanley and Mick Hunt have spent years on opposite sides of the same problem. Ryan, host of Finding Peak, built an audience of operators hungry for the truth about leadership and performance. Mick, host of Mick Unplugged and the voice of Modern Leadership, built a community that shows up every week to be challenged, not coddled.
They kept hearing the same thing from other independent podcasters. Real audience. Real impact. Zero infrastructure. The big networks would not return their calls. The ad networks paid pennies. Going it alone meant trading the craft for spreadsheets.
So they built the network they wished existed. Unplugged Studios is for the in-between. Creators with voice and momentum who deserve a real partner, not a gatekeeper.
Ryan Hanley
Co-founder
Host, Finding Peak
Mick Hunt
Co-founder
Host, Mick Unplugged
§ 04 · Who we're looking for
You've got the audience.
We've got the rest.
We partner with independent podcasters who already have a Tuesday morning audience and are ready for the next chapter. Audience, consistency, and craft matter most. The exact numbers are a conversation, not a wall.
- A.An independent show with momentum
- B.A real audience across socials, downloads, or both
- C.Consistent publishing and a clear point of view
- D.Open to coaching, brand collabs, and growing
- E.Hungry to make this a career, not a hobby
§ 05 · The process
Five minutes in.
Real answer in seven days.
01
Apply
A 5-minute application. Tell us about you, the show, the audience, and where you want to go.
02
AI-assisted review
We pull public signals across socials, podcast metrics, and press. Then a human on our team reads the room.
03
We talk
If it's a fit, we get on a call, walk through terms, and onboard you onto the network.