Max Cutler

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Max Cutler
Max Cutler
Born
Max Cutler

Los Angeles, California, US
Occupation(s)founder and creator
Known forFounding Parcast
RelativesRon Cutler (father)

Max Cutler is an American entrepreneur, creator, author and businessman best known for founding the podcast studio Parcast in 2016.

Under Cutler’s leadership, Parcast became a powerhouse in the podcasting industry, introducing a range of immensely popular weekly shows across various genres and played a pivotal role in expanding podcasting internationally, overseeing the creation of 140+ adaptations in eight different languages. After three years of exponential growth, Spotify acquired Parcast in 2019.[1]

Cutler most recently served as Spotify's VP, Head of Creator Content & Partnerships, where he headed the global team responsible for identifying, recruiting and overseeing creators on the platform including Joe Rogan (The Joe Rogan Experience), Alex Cooper (Call Her Daddy), Emma Chamberlain (Anything Goes), and Dax Shepard (Armchair Expert).

Max Cutler has been featured on Fortune 40 Under 40,[2] The 40(ish) Most Powerful People in Podcasting,[3] Forbes 30 Under 30,[4] and The Hollywood Reporter's 35 Rising Executives Under 35 lists.[5] Cutler recently stepped down[6] from Spotify to start a new venture yet to be announced.

Early life[edit]

Cutler was born and raised in Los Angeles, California.[7] He attended Viewpoint School, a nondenominational school in Calabasas, California. He earned a bachelor's degree in finance and entrepreneurship from the University of Arizona in 2013.[8]

Cutler's father, Ron Cutler, is a veteran radio broadcaster, who went by the name Ron Diamond. Ron started Cutler Productions, a radio syndication[9] company in the 1980s. Max has cited his father as having a huge influence on his career and life.[10]

Career[edit]

In June 2016, Max Cutler founded the podcasting Studio Parcast[11] without outside investment. While he has cited podcast Serial by Sarah Koenig as an inspiration,[12][13] his vision was to consistently produce high-quality content across various genres, such as True Crime, pop culture, mystery, science fiction, history and genres fictional audiodramas like Mind's Eye (2018).[12][13] In the latter half of 2021, Parcast ventured into limited-run investigative series, including popular podcasts Imposters[14] and Revelations[15] (A partnership with Blumhouse Productions) At its peak Parcast achieved over 1 billion downloads, employed a team of 120+ staff and produced 140+ shows weekly in eight different languages. Cutler is known for creating and producing acclaimed podcasts like Conspiracy Theories,[16] Dare to Lead,[17] Supernatural,[18] Horoscope Today[19] and International Infamy[20] to name a few.

On April 1, 2019, Spotify acquired Parcast for an estimated ~$115 million.[21][22][23]

Cutler would become Spotify’s VP, Head of Creator Content & Partnerships,[24] where he reported directly into the C-Suite and headed the division responsible for identifying, recruiting and overseeing exclusive deals and partnerships[25] with major audio creators on the platform including Joe Rogan (The Joe Rogan Experience), Dax Shepard (Armchair Expert) and Alex Cooper (Call Her Daddy). He led the effort to make Spotify the leading platform for creators of all walks by expanding the platform’s creator tools for audience growth and interaction, as well as growing Spotify’s video podcasting efforts.

Under Cutler's guidance, Spotify successfully attracted some of the industry's most renowned podcast creators in the world including Ashley Flowers (Crime Junkie),[26] Ash and Alaina (Morbid),[27] Alex Cooper[28] (Call Her Daddy), Emma Chamberlain (Anything Goes),[29] Mark Fischbach (Markiplier)[30] and the Fantasy Footballers[31] to name a few. Cutler also greenlit a number of nontraditional podcast talent such as Kim Kardashian,[32] Brené Brown,[33] Addison Rae,[34] plus many more.

In June 2021, Cutler helped secure a deal with Call Her Daddy[35] to come exclusively to Spotify.[36] In 2022, he also secured deals with Emma Chamberlain and Markiplier in an effort to build video on the platform.

In addition, Cutler was tasked with leading Kids Content and Audiobook Originals[37] as well as developing a content slate[38] for Spotify’s push into live audio with the launch of Live on Spotify.[39] Highlights include reactive, unfiltered content from The Ringer after the biggest moments in sports, pop culture programming from gossip maven Deuxmoi and celebrity guests like Billy Eichner, intimate conversations with artists such as WILLOW and Pusha T on live music shows like Lorem Life and New Joints Live, and exclusive conversations from the artist village at Rolling Loud Miami with Saweetie, Latto, Curren$y and more.

Cutler was included in Forbes 30 under 30 Class of 2019, Hollywood Reporters Next Generation Executive List for 2020, Fortune 40 Under 40 List for 2020, and The 40(ish) Most Powerful People in Podcasting.

Cutler is also the author of Cults: Inside the World's Most Notorious Groups and Understanding the People Who Joined Them, based on the hit Parcast podcast Cults.

Cutler left Spotify in 2023 to launch a new venture.[40] As announced at the end of April 2024, this is Pave Studios, a production company "at the intersection of audio, video, books, and entertainment."[41]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Spotify acquires true crime studio Parcast to expand its original podcast content". TechCrunch. 26 March 2019. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  2. ^ "Max Cutler | 2020 40 under 40 in Media and Entertainment". Fortune. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  3. ^ T. H. R. Staff (2022-10-05). "The 40(ish) Most Powerful People in Podcasting". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2023-10-29.
  4. ^ "30 Under 30 2019: Media". Forbes. Retrieved 2020-01-02.
  5. ^ "Next Gen 2019: Hollywood's 35 Rising Executives 35 and Under". The Hollywood Reporter. 6 November 2019. Retrieved 2020-01-02.
  6. ^ Chan, J. Clara (2023-02-21). "Spotify's Top Creator Partnerships Executive to Depart in May". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2023-10-29.
  7. ^ "The Story Behind Podcast". Podcast Business Journal. February 13, 2019. Retrieved December 13, 2019.
  8. ^ "Max Cutler, 30-under-30". Forbes. August 2, 2018. Retrieved December 14, 2019.
  9. ^ "Radio Kid Sells Company To Spotify". Radio Ink. 2019-03-27. Retrieved 2020-01-02.
  10. ^ "The Story Behind Parcast". Podcast Business Journal. 2019-02-13. Retrieved 2020-01-02.
  11. ^ Locker, Melissa (August 19, 2019). "Spotify Parcast just launched a new daily true-crime podcast for all you crime junkies". Fast Company. Retrieved December 13, 2019.
  12. ^ a b Coyne, Marley (June 4, 2018). "Parcast Founder Max Cutler On Creating Original Content". Forbes. online. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
  13. ^ a b Engel, Jonah (April 16, 2018). "Pulp Nonfiction: Podcasts Go Mass-Market". The New York Times. Retrieved December 2, 2019.
  14. ^ "This Week in True-Crime Podcasts: New England Vampire Panics". Vulture. 2021-09-24. Retrieved 2022-01-03.
  15. ^ White, Peter (2021-10-01). "Blumhouse TV & Vespucci Team On Spotify Original Cult Podcast Series 'Revelations'". Deadline. Retrieved 2022-01-03.
  16. ^ Hernandez, Daisy (2020-01-11). "The Best Podcasts for Avid Conspiracy Theorists". Popular Mechanics. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  17. ^ "Brené Brown Signs Exclusive Podcast Deal With Spotify (Exclusive) | Hollywood Reporter". www.hollywoodreporter.com. 23 September 2020. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  18. ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (2020-03-11). "Spotify's Parcast Scores Ashley Flowers Series 'Supernatural'". Deadline. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  19. ^ "Spotify's Parcast Launches 'Horoscope Today' Podcast Series | Hollywood Reporter". www.hollywoodreporter.com. 3 September 2019. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  20. ^ Marks, Andrea (2021-06-08). "Ashley Flowers of 'Crime Junkie' Goes Global in New Podcast 'International Infamy'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2022-01-03.
  21. ^ "Next Gen 2020: The Hollywood Reporter's 35 Rising Executives 35 and Under | Hollywood Reporter". www.hollywoodreporter.com. 18 November 2020. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  22. ^ "Spotify Paid $100 Million For Parcast: Report". Insideradio.com. Retrieved 2020-01-02.
  23. ^ Massoudi, Arash (26 March 2019). "Spotify to buy podcasting business Parcast for more than $100m". Financial Times. Retrieved 2020-01-02.
  24. ^ Spangler, Todd (2022-05-12). "Spotify Reorgs Podcast Content Studios, Promoting Parcast's Max Cutler and The Ringer's Bill Simmons to New Roles". Variety. Retrieved 2023-10-29.
  25. ^ Steele, Anne; Cheung, Philip (2022-08-27). "WSJ News Exclusive | Spotify's Head of 'Talk' Talks Crime, Creators and Exclusivity". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2023-10-29.
  26. ^ "'Crime Junkie' Host Ashley Flowers on Most Binge-Worthy Podcasts During Quarantine". TheWrap. 2020-05-05. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  27. ^ "5 True Crime Podcasts to Chill Your Bones: Morbid, Last Podcast & More". bleedingcool.com. 29 November 2020. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  28. ^ "Call Her Daddy's Alexandra Cooper on Her Evolution and Plans for Spotify". Time. Retrieved 2022-01-03.
  29. ^ Spangler, Todd (2022-11-17). "Emma Chamberlain Inks Exclusive Spotify Podcast Deal". Variety. Retrieved 2023-10-29.
  30. ^ White, Peter (2023-03-08). "Spotify Bolsters Video Podcasts With Markiplier Deal". Deadline. Retrieved 2023-10-29.
  31. ^ Naomi (2022-08-24). "'The Fantasy Footballers' Scores Touchdown After Touchdown as a Spotify Live Show". Spotify. Retrieved 2023-10-29.
  32. ^ Statt, Nick (2020-06-17). "Kim Kardashian West is the next superstar celebrity to snag an exclusive podcast deal with Spotify". The Verge. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  33. ^ Spangler, Todd (2020-09-23). "Brené Brown Inks Exclusive Spotify Podcast Deal". Variety. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  34. ^ "TikTok Star Addison Rae And Her Mom Launch 'Mama Knows Best' Podcast For Spotify/Parcast". All Access. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  35. ^ Florsheim, Lane (2021-07-21). "'Call Her Daddy' Host Alex Cooper Wants to Have the Biggest Podcast in the World". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2022-01-03.
  36. ^ Chan, J. Clara (2021-06-15). "Spotify Lands Multi-Year Deal With Alexandra Cooper for 'Call Her Daddy' Podcast". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2022-01-03.
  37. ^ Jarvey, Natalie (2021-01-25). "Spotify Tests Audiobooks With 'Frankenstein,' 'Jane Eyre' and Other Literary Classics (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2022-01-03.
  38. ^ "Kicking Off a New Slate of Spotify Greenroom Shows, Host Lauren Simmons Gives Her Two Cents on Her Upcoming Show 'Money Moves'". Spotify. 2021-11-15. Retrieved 2022-01-03.
  39. ^ "Spotify launches its live audio app and Clubhouse rival, Spotify Greenroom". TechCrunch. 16 June 2021. Retrieved 2022-01-03.
  40. ^ Ferris, Luke (2023-06-24). "Former Spotify Executive Max Cutler on What's Next in Podcasting". Foundr. Retrieved 2023-10-29.
  41. ^ alexandra8883 (2024-04-04). "MAX CUTLER LAUNCHES NEW MEDIA COMPANY". PAVE Studios. Retrieved 2024-04-17.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
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