Creating the Stage: Building Poduty Live with Jeff Revilla”

Welcome to the CJ Moneyway Show, in association with the Bleve Network, where innovation meets grind, where ideas get pressure tested, and where success is built brick by brick, not handed out. Today, we're tapping into that Steel City spirit, the kind of energy that doesn't ask for permission, it just builds. My guest is Jeff Ravilla, the founder of Pardudy Live LLC, a Live podcast theater and creative venue, Planet Right, in Tyrannum, Pennsylvania, just outside Pittsburgh.

Jeff didn't wait for the industry to catch up.

He created the stage.

With over 20 years in digital marketing and a real love for podcasting, Jeff saw what was missing. Real connection, real audience, real energy. So we built a space where podcasts don't just get streamed. They get felt. Party DeLisle blends live performance Digital broadcasting and community interaction. Turning podcasts into events. Creators into performers and audiences into part of the show.

This is about building culture in your own backyard.

This is about turning ideas into infrastructure. This is about Pittsburgh grit meeting future vision.

Yeah!

Welcome to the CJ Moneyway Show!

Aggressive, love it. Layaway, sisters, talk about how you build party live and why the future of podcasting might just look like a theater full of people.

What's up, my good people? Welcome to the CJ Moneyway Show in association with Believe Network, the podcast where we dive into stories of innovation entrepreneurship and success from leaders who are transforming their industries. Today we are joined by Jeff, the visionary entrepreneur behind Podoodie Live LLC, a pioneer podcast theater and live venture based in Pennsylvania near Pittsburgh. Beautiful set back there, by the way. With over 2 decades of experience in digital marketing and a deep passion for podcasting, Jeff has created a space where creators and audience connect in real time through immersed live shows. Jeff's innovative approach merges digital broadcasting with live interaction, redefining audience engagement. I'm excited to learn more about his journey and how he's bringing podcasts into life through dynamic community-driven experiences. Jeff, welcome to the CJ Moneyway Johnson Show, man. How you doing?

Oh, thank you so much for having me. What an introduction. Thank you so much. Uh, I think we got everything covered already. What's left to talk about?

Man, we gotta talk about how you put this thing together, man. It's a little bit to talk about. Hey, so Jeff, man, let's start by hearing more about your story and how you came to launch Padude Live LLC.

Yeah, back in 2015, I started this trivia show on a platform called Blab, and the internet kind of either remembers Blab or you don't. And it was one of the first 4-in-the-box live streaming services, so You could go live and Blab had the social element that would drop like 30 people into your live stream in the first 3 minutes. And that idea of, oh, I can broadcast from my little basement studio all the way to people all around the world, that like really sparked something in me. And I, I thought about what if we had a physical space where we could hang out, you know, we could record podcasts together. And people could be watching it all at the same time, almost like a little TV studio just for podcasting. And that idea built up inside me. It festered for like 7 years. I presented at a Podfest. I've done different speaking gigs on it. I've even tested some events like at coffee shops and bars. And I just really have this idea that this small space can be just like when you're listening to a podcast in your car and it's just you and the podcast host in your earbuds. In real life, I'm recreating that in a small studio space with an audience. We have cameras all around, so we're recording and broadcasting, and we'll use a platform very similar like this, StreamYard. People could be watching, commenting. I can pull people up on stage from anywhere in the world. So it's almost like this little portal where I can connect the people in front of me, I can connect to the people in Portland, Maine or Portland, Oregon. And we're able to have these really immersive interactive experiences. And that all stemmed from this little platform called Blab back in 2015.

Man, I tell you what, man, it sounds amazing, man. And your thought process and how you putting this thing together, because like you say, it's something, you know, different, it's something new. And that's what, you know, we try to do when you in a space and what you're doing, man. It's like, I haven't seen, I hadn't heard of, But man, what a great idea, man. So I wish you great success in that. So Jeff, man, let me ask you, man, you've had over 20 years of experience in digital marketing. How did that background shape your passion for podcasting and live streaming?

Yeah, even before that, you know, I grew up in the '80s and '90s. I grew up in skateboarding and punk rock and hip-hop were all immersive parts of like my childhood and that independent spirit that DIY mentality that comes from the counterculture really helped me foster getting into digital marketing. And in 2001, I started a mail-order skateboard shop, and I'm doing all these online things, e-commerce. I'm building my own social networks, I'm building message board platforms just to connect the skateboarding community together. And all through all of that, that spirit of you can create something You can own it. It belongs to you. You know, you can take it and give it to the world, let the world digest it. You know, sometimes I see people emulating what I'm doing, and that's great. They're taking these ideas, they're making them their own, and then they're putting them back out into the world. So that idea of that independent spirit, that yes, you can be in control of your own fate, you can be the owner of your content. You don't have to give away your rights to some corporation or a manager or sell things off. That spirit is in all of us who podcast. Everybody wants to be a media mogul. Everybody wants to create their content and be in control of their destiny. And that's what the spaces like this, and that's what my background allows people to have. I think the business model that we have here lets anybody walk in and turnkey. You go to onstage and you're already performing. I don't have any contracts. I just have a handshake agreement. And when I record a show for somebody, they own that 100%. I don't take any ownership over the material that gets recorded in here. I give that back to them. They can edit it and release it however they want. So I'm really proud of how I've structured this, and I'm really proud of keeping that independence with the creator. It's very, very important to me, man.

I like your mindset, man. You know, going back to your skateboard thing, sound like you a man that You know, all about the community, you know, all about the people. You know what I'm saying? Like you want to give back and the things that you're doing and the things that you're creating and the mindset you got, it's not just for yourself to, you know, make money or advance here and that, man. It sound like that you doing things to bring excitement to others. You know what I'm saying? To get them some outlet to come in and enjoy some things in life, man. So I like what you over there creating, man. So Jeff, man, let me ask you, man, take us back to the moment you decided to create Puduti Live LLC. I love that, Puduti Live LLC, man. What inspired you to merge live events with podcasting in such a unique way?

Yeah, I mean, like so many people, this officially got structured because of the pandemic. We were home, I was producing events, we did events like IndiePods United and International Podcast Day, the Women of Indie Pods. I was doing all these events just from my home office, and I thought there could be more, just like the pandemic, right? So I, I made this officially a business, and what really made this a physical space was me turning 48. I said, I'm so tired of thinking about this idea. I'm so tired of it running through my head every day. I'm so tired of talking about it. I need to know if this is a real thing or not. So when I was turning 48, I said, I'm going to give myself 2 years. I signed a 2-year lease and it was like May of last year. And then June 13th, we officially opened. My birthday was June 12th. So the clock was ticking. You know, I wanted to make this a reality and I wanted to know once and for all, is this a thing or not a thing? So, uh, yeah, I got to 2 years on the clock and I'm going to give it 'til I'm 50. Even if it sparks ideas for somebody else and it starts a little ripple effect of other people opening these small theaters, that's enough for me. Like, I really want to see this idea grow. I really believe that just like people go to comedy clubs for entertainment, people go to small bars or rock venues to see bands, I think there's an opportunity for podcasters to have the same type of events or the same type of establishment to go perform. And not just here in Pittsburgh, but maybe somebody in Erie gets an idea, or Cleveland, or Baltimore. Now small podcasters who understand that, okay, I can make a couple hundred bucks in a night, I could go on a little tour, a little road trip over the weekend, book a couple gigs, come back home— you're probably going to make more money than you do in 6 months, you know, doing your podcast in your basement in your home. And you'll have a little bit— your hobby is now paid for. That's kind of like my first goal for people. Like, hey, you got an expense, you got hosting, you know, web hosting, you're maybe running some ads. What if we can make this hobby that you're doing a net zero? It's a wash. All your expenses are covered because you're selling tickets and merch, and we're figuring out the business model for you. And now it's not a burden at all. When you're free from the bills, you can do whatever you want. You can create whatever you want and be— you're free to do what you want to do. And that's really what we're building towards.

Man, that's a great idea, man. You putting so much thought. You said Baltimore, this, that. Gee, I'm liking this, man, because you know, you brought up something where you said like comedy clubs, you know, and you struck a good point right there, you know, because comedy clubs, you get the comedians, people come in, entertainment, like you say, live bands, people coming. Like, you know, like I was saying earlier, it's like an outlet, you know what I'm saying, for people in the community that want to go out and And people, you know, like now, like I know in my area, the big thing now is people going to the cigar lounge, you know what I'm saying? Going to the cigar lounge. And so like you say, it kind of like puts you in the mind of things like that, man. You know, 'cause people always want to see something and do something different. And if, you know, people are into podcasting and things of that nature, that is a great outlet, man. So let me ask you, Jeff, man, what were some of the biggest challenges you faced when launching Pududy Live? And how did you overcome them?

Yeah, a big one is, you know, while I've been thinking about this for 7 years, nobody else has, right? The people were like, oh, I listen to my podcast during my morning commute, or I listen during my workout or on a walk. And, you know, I'm over here like, oh yeah, I'm building a podcast theater. And so two things I had to realize is, one, I have to train the public that, hey, this is a new form of entertainment. You can come down, hang out. It's $5, $10 for, you know, a couple hours of live podcasting. You'll get the meet and greet the host at the end. You'll get, you know, you get to see how the sausage is made. You get to see how they record and how they interact. And you're putting a face to that voice that you've been listening to in a podcast. You finally get to see those people afterwards. You can shake their hands. You can thank them for a previous episode. So, you know, this new form of entertainment is way more immersive than just downloading a podcast once a week. And the other challenge is, you know, most podcasters are very, very comfortable in their home studios or their home theaters or their small offices recording their podcasts. They like their setup, you know, they've tinkered with it. So I'm also training podcasters to figure out how do we adapt your show for a stage, get a good quality recording so that they can release it as their own. And the, the thing that's really helped is in the last 3 months, I started doing these podcast meetups. I do 2 kinds. They happen once a month. I do a global podcast meetup that we livestream. People in the audience are asking questions. I bring people, virtual guests, up on stage with me. You know, they're asking their questions and we're all interacting and helping. These podcast meetups have really changed the game. And the 3rd Saturday of the month, we do a Pittsburgh podcast meetup. So if you're local to the area, I have, these are another, both these events are free, by the way. I buy pizza, I buy drinks. We hang out for about 3 hours and the same type of thing. It's podcasters coming together. They're networking. You know, they're making connections so they can guest on each other's shows. But then we sit down for about 2 hours and we do Q&A and we troubleshoot anybody's problems. If you don't know how, and there's a lot of new podcasters showing up, so, you know, just teaching somebody how to record something or how to clean up their audio, how to level it. We're all working together in this little environment and it's creating this local community, which I didn't have when I started. All I had was my idea. And now, now I'm sharing these concepts. I'm bringing other podcasters together who are seeing the vision and we're starting to work together and build up this little community in Pittsburgh. So if it keeps going like this, you know, Pittsburgh could be like the Hollywood of podcasting.

Hmm. I like that, man. I like that. And you know, when you started off, one thing I thought about when you said it, you say, was it nobody else in this space? Was nobody else doing it? So when I was asking you like, what was some of the challenges? And the first thing I thought about, well, it ain't like you can go to Google and Google it, you know what I'm saying? It wasn't no other blueprint out there for you to, you know what I'm saying, have a model to go by. And so this just all from scratch, man. And so that's pretty cool.

Yeah, I've looked around and I've seen like iterations of this concept. I've seen like, you know, coffee shops put a stage in the back of their coffee shop, or I've seen some like event spaces also have like a stage. But as far as like a dedicated podcast place, like a, as like a comedy club just for podcasting, I haven't found any. So whether or not I'm the first to ever do this, I'm definitely one of the first to put a concept like this together. Specifically to support podcasts.

So like I say, man, it's pretty interesting right now. I'm writing stuff down. As you said, live interaction, it can be unpredictable. How do you ensure each live show runs smoothly while maintaining an engaging atmosphere for both in-person and online audiences?

Yeah, I mean, I love chaos. So when things start falling apart You know, getting back on track is part of the fun, but embracing the things that go wrong, because you've used StreamYard before. Sometimes the audio glitches out or you lose the guest loses internet connection. You know, things happen. Live is very unpredictable and that's what makes it fun. Cause you never know what's going to happen next. You never know if somebody in the microphone and somebody in the audience is going to grab a microphone and just ask some obscure question. You just don't know what's going to happen. So. You know, one of the things I always say, you got to keep the show moving. If you make a mistake, nobody knows but you. Like, you're the only one that knows that wasn't supposed to happen. The audience has no clue, but they're waiting for you. So as long as you keep the show moving, as long as you roll with the punches, as long as you, you know, roll with the mistakes— the power goes out or something, you know, you keep the show going. And everything has always worked out fine no matter what has gone wrong, as long as you keep the show going and don't blow up and flip a table and, you know, go Geraldo studio riot and just start smashing things, you know, you have some fun and keep it going. And the audience is very forgiving in a live environment. So, you know, all the stress you put on yourself, it's got to be perfect, I got to pronounce my words right, that's all on you. The audience is there for a good time. They got out of their house for the night. They want to see— they just want to see you, see some entertainment. They are unbelievable forgiving whenever things go wrong. So the number one tip is always keep your live show going.

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Say, never stop, huh? And yes, I know oh so well about the glitching and while you sitting up there doing a video, your audio just go out and I can't hear you, you know what I'm saying? You can't hear me, the internet go out. Oh man, that's the worst. Especially when I first started, man, it was cutting out, embarrassing, you know what I'm saying? But like you say, people are forgiving because we deal with people that understands that things does happen a lot of time. So yeah, man, I'm liking that live concept a lot. So let me ask you, Jeff, man, you found success by fostering strong community engagement through your live shows. What strategies has been the most effective for building and maintaining a loyal audience?

Yeah, events. And I got great counterparts, uh, Wise out in the Poconos, Maria out in Ohio. They've always come into town for me or, or shown up for live streams. So I have this online network that helps keep things moving, and they fill in as guests, you know, sometimes on my shows. But The great thing they did was last September they both came into town, so we hosted a 2-day livestream event. Every 30 minutes we switched out a new podcast, so we did 30-minute showcases over and over and over. We're hosting, introducing, bringing them up on stage. And that show, when I announced I was gonna do a 2-day livestream, we filled that up in 3 days. So Online, I have a great community, a great system that wants to help support this. Now, same type of thing, trying to get people up on stage in Pittsburgh is a whole nother game. These meetups are helping me fill up the stage, but I'm working hard to develop the local talent. That's something that I don't have right now, but they're seeing it through the, like, the national talent pool that we're able to draw.

So when you say national talent pool, I just— elaborate on that for me a little bit. Now, this is probably just for me.

Yeah, just like the connections that I've made through like IndiePods United and International Podcast Day. I've probably hosted over 150 hours of these types of showcase shows. So, you know, I've made the connections already. I've made those connections, you know, in the virtual world. So trying to make the same amount of connections in the physical world is, it's a whole new game. It's a whole new process.

Yeah.

Okay. I get you. I get you. So let me ask you, Jeff, many podcasters, they struggle to connect with their audience. What advice would you give to content creators who want to improve their engagement and build a community around their podcast?

Yeah, you know, I think you're already gonna know where this is gonna go, but I tell you, live events really change the dynamic of your podcast. For one, when you say, hey, Hey, check me out next Tuesday. I'm gonna be live on the main stage at the Padute Podcast Theater in downtown Tarentum. That instantly adds credibility to you and your show right away. You're gonna be on the main stage, you're gonna be at a podcast theater. Oh my goodness, you must be growing fast, right? So just booking the event adds a level of credibility that, that you didn't have. The second thing is when you get people into the theater and they're watching you live, You know, they get to see, you know, how you interact with your host, how you record, how things come together. But again, we talked a little bit about this earlier. What you don't get when you just record an episode in your studio and you release it on a Monday, the best feedback you get is next Monday when you go to release another episode, you can see how many downloads you had in 7 days. And that's like the extent of the interaction. But when you record that show live in front of people, right, you get to hang out with them. They get to ask you questions and be a part of the show. You get to, you know, do a live Q&A afterwards and a meet and greet. You can shake their hands. They can tell you feedback of how to go tonight. How did other shows go? How'd you find out and hear about me? You don't get any of that when your listeners just download your show, but when they come in, hang out. Now they're— they feel part of this show. There's a much deeper connection that they don't get just listening in the morning during the morning commute.

Yeah, and that's true. I mean, everything you saying is true, and good ideas, good ideas. I'm listening, man. Thank you. So, Jeff, man, let me ask you, with your expertise both in marketing, digital marketing, and podcasting, what trends do you see shaping the future of digital content creation and live streaming.

Yeah, I think a lot of people are seeing AI content already and like, uh, they don't want to hear AI-read podcasts, they don't want to watch these AI-generated movies. What they want is authenticity. People want to get out, you know, we've been stuck in the house, we haven't been as active as we were pre-pandemic, we're glued to our phones, we're addicted to technology, and I think people are starting to wake up from all that. There's like, why am I sitting at home all night just doing this doom scrolling through my TikTok feed? Something is wrong with the way that we're interacting with each other, and people are really starting to wake up to that, and they want to have spaces to go, safe spaces, spaces to laugh, spaces to hang out with the community, third spaces. I mean, in America especially If you want to do something, try to do something in, in this environment that doesn't cost $100 or $150. You can't even get like a sports ticket for under $100 anymore. So to have a new form of entertainment, new content creators who are local, people who are rising up in your own backyard, you can come support them for $5, $10, you know, even afterwards go next door to the bar, hang out, and there's a whole, like, community element that I think this brings about that we are seriously lacking in this country. We, we don't have great social spaces that don't cost you an arm and a leg. This is something that's special, a location for people to converge on from the community and maybe hear a different point of view, you know, maybe hear, you know, something new that you never even thought of. It's a great space to do that, and You know, we'll get a nice interaction and cross-section of points of view, and you get to hang out and just hang out. That's a great third space.

So let me ask you, Jeff, man, I only got a couple more questions for you before I ask you another question. So let's just say if somebody that's in the space, uh, did a creator, podcaster, and they seen this, listen to this podcast, or they saw this podcast on TikTok like you say,, and they're coming to Pennsylvania and they say, wow, I would like to— I'd love to be a guest on Jeff's show. How would they go about doing that and how could they get in contact with you?

Yeah, be a guest on my show. I'd love it. Yes, go to padootie.com, reach out, ask for Jeff. You can find me, Jeff Ravilla, on LinkedIn as well. But if you want to— even better than being on my show is I would love to host your show. And I can tell you a little bit about how that works. I mentioned before, no contract. I'm not looking to lock somebody into anything. There's no rental fee if you want to use the stage. And when we pick a date, I'll build you a landing page, a nice little format, all the information you want. You want to have a video, some photos, background. We'll put all that on that landing page. We'll facilitate all your ticket sales for you. You just send traffic to the page. We can handle all the sales for you. And once it comes time to— for your event, we produce it. We record it, we give you back the recording so that you can release it as your own. We hope that you say like, hey, we were live on the main stage, that's great. And then together, when everybody clears out, we sit down in the back room, I pull up all the sales, you see all the totals, and we split the door 50/50. That's it. That's the arrangement. If you don't like it, we won't do it again. If you like it, we will do it again. You know, if it works, great. If it doesn't, hey, that's okay too. But what we want to do is have a space where you can come in, run a show. There's even no minimum. You don't have to guarantee 10 ticket sales or 20 ticket sales. I want to get people in here to experience this type of entertainment, get some butts in the seats, and then do it again next week. Like, once you do this and once you see it in action and you experience a live podcast, it completely changes the way you think about podcasting.

So Jeff, man, put me down. I'm gonna be in Pennsylvania and I want you to host the CJ Moneyway Show.

It's already booked. You got it.

You already convinced me. What these young kids say nowadays, they say, say less.

Say less.

I'm already here. I'm already here. We'll talk about it. Hey, so Jeff, man, let me ask you, man, as someone who's transformed the podcasting space What's the most important piece of advice you would give to aspiring entrepreneurs looking to innovate in their own industries?

Yeah, I would follow your heart, follow your dreams. One thing I always quote is Bon Jovi. One time I heard Bon Jovi talk about all of his hit songs. He said they had all had one thing in common, and he said, don't bore us, get to the chorus. And that was like, that resonated with me so much because a lot of times podcasters, you know, they have a show, let's say it's about real estate investing or something, they spend the first 20 minutes talking about grocery shopping, you know, with Grandma. But what they don't realize is people came to that show to get real estate advice. They don't want to hear 20 minutes about egg prices and stuff. They want the meat of the podcast, which is the real estate. So, you know, you think you want to fluff up the show, don't. Get to the meat of the show. Tell them what's on the show. Tell them what you're going to tell them, and then tell them what you told them. Like, that's all that show should be about. You should have a nice simple structure that's on topic. It doesn't veer. It delivers on what you promised, and you're going to have a great show. But then you start talking about 93 different things to get to the real estate investing. Nobody knows what the heck's going on.

So you lose them.

Yeah, yeah.

Listen to Bon Jovi: don't bore us, get to the chorus.

Yeah, you lose people. Like you say, if they looking for one thing and you going all around the bush to get there, eventually you'll get there. But they like, look, man, you lost me. And you know, like listening to us or whatever, you listening to it in your car, like you say, through your buds or through the radio, and you not talking about, you know, what the title say that you was talking about, it's gonna be a quick fast forward, or you know what I said, delete. Yeah, skip. Yeah, skip. Hey, so Jeff, man, for creators and entrepreneurs, and this is my last question for you, for creators and entrepreneurs who feel stuck, what advice would you give them to break through and pursue their vision?

Yeah, I mean, a lot of times it's as simple as what is your why? Why did you start doing this? If you're not focused on why you got into this, or if your focus became, I just want to make a lot of money, or, you know, I just want— I want some other result that isn't really what podcasting delivers. If you're not true to yourself and true to your passion, you're going to get burned out. You're going to hate doing it. You'll— I mean, nobody loves the editing part of podcasting, but, you know, if, if you're not doing it because you love it, you'll never do it again or get to the next step or elevate your game to become a better and better podcaster. So, you know, look at your why. If you're stuck If you're not growing, if you feel like, why, you know, like, ugh, I hate— I gotta do another podcast, another week. Well, you're doing something wrong and you're not being true to yourself and to your passion.

Yeah, yeah, I totally agree with you. Gotta love what you're doing, you know, and because what you gotta love what you're doing, you know, and because people, you know, like, you know, I know it's more behind the scenes than what you actually see. It's actually a grind and it's not for the faint of heart, I tell I see that. Hey, so Jeff, man, I thank you for coming on, sharing your insights with us today, man. It's incredible to hear how you reshaping podcasting and audience engagement through live interaction experiences. To our listeners, if you're looking for inspiration to innovate and build strong communities around your content, be sure to connect with Jeff and check out Pod Duty.

Pod Duty.

Pod Duty LLC. If you enjoyed this episode, please leave us a review, subscribe, and share this conversation with someone who could benefit from Jeff's expertise. Until next time, stay creative, stay connected, and keep building your vision. This your boy CJ Moneyway Johnson. You will see me being hosted by my man Jeff at Purdue Live LLC Johnson one of these days. All right, we outta here.

Peace. Keep your faith sharp, keep your focus steady, keep your vision clear. And if this episode gave you wisdom, hope, or a push forward, share it with somebody you love. Tap in with me on all platforms @Moneyway Johnson Johnson and stay locked into the movement. Because God's not done writing your chapter. This is the CJ Moneyway Show. Brick by brick. And always— Moneyway.

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