jeffullrich

Hey now, lay off The Wolf Den, at least the first 60 eps. Also, my name is Ullrich, not Ulrich.

I'm pretty sure I'm offended by this post.

Thanks! It's always so much fun. Nice to be connected to other people who love the same things I do.

Unfortunately I can't! After I retired they turned my access off, so I'll have to ask Adam the next time I see him in a few weeks. I do, however, email Sean and Hayes frequently to remind them that they serve Earwolf at my pleasure. Yeah, I don't know why Scott poo poo'd the idea of that ep being a great jumping off point, ruined my chance at stardom!

I haven't listened yet, but I hope my episode made the cut.

Definitely Farts 1, 6:45 in. Thanks to July for finding it

Harris was as kind as he was funny. I'm very sad he is gone and will miss him dearly. I'm very proud of everyone at Earwolf for how they have handled this, especially Brett (and July and Ele) who did the hardest work. This isn't something you expect to go through and I hope we never have to again. Admire Scott's bravery and the comic genius of Harris (and Scott, Chelsea and Adam). It was hard to listen to, but I laughed a ton. RIP Harris. I'll miss seeing you at Gelson's.

This really was the beginning. Good memories. Thanks for sharing!

Great show guys!

Good luck and have fun Adam! You'll do great!

Both. I could keep doing the show, but the truth is that I'm not going to be as current or relevant as Adam as time goes on and I think it would make less and less sense over time. I need to separate and let the new kids do their thing.

I'll be recording a new ep with Adam on Monday that will come out in a few weeks so that I can introduce him to Earwolf fans. That will be my last Wolf Den.

Thank you for being so thoughtful and understanding about what is going on and the kind words!

Thank you for the kind words! I'm glad you enjoyed the show.

Classic blunder.

Thank you for listening! Yeah, it's definitely the "too" part that causes all the trouble.

I really miss it. A lot. Hopefully it comes back some day.

Yes, Matt has been helping us for about a year and will continue to play a larger and larger role. He is so fantastic, as a person and a talent.

I was talking about Midroll. The deal closed but hasn't been announced yet.

The TV side is alive and doing very, very well. That is not something I am involved with, that is a Scott and Dave thing. And they are killing it.

Thank you Cameron!

Every conversation with Scott contains Aukerisms.

Dearest Earwolf Community, I'm writing to let you know that I am no longer going to be running things at Earwolf (or Midroll for that matter). Until recently, I have held the roles of both CEO and Head of Content. But for the past few weeks, Adam Sachs has been our CEO. And we are currently interviewing people to replace me as Head of Content. I am now Chairman and will be helpful to Adam when he calls, but otherwise it is his company to run. Adam is trustworthy and thoughtful and loves Earwolf. He will treat it very well. I hope you get to know him soon. We published an official announcement where you can learn more about Adam and the details of the transition. In addition to this post, Scott and I are trying to get in the studio this week where he'll guest-host The Wolf Den and I'm hoping it will be fun and interesting for our hard core fans who have rarely, if ever, heard from us together. Forgive me in advance for repeating some of what I write here on that episode. Putting all this in plain english, there are only two important things going on: I fired myself and this is great news for Earwolf/Midroll. Why is this great news for Earwolf? None of the important stuff is changing and the rest is only going to get better. Some of the things that won't change: Scott is still Earwolf's Chief Creative Officer. Matt Gourley is still our podcast developer. I, while not active, am Chairman. The hosts will continue to record the best shows in the world. Our whole team, Adam included, love Earwolf and podcasting. We are still trying to innovate, working on a slew of show launches for the rest of 2014. Our culture, our sensibilities, are not changing. We will still push as hard as ever to create smart and hilarious content, while also pushing the medium forward through innovation and ambition. What will change for the better? We have set a budget that is 50% higher for the next 12 months than it had been for the previous 12. We are really investing heavily back into the business. More staff, new shows, new technology, new projects of all kinds. I wish I could say more! The bottom line: we are trying even harder to make things great. Another thing that will change for the better? We are basically hiring three people to replace me. All of whom will be better at their new jobs than I was at mine. Did I mention there will be three of them! Super qualified new blood who is excited to push the pace even faster with 50% more money to spend? That sounds pretty fantastic to me. Now is a good time to say that there is no other woman. I am not leaving to go do something else (yet). I have NO plans for the future, outside of a little time to rest and play with my daughter. Maybe go to the Arclight and watch too many movies and eat too many Milk Duds and drink too much root beer. I am fortunate to have a successful wife who can pay the bills for a while, so I don't have to rush into anything new. At some point, I'll consider what is next, but not now. You are probably asking yourself, "If you are selling us so hard on how great everything is going to be at Earwolf and how you aren't going to go do something better, why are you leaving?" Fair question. Easy answer. I'm tired. The kind of tired that a vacation doesn't cure. I am an old entrepreneur and father. I started Earwolf when I was 35, had Arden at 37 and founded Midroll at 38. I'll be 40 in 3 months. During that time, I also got sober and quit smoking. It's been a wonderful, eventful, but exhausting 4 years. Harder than I can even accurately remember. My mind has blocked a lot out. I'm still young and while I have no doubt that I have more to contribute to the world, it's time to take a break. The team, podcasters, listeners, advertisers, everyone - deserve to have someone at the helm who has the vision, skills and energy to do great things. I realized that for this company, that was no longer me. So instead of sticking around and mucking things up, I want to leave things in the best shape I possibly can for the future. I am proud to say I am doing just that. You wouldn't think it would be easy to fire yourself. But it really was. I always know what is best for my company and I try to always do what is best for the company. That is what this is. I can't thank everyone personally, but of course, I'd like to thank all of our hosts. They show up and do amazing work each and every week. Without them, there is no Earwolf! I'll properly thank Scott on The Wolf Den, but for those who don't listen - Scott's the best. He is the only person I could have done this with and I'll be forever grateful to him for taking a chance on me and my crazy idea. And I'd like to thank my wife, Darlene. She really is the unsung hero in Earwolf history. For 4 years I've put Earwolf first. Long nights, early mornings, weekends, holidays. She has not only let me do it, she has enabled and supported me. If it wasn't for her, I would have quit a long time ago. She let me empty her Roth IRA to start this thing! She has nursed me through trouble with employees. Some quit. Some got fired. Some hated me. One even threatened our family. She has helped me when I thought it was all going wrong and didn't know how to fix it. She has always told me she loved Earwolf, even at times when I'm sure the opposite was true. She never got mad or jealous at the thing I was building, even though she had every right to do so. In a nutshell - I couldn't have done for her what she did for me. Her selflessness knows no bounds. And we all owe her a debt of gratitude for that. I love you Darlene! I know it is a lot to ask, but I have 4 requests before I go: 1. Keep loving Earwolf and making it the special thing it is. Call us on bad decisions, tell us when you love what we do and let the whole world know that they are missing out and you found us first. 2. I will come back to you in the future with an idea and say, "Hey look, I want to do this new (non-podcasting) thing, do you want to help me?". I hope you'll consider helping me with the next thing even a fraction as much as you've help me build Earwolf. 3. There will be some changes coming during the rest of 2014 - the ones you like were probably Adam's idea and the one's you don't like were probably mine. For the former, let him know (adam@earwolf.com or adam@midroll.com). For the latter, don't get mad at Adam. Blame me (jeff@earwolf.com). 4. Reply to this post with a bitch, a story, a compliment - anything. How has Earwolf made you feel? As Earwolf has grown I have felt less and less connected to you guys. And that sucks. Please help me make up for some lost time here, now. I can't believe how far we've all come in 4 years. The small community we started has grown to over a million strong and you have consistently made me proud. Thank you for all the support. Best, Jeff

Connor! Thank you so much for the kind words! And sorry for the delayed response. I'm thrilled that Earwolf has inspired you to pursue a career in audio. Podcasting needs all the help we can get. Good luck in your career!

July! Can you believe how long it's been? Over 2 years, right? I miss our chats, hopefully we can do that again sometime soon. You have contributed a great deal to what we do and I'd like to thank you for that. I hope you continue to have fun and grow! Best, Jeff