The World Beneath

In a rugged corner of West Texas, billionaire wildcatters and roughnecks are fueling an oil boom so big it’s reshaping our climate, our economy, and our geopolitics. This modern-day gold rush has sent both big oil companies and scrappy start-ups scrambling to secure a piece of the action. Texas Monthly’s Christian Wallace follows characters along every rung of the oil field ladder, from the executive cutting billion-dollar deals to the itinerant pipeline worker risking life and limb, and from the traveling exotic dancer following the trail of money to those who worry that our planet is on a path to destruction. Meet the people cashing in and those just trying to get by as the world around them is turned upside down. "A beautiful ride filled with levity, even as it delivers troubling forecasts for the future" - The Atlantic 2021 Webby Award Honoree, Podcast Documentary

2022 Webby Award Honoree, Podcast Documentary Limited Series and Specials. The Agent is the remarkable true story of Jack Barsky, the longest-surviving known member of the KGB illegals program operated during the height of the Cold War. Barsky hid in plain sight in America for 10 years, all the while leading dual lives on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. On one fateful day, he was confronted with an impossible choice. The Agent is a production of Imperative Entertainment in association with Windjoy and is created, written, produced and edited by Jason Hoch. Narration by Alden Ehrenreich. Executive Producers are Jason Hoch, Jack Barsky and Alden Ehrenreich. Original score by Jasha Klebe. Sound engineering and additional editing by Shaine Freeman.

Billionaire Zappos founder and tech CEO Tony Hsieh was obsessed with happiness and helping people achieve it. After running “the world’s happiest company” for two decades, Hsieh created his experimental community — The Downtown Project — dedicated to pursuing happiness. But what do Tony's life and death reveal about Silicon Valley’s obsession with re-imagining how society functions? "A gripping tale" - The Guardian The Cost Of Happiness is reported and hosted by Nastaran Tavakoli-Far. It is produced by Charlie Towler. Cover art and design by Jeana Sullivan. The story editor is Meara Sharma, and Thomas Curry is the managing producer. Scoring and sound-design by Charlie Brandon-King. For Imperative Entertainment, the executive producer is Jason Hoch, and for Vespucci, the executive producers are Daniel Turcan, Johnny Galvin, and Matt Willis.

'Best Podcasts of 2022' - Paste Magazine It’s been 25 years since Anne Champion’s friend was killed, but the case was never solved. When Anne, now a prominent Manhattan attorney, gets an unexpected phone call from an old friend, it compels her to return to Iowa, her childhood home, to try and piece together the events around Laura Van Wyhe’s mysterious death.

Fear and hysteria grip the small town of Gilmer, Texas, when the search for missing teenager Kelly Wilson takes a series of bizarre and shocking turns. Thirty years later, journalist Wes Ferguson returns home to uncover what really happened to Kelly, who has never been found, in this wild, 11-episode true crime podcast. "A thorough examination of the circumstances surrounding Wilson's disappearance and the ensuring hysteria that engulfed Gilmer" - Longview News-Journal Devil Town is a production of Imperative Entertainment.   It was written and created by Wes Ferguson.  Executive Producer is Jason Hoch.  Audio Engineering and editing by Shaine Freeman and Jason Hoch.  Original score is by Robert Ellis.  Recorded by Austin Sisler at Eastside Studios.

Over two decades, Dr. Fredric Brandt went from a small dermatology practice in Miami to being Madonna's personal skincare consultant and the go-to for public figures desperate to stave off aging. His clients loved him. Fashion magazines profiled him. But as Brandt continued to build his empire—a best-selling product line, pristine homes in New York and Miami, and an absurd modern art collection—he was slowly becoming addicted to his own product. Popular speculation has it that it was Martin Short's scathing portrayal of a clearly-based-on-Brandt character in the 'Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt' that pushed him to his death, but the truth is far more complicated. From Justine Harman and the team behind 'Broken Harts.'