Featured

DEMOCRACY JONES Podcast

Haisley and De’ontay Jones are ready to start a family. Then. . . They move to Florida. Horror ensues.

DEMOCRACY JONES is a science fiction-horror & dark humor audio drama podcast.

Listen to the Trailer for Democracy Jones Podcast below

Trailer – Democracy Jones Podcast

Haisley and De’ontay Jones are ready to start a family. Then. . . they move to Florida. Horror Ensues.   Scifi-horror & dark humor podcast, Democracy Jones.    A breakthrough in software technology for neural chips called “Rhetoric,” and continued political partisanship combine to create the most explosive day in American history, Friday the 13th of July, 2040.


Please go to your preferred podcast app to listen to more Democracy Jones Podcast: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Casts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Overcast, Castro, Podcast Addict

Democracy Jones is a serial podcast. Begin at the Teaser (above), then Opening Crawl, then A1E1 – Haisley, and so on.

Show Description: A breakthrough technology for neural chips and continued political partisanship combine to create the most explosive day in American history, Friday the 13th of July, 2040. A day that would live in infamy as 7/13.

If a pregnant Haisley Jones can survive, the software’s simulations prophesies that she will galvanize a movement to overthrow General Schenk and bring democracy back to a post-apocalyptic America.
contact: artofneed@gmail.com

Democracy Jones has many more episodes. Please listen and subscribe on your preferred podcast app: 
Apple Podcasts
Spotify
Pocket Casts
Google Podcasts
Stitcher
Overcast
Castro
Podcast Addict

A short video trailer for Democracy Jones Podcast.

LATEST POSTS

Podcast Review: Democracy Jones

By Sarah Millstein for Podcast Review, A Los Angeles Review of Books Channel

Fans of Science Fiction great William Gibson, and movie series like Mad Max, Alien, Blade Runner and horror TV series like The Walking Dead are experiencing something like a resurgence in Democracy Jones Podcast, a science fiction-horror audio drama podcast by author Eamon Loingsigh. 

Listen on Apple Podcasts or on Spotify, or your preferred pod-catcher like
Pocket Casts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Overcast, Castro or Podcast Addict

First released on Halloween 2021, Democracy Jones has gained a broad audience since then. With a big universe, quality sound design and bite-sized 20-minute episodes, Democracy Jones focuses on character-driven jump scares, satire and dark humor that pushes the boundaries. 

Its Hans Zimmer-esque ambient soundtrack along with the theme of neural chip software technology in a near-future USA where the fringes have taken control of both political parties, reminds listeners that this is classic speculative fiction in the vein of Margaret Atwood, but with the type of deadpan humor found in the works of Kurt Vonnegut. Each episode kicks off with spacious music and Loingsigh’s quirky reminder that this audio drama is to be taken with a grain of salt evidenced by its subtitle: “Adventures in Late Phase American Democracy.” 

“A brilliant fiction podcast that mixes hard realism with satire. Voltaire meets Mad Max!”

The serial drama starts on the day a rightwing military coup takes place and follows each of the characters’ morning and afternoon as rumors begin to spread about a possible violent coup d’etat. The suspense builds as the characters find out more until they are physically confronted in their small town of Ellington, Florida with the grim reality that their lives will be forever altered. 

As the narrator describes, 7/13 will live in infamy. 7/13 being a reference to Friday July 13, 2040, the date the military coup overthrows American democracy and General Alexander Schenk in named “Consul in the Interim,” which essentially means he appointed himself to step in as a short-term dictator in order guide the country back to “democracy,” though we have a sneaking feeling democracy will forever be placed between quotation marks in the US of A. 

The production quality of Democracy Jones is superb. The show cuts no corners in underscoring the emotional impact the characters feel through the lush and disturbing soundtrack. And there are no false alarms either. When the music makes you feel as though you are on pins and needles, it’s only a matter of time before the entire scene falls apart and characters are murdered, executed or die during friendly fire. Anything goes in this audio drama, which can trigger some. 
The story follows six point of view characters (3 female, 3 male) as if we are on their shoulder, watching events, similar to the character perspective seen in the Game of Thrones book series, A Song of Ice and Fire

Haisley Jones, a mixed race woman in her 20s, is the hero, though she does not want to be. Similar to Jon Snow’s humility and unwillingness to accept his fate, Haisley repeats herself multiple times in saying, “I just want to be normal.” Since she is pregnant, we can understand why. But she has been chosen, due to the software in her neural chip, which is inauspiciously called “Rhetoric.” But if military coups have no regard for the safety of innocent children and pregnant women in real life, why should they in art? Everything is a threat to all characters in this world. 

Haisley’s husband De’ontay is Black, but speaks a little bit like Steve Urkel. He wants to protect Haisley, but can’t as he is targeted by the MAGA-styled followers of General Schenk, known as BATAs. They want him dead not only for being Black but because he was involved in The Crowned, a leftwing group that organized guerrilla-type protest tactics in the years before the coup. Unfortunately he can’t help Haisley as he is forced to run for his life from Ellington and into the Everglades, where a hundred other people from his upscale neighborhood ran. 
Captain Dick, Ellington’s former Chief of Police, is a war veteran and BATA follower of General Schenk who is named “Magistrate” of the township after the coup. Captain Dick provides unlimited opportunities to be both inappropriate and hilarious, similar to Negan in TWD. 

Abra is a sweet five year-old Jewish girl who, by the end of season 1, has already seen too much death and whose beliefs become sadly wayward afterward. 
Zeke is a redneck BATA who killed Abra’s father and whose beliefs are challenged by prevailing BATA mentality. 

Listen on Apple Podcasts or on Spotify.

Sabina Xu Manzana was the (very!) liberal President of the United States who was overthrown. Hers is a harrowing story and currently she is floating somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean after the coup. 

Some listeners may find the topic triggering, but Loingsigh does a great job in evening the criticism and spreads it out among both liberals and conservatives. In fact, that’s the main point of the series. Per the author, the story was inspired by the fall of the Roman Republic before it turned into an Empire. Democracy Jones is more of a warning than it is pure entertainment. It takes two to tango, but we still have time to repair the deep partisanship that pervades American politics today. And as Loingsigh says in the tagline for Democracy Jones Podcast, “It’s not too late.” 

The review was written for Podcast Review, A Los Angeles Review of Books Channel. Email Sarah at sahmills@gmail.com

Recent Posts

New Release A2E8 – Come Together

Democracy Jones Podcast has just released its 26th episode! A2E8 – Come Together. Listen below, or go to your favored pod-catcher.

A2E8 – Come Together

While Captain Dick investigates the recent invastion of Golden Door, the Proud Karens debate on whether or not to reveal Haisley’s true identity to Ellington’s Magistrate.

DESCRIPTION: While Captain Dick investigates the recent invastion of Golden Door, the Proud Karens debate on whether or not to reveal Haisley’s true identity to Ellington’s Magistrate.  

De’ontay is on a mission to get the Chatham refugee camp to join forces with the Golden Door camp, but hadn’t foreseen their perspective on saving American democracy. 

contact: artofneed@gmail.com

The Premeditation of Evils

Democracy Jones Podcast has released a bonus episode: The Premeditation of Evils is available to listen to here.

The Premeditation of Evils

In this bonus episode we explore some of the foundational principles behind Democracy Jones Podcast. In particular, two books which both subtly compare the Late Republic era of Rome, and American politics today: Mike Duncan’s “The Storm Before the Storm” and in this episode, a review of Edward J.

The Premeditation of Evils

Description: In this bonus episode we explore some of the foundational principles behind Democracy Jones Podcast. In particular, two books that subtly compare the Late Republic era of Rome to American politics today: Mike Duncan’s The Storm Before the Storm and in this episode, a review of Edward J. Watts’ Mortal Republic in Smithsonian Magazine.  

contact: artofneed@gmail.com

Why Are Audio Drama Podcasts Blowing Up?

Reddit’s sub r/audiodrama exponentially grew over the last quarter of 2022.

Classics like Welcome to Night Vale, Wolf 359 and this author’s all-time favorite Levar Burton Reads are getting new subscribers even though they are no longer releasing episodes. Still, listeners are binging entire series.

#AudioDrama hashtag has been trending on social media in first quarter of 2023.

Podcast production companies like Rusty Quill are investing in the development of new shows.

Democracy Jones is one of the fastest-growing audio drama podcasts, and is written and produced by yours truly.

What is going on in serial & series fiction audio drama podcasts of late? Are people moving en masse away from traditional books, audiobooks and radio toward audio drama podcasts? What gives?

First of all, for those new to audio dramas, let’s define the term.

Audio Drama – Works written explicitly for podcasting, but also traditional radio. They may be novels or short stories released in chapter form, or plays, and are scripted to be released in episodic or serial form. Created by a single author or a production team with voice actors. Most include music and/or sound effects to heighten listener experience.

Human B-Gon is another fast-growing science fiction & humor audio drama

Sure, podcasts that specialize in editorial, commentary and interviews are still king, but audio dramas are making a run at them.

Demographics – Secondly, let’s be clear about one thing. Most of the new subscribers are pre-teen to 20-somethings who go so far as to dedicate their Tumblr, Twitter and TikTok pages entirely to fan theories and discussion of shows like The Magnus Archives and Silt Verses.

Though there are exceptions. As so many people worldwide have found that the company they work for has sold off their commercial real estate and are now working remotely, people in their 30s-50s now have more time to invest in long-form stories.

LaVar Burton should forever be considered the audio drama OG, even if Reading Rainbow was a made for TV (rhyme intended!)

Hilarity – Science Fiction & Horror are still the mainstays for audio drama podcasts, though newer shows have spent more time adding humor to the genres. Dark humor, dead pan and satire are the name of the game now, and wow can they ever keep you laughing with scripted jokes performed by talented voice actors.

It’s a great time to dive into an audio drama podcast.

A2E7 – Sabina

Democracy Jones Podcast has released A2E7 – Sabina.

A2E7 – Sabina

Flashback to 7/13, the President of the United States of America Sabina Xú Manzana and her staff learn about the Pentagon PSYOP masterminded by General Schenk as it unfolds. Chaos ensues!

Description: Flashback to 7/13, the President of the United States of America Sabina Xú Manzana and her staff learn about the Pentagon PSYOP masterminded by General Schenk as it unfolds. Chaos ensues.

Listen on the player above, or on your favorite pod catcher, or go here:

SPOTIFY

APPLE

Democracy Jones Podcast is a science fiction-horror & dark humor audio drama.

A2E6 – Trial in Golden Door

New Release! Democracy Jones has just released A2E6 – Trial in Golden Door.

Listen on Spotify here, Apple here, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Zeke hears gunshots back in Ellington. 

Captain Dick hears the same thing on Harlan’s walkie-talkie, and the BATAs converge on Golden Door when they realize it’s a member of The Crowned. 

Haisley directs De’ontay on how to avoid capture. 

An armed standoff takes place in the house Abra is hiding in. 

Democracy Jones – Teaser

The Teaser for Democracy Jones Podcast has been remixed. And WOW! What a difference! This episode was the very first to be released, and the track levels, as well as the overall quality of the recording and voiceover, was no longer up to the improved standards of the show.

You can find the Teaser by playing the first episode on the cover page of this website by going HERE.

Or you can listen on your favorite podcatcher such as Spotify or Apple

Episode Description: “Rhetoric,” the name of the software in Haisley Jones’ neural chip, is cycling through millions of simulations which appear in her dreams as a prophecy of her impending death on Alligator Alley, six days from 7/13/2040. But what does that mean?

.

New Release “A2E5 – Brenda’s Agenda”

Democracy Jones Podcast has just released its newest episode:

A2E5 – Brenda’s Agenda: Episode Description

Captain Dick finds himself having to make a
difficult decision and pressures Brenda to side with
him against the Venus Genetrix.

Abra wants to go on a Girl Adventure to
Golden Door Estates and runs right into
a nightmare at the Jones’s.

Apple Podcast

Spotify

Or go to your favored podcatcher. It’s probably there too.

contact: artofneed@gmail.com

Who is Haisley Jones?

Haisley Jones is a hero. But not the chest-out, I’m a bad-ass type hero. She doesn’t want to be a hero at all, actually. She just wants to be normal. You see, Haisley Jones grew up desperately poor in Florida where a girl of mixed race is invisible.

Listen to the Trailer for sci-fi-horror & dark humor podcast, DEMOCRACY JONES, here.

Born Haisley Barnes in 2013, she never knew her mother and grew up in a rundown apartment complex called Pinebrook, commonly known as “Crimebrook” in Ellington, Florida.

At 17, Haisley was arrested for the murder of her father, Lt. Barnes, a local police officer. According to reports, she stabbed him to death and dumped his body in the Everglades. Out there in the swamps, a wake of turkey vultures devoured him. All that was left of him was his Ellington PD badge.

The local newspapers called her a cop killer and a kin killer. There never was an investigation as to why she killed her father. Captain Dick, Lt. Barnes’ partner, wanted no part of an investigation.

Sentenced to life in prison, Haisley accepted a plea deal. Per the terms, she became a CP Grunt, or a Conscripted Prisoner.

Trained at Parris Island to become a Marine, she saw combat in the Seoul War (2030-2033) where CP Grunts were thrown into suicide and diversionary missions.

To avoid being redeployed, Haisley committed suicide while on leave.

Or so she thought. She woke up in a white room as a man with a salt and pepper afro walked out.

Little did she know, Dr. Owusu had brought her back to life when he installed a neural chip in her brain. The software in the neural chip was called Rhetoric, a banned technology due to the great danger caused by misuse. Often described as a thousand times stronger than any thermonuclear weapon, Rhetoric supposedly died with its creator. Other than Haisley, there is only one person has Rhetoric, the five star military general, Alexander Schenk.

Alive again, Haisley chose not go back to Ellington. Instead, she moved to New York City. There, she connected with De’ontay Jones, a member of The Crowned, a militant Black nationalist group made up mostly of college sororities and fraternities.

By 2040, Haisley and De’ontay are ready to start a family. Then. . . They move to Florida. Horror ensues.

Not all heroes are confident. Haisley Jones, in fact, is one of the most humble person you’ll ever meet.

Which makes her the type of hero America now desperately needs.

contact: artofneed@gmail.com

Trailer for Democracy Jones

Trailer – Democracy Jones PodioBook

The signs were always there, history tried to warn us, We were all made to choose a side, Liberal or Conservative, Both argued for dominance with righteousness, Utilizing the most powerful weapon of all, A breakthrough technology for neural implant chips called Rhetoric. Then, on Friday July 13th, 2040, It happened.

To listen to DEMOCRACY JONES PodioBook from the beginning, go HERE.

contact: artofneed@gmail.com

%d bloggers like this: