Audiobook and podcast service Audible has announced a multi-year exclusive deal with Ashé Audio Ventures, a new podcast label co-founded by award-winning actress Viola Davis.
This partnership follows the success of the audiobook version of Davis’ best-selling memoir Finding Me, which led her to win a Grammy in 2023, becoming the 18th person to win the coveted EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony awards) status.
“After the outpouring of love for Finding Me, I’m excited for the opportunities that Ashé Audio Ventures and Audible will create for memorable stories to be both explored and celebrated in a meaningful new way – a way that spans borders and connects us to a shared human experience,” said Davis.
Ashé Audio Ventures was launched in partnership between Davis and her husband Julius Tennon’s company JuVee Productions, as well as Emmy-nominated producers Maurício and Katie Mota’s independent studio. The label’s slate of original podcasts is set to launch in 2024 and includes scripted and unscripted programming, audio theatre, self-development programs, and more.
With this partnership, Audible will now become the home of Ashé Audio Ventures’s portfolio of podcasts and help the label bring its programming to global audiences. Other production companies that Audible has partnered with include the Obamas’ media company Higher Ground which it signed with in June 2022 after its exclusivity deal with Spotify ended.
“Viola Davis’ distinctive vision, curatorial spirit and unparalleled performances have touched audiences in so many ways—all of which is a testament to her well-deserved EGOT,” said Audible head of studios Zola Mashariki.
“In this partnership with Viola Davis, Julius Tennon, Maurício Mota, and Katie Mota, we are honored to bring their original audio entertainment exclusively to our listeners worldwide. Ashé’s mission resonates and aligns deeply with Audible, and we look forward to introducing original projects that reflect our collective ethos.”
