Audiochuck, the true crime and mystery media company founded by Ashley Flowers (pictured), has announced a $40 million minority investment from TCG (The Chernin Group). The company, which creates the hit podcast Crime Junkie, will leverage its first-ever outside capital to scale the company and fuel its next phase of growth.
Founded in 2017, Audiochuck has established itself as a powerhouse in true crime, becoming one of the largest podcast networks in the industry. Crime Junkie, Audiochuck’s flagship podcast hosted by Flowers, ranked as Apple Podcasts’ #1 true crime podcast and #2 overall podcast of 2024. In 2021, Audiochuck signed a 3-year (2022-2024) deal with SiriusXM, which was renewed in 2024 for a fourth year.
Audiochuck has steadily expanded its podcast portfolio to over 20 weekly and seasonal shows – including The Deck, Counter Clock, Park Predators, and Dark Downeast – making it SiriusXM’s largest network across all genres.
Ashley Flowers said: “With this investment from TCG, we’re excited to amplify our storytelling, grow our team, and bring even more innovative projects to life during an exciting new phase of growth. All this will allow us to have an even bigger impact on the cases and social issues we champion. The future of both Audiochuck and podcasting is brighter than ever, and I can’t wait to see what we’ll accomplish.”
Jesse Jacob, founding partner at TCG, added: “Ashley and the Audiochuck team have built a world-class company and brand at the forefront of the future of media. The next great media businesses are being built with personalities at the core and by distributing content across podcasts, social, digital video and live events. Ashley and Audiochuck check all the boxes of what a successful media company will look like moving forward.”
Beyond audio content, Audiochuck has evolved into a thriving multimedia business. The company will soon build out a film and TV division, publish the upcoming thriller The Missing Half from Flowers in May of 2025, and expand its live experiences for the Crime Junkie community. While Audiochuck has been 100% bootstrapped to date, the outside capital from TCG will help the company diversify and expand operations.
TCG is a multi-stage investment firm that invests in companies that define culture. TCG has a track record of successful investments in creator-driven media brands and emerging media platforms, including Barstool Sports (its first and only investor), Hello Sunshine (its first investor), Crunchyroll, Twitter, Night Media, Classic Football Shirts, Exploding Kittens, Epic Gardening, Vuori, and Oura Ring.
