Two lovers, Kasheena Divinagracia and Larenz Jafe Lagura (or Kash and Japs for short) are the creators of the Kream podcast.
In their very first episode, Japs shared how starting Kream was heavily inspired by the VIEWS podcast, hosted by David Dobrik and Jason Nash. Other than VIEWS, Kream was also inspired by Girlfriend Reviews, a channel run by avid game reviewer Shelby who spectates and comments on the games her boyfriend Matt plays. In addition, the launching of this podcast also owes it to the idleness the pandemic has—like many of us—forced Japs and Kash into. Japs works full-time as an IT personnel, which helps a lot in the podcast’s editing.
The original plan the couple had in mind for Kream was for it to be purely a podcast, an audio-only experience, but due to increased public traction and encouragement from their friends, they were prompted to start a Youtube channel and Facebook page. By doing so, they hope to gain more publicity and patrons. In addition, they would have sponsors or partners from time to time that spread awareness of Kream and vice-versa.
At the very start of the podcast, the couple agreed on avoiding sensitive or controversial topics that may possibly evoke violent or conflicting reactions from their listeners, but that was different from allowing the unfiltered nature of the podcast. Japs and Kash both ride with the spirit instilled in the saying “Anything goes”. In their words, “We wanted that unfiltered, raw, and free expression. Because we came up with the podcast to have some sort of creative freedom, and filtering that would defeat its purpose.”
Japs would describe Kream as easily digestible, often featuring light topics in a conversational tone that he and Kash would prate about and the occasional explicit remarks. Their smooth and incessant rambling, although raucous, is enticing to those who would want to indulge in the couple’s colloquial lingo. In their episodes, it’s impossible to not hear the couple laugh, and the duo hopes that their listeners get to share and feel the joy the hosts naturally give out. Japs himself said, “That was basically the directive of the podcast, to make it light and fun.”
Both Japs and Kash told us that one of the things their audience looks forward to in listening to Kream is the guaranteed fits of laughter which is hard to avoid when tuning into the podcast. Every listener would easily find themselves affixed to the catchy and high-spirited mood consistent all throughout the 30 to 40 minutes of fun found in Kream’s episodes. The Kream wouldn’t be complete if the couple were to not laugh over the course of their recordings.
For Japs, “It has been forever since I wanted to start my own podcast”, despite having been a podcast junkie since 2015. He never had someone to motivate and push him to initiate the podcast, until he met Kash. The couple likes to say that this pandemic really pushed them to do something creative and out of the box.
When asked about how the hosts work with their duo dynamic:
“At first, ideas were all over the place, we had our own notes, and just talked and decided what the topic would be then and there. But as we progressed, we became more cohesive. Heck, we even have a calendar now. We have a collaborative script, and topic ideas are now being thought thoroughly.”
Despite this, their spontaneous spirit still remains.
It would be a futile attempt to give a specific label that would summarize the various topics of Kream, except for the times when Japs would share his thoughts on certain TV series on Netflix, and at times, Kash’s life tips. Most of the time, the two hosts would share narratives and experiences from their lives. In some episodes, they expressed their opinions on online shopping, people who don’t pay their debts, conspiracies and mysteries, and more recently, experiences related to or occurred in the work environment.
In answering how this podcast has been a boon to the couple’s aspirations, they referred to it as a therapeutic experience as they pour out their passion in producing enjoyable content. More than just their efforts, they also value the recognition they receive from their friends, the general public, and even the media industry as they continue the podcast.
You can find the Kream’s episodes on these websites: Anchor, Youtube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts and their Facebook page.
Visual by: Chloe Gaw
Written by: Ervin Delas Peñas