Why Joe Budden Took “Crime in America” Down for a Few Weeks to Retool

When Joe Budden announced that “Crime in America” would be taking a few weeks off to retool, I understood the decision differently than some of the criticism surrounding the show.

A lot of supporters have been telling Joe what they think the show should become. Some want more cinematic visuals, more locations, more storytelling and something that looks closer to a television crime series. In other words, they want “Law & Order” or “SVU” — not simply Joe Budden sitting at a desk discussing crime stories.

But there is a business and operations side to that.

If you want the production to look like a television series, it requires significantly more money, people, planning and infrastructure. You can’t necessarily start at the finished product. Every successful show has to build toward something.

Look at the evolution of the Joe Budden Podcast itself. Episode one doesn’t look like the podcast looks today. The production, sound, visuals and overall operation developed over time.

That’s how I look at “Crime in America.”

Let Joe Be Joe

My biggest critique isn’t necessarily how Joe is producing the show. It’s that, at times, Joe didn’t seem like Joe.

People follow Joe because of who he is and how he communicates. Whether people love his content or dislike it, there is a personality attached to it.

So if Joe wants to tell these stories in a different format, that’s fine. But he should still sound like Joe.

The way you get from where the show is now to where it eventually could be is through experimentation. That’s what this retooling period can be about.

Fans Don’t Always See the Business Behind the Product

One thing fans can overlook is everything happening behind the camera.

A viewer might say, “It needs to look like this.”

Okay — but what does “this” cost?

More locations. More cameras. More editors. More producers. More research. More legal review. More people working behind the scenes. More time.

That’s why I don’t think every comment section should dictate the direction of a show.

You can listen to feedback without allowing the feedback to become the business plan.

Think about companies like Louis Vuitton or Apple. Customers can provide feedback, but the customer isn’t sitting in the boardroom determining the company’s entire creative direction.

The company has to decide what it wants to build.

That’s where Joe has to be willing to trust himself.

Build the Team Around the Talent

I also think Joe could benefit from building a stronger research operation around his content.

If you’re covering crime, politics, culture or major stories, there is no reason the host has to walk into the conversation knowing everything.

Have researchers gather the information.

Have someone condense it.

Give Joe the important facts, context and talking points.

Then Joe can do what Joe does best: talk.

It’s similar to having a Geek Squad for information. The team gets the information together, verifies it and gives the talent what they need to work with.

Once Joe is informed, he can put his personality on it.

That combination — research plus Joe’s personality — could make the format much stronger without turning it into something that isn’t him.

Don’t Confuse Views With Conversion

There’s also another business question that doesn’t get discussed enough: conversion.

People constantly talk about views.

But how many people actually subscribed because of a particular personality or show?

That’s a different metric.

If someone is generating views, that’s valuable. But the business should also be asking whether that person is generating subscribers, retaining audiences and bringing people deeper into the platform.

That’s the difference between saying, “This person gets views,” and saying, “This person is driving the business.”

Those numbers should be measured rather than assumed.

Too Many Voices Can Create Too Much Noise

I also think this applies to the Joe Budden Podcast itself.

When you have too many voices, conversations can become crowded. Everybody doesn’t necessarily need to occupy the same role.

That’s why shows with multiple personalities often have moderators, producers and structure behind the scenes. Someone has to know when to move the conversation, when to go to break and when to let somebody finish.

The goal isn’t necessarily to have the most people on camera.

It’s to have the right people serving different purposes.

Sometimes you need the person who initiates the conversation. Someone else provides information. Someone else challenges the argument. Someone else brings humor.

If everybody is performing the same function, you can end up with duplication rather than balance.

Let the Show Grow

Ultimately, I think the biggest mistake fans can make is expecting a new show to immediately look like a fully developed television production.

A pilot isn’t supposed to look like episode 422.

The Joe Budden Podcast itself is proof of that.

The product evolves.

So when Joe says “Crime in America” is taking a few weeks off to retool, I don’t necessarily see that as a failure. I see it as an opportunity to figure out what the show actually wants to become.

The feedback can be useful.

But Joe still has to decide what he wants to build.

Because if you’re going to create something lasting, you can’t spend your entire existence asking the comment section what to do next.

At some point, the creator has to create.

And if Joe can take the feedback, combine it with better research, stronger production and — most importantly — his own personality, “Crime in America” could become something much bigger than what viewers initially saw.

The retooling period may simply be the next step in figuring out what that looks like.