Ashley Flowers

Company: AudiochuckTitle: Founder & CEOIndustry: Media and EntertainmentNotable in 2024: Flowers revolutionized the true crime genre, growing her podcast network to more than 2.5 billion downloads, and taking it to the streets. Her nonprofit, a cold case DNA testing organization called "Season of Justice" has now solved 15 cases and identified 21 previously unknown victims.

True crime has long been a popular entertainment genre. The longevity of shows like "Dateline" and its three decade-plus run prove that viewers can't explore the the criminal mind enough. But in recent years, it's been the podcast industry where true crime has found a growing audience.

Founded by Ashley Flowers in 2017, Audiochuck has been at the forefront of this true crime new media boom, with shows such as "Crime Junkie" and "The Deck." While it wasn't the first to break the mold on the true-crime podcast opportunity — "This American Life" spinoff "Serial" probably gets that honor — Audiochuck has distinguished itself with a focus on cold cases that give the listener a way to get involved.

"We give people a chance to interact with true crime in a way that a lot of other people don't," Flowers told TODAY. "We tell them how they can give back to the community. How they can make a difference in these cases that they're hearing about, they can be a part of them."

In an interview on "The Kelly Clarkson Show" in 2023, Flowers revealed that two fans of her podcast helped to exonerate a man accused of murder in Odessa, Texas. After hearing about the case through the podcast, the listeners spoke with the chief of police. They found missing evidence and the man accused of the murder was cleared.

That connection, plus the boom in true crime fans — almost half (42%) of the U.S. population over the age of 13 say they have listened to a true crime podcast, according to a survey commissioned by Audiochuck — has propelled Flowers and her company.

Since 2017, Audiochuck has racked up 2.65 billion downloads. In 2024, Flowers expanded the company's partnership with SiriusXM to launch their first full-time channel devoted to true crime, debuting a new series, "Crime Junkie AF," along with episodes from shows like "The Deck" and "Crime Junkie."

Crime Junkie was the No. 1 true crime podcast on Apple's platform in 2024.

While it was a long road to becoming a podcasting success, Flowers has always been obsessed with true crime, dreaming of being a detective growing up. Audiochuck's first podcast, "Crime Junkie," was created using a $13,000 investment from Flowers, which was most of her savings. Now, the company has more than 20 podcasts available.

"My fascination with true crime began at a very early age," she told entertainment publication The Wrap. "My mother was a crime junkie and some of my earliest memories are of watching 'Matlock' or 'Perry Mason' with her. As I got a little older and realized those kinds of stories don't just happen on TV, that real life is filled with mystery, I became enthralled with the topic."

Despite this passion, Flowers started out on a very different educational and professional path, studying biomedical research in college and working in genetic research and software sales. But in her free time, Indianapolis-based Flowers volunteered with a local Crime Stoppers office, which allows people to anonymously provide tips to law enforcement, eventually serving on its board of directors.

In her work with Crime Stoppers, Flowers was tapped to spread brand awareness among younger audiences, a major fork in the road in her true crime podcast journey. "They were looking for a new way to get younger people involved," Flowers told Metro. "A lot of people my age didn't know what the program was or that it even existed, so I decided to do this community initiative to do some brand awareness for Crime Stoppers, and I knew crime podcasts were very big with millennials."

Flowers' nonprofit work has continued, both for Crime Stoppers and a newer focus on helping families and victims through Season of Justice, a nonprofit she founded that is tasked with solving cold cases and helping those impacted by violent crimes. To date, the nonprofit has helped solved 15 cases and has awarded 228 grants since its creation in 2020.

In 2024, Season of Justice helped to solve a cold case involving the homicide of Carmen Van Huss from the 1990s, with Flowers saying the resolution demonstrated "the power of persistence, evolving forensic technology, and collaboration" in cracking cases like Van Huss's, and providing a measure of peace to victims' families and loved ones.

Flowers has added to her audience success as a New York Times Bestselling author, and plans to release her second crime novel in 2025, "The Missing Half." Audiochuck is also planning new ventures, with Flowers telling Newsweek that publishing, TV and film, and merchandising are among "a ton of stuff" that the company is working on.

She just raised a $40 million investment from the firm run by media mogul Peter Chernin, which valued Audiochuck at roughly $250 million, and was the first outside capital for the podcasting company as it seeks new avenues of growth.

"But podcasting will always be the core; I love it to death," she said.