IFAF podcasters reflect on more than two years of rebellious recordings
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IDAHO FALLS — The snark is unprecedented. The jokes are crude. But watch for very long, and you can’t help but be engaged by Mike Nelson and Karley Morgan on their local podcast, IFAF.
Now, two and a half years and more than 130 episodes later, Nelson and Morgan told EastIdahoNews.com that they don’t make much money off it but are finally seeing the show go somewhere.
How it started
Morgan said she first met Nelson when she worked at a dress shop some years ago. The shop was sponsoring an event, and Nelson was a local radio DJ at the time.
“We dressed him for it, and he was hilarious, to the point where we end up being Facebook friends” Morgan said.
Morgan said some time later in 2021, they both ended up going through divorces at the same time. Nelson reached out to Morgan and said, “Hey, this sucks. If you ever need someone to hang out with, let me know.”
She agreed and told him how she had to start a second job at a local restaurant to stay afloat. Then Nelson joked that she should bring him a steak.
“I, being the little s*** that I was, decided to take him up on it, took him a steak that night,” Morgan said. “And he felt so bad about it that we ended up going out on a different night so that he could repay me with dinner from Olive Garden. And we had the best conversation that I’ve ever had in my life.”
“Over the next few weeks, he helped me unpack my stuff, rebuild my life, and he was just a nice person to hang out with,” Morgan said.
Their friendship blossomed. Nelson said at that time he was bummed to have gotten out of the radio business because he had finally met someone he wanted to do a show with. So the two came up with the idea of starting a podcast, with some reluctance.
“Everyone wants to start a podcast,” Morgan said.
“How original,” Nelson said.
But the two filmed a test episode or two, and they worked well together. They recalled that once they were curious about whether they could fill an entire hour with their talking. They ended up filling three hours. So they went for it.
Nelson said he then spent a great deal of time just watching podcasts, seeing what worked and what didn’t. His media diet ranged from Ben Shapiro to Steve Colbert.
“It’s not about the politics to me, it’s about the presentation,” Nelson said.
They finally landed on the topic — sort of the counterculture’s view of the Idaho Falls area, or its zeitgeist — meaning the cultural climate or spirit of the era. They decided on the name IFAF, as Nelson was thinking about something very nostalgic to the local area, such as sledding in the foothills.
“I was like ‘That’s Idaho Falls as f***, that’s IF AF.”
But if you ask them what IFAF stands for, they’ll tell you it’s Idaho Falls and Friends.
Getting viewership
Morgan said when the show started, they’d be lucky to get a couple of views. Most were from her family, whom she begged to watch the show. But now, IFAF has found its groove, particularly with short-form video content on social media.
There, they can regularly get upwards of 1,000 views. Sometimes a bit strikes gold, and they get millions. They have significant followings on Facebook and TikTok, as well as growing audiences on Instagram and YouTube.
Although they are still working for the viewership they crave, Nelson and Morgan are getting noticed. Even during the interview with EastIdahoNews.com, several community members stepped in to say they recognized them.
Nelson and Morgan are also known in the community for their day jobs in local real estate.
Maybe the real treasure was the friends we made along the way
After doing the show for so long, Morgan and Nelson have made many jokes about many things. Quite often, they find themselves poking fun at local goofs and blunders. Nelson said they consider themselves equal opportunity offenders.
They said it does occasionally land them in hot water. But for the most part, people take it pretty lightly.
“We can poke and stuff, but it takes a lot for the bear to bite back,” Morgan said.
The pair said the podcast has actually been quite rewarding because of the friendships they’ve made.
This includes fashion designer Cartier Dior Eliasen, local pop singer Addy Faith, local goth creator Madi Danger, and Rexburg confectionery Sugarbeast.
Also, Morgan and Nelson said it was an impactful experience for them to help share the story of Valerie Jensen, a local 6-year-old whose body is mysteriously shrinking. Morgan said she used to live next door to the family, and they have had many struggles lately.
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“We felt like the best thing we could do was just spread the information so that people can step up and help,” Morgan said. “Now their story is spread all the way to Canada.”
They are also looking forward to an upcoming interview with Idaho Falls Mayor Lisa Burtenshaw, where they will eat milk and cookies on the show.
At the end of the day, as Morgan and Nelson still make hardly any money from the podcast and need day jobs to make ends meet, they said they keep doing it for love of the craft and the local community.
“Sort of our running joke lately has been that the podcast is really just the friends we’ve made along the way,” Nelson said.