Want to share a thought, theory, poem, rant, short story, confession, or just a message with the world?
This dude/blog/podcast/entity called “VoicemailMan” might be the only person left who actually checks voicemail.
Photo Credit: VoicemailMan
And he might have found a reason for you to leave one.
The concept is simple enough:
You call: (785) 713-6576.
You leave a voicemail.
Then, after VoicemailMan listens to it, your message could end up on the Tumblr blog, for the world to browse:
It could end up in a podcast.
Photo Credit: VoicemailMan
And from there, who knows?
In a recent chat with DYK, VoicemailMan mentioned that he has a website coming around the corner, in addition to his presence on Twitter, Facebook, and Soundcloud.
“I am taking it one step at a time. I am exited to see what the podcast will bring and I have some ideas on other turns this project may take, but for now I am going to wait, check my inbox and cross those bridges as they come.”
VoicemailMan is mostly just one dude, screening your messages and posting them on various platforms. It’s still very new and small, but there’s something just weird and cool enough about the idea that it kind of grabs you.
“I believe that everyone has a story to tell, and helping people tell those stories is what drives me.”
You can be a listener, a contributor, or both, in what feels a bit like a retro, anonymous, social network.
There are small snippets of life, observations left without any analysis, like this voicemail from a coffee shop:
A hoarder’s prepared confession that feels like a spoken-word poem:
Or even a silly joke that asks, “What do you call a nosy pepper?”
Jalapeno business!
The ultimate potential of VoicemailMan feels like it lies in the range of peoples’ submissions:
“I really love the variety of messages people leave… each one is unique and comes from a very real place inside a very real person. Its almost like a window into the lives of people I may never meet. I think that the fact that they can tell my answering machine something they may not be able to say to someone in person means that I have created something wonderful.”
And this would have never happened if a previous project hadn’t folded:
“Lots of people talk about how you learn from failure, and I completely agree. However what people do not talk about is how failure is often the very beginning of the next project.
A while ago I tried to start a podcast [that collected stories from VmM’s hometown]… its failure gave me what was necessary to create VoicemailMan. You do not just learn from failure, it can be the kindling necessary for something new, and something better.”
What do you think?
Have you tried it out?
Do you have a favorite?
Want More?
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