I took my seat at The Chevalier Theater in Medford, Massachusetts. The crowd, consisting of mostly 20-something-year-old girls, were chattering with excitement as they waited for the hosts of the viral podcast, The Basement Yard, to take the stage. Laughs echoed the sold-out theater as comedian and friend of the hosts, Ryan Lynch, warmed up the crowd. A few minutes later Ahmed, or Shmeddy as he calls himself, enters the stage and announces he will be hosting the show. Soon after, the lights dim and you hear his booming voice over the speakers,

“MAKE SOME NOISE FOR YOUR HOSTS FRANK ALVAREZ AND JOE SANTAGATO!” 

I can confirm that I lost my hearing for a moment while 1900 people screamed throughout the theater all at once, echoes of a Co2 pressured t-shirt cannon couldn’t even silence this crowd. “Holy shit!” Joe remarked as he looked out at the crowd, taking in a sight that he probably only imagined in his wildest dreams.

via @brentgoldmanphoto

Born and raised in Astoria, New York, Joe came from a relatively ‘normal’ family. His father was a contractor and FDNY fireman while his mother worked in the local school as a secretary. Thomas, Shannon, and Keith Santagato were the older siblings to Joe, the baby of the family.

Joe (left) and Keith (right) as kids.

In school, he was known as the class clown. At home, he was the goofy, younger brother. It was clear from an early age that he loved to make people laugh. Joe made his mom buy him something when he was 12 years old, not knowing it would forever change his life – a camcorder. “It was glued to his hand,” Keith tells me. “Anything he thought was even remotely funny was recorded on that thing.”

On September 29th , 2010, under the channel name SantagatoTV, Joe posted his first ever YouTube video titled “SantagatoTV! - Waking Keith Up.” If the title wasn’t obvious enough, the video was Joe yelling at Keith to wake up, a typical interaction between brothers. “This was before I was making any sort of, like, actual talking to camera videos.” Joe recalls in a 2023 video titled “Reacting To My Old Videos!”

“I WAS JUST LIKE I’M GONNA RECORD RANDOM SHIT AND PUT IT ON YOUTUBE.”

These random videos soon became themed videos, some poking fun at certain groups of people in his well-known series “Idiots of The Internet” and “People of Walmart.” The internet ate up every joke, comment, and opinion that Joe had. “It [Idiots of The Internet] was the first thing of mine that really went viral.” He reflects in the previously mentioned reaction video, crediting his audience on Facebook for the virality of the video in 2014 that amassed over a million shares on the platform at the time.

Soon, Joe started adding guests regularly into his videos, consisting mostly of his family and friends. Amongst these types of videos was a series called Mad Libs Madness where Keith and Joe blindly fill out Mad-Libs stories. One brother would then proceed to read the story to the other, who would have a mouthful of water. The goal was to try not to spit the water out. Why water? Well, Joe thought adding this extra element would make his Mad Libs videos funnier than the others being posted to YouTube at the time. Sure enough, it worked. To this day, the 16-part collection of Mad Libs Madness videos has garnered over 44 million views. “We truly never thought it would get to where it’s at now.” Keith tells me, seeming almost still in disbelief that 44 million people have seen him spit water all over a desk, several times.

via: Santagato Studios YouTube Channel

With a resume as full as Joe’s, a bit of time jumping is going to be necessary. Let’s fast forward to 2015 when The Basement Yard was born. Beginning his passion project in his mom’s basement, hence the name of the podcast, Joe started the podcasting journey on his own with a few special guests appearing here and there. Seeing his brother start the podcast from the very beginning, Keith states, “It was just random bullshit at first but obviously it got more serious as time went on.”

As the podcast gained popularity, Joe’s YouTube channel was also gaining more viewers and subscribers. In 2016, he realized he needed somewhere to house these projects and started Santagato Studios. Not only was it a media company that dealt with the backend operations of all of Joe’s projects, but Santagato Studios also began its own YouTube channel. The videos weren’t solely focused on Joe, rather childhood friends like Frank Alvarez, Ahmed and Keith who appeared regularly in the vlog style videos. In the beginning the content on Santagato Studios YouTube channel was much more relaxed than Joe’s personal channels. The daily vlogs made you feel as if you were a part of the raunchy, New York friend group.

CEO Joe, as the internet has branded him, is at the helm of Santagato Studios. Everything starts and ends with him. Only 10 people are currently employed at the company as Joe likes to keep everything tight knit and only hires people he truly trusts. “If something goes wrong or if there’s a dip in whatever, it’s on me.” Joe explains while speaking to the 2nd Wind Pod.

There was a slight dip in 2020 when Joe’s co-host of The Basement Yard at the time left the show due to personal reasons. This event led Joe to bring on a new co-host -- his childhood best friend, Frank Alvarez. The two have known each other since they were in pre-school. They lived only a few blocks away from each other and did almost everything together so the decision to now work together was a no-brainer. The dip turned into a skyrocket as The Basement Yard’s numbers soared to new heights as people immediately loved the banter between two life-long best friends.

via @WhippitySkippty on X

Between January and September 2022, the podcast garnered roughly 18,000,000 likes on TikTok. Everything changed in October 2022 when a clip of Joe and Frank went viral as they argued over what the best Pop-Tart flavor was. October and November of 2022 brought the duo 29,000,000 TikTok likes alone and they secured a deal with Pop-Tarts, releasing a limited edition Pop-Tart Debate Box which sold out within minutes.

Each video attracting millions of views on each TikTok they post is now the norm for The Basement Yard. Their popularity doesn’t stop on just TikTok. The Basement Yard’s YouTube channel, where they post full length videos of the podcast, has accumulated 3.6 million views in just the last 30 days. They are the 7th most subscribed to podcast on Patreon, with over 30,000 paying members who receive bonus episodes and exclusive content.

 A recent uptick in podcasts going on live show tours inspired Joe to act on a dream of his. “I always knew I wanted to do live shows. It just felt like a necessary step in my career.” He tells me. “In this line of work, hearing laughter is as good as money, and this is a way to [hopefully] get both!” And that is exactly what he did.

 On December 11, 2023, the duo announced they would embark on a live show tour consisting of 3 shows in New Jersey, Massachusetts, and Connecticut. The announcement video garnered 5.3 million views across Instagram and TikTok alone. Within minutes, the tour sold out. These weren’t small theaters either as each one sat at least 1200 people. Dedicated fans of Joe and Frank were begging for them to add more dates, release more seats or add new cities to their list. However, they wanted to see how these first 3 shows would go before adding any more to their repertoire.

January 19th, 2024 was the first show in Montclair, New Jersey. “I wasn’t nervous leading up to the show until 3 minutes before we went out on stage.” Joe recalls. “I couldn’t remember anything I wanted to say, and I had no idea how the crowd would react.” As someone who attended the show, I can tell you that the crowd reacted in the best way possible. The screams that erupted when Joe and Frank walked out on stage shook the entire building. “The people cheered so loud. So much so that I could physically feel how loud they were.” I am told by Joe. “It was unlike any experience I’ve ever had.”

After I ask him what it feels like to be on stage, Ahmed breaks out into a grin before agreeing with Joe.

“IT WAS A RUSH THAT I’VE NEVER EXPERIENCED BEFORE.”

Joe (left) and Ahmed (right) backstage in Medford, MA.

via: @brentgoldmanphoto

In the wake of becoming a fan favorite in Santagato Studios videos in 2023, Ahmed became a regular name that was associated with Joe. January 19th was also the day that Ahmed began working for The Basement Yard as part of their tour, albeit unknowingly at first. He recalls to me, “I went as a friend just to help.” It was clear to me while listening to Ahmed that he is very passionate about the things that he does, even small things. It appeared evident to Joe and Frank too as at the end of the New Jersey show, they asked Ahmed to be part of the tour crew. He then made the decision to leave his job in finance and join The Basement Yard officially as the ‘hype man’ of the tour.

“We get each other hype backstage and listen to music.” Ahmed tells me, making sure to note that Darude Sandstorm is a favorite that is always played. “And Frankie and Joey slap each other in the face.” He adds.

Surrounding himself with people like Ahmed is how Joe keeps himself grounded. “The people in my life are my biggest support system. They do a really good job at being supportive while also keeping me humble.” When Joe talks about his friends and family, his tone changes to a much more serious one. It’s obvious that he knows that at the end of the day, these people are the ones who will always be there for him. In an everchanging field like social media, you never know where your career will go. “People could decide tomorrow I’m not funny or interesting anymore.” He explains to me. “I do feel like I have to earn it every day.”

As someone who went to two of the three shows, it’s clear that Joe’s hard work has paid off. The electricity I felt in the theater was unlike any other. If anyone in association to Joe and Frank walked throughout the building, they were automatically met by screams and gasps. Despite not having meet and greets listed as a ticket option, fans still lined up outside in freezing temperatures at each show in hopes they’d meet one or both boys. In New Jersey, people waited up to 3 hours until Joe, Frank and their entourage were escorted out of a side door. Grasyn, a girl I spoke to, actually had blue lips and hands due to the 8 degree weather that night. She did end up getting to meet Joe and Frank, the blue lips were barely noticeable in the photo for those wondering.

In Medford, or “almost Boston”, as Joe called it, I met people who flew in as far as Arizona to experience The Basement Yard live. Ahmed, Keith, and Ryan braved the cold after the show to show their gratitude to fans and meet them outside for a few minutes while security watched like a hawk. Joe and Frank weren’t seen until an Uber pulled up about an hour later and the entire group piled in. Fans were being held back by security until Joe rolled down the window to thank the group for their support. Despite all the screaming, I heard the wet smooch of someone planting a kiss on Joe’s cheek as we all stared in disbelief. I felt like I was watching a movie while witnessing people chase after the SUV in hopes to get a blurry photo with their favorite podcasters.

via @JoeSantagato

Despite Medford being the last show on their 3-city tour, it didn’t mean farewell to The Basement Yard Experience. April 1st, 2024, it was announced that 12 new shows across North America would have tickets for sale the following day. By April 7th, the extended tour sold out. In total, 25,000 tickets were sold.

So, what’s next for the boy that used to record videos in his mom’s basement? Well, he’s not exactly sure himself. “I think I need to focus on these shows this year and the path will reveal itself after that.” Joe discloses to me. “I’m excited to perform in front of people and I definitely think I will continue to do that moving forward.”