Sony Music Entertainment’s (SME) Global Podcast Division announced the appointment of Serita Wesley to the newly created role of U.S. Entertainment Podcasts. Wesley will be based in New York and report to Tom Koenig, Vice President, U.S. Podcasts.

In her new role, Wesley will spearhead the Division’s entertainment podcast strategy and oversee the development of new shows across a range of genres, including comedy, pop culture, self-care, chat and more. As SME focuses on building a robust slate of always on and returning series, Wesley will also help build and manage the growing entertainment team that includes several new producers, starting this spring.

Wesley has more than 15 years of experience in the entertainment, marketing and podcasting industries. She was previously an Executive Producer at Fresh Produce Media and Senior Producer at Westbrook Inc., working across shows such as Red Table Talk Podcast, Positively Gam, and more. She is also the co-creator and sole writer for the forthcoming scripted series Un-Lesh for Love, which debuts on Audible in 2022 by way of Charlamange Tha God and Kevin Hart’s audio production company, SBH Productions. Wesley also co-founded, produced, and hosted the iHeartRadio Award-nominated podcast On She Goes – a travel and lifestyle podcast for women of color.

In addition, Sony Music Entertainment’s Global Podcast Division announced it has formed a podcast partnership with leading film critic Mark Kermode and iconic host and movie fanatic Simon Mayo. The seasoned broadcasters will present Kermode and Mayo’s Take a new twice weekly podcast series focusing on theatrical, streaming, and physical film releases, as well as high-level global television in the UK and US beginning Thursday 5th May.

Sharing their expertise worldwide, Kermode and Mayo’s Take will feature the finest reviews and previews, big guest interviews and a cornucopia of audience correspondence in every episode. Listeners can expect discussions about current and classic releases, recommendations and warnings, as well as special episodes that respond to big news and events across the industry.

For the first time, the duo will also bring their much-loved dynamic to the world of TV with Kermode extending his estimable powers of critique to high-level serialized fiction, giving audiences the best reviews from binge-worthy streaming series to terrestrial TV. The world’s flagship film and television podcast, Kermode and Mayo’s Take will be an essential guide to listeners for everything they need to know on the big and small screens.

Kermode and Mayo’s loyal listeners can also go deeper into the world of film and television by subscribing to Take 2 on Apple Podcasts. Exploring a wider variety of material and listener correspondence, Take 2 will feature an hour of recommendations for undersign movie and televised gems and the pair’s discussion of big recent movie and TV releases in a spoilertastic fashion.