Emergency Intercom Podcast Nears 3rd Anniversary — and Its Hosts 'Still Knock on Wood Every Day' (Exclusive)

It finally happened. After almost three years and 144 episodes, Emergency intercom outgrew his makeshift kitchen corner set and moved into a proper studio.

In a rare interview, hosts Enya Umanzor and Drew Phillips spoke with PEOPLE about the podcast’s past, present and future — starting with their decision to leave the confines of the studio after signing with TMG Studios.

The Los Angeles comedian duo, known for their “cerebral” humor, teased the move on their May 10 episode with their most ambitious stunt yet, breaking TikTok by (fake) smashing the kitchen ceiling — and they couldn’t have done it without TMG’s help , says Umanzor.

“When we found out we were going to have a production team available, we started thinking about absolutely crazy things we could do, because usually every stunt or gag we do, we have to do it ourselves and that’s impossible,” the Miami native tells PEOPLE, adding, “ We are two of the dumbest people on the planet.”

A week later, the hosts were reborn from the flames (ceiling rubble), announcing on May 17 that they were finally moving into a professional podcast studio. And, while they previously told PAPER magazine that the uncivil, unstructured nature of their podcast made it impossible to sell to a production company, that’s exactly what made it perfect for TMG.

Also, Vine stars turned YouTubers before their own podcast, TMG founders Cody Ko and Noel Miller just got it. Plus, as Phillips points out, they’ve also withstood corporate attempts to change who they are as entertainers.

“The way they’re running TMG right now, it feels really special,” says the Texas native. “And they actually care and want you to be authentically who you are instead of having to water down or water down what you’re doing.”

Drew Phillips and Enya Umanzor in the first episode of ‘Emergency Intercom’.

Emergency intercom

The Emergency intercom hosts can’t help but feel excited about their future — a future that, when they started the podcast out of pandemic boredom in July 2021, they didn’t think was possible.

“I feel like it was about time, especially when we started the podcast, I think a part of me felt really lost,” Umanzor tells PEOPLE. “I would repeat it [Phillips] all the time, ‘I’m not going to do this for more than a year.’ And here we are, coming up to three years, and I feel like we’ve only just gained the foundations.”

Podcast Duo behind Emergency intercom Debut New Merchandise: Reflects ‘The Love We Have For Each Other’ (Exclusive)

Since those early days, the podcast has blossomed into something bigger than the hosts ever imagined—and all from the (in)comfort of their own kitchens.

The couple welcomed guests like EuphoriaBarbie Ferreira and singer Conan Gray hosted a packed pop-up event with Marc Jacobs’ Heaven and met everyone from Chloë Sevigny to Gypsy Rose Blanchard.

“I just love how much growth we’ve had, not numerically, but just creatively,” says Phillips, and Umanzor adds, “We’ve been blessed to have a lot of opportunities to be creative, and that’s all we could hope for.”

Looking back on that growth — a task made easier by fan-made TikTok edits like this one from user @drewsdeadbug — is an emotional experience to say the least.

“It used to scare me, and sometimes it still scares me because naturally I think the idea of ​​having so much documentation on you is a little scary and disturbing, but I think it’s sweet now,” says Umanzor. “The older I get, the sweeter I think.”

Enya Umanzor (left) and Drew Phillips (right) interview designer Anna Sui at the Marc Jacobs Runway 2024 show on February 2, 2024.

Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty

“I think it’s really easy for me to find the sweetness in that, instead of being scared or bothered that I see myself because it seems more like a reflection of my relationship with Drew, or my friends and people I love, than it’s just about me,” she continues. “Although I love a good edit of me eating, I will never watch an edit of me being sexy.”

Some edits, especially those that highlight the platonic love in her life, even brought her to tears, she says: “I think it’s so sweet that just the fact that we found each other in this life makes someone else truly full of hope and joy. ”

“I just like the archive of everything,” Phillips says. “It will be so nice to look back on it and see what our heads were on.”

“That’s all I can think about,” he adds, “is showing my grandkids or grandkids finding it and saying, ‘Wow, you were a fucking psycho, bro. What were you talking about?’ It brings me so much joy.”

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Reflecting on how “crazy different” she and Phillips are from the people who first set up chairs and microphones in their kitchen nearly three years ago, Umanzor tells PEOPLE, “Right now, I feel like we’re really confident in who we are.”

Although, she notes, “we still knock on wood every day when we say something good about ourselves, because we’re afraid everything will fall apart.”

But when they feel things coming down — well, except for their ceiling — the duo is grounded by their fans, who they’ve been able to meet through their pop-up event and live podcast episodes on college campuses.

“It was super special to see the faces and talk to people who were actually avid listeners,” Umanzor says as Phillips chimes in, “And to realize that they’re actually f—— cool people.”

Drew Phillips and Enya Umanzor.

Victor Boyko/Getty

“Our audience is actually cool,” he continues. “And they actually go along with real shit and explore things that they like.”

And since the hosts know their fans like the back of their hand, Umanzor was “excited to see what people thought of the set,” but knew he would feel the loss of the iconic kitchen nook.

“I think most people will miss the old set, but I think we did a really good job of staying true to it and reimagining it and looking at it from a camera angle,” she says. “Even just standing in that studio, looking at it and thinking, ‘This feels like an enlarged version of what we’ve been doing and an expanded world of what we’ve already done.’ ”

The new set is so true to what they actually are that the earliest host mockups were almost indistinguishable from each other.

“When we first sketched the studio, we went into separate rooms and I drew on my iPad what I wanted the set to look like, and Enya, with pen and paper, drew what she wanted the set to look like,” says Phillips. “And they were literally identical.”

Drew Phillips’ ‘Emergency Intercom’ studio sketch (1/2).

Drew Phillips’ ‘Emergency Intercom’ studio sketch (2/2). Drew Phillips’ ‘Emergency Intercom’ studio sketch (1/2). PHOTO:

Enya Umanzor

Drew Phillips’ ‘Emergency Intercom’ studio sketch (2/2). PHOTO:

Enya Umanzor

Study sketches of ‘Emergency Intercom’ by Enya Umanzor.

Enya Umanzor

Perhaps the most important accessory? Guest room. Umanzor says she’s excited to host people “who can’t actually sit on the fucking floor,” noting that they previously avoided inviting visitors because it seemed “disrespectful to have them uncomfortable in our kitchen.”

And don’t fret — the duo’s one-man production team, Ky Newman, “isn’t going anywhere,” says Umanzor. “I’ll end there, Ky is a friend for life and we wouldn’t leave him behind, because we never leave our friends.”

Also present is the Phillips DIY chair, which has taken on a life of its own inside Emergency intercom fandom — and the life was slowly drained from it.

“You’d be happy to know the chair was coming,” says Phillips. “She’ll be there…in her rotten glory.”

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Source: HIS Education