Young NSMA Member Brothers Making Their Mark

For almost two years, brothers, Aarav and Arsh Parekh, have co-hosted a sports podcast from their home in Durham, North Carolina. That might not sound odd until you learn that Aarav is 14 years old and Arsh is 13. And their podcast, "Two Brothers and Their Sports," has become a hit.

To date, they have produced more than 100 episodes of "Two Brothers and Their Sports," with such diverse guests as ESPN's Jay Bilas, TIME magazine's 2019 Athlete of the Year Jessica McDonald, and former Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Seth Joyner.

On Apple Podcasts, TBATS has a 4.7 (out of 5 stars) rating, while Listen Notes has it ranked in its top 5% of the most popular podcasts globally out of more than 2.7 million.

"Arsh and I created this podcast at the start of the pandemic to create an outlet for kids our age," Aarav Parekh said. "After listening to Skip and Shannon and ESPN Talk Shows every day, we thought ‘we could do a show with each other about sports topics and interview guest athletes, all from our perspective as teens. With our sports knowledge, we hope to eventually take our podcast to ESPN or Fox Sports.”

Arsh Parekh said, "The podcast has opened many doors for us in the sports world. We have been able to interview some of our role models and idols, and the experience has been beyond our wildest dreams. We are looking forward to continuing our podcast and following our dreams. We hope to one day be the two big sports personalities.”

Aarav and Arsh joined the NSMA as student members in August of 2021.

During the pandemic, Aarav and Arsh have also been involved in other areas. With their sister, they own a business that specializes in washing cars and walking dogs. And Aarav is part of a tutoring venture, started by ninth graders, that donates all proceeds to workers who have been laid off due to COVID-19.

The brothers even have a media kit that includes a mission statement ("To inform and entertain sports-loving fans and inspire the, through the lives of world-renowned sports personalities."), a vision statement ("To spread the passion for sports and continue inspiring key conversations on all aspects of sports."), and a set of core values (S - Sports Superstar Guest Interviews; P - Passionate and Personable Podcast Hosts; O - Original Opinions and Fresh Perspectives; T - Talk Show Tailored for Both Kids and Sports Fans; S - Sports Topics that Cover a Wide Range of Sports).

You can find "Two Brothers and Their Sports" on most podcast repositories. And yes, they can be found on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.