Paranormal Playback is a comedy recap podcast that dives headfirst into the chaotic world of paranormal reality TV. From ghost-hunting bros and demon-taunting mediums to celebrity ghost stories and cursed Airbnb vibes, hosts Charlie Holley, Melanie Malone, and Lauren Sanders break down the weirdest, wildest moments in ghost TV history.
Armed with sarcasm, curiosity, and wildly different belief systems, the trio tackles EVPs, EMFs, night vision tantrums, cowboy ghost sightings, and the occasional haunted doll, all while laughing through the fear (and the frosted tips).
Whether you’re a believer, a skeptic, or just here for the chaotic drama, Paranormal Playback is your new favorite excuse to rewatch ghost shows and question everything.
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Warning: This show contains high volumes of Zak Bagans, excessive shushing, bad 2000s fashion, and theories that may or may not involve cocaine-filled Jesus statues. Also: real hauntings, true crime references, and occasional jump scares—listener discretion advised.
• Warning: This show contains high volumes of Zak Bagans, excessive shushing, bad 2000s fashion, and theories that may or may not involve cocaine-filled Jesus statues. Also: real hauntings, true crime references, and occasional jump scares—listener discretion advised.
Charlie Holley
Originally from Long Island, NY, Charlie moved to Atlanta in 2017 and quickly found herself in the best kind of creative entanglement with co-workers-turned-co-hosts Melanie and Lauren. With 14 years in creative direction across tech startups, e-commerce, and ad agencies, she’s now a seasoned pitch-slinger, idea machine, and chaos wrangler.
Charlie was raised in a non-denominational church/school bubble, which left her both wildly sheltered and wildly curious. Her interest in the paranormal sparked in 2004 after an unexplained experience she still can’t fully explain. These days, her belief system is a blend of Christianity, reincarnation, rational thought, and the general understanding that the universe is probably weirder than we’ll ever know.
Outside of ghost shows and sarcastic recaps, Charlie is into interior design, acrylic painting, podcasts, reality TV, and watching her two rescue pups, Tatum and Twelve, act like they pay rent.
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Melanie Malone
Melanie Malone is a Georgia native and proud University of Alabama grad who later attended portfolio school to study art direction (because sleep is for the weak). With over a decade in advertising and creative direction, she met Charlie and Lauren in 2017 when all three were art directors at the same agency.
In the past year alone, Melanie beat breast cancer, had a baby, and helped launch a podcast—which is either wildly inspiring or slightly unhinged, depending on who you ask. Her dark sense of humor is ever-present, her tolerance for ghost-hunting nonsense is low, and her bookshelf is mostly fantasy novels she hopes to finish once her kids let her sit down for more than six minutes.
She’s the group’s resident skeptic, happiest in her garden, behind a controller, or muttering about plot holes. She lives in Atlanta with her husband and their two kids. And in true Melanie fashion, there’s only one way to sign off: Roll Tide.
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Lauren Sanders
Lauren is an Atlanta-based Associate Creative Director with over a decade in design and branding—and one foot planted firmly in the mystical. She met Charlie and Melanie in 2017 at the ad agency where all their weird little creative brains collided, and has been laughing, concepting, and talking about ghosts with them ever since.
A lifelong believer in energy, intuition, and all things slightly spooky, Lauren brings an open mind and a big heart to every haunting. Whether she’s analyzing the vibes of a haunted mansion or deep-diving into zodiac compatibility mid-episode, she’s the group’s spiritual compass (and occasionally, the chaos agent).
She lives in Atlanta with her daughter, Poppy, who inherited both her curiosity and her chaotic energy. When she’s not watching ghost shows or rearranging her crystals, Lauren is probably making up bedtime stories that may or may not involve haunted teacups.
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WELCOME TO THE SHADOWVERSE
WELCOME TO THE SHADOWVERSE
The Shadowverse is our haunted little corner of the internet, a community of ghost-loving weirdos who live for dramatic EVPs, paranormal recaps, and a good haunting. If you’ve ever yelled “ZAK, STOP” at your TV… you’re one of us.
By simply tuning in to Paranormal Playback, you’ve already become a Shadow Person, a proud member of our spooky society with questionable taste in ghost hunters.
👻 But the extra special Shadow People?
They get haunted inboxes.
Sign up and unlock:
Get haunted in your inbox (the fun kind).
Spectral updates, cursed content, and ghost-approved gossip, straight from the Shadowverse to you. 👻
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Real ghost stories from our listeners, plus haunted lore we couldn’t fit into the episode. These stories didn’t make the episode, but they’ll definitely make you check your closet.
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We cut a lot, and sometimes it’s pure gold. Get the unfiltered chaos: tech fails, off-the-rails tangents, and what happens when we forget we’re recording
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Be the first to know when a new episode drops, a haunted bonus appears, or we accidentally start a ghost war on TikTok. You’ll always be in the loop (or the pentagram).
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Our ghost-in-residence, PlancheTina, spills shadowy secrets, shares behind-the-scenes tea, and maybe (definitely) bullies Zak Bagans in newsletter form. Expect hauntings with ✨ flair ✨.