Lured Up Podcast Creator Bio

G2G: First, can you tell me your in-game Trainer name, level, and your favorite Pokémon? Is there a reason it is your favorite? Also, what do you do in your daily life?

Ken: My name is Ken Pescatore, also known as LuredUpDotCom in-game. I’m a level-40 Trainer, and my favorite Pokémon is currently Magikarp, however that it changes from time to time. I’ve always loved Magikarp as it is typically considered useless by many, but has the capability to evolve into one of the most powerful and daunting Pokémon, Gyarados! Also, my last name means Fisherman in Italian, and my nickname growing up was “The Fish”!

In my daily life I work in Digital Marketing, and will be taking a leap of faith this year and starting my own Marketing and Consulting business. I love spending time with my son and finding ways to combine our love for technology and nature.

G2G: What got you into Pokémon/Pokémon GO? Were you into Pokémon before GO was released? What do you like the most about Pokémon in general? Do you have a favorite feature in PoGO?

Ken: I have been obsessed with Pokémon since it was released here in the US. I have always been a collector and gamer, so it fell completely in my wheel house. I was 21 years old when Pokémon came to the US back in 1998, and it immediately motivated me to get involved with the brand. In 1999, I became a TCG Tournament Organizer with Wizards of the Coast, who were producing the cards at that time.

My favorite feature in Pokémon GO is the combination of how it brings together the community as a live game that runs 24/7. It is exciting to know that even when I am not playing, the game is still running!

G2G: What made you start making a Pokémon GO podcast?

Ken: I have always been a fan of long form audio content. I grew up obsessed with ‘The Howard Stern Show’, and always wanted to be involved with broadcast media in some capacity. I started listening to podcasts around 2005 and knew that it was something I wanted to explore. One thing I loved about Pokémon was how passionate and engaged its fan base was. When Pokémon GO was released, I felt compelled to tell everyone I met about it, which in turn inspired me to get in front of a microphone.

G2G: You guys had some prominent Pokémon GO individuals on the podcast. Do you have a highlight, or an episode that sticks out for a particular reason?

Ken: Working with other creators is a tenet of our brand. We have been fortunate to work with so many amazing people in this space. The number one highlight has to be when we had Liz George, Global Community Manager for Pokémon GO on Episode 96, a process that took 8 months to get approved!

We were able to learn so much from that interview, not just about the game, but how some operational decisions were made at Niantic. This particular episode helped us get in front of not only new listeners, but expand our audience to people that had never listened to a podcast before.

G2G: Do you have any big plans with the podcast? Or any future goals or dreams?

Ken: I live for big plans! I am a firm believer of keeping your feet on the ground and your head in the clouds. Our main plan for 2020 is to upgrade our equipment from hobbyist level gear to professional gear, which will dramatically improve the audio fidelity of the show. As for future goals and dreams, we are looking for ways to monetize our brand which is exceptionally difficult in the Podcast space. This would allow us to travel and record on location.

G2G: Is there anything else you want to share? Hidden talents? Thoughts about the current state of the game?

Ken: While Lured Up Podcast is my most popular project, it is only one of three Pokémon Podcasts on the Pokémon Professor Network. I decided to create the Network to have a consistent home for our content, and as a recognizable brand that will help us work with additional Pokémon creators. Gotta Watch’em All is a show that covers all Pokémon news before chronicling the anime with an audio watchalong starting all the way back at Episode 1! Special Conditions is our TCG show, which brings together the perspectives of a collector and a competitor. We hope to bring in a show to cover the VGC this year as well. 

Also, I wouldn’t be able to maintain this brand without the help of my best friend and Lured Up Co-Host, Adam Tuttle. His lifelong passion for Pokémon and immense level of chill is a nice balance to my freight train approach to content.

As for my hidden talents, I have a third degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do and have studied many different martial arts and defense techniques. I was formerly a touring musician that has sold over 400,000 records. I can also make some banging vegan tacos!

About the current state of the game, I think it is in a very important stage of its life cycle. It is a delicate balancing act of keeping both the casual majority and the hardcore minority engaged with the same content. I am confident in their current direction of keeping the calendar packed with events, and working at the ground level with creators to maintain a diverse user base.