Penn State’s Student Programming Association (SPA) recently hosted The Basement Yard on Feb. 11 at the Schwab Auditorium. Penn State’s SPA provides events and opportunities for students to have amazing experiences.
When someone says, “The Basement Yard,” you might be confused about what they are talking about if you don’t listen to them. “The Basement Yard” is a podcast hosted by Frank Alvarez and Joe Santagato. They are childhood best friends who grew up together in Queens, New York. They have come a long way together to get to where they are now.
The Beginning
Frank Alvarez was not always a co-host with Joe Santagato. Santagato was the one who started the podcast in 2015 as the only host. Before Alvarez, he had Danny Lopriore as a co-host, who is now a comedian and host for “The LoPriore Podcast.” Santagato and Lopriore would talk about any and every topic in existence.
Sometimes they would invite family and friends as guests on the podcast. Alvarez would go on the podcast as a guest a few times. Danny was dealing with some mental health issues during his time on the podcast, ultimately leaving Santagato as the primary host again. That is where Frank Alvarez stepped in to be the new co-host of the podcast with Santagato.
Santagato and Alvarez have a dynamic where they can bounce off of each other’s jokes and know how to entertain the audience. The duo has taken their podcast success on tour to different cities throughout the U.S. Now, they are visiting college campuses to perform “The Basement Yard Experience.”
Basement Yard Name
What is a Basement Yard? The name derives from Santagato’s childhood. Santagato would hang out with his friends in the front yard, but they would always go to the basement to hang out too. Since he hung out in the basement so much, he started calling it the basement yard. When thinking about a name for the podcast, his mom suggested “The Basement Yard.”
Penn State SPA continues to release more upcoming events for the students at Penn State. SPA is a great opportunity to get involved on campus and a great way to network with others.
What podcasts do you enjoy listening to? Tag us @VALLEYmag on X and let us know!
