Overview of The Town episode with Kareem Rahma
Matt Belloni sits down with Kareem Rahma, the creator-host behind Subway Takes and Keep the Meter Running, to unpack how he went from behind-the-scenes media roles at Vice and The New York Times to becoming a front-facing creator with a major audience across Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. The conversation focuses on Rahma’s approach to content quality, his business model, the logistics of shooting on public transit, and why he thinks the future of talk/late-night style programming is more about distribution and format evolution than the death of the genre.
Main Topics Discussed
From editor to on-camera creator
- Rahma explains that his pivot to being the “talent” came from a mix of confidence, experience, and calculated delusion.
- He saw people building media brands and felt he could do it in his own style.
- His career shift happened around age 33, which gave him a broader view of the media landscape and how to differentiate himself.
Why Subway Takes works
- The concept is intentionally simple:
- Rahma rides the subway and asks strangers or guests, “What’s your take?”
- He emphasizes that the show succeeds because it is:
- Easy to understand
- Visually polished
- Authentic and fun
- Built around real spontaneity
- He believes virality is a result of quality, not the goal itself.
Production value matters
- Rahma says he deliberately chose cinema-quality cameras, multiple angles, and strong audio to make the show stand out on mobile.
- Even though the format is casual, he treats it like a real TV production.
- Shooting on a crowded subway is difficult:
- No shutting down cars
- No crowd control
- No formal permitting structure
- Passengers can walk through the shot or join in
Celebrities vs. everyday people
- Rahma says he does not prefer celebrities over regular people; the show’s DNA is actually rooted in giving a platform to independent voices.
- Celebrity episodes are only a small part of the mix, which helps the show avoid feeling like just another celeb interview series.
- He’s more interested in people with interesting, funny, or distinctive perspectives.
Business model and monetization
- Rahma says brand partnerships are the main revenue source, making up roughly 90% of the business.
- Platform monetization is secondary:
- Instagram: limited because of collab-posting
- TikTok: modest revenue
- YouTube: strongest programmatic revenue, especially with longer-form versions like Subway Takes Uncut
- Keep the Meter Running is expanding from TikTok to YouTube with longer episodes, which improves storytelling and monetization.
Late-night TV is changing, not dead
- Rahma argues the traditional late-night format isn’t broken—audience behavior is changing.
- His view:
- People increasingly watch clips the next day on YouTube instead of live at 11:35 p.m.
- The real issue is distribution, not the format itself.
- He sees his work as part of the evolution of talk shows, not a replacement for them.
Career goals and future direction
- Rahma says he does not want to build a media company so much as remain the central asset himself.
- He wants to keep expanding internationally:
- The show has already shot in London, Berlin, Chicago, and Paris
- A more travelogue/Bourdain-like second season is in the works for Keep the Meter Running
- He’s open to TV, streaming, and even traditional late-night opportunities, but is focused on building his own lane first.
Notable Insights
Rahma’s creative philosophy
- “Virality will be the outcome if the show is good and sticky.”
- He believes audiences respond to creators who are having a genuine good time.
- He sees himself as part of a broader shift where creators must create their own opportunities rather than wait for them.
On celebrity guests
- He says celebrity guests usually enjoy the experience more than expected because the format feels street-level and authentic.
- He avoids overly polished or fake-feeling content, which he thinks audiences are increasingly skeptical of.
On his own place in media
- Rahma frames himself as someone building a mini-industry within the industry.
- He’s not trying to be “the next Kimmel” or “the next Bourdain,” but is interested in elements of both:
- Talk show host
- Travel storyteller
- Cultural observer
Key Takeaways
- Simple concepts can scale if they’re produced with quality and authenticity.
- Production value still matters in short-form video, especially on mobile.
- The creator economy rewards people who can be both talent and operator.
- Brand deals remain the core monetization engine for many creator-led shows.
- Late-night and talk formats are not dying; they are migrating across platforms.
Bonus: The broader Town discussion
The episode also briefly transitions into the show’s regular box office segment, where Belloni and Craig discuss the projected performance of Mortal Kombat 2 and debate whether video game adaptations can still surprise on opening weekend.