Olivia Ponton Announces Exciting New Podcast, and It’s Perfect for Book Lovers

The SI Swimsuit model and content creator is expanding her online presence.

Olivia Ponton / Taylor Hill/WireImage/Getty Images

Olivia Ponton is ready to turn the page—literally.

The 23-year-old model and content creator just announced her latest venture: a book-themed podcast titled Booked and Busy, launching Oct. 27 on YouTube. Known for her signature glowing glam, dazzling fashion moments and aesthetic travel vlogs, the TikTok sensation is now letting fans in on one of the most unexpected and personal parts of her life: her love of reading.

Olivia Ponton / XNY/Star Max/GC Images/Getty Images

“I wanted to curate a community for me to be able to do a deep dive on specific books that I feel like my community and people around me really love,” the Florida native exclusively told PEOPLE.

Healing through fiction

Ponton admits she wasn’t always a reader. In fact, “growing up, the pressure of having to read steered me away from it.” But in 2021, while traveling nonstop, working back-to-back campaigns and navigating the chaos of early influencer fame, she picked up a nearly 600-page novel on a whim.

“That was the beginning of this little love story that I have with books,” she said.

Today, reading offers her a rare sense of peace and escape, “You don’t need your phone. I don’t use Kindles. I’ve been using hard copies, which I can put all my devices down or in the other room [...] and I’ll read for two, three hours of the day.”

Not your average book club

Olivia Ponton / Daniel Zuchnik/Getty Images

Booked and Busy is meant to feel relaxed. “I wanted to create something that didn’t feel like you had to tune in every single week at a certain time and have a due date,” she explained. Think book club meets cozy couch hangout.

The series’s first pick is Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros—a BookTok favorite. Ponton sourced her reading list directly from her followers, sifting through comments and trending videos to find titles that feel both exciting and relatable.

More than just a pretty face

Booked and Busy is Ponton redefining the public perception that she’s just a “blonde model.” But this podcast is something she is super passionate about: “I do the work, I do the research [...] I know way too much about these books.

And for fans, it’s an invitation into a deeper, smarter, more bookish version of the influencer they already love.

Ponton, a two-time SI Swimsuit model, uses her platform to share the ins and outs of life as a twenty-something in New York City—from glamorous gigs to the mental health struggles she speaks candidly about. She’s also a vocal advocate for the LGBTQ+ community, regularly sharing her own experiences and encouraging others to live authentically.

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