Ben Kissel

Benjamin Grant Kissel (born July 21, 1981) is an American podcaster, and the host of the OK Bud! podcast. Prior to OK Bud!, he co-hosted The Last Podcast on the Left which discussed serial killers, dark history, and true crime stories. He also appeared on the podcasts Roundtable of Gentlemen and hosted Abe Lincoln's Top Hat. In September of 2023, following allegations of domestic violence and emotional abuse, Kissel was dismissed from his role as co-host of The Last Podcast on the Left, and Last Podcast Network announced that he would no longer be involved with the network on October 13, 2023.

Benjamin Grant Kissel was born in Fargo, North Dakota on July 21, 1981. He is the son of a German immigrant father, Bengt Kissel, who along with his mother, Laura, raised him in a deeply religious home. Following high school, Ben attended UW-Stout where he began doing stand-up comedy at nineteen. He transferred to UW-Milwaukee, eventually graduating with a degree in Political science. In 2006 Kissel moved to Brooklyn, New York to continue his career in comedy.

In 2011, Kissel co-created horror-comedy podcast The Last Podcast on the Left with Marcus Parks. Henry Zebrowski joined the pair in the third episode. Ben Kissel is a Webby Award recipient and collaborated on the New York Times best-selling true crime book The Last Book on the Left. In 2024, Kissel announced that he is working on a new show called The Ben Kissel Channel. This evolved to become the OK! Bud podcast with Jerii Aquino and Kyle Ploof, which premiered in January 2025. In 2017, he ran for Brooklyn Borough president against former NYC Mayor Eric Adams, receiving 1.8% of the vote.