Bachelor Happy Hour - EXCLUSIVE: Jesse Palmer on Clayton’s Dramatic Premiere

Episode Date: January 4, 2022

This week on “Bachelor Happy Hour,” new host of “The Bachelor” Jesse Palmer stops by to chat with Becca and Serena about Clayton’s drama-packed season premiere and tease the wild ride viewers have ahead.  In his first official interview since being announced as the new host of “The Bachelor,” Jesse shares memories from his time as the Bachelor back in 2004 and reveals the advice he gave to Clayton before he began his journey. Then, he explains why he thinks Clayton will surprise people, and he discusses the friendship that the two have formed while experiencing this season of “The Bachelor” together.  Plus, Becca and Serena break down their favorite night one fashion, and in a game of rapid-fire Q&A, Jesse shares fun facts about himself and officially reintroduces himself to Bachelor Nation.  “Bachelor Happy Hour” has exclusive interviews every week. Watch “The Bachelor” on ABC and listen to “Bachelor Happy Hour” the next morning.  Don’t forget to rate and subscribe so you never miss an episode.   See omny.fm/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Brought to you by opportunity at work and the ad council. What's up, Bachelor Happy Hour listeners. Happy 2022. I cannot believe it is already January, already a new year. It has, I mean, so much has happened in the past year. And the fact that we are starting a new bachelor season already just blows my mind. I hope everyone had a great relaxing holiday with some time off. And this year, we're going to just kick things off strong because I am so excited to have

one of my best ladies on joining me as guest co-host today. Serena, welcome to Bachelor Happy Hour. Thank you so much, Becca, and Happy New Year, too, as well. I am so excited to be here with you today. So, yes, last night we kicked off Clayton's season of The Bachelor, and I think you will agree with me when I say it did not disappoint. I mean, we are really starting off this season with love, drama, the whole shebang, and I cannot wait to see how it unfolds. I'm also super excited for today's guest, the new host of The Bachelor, Jesse Palmer, who we finally got to see last

night, and we are lucky enough to have here as our guest on Happy Hour today. Yeah, I'm so excited to have Jesse on because I know that there's been rumblings in Bachelor Nation if he was going to be host, if he was going to be announced as like the full-time host. There was just so many, I think, speculations around him. So we finally got to see him. I will say, I want to get to know him a little bit more. And that's why I'm excited to have him on today because, of course, like when you're the host, you're so poised. And he's the one guiding Clayton. He's gone through this before. He was Bachelor several years ago. And he's been part of this world. So I think there's no one better than that can kind of kick off the year, kick off

Clayton's season with him. But it's going to be good to get to know him a bit more. The manned behind the host role, if you will. Yes, I definitely agree. There's a couple things I really love about Jesse, which is one, he's a fellow Canadian. Yes, that's right. He's a past bachelor. And I really thought that on last night's episode, him and Clayton had fantastic chemistry. They really just seemed to have a good vibe.

They seemed comfortable with each other. And I think that Jesse's going to be able to give Clayton a lot of really fantastic advice this season. Definitely. And you want to know what one of the most fun parts watching it all back was was, was obviously we haven't filmed at the mansion in a while but this was both Clayton and Jesse's first times at the mansion because when Jesse yeah because when Jesse was bachelor I don't even think the mansion was a thing yet I don't know where they were when they filmed his season but

it was fun to see them get the lay of the land and kind of start this new I don't want to say journey but I'm going to say journey if you will together do it say it how many cliches can we make in one episode so many but it really did it brought a lot of the magic back to the show. I mean, we haven't seen the mansion in over a year now. It's obviously an iconic building in the franchise. And I was personally really excited to see it brought back to life. And I'm sure Clayton and Jesse really kind of felt it all come together. Yeah, it was a night one is always so fun. I mean, there's, of course, so many women that we meet, so many different entrances, so many different personalities, which leads me to how I want to start this out. Because before we

like really get into the recap of everything. We saw so many different styles, so many accessories, beautiful dresses, which I want to get into because I know how much you love fashion and you always are style to the nines. You always dress so well. So I might hire you to style me. But I know I know you definitely took notes on the style and the accessory. So let's get into some of the highlights. Like who would you say was the best dress out of all these women? Yes. I am so ready to talk about the fashion because we saw some really great looks this season. I think we saw a lot more gold than we've ever seen before. There's usually a ton of red, I feel like, in the room. And this year we were more on like the gold palette, which I'm a big fan of. Speaking of gold, one of my

favorite best dress was Sarah. She was first of the limo. She had beautiful, like long, wavy hair. And the dress just fit her gorgeous. And I just feel like it matched her skin tone really beautifully. Yeah, a big fan of that look, but I'm going to have to give my best dress to Serene. She wore this stunning turquoise fitted dress with a low back, a little rooishing in the back. And what topped off the look for me was she had these gorgeous drop earrings on. She was the only one in that color, so she really stood out. But yeah, Serene would have to be my best dress. I have to agree with you.

I loved, so I'm newsflash, I'm sure this doesn't come as a shocked. not super into fashion. I just don't pay attention to detail that well. And when I watch these episodes back, there's so much going on that I'm trying to take in the conversation that I don't always pay attention to what people are wearing.

But Serene's gown was stunning. That color was incredible. I'm glad that she did something a little bit different and bold. And it was just beautiful. It fit her so well. I would give her the best dress of the night too. And I also have to agree,

there was so much gold, so many sparkles, which I was like, this is fitting for the new year. Absolutely, absolutely. Very like 20, 22, happy new year. Let's all throw on some gold, some sparkles. We didn't see as much white as we usually see. We only saw two-way dresses, but I did think that Susie, she was in like a one strap white tight gown. Her and Clayton, I was like, oh, we got like a little bride and groom moment happening here because he was in the Navy tucks. I was like, I'm liking this. they look really good together. Speaking of Susie, I'm a fan of Susie already. I hope Susie, if you're listening, please don't disappoint this season because right

now, I don't know if it's like her personality or if she just reminds me of somebody. Yeah. But she's, I'm calling it right now. She's a top contender. I think Susie will go far. Absolutely. Her personality, I mean, she's stunning, but her personality really shine through. I mean, I'm sure all the girls feel nervous to.

different extents. Maybe she was really nervous, but if she was, I couldn't tell. She just seemed to be really excited enjoying herself and very comfortable in her own skin. And yeah, I thought they definitely had chemistry. I see her going far as well. And she's a badass. She's not only traveled around the world, has lived in different countries, but she, and I don't want to screw this up, but she's in some sort of fighting. I think it's called jujitsu. Jujitsu, yes. Oh, my friend does jujitsu. I should, okay, okay. Yeah, she's a badass. Dang. Yeah. Okay. I was like when I saw her intro package, I was like, I'm a fan of this one. And I loved her intro too. She didn't just go in for the hug. She went in for the firm handshake with the buzzer. So you know she's got a good sense

humor. I know. I thought the firm handshake was a bull move. I was like, Susie, where are you going with this? This is The Bachelor. Let's go in for that hug. But she played it off really cute. And I really liked her entrance. I also really liked who was the other. entrance I was saying oh uh Kate Kate did the the nips entrance or she pulled out her shots I thought that was adorable I thought she played it off super well oh I thought she was gonna when before she pulled out the bottles I thought you know how like we wear the like the nipple covers like the petals or the I call them chicken cutlets I thought that's what she was going to pull out and I was like damn girl in the first meeting I'm so happy it was shot that which I think was good I think it helped loosen

of them up a little bit. You know, let's be honest, that night is so full of nerves and it's just, like, I feel like sometimes at different moments, you're paralyzed with just like everything that's happening. So I felt like it kind of brought them down to like this fun level where they could just take a sit, feel the burn, get into the rest of the night. It was good. Speaking of going back to Susie's entrance with the firm handshake, did you think that was

more bold or do you, I don't even remember who did it, but there was one woman who walked in and didn't even talk. She didn't say a damn word. Yes. Wait, I feel like I wrote her name down. I think it was Ivana. Ivana. And I thought it was kind of sexy.

I could never have pulled that off because I talk way too much and I get too nervous. Oh, I could never. I could never have done it. I would have been so nervous. I would have looked so awkward. She was an overall bold entrance because she was wearing like a really bright green. Yeah, like a one sleeve dress, like very like sexy. And she came out and I was like, where is this going?

when she's going to talk, never. She was never going to talk. I loved it though. I loved her style and I'm sad to say she left. I know. And I don't know if it's because that was like one of their only interactions that they had where they couldn't even speak. I think it's hard too because not everyone necessarily gets to talk to the lead on the first night. And if she didn't get a chance to talk to him inside, I mean, he's going off of knowing nothing about her. So I think something like that is definitely a risk. It could go either way. Yeah, it was a little risky. Didn't play out for her, but who knows, maybe we will see her on Paradise one day.

I loved that dress, though. Girl, I didn't know where you got that dress from. It was stunning. Yeah, it was a statement for sure. Overall, it was some great entrances, some pretty chill entrances, but we need to get into the actual first night. And not only like in the midst of the chaos, but prior to that, we have something that happened that I don't think we've ever seen before on the show.

and that is a woman self-eliminating before the arrivals even. That was, yeah, definitely a shock. Sally shocked the nation for sure with that one. I can say I've never seen that from my time watching the show. And all I'll say is I want Sally on the podcast because I got a lot of follow-up questions about this engagement, about the wedding. I mean, I want the details, but I will say I respected that she turned down Clayton's Rose. Yes, I did too. I'm actually, and I will say overall too, I'm surprised that they even included any of that because quite frankly, like, we didn't need to see any of Sally's intro package. We didn't need to see that conversation. They really could have just cut that out and have him meet the 30 girls night one. And so it leads me to think, I have a suspicion that people are going to fall for Sally. People are going to really. like Sally and this is not going to be the last time we see Sally on a season. I think once she's

had more time to heal and get through that breakup, you know, because she was engaged, she was about to get married for goodness sake. I think once she's had more time and is really ready, I think we'll see her back on our screens. I mean, she's beautiful. She seemed, you know, like she just wasn't ready, wasn't the place for it. But I also think that it speaks to Clayton's journey. I think that's probably why they showed it because when I was watching it, you know, I definitely felt for Sally. I respected that she, you know, leaned into her decision of, you know, I'm not ready and I'm going to go home. I think that was the respectful thing to do for both Sally and for Clayton. But I think, imagine, I mean, you were the lead, Becca. How would you have felt if someone

came, tried to leave, this was, you know, before you're even stepping out of the limo, you said, hey, I feel the connection. I'm excited. I want you to say, here's the rose. And they said, no. I mean, Clayton's first rose as The Bachelor was turned down. How do you think that affected him going to night one? Oh, it would have been tough. And I was thinking about that. Like, how would I have reacted? I mean, I think he looked so kind, so thoughtful. I think he looked very respectful in that moment where he, you know, he was into her. He had mentioned that there was that connection, that chemistry, but he can't force anything and he has to respect her wishes. So I think he came across looking great in that scenario. But I think being in that position when you're already nervous,

it's already very overwhelming. I would be torn because I'd be like, okay, I still have so many incredible people I'm going to be meeting tonight. Like, I'm not going to let this really put a damper on what's to come because there's still so much potential. But also, I would feel a little bit down because let's be honest like that's like whoever the lead is is the most eligible eligible person to be dating right now and so that just it because it doesn't happen I'd be a little shocked and like you know it wouldn't feel great it would be a little kick to the gut of like uh okay is this what it's going to be like what was the point of that conversation if she wasn't ready um i will say though his energy going into night one seemed super excited once that first lim will

pulled up. So if he was phased by it, he didn't show it. And all the women seemed fantastic. So I think he's got a really good group. But Sally wasn't the only woman to leave that night. We also had Claire. Now, that was a whole different situation. I'll say, I have always kind of wanted someone to meet the lead and say, you know what? I don't feel the connection. I mean, there's so many women there. Someone has got to not feel it. But I think Claire maybe took it a little too. too far with how open and strongly she was expressing her dislike for Clayton. And I think it's definitely for the best that she's not there anymore. Yeah, I will say it was entertaining because, again, that's not something we've seen before.

I mean, most people are head over heels for whoever it is, even if it's just because you're like, stuck into that moment. But the way she went about it was terrible. And she lied basically on national television. Like she flat out said, I hate him. And then when he confronted her about it, she said, I didn't say that. She was like, no, I don't hate you. I was like, well, you did just say it multiple times that you needed him.

We have the footage. We have the receipts. But, yeah, I mean, when she sat down was like, the vibes just aren't there, I was like, totally fair. Like, I've been waiting for this to happen. But then when she went on to just be like, I hate him, it's awful. I was like, well, Claire, you know, there's a woman who's outside that can take you home. And I think that you should get in one of them. What did she say when she walks back in?

Obviously, it was because she was hurt because he walked away with somebody else. Oh, my God. I know exactly what you're referring to. If he would have sat down and not gone off with the other woman, probably then and there to talk to and just sat and talked to Claire, she probably wouldn't have had that big of a reaction. But she walks in and she goes, he's a catastrophe. I was like, is he or are you? Like, was your tailgate more of a catastrophe?

I don't know. I think it was more so of an ego thing, I will say. Honestly, she'll also probably be in Paradise. I mean, she'll be entertaining. She would have made a great villain, if you will. But we didn't get to see that much of her, which is probably a good thing. Maybe on Paradise or in her real life, she will find someone that is the right person for her. And clearly that was not Clayton. Exactly. Well, I can't wait to see more of this season to get to get to know Clayton and all of these women a bit more. But there's somebody that we have joining us right now that we really want to get to know for who he is because I have a feeling he's going to be around for quite some time. So without further due, Serena, I think we should bring on Jesse Palmer. Yes, let's do it. Jesse, we are so excited to have you. And Serena and I were talking a little bit before you got on because we obviously know a bit about you, but we're so excited to have you here to get to. know you so much more. I know that you were the Bachelor in 2004, correct? I was, yes.

Okay. So it's good that you're already part of the Bachelor family, the Bachelor Nation. I'm sure you've seen so many things changed throughout the year since your time on the show. But since then, catch us up on your life. What have you been doing since 2004 and now? Oh, my gosh. Okay. Well, we filmed the show in 2004. I think I was like 25 years old. I was in my third year with the New York Giants. I was playing quarterback in the NFL. It was my dream job.

When the show wrapped, I went back, kept playing football for another couple of years, and then started a career in broadcasting with ESPN covering college football. So that started in like 2007. And I've been kind of doing that, really, for the last 15 years. It's been like ESPN, that opened the door for some football. network. I got into Good Morning America, Daily Mail TV, and a lot of different, a lot of a different sort of mediums on air. I've done some projects for ABC in the Bachelor family as well. I hosted the proposal. We just did Ultimate Surfer this past summer. So professionally, that's kind of

where life has taken me since. Personally, I finally met the love of my life about five years ago here in New York City. It took me a while. But I finally got there. And I met Emily and Emily and I got married last summer, which was, which was, yeah, thanks. It took took me a minute. But we finally got there. And so it's been really, really exciting. We're just, you know, we're here living in New York City. And obviously, been a huge, huge fan of the show.

I've been watching all the shows all along. And obviously, as a member of Bachelor Nation, tuning in religiously. And obviously, so to have this opportunity and teach. get to be a part of it and to help Clayton on his journey coming up starting tonight. For me, really, it's a dream come true. I mean, this is really like a full circle moment for you then, going back and being, you know, Bachelor number five to pursuing a career, getting married. Congratulations on that.

And now you're back at the Bachelor Mansion being the host. I mean, how did that feel? Were you excited? Were you nervous? I know you've never been to the mansion before. So that was new for you as well as Clayton. Yeah, it's so true. It's funny sometimes how life happens.

Like at the time, when I was, when I, well, I never knew I was going to be the bachelor in the first place. And then never knew that I would have this opportunity to come around full circle. So I was just so excited. The first night being there at the mansion to me, I was like fanning out, really. Because I had actually never been to the mansion before. When I was the bachelor, it was a totally different house. So, you know, we kind of got there. I was nervous.

I kind of had all the feels. It was like nervous. I was excited. And I remember specifically taking a lot of. time to sort of like tiptoe around the mansion and kind of look at the rooms and there was just so much nostalgia there it was like oh yeah there's the foyer where they have the foyer chats and of course that's the rose ceremony room there's the couch where all the women sit and that's the table that you put the first impression rose on oh my god that's the fireplace where champagne gate happened

on peter's seat i totally remember this is it and it's like i'm going around i'm checking all the boxes and it was you know that moment standing out in front when clayton's finally arriving in the limo that like my heart dropped. I just thought, how cool is this? It's amazing that I'm standing here again virtually. Obviously, I was at a different house before, but that's the moment that really kind of hit me. So, you know, people will see that, I think, on tonight's episode. I mean, you're kind of going through all the fields. There's nervous, there's excitement, but I think just being there to help out Clayton on his journey to find love for me being there in a place that obviously feels nostalgic having seen so much. It was really, really cool.

Well, and I'm sure you out of anyone could help him through all of the nerves and the excitement because you were a bachelor in the past. Like you were in his shoes. And so going into that knowing that you had that lead role in the past, how do you think that helped both you and Clayton prepare for the overall season? Yeah, great question. I think it helps a lot. I hope. And, you know, one thing I've been lucky yet to do is having a chance to watch. and Caitlin over the last couple of seasons,

I thought they did an amazing job. And I think what's unique watching them, because, of course, they were in that role as well. I think a big part of hosting The Bachelor and helping Clayton is being empathetic and sympathetic, I think to the emotional roller coaster that goes on throughout the entire journey. As you know, too, Becca, like being in that role, there's just nothing you can do to prepare yourself for that.

And I think it's trying to help them navigate all the different feelings they have throughout the course of the show. And it's the tough moments. It's the tough decisions. It's hurting other people's feelings and making those types of decisions. It's the uncertainty you have when you stop trusting yourself and self-doubt starts to creep in. And these are obviously things that everybody in the world feels at different times their life dating. But when it's in that kind of environment and you're dating multiple women at the same time. knowing that there is hopefully a proposal at the end of the at the end of the road it can really really feel overwhelming so to me I think the pressure for me really was just hey how can I best help Clayton find what he wants and what he wants to find his love he wants it so badly he wants to be married he wants to have kids and he puts a lot of pressure on himself in this situation and environment because he obviously knows this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity meeting this many incredible women

but I think people will see tonight. Yeah, I think people definitely saw, you know, you and Clayton have a great chemistry so far, and I think he's really lucky to have you. And we're obviously excited to see his journey and you join him throughout this season. But for a second, let's take it back to 2004 because we really want the listeners to get to know you and your journey.

So how did you become The Bachelor? Because you weren't picked from a past season, kind of similar to how Clayton was this season. Totally true. I have no idea how I was picked, actually. And I think because I was one of the first bachelors on the show. Like, I think the show was still kind of trying to figure itself out in a lot of different ways, if that makes any sense at all. It was still reality TV back then, this is going to date myself, reality TV back then was still a very new phenomenon.

And there was like big brother. And then all of a sudden, The Bachelor and Survivor, like these were shows that, you know, it just started kind of creeping up. And so I think they wanted an athlete to do it. I'm sure they probably interviewed a lot of different athletes in different sports. And at the end, they picked the Canadian guy who was playing football in New York. And so, like, I had no idea what I was getting into. I hadn't really watched the show before. I didn't totally get what it was or understand it, except I wasn't a point in my life that I did want to fall in love.

And I did want to get married. And when everything was explained to me, it just seemed like, obviously, a totally unique concept that was at the time so far out there. It wasn't a part of mainstream culture yet like it is now. So it really was a leap of faith that I took. And I feel like I was a guinea pig in a lot of ways because I actually was the first to do a lot of things. I was the first bachelor ever to give a first impression rose, actually. Really?

You started the trend. You were also the first bachelor here to say the wrong name at a rose ceremony. Sorry to bring this up. Correct, Serena. That is correct. There were a lot of firsts on my season. I remember they were like, hey, so you're going to go in and on the very first night and you're just going to like take this rose and just give it to somebody that made a really strong impression on you.

And that's the first impression rose and just go for that. And it was kind of like, oh, okay, we were kind of like figuring it out. And then just Trina's point a few hours later, I was the first bachelor to ever, I want to say forget a girl's name, but call out the wrong name out of row ceremony. So how did that happen? Were you looking at the, like, were you looking at somebody and said the wrong name? Or how did this all go down? Oh, Becca, it was the worst.

It was like, so this is also like, you know, in full disclosure, like the rose ceremonies kind of go early into the night. Even back then, they would go early in the night. Everyone's tired. Everyone maybe had a set of a cocktail or two. And I'm sitting there. And I forget, I forget how many roses I was handing out. It might have been like 16 or maybe it was 20. And I decided I was just going to go for it.

All of them at once. I wasn't going to like do three names or four names and then be like, I'll be right back. And I'm like, walk off set, come back. And I'm like, I'm going to do this. I'm going to go 16 for 16. And I'm going to just run the table. Wow. That is bullsy.

It was so aggressive. And like, you know, if you're going to go big, you might go home. And that's kind of what happened. I was just like, I was cruising. I was in a flow. I was just like, make an eye contact. Like, you know, they tell you to look down and then look up and boom. I was like, locked in.

There's the name. She walks right towards me. We have the moment. It's great. And then there was a girl, Karen, who I wanted to give the rose to. And I knew exactly who she was. I knew what she was wearing. I remember everything we had talked about.

And I had a thousand percent conviction that I was absolutely right. And I did the thing where it's like you look down and then Polly or whoever kind of waves at you to like, give the rose and I looked up I'm looking at me right at Karen and I'm like Katie and lo and behold I just from my peripheral vision see a woman walking towards me of course there was a Katie on my season also who I wasn't going to give a rose to that the plan that night honestly was I wasn't going to give her one and so she kind of like it was like playing quarterback and getting like blind sides sat it was essentially like you're looking over here and then like the guy comes and hits you. That was Katie. So that's basically what happened. So I learned a very valuable

lesson. And I would be lying if I told you, uh, tonight during Clayton's first row ceremony. I definitely was experiencing some PTSD. Just sort of like, you're kind of in the back room. You're like, oh God. I'm like, tell them, I'm like, come on, do it. Clayton, say the name. You've got it. You got it. And so. Oh my gosh. Lots of first. I give you so much credit for trying to go balls to the walls all 16 in a row because, I mean, I, the first night, because I remember being, like, it's so overwhelming. There's so many different men, names, things happening. Like, there's no way I would have remembered everyone's name. Like, there's just no way because I blacked out because I was so nervous.

So for you to just say, F it, I'm going to do it. I give you props. one more thing that was a first on your season was you were the first to send someone home and then have them come back there was there was a lot going on there was there was women who went home I had a spy also on my show a lot of people forget that a spy we like one of the women know that no tell us more I got to watch your season I had I don't think it's streaming on a Hulu yet thank God But I had my best friend's wife posing as one of the women. And she was living in the house and she was getting all the dirt in the scoop for me.

And so, you know, for me, like I went in, I'm like, okay, if I'm going to do this, like, I want to make sure that was my way of trying to have as much control as I could. How can I find a way to make sure these women are here for the right reasons or they're not playing me? And so her name was Jenny. And Jenny is the biggest sweetheart. She was so brave to do it. And I say brave because I don't think Jenny realized like she started becoming friends with everyone, obviously. And she started developing relationships. And there was a trust factor there.

And there was a moment, like we kind of kept Jenny around, kept giving her roses, kept her around. And then it got to a point when I felt like I had a pretty good handle, we finally sent Jenny home. But of course, that meant Jenny had to come clean. Right. So did she tell the women before she left? This feels like a movie plot. I want to see a movie or a showmate out of this. I mean, where's Jenny today?

No, we need to. Is she still working as a spy? ABC released the footage. We need to see all of Jesse's season. This is good. She was such a champion, and she did it for me. I'm forever indebted to Jenny. Jenny's like the best.

Today, she's obviously, she's married to my best buddy. They've got five beautiful kids. Like, they're just, she's the best. but yeah it was like another thing like when i think back to it i'm like we were just you know there was so many different elements to the show and everything was always changing um and like you guys said like the show the core concept and the principle of it is the exact same basically from when i did it to beck and when you did it to what clayton's doing if the houses are bigger the budget's bigger your destination's like i didn't get to travel to all the amazing places you guys got to

go like i think we went to like my overnight dates were washington dc Quebec City and like we did go to the Bahamas I think we went to the Caribbean for one of us so that was that was awesome at least you could travel poor Serino was stuck in the same resort for two months yeah I was in Nemekollin for two months

that place will always hold a special place in my heart but Jesse it sounds like you had tons of amazing advice to pass along to Clayton I mean make sure you say the right name don't go for all 16 at once get yourself a spy I mean was there anything else that you passed along

to him that you know future leads might want to know you know i think for me you know obviously it was it was the obvious stuff too hey be yourself be vulnerable you know do all those things but but there was one thing that i did try to tell him at the beginning and that was to not be lazy and what i mean by that is i think for because i was the basher and sort of so having kind of lived it i think sometimes as as the lead you can sort of rest on your laurels a little bit and what i mean by that is you're kind of like, I'm the bachelor. I'm the man. All these women are going to have to come over here and grab me and talk to me. They're going to have to come chase me and earn my love for them too. And what I was really sort of encouraging to do was to be aggressive, to get out

and really sort of, you know, show, show interest. Because just because you're the bachelor, it does not guarantee that anybody needs to fall in love with you or will fall in love with you. have to show your best self, and you really have to make that effort. You really have to step out under comfort zone and do that. I mean, what you have to remember, you know, these women, a lot of them had never even seen Clayton until they got out of the limousine. His season on Michelle's season, that didn't air until after we started actually filming, and our season was essentially wrapped. So more than ever, you know, it's not like these women had seen them on Michelle season and kind of knew all about them. Maybe seen a picture of them

or something. But like there's a lot of very authentic and real moments tonight. When people get out of the limo, there's a connection right away or there's not, and it's genuine because they just haven't seen them. So my biggest advice to him was, hey, don't be lazy, you know, really try to be to show your best self and really put your best foot forward. And you have to make an effort. It's, I think, so, so important. I think something Clayton is a really. good job of doing. I want to ask you this because now just going through everything and you bring up Michelle's season, he didn't make it to the final weeks. Obviously, he didn't go to hometowns. He didn't do the overnights. He didn't do the meet the families. So he really, you know,

only made it so far in Michelle's season and had no idea what to expect. So do you feel like obviously we saw you there for him night one? And I'm sure, you know, as typical host, you're in and out and kind of leading the way for him week by week. But did you feel like you stepped in a bit more for him than we've seen in the past because he didn't know what to expect in those big moments, especially when it comes down to the wire? Yeah, great question. You know, it's funny.

Part of, I think, the charm, at least for me, for Clayton, is that he's sort of naive to everything, but it's authentic. And it comes from a good place. Clayton never watched the show before he went. on Michelle's season. So a lot of this, you've got to kind of remind yourself that a lot of this is still very, very new for him. So to your point, there are moments tonight where, you know, I kind of, I do have to step in

and just sort of remind him, okay, here's, here's where we are. This is what's happening. Here's the first impression, Rose. This is what this is all about. This is how this works and how it's going to go. But you know what's really amazing is that because Clayton hadn't really watched the show, much. He doesn't totally get the rhythm and the flow and the ebb and the flow. So I think one of the most exciting things about this season, I think that Bachelor fans of viewers at home

are going to stay, there are really are a lot of firsts. I know when we all watch the show in our individual seasons, there's, you know, it can seem sometimes formulaic and there's different beats the show takes episode to episode. And people at home sort of expect, all right, we go from this number to this number, and now they're going to go travel and the overnight dates are coming in hometowns, et cetera, et cetera. You know, there's kind of this quote-unquote unofficial rulebook. Clayton is not afraid to break rules to find love. And one thing I kind of am constantly reminding them of throughout the season

is that really on The Bachelor, there are no rules. You can kind of do what you want in order to get to where you want to go. So Clayton puts so much pressure on himself to find love and to get married and to have kids. He realizes like the severity of the moment, for lack of a better term, and Clayton is willing to do anything to get there. And I think viewers are going to see that. I love that you mentioned throwing away the rule book or the so-called playbook with Clayton being somewhat of, you know, he's a new bachelor, but he wasn't on. for an extensive amount of time on Michelle's season. But I think we really saw that in the first episode last night,

and I think it was really interesting because, you know, he went to hand out a rose before the night even started, and then he sent home Claire right away. Is there a favorite moment from that first episode where you were like, wow, like, I love this moment. It really shows off Clayton and how great of a bachelor he's going to be.

Because I think you can really feel right out of the gate that he wants love and he wants children, and he is looking for that. And like you said, he's willing to do what he's got to do, even if that's not the norm for The Bachelor, to find his person. Yeah, it's like, and you're so true. It was probably right at the beginning. I think, you know, we were all sort of reminded of watching him get sent home from Michelle's season

when he got really emotional reading the letter that the kids had written for him. And you get to see it on his face. Like, he wears his emotions pretty hard. And you get to see from him how badly he wants it. And right out of the gate in the first episode, Sally comes to his door at the hotel and she sort of delivers the news that she was supposed to get married on that night. And her heart is sort of being torn and she doesn't know what to do. And Clayton's very receptive to it.

But, you know, Clayton kind of goes for it. He sort of excuses himself from the table. He goes and gets a rose. I don't know where he got the rose from the hotel lobby and brings it. He's like, oh, I'm down that outside and brings it back. in and presents the road offers a rose to her before anybody's even been to the mansion Clayton included. So I think that just goes to kind of show you sort of the cahones Clayton has. Like he's not he's not afraid to kind of take risks, fully understanding that he could

very well get rejected. And I got to be honest, in that moment watching it live, I totally thought she would accept it. Like I thought that was such a, it was such a chivalrous move, if you will, from Clayton with really good intentions. I think that came across right away. So I'd say for me, I think you got to see a lot about who Clayton is in that moment of the show. I want to ask you this.

You got to know Clayne on a whole new level. I mean, you went through this entire season with him, which is it really bonds people. And Serene and I have been lucky enough to spend some time with Clayton outside of the show just to catch up, see how he's doing. And one thing

that he has mentioned, and I hope he, I don't think he would mind me saying this is he really struggles when there's not structure, when there's not, you know, he's not in control. And being the lead of the show, you truly have no control over anything. You don't plan your schedule. You don't plan the dates. You just kind of have to go with the flow and you're at the whims of the show and the women and everything that happens. So do you feel like, you know, night one aside because that's, it's whole own chaotic evening throughout the season did you feel like there was a time where he kindly when where he was kind of able to shed that lack of control and just kind of throw his arms up and say you know what

will be will be and I'm just going to go with this where he could finally really enjoy and embrace what he was doing definitely and I think you hit it right on the head first off for all this former football players like we are creatures of habit for sure we're used to waking up at a certain hour working out at a certain hour. We know exactly what we're going to eat pregame. We know what happens for the national anthem before the game, where you stand, you play the game, you go home, you do your media, and you just repeat every single week. So for Clayton and his whole background, this was very unique to your point. And it was very difficult for him. I think early on, just like it was for myself and maybe for you too during your experience, you definitely do

see as the season progresses, Clayton kind of starts to get a handle of it. And again, you know, from never having watched the show very much at the beginning, so much of it is new and fresh. And the situation's group dates. I mean, he's literally got his head on a swivel. He was looking around. He doesn't know which way is which. I mean, like all of us did. He definitely starts to kind of get a grasp in a handle. And you can really sort of see the confidence. And you can see kind of his personality, I think, really sort of shine in those moments when he he starts to sort of figure it out because you're right. I don't think anybody's ever just walked into that mansion night one and been like, I know exactly what I'm doing. This is a walk in the park.

30 women, let's go. It's like he, you know, listen, it was quite, if I'm being honest, as a host, like I was kind of feeling the same thing too. I'd never hosted the show. I'd never been in the mansion. So really, like, you know, we talk about it outside the house on that first episode. We're both really nervous going into it. We're both. we're both kind of figuring it out. So it was nice, it wasn't just nice for him to have me. It was nice for me to have him too because we did have a lot of discussion

and conversations about, like, this is, this is crazy. Like, this is unbelievable. This is wild. And we're just, you know, as we're kind of going through it and trying to help each other. So it was, that was definitely unique and very nice. Yeah. I don't think anyone, you both had each other.

Yeah. I don't think anyone can walk into any role on the show and feel like they know exactly what's going on. I mean, it is so unique. It is so just, different than anything. So I think you guys being able to kind of support each other through it, and especially with you having the experience, was probably a, definitely a bonding moment. But I know when I met Clayton, what surprised me about him was he's so comfortable in his own skin. So as much

as like, I'm sure the chaos kind of threw him for a loop, he seems like someone who like really knows who he is. And is that's going to come across? And I feel like he's going to rest in that. Was there anything about Clayton meeting him? Because I'm, you know, if you watch Michelle, And there wasn't much to go off of, but meeting him, was there anything that you're like, wow, like, this really surprises me about this guy. I think it's going to make him a really good bachelor. Yeah, one of the things I really appreciate about Clayton is that if he needs help, he's not afraid to ask for it, which for a guy, and especially a former football player, that's kind of unique. Like, we're always sort of taught to kind of just figure it out on your own and just be alpha, like figure this out. You know, Clayton had a lot of questions coming into this,

and he didn't always have the answers and didn't know. And one of the things as a host that I really wanted to be careful with him is, first off, it's not about me or my experiences. And I didn't want to be the host that was like, well, on my season, I said this or on my season, I would do this if that ever happened. I told them right from the get to, hey, if you have questions, I'm happy to try to help you out, but I'm not going to just always kind of be around you. You know, a lot of it, and kind of to Becca's point, part of the magic of this is you kind of have to figure it out for yourself.

And that really is the best, I think, advice because all of our journeys are so different. I mean, his season isn't going to resemble mine at all, or Peters, or Coltons or Matt's, Serena yours, Becca, yours, nobody. I mean, we all have our own path that we're going to take. were all different and unique people. So I really thought it was wholesome. I thought it was really refreshing to find out Clayton had no problem at any point pulling me aside and being like, hey, I don't know what to do. Has this ever happened?

Can I do this? You know, what do you think about this? I know it's not easy, especially for a lot of men today to do that. And certainly one in that role, because you're the bachelor. You're supposed to have all the answers. You're the guy. And he's really, he's very sincere and very sweet that way. And I thought that was, that was probably the thing, Serena, that caught me off guard,

but probably the thing I was the most impressed about as well. I love that. That's great. Yeah. To your point, too, I mean, there's only so much you can see and get to know from somebody through the TV screen, but just spending time with him, he genuinely is just a good, kind man. Like, he is a very, very kind soul. And that's something that I'm sure will come across and viewers will get to know more.

But he's a good guy just looking for love. And it's very endearing, I would say. Even just watching night one and you two together, it's endearing to see him not quite know what to do or how this is going to be or what this entire journey will look like, but to just go with it. So I'm excited to see both of you along the way. One last question before we play a game. And that is, we know that there's so much to come and we also know that there's a lot you cannot give away.

So if you could give us three adjectives to describe Clayton's season so far, or I just guess of what will be, what would those three words be? Wow, three great adjectives. I would say first, I would say drama, and I would say love or journey. And I know those are sort of like taglines for this franchise in the show, but Clayton's story really is a beautiful story of love. And it's not the path that everybody might expect when they turn on the Bachelor episode one. This sort of takes a very, a very different, you know, there's a lot of things that happen that it kind of, he gets off the main path sometimes and does it, and does it knowingly and sometimes unknowingly, but it's, and because of that, there's a lot of drama and there's a lot of first. But I think that's, that's, that's his authentic path to finding love. And I think that's really going to come across as people continue to watch the season. Oh, right. I can't wait. Serena, are you excited?

I am so excited. Okay, well, we love our games at Bachelor Happy Hour. So we are going to do a little rapid fire to get to know Jesse Palmer more. So basically, we are just going to throw some rapid-fired questions at you, and you just answer what comes to top of mind right away, okay? Okay. Do you want to kick it off? Sure.

All right. Jesse, are you ready? Born ready, Serena. All right. Here we go. Starting off with number one, where are you from? Nippian, Ontario Wait,

everyone's like Nipian Ontario Nipian? It's like basically Ottawa, but it's like a little suburb kind of just outside of Ottawa. I mean hard hardcore Ottowans, can we call them Ottowans? They'll know.

But yeah, the nation's capital, the great, the great, great nation of Canada. Ottawa is a beautiful. Ottawa is a beautiful city. The Republic of Canada, yes. The Republic of Canada. All right. Well, you kind of answer this one, but before

you were bachelor what was your job i was a quarterback in the national football league for the new york giants my dream job did you know michael strahan we were teammates together for almost five years jesse michael strahan is my biggest crush is he really oh yeah i met him i and i don't really get nervous when i meet people and i met michael a couple times and i can't talk thomas don't listen to this part of the oh thomas no it's so funny it's so funny michael strahan is just your biggest crush, and Michael Srayhan has crushed me, literally on the football field. I wish he crushed me. We totally have. Wow, you lucky, lucky man, damn. I'm getting nervous. Just thinking about it. When there's like

a 300-pound person chasing it, it's a little bit of a different scenario. I'm also a very big fan of stray. 50 shades of strength. 50 shades of strain. Man, I like that. That can be the new tagline. Okay, Serena. Well, moving away from football and the wonderful Michael Stry for a second, what is your favorite sport other than football? Right now, it's tennis. My wife, Emily, and I are playing a ton of tennis.

I've traveled to the world. I've been to the French Open. I've been to Wimbledon, U.S. Open. I've been to, I've watched tournaments in Rio de Janeiro. I love tennis. And it's actually a great thing you can do as a couple. Joe and I want to take lessons together, actually. Thomas and we said the same thing.

Really? Oh, my gosh. Let's do like a couple. A couple's tournament. Yeah, couples tournament and mixed doubles. It'll be amazing. What a Bachelor? This could be a new show.

We'll stream it on a ho-le-le-le-le- It'll be a Bachelor-Tennis tournament. Bachelor takes tennis. I love it. But before we start that, Jesse, can you train just us and no one else? So we have a little advantage over the men. We have a little leg up. Wait, you guys are acting like what makes you say I'm good at tennis. Fair point.

Maybe we'll ask your wife instead. Maybe we'll ask Emily, yes. Exactly. She would say the same thing. She's definitely the more athletic than two of us. All right. Do you and Emily have any pets? We do.

We have a mini-a-sidoodle. Her name's Lulu. She is our world. She's a COVID dog. We got her from Salt Lake City, Utah. And she is our joy. She really is. She's so sweet.

She's so smart. Sometimes too smart. But she's been, she's a little cuddle bunny. She's just the best. We are big dog fans over here. Huge dog fans. Bring Lulu to California next time you start filming at the mansion. I'll be the official pet sitter.

Okay, perfect. All right, Jesse, the people want to know. What is your favorite cheat day meal? Oh, my gosh. Burger and probably chicken wings. Pizza burger, pizza burger. Like, does that, have you guys ever had a pizza burger? No.

It's kind of a New Jersey diner thing. So, like, you know, playing for the Giants. I was living in Hoboken, New Jersey. There was this legendary old diner called the Malibu diner. It was like down the street. And essentially, a pizza burger, essentially a burger, and you just take mariner sauce and you just kind of smother it in marinerar sauce. How have I never worked this?

But then you put the bun on. Oh, Becca, it's a life. It's just a total banishment. Are you a fries or an onion rings kind of guy? Fries. Regular or sweet potato? Regular and tons of Tabasco. Oh.

I love spicy food. Indian food is my favorite food in the world. So, like, and growing up in Canada, and Serena will attest to this, we have some of the best food in the world, but Indian food. Like, my best friends growing up were Indian, and I used to always get to go and play at their house growing up. Oh, yeah, so like spice. Oh, so Tabasco on everything. Tabasco on the burger, on the chicken wings, on my Cheerios, Tabas. Jesse, my mom is Indian, so you'll have to come over for some homemade Indian food.

Yes, I'm in. I'm so down. I'm inviting myself, too, thanks. Becca, you are always invited. All right, Jesse, what is your favorite city in the world? Paris, France, for France. Good food there, too. Also great food there, yes.

Emily and I try to go, we try to go once a year. We love it. I've always said it's like my dream one day to have like an apartment somewhere and like want to be Acrovisement in Paris. So that would be really great. It's so magical there. I love it. It's such a romantic city.

Yes, I have an absolutely. dying to go there. We've been watching Emily and Paris and it's just giving me all the feels. I know. So it's true. I actually also watch. It's a good one. Okay. Do you prefer watching sports or playing sports?

I prefer playing sports until tackling is involved and then I totally enjoy watching. And you're like, send you to the couch. Yeah, it's like for my job now. It's like I'm, you know, like I met the Rose Bowl a couple days ago watching Ohio State and Utah play. And

I'm watching all these guys run into each other from, like, feet away from them. And I'm like, why did I ever want to do this? Like, I did this? What? What was I thinking? This is crazy. My body feels so much better now waking up, hosting the Bachelor versus when I was trying quarterback, getting chased by Michael Strayhand.

That was an awful. Yeah, way, way less stress on the body. So, yes, I would say it kind of depends on the situation. But if tackling is involved, I'd rather just be on the couch. Yeah. I don't blame you. All right. This is a good one.

Do you have any guilty pleasures? Ooh, I define guilty. A guilty pleasure. Besides the bachelor. Besides the bachelor. All of our guilty pleasures here at half the hour. Yeah. Guilty pleasures.

Give me like a theme so I can like, I'll just want to know where I'm allowed to go on this. Do you like, like, trashy romance novels, Hallmark movies? Well, well, well, Serena just. mentioned it. I actually am watching and have watched the whole Emily and Paris. It's good. Nice. That is a guilty pleasure for sure. It is. Yeah, for sure. I mean, like, through COVID, we've obviously binged a lot of different shows, but I feel like Emily and Paris for me has actually kind of been under the radar. I wouldn't share that with too many of my guy friends, but it's like, but like in the safety of this place. You get addicted. It's, it really sucks you in.

It totally does. And each episode is so. short that it's an easy happy watch. It's just it's a feel good show. Totally. It's a dose. A nice dose of Paris in bad fashion. Yeah. Very interesting fashion. You get the beautiful views. You get beautiful men.

It's a good show. And I will say this new season, okay, don't give anything away because I'm only halfway done. But her friend is such a good singer. So I love that they have like the musical in it too. Yeah, there's a lot of performance. Sometimes I feel like maybe too much

performance. I think they could kind of like set that down. She gets a full song in every episode for the whole season. It had to be contractual. Yeah. I think so yeah. For sure. All right. So we just had Christmas. We had New Year's Eve. We had a lot of binging Emily in Paris. What is your favorite holiday, Jesse? Are you a Christmas guy? Are you an Easter dude? I am a Halloween guy. No way. I would say that is the most uncommon favorite holiday. It's true. And a lot of people randomly hate Halloween, which I cannot understand. I love getting dressed up. I love it. And I always partake. And if anybody hasn't done this, New York City has got to be the greatest Halloween city in the entire world. Everybody participates. I've been dressed as Mugatu from Zoolander

on a subway, on a subway, like holding the thing. I got Mugatua. Is that like your most iconic Like Halloween costume? That's the go-to. Yes. And you always remember what it is, too. Everyone right away should be able to tell you what was my best costume ever. Mugatu from Zuland, it was by far mine. That's amazing.

Being on the subway and everyone is in costume. Oh, yeah. It's like you don't kind of feel like I got to like tuck myself in the back of this. Everyone's going to think I look ridiculous. Everyone plays along. It's just the most fun. You wouldn't even need to leave. That's where I would go and just spend my entire night, eating candy in the

corner of the subway. Yeah, on the subway. Exactly. What were you this year? I couldn't do it this year because I was working. I was just, I was a, I was a sports

broadcaster slash hosted the fashion. I think I wore this jacket. Yeah, I was like two-faced. You pulled it off. Jesse, it has been such a blast having you. I'm so glad that we had you not only to kick off Clayton's season, but to kick off the first episode of 2022. Thank you so much for joining us.

Yes, it was such a pleasure to have you. Sarana Becca, thank you so much. Thank you. We'll see you soon, hopefully. We'll see you. Take care. Bye, Jesse. Bye, guys.

I really, really enjoyed him. I really like him too. And after watching him on the episode and then also talking to him, I just think he is such a wonderful fit as the host this season. I'm really excited to watch him. I am too. And I will say, because you know, you and I are both in touch with a lot of the team that still works on the show.

And everybody that I've talked to has nothing but such nice, incredible things to say about him. I think he really just went above and beyond, went out of his way to get to know everyone, to really spend time with Clayton and also the crew, which I think is really important, especially when you're spending so much time together. So I always like having guests on when, you know, you hear great things about them, but then you are able to sit and talk with them for a while and get to know them on a deeper level. And it's nice when you just have good gyms and people. Definitely.

He was so easy to talk to. And I think that he gave a lot of really great insight into who Clayton is and kind of what we can expect from this season. And it just has made me that much more excited to watch. I mean, drama, love. What else can you ask for? First, I am really excited about the first this season. I think it's always interesting to watch when there's a different kind of format or dynamic or the lead to something different. I think we're going to see a lot of that from Clayton.

based on what Jesse said today. Yeah, yeah. I think he's really going to make this his own. As every lead does, as Jesse said, nothing, not one season looks like the past. But I really think Clayton will have quite the ride and really make this his own, his own special journey.

And, you know, all I can hope is that he finds love because he is a good dude. So I know, I know how bad he wants that. So we will just have to wait and see. But thank you to all of our Bachelor Happy Hour. listeners for tuning in and a huge thank you to jesse for being here it sounds like it is going to be quite this season so i can't wait to watch a week by week so make sure you tune into bachelor happy hour every week after clayton's episodes because it's going to be one exciting journey also as a

reminder we are casting for both the bachelor and the bachelorette seasons so if you want to nominate yourself or somebody that you know that you think would be great for the show you can head to bachelornation.com slash apply. Also make sure to hit us up on social at Bachelor Happy Hour on Instagram at Bachelor Nation on TikTok and Twitter and then Bachelor Nation on Facebook for all the latest and greatest Bachelor Nation deeds.

And if you always want to catch our newest episodes and subscribe to the podcast, you can do that on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, the Wondry app, or wherever you're listening to us right now. Thank you so much everyone. Becca, thank you for having me this week. It was so much fun and can't wait to tune in next week. Thanks, Serena.

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