The Ben and Ashley I Almost Famous Podcast - Love is Wild

Episode Date: February 6, 2024

We’re recapping week 3 of Joey’s season of The Bachelor!  Ben shares some crucial advice for anyone thinking about going onto the show… and he wishes he could give this wisdom to Sydney! And… is the drama this season… all about nothing?? What makes a proper “villain”? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. My boyfriend's professor is way too friendly, and now I'm seriously suspicious. Wait a minute, Sam. Maybe her boyfriend's just looking for extra credit. Well, Dakota, luckily, it's back to school week on the OK Storytime podcast, so we'll find out soon. This person writes, my boyfriend's been hanging out with his young professor a lot. He doesn't think it's a problem, but I don't trust her. Now he's insisting we get to know each other, but I just want her gone.

Hold up. Isn't that against school policy? That seems inappropriate. Maybe find out how it ends by listening to the OK Storytime podcast and the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The U.S. Open is here and on my podcast, Good Game with Sarah Spain. I'm breaking down the players, the predictions, the pressure. And of course, the honey deuses, the signature cocktail of the U.S. Open. The U.S. Open has gotten to be a very wonderfully experiential sporting event. To hear this and more, listen to Good Game with Sarah Spain,

an I-Hart Women's Sports Production in partnership with Deep Blue Sports and Entertainment on the IHart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Brought to you by Novartis, founding partner of IHart Women's Sports Network. Culture eats strategy for breakfast, right? On a recent episode of Culture Raises Us,

I was joined by Valicia Butterfield, media founder, political strategist, and tech powerhouse for a powerful conversation on storytelling, impact, and the intersections of culture and leadership. I am a free black woman From the Obama White House to Google to the Grammys, Valicia's Journey is a masterclass in shifting culture

and using your voice to spark change. Listen to Culture raises us on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hi, my name is Enya Yumanzoor. And I'm Drew Phillips. And we run a podcast called Emergency Intercom. If you're a crime junkie and you love crimes, we're not the podcast for you.

But if you have unmedicated ADHD... Oh my God, perfect. And want to hear people with mental illness, psychobabble. Yes, yes. Then Emergency Intercom is the podcast for you. Open your free IHeartRadio app. Search Emergency Intercom and listen now. This is the Ben and Ashley I Almost Famous Podcast with IHartRadio.

Hey guys, welcome to the Almost Famous Podcast. Today we are breaking down episode three of Joey's season. And I know Ben is going to grill me on my friend, Sydney, because she is basically the entire show. It is a big storyline. Ashley cannot wait. Holy crap, only.

I cannot wait to hear all of your opinions on it. I can't wait to probably just battle with you back and forth. But let's get started before we dive into Sydney because I do feel like it's going to take up a majority of our episode. Because it's peppered through the entire episode. Sure. But we're going to save all of it until the very end because we'll break all those situations down. We'll start with the group date.

uh it's a great group date i think because it brings in the golden ladies i do think it was fun i also like this group date actually because i do believe these kind of dates show the personalities of the contestants yeah like this date it doesn't have to be uh it doesn't have to be grandiose it doesn't have to cost a lot of money it doesn't have to be anything crazy or exciting but what i do love is the fact that i feel like i know these women better after this date than i ever would if they dressed up in wedding gowns. Yes. I love this date.

This is a date that you love to watch on TV, but when you're told that you have to go on a date like this, you're like, oh my gosh, I have to come up with a talent. I have to answer a Q&A on the spot in front of a live audience. I have to model. Oh, my gosh. No, thank you. But it does tell so much about their personality.

And I think that Joey is able to tell who he likes a lot based on a date like this. And then it gives you a lot of content. to talk about in the night portion of the date as well. The couple thoughts here for you. These dates are fun. Yes, they make you nervous. But the thing that I think when I was the bachelor or when I had to participate in a date like this as a contestant, you just kind of got it, if you don't have like a tangible skill that you just know you could rock the room with,

you just want to do whatever, like just be confident being silly, right? Singing a song if you're not a good singer, playing a musical instrument, if you don't really know how to play juggling the best you can if you really only know how to juggle one ball at a time like just do something up there so that you're not like showing anger or showing like that oh i don't want to do it because i'm not good at anything like just do whatever be goofy so it's really hard i think to mess up these dates uh because you just want to see people have a good time though yeah the thing i didn't like about this day is going off what i just said um And we will bring up Sydney here because this isn't really a part of the drama.

Yeah. It felt like she got unrightfully hated for her response when she said I faked it. I was so dumb. Like, why are people mad that she's faked it? Hasn't most? I mean, I'm sure Jessica has. Like, I'm sure Jessica's like, yeah, all the time. Like, and I wouldn't even care.

Like, I get it. Like, I'm sorry. That was just them trying to foreshadow, like, her. saying things that people would disagree with but I think like in reality nobody really disagrees with that and then if she had said

she had said no I haven't then wouldn't she be like then wouldn't everybody be like oh liar oh you're too oh okay yeah so you're that great that's my question for you actually yeah that's where I want to get some insight because I heard it and I was like okay I it's unfortunate that you've had to

but is it that it's not rare and it's not like it like that's a thing right or am i just oblivious it's like a harry med sally staple it's like everybody that's like a thing i'm pretty sure you want me to like look it up on google because i'm pretty sure the stat will to come right right up how many women up to 80% is okay a time magazine this isn't the silent minority this is the majority this is the majority of people saying, hey, we've all been there. So one, that was weird. Two, I felt like Sydney got unrightfully hated for her performance.

I mean, I don't know if she was really taking it very serious. If she was and she was trying really hard to be impressive, then I can see where people would be like, this is a little awkward. But for me, I'm like, she was just trying to do something that she knew how to do in front of people. It felt like people were judging her way too critical. critically for doing what everybody else was doing, getting on stage and trying to do something entertained.

I think that there was, I don't think we saw the whole thing. I'm sure people were far kinder in real life than what it seemed like. And the only reason it seemed so crinchy to us was because the audience reaction seemed so quiet, but I really don't think the audience reaction was so quiet. And if it indeed was, like those people are...

Yeah, like clap for anybody. They're trying their best. Like, you tried to get up there and do it. So I guess without us knowing, you know, which is kind of in my theme here, without us knowing, I would just say it was, she got the wrong to the deal there. If for what it looked like on TV, which was that it was very awkward and very quiet for her, then I would say that was me. That was not nice. She was not on the mean into that moment. She was actually like, that was sad.

It was a very sad moment to watch. It was hard to watch. I felt for her. I know. I know. I was like, okay, so your cheer.

You don't look like a villain, but it's cringe TV. Yeah. I mean, it was, but all of them were a little awkward, right? I mean,

there was so many of the performance. Yeah, like Edwina singing. Like they made it seem like she was Catherine McPhee up there or something. And it's like, you guys, very brave of her.

instrument being played, there was Edwina singing, I forget all the other acts. But like there wasn't really one that was like, I am so good at this thing. I cannot wait to show you how good I am. It was like, we're going to get up here and try our best to just be decent.

And that's all, and that would probably all Joey wanted. It's just like, let's have fun with this. Let's not make this weirder than already is. What do you think about Lexi and her? The kiss, the greatest kisser out there. talent. I don't like any moment where a lead kisses somebody in front of the other people.

Yeah, I know. I don't like it. I just don't think it's helpful. I always try to never do that. So you would think that that moment was definitely more villainous, right? Or in bad taste. Maybe not even villainous because I get it. In bad taste. But I didn't have, I didn't, I didn't have an issue with it because she did deliver the moment with such confidence that I was like, I can't hate this girl for this like she's she's kind of rocking the moment but it is hard yeah i know as a contestant i would have been a lot more affected by that moment than i would have sidney's moment yeah right yeah a lot more affected it would be living in my head i'd be thinking about a night but of course the audience is going to go wild for that and so are the golden ladies yeah the golden ladies are great as always they're legends uh they're great over this weekend too they were very excited about them

Who was there this weekend? Kathy and Susan. Oh, okay. So they were hilarious. Oh, okay. Just the most outrageous of them all. Yeah, they're so fun. They're so wild.

They're the best. Actually, Kathy and I sat down for a really great conversation as well. And that was powerful. Kathy is a fan of the almost famous podcast, a great supporter of us, some really good words of encouragement for the two of us. But she was great. so fun. I could hang out with them all the time,

but I'd be exhausted, honestly. Yeah. Oh, they're like energy sucks because they just nonstop chatter. They have so much energy. Like, they could go from, like, I would walk out of my room at 6.30 in the morning and there'd be Susan. And then at midnight, we're still all out.

And I'm like, I don't know how this is happening. I don't like this. This is so exhausting for me, but they're ready to go back again. I feel like it's like a little bit of a fame high though, you know? It's a high on something and it's awesome. It's so great. Okay, so then we go into the group date cocktail party. This group date cocktail party is where the dramas kind of starts.

Yeah. So actually, actually, actually, I'm going to ask to skip. Actually, Ashley, I'm going to ask to skip the cocktail party for now because I know we're going to get back to it because what I want to do is walk through the timeline here of the Maria Sydney kind of. relationship and the argument, kind of from start to finish. So I'll actually go back and we'll start at this cocktail party later. They did have a cocktail party.

Is there anything else worth mentioning on drama related with them? Not really, other than the fact that the rose of the cocktail party. I went to Kelsey. That's a big deal. It's kind of, I feel like, is coming out party, honestly. This was kind of the first episode where we really got to know her a little bit more. I think we need to know her a lot. Bear as the season continues.

But this is really the first moment where we really got to know Kelsey. Yeah, I agree. And he likes her. Yes, he does. My boyfriend's professor is way too friendly, and now I'm seriously suspicious. Oh, wait a minute, Sam. Maybe her boyfriend's just looking for extra credit. Well, Dakota, it's back to school week on the OK Storytime podcast.

So we'll find out soon. This person writes, my boyfriend has been hanging out with his young professor a lot. He doesn't think it's a problem, but I don't trust her. Now, he's insisting we get to know each other, but I just want her gone. Now, hold up. Isn't that against school policy? That sounds totally inappropriate. Well, according to this person, this is her boyfriend's former professor, and they're the same age.

It's even more likely that they're cheating. He insists there's nothing between them. I mean, do you believe him? Well, he's certainly trying to get this person to believe him because he now wants them both to meet. So, do we find out if this person's boyfriend, really cheated with his professor or not? To hear the explosive finale, listen to the OK Storytime podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

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Listen to Wisecrack on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hola, it's Honey German, and my podcast, Grasasas Come Again, is back. This season, we're going even deeper into the world of music and entertainment, with raw and honest conversations with some of your favorite Latin artists and celebrities. You didn't have to audition? No, I didn't audition. I haven't auditioned in, like, over 25 years. Oh, wow. That's a real G-talk right there.

Oh, yeah. We've got some of the biggest actors, musicians, content creators, and culture shifters sharing their real stories of failure and success. You were destined to be a start. We talk all about what's viral and trending with a little bit of chisement, a lot of laughs, and those amazing vibras you've come to expect. And of course, we'll explore deeper topics dealing with identity, struggles, and all the issues affecting our Latin community.

You feel like you get a little whitewash because you have to do the code switching? I won't say white watch because at the end of the day, you know, I'm me. Yeah. But the whole pretending and you know, it takes a toll on you. Listen to the new season of Grasasas Come Again as part of My Cultura podcast network on the IHartRadio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you

get your podcast. What would you do if one bad decision forced you to choose between a maximum security prison or the most brutal boot camp designed to be hell on earth? Unfortunately for Mark Lombardo, this was the choice he faced. He said, you are a number, a New York State number, and we own you.

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And we didn't know what to expect in the morning. Nobody tells you anything. Listen to shock incarceration on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Back to the Mansion, Jess really wants to go on a one-on-one. We're kind of seeing that play out,

but the one-on-one does get announced. And it's for Jim. Jen gets the one-on-one. The day card says love is wild. And I'm really pumped about this one-on-one. I think Jen is kind of like a sneaky pick right now. She kind of has moved way up in my rankings after this week. You know she was always in my rankings.

She was in my four. She always was in your four. Well, so I guess for you, when you saw that she was getting the one-on-one, what was your thoughts? Oh, I thought, well, obviously. but then I also thought actually during the surfing part I was like I don't know if she is going to get four I didn't feel like they were super connected

during that part but I think that they did connect more when she started talking about her family situation on that date on like the nighttime date I think early on too I mean Joey is crushing it he's a great bachelor people are going to love them people do love them already i do think those one-on-ones when you're

doing an activity are kind of weird because there is this kind of unspoken rule that you can't get into anything serious yeah during them and so you kind of want to wait for the cocktail party so the deeper the human is and honestly sometimes the more the connection you have with this person the harder those one-on-ones are to not be awkward during because it's just so natural to talk about things that should be recorded. I'm so glad you brought that up. That is absolutely so true. So it's just kind of like you're flirting and giggling and stuff,

but you're not really having conversations of real substance. And plus, like, you're learning, she's learning how to surf and all that. So it's all, it's all giggles. It's all giggles. And that's really all they want. Again, it's the unspoken kind of rule that, like, hey, don't say anything too serious during this.

it's you know it's so those moments are kind of like they're forgetable for me honestly because I know they don't really have much depth to them other than the giggles and like the fun activity that you get to do together but activities like sports like this do help you open up later on you something to talk about it gives it's like you know gives you at that the evening when you sit down together like gives you something to speak about to share about to laugh about and then obviously jinn did get into her story uh how her story with her family um is a difficult one and uh one where she feels separated uh well she is like separated from her dad she has no role in her life yeah sad and um this was uh this was one of those moments during

the show when you watch and you listen you know that many people out there are probably watching this show and relating with her um and she's speaking to a lot of people out there it's a really difficult kind of story to share but the two of them I do believe got closer from it don't you? Oh yeah totally and like her parents relationship just like that's awful to grow up in

they're slamming doors and throwing things she said it was a traumatic house to grow up in and she thought that she was doomed for failure and like they lived in the same house but were separated and slept in different beds for like seven years so that's really rough but you know she

she seemed very comfortable with him at the end at this date and I liked I like it was an easy date for me to watch it was a good way to say it was an easy date for me to watch even in the midst of the heaviness it was like no these two are great together

so she skyrocketed up my rankings but while they're on their date she obviously gets the rose they're still very happy there's a beautiful moment with music playing and kissing and just your I mean they that they really went all out with that music it really felt like the love story was over I know it's not because we have a lot of show left you said this about Daisy you were like stop the show last week well I'm not saying stop the show I don't know I can't

say that about the two of them together yet but I say the music that was playing in the background okay like they went all out if you listen to that background music you're be like they went all out to make sure everybody knew that this date was spectacular. Okay, so one little note, knowing and having lived in L.A., going to the Hollywood Forever Cemetery for a date isn't that weird.

It's where they show movies and stuff and you go, like, lie out on the lawn. And it's kind of like a romanticized place in L.A. But if I was just... Are there celebrities buried there? Yeah, a lot of celebrities are buried there. but if I saw the opening like scene to that and I

saw that they were going to a graveyard and crematorium is that how you say? Crematorium. I'd be like, why are they going here for a date? That was never brought up. Yeah, it never was confronted, was it?

No. That's weird. Yeah. Like even if you were to say like, oh, people do date night here a lot, they have this big projector. Who the heck knows? But it was like kind of strange.

Back of the mansion, the second group date gets announced. Caitlin, Autumn, Rachel, Daisy, Evelyn, Kelsey T, Starr, and Jess are going to go on this date. It's a tennis date. The card says, I'm done playing singles. This, Ashley, was an incredible date. You love this. I knew you were going to love this because you're just a sporty guy and you probably knew who the tennis players were. And I was like, oh, this is one of my sports ones that, like, I'm not going to get to get to know anybody's personality.

but it does make sense with you know joey being a tennis pro well he's not a pro trainer trainer but it's fun it's funny i like that they dressed up in costumes i like that the girls had fun as a contestant these are the dates you dream of where it's not so much pressure this was very low pressure and very fun for them yeah fear induced where you're like jumping off of a bridge uh this was just like a fun activity with friends they probably had a few drinks they played a little tennis then they got all dressed up and went to the cocktail yeah uh and you know who stood out this this on this day it was katelyn who we haven't seen much of she ends up getting the group date rose and she she talks to joey about this curse

that her family has where her mom who has five sisters and one brother has the situation in which all the sisters are single. Mm-hmm. That's a curse. That's curse. That kind of is because it's her mom's, her mom's sisters. So they're all like adults.

It's not like she's saying like me and my sisters, all in our 20s. It's like, okay, well, he, but he thought it was funny and it was very cute. It was well done. It was well, like, he was. I thought it was perfect.

Yeah. And that she said that she doesn't need a man to validate her feelings and that's great too she just seemed like very confident her delivery of the story and just like fun and lighthearted which is why i think she ended up getting the group date rose but also kelsy t kind of comes out of the woodwork for the first time he practices a tennis swing with her and makes some comments about how like he really jives with her yeah you know this weekend actually uh i was in charlotte actually belmont speaking at the point community church and I got to speak to the church.

Great group people there. Fantastic group people. A lot of listeners who's almost famous podcast came in and one of the sessions I spoke on singleness. And my comment about singleness is what I tell my friends

and I've said it on here before. Like you're not promised relationship. But like I think that's one lie that we continue to tell ourselves. Yeah, you mentioned that's on a previous podcast. Yeah. And so it's super depressing. I know.

I'm just one of those guys. But the cool part is I had some really great people come up to me afterwards. And one of the things I did share and kind of one of the conversation I was able to be a part of is is about singleness. And the lessons about singleness that I've learned from hearing from people, especially this weekend, after Saturday night and Sunday services, is that if you're single, one of the best things you can do is become really in tune with yourself, start to love yourself, you can be confident

in yourself. And I think this was a great example of that. on this date was just she came in communicated well she's confident she's strong she would love to have a partner but she knows she doesn't need one like she's good on her own she's a human that can have a huge impact even without one i think she was a great example for all those singles out there right now of what you know of what you can be and what you should be it's very well said um another conversation that we see two others i think worth mentioning on this group date was rachel and joey first she gets her ear and caught on Joey's sweater.

She thinks it's kind of embarrassing. I would be like, no, this is a great moment to just be accidentally close to him. And it's cute and flirty. And then they talk about her dad and like her dad and how sweet and respectful and how much he adores and values her mom so much. And how he does like these little things and has like a gentleness to him. And she says that like she can kind of get vibes from. Joey that are like her dad. So this is just like another bonding moment between Rachel and Joey that I do think she's

going to get pretty far. And then we have Daisy talking to him. And this time she's like, do you have any questions about my cochlear implant? Like, do you want to like basically play with it? Yeah. So she introduces him to kind of like the actual equipment. They're very comfortable together. Yeah.

Like they're very far along. You can see the difference with Daisy compared to some here, right? like the barn above. Okay, Ashley, time to switch gears a little bit. We've gone through the whole episode pretty much outside of the Sydney and Maria Dron. We've already mentioned that I think Sydney got the wrong into the deal when it comes to her group date. I don't believe she said anything outrageously wrong or that she deserved the quiet lack of response and applause that she got after her performance. I think that was really hard to watch.

I don't think it was good. After this week's episode, Ashley, I would love to hear your thoughts on this drama and this controversy. Outside of using the excuse of, it's all edited, because I don't think we can use that because we know it. We only know what we saw. And we only know what we experienced. And so as a viewer of this show and your experience watching it,

what is your take on this drama now? after one more would be. Well, then. I can't say that there, I, okay, here you go. This is how I'll work around this question of yours. I think that all the drama seems to be completely about nothing right now. Like, very much nothing. Like, what?

Let me pause. Can I pause you there, though? is that not maria's point exactly i don't know about that okay continue then i just wanted to hear where you're at there keep going we hear sydney say that she called her like weird and was it like stupid and embarrassing and then there's a couple of things that i've heard that she's called her

but like it did not make air um and i think one you'd have to think that sydney is making that up, that she totally made that up out of thin air and told Joey about that, so she's a liar. Or you can think that you just didn't see her saying that on TV. But I think because there is seemingly, this is all an argument over nothing, and it certainly is not just about Medina in the old comment now. Like, let's just forget about that.

That does not exist in my mind barely during this episode. I think there's a lot of context missing. And that's what I'll say. I said you couldn't use that as an excuse. But I'm not using it as an excuse because I'm saying based on what I see on TV, it seems like an argument about nothing. And I'm sure it's not an argument about nothing. Okay.

You know what I see? Yeah. I see somebody obsessed with causing conflict with Maria. Like some for whatever reason, whatever we're seeing not seeing experience or not Sydney could simply as we said last week again she's beautiful she is confident like she obviously you said it so I have to trust you

she's cool like she's got so much she does not come across as cool though like I will admit this but I will say in real life you said she's cool yeah one of the coolest people so what I will say is exactly what I said last week still is Sydney what are you doing give it up. I mean, Maria and Medina got together. Like, they're good. Like, this cannot still be coming from the age thing. But yet, there's still this protection. And Ashley, the only reason why I'm

so confident and saying she should just give it up, because this is a weird obsession. This is a line she crossed and I don't know why they chose her to cross it or why she chose to cross it. but the other women are not having Sidney's back. In fact, Sydney got up and walked away from the cocktail party. So anybody wants to follow me. I don't want to do with this drama. Nobody followed her, right?

Instead, the women... It seems like nobody followed her. Nobody followed her. That's what it seems like. Ashley, I know what you're trying to tell me, okay? I know what you're trying to say here. But in the interviews, the ITMs, Only Allison and Edwina are talking.

And Allison and Edwina seem to be the only friends with Maria. And it seems like Medina is friends. And then we have Medina who's friends with Sydney. And then we have Leia, who's definitely friends with Sydney. But Medina, good, Maria. They've talked. They're like, yeah, this is blown out of proportion. This isn't a thing.

And yet, Sydney continues to go back to it. Now, I know what your claim is that they're not showing the whole story, right? But where are you getting that information from? I'm getting the information for obviously one person. but I can also tell you that I just trust her more than I trust what I guess I I just trust her I just trust her but I would also say this like she should not have ever gotten involved with anything like even if she was this you know let's just pretend like Maria is saying evil things and like she is screaming name calling all this

stuff, and they for some reason are choosing not to show this, I still don't think Sidney should have gotten in the mix of like being like the defender or like the person who stands up to the villain. You should just never be that person. But I also come from my point of view, having been there and it's just so much easier to say you shouldn't be that person because like I obviously got myself involved in plenty of drama, even knowing that like it's not always your best look. So,

Sydney at this point, I guess if we characterized her, right, from what we know of her on the show so far, on the show, what we see is somebody who is obsessed with getting Maria gone. She is the one that is not supposedly, the only one that's not scared of her. She is the one that will stand up for the group, right?

She is the one that's going to, confront Maria but right now it feels like Sydney continues to make something out of nothing continues to try to dig deeper to get Maria taught or in trouble uh that's what we're seeing from this episode I'm not I'm not I'm not claiming any anything about Sydney in fact again I think I watch here and the whole time I'm like one stop like just stop this whatever you're doing stop it turn course here stop doing this right everybody else seems to be not not bothered by it

and I will say the one lesson you can take if anybody's listening that will at some point they're like on the show if everybody else is not bothered by it I don't think you should be either definitely it seems like no one else is bothered by it

I agree though like I told Sidney after watching this episode I was like you're not a villain you're just kind of come across to the audience no she's not a villain i was like you're just annoying you see and um you cringe and everybody's going to want you to be gone because nobody wants to hear your drama over nothing yeah okay but maybe we have different definitions if everybody wants you to be gone because you cause no not in the house not in the house i'm saying the audience the viewers the audience okay if everybody wants her to be

gone because she causes drama over nothing does that not make her a villain um no because i think a villain is somebody who's being like actually toxic and like a mean person i don't think she's being what is he doing she's not being a mean person right now we see her like i mean it kind of feels like it to me i don't know well what do you think she said that was mean Once she's saying things that I don't think we fully saw, right? So she's saying Maria said this and this and this about me. From watching it, I don't know that to be true. I see Maria saying, hey, I'm her and I'm confused by this.

I want to fix this. Can we work through this? And Sydney's like, no, you're stop talking to me. I'm gone. It feels like she's being very mean right now to Maria. It does not feel like Maria has been mean to her yet. well you know we hear that maria's you know who's name calling her he she says that at least we do hear her say that who says that she tells that to joey she says yeah but who tells that to joey sydney

you so you're you think that she's actually lying about everything i i don't claim that no actually i cannot claim for her to be a lie that is not something i want to do here that i don't think she's lying but we don't see it yeah that's what i'm saying there's just we're missing a lot of contacts i think I don't want to be tough on Sydney. Here's the deal. Again, I want to make it very clear that when I saw her and when I heard about her going on the show and the great things that you said about her to me. And then she is gorgeous.

Like she is. She's beautiful. And I do think I saw her and said, I hope she makes it towards the end. I think she has that potential, right? Yeah, I thought that she was going to make it towards the end too. A little bit of this when my response here is frustration. Because I feel like for somebody that had the opportunity to make it towards the end, she sabotaged it and she did it maybe a little bit clouded in judgment meaning some of the

stuff she's saying most of the stuff she's saying we didn't see and so as a result the only thing I can see here or say here is that she is causing controversy where controversy doesn't need to exist and she's sabotaging yourself and I'm frustrated with her and I'm frustrated with how this has been handled and I'm frustrated that continues to happen because I wanted your friend to go far. I wanted her to have a fair shot. I wanted her to be beloved. But I do

think Ashley, if we're honest, she is the villain of the season. All right. I mean, you can think that. And you might be right. You might be right. Who knows? Maybe like something will come out. It's not building towards that at all. Let's also say

that they don't show any moments of her with Joey. So like we don't know her at all beyond the drama so they're like so like it's hard to like her for sure because we we don't know anything beyond her not liking maria well we have seen her with joey and she was she chose to immediately talk about maria and we know that's not a good move and quite honestly actually we also know that at this point in the season there isn't a lot of moments with Joey or with the lead. And so the moment she has had, probably three or four, we've seen.

And she didn't have a date the first week. So the moments with Joey so far have been stuck talking about somebody else. And here is advice number one when it comes to being on the show. Don't spend your time talking about somebody else. It never goes well. I would love for her to have some more support here. I don't want to not support her. I'm not saying I dislike her.

No, I know you're not. I'm just simply saying I'm frustrated. and I honestly just don't enjoy it. Like, it's not fun for me. I really think that I spelled out that, like, don't be the one that gets involved in somebody else's drama. But maybe I didn't because maybe that would have been hypocritical of me. So, hold on one second.

I know Jared did. My boyfriend's professor is way too friendly, and now I'm seriously suspicious. Oh, wait a minute, Sam. Maybe her boyfriend's just looking for extra credit. Well, Dakota, it's back to school. week on the OK Story Time podcast, so we'll find out soon. This person writes, my boyfriend has been hanging out with his young professor a lot. He doesn't think it's a problem, but I don't trust her.

Now, he's insisting we get to know each other, but I just want her gone. Now, hold up. Isn't that against school policy? That sounds totally inappropriate. Well, according to this person, this is her boyfriend's former professor, and they're the same age. And it's even more likely that they're cheating. He insists there's nothing between them. I mean, do you believe him?

Well, he's certainly trying to get this person to believe him because he now wants them both the meets. So do we find out if this person's boyfriend really cheated with his professor or not? To hear the explosive finale, listen to the OK Storytime podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. What would you do if one bad decision forced you to choose between a maximum security prison or the most brutal boot camp designed to be hell on earth? Unfortunately for Mark Lombardo, this was the choice he faced. He said, you are a number, a New York state number, and we own you. Shock incarceration, also known as boot camps, are short-term, highly regimented correctional programs that mimic military basic training. These programs aim to provide a shock of prison life, emphasizing strict discipline, physical training, hard labor, and rehabilitation programs.

Mark had one chance to complete this program and had no idea of the hell awaiting him the next six months. The first night was so overwhelming, and you don't know who's next. to you. And we didn't know what to expect in the morning. Nobody tells you anything. Listen to shock incarceration on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The Super Secret Bestie Club podcast season four is here. And we're locked in. That means more juicy chees-me. Terrible love advice. Evil spells to cast on your ex. No, no, no, no. We're not doing that this season. Oh. Well, this season, we're leveling up. Each episode will feature a special bestie, and you're not going to want to miss it.

Get in here! Today we have a very special guest with us. Our new super secret bestie is The Deva of the People. The Deep of the People. I'm just like Text Your Ex. My theory is that if you need to figure out that the stove is hot, go and touch it. Go and figure it out for yourself. That's us.

That's us. My name is Curley. And I'm Maya. In each episode, we'll talk about love. Friendship, heartbreaks, men, and of course, our favorite secrets. Listen to the Super Secret Bestie Club as a part of the Marikultura podcast network available on the IHartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. A foot washed up a shoe with some bones in it. They had no idea who it was. Most everything was burned up pretty good from the fire that not a whole lot was salvageable.

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And you'll meet the team behind the scenes at office. behind the scenes at Othrum, the Houston Lab that takes on the most hopeless cases to finally solve the unsolvable. Listen to America's Crime Lab on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Okay, so I got Jared upstairs because I know that he was watching the episode last night and he's like, oh, you know, if I'm home by the time you're, you're recording. like I'd like to kind of say my two cents

so babe this is your time to say your two cents because you know you just just go for it we've already talked about the don't bring up the fashion the pageant because that's so inconsequential just like your overall take on what's Sydney situation because Ben thinks that she

is the villain like an actual villain he thinks that she's being mean and I said I don't think she's being mean I just think she's getting herself far too involved first and foremost obviously we're friends with Sydney we've established this but like my point being is if anybody is like

oh you're just defending your friend yeah we're defending our friend sorry sorry sorry if we're going to try to defend friends i don't know if that's what people do out there uh but hopefully you're cool with that and if you're not then maybe you should turn this off right now here's my only thing jared i want you to defend friends and i don't want to ruin

sydney on this podcast that's not fun and it's not what we do here but we're going to tell how it is yes but i want you to be honest like don't don't come on here and just like say stuff that like will sugarcoat it like i i want honesty still oh i i agree i want honesty as well i've always been in the camp that i think even when so lowest just burst it through the door so when cindy first came back obviously we talked to her and from the initial get-go i was like i'm nervous for you because it sounds like she's the girl that continues to go to the bachelor to

talk about other girls, or specifically this one girl. And then obviously it's the way it played out. So what I feel bad for is I do think that Sidney was trying to do the right thing by sticking up for her friends. But at the same time, how many times have we seen this where it's this girl who continues to not let something go and thinks that someone is a bad person or someone's mean? and I'm sure who's I suck and I'm sorry what is the name of the girl Maria Maria I knew that so I'm sure Maria has I'm sure Maria has been mean to some girls and has said some crappy things but that doesn't give Sydney the right to like continue to harp on it which it feels like she was doing and whether she was doing

that on her own or she was certainly not getting pressure but getting like hyped up from other cast members or producers like regardless I would I was hoping that she would know better than to like continue to go to The Bachelor and like talk about this other girl because it's like oh like let it go let it go so this episode was not good for her obviously the annoying part of it is like the whole thing is just annoying like that's what I feel that's what I said I was like she's annoying and cringy, but like, I don't think she's mean. No, I definitely don't think she's mean. I think what is annoying, and we see this routinely on the show, is that because it just

feels like there's always this drama early on where it's annoying drama, right? Because it's like, you know, the relationship, there's still so many people that were not like as invested in the actual relationships that matter yet. So it's all this like drama between girls that were like, okay, like they're obviously not going to be there for much longer. And that's what it feels like with Sydney and everybody. so I feel bad for Sidney because she's getting it twofold because I feel like she's involved in drama

that she's on the wrong side of and she's involved in drama that people are just annoyed at rather than like care about. He has like no connection with him so people are. I know, so I'm like, oh no. Okay, question for you guys. Kind of close us out. You knew this storyline was coming down the pipeline.

You've talked to Sydney before the show aired. You knew her story. Is it better or worse than what you expected? When she came back and told me her story, I was like, okay, it seems like she'll be a person of prominence. I can't promise this is in my head. I was like, it can go both ways for her. I had faith and positivity that it would go in her direction and she would look good. But I knew there was like an inkling that she might.

And I just, that she might not. Here's, I need to be honest, the entire time I thought that it wasn't going to go well. But I was hoping I was just wrong because I've been wrong many times before and I'll be wrong again. Unfortunately, it doesn't feel like we were wrong about this. You are not wrong. But because the problem is we all know, of course, like how many times? I keep saying this, but we all know that the show is condensed to an hour and 20 minutes with four or five days worth. So, like, there's going to be so much that's just left out, not because, like, the show's intentionally trying to put things, you know, like, they're just creating a story around the kind of the, what overall happened during filming, right?

So it's like they have to condense everything. And so it's hard for me to hear Sid, you know, because it's like, of course there are things that are not going to be aired. But that's just the way the show is. And it's not right or wrong. it's just like how this this area works and so I feel bad for Sid because it's just like there's so much out of context and it's like I know and that sucks and it's hard because you want everybody to see everything but they couldn't show it all that's why you don't get involved in these sticky situations because you know they're going to try to tell the story and as

effective and efficient as way as possible which means yes the small conversation you had with somebody else might not be shown that's going to get cut out you have to know it if you expect them to show this whole thing, you would have taken up even more of this episode. And I still don't know if it would have gone well for you. Like- See, guys, this from two men who played it so right on the show, you just focus on your connection with people and not about any of the outside.

Which is not intriguing to me. It's too complex. I never understood anything that was going on. People were doing weird stuff the whole time. And I didn't want to understand it because it was. There's just, there's too much happening and it moves too fast for me. And so as a result, Jared and I sat on the couch and talk football. And that's a world I know and a world I can live in and a world I can get along in.

And yes, we might have argued. But it definitely wasn't about anything that really matters in this world. Yeah. I think Ben and I both while filming were always like, if something was happening, we were never going to be the person to be like, we need to tell Caitlin about this. And it's like, Caitlin has a good head on her shoulders. She has tons of producers around her. She'll be fine.

I'm not worried about Caitlin. You know, I'm worried about me. Yeah, I don't need to be that guy. This isn't something that I need to carry. I don't need to be the protector of the house. Name the last protector of the house where it's gone well for them. Never has. Exactly.

That's why Jared was concerned when Sidney told him her story because it sounded like she was the only person that really was being vocal. But it's hard because I also understand that Sidney's intention was a good intention. She was trying to help friends and trying to like stick up and be that person. And it's hard to tell someone, especially in the aftermath, that they were wrong because I know that she was trying to do the right thing. Yeah, I know. So it's like, oh. Sometimes you can't help yourself and you feel so compelled to do it.

And that's where I came from. And especially in that world because, you know, everything has. happens just so fast that you just you you know it's like before you know it you're you've already talked to joey about this numerous times you're like where did the like how did this happen you know you kind of just everything's on on you know times two there i believe her intentions were good i think the lesson of this story though is i also uh i get to seen uh a woman on this show this season that i don't believe is capable of sticking up to themselves i've yet to seen it and so i don't know why they would need Sidney to do it for them.

I think every, and then quite honestly, I would think if I was on the show and I had a friend if Jared was going up to Caitlin being like, you know what, this person's really mean to Ben. I would probably tell Jared, hey, man, you can just stay out of it. Because I don't, that's not a story I need to continue to, like, promote. Caitlin doesn't really know about it. Kind of makes me look weak.

Kind of makes me look, you know, not capable. I just I think it's good intentions I just don't think it's necessary and I think it gets shown to be it doesn't get shown in a good light yeah no I I would agree with that I think it is also there is a difference between a guy and a girl doing it

because as we've seen with the show previously and like there is this element of girls sticking up for girls which I obviously can't really speak upon all that well because I'm not a female but um of course like you know like for example what a lot of people talked about on the golden bachelor was the idea of that these girls were like all together and like they liked that they liked the unity of it together so I understand that like maybe it's head she was like you know we're kind of in this together so to speak and I want to help out a friend

having said that I'm more in line with you than I am with her but at the same time I know Sid personally and it's like I want to make sure that I'm on her side as well um and make that very clear I don't think your intentions were bad I don't think this is going to be like one of those memorable villainous moments I don't even think whenever this ends I don't even think people will remember this happened this season like this is such and that's a good reminder for Sydney is to tell her hey this will come and go faster than you ever expected and it's going be okay. Like it will. Oh, 100%. I just think right now it's a very annoying, weird look. I think it is cringy. I think it's hard to watch. I think it's unnecessary. I don't think Sidney's

getting to get into the deal here, no matter how this really played out in real life, if it was how it's happening or not. I, unfortunately, it's a very dramaless season so far. And so she is going to get the attention right now. Like, she's going to get the feedback and she's going to feel it for a And that's not fun for anybody. So she needs good friends like you guys to sit beside her right now to tell her, hey, yeah, like tell her the truth. Like this isn't fun. Like this doesn't look good.

But ain't nobody out there really hating on you. They're just criticizing the moment. And that's exactly. And to all the people out there that are like, they can't believe they're defending their friend like this, blah, blah, blah. Think about all the villains that you watched on Bachelor and you couldn't stand. And then when it came to Bachelor in Paradise, you got to know them a little bit more. and you totally forgot about what they did in The Bachelor

because you've got to know them more. Like just, you know, that's just, you need to know somebody more before you just jump to these judgments. It's hard to dislike somebody once you get to know them. Right, Ash? Yeah. It's very hard. But let me just say one more thing before I get out of here is that,

listen, I would never tell anybody what to think or give their opinion. Of course, like, if you're like, wow, Cindy's so annoying. I mean, have your opinion. I don't really care. But please. keep you to yourself and off social media directly at Sydney. She's already shown me. Just like don't comment guys.

And I'm like, are you kidding me, you guys? Like that was nothing last week. Yeah. Just like my, I mean, I know everybody says this.

Just don't like go on. And there's no reason for you to go underneath one of her pictures and voice your opinion and be like, I thought you sucked. Like there's no reason for that. Like keep it in the living room. I watching TV. Whatever your thoughts are,

except if they're the good and you're like, We love Sydney. Then maybe you should write that because that would make her feel very, very good right now. Also, us supporting Sydney in this way does not mean that we are not, like, rooting on Maria and, like, think that Maria sucks or anything like that. We're just saying that there is possibly two sides of the situation. You gave good, honest feedback on this episode. It is a wild episode. It is a crazy episode full of Sydney and Maria extravaganza.

It's not stopping soon because the two of them did get a rose, so they're both on to next week. see more of that. Honestly, another great episode of The Batser. Joey crushes it. Ashley, to close out here, we're going to go top two right now for you. Top two is going to be Daisy and, well, it's toss up between Lexi and Kelsey A, but we'll go with Lexi. I'm going to go Daisy and Rachel.

Okay, that's a good choice to do. So we don't think Sydney's top two. Just confirming that? I'm just confirming that Cindy is definitely not top two. That's one thing you can say under her picture. Hey, I don't think you're going to be top two. Just Joey wasn't your guy. That's it.

He just wasn't your guy. Yeah, if anything, Joey's not your guy. All right. Hey, this is an almost famous podcast. Jared, thanks for jumping on. We'll be back next week, breaking down another episode of Joey's season of Bachelor. And also, again, a reminder that we have more content coming from Parmel.

We also have an almost good advice coming up very soon. It's going to be incredible. It's been a lot of fun doing it. Ashley's crushing it. I feel like this almost good advice has gotten a lot of traction and it's been really exciting for us. So until next time, I've been Ben.

I've been Ashley, and you've been Jared, babe. Bye. Follow the Ben and Ashley I, almost famous podcast on IHartRadio or subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts. My boyfriend's professor is way too friendly and now I'm seriously suspicious. Wait a minute, Sam. Maybe her boyfriend's just looking for extra credit.

Well, Dakota, luckily, it's back to school week on the OK Storytime podcast, so we'll find out soon. This person writes, my boyfriend's been hanging out with his young professor a lot. He doesn't think it's a problem, but I don't trust her. Now, he's insisting we get to know each other, but I just want her gone. Hold up. Isn't that against school policy? That seems inappropriate.

Maybe find out how it ends by listening to the OK Storytime podcast on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Culture eats strategy for breakfast, right? On a recent episode of Culture Raises Us, I was joined by Belisha Butter. field, media founder, political strategist, and tech powerhouse for a powerful conversation on storytelling, impact, and the intersections of culture and leadership. I am a free black woman. From the Obama White House to Google to the Grammys, Valicia's journey is a masterclass in shifting culture and using your voice to spark change.

Listen to Culture raises us on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The U.S. Open is here, and on my podcast, Good Game with Sarah Spain. I'm breaking down the players, the predictions, the pressure. of course, the Honey Deuces, the signature cocktail of the U.S. Open. The U.S. Open has gotten to be a very wonderfully experiential sporting event. To hear this and more, listen to Good Game with Sarah Spain, an IHeart Women's Sports Production in partnership with Deep Blue Sports and Entertainment

on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Brought to you by Novartis, founding partner of IHeart Women's Sports Network. Hi, my name is Enya Umanzor. And I'm Drew Phillips. And we run a podcast called emergency intercom. If you're a crime junkie and you love crimes, we're not the podcast for you. But if you have unmedicated ADHD...

Oh my God, perfect. And want to hear people with mental illness, psychobabble. Yes, yes. Then Emergency Intercom is the podcast for you. Open your free IHeart Radio app. Search Emergency Intercom and listen now. This is an IHeart podcast.