The Ben and Ashley I Almost Famous Podcast - RepuTayshia

Episode Date: December 16, 2020

Blake Moynes from Clare/Tayshia’s season opens up to Ben and Ashley about his true feelings during his time with Clare. Blake reveals if he’s going to Paradise and who in Bachelor Nation has caught his eye!Plus, Ben and Ashley discuss the one thing Ben S needed to do for Tayshia... but didn’t.  Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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This is the Ben and Ashley I, Almost Famous Podcasts with IHart Radio. Hey, guys, welcome to the Almost Famous Podcast. It is Ashley. Ben will be joining us later in the podcast, but I wanted to start with an interview with one of this week's Reject. Blake. So I'm going to be doing an interview with Blake. And then Ben will join us for the Bachelor at Recap and Headlines. We have so much of discuss, including the fact that Ben, the other Ben, Ben Smith was eliminated. And what I would say was a shock elimination. This brought me back to my like American Idol days. I did not see this coming. But I can't say

that I'm really upset by it, to be quite honest. And I'll let you know all about that. When we get to the recap. But first off, let's get Blake on the line. Hey, Blake, welcome to the Almost Famous podcast. We're so happy to have you here. Thanks for having me. How are you doing? I'm good now. I'm good now. I'm relaxed. I saw it all play out last night and now I can kind of take a deep breath and soak it all in. Were you worried about your exit at all? Like you said, take a deep breath. I think, I think, you know, that was really the first time that was going to spend a decent amount of time with a lead. It came really late, right? So finally, sitting down and having those meaningful conversations for a longer period.

You just never know what it's going to look like or what you're going to look like. For the most part, people had seen me do some pretty risque type things. And so, yeah, so this is a different type of episode and one that I've been looking for. I wanted to happen earlier. Just, of course, I did. Speaking of risque, what overcame you to think that you sculpt a penis during that group day? Okay. See, like, I knew this was coming and that's okay.

Okay, first off, I think I was. just like, hey, what's important to me, what's been missing in my life for a long period of time? And, you know, since my... What's been missing in my life? Wait, wait, wait, wait. And, you know, since my ex-girlfriend, which was about two years ago, like, it had been a long time since I've had sex and love. And so, you know, I wanted to be bold and talk about things that people are scared to talk about. People are scared to talk about the topic of, like, sex. And so I wanted to tell her something that, you know, um, listen, it's been two years, something I've really miss in my life is something meaningful and sex is important in a relationship. And so, um,

I basically just tried to describe the difference between just having physical sex and something that I miss the difference in being, I miss sex and love and like that passion and having that connection with somebody. And, you know, that didn't make it to air, but it was, it wasn't fully me just, hey, look what I can do. No, it wasn't that. There was more deeper, meaning to it and um unfortunately just didn't play out that way okay no but i love that we get an explanation now and that's why it's so great to talk to people when they get off the show speaking of you know honestly like sex and nudity and all that stuff how did you guys react to ben stripping down in that moment like did that feel odd to you guys the way it did for us as an

audience we got to know more about the background as to why that was possible you know was more meaningful than it seemed in the moment but for you guys as a group of his peers like How did that feel? Yeah, you know, Ben's a very deep guy. He's got a lot of thoughts going up in that head, and he's very, very emotional. And he felt like that was the best way to express himself at the time. Did I see it coming? No, but it's something that he would do.

And the thing is, when it comes down to it, I don't know if anyone else in that room would have done that, maybe aside for me, because I've been naked probably three times about that spot that point. But no, like, listen, when it comes down to it, if you're coming on this show and you're going to be surface level, you're going to be surface level, not getting anywhere. Um, you got to show yourself not necessarily in that way all the time, but you've got to be able to, uh, risk things. And that was a risky thing to do, but she loved it. He did the right thing. Um, I didn't see it coming, but it was a great move. One of the risky

things you did up front was DM Claire about, you DMed her checking in on her mom and like how she was doing during like the real lockdowns of the spring. And I think like most of the audience just thought that was the sweetest gesture. of you. We really like that. Did you feel like you were running a risk when you did that? Or were you just truly like, this is more important than my time on the show. If for some reason they kick me off. Yeah. No, you know what? That's the thing. I went to that point. I had followed Claire for a while. So I listened to her podcast. I listened to her talk about her mom. I saw her post. I knew how meaningful it was to her. So yeah, it would have been different if I reached it and was like,

hey, you're hot. Can't wait to see you. Like, no, I wasn't going to do that. I knew that it was taking a risk in sending her something, but I think if it was genuine and meaningful the way that it was and seeing how emotional, she's mature. She wasn't going to take that and throw it in my face, although she made it seem like that on night one when she brought it up. I was like, oh, God, is she about to wrap me out right now? Like, this is not happening. But no, I knew that she would appreciate it. And she did. And I'm glad that I did that because up until that point, I've been like, not obsessing, but like, I convinced myself that Claire was going to be the one for me. And I want to start showing her that in some way

and showing her that genuine when I was. And so I had my hand over the send button for a long time and I would erase it and be like, no, I can't do this. And then I bring it back and then I was just like, send. And I'm, oh, shoot. You can't unsend on Instagram. You can on send if they haven't. I know, but I know that she saw it.

I'm like, oh, God, yeah. You notice that you're staring at your phone. I couldn't sleep all night, be like, I don't know if that was a good idea, but it ended up being a good idea. So she didn't respond? She did end up responding. She did respond and just said, listen, honestly, I really, really appreciate what you did there.

And I'll take genuine, being genuine and being kind over taking a risk any day or something like that. That's amazing. I knew that she, like, she is the kind of personality that would receive that really well. I, I hear that you say, you said you did a lot of research on her. Were you a fan of the bachelor beforehand? Or were you just kind of like, I'm going to do, I'm going to do. going to try to get to know this girl as best as I can in her interest beforehand. It would have been such a disservice to her if I fully knew it was going to be her for four

months and I sat back and just like waited to get there and just hope for the best. You know, I wanted to make something that was potentially going to work in the end. And so in doing that and knowing that, I wanted to know everything about her because I wanted to be, have the potential to make it to the end. then take off the way that Dale and her have. And so I wanted to know everything about her. It would be a disservice to her. I wanted to show her that I was invested. She talked on every live, every podcast, and you can see the emotion, hear the emotion, how she was ready for this. And it's her time. And I wasn't going to be one to disappoint her. So I dove in. And I don't

regret that at all. It's interesting because the bachelor, like having one-on-one dates or like even time on The Bachelor can be awkward because there's not a lot of things to spark conversation. So I love the fact that you did research so that you like had all these different interests of her that you could discuss with her that was like personal instead of talking about like, oh my gosh, this bubble like how weird of an environment it is. Like I think like people use that as like crutch conversations about like what they're doing in the actual moment. But it's hard to like get beyond the bubble in these conversations because like everything you'd ask is so random. Right. You're like, oh, should I ask about how the fact that she loves hot like hot tubs

and saunas? Yeah. But like I wouldn't, how would that come up on the show? Yeah. You know, yeah. You know, I would say to be honest, and I think you could probably get that from her too if you ever talk to her, is that I never came in with a surface level conversation.

I knew that everything had been meaningful and deep. And, you know, that also kind of sucks too. And you're let go by two women on national TV after coming out and giving them everything, like everything you're thinking, the deepest things, the most vulnerable things. And being let go like that. is so much harder than just dating someone on the street where, you know, it's usually surface level in reality. But here you can't do that. You have to dive in. And we never had really surface level conversations. So it's always, always meaningful things, deep things. It's easy for me

to have, though, because when you're invested in, like, passionate of something and really believe in something, like, here it all is. Like, I'm going to trust you with all this stuff. And she was really receptive to everything. And we had some great conversations that just didn't pan out the way 1002. Well, let's talk about that. So you, you seem very invested in Claire. We saw you with, I'd say like it was you, Dale and Jason that like were the only ones that stood out with Claire. But then when she left, it seemed like you had a pretty easy transition to Tasia. Why do you feel that was so? Because first off, right, I'd convinced myself that I really, really was into Claire before actually meeting her. And although we got along and like we had connections, we had kissed and

these things like the energy didn't feel that great but you know at the same time you're on the show for the first time you're like is this just kind of feel odd because it's the show like what kind of is it um then when she came in and basically just caught us all off at once and we didn't see it coming and she wasn't giving us the time of day in a way um it was easy to just like be like okay well listen if this is actually how it's going to go this is it's going to be easy for me to just be like okay i'm not going to give you kind of the time of day or have even another thought in my mind moving forward when I know that there's another great potential person coming in and I can focus and transfer that energy and those thoughts and that mental space to her moving forward and

you know once you once you meet tasha i'm sure you probably spoke to her she's you you just gravitate like you just like it's impossible not so it's like it gave you like this new like wow okay i'm so glad this is who it is because and she did that for everybody everyone felt like they had a connection with her. It was wild. Everyone came back being like, oh my God. And I'm like, we're in trouble here because we didn't, we didn't have that feeling with Claire because we just, it wasn't the same energy. And she brought something was different. And it was, it was nice because the guys really deserved it at that point. Totally understandable. Okay. So you do talk in your last episode about how you felt like your chemistry, your relationship with Tasia was building slowly,

like you were, you were late and building it. But you did feel like it was happening. Was there anything that we saw like a spark moment that we didn't get to see on TV or that felt more meaningful than maybe it appeared on TV? You know, you know, what's unfortunate is I think you didn't like to see a lot of the slow progression in the conversations throughout like the group dates at night and those things where, you know, we would leave those conversations and I would feel so good about making that small step and it was the little things and she would let me know those things. She'd be like, listen, like I wrote you off as one thing in the beginning and every

time I speak to you, I get a whole new layer and like you surprise me every time. And it sucked because I could feel some of the tension in a way where she would take in this information, but I still had that red flag over my head where it was like, this guy does have a connection with Claire. How much am I really going to give him? How much my time and how much my mental space am I going to give him? So, you know, it would have been nice to see a little bit more of those conversations, I think, throughout the way because it would have made more sense for our one-on-one and why it got as emotional as it did. Yeah. There wasn't, I think, one big moment. I think it was just a realization for her at the end when she realized that she was letting me go that she wasn't fully sure because it was a time thing and that she didn't know that she was necessarily making the right decision in the moment. Maybe she was conflicted. It's hard to say.

She was very emotional when you left. So that wasn't a surprise to you. It was emotional. It surprised me the emotional how that she got as emotional as she did like basically watching it back. and make taking a step back and and looking at it from an outside in instead of being there. I remember hugging her and she started to tear up and she was, you know, saying she was sorry and all those things. And, you know, obviously, as you know, in those moments here, like your mind's going in a million different places. So watching it back, like you could really soak things in. It makes sense to me, though, because I feel like she started to see all those things. And the connection came, the connection that we needed came on the last day, like the absolute last potential moment.

it was like this sucks even if this happened like last week there had been more time to it just i felt like she felt the same way and we still kind of got that mental all um we ran out of time there's connection came too late there's potentially something there and i'm emotional because i don't know if i'm making the right decision it's the kind of the way i felt so uh it sucked you're you're saying during the episode that you okay how do i work this okay so i know this moment i've done this so many times in the show okay it's like i feel I feel like feelings, right? But then I'm kind of being like, I'm being asked questions that make me feel like I should be more affirmed in these feelings than I really am or like that the other person is feeling stronger than I towards me than I really think they are.

And I feel like you may have done that a little bit in that final date because were you really imagining being in hometowns or were you. kind of just like, yeah, like I'm feeling hopeful and I'm going to speak out of the positive side of my mouth instead of like the more cautious side. Yeah, you know, going into that one-on-one, she had four one-on-ones, five one-on-ones before then, four of what she made strong connections with and I could feel those. Like I could feel that I wasn't on that same level at that moment with those guys. So going in, I was like, yeah, but like this 101 is like the time that I can fully be me and have a day to show me and like I think I can turn this around on this day and I was fully optimistic if you go into that date thinking I'm gone you're done from

the beginning right you try to you want to you want to enjoy your time so I was convincing myself again I was like you had to because and it made the day so fun if I went in there with a different mindset it would have been weird especially on a deep deep meaningful date like that with the Riki and stuff if I came in with a wrong attitude would have been a weird date so I'm I'm glad that it came in the way that I did. Gotcha. I gotcha. Totally understand.

So speaking of that day, kind of awkward, right? Ben and I were talking on last night's episode about how, like, he with his fiance or me with my husband, like, if I had to in front of people sit on his lap, stare in his eyes and like breathe, like right into his face, like, I don't even know that we would feel like super comfortable. And then you got, you went and got a boner. Like, was that just like a, oh, he's like a big, like was that just so awkward to watch on TV with your family?

Okay. Okay, well, yeah, I mean, listen. Understandable, though. Like, we all get it. Like, seriously, Jared was watching and he's like, uh, duh. Duh, this is happening. Yeah, yeah, listen, okay, like, she was on my lap and, like, we got really intimate in that moment. And it's really hard to explain that feeling in that moment.

I guess I showed it a little bit, but, um, no, like, um, yeah, it was a little awkward watching that back. Now, listen, I think that the shorts just made it look like that. Okay, I don't know if I was as charged up as it may have been. There's a black box and everything. And like, we don't even know what could be under the black box. It could be a nothing. It could be a big thing. You know, you know.

Yes. Yeah. Well, I mean, realistically, in the time, if it was really ipal towering there, I probably would have covered it up. But, yeah, we'll leave it at that. Okay. Well, before we let you go, I do want to ask you a couple more, like, macro questions about the season so far.

Kenny told us last week that Bennett really never broke character. He was just like always in the Harvard gentleman mode. So can you confirm or deny? Is that him all the time? Yeah. Yeah, he like what you see is what you get like there is no, there was no change from start to start to end.

Um, exactly what you saw. Like I can't really expand on that too much more. He, um, he is him like that and he plays a character, but it also, it's a character, but he also is that. Like that's what he is maybe plays into a little bit more sure but um what you see is what you get with him um you know i think there's a as of late there's a lot of love hate with him but uh people will love and love him because he is what it is and he'll stand by that and he knows it just like noah does

the same thing he's very himself doesn't care what you think and so uh i can see why you're up you can be such a flip-flop on either side either love or you hate or love or hate and it makes sense for those two um tell us about the quarantining process uh in the beginning How many days did you guys have alone in your hotel rooms? How many days do we have in our hotel rooms with quarantine? Yeah, like alone before this show started. A long time. A long time.

Like I was like when we when we got out of there, it was like thank God. Like it was it was really, really painful to do. And especially with the tension and the anticipation of like never doing this before. And like, you know, we didn't have really anyone really stopped by or anything. You're literally like fully quarantined. And they were overly safe and I hated it, but they did a really good job of making sure that we could do the season the way that we did it in a safe way. So when Jared and I went to go visit, we were quarantined for four days. We like could have, what could we get?

We were allowed to have like massed visitors on like the night of day three or something. You guys had longer than this? Way longer than that. Like I was going, I was going mental. And like, you know, I feel bad for. the guys that actually came in late to the season that had to do it even longer than we did. But, um, yeah, it was, it was way more intense than I thought it was going to be. And that's the thing, right?

From up in Canada, like, it wasn't at that point like COVID was, it's a thing there, but it's not the same intensity as in this, is it in the state. So I can see why it was taken to seriously that is in the States. And, um, yeah, it was, it was very nice to get out and see everybody. That's for sure. See, that was usually the time for us, like during a regular season of the bachelor, You are still quarantine. Like you're still in a hotel room, right?

And you can't leave without there being a chaperone and bringing you to a photo shoot or an interview or anything. But it's nice because immediately, like right off the bat, the first hour that you're there, you start getting visitors and getting to know the producers and they're just like so easy to get along with and you're making friends and you're feeling like you belong. So it must have been like really scary.

And yes, going mental makes a lot of sense. Do you, did you guys get your phones or computers at all during that time? or did they take the phones like normal? Everything's completely gone. It probably would have ran the exact same way that it did with your season, except it was just extended and just like no visitors or anything. It was rough. It was really rough.

We, you know, again, I was around on that first setting to go around to see Claire in March. So I went through that regular process. Oh, so you understand that. And this was not that. Like, we really, things were different this time around for sure. Wow. Okay, okay. So I also wanted to know whether they flew your family out to be a possible hometown date. And if you know how they did that, if your family didn't do that.

I don't know. I fully don't know. My family didn't end up going, obviously. But I don't know any of those details. So I couldn't get you that. But I would assume that they went through something similar to yourself. Yeah. Okay. When you left, if the show were to end that day, who would you think tasha was going to end up with if the show was to end that day that day uh okay i know that you guys had big group guy threads and like you know who win so i don't want i want to know who that day i think she would have wanted to pick brendon okay i think that's what who she liked the most at that time um but i feel like i feel like zach would have probably been the best suited yeah zach is my frontrunner to win as that's that's my frontrunner win i feel like he's just

it's more complete there okay i don't even like the question do you want to go on paradise because i feel like people who say no are big fat liars yeah so i'm not i'm not saying no what i'll say to that is So what I'll say to that is, is that, you know, I came into this experience fully invested and looking for something. I'm in a place in my life that I'm not here to play around anymore. I don't want to date. I don't like I'm looking for something. And so if someone comes around that connects all the dots and checks all the boxes for me,

then you won't see me in paradise by the time that that, you know, comes about in summer. If I'm, if I'm single by that time, then there's a probably a good chance to see me there. But I'm actively looking for my person. So I'm not setting things aside or changing my life. I'm living normally again and looking for somebody. So it's probably 50-50. Gotcha. And who in the franchise would you hope to get a date with if you were there?

This is, see, this is difficult because, like, it's hard to say that I feel like there's going to be multiple seasons to choose from, and we don't really. I mean, you can anticipate some, right, that you might have a feeling. But I think it just in terms of the franchise, like, really, I'm looking for someone who's like-minded, ready in the same mental space as me, same like part of their life or they're ready for something. There's some girls that stand out for sure to me in that way. We need names, Blake. We need names. I'll give you a couple, but I really don't know anything really about them, but I'll give you some. And these are just, uh, no, more than that,

I think. Um, these people are just kind of stand out because they are more than just good looking. Like I see, I like that Kendall Long has an interest in like a lot of like the animals and like loves that kind of thing because I think we connect them that way and she's cute. Annie Dorfman is just because she's got her shit together and like it's Andy Dorfman. She's got it all figured out. I don't know. Christina Shulman's really good looking but I don't know anything about her. So like there's girls that like I'm definitely have an eye on in a way, but I don't know if we'll have received him in paradise. Awesome.

I love your, I love your choices. my last question is just tell us a little bit about your job you are a wildlife manager in Ontario Canada and you work with endangered species so tell us the coolest animals you work with and like how you create these amazing bonds with the animals okay so the way that it kind of played out is so I do a lot of volunteer work with more of the endangered species thing so last year went to Africa I worked with rhinos this year I'm going back to Africa and I'm hoping to set up a little bit more of an experience. I've been in contact with a couple organizations

to do more work in the wildlife field and wildlife conservation field. So I'm looking to pair up with an organization that basically has purchased this big piece of land in Africa, 150,000 acres has been basically the wildlife's been decimated by poaching. So we're looking to put basically plants together, anti-poaching programs to restore the wildlife there, and then go and visit some other sanctuaries and things and just lend a hand where people need it because out in Africa,

that's a big problem with poaching crisis out there. So that's more volunteer type work that I do. Here, it's actually more just human wildlife conflict in terms of pest and wildlife management and urban settings. So if you get something in your attic, you could call me and I'd be like, I hear something in my attic. These are the size of the poops.

I hear them at this time and night. Like, I could walk you through that type of thing. So it's more pest and wildlife related. in this setting back home. But it's a combination of things and I'm slowly starting to transition more into the wildlife conservation space on a larger scale, hopefully overseas and over now.

So basically in school, when I was living in a dorm and I went to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night and I saw a bat flying directly at me through the hallway in a very Dracula-like manner, you would be there to save me. I would, yeah. And we would be saving it.

We'd be putting it outside. Yay! Yeah. good yeah yeah they've got they've got white nose syndrome and they're endangered right now really bad yeah we can have a whole chat on wildlife one day that's that's really fun okay well if we ever get to do an in-depth with you we would love to do that so blake thanks for joining us it's been really fun watching you on the show and we hope to see you more in paradise awesome thanks for having me appreciate it okay bye bye

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.

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people. 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. Okay. That's us. My name is Curley. And I'm Maya. In each episode, we'll talk about love, friendship, heartbrates, men, and of course, our favorite secrets. Listen to the Super Secret Bestie Club as a part of the Mar Cultura Podcast Network, available on the IHeartRadio 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. These are the coldest of cold cases, but everything is about to change.

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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. All right, well, it looks like Ben is able to join the pod now. I know he had a conference today. I'm excited to get him on. Hey, Ben. What's up, Ashley. Hey, pumped to be here.

What an episode we had to break down. Ashley, I think it's always worked best here recently because these episodes have been so action-packed. the episode first and then do Bachelor Headlines at the very end. What do you think? Let's do it in that manner again. So we, well, Ashley, we have hometown dates this week. Zach Ivan, Ben,

and Brendan are the men left. This is a big episode. It's never been done this way but obviously I want to start talking about it this way. I really loved how Chris Harrison walks into the room and tells the men

before the dates, who's actually going to be there. Yeah, that was cool, because it was a surprise for them. And I also love the fact that it was, is it weird? I think it was more personal, that they had to do something makeshift. I think like everything about shooting in one location has kind of been a positive this season. It's just made everything more relatable, more real feeling.

I would agree. And, like, more creative. And, like, it makes it seem like they need, like, add an extra little bit of effort in which I have appreciated that's an interesting point you bring up like I really loved how they had to create their dates uh it was more personal however I think it's been great for this season I think it's going to be great from that season however I don't know if I want to do it long term yeah you know it's good for now they've done a great job with what they've had I just don't know that for the next 10 seasons if I want to see it in one place

Yeah, yeah, no, no, no, no, no. I totally agree with you. All right, so let's get into Brendan, who had his brother, Daniel, and his wife and his niece there. His niece kind of plays a role throughout the entire portion of his, which was so cute. She was at the carnival with him. He said that there's a lot of carnivals in his small town. So they played a lot of carnival games. It was adorable, very playful. I think it was great to see Brendan's, fatherly side come out, especially since Tasia talks about wanting to have five kids one day. I was one, I know that his dad passed away, and he talked about that, and that's so sad. Did we find anything about his mom being there, or did his mom pass away as well? Yeah, see, that was a question I had. I don't know that. So maybe that's a good question for our listeners, because they find out things sometimes better than anybody can. And so listeners out there, if you know anything about what happened to Brendan's mom, it would be fantastic to know.

But they're actually, I want to bring a point to the top right away. Because here's the thing with these guys. And they've been a great group of guys for the most part. And a really solid group of gentlemen. Like they've treated each other with respect, especially the guys towards the end. They've really focused on Tasia. But something really cool kind of stood out to me during Brendan's date. And then it kind of led into every date for the most part.

since his date during hometowns is there is these moments during the date where these men looked at somebody in their life that they loved and respected. Oh, yes. And they looked them in the eyes and they said, I just want you to know how much I care about you and how great you've been to me. And you saw grown men cry through it. Like, it's one of the things that we talk about on the show a lot. But I think it's one of those growing moments that happen when you're on the show is you start

to miss people that you love. And you also start to realize just how big of a role they have. had in your life and i thought that was an incredible thing to each date but it really stood out to me during brendon's date and when he talked to his brother i agree with you there but i also like i don't know that i can say more so on his portion of the date than than ivan with his brother or or zach with jack's daddy was so cute yeah with his mom too but we'll talk about zach in a second but brendon's date went well but i'm going to be super honest it was probably the most forgettable for me of all four of them.

It could be because it was the first one. But watching this, it made me feel like Brendan was the one who had a lesser advantage going into the row ceremony until we see the ending of Ben's date, which kind of turns things. But did you feel the same way with Brendan? I don't know. I could not disagree with you more. Really? It wasn't that

I didn't love the family I love the family I love Brendan I think he's so emotional such a sweetheart I just didn't feel the chemistry between Tasia and him

I was just like oh I'm feeling like this connection might be the weakest now I don't disagree with you when it comes in chemistry I still think he might be

kind of the surprise here but right now as we see it I think Brendan probably has the weakest connection out of any of them However, this date is memorable to me because I feel like he got a huge advantage.

Now, going first is never easy. However, he brings in the niece and that niece is incredible. So anytime you have somebody that wants five kids and you bring in a niece or a child to hang out for the day and you see how those two interact, like that is a massive advantage. Like, it is cute every time. Yeah. No, I mean, it was very cute. cute, but I don't think the cute added up enough for me to be thinking about Brendan in the end of things. I actually felt like Ivan was the one who like stepped up in this episode. We

knew that Zach's, I think, like we know the connection with Zach is strong. I think that he's just always been a shoeing for top two. But I thought Ivan, who honestly, as of last night, I wasn't sure who's going to round out this top four, whether it was going to be Ivan or Riley, and then Ivan comes in with this, with the cute cooking date, which I can tell you guys from when we were down there doing the breakfast portion of the grown-ass man challenge. Tasia really stressed that cooking is a huge part of her life. It's something that she wants to do with a guy. She wants a guy with good cook. Who's a good cook? Who's a good cooker? And I'm like, that's like so funny to put on your list of like wishes for a man good cook you know it's like that seems like a nice

bonus but it's very important for her and i thought that he got a little bump up to me and then i freaking loved ivan's dad he was so cute and can we get a confirmation on this did he say that he was 80 a couple episodes ago do you remember when they were talking about age difference and like his dad's age and health and stuff i thought he said he was 80 but i could be completely making up with making that up his dad looks fantastic such a sweet man then his mom is adorable and then his brother came in and you know that was a very emotional moment i just i just feel like that's like a very close-knit family and tasha loves to see that yeah so you know Ivan's story was hit home with me you know i've i've talked about it my dad had cancer he's had heart heart failure

I know, I know the emotions that that has. Like when you walk through that with a, you know, a parent. Now, obviously this season, we've, we have a lot of stories of these men losing parents or having a disconnect from their families. And I really started to feel thriving there. It also, though, starts to all make sense to me on why he is so wise. He is very mature. He's very empathetic because he's walked through some, like, I don't think you. can become wise unless you walk through some stuff in life.

And it feels like Ivan's walked through some stuff. And so this hometown date just really felt like for me less of a, hey, this is fun and exciting and more of a, wow, we're really getting to know this man. And this is a good dude. Like he's a solid, solid guy. You know, Ivan's mom is a little skeptical, which makes, actually, there's a part in the episode that I want to ask you about Chris Harrison walks in and he kind of pumps Ivan up by saying, hey, your mom is here and she's so excited to be here. Yeah, so cute. I think,

like, you just could tell Harrison liked her. Exactly. But then she's also one of the most skeptical family members that we see in this episode. And skepticism, fine. If you're a parent and you're not a little skeptical of this whole thing, like, you know, it's fair to be skeptical. So can we talk about that for a thing? Go ahead. Yeah, definitely. That's what I want to do. Now, I'm just, do you think, do you think that she showed the excitement that you were expecting based on how Harrison kind of introduced her? Um, yeah, actually. Okay, so in the previews, it seemed like she was going to be tough.

And then when I met her, you know, we met her and she sat down with Asia, I was like, I love the way she's expressing her skepticism because like she's cautious and like worried for her son and all that, but like not in an angsty way. like not in a I'm trying to gang up on the lead type way that I did see a little bit from Zach's brother like Zach's brother just you know came in on the defensive and I like the way that Ivan's mom did it with like a little bit more of a gentle approach well uh Ivan's hometown date was one that I just really really enjoyed watching because we got a whole perspective of who Ivan is what his family is uh you see his dad and his mom and you know the story of

his dad as we just talked about but his brother comes in uh kind of in a shocking twist right he didn't know his brother was going to be there yeah um it's interesting because i'm going to say like ivan's brother obviously like has a story to tell and to see him on the bachelorette is not probably something he ever expected yet his brother was fantastic just the way ivan and his brother with each other again for Ivan to look his brother in the eyes and say you know how much you mean to me like those are moments on this show that just like pull my heart out and like throw it to the heavens like it is absolutely beautiful i agree i loved it he they're there's such sweeties they're definitely an odd couple you know what i mean they're very different but there's that

family bond there you can tell how close they are i also loved part of Ivan's dates that his dad sat down with Tasha and was like, you know what? I was divorced as well and like they had that little moment. He was like, I was very young. How old were you? And then he talked about just maturing in order to find that

right person. And I just I like the way that they were like having their own sort of bond. Yeah, there's just something like I don't know if I could think of a better word, but like spirit warm but like spiritual about those moments like you know in the sense of it transcended tv it transcended conversation when i watched this i felt something different than i what i usually feel watching this show and that's what i look for in seasons right like that's what i want is to feel like i am invested i mean i would be lying to you if i said that like multiple times during this

episode not that i wept but like that my eyes didn't get teary because to see two people sitting next to each other at this stage in their lives and say I love you I respect you and then to have his dad sit down with Tasha and say hey I get it like you've been divorced but once I found that right person I know it was the best thing for me especially knowing that like as his dad says this he also like has had to deal with some health issues and know that like hey life's not easy so I don't know ash like Ivan's hometown date yeah i'll just call it spiritual and people hopefully will know what i'm talking about like it transcended these moments yeah this whole this whole episode proved to me that it's like

probably one of the most emotional seasons we've ever watched and tasha's has been an abbreviated season too so it's it's been good i've really really enjoyed myself should we go back to zach which was probably the date that like i felt the most butterflies on behalf of the couple And that I felt, I didn't cry, but I did, like, feel like a swelling, a welling, a welling, a welling, uh, during this date. And I think it's just because, like, this family was so cute. Like, how sweet were the parents just, like, so real and authentic. And, um, Zach's, Zach is just being so happy and just talking about how his family's never seen him like this and them telling Tasia, like, wow, like, this is a whole. whole this is like the best of Zach right and you bring it out in him so I don't know what I love this date his his brother yeah was hard on her but you know whatever that happens like you get that why that happens yeah there is there's a lot of skepticism that comes into this whole experience and I understand why especially when you have a brother who knows Zach's past right he doesn't know

the conversations that tation Zach have had he doesn't know how open Zach has been with her and so he's coming in going, hey, I know where Zach has been. I know that he's had moments in his life that have been really hard for him. And I'm hesitant to just like jump into this being like, okay, this is all good, knowing that like his brother's fragile in a lot of ways. Like he's, he's been through some stuff. Again, that's where wisdom comes from. I guess I've never had this experience. And I want to hear from you on what your take is.

I've had low moments in my life. And I've had friends who have low moments. I've had a friend with me, live with me for seven months after his divorce. And to have the whole family go, hey, I've never seen Zach smile like this is beautiful, yet is it also a little bit like, would it be weird as you as a family member to go, hey, like, what was happening with Zach before this show? Because he has obviously had time to heal. He's obviously, you know, done great things when it comes to rehab and his involvement with the rehabilitation. clinic. But like the fact that Zach hasn't smiled like this before is either a really beautiful thing or it's like, why not? Like was it really he's just waiting for his Tasia? I think that there's

a like sliver of me that that question cross my mind while watching this. I guess like you can sort of say like is this the kind of person who needs somebody in their life to like they're dependent on? for happiness and like this is the kind of person that can't like be happy on their own like you can sort of question that i'm going to say in this case like i don't believe i don't think that this is something to be concerned about i think that like i'm just really excited because it's like the cherry on top of his sunday like he's feeling complete and like i know that like a lot of people say and i agree to a certain extent like you should be complete on your own and you should be happy on your own but i also you know love a good old jerry mcguire line you complete me

like I just don't think that that's like a bad thing to say you know okay you enhance me you know and I think that like Zach is definitely enhanced by Tasha and the one of the things that like was so big here was that he said I'm fine on my own I don't need to get married and I don't need to have a family like I'm cool with being an uncle but then he tells his mom that he's ready like he he actually was lying to himself and he was lying to everybody else when he said that because with Tasia, he's able to openly say that that is what he does crave in life. That was so huge. Huge, Ashley.

Like, let's not underestimate just how big that is. So I don't know if I've ever shared this with you. My mom listens to the podcast, so she'll know this moment. But probably four years ago now, three years ago, I looked at her and I said, mom, I want you to know that I'm okay, that being single feels like something that maybe is meant for me. And I would love one day to find a partner, but I don't know if it's the thing that I'm meant to do. And I just want you to know that and be okay with that so that like you're not questioning where I'm at in mind. And that was a really hard thing for me to say to my mom because

I'm an only child. My mom and dad want grandchildren. And I wanted to bring them grandchildren. but it was something that I needed to say to her because I was at that place mentally and I was also at that place over a lot like through many seasons of prayer and but then I also know the reverse side of that is when you finally look at your parents again and you say I'm in love with this woman she's an incredible partner she enhances my life and I'm ready to do this now like in a sense I don't know if it's true or not but like in a sense you have to hit I don't want to call it rock bottom because being single is not rock bottom but you have to come to a moment of clarity within yourself and then once like you do find that partner that

matches everything that you didn't think you're going to find maybe that does bring the smile to Zach's face that we're talking about like maybe that is just like this internal thing inside of him he's going holy cow I didn't know this existed and now I feel something I've never felt before totally now do you think that you were lying to yourself and your mom when you said that three years ago I don't I think I think I was I think I was prepared to always be single. I think I was okay with that. But preparing yourself because like you wanted like you wanted to be okay if that happened like you're kind of like reassuring yourself that you be okay. Sorry that not to go to a therapy session. No. No, you know exactly. No, I think it's fair

because I think there's a lot of probably like parallels between what Zach was communicating to his mom and what I was communicating to mine is yeah, you have to get to a place where you're okay with it knowing that like you'd never dreamed of that however you know there's value in being single there's nothing wrong with being single and I think I had to get to a place to say if this is what my life's going to look like I'm okay with it um now again to go back to Zach I'm answering my own question earlier but like when you finally find that partner that you feel like fits what it is you were looking for and that looks back at you and says i and i don't think tasha's done this quite yet but like if she looks back at zach and says hey i love you too that moment is is magical it changes the heart

it changes the mind and it does bring a different kind of smile and peace to your life that maybe that is what zach's feeling right now i get it yeah because you don't think it exists yeah it's so good it's so good. And just before we wrap up Zach's date, I think it's also important. You're talking about how each of the guys seem to like, like, love their family even more after going through this experience. I want to mention that he says to his mom that like the impact that he, that she's had on his life is like so huge that he wouldn't be alive if it weren't for her strength. Oh, just incredible. Yeah. And for me, you guys know. like I don't think I've been hiding it like Zach is 100% who I want her to end up with.

I think that Ivan and Brendan are so sweet. I think they're going to make the most fantastic husbands. Like they're like some of the most quality guys we've seen on the show. But I think like with Zach and watching that 15 minute segment with him, like that feels like love. Like that just feels like where Tasha's meant to be. I think the other two with, you know, Ivan and Brendan, I feel like there's a lot of potential in those situations. and in those families, but I just didn't feel like it was, like, as strong of a, like, I just felt like she was at home with Zach.

It's, uh, and she, she almost has this giddiness around Zach that I don't know if I see around these other guys. Like, it's almost like she's a little nervous. There's a passion. There's like a serious passion. And it's not just cutesy, you know, like the other two, it's cutesy. But with him, it's like sexy. It's like heavier.

Does that make sense? Also, like the Jersey girl and me. has like a sweet spot for Zach too when they go through all the new york things the whole hailing a cab was very cute the pizza and the bagel like i was all in uh so good now can we pause here though ash because there's one thing about this episode and i've kind of like just like pounded it now to the ground but the one thing that stands out this episode is i don't remember to date a more authentic a more heartfelt hometown episode than this one like again for zach to say that to his mom those are life-changing moments for his mother like his mom will never forget those words that

she said to him on that date like Brendan's brother won't forget it Ivan's brother won't forget it like these moments are things like I know from my experience and I'm sure you can say the same about you. These moments are ones that I still keep with me to this day, knowing that when I was at my, like, most, like, lonely place during the time on the show, I just recognized, again, the people in my life that had always had my back. And I just wanted to tell them, like, I just wanted to shout out from the rooftop. These are good people. I love you. You've got me here. And for Zach to say that to his mom in this moment is like, it's just so powerful. And it's just so good about this show that this show does that in these moments i completely agree i loved it so much we've just broken down

three dates here ivan brenden and zacks and they were all powerful in their own way um the one obviously that turns a little bit at the end is bins but before we get into vince miss date let's take a break and when we come back we're going to break down the final 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 iHeartRadio app. Search Emergency Intercom and listen now. Imagine that you're on an airplane and all of a sudden,

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help donate to C HLA this holiday season. Visit CHLA.org slash high five today. You can also click the link in our Instagram bio. All right, and we're back, and I'm glad that we separated this date from the other three. The other three really feel cohesive together with me. And then with Ben, I'm going to have a really challenging time describing what I was going through.

I was feeling detached, I feel like. And I feel like I felt detached a lot from Ben. And I know that when I ask people, you know, when I'm out and about anybody comes up to me, when I read our message boards, I see that a lot of people love Ben. They're really rooting for him to go all the way. And I've felt like very held back in saying that I've been rooting for him because I don't know that I have. I feel like he's had like a lot of powerful stories.

and he's been a strong character. I think he's very cute. I think that he's a sweet guy. But there's been like something holding me back from feeling them. And maybe it's because he is so guarded. And you see that his family friend and his sister both talk about how guarded he is. And perhaps it's because, you know, the depression that he's gone through or like past experiences with girls. But there's been something about him for me that just like radiates.

And like, I'm so sorry if I get this wrong. This is just what my gut's been saying. But he just seems like the guy to me that takes you on a few great dates. You're totally swooned by. And then you don't hear from him. And maybe it's because he's scared. And he's like the guy that she's like scared to jump into a relationship if he starts feeling feelings. Or maybe he's just not ready.

I don't know. And then we get to this date. And I just feel like there was like something lingering in the air that just didn't. feel it made me feel like I just don't want her to end up with him there's something about this like I'm worried for her if she picks him in the end so that's why I was a little bit relieved seeing him go home as hard as that is to say about someone well and like you know for ben he's guarded yet he has opened up with some very heavy things throughout this whole season and you know he's talked to tasha about these things there is one thing left

there's one thing left for Ben to do that kind of kind of wrap the bow on top of their story. And that is to tell Tasha exactly how he feels. And so we were kind of waiting for that pinnacle moment, right? But also notice that normally in the hometown dates, there's, I'd say there's like some expectation to say I love you, right? That's when you start saying, I'm falling in love with you or I love you. And that's like kind of the way that they close the car door at the end of the night and drive off. this i felt like there wasn't that sort of pressure here um maybe it's because you know she's had less weeks with them at this point um but but there was pressure for for ben to say it

and maybe it's just because ben has been quieter about revealing his feelings yeah well you know the truth this whole thing is we're waiting for this and it just didn't happen and it felt like the whole date fell short because the whole story wasn't being told, right? Ben is convinced by the ladies in his life during this date that he is in love. And he goes, I am in love. Now, being convinced that you're in love, I think he already knew it, but he had to be told it. And so then the response is, well, is he ready to tell Tasha this? Because it's getting down to the wire.

There's some great men left. He knows that. and he doesn't say it now actually i want to ask you this because i don't remember past seasons very well but at this point in time usually during a season like there is some some more heated conversation amongst the families and amongst the the contestants on hey like where are you at uh if if he were to propose to you would you say yes like we only see it was zach's brother where he's really the only one that fully confronts the situation where it's like hey tell me where you're out with these other guys because that's going to help me understand.

Now, with Ben, it almost feels like it would have helped out if he would have been pushed even harder to say, hey, Ben, if you feel this way about Tasha, you need to tell her. If you don't, then stay quiet. Well, he stayed quiet. And it left a lot to be desired at the end of this date because I went into the first. final rose ceremony on this show almost expecting Ben to go home oh you did okay because yeah it felt like there was so much confusion yet with Tasha and he had already so like if we go back in their story I know we're hounding this but like if you go back in their story Tasha had

to directly tell him Ben I need you to show up and when I say show up like I just need you to show up and be authentic and honest with me and he did it in parts right he shared a lot about his story it made sense to all of us as viewers but in the moment that she needs him to show up the most which is to say hey i've obviously like i've heard your story i care about your story i'm falling for you he stays quiet and i just wonder and i'm assuming here i wonder if in tasha's mind she said hey like i needed somebody show up these other guys did show up i've had to tell ben to show up to his face he didn't and now now it needs to be done because I can't keep begging for something that I know exist, yet he won't confront it.

Yeah, no, I guess I agree with you. I just felt like it was like a dramatic turn. He seemed super happy with the family. And then they walk outside, have that conversation on the bench, and she was like, it's over. Or like, she got, she didn't say it's over. She showed obvious irritation. and maybe yeah maybe it's just because she's like okay i've told you to open up a zillion times and why do i have to tell you before you do each time now yeah and i think that would get

frustrating like in a relationship that would get tiring now bachelor nation is going to freak out right like they love all these guys i i think ben obviously has a lot of support behind him as he should so this is going to be a very controversial exit however i do think that the viewers will understand it if we do look at it from that perspective of hey i've asked you to show up you didn't why do i always have to ask you to show up and because you didn't this time it's time for us to separate and go our different ways yeah i mean let us know maybe she had the same sense as i had i i don't know i'm a little bit out of i'm not really like out of loss for it but i feel like I need to watch it again.

I need to watch that transition from like leaving the family to going on the bench and then her walking away from him all irritated. Well, there was a lot left unsaid. I think that's the best way to summarize that. Now, obviously we see the end of the episode where Ben does go home. He does not receive a rose. It is a very heartfelt exit. We see Tation Ben sitting on the bench together.

And it hurts. I think it hurts them both. I think there's frustration. probably between them both. You hear Ben say, once again, I messed up. It's hard now to backtrack and try to fix it. So we see Ben going home, and we're left with three great guys, Ivan, Zach, and Brendan, walking into Fantasy Suite Week, which will be a huge week for them and their

relationships. Ashley, we're going to pause again here. What an episode it was. I think this was, I mean, I think the best way to summarize the hometowns this season and are authentic, heartfelt, and heart-polling. But let's take a break. We come back. We're going to break down Bachelor headlines from this week.

And, man, what an episode it was. We'll be back with the Almost Famous Podcast. Imagine that you're on an airplane and all of a sudden you hear this. Attention passengers. The pilot is having an emergency. and we need someone, anyone, to land this plane. Think you could do it? It turns out that nearly 50% of men think that they could land the plane

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Listen to no such thing on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hi, my name is Enya Humanzor. And I'm Drew Phillips. And we run a podcast called Emergency Intercom. If you're a crime junkie and you love crime. 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. Hi, I'm Janica Lopez and in the new season of the Overcover podcast, I'm taking you on an exciting journey of self-reflection. Am I ready to enter this new part of my life?

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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.

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Listen to America's Crime Lab on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. So, guys, we're back with Bachelor. Headlines brought to you by Affirm. If you've listened to the podcast in the past couple of weeks, you know why we love a firm. It is perfect because of the holiday season. You're getting all the gifts for friends and family and you want to get them all or you want to get big ticket items. But paying for them like, you know, you're like, I want to get them now, but I totally want to pay for them now. Well, with a firm, you can pay over time at thousands of stores like Walmart, pottery barn, Casper Sleep, Poshmark, price line.

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bachelorette's men tell all dale moss slams joseph obviously which we won't talk about a lot during this episode. But this according to us weekly. Yeah. So Claire's always trying to hint things at us for from based on what she likes on social media. She did tweet herself. I wish they would have let me be in attendance to let these men know in person how much their words and support have meant to me. Thank you, gentlemen. Sounds kind of sassy. Sounds like she was a little annoyed that she didn't have her own tell all or wasn't part of this. She also said, she also liked a series of tweets on Monday night, including one that suggested that they shouldn't have had the villain, Yosef, come back again. Like, let's not give this guy more screen time. This is what he obviously craves.

I totally agree. Yosef probably, you know, shouldn't have gotten more screen time. But, you know, this is a reality. LA TV show and they need entertainment. And of course, as gross as he came across, it was still entertaining to see somebody who's so like beyond conception. Do you know what I mean? Like you just can't believe that like somebody like him exists. Anyway, Ben, you tweeted something great last night. It's perfectly worded. You said if everyone around you feels like you are not behaving correctly or that you are causing damage with your actions, you should humble yourself to listen. And your opinion alone is not always the truth, beneficial, right, and loving. Accountability is actually an incredible thing.

So well said there. And Dale had to, you know, get this off his chest as well. He said, he sounds more like me. He goes, this fool had enough pride and arrogance to sit on TV and believe that's how a man should act towards a woman, even condoning that type of act towards his daughter, even condoning that act towards his own daughter. How people ever actually defended someone like this and his actions is mind-numbing. Yeah, so, I mean, obviously, as we said, like, no need to give Yosef any more screen time.

But obviously, Claire and Dale and myself and many others were upset that this had happened and the way it did and the language used around it. But we're going to move on to Matt James' season. And now we'll have one of our most popular episodes here coming up in just a few weeks after Tasha's season's over where we break down each and every cast member, knowing nothing about them other than their picture, their hometown, their name, their profession. And at that point in time, we're going to pick some of our favorites and who we think he should look out for. We're never right. In fact, most of the time, I'm super wrong on everything. However, it's a lot of fun to do.

It's always a good practice. But if we skip kind of the cast member breakdown, which again, we'll have a whole episode about here just a few weeks. Make sure you tune in for it. There is an interesting headline that talks about some mystery bachelor alum joining Matt James's cast. This is a big deal. Now, Ashley, you are in the know when it comes to Bachelor Nation. Tell us about the story. And then who do you think it is?

So interesting, right? Well, a lot of people are thinking it's Hannah. because Hannah, of course, created a great friendship with Matt during the quarantine crew when they were all down in Florida quarantining with Tyler. Well, you know what? I think we're going to need the detectives out there

to see who was possibly off social media throughout a couple weeks during the fall. Or I guess in the instance that this person doesn't stick around very long, maybe just a week. Does anybody even notice if somebody's been off Instagram for a week? I don't know.

If it was a major character in the franchise, I would say that that would be obvious. But if it was, you know, somebody that maybe hasn't made a huge splash, then I think they can get away with not having their phone for a while and people wouldn't catch up on, catch on to it. So I don't know. You guys send in your theories. I don't think it's going to be Hannah. No, I don't think it's Hannah. I don't think it's Hannah at all.

I think that if there is any spark there, it would have already, you know, been experimented with. I also think that she and Matt have a very strong friendship. Those are the vibes that we've gotten through their social media. So I'm going to throw out a guess for fun. Jen Saviano. Interesting from the 20th season of The Bachelor, which I was able to take part in. That would be interesting. Yeah, I'm thinking it's somebody like from like my season.

Like I'm thinking somebody that has been in the franchise a bit, hasn't found love, saw Matt James and like, this is my dude and went on to give it a shot. And that would be awesome, right? I mean, that would be a cool thing to have happen. Who knows who it is. Now, Matt James's Wild Ride is continuing. Chris Harrison is speaking out a lot right now about this season. There's obviously a lot of press around it.

But there's a funny story that goes on. Chris Harrison admits that Matt James had no idea what a rose ceremony was. This according to Us Weekly. Which means that he never watched Tyler's season with Hannah. I don't know. I guess, right? Yeah, so Harrison said that sometimes the producers would just be like explaining how a day was going to go. He's like, we'd all be talking like 1,000 miles an hour, just like assuming that he knew the ropes.

And then Matt would stop them and be like, hey, guys, I don't know what they're saying. he even said i don't know what a rose ceremony is and he's like and then like the producers are like wow um oh my gosh okay we got to teach this guy a thing or two harrison also recently said that there were times throughout the season where he and matt had words with each other he also said that there were moments where they hugged and loved each other he said he's a he's a terrific man uh he loved going through this with him but he said like if you don't go through those like highs and lows. You're probably not doing it right. So maybe there's not anything to like really worry about with like we had words with each other. But like you didn't have words with Harrison

while filming your season. I feel like a lot of bachelors don't get heated with Harrison. Do you think this is just like some good clickbait for us? Like a nice, a nice quote or is there really going to be some friction there? I think there's friction. And I think they have a lot of respect for each other from everything I understand about how this season is. And I don't know a lot about the outcome, but I do know, you know, who Matt is. I've been able to talk to him a few times. I think he stands strong in the things he believes. And I think Harrison stands strong and things he believes, which is a fair thing to do, right? Nobody's asking the bachelor, bachelorette just to, you know, it's one of the cool parts about being the lead. There's no rules.

And so if you want to stand up for something, stand up for it. And I'm sure there was moments during this whole thing where Matt said, no, I'm not doing that. Or I don't agree with this. And that's a terrific thing to do. Everybody who always wants to blame editing and producers for everything. But I've preached it since the time I got off the show. You have every ability to say no. Like, and like everybody's going to agree.

Like nobody's going to fight you on that. If you put your foot down and say, I'm not doing that. Or I'm not going to behave this way or whatever. the producers will say, okay, that's your call. And so I hope Matt did that because I think he's a good dude. I think when he does that, it's going to be for the right reasons. Even if it's not the best decision, I think he's going to have the best intentions when he puts his foot down.

Yeah, all right. It's going to be good. It's going to be super good. Now, here's a little going back to Claire for a second, another headline that just came up this week. It's just super interesting. This is really interesting. Yeah.

You know, we've not doubted that Claire was very excited. about dating Dale. In fact, if you remember, right, she left this season a few weeks in to date Dale. And then on the kind of sit down with him, she told Dale that she was like ready to start having babies. And like, that was a moment that we all kind of went, oh, no, because he kind of reacted hesitantly. Well, Claire Crowley clarifies this week. She has to clarify her relationship status with Dale Moss after calling him her husband, this according to us weekly. So on Thursday night, They were around New York, I believe, and she says, nothing makes me happier. Oh, maybe it was South Dakota.

I don't know. It looked cold outside, and it was dark. And she said, nothing makes me happier than grocery shopping with my husband. And it's like, okay. So then, of course, she posts another Instagram story slide and says, slip of the tongue, we aren't married. It's like, slip of the tongue, you've recorded yourself saying it. Then you pressed send, you know, you pressed upload. That was on a slip of the tongue.

That was like, no, that was something to get people talking. What do you think? I don't, you know what, like, if it was meant to get people talking, then that was a very strategic move. However, I see it more being like a... Slip of the tongue. Yeah, I feel like she's just overly excited. Not overly. I mean, she's engaged and in love with this dude. So I don't know if you can be overly

excited about the future. I think she's just so excited that she said it, posted it and then realized, oh, no, I got a backtrack. However, I never thought about it. It could definitely be a strategic move to get people talking. It would feel weird. Like, um, that's you. That's just exactly you telling Jess that she's, I can't, I love going grocery shopping with my wife. You wouldn't do that. No, because, yeah, exactly. Like, if anything, I still. like at times like call her my girlfriend yeah yeah like i'm always one step behind like you know i'm super excited about marrying the girl but like i still like for whatever reason and more likely to refer to her as my girlfriend i'm getting better at fiancee we're getting

used to it we're a few months into that see my like i think that girlfriend and fiance are way more aligned than fiancee in life so maybe it's just personal preference or like the way that we think of marriage because I was like all about official official official like with Jared I would like I need to make sure that that marriage certificate was like signed in scent and all of that the day that we got married like I was like I wanted to be official before I call you a husband like I don't want to just have the ceremony and say I was like I want it in in spirituality sense and in legal sense until I say husband. I don't know. Well, it's definitely a headline. Interesting to read. Well, another headline and the final

headline when we are all celebrating. Emily Ferguson, who you know from the 20th season of The Bachelor with they're on there with her sister Haley. Bachelor star Emily Ferguson engaged to William Carlson. The quote is, I get to marry the man of my dreams that's according to people this was so exciting so very funny story on my i don't get it podcast this week we had emily come on we were talking a little bachelor but you know my other podcast is called i don't get it so you come with an i don't get it in mind before we talk about whatever topic you're going to talk about and she said my biggest i don't get it is why will hasn't proposed to me it just makes no sense we've been together for three years lull she's like you know

and her classic Emily fashion just venting so honestly and hilariously about how he had yet to pop the question. She was like, I think Haley might get engaged before me. I'm like so over. This is exhausting waiting. And then I pull up my Instagram a couple days ago and I see that ring on her finger in like that very engaging looking posts. And I was like, no way. That's so awesome. That's so, so awesome.

So yes, they got engaged on Sunday. You know, he's a professional hockey player. He plays for the Vegas nights. They've been together for three years. And you can see the video on her Instagram. The way he did it was so funny. Because we all know that Emily and Haley like love to be done up. Their hair done, their makeup done, like a cute outfit.

You know, that's just them. They don't really show themselves off like without being totally done up. And he decided to propose to her. when they were on a hike she was wearing a sweat shirt sweat pants she had her hair in a bun she had just gotten a fresh spray tan so she may have been like a little bit orange and she says in the video she goes are you you're doing this now like why are you doing this now it was so on brand for her I loved it it was great well I will celebrate Emily and William her fiancee what a thing to have love exist everywhere well hey tasha's story of love is going to continue uh obviously next

week with the fantasy sweets we'll be here to break down the fantasy sweets uh episode it's going to be one that is very telling i imagine well hey these guys are so in love it's so in love so emotional so real so authentic what a great season so far we'll be back next week with the almost famous podcast thanks for listening with that i've been I've been Ashley. See ya. Follow the Ben and Ashley I, almost famous podcast on IHartRadio, or subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts. 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 IHeartRadio app. Search Emergency Intercom and listen now. Do we really need another podcast with a condescending finance brof trying to tell us how to spend our own money? No thank you. Instead, check out Brown Ambition. Each week, I, your host, Mandy Money, gives you real talk, real advice with a heavy dose of I feel uses, like on Fridays when I take your questions for the BAQ.

Whether you're trying to invest for your future, navigate a toxic workplace, I got you. Listen to Brown Ambition on the IHeart Radio 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. Listen to Shock Incarceration on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hi, it's Honey German, and I'm back with season two of my podcast.

Grazias, come again. We got you when it comes to the latest in music and entertainment with interviews 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. We'll talk about all that's viral and trending

With a little bit of cheesement and a whole lot of laughs And of course, the great bevras you've come to expect Listen to the new season of Dresses Come Again On the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast Everyone thinks they'd never join a cult But it happens all the time to people just like you And people just like us I'm Lola Blanc and I'm Megan Elizabeth

We're the hosts of Trust Me, a podcast about cult manipulation and the psychology of belief each week we talk to fellow survivors former believers and experts to understand why people get pulled in and how they get out trust me new episodes every Wednesday on exactly right listen wherever you get your podcasts this is an iHeart