Further Reading:

* Heated Rivalry on HBOMax

* South Park Clip

Theme Music: “Banjo Beat” - Will Records

Theme Music: “Banjo Beat” - Will Records; Handel’s Messiah: Part II, Hallelujah Chorus (Sargent 1958)

Further Reading:

The lavendar marriage is back — but why? (The Guardian)

What is a lavender marriage? (Cosmopolitan)

The uncomfortable truth behind the lavender marriage trend (Mashable)

Theme Music: “Banjo Beat” - Will Records

Today, we talk about the attention-grabbing trend and whether or not this naming convention is something too that millennials should kill.

Further Reading:

* The decade of ‘millennials killing’ things has come to an end, but it wasn’t the generation’s fault in the first place (Business Insider)

* I Did All the Things Millennials Are Accused of Killing (Vice.com)

* 5 Industries Millennials Are ‘Killing’ (And Why) (Forbes)

* Things we’ve killed:

* 18 Things Millennials Have Been Killing Off in the Last Decade (Reader’s Digest)

* RIP: Here are 70 things millennials have killed (Mashable)

* Here Are All The Things Millennials Are Killing, According To Olds (Ranker)

Theme Music: “Banjo Beat” - Will Records

Hobbies are making a comeback among the Gen Z and Millennial generations…In this episode we dig into our own hobbies and simultaneously unpack this rising trend.

FURTHER READING:

Why Gen Z says ‘hotties need hobbies’ (WBUR)

What is Millennial Hobby Energy? (Culture Study)

From hiking to birdwatching to early nights - gen Z are coming for my hobbies, and they’re much better at them (The Guardian)

And they are not the only ones being questioned. People are looking closer at the intentions of notable men–not just in business, but across the spectrum–from entertainment to politics.

But we’re not focusing on them.

Today, we discuss the women beside these men: the wives and partners. As the facades are pulled away, what did these women see in their partners when they first got together and do they still see it? We are revisiting the women behind these quote-unquote great men.

In “The Death of the Corporate Job,” Alex McCann argues that traditional work isn’t collapsing; it’s quietly dying because people no longer believe in it. The offices, the meetings, the decks all still happen, but the meaning has leaked out. More and more, the paycheck is just funding the real work: side projects, creative pursuits, anything that feels alive.

In “The Futile Search for the B******t-less Job,” Anne Helen Petersen agrees that modern work often feels hollow, but says the problem runs deeper. Decades of eroded labor protections have left individuals shouldering all the risk. Freelancing or launching a Substack might feel like freedom, but it’s often precarity in disguise.

In this podcast episode, we’re asking: What even is work now?

Is a job still a career…or just a funding mechanism? Is self-employment true freedom, or another hustle trap? And perhaps most important, can we find meaning in work?

Despite the time elapsed since Austen wrote the book and its publication, the novel seems to have remained part of our cultural narrative. Today, we sit down and talk Austen.

Further Reading:

* Pride and Prejudice - Wikipedia

* On the Box: ‘Pride and Prejudice’ at 30 – does the BBC’s beloved 1995 series still sparkle? | Irish Independent

* 20th Anniversary of Pride and Prejudice (2005) | Jane Austen's World

* Did Jane Austen even care about romance? — Harvard Gazette

* Shirt worn by Colin Firth as water-soaked Mr. Darcy in ‘Pride and Prejudice’ is up for auction (Today.com)

Theme Music: “Banjo Beat” - Will Records

Such “cancellation” or decision to stop supporting a public persona, entered the vocabulary about ten years about, but really started to grow in popularity during the #MeToo movement, beginning in late 2017 when women in the film industry spoke up with allegations of sexual misconduct by people…men… in power.

Now “cancel culture” has spread, gaining traction in other spheres, such as the political and literary worlds, fueled by social media.

Further Reading:

* What Is Cancel Culture and What Does It Mean in 2024? (Vice)

* Americans and ‘Cancel Culture’: Where Some See Calls for Accountability, Others See Censorship, Punishment (Pew Research)

* Pros And Cons Of Cancel Culture: Tool For Change Or Trendy Toxicity? (Dear Media)

* Specific Cases Discussed in the Episode:

* Bill Cosby: The rise, fall and release of 'America's Dad' (BBC News)

* People are looking to forgive him’: inside Will Smith’s carefully choreographed comeback (The Guardian)

* Love Island USA's Cierra leaves show after racism row (BBC News)

* In light of George Floyd’s death, ex-NFL exec admits what we knew all along: Protests ended Colin Kaepernick’s career (Yahoo! Sports)

* A complete breakdown of the J.K. Rowling transgender comments controversy (Glamour UK)

Theme Music: “Banjo Beat” - Will Records

As biracial women with naturally curly hair ourselves, our relationship with our hair has been…complicated. And in recent years, the conversation around curls/natural hair has become more pronounced — with the rise of curly brands and products like Pattern by Tracee Ellis Ross, hairstyle trends like ‘cloud curls’, and increased representation of curls on film & tv.

In this episode, Elaine and Carlyn dig into their own hair stories and asking: what does it really mean to embrace your hair?

Further Reading

In Films and on TV, a New Openness to Natural Black Hairstyles (New York Times)

Politics, Policy, & Social Media: How Natural Hair Has Influenced A Generation (Refinery29)

For the First Time Ever, I Wore My Natural Hair for a Week (Cosmopolitan)

How I Brought the Curls from my 20s Back to Life in My 40s (Allure)

My Decades-Long Journey to Curls (Marie Claire)

Now, six months into Trump’s second term, we wanted to check in to see how we’re feeling.

FURTHER READING:

Elaine’s Political Newsletter: Seeking Democracy

First Teaser Episode: "But first," A Quick Election Debrief...(Teaser Episode)

Theme Music: “Banjo Beat” - Will Records

According to multiple sources, statistically only about 30% of a graduating class shows up to a reunion. Which makes you wonder: why do some people go, and others don’t? What are reunions really for in a world where we now see everyone’s life updates online?

In this episode, C & E unpack that exact tension—starting with a simple question:What do you picture when you hear the words “high school reunion”?

Then we get into it: who we were back in high school, what parts of us still linger (or grate), and whether reunions still hold meaning…or if they’re just a relic of the pre-social media past.

FURTHER READING:

Remember me from yesterday? (New York Times)

Why are class reunions so terrifying? (The Guardian)

Is the high school reunion dead? (The Walrus)

Embracing my 40-year high school reunion (Psychology Today)

Why you should consider going to that high school reunion (San Diego Tribune)

In this episode, we explore our awareness of superficially aging.

Further Reading:

* Vanity Is Not a Deadly Sin. It’s One of Life’s Last Vital Signs (The New York Times)

* Appreciating the Difference Between Pride and Vanity (Psychology Today)

* It’s OK to care about your looks: Women shouldn't be embarrassed by — or shamed into — decisions of personal style (Salon.com)

* The Never-Ending Scrutiny of Being in an Aging Body (The Walrus)

* The Psychology of Appearance and Aging: This is not about vanity - It's about your identity (Positive Aging Community)

* The Psychology of Vanity (Psychology Today)

* Kris Jenner's Shocking New Look Went Viral. Now the Plastic Surgeon Responsible Has Been Revealed (People.com)

* It Doesn’t Matter If the Kardashians Are Honest About Their Plastic Surgery (Allure)

Theme Music: “Banjo Beat” - Will Records

There are over 60K women in the “Solo Female Travel” reddit group, and there are an increasing amount of tours, travel apps, accommodation that are targeted towards women only.

In this episode, we explore why more women might be opting for solo travel through the lens of our own personal solo travel experiences.

Further Reading:

* NBC News: Women Are Planning Vacation Alone

* Afar Magazine: As a Solo Female Traveler, Here’s What to Know & Where to Go

* Reddit: /FemaleTravels

Though Lamar did not attacked Drake’s biracial heritage directly, many of the reviews of the work have drawn a strong connection to race and suggested that Drake’s career is built on cultural appropriation.

Carlyn and Elaine use the song as a starting point for their own discussion of biracial identity.

Further Reading:

* Music Video: Kendrick Lamar - Not Like Us

* Superbowl Performance: Kendrick Lamar’s Apple Music Super Bowl Halftime Show

* Kendrick Lamar "Not Like Us" Lyrical Breakdown (notnewhiphop)

* A complete break down of Kendrick Lamar's fifth diss track 'Not Like Us' (SportsSkeeda)

* Who’s Afraid of Being Black? Not Kamala, Beyoncé or Kendrick. (The New York Times)

* The Number One Song in the Country Is a Diss Track. Is That a Good Thing?(Rolling Stone)

* COMMENTARY: Kendrick Lamar’s ‘Not Like Us’ reminds us that culture vultures like Akademiks and DJ Vlad built their platforms by exploiting Black trauma (The TRiiBE)

* Kendrick Lamar’s Wife’s Ethnicity Is a Hot Topic Amid His Feud With Drake (Blavity)

Theme Music: “Banjo Beat” - Will Records

In this episode, Carlyn and Elaine examine how companies use product branding to appeal to customers like them by looking at two emerging terms: “yassificiation” and “enshittification”, which both describe the relationship between an actual product and how they present to a potential consumer.

At a time of increasing economic unsurety and instability, Carlyn and Elaine sit down to talk about these themes and how they shape their own habits.

Further Reading:

* What Does ‘Yassification’ Mean? A Brief History Of The Queer Term (Refinery29)

* What Does It Mean to 'Yassify' Anything? (The New York Times)

* YASSification Is The Biggest Trend Sweeping The Internet (HighSnobiety)

* Your stuff is actually worse now (Vox)

* The ‘Enshittification’ of TikTok (Wired)

* There’s a reason why it feels like the internet has gone bad (MSN)

* Millennial Rebrand Syndrome (Blog Post, Blackbird Spyplane)

* Why does everything look infantilized? (Blog Post, Maryah)

Theme Music: “Banjo Beat” - Will Records

In this episode, Carlyn and Elaine explore the ways AI and technology are reshaping personal relationships and social interactions. Carlyn, deeply embedded in the tech world, uses AI regularly, while Elaine has intentionally distanced herself from social media and digital tools, favoring more manual, real-world processes. Together, they examine the growing tension between convenience and authenticity, questioning whether AI is enhancing or eroding human connection.

What does it mean to truly be a friend in the digital age? And as technology continues to evolve, how can we maintain meaningful relationships? Tune in for a thoughtful conversation on the trade-offs of an increasingly AI-driven world.

Further Reading:

* MIT sociologist Sherry Turkle on the psychological impacts of bot relationships (TED)

* She Fell in Love With ChatGPT. Like, Actual Love. With Sex. (NYT)

* Esther Perel on New AI - Artificial Intimacy (Brene Brown)

* “I’m afraid we’re automating this work without really understanding it.” (HBR)

* Meet My AI Friends (NYT)

Theme Music: “Banjo Beat” - Will Records

How do we understand the appeal of such a space? Join us, and our brother, as we explore the Manosphere.

Further Reading:

* Swallowing the Red Pill: a journey to the heart of modern misogyny (The Guardian)

* How positive male role models are detoxifying the social media ‘manosphere’ (The Guardian)

* Welcome to the femosphere, the latest dark, toxic corner of the internet… for women (The Guardian)

* Join or Die (Film)

* Are Young Men Really Becoming More Sexist? (Podcast, Good on Paper)

* How social media is luring men into the Manosphere (Podcast, The Guardian)

Theme Music: “Banjo Beat” - Will Records

4B has started to build momentum in the US following the Trump’s re-election and the overturning of Roe vs. Wade, and it’s not without its complexities and concerns.

Join us as we explore both 4B itself and relate it back to our own experiences with modern love and womanhood.

Futher Reading:

* 4B Movement: What is It and How Did it Start? (The Week)

* As 4B takes the world by storm, South Korea is grappling with a backlash against feminism (The Guardian)

* Here’s What Korean Women Think of the 4B Movement Spreading to the US (Rolling Stone)

* 4B Isn’t Breaking Up With Men — It’s Breaking Up With the System (34 St)

* 4B Movement Reddit Group

Theme Music: “Banjo Beat” - Will Records

Further Reading:

Our respective favorite reads: Not the End of the World by Hannah Ritchie | Playground by Richard Powers

Our respective favorite songs: “Make Your Own Kind of Music” (Cover) - Paloma Faith | “Pink Pony Club” - Chappell Roan

Our favorite TV shows: Flex X Cop (Hulu, Disney+), Happiness (Netflix), Industry (HBO), Love Island USA (Peacock), Traitors USA (Peacock)

Our favorite movies: Will & Harper (Netflix), Wicked

Pantone Color of the Year: https://www.pantone.com/color-of-the-year/2025

Pommel Horse Guy: https://www.npr.org/2024/08/03/g-s1-15241/stephen-nedoroscik-pommel-horse-guy-olympic-bronze

United Healthcare: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/most-americans-blame-insurance-profits-and-coverage-denials-alongside-killer-in-unitedhealthcare-ceo-death-poll-finds

Theme Music: “Banjo Beat” - Will Records; “Maiden Voyage” - Helmet Schenker

Further Reading:

Tis The Season: A Hallmark Christmas Movie Outrated Everything On Cable News Last Week, Forbes.com (https://www.forbes.com/sites/maryroeloffs/2023/11/22/tis-the-season-a-hallmark-christmas-movie-outrated-everything-on-cable-news-last-week/)

Just How Formulaic Are Hallmark and Lifetime Holiday Movies? We (Over)analyzed 424 of Them, nytimes.com (https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2023/12/23/upshot/hallmark-lifetime-christmas.html)

Why Women Read More Than Men, Medium.com (https://medium.com/@nada.mo.shawky/why-women-read-more-than-men-1b807f7cb995)

Christmas Is Coming by MaxKoMusic | https://maxkomusic.com/