honestly hilarious | laura lee

Summary

Podcast Summary: CHEERS! with Avery Woods – "Honestly Hilarious | Laura Lee"

Episode Information:

• Title: Honestly Hilarious | Laura Lee
• Host: Avery Woods
• Guest: Laura Lee
• Release Date: August 11, 2025

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Introduction

In this engaging episode of CHEERS! with Avery Woods, host Avery Woods sits down with longtime friend and fellow content creator Laura Lee. The conversation dives deep into Laura's journey as an influencer, her personal struggles, business ventures, and her role as a guardian to her niece. Both Avery and Laura share candid insights, humorous anecdotes, and heartfelt discussions that resonate with anyone navigating the complexities of online fame and personal growth.

---

Reflecting on Their First Meeting

Avery reminisces about her first encounter with Laura Lee, highlighting their longstanding friendship and mutual connections.

• Avery Woods [00:43]: "Wait, do you remember the first time we met? 'Cause I don't."
• Laura Lee [00:48]: "I think so."

The conversation underscores the depth of their relationship, spanning numerous events and shared experiences over the years.

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Navigating Fame and Imposter Syndrome

Laura Lee reflects on her twelve-year career in the industry, discussing the challenges of maintaining authenticity amidst public recognition.

• Avery Woods [02:05]: "I still very much have imposter syndrome."
• Laura Lee [02:30]: "Even on my ugliest day in life, I've never sold someone..."

They delve into the struggles of being constantly recognized and the pressure to remain genuine, with Laura emphasizing the importance of being approachable and authentic.

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The Impact of Social Media and Algorithms

A significant portion of the discussion focuses on how social media algorithms influence content visibility and personal mental health.

• Laura Lee [06:14]: "They're like this we've been looking for. I'm just kidding. I paid them all."
• Avery Woods [07:04]: "Why is hate so jarring?"

Laura shares her experiences with YouTube's algorithm, recounting her first viral video which amassed 15 million views.

• Laura Lee [38:05]: "That video got 15 million views. And my channel just little by little kept exploding from there."

Avery discusses her own challenges with student loans during her nursing career, providing a stark contrast to Laura's influencer path.

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Overcoming Cancellations and Mental Health Struggles

Both hosts openly discuss the harsh realities of online cancellations and their effects on mental health.

• Laura Lee [46:38]: "Three months. Months."
• Avery Woods [46:34]: "How long did you go away after?"

Laura recounts taking time off after being canceled, emphasizing the importance of self-development and resilience.

• Laura Lee [48:03]: "I got canceled. But how..."

She highlights the lessons learned from adversity, reinforcing the message of perseverance and personal growth.

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Business Ventures and Branding

Laura Lee details her entrepreneurial journey, including the challenges of trademark issues and rebranding efforts.

• Laura Lee [39:49]: "I'm in LA. It started actually as Nudie Batuti..."
• Laura Lee [41:09]: "I started a clothing brand and then because I didn't have an investor..."

She discusses the evolution of her brand from makeup to a comprehensive body care line under the new name "Minimal A," overcoming legal hurdles to solidify her business presence.

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Personal Life and Guardianship

A heartfelt segment covers Laura's role as a guardian to her niece, Aaron, and the impact of family dynamics on her life.

• Laura Lee [50:13]: "I had to send her back to Alabama for six months until my court case."
• Avery Woods [53:05]: "You know, and we always talk about that too off camera..."

Laura shares the emotional and legal challenges she faced to provide a stable environment for Aaron, emphasizing the importance of breaking harmful cycles and fostering a supportive family structure.

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Lighthearted Moments: Rapid Fire Questions

Towards the end of the episode, Avery and Laura engage in a rapid-fire segment, adding humor and personal tidbits to the conversation.

• Avery Woods [64:42]: "What's your favorite way to unwind after a long day?"
• Laura Lee [65:00]: "I listen to a lot of podcasts and keep a gratitude journal..."

They discuss favorite makeup trends, guilty pleasures, and quirky habits, showcasing their playful rapport and mutual support.

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Closing Thoughts

The episode concludes with Avery and Laura reflecting on their growth, the importance of authenticity, and their unwavering friendship.

• Avery Woods [79:07]: "Where can everyone find you?"
• Laura Lee [79:09]: "You can find me Laura Lee on Instagram, Full Coverage Podcast, Minimal A is my brand. Check it out."

They express gratitude for each other's support and encourage listeners to embrace their true selves while navigating the often tumultuous world of social media.

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Notable Quotes:

• Laura Lee [05:16]: "You give them who you are."
• Avery Woods [26:08]: "So proud of you."
• Laura Lee [76:55]: "If I'm not mistaken, that's one of his isms. And Tony Robbins has changed my life."

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Conclusion

This episode of CHEERS! with Avery Woods offers a profound look into the life of Laura Lee, blending humor with raw honesty. Listeners are treated to a narrative of resilience, the pursuit of authenticity, and the unbreakable bonds of friendship. Whether grappling with the pressures of online fame or navigating personal challenges, Avery and Laura provide relatable insights and inspiration for anyone striving to live their truth in a digital age.

Transcript

[Avery Woods]

Hi, welcome to Cheers. I'm your host, Avery Woods. Hi, Laura.

[Laura Lee]

Hi. Hello for having me.

[Avery Woods]

No, thanks for being here.

[Laura Lee]

Yeah, of course.

[Avery Woods]

I have another one of my OGs on the pod.

[Laura Lee]

Sure. Is there a Thanos ring? So og I should have like a.

[Avery Woods]

Little like gift with purchase. Like a gift with interview, please. I should wear like the Thanos Manny Mua on the pinky. Jaclyn on the ring finger.

[Laura Lee]

I want the bird. Yeah, definitely use that one.

[Avery Woods]

Wait, do you remember the first time we met? Cuz I don't.

[Laura Lee]

No.

[Avery Woods]

Well, I was thinking about it cuz I'm like, we've just hung out so many times. I mean, I. I know it was at Jacqueline's house. Was it me, you, Manny, Jacqueline?

[Laura Lee]

I think so.

[Avery Woods]

And I just remember being like, holy, it's Laura Lee. No flesh.

[Laura Lee]

No. Yes. You know how like you're you?

[Avery Woods]

Yeah.

[Laura Lee]

And like I'm just like, whatever, like in my own body. So whenever people feel that way, it's hard cuz I didn't watch me for years or I didn't see me around for years. So it's like a hard concept to process. And we just left La Palooza and I warned Manny. I was like, we have a lot of fans here and I think we met more people than we've ever met like in our life.

[Avery Woods]

You know what though? How cool. After being in this industry for over.

[Laura Lee]

A decade, mind blowing.

[Avery Woods]

How long has it been since.

[Laura Lee]

12 years.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah, see, that's cool though.

[Laura Lee]

Yeah.

[Avery Woods]

Because you have such a loyal honor.

[Laura Lee]

Yeah. I mean, it feels really cool. It's definitely an ego boost. I'm just kidding. It definitely strikes my ego. No, I'm just kidding. No, no, I. It's like shocking still though. But you think you'd be like, duh, but it's not. And sometimes I'll like go to an event and I'll be like, oh, hi, I'm Laura. Always introduce myself. Of course, if I've never met someone, they'll be like, duh, I know who you are. And I'm like, you're not gonna be.

[Avery Woods]

Like, hi, you know who I am.

[Laura Lee]

Yeah, exactly. I'm like, hi, we all know me.

[Avery Woods]

You know, I. I still very much have imposter syndrome. And I feel like that will happen where, you know, you get stopped and it's just such an honor when people stop you. And people are always like, I'm so sorry to bug you.

[Laura Lee]

But I always say, like, say they're so sorry.

[Avery Woods]

And I always tell them like, I wouldn't have a job without you. Like, I'm honored that you stopped me.

[Laura Lee]

I've never told no one. Even on my ugliest day on life, I've never sold someone. No. To a. Never.

[Avery Woods]

No.

[Laura Lee]

So I'm like, please stop me. Always stop me. Yes. Just do it. And, like, you're not getting on my nerves. I'm not Jennifer Aniston, but even though.

[Avery Woods]

I create content now, I still am a consumer. And for years, like, what, 12 years ago, I graduated high school in 2013. So I think I started watching you in high school. Yeah. Yeah.

[Laura Lee]

So I remember those things people say to us. They say, you were my childhood, or, like, I watched you all through high school or something like that.

[Avery Woods]

Well, it really is. Like, I think back to when I needed to know what makeup product to buy with my Starbucks paycheck. Or, like, I got a product, and I was like, how the do I use this? It was like, you, Manny, Jacqueline, you were who I watched.

[Laura Lee]

I love that. I love all three of us and you too, so what a great thing.

[Avery Woods]

Did you guys hear that?

[Laura Lee]

That's. It's true.

[Avery Woods]

That's incredible. What was your first impression of me? Be honest.

[Laura Lee]

Okay, well, I liked you online. I told you I watched, which I forgot about those vlogs that you would do your kid. And they were not foul, but there was, like, an edge to them.

[Avery Woods]

Oh, they were definitely foul.

[Laura Lee]

They were foul. They were really foul.

[Avery Woods]

It was a lot of fun.

[Laura Lee]

No, and I think that's fun because me and Manny are very crude on our podcast. We're literally talking about his butthole every other episode. So I mean, like, we love that. You know what I mean? So I automatically was drawn to you because I thought that was a little different than we hadn't really seen so much in the industry. And I thought you had a really fun personality. Yeah, that's my first impression. And you act just like you act online. Oh. Like, you act identical to how you act in all of your vlogs, all of your TikToks. You're the same person.

[Avery Woods]

That's very nice. That's a big compliment, because we kind of touched on that a little bit on your podcast where that's not always the case, which is really interesting.

[Laura Lee]

It is.

[Avery Woods]

And I still feel so naive to that, where I meet people sometimes, and I'm like, I love you. I love your content. And they're such a different person.

[Laura Lee]

You're like, wait a minute.

[Avery Woods]

That almost, like, takes me back.

[Laura Lee]

Yeah.

[Avery Woods]

Because I'm almost, like, in shock. But then I remember, remember, like, sometimes this is like a show.

[Laura Lee]

Yes. Like social media. Have your own TV show.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah.

[Laura Lee]

And it's interesting, some people like performative a little bit on their shows. So whenever you meet them in person, it can be jarring because you're like, oh my God, you're so different.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah.

[Laura Lee]

Like you are a TV host.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah.

[Laura Lee]

And then some people, they just show their genuine, real raw personalities, lives, what they do, what they think is funny, what they like, and there's no prefer formative nature to it.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah. I do feel like that is almost a defense mechanism for people though, because they know they won't get as much hate when they kind of control how they are. Whereas when you are vulnerable. Yes. You're so vulnerable when you're like your true authentic self, because when the hate comes, they're really hating on you.

[Laura Lee]

You gave them who you are.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah.

[Laura Lee]

You've like unveiled that totally. So. But I feel like with people, maybe you agree, but like, I cannot hold up a character for that long.

[Avery Woods]

No.

[Laura Lee]

I guess maybe like I feel like I will seep out like my crazy. My me, my personality is quirky and I think it would seep out even how hard I try. So I'm just like not that structured of a person to even be able to hold that character.

[Avery Woods]

You know, I actually remember, I don't remember who told me this when I was first really making it in the industry. Well, on social media, the industry sounds like I'm in Hollywood. That's not true.

[Laura Lee]

But coming.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah. But when I first started really growing my platform, someone gave me incredible advice, and that was, do not pretend to be something you're not, because you will burn out so fast.

[Laura Lee]

Oh, my God, that's the best advice ever. And it sounds so corny to say, oh, you're trying to be an influencer. You're trying to start fresh, be genuine, be yourself. Like, be yourself sounds so corny. And it's really hard to be yourself your first few videos because you're nervous and you're getting warmed up to the camera. So, like, you're not yourself. But, like, that's why you have a small audience in the beginning because barely anyone sees that. But, you know, 20, 30, 40, 50 videos in, you warm up and then that genuine yourself starts to pop out. But it's really important. It's okay to have like idols and people that inspire you, but never try to be them. You know what I mean? Try to let yourself seep into your content. I. I say, yeah.

[Avery Woods]

I also feel like when you are genuine, it does show through the camera. And even though that can attract hate, hey, always is so much louder than love. But you do get so much love. And so many people that are like, thank you for talking about this. I relate to it.

[Laura Lee]

Yeah.

[Avery Woods]

Even for the hundred mean comments. You have like 10, 000 people that are like, thank you for being honest about.

[Laura Lee]

Why is hate so jarring? It is so jarring and it always will be. And I always think of it like, say you went to a party, a million people came up to you and they're like, oh my God, I love your lashes, love your dress. And you're like, oh my God, thank you. And then one person's like, hey, like you really pissed me off. Like, you're like, that would hang with you the whole night. You'd be like, oh my God, that would ruin just one person. Regardless that that many people came up and gave you that much love. Why are we like that as humans? We just are.

[Avery Woods]

But why are we. Why are people just mean?

[Laura Lee]

Why are people.

[Avery Woods]

Why do people leave the comment anyways?

[Laura Lee]

Like, I just.

[Avery Woods]

But you know, they're miserable.

[Laura Lee]

It's true. That is true though, because there's no one who is truly like sickening. Someone you would want to be someone that would inspire you, that would on you online.

[Avery Woods]

Totally.

[Laura Lee]

I mean that's just not the case. So there is some sleep at night knowing that people online, you would have to be some level miserable out there to constantly on influencers online.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah. And I actually talked about this the other day on Tick Tock when I was getting ready because I talked about how social media completely changed my life and my family's life because obviously, and we'll go into your story too, because you have an awesome story, but obviously I was a nurse and I was such a big consumer of social media because I loved makeup and skincare and vlogs and I wasn't like a big TV watcher, so I just loved YouTube. But I remember never looking at those people in a hatred way. Like I never as a consumer was like, fuck this person for having so much money and unboxing their designer bag. They're so out of touch, they're unrelatable anymore. Well, I'm sitting on my 12 hour shift taking care of really sick kids that are dying. I remember being like, damn good for you. Like, get that back.

[Laura Lee]

I want that too. Maybe one day for me, maybe that shows that one day that can happen for me too. Because you look in a mind, you live in a mindset of abundance and they live in a mindset of there's not enough for everybody. So it becomes a jealousy war. Like, well, they got that. I can never have that. That's not my life. I'll never get that. I'll never see that. And you live in a mindset of abundantness. So you're like, oh, good for her. That inspires me. Like, I want to do that one day. Maybe I can have that too. Because you know that there's enough fore everybody.

[Avery Woods]

And that was how it was. It was me watching, being like, well, if she did that, I could do that too.

[Laura Lee]

100.

[Avery Woods]

And I did for years before it ever paid off.

[Laura Lee]

Yeah.

[Avery Woods]

But I finally got there and Jacqueline, like six months ago, sent me a screenshot of her Instagram from 2015. And it was like her. It was like a coat rack and it was her purses, like all her designer bags. And I said something like, love this so much. Or like, I love all those bags.

[Laura Lee]

Or like goals or. So happy for her. So happy. How crazy, though.

[Avery Woods]

And I was doing my prerequisites for nursing school, broke as living like an.

[Laura Lee]

800 square foot apartment. That's more I feel like, though, because here's the crazy thing. It's like, if your mindset is lack of abundance, what would be the antithesis of abundance?

[Avery Woods]

Nothing.

[Laura Lee]

I love it so much. Thank. But like, if you live in the mindset of there's not enough for everyone. Unfortunately, you're right.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah.

[Laura Lee]

You probably won't get those things. And that probably. That's the thing. That's crazy. Well, I believe how the universe works. God. Whatever you believe in, I believe what you believe is true. So, like, I think if you think that those things aren't for you and you can't have those things. You're right.

[Avery Woods]

Yes.

[Laura Lee]

And I think that if you're like, maybe I can have that one day. You're also right.

[Avery Woods]

I'm a big person into manifesting.

[Laura Lee]

Okay.

[Avery Woods]

I mean, some people are like, you're weird.

[Laura Lee]

And I'm okay with that. So I don't ever want to step on anyone's toes with it. But I manifested so much in my life, I can't help to believe it's true.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah. And I also think good things happen to good people. And that's why always behind the scenes, I feel like I always try to do the right thing.

[Laura Lee]

Yeah.

[Avery Woods]

Even if it hurts you in the end. Because I truly believe that my life has paid off in abundance. Like you said, because I manifested I wasn't hating. I didn't have negative thoughts about people in my position when I didn't have a lot. Yeah, but having that mindset completely changes your life.

[Laura Lee]

I think actually one of the hardest things, not a side trail, but the hardest things I went through during my OG days of like 2017, 18, 16, like all those years of beauty guru essence was I feel like you, when you're that relevant, you just get so much hate. And it doesn't matter if a Dramatown made a video that day. It's just like so much is coming in on one person, like views and like eyes that you're going to catch every hand in the world. And like, I wasn't media trained for that or you know what I mean? Like, I wasn't like, I didn't have a family that was like, okay, this is how this works, this pr. This is what you do. I was just in the wild, wild west, dealing with it and I kind of felt like, not that I was halfway there, but I feel like my mental stability wasn't well. So I feel like I made a lot of mistakes because I wasn't clear headed and now I get to do this job without all that noise and I'm like, oh, my God, this is like the best thing that's ever happened to me. I love this. Like, I'm so much happier in everything I do, but it's because the hate, it just, it seeps in and it would just like, I just feel like I was always halfway there or something would consume you. Even though I wouldn't look at comments after the first hour and I would do procedures to like, try to protect my mental health. You're just a human, you know, of course. So it made me feel like, I don't know, like looking back, I'm like, damn. Like, I feel like I'm like more awake and more aware and like I can focus more because you're just so bogged down as a relevant influencer and it's hard to know unless you're in it. You know what I mean? Like, totally. That feels like, yeah.

[Avery Woods]

So for those that aren't as familiar with you as I am, because I'm your number one fan, I love you. How would you describe yourself? Your brand, you as a person? I might chug that water.

[Laura Lee]

Asmr. I'm giving you a little bit of everything. Y' all better be glad I don't have gum in today's. It'd be over for all of us. Y' all would clear the room. I'm a smacker. Okay. That's such a beautiful question. No, I don't know if anyone ever asked me that. Let me think of that for a minute. Well, I think I've evolved as a boss and a CEO of Minimal, a a podcast host. I think I take myself very serious, but never that serious. And I think I'm an extremely fun person and my best friend is Manny. And we're like, our podcast is full coverage. Like, we are the two biggest jokesters on earth, so. So we always say, like, take everything we say half serious. We're like, yeah, don't quote anything from this podcast.

[Avery Woods]

And you guys are the best people. Like, behind the scenes, you guys are so funny to be around, but you're also like, you give the shirt off your back to anyone and I thank you.

[Laura Lee]

Thank you. I'm from the south also, so I think like from the LA vibe from coming from the south is like, it's so different. So you carry with you like these little isms of coming from, you know, Alabama. So I don't know, there's like a lot big sense of humor in Alabama too, for sure. Like growing up so country, like, everything is so funny to you, you know, and like, I think that's where me and Manny connect so well. We were like two goofballs, like from 10 years ago that met, which is so crazy.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah. So coming from Alabama now being in la, surrounded by this crazy industry, what keeps you grounded?

[Laura Lee]

Like, nothing.

[Avery Woods]

Look at that face.

[Laura Lee]

I'm not crazy. I'm a psychopath.

[Avery Woods]

But you're grounded in the sense of you're humble.

[Laura Lee]

Yes, yes, yes, yes. I don't know. You know, I'm a very laid back person and I'll be super honest with you, the elitist lifestyle does not appeal to me. And I know people watching, like, shut the up, you got a nice ass house and car. But I'm telling you, like, like the people that have like 50, $100 million, those lifestyles, that's a big thing in LA. And like, that does not appeal to me. There's always a laid backness and I think it's from my roots and where I come from is where it comes from. And I think because I lived in Alvin for 25 years, like I lived there for majority of my life, that that's hung with me.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah. And I mean, that's when I came here too. Everyone was like, don't fall for the Keeping up with the Joneses game.

[Laura Lee]

And it's so important too. I did whenever I moved out here, you know, I was like hoping to make it whenever I made it, like, I felt Like, I was like, let me just get in line. Like, let me get my Chanel bag. The Wyatt, the YSL B. And, you know, I was like, let me get the nice apartment with the white kitchen. And, like, let me get in line.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah.

[Laura Lee]

And I feel like the real me just, like. I'm like, just not that person. So, like, I will always seep out in everything that I do. And I was like, I want my home to be warm and more homey and, like, feel lived in. And, I don't know. I feel like my family also keeps me grounded, too, because, like, don't forget.

[Avery Woods]

Where you came from.

[Laura Lee]

Yeah, exactly. They do. And Manny also. I think another reason we connect is he is one of the mo. He's way more laid back than me. Okay? He's, like, one of the most laid back. He has three pairs of shoes he wears. Okay. I am not kidding. He is so laid back. He has two cars. The Jag and then the Toyota. He only drives the Toyota. Yeah, okay. And it has, like, bird shit all over it. And I'm like, manny, wash the car. He's like, I don't give a fuck. And I'm like, this is why I love you.

[Avery Woods]

And his jorts don't get any.

[Laura Lee]

Turn as fucking Jordan George, man. And that's what I'm like. You're my person.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah. I. I'm obsessed with him. Okay.

[Laura Lee]

You.

[Avery Woods]

You were an M.A. yeah.

[Laura Lee]

What's that? Oh, medical assistant. Yeah. Sorry, guys.

[Avery Woods]

You said. I forgot that I did that.

[Laura Lee]

That was like. That was a big lie I made.

[Avery Woods]

But that was in Alabama.

[Laura Lee]

Yeah. I was a medical assistant. Okay. So I had worked, like, a million jobs. Dick. Sporting goods. Sold wine. Daycare girl. Yes. All right. Texas Roadhouse. A time or two. Those dinner rolls after, like, 24 hours. Because the manager threw a peanut in my head. And all the waitresses were not kidding. I quit. I was like, listen, I'm broke as right now, and you just threw a peanut and hit me in the head.

[Avery Woods]

I gotta go.

[Laura Lee]

I'm walking out and you're keeping my tip out. I can't do this shit.

[Avery Woods]

I hope you deserve free dinner rolls for life.

[Laura Lee]

I know, exactly. Also, the manager was nice as. That did it. He was my only saving grace there. And it just broke me. I was like, get me. I gotta go. I was like, I can't do this anymore. I was in high school.

[Avery Woods]

Never returned to Texas.

[Laura Lee]

Never returned. And I left my tip out. I had done every job in the world, and I had graduated high school. My grades were so bad I couldn't get into college.

[Avery Woods]

Really?

[Laura Lee]

Yes. I tried. I had, like. I barely graduated high school. I remember one teacher called me up there, and she said, Ms. Lee, because you do rehearsal before you graduate the night before. And at rehearsals, when they tell the students, they don't. They did or didn't graduate because they get the finals in, which is diabolical. First of all, what is this euphoria that's. I'm like, that's crazy. Are you telling us the day rehearsal? So I was scared because I had, like, 60. I was like, 64D passes you. And I didn't even have a thought of college. I was just like, 60, 40 locks in that. That high school diploma, okay, we're locking in 60, 40.6040A in art. 60, 40, 60, 40, okay. And so one of the teachers there, she was like, Ms. Lee. And she calls me over, and I shit my heart out because I thought she was about to tell me I wasn't going to graduate. Yeah, baby. That math class. I was on a whisper and a prayer. I'd gotten kicked out of that class for cheating, too. And when I cheated, I went like this. I'm not. Like. I'm not lying.

[Avery Woods]

And then he said, let me break my back to see.

[Laura Lee]

The answer was like, get out of my class. So he says, go down to the principal's office. Tell me cheated. And I was like, God damn it.

[Avery Woods]

So I said, there goes me walking.

[Laura Lee]

I did. I was like, that was a wrap for me. I was always going to fail it anyway. So it was really a Hail Mary anyways. So I didn't go to the principal's office. I walked around for a little bit, went back to his class. I said, the principal is in a meeting. And he said he'll meet with me later. And then he was like, all right. And he forgot and let it go, period. It never went anyways. She was like, your grades are so horrible. You. I was like, this. She was like, this is. I cannot believe you did this. Like, this is so horrible. And I went, am I going to graduate? And she was like, yes, but you're great. And I was like, I don't give a fuck. I've taken my seat in the hot seat with everybody else, and I graduate, like, by hair on a horse's ass. And then I couldn't get into college.

[Avery Woods]

You know what, though?

[Laura Lee]

That's okay. I was like, look at you.

[Avery Woods]

Look at you.

[Laura Lee]

All my friends went to college. I was like, oh, shit. That's what we're doing next.

[Avery Woods]

So you Say, wait, that was everyone's plan the whole time, Sarah. Who the fuck was going to tell.

[Laura Lee]

Me we didn't want to take a month off? You were already in college. I swear, I was blindsided.

[Avery Woods]

You're like, wait, you were supposed to apply last December.

[Laura Lee]

I was like, I'm so booked. No, I really was. And my mom dropped out at 17 to marry my dad. My dad graduated high school, my brother graduated high school, my sister dropped out. So for me I was like, I'm graduating high school. That's good as gold in this family, right? That was like my perspective. And it's so funny, I was dating, I was just starting to date my husband at the end of my senior year and he had like always and Bs and was going off to a really great college and all that. So I don't know why it didn't ever dawn on me, but it's just not the family I came from. So I was like, I'll figure it out.

[Avery Woods]

No, I, I feel like it totally has to do with what you're surrounded by.

[Laura Lee]

Right. And I always just had the mentality of I'll figure it out. Because we always did and I always did.

[Avery Woods]

So I got good grades cuz I was scared shitless to come home with bad grades.

[Laura Lee]

I had to do it with my niece Aaron, because I was like, well, we'll go more Tyler's route, family's route this round. Feel like it'll be better, but. Oh my God, that's a whole story in itself. But I had to wait till 21 and I got into college because they don't look at your high school GPA after 21, but you have to take all those like classes that prep you that don't count for your credits. Yeah, so that's how I got in. So I had gotten into night school at Troy University and I would go to school from like 4:00pm to like 11:00 clock at night, full time student. And I was like, all right, I gotta, I was like 21, I had to move out and I had to start paying bills. So I need a full time job. And my girlfriend was like, oh, there's a dermatologist office I work out and we train you there because you don't do blood and you don't do blood pressure. So it's a very specific medical assistant job because it's like cutting out skin cancer and things that they don't even train you for in school to be an ma. So I was like, hell yeah. She was like, how much I was like, how much did they pay? She's like $9 an hour. And I was like, baby, that's the most money I've ever made in my life.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah. No, back then, I'm a doctor. Yeah. You said can write a prescription, right?

[Laura Lee]

I'm getting a penthouse.

[Avery Woods]

You're like, I got into medical school, everyone.

[Laura Lee]

I was like, $9. No, really, I was, I was shocked. And I charmed this dermatologist and he was me. Okay. I don't want to on him too much cuz he's my, one of my favorite humans on earth and he changed my life. But he was a really strict Navy man. He was like in his 60s and he was pretty tough. Yeah. And he basically put me through boot camp and he tested me, he toughed me out. You know, I wanted to quit so many times I came home crying every day. I never had a job this hard in my life. And I toughed it out and I was his medical assistant for four and a half years.

[Avery Woods]

Wow.

[Laura Lee]

And I started my YouTube channel and dropped out of college during this job. And he called me to his office at the end of it and he was like, I don't want you to do this YouTube thing. He was like, I think you need to be an rn. I think you need to finish school and I think you need to become an rn.

[Avery Woods]

Was that what you want to do with your college degree?

[Laura Lee]

Nope. Oh. I was just getting some like marketing business degree. I wanted to, I, when I started to go to college, you know, you're looking at all the different options for your degree. I was like, I want to be a detective. So I was like, criminal justice. Oh. But then I found out you had to be a police to be a detective. And I was like, hell no. You don't just get a degree and go figure shit out Academy.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah.

[Laura Lee]

So we're not going to do that. Scratch that one on my list. So I was like, I'll just do business. I switched to marketing and then I was filling out because I was working, you know, these hours, 12 hour fours, a 10 and a half day and going to school from, you know, night online class. It was, I, I couldn't keep up and I was really bad at school already. So imagine me trying. I needed all the help I could get. So I was like, I'm filling out of college and I'm going to be a medical assistant for the rest of my life. So I was like, like. So I, my stepdad at the time was showing me, God, this was so long ago. It's embarrassing. It's not embarrassing. It's 12 years ago, and look at you.

[Avery Woods]

You look like you just graduated high school.

[Laura Lee]

Thank you. I got booed. I got a lip flip, too.

[Avery Woods]

Did you?

[Laura Lee]

I did. So my upper lip doesn't move. It's crazy. Anyways, okay, so.

[Avery Woods]

Oh, my God. You're my favorite.

[Laura Lee]

My stepdad's like, look at this. I can show the computer on the TV screen with this cord. And I'm like, wow, that's so cool. And. And he just puts a YouTube video on just to show me. It's Candy Johnson's what's in My Purse video.

[Avery Woods]

Oh, my God.

[Laura Lee]

And I was like, ding, ding, ding. And I was like, what the fuck was that? And, you know, she's, like, the most rings and pink hair, and I'm, like, in love with her instantly. I'm like. And so I took my mom's laptop and I watched on her videos, and I was like, I want to do this the rest of my life. I want to do this forever. This is all I want to do. And it wasn't even a thing. Like, Candy was one of the first people on YouTube. So it wasn't like Candy going on brand trips. Candy was rich. Candy making all his money. It was just like, Candy the YouTuber in her home, dyeing her hair and showing what's in her purse.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah.

[Laura Lee]

And I was like, I love that so much. So I bought a camcorder, and I started filming YouTube videos. And then so back in the day, I'm taking over this whole podcast. No.

[Avery Woods]

I'm so glad this is why you're here. I'm so intrigued. I'm like, I'm not asking a single question because I'm so into this.

[Laura Lee]

So back in the day, what was I saying?

[Avery Woods]

That you bought a camcorder.

[Laura Lee]

Oh, yes. I forgot.

[Avery Woods]

Did you remember what your first YouTube video was?

[Laura Lee]

Yeah, I was showing people how to contour and highlight, and I had no idea how to contour.

[Avery Woods]

I was gonna say, did you always, like, makeup?

[Laura Lee]

Always. Okay, Always. And I had, like, crumbs. I think that's something that attracted me to Candy, too, because she was very heavy in the makeup. I was saying. I can't remember what I was saying, but I would film on a camcorder and that I bought refurbished for a hundred dollars. Because your iPhone are you. There wasn't, like, iPhone. Like, you didn't have a, like, phone camera to film on. And I use my little window lighting. I remember I'm so scared in the video. I'm like, Your hands. Like, I'm so scared because I'm like, what the am I doing right now? Oh, I remember what I was gonna say. Back then in college, you would pay for your first semester with my FAFSA loans.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah.

[Laura Lee]

And then they would put the rest on a school credit card.

[Avery Woods]

Oh, I know where this is going.

[Laura Lee]

So I was like, well, I'm doing a career change anyways and I already took these loans out.

[Avery Woods]

So I was like fast for watching this.

[Laura Lee]

They're like this we've been looking for. I'm just kidding. I paid them all. They're paid off. They're paid off. I actually did just write a fat check and was just like here.

[Avery Woods]

Oh, I just did that six.

[Laura Lee]

So proud of you. That's like one of the best feelings in the world. And I didn't even get a degree. Actually, I feel just as good as she.

[Avery Woods]

I'll tell you the craziest story about that real quick.

[Laura Lee]

Please do.

[Avery Woods]

So I had, I normally don't talk about dollar amounts, but I had $55,000 in student loans, which honestly is nothing compared to a four year degree. Like I, I, my bachelor's in science.

[Laura Lee]

You got a scholarship?

[Avery Woods]

Well, my first two years were paid for off a scholarship, but then I got into private nursing school because it was a fast track program where I graduated in 20 months.

[Laura Lee]

Incredible.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah. So that you don't get any scholarships for that because it was private. So I did that. And I had 55k in student loans, which again, for 4 year degrees, nothing. Because we have a good friend that just finished her freshman year at USC. Just her freshman year alone was $90,000. Damn. So times that by four, cost about half a million dollars to get a four year degree right now.

[Laura Lee]

That's so sick.

[Avery Woods]

So I will not complain about 55k. Okay. But as a nurse, I made like 65k a year. Usually was about my year salary. I think when I left after the pandemic in the ICU, I made like $42 an hour and some change.

[Laura Lee]

Wow.

[Avery Woods]

So we went to go. So during the pandemic, because I was working in health care, my student loans were frozen. So Biden administration froze them so they weren't gaining interest.

[Laura Lee]

Lovely.

[Avery Woods]

Immediately I froze them. I said, I'm not single pay, I'm not getting punished.

[Laura Lee]

Get rid them too.

[Avery Woods]

I'm not paying. Especially because honestly, my student loan payment, if I paid the minimum amount, $750 a month, okay. I made $42 an hour. I have four kids, a house like I, I, that's A lot of that is.

[Laura Lee]

So $700 is a lot of money money. That's like a BMW that was like.

[Avery Woods]

Our family groceries, you know. So as soon as they said you don't have to pay them right now, like you can freeze them, I said okay, great. But then I got a notification like six months ago like hey bitch, they've been unfrozen for a little bit. Like you got. I said oh shit. So I logged into my FAFSA and I by the way, the 55k was after I'd already made some payments. I think in total it was about 65k. So I went to go pay them and they have like a calculator where you can put like if you're paying the minimum amount, how long it would take to pay them off. If I was paying the minimum amount, the $720 a month, I think it was with the interest, I would die with student loans because the interest rate was like 26.

[Laura Lee]

So it's all a scam. Isn't that crazy scam.

[Avery Woods]

But I just think about like hard ass working careers. Like my parents are both teachers. My mom taught second grade. My dad was my high school math teacher.

[Laura Lee]

Wow. Was he really? Yeah. Oh my God.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah. So they're bringing in, you know, combined income with my dad's VA income because he was in the military. Maybe around 100k a year if that. They both made probably $50,000 a year. Like those people will all die with student loans. And they're literally raising young humans. They're nurses salary. Seriously?

[Laura Lee]

Yeah, 100. I think that every day of the influencer salary.

[Avery Woods]

And so when I paid off my student loans, that was a huge moment for me.

[Laura Lee]

Yeah.

[Avery Woods]

Because I was like, I.

[Laura Lee]

If I'm gonna die with the loans no matter what happens.

[Avery Woods]

And I would have, I would have died with those student loans.

[Laura Lee]

I might have. I don't even think I agree. My husband did though because he went to, he did five years for his engineering degree and he went to Auburn. So that costed a lot.

[Avery Woods]

Damn. Okay, smarty pants.

[Laura Lee]

Oh, he's so smart. So lucky to have him. I'm the creative, he's the brains. I have brains too, in a different way.

[Avery Woods]

And you guys met in high school.

[Laura Lee]

Yeah.

[Avery Woods]

So you guys have been together like what, 17 years or something?

[Laura Lee]

Yeah, 15. I'm like not too much now. Oh, sorry. 15 years, sorry.

[Avery Woods]

I had 17 written down. I'm gonna blame.

[Laura Lee]

I'm hanging, I'm hanging on to every year. My friends are like, you're almost 40 I'm like, let me write them out. Let you write out each 30, not say almost 40 till we hit 39. No, let me write it out. Stop. Do you know they do that whenever you're like 26, like almost 30. I'm like, we're not gonna do that to me with 40.

[Avery Woods]

No, no, I'm just kidding.

[Laura Lee]

I love getting older because I always get better. Anyways, okay, so this credit card, I put the credit. This damn student loan on y. I was like, I drop out. I go part time at work. I film YouTube videos every single day, but I pay the rest of my rent off with the student loan, like, to make up the difference.

[Avery Woods]

Yep.

[Laura Lee]

And that was my pea brain idea. And it was funny because the time aligned. Tyler was starting to get. Get close to graduating from college. And so I had kind of met, like, had, you know, work part time. Now I'm filming on God, getting no views, by the way. I'm making no money off this. I remember my first PR was a sponge to bathe with. These influencers think it's bad now. My first PR was a sponge to bathe your body with, like a seafoam sponge.

[Avery Woods]

You know what, though? You'll never forget that.

[Laura Lee]

No. And I still remember it because it was like a piece of gold they gave me because it was the first time I got something for free.

[Avery Woods]

Yep. My first sale on, like, to know. It was a shirt from Etsy that was a Gucci dupe. I made 11 cents of commission. And I literally ran in the room and I said, babe, look, I made rich. I literally was like, I think our life just changed. It was. It was literally a dollar sign. 0.11.

[Laura Lee]

You're like, I'm on.

[Avery Woods]

I'll never forget. I said, I made one sale. Holy.

[Laura Lee]

That's how you know you made it.

[Avery Woods]

Yep.

[Laura Lee]

It's that Etsy still right there, man.

[Avery Woods]

Okay, so you're doing makeup videos.

[Laura Lee]

Makeup videos 24 7. I'm not really taking off, but, like, I had grown from like, zero subscribers. I did it for two years in Alabama. He started to graduate and I was like, I want to move to LA and be a famous life in my influencer. And he dead ass was like, I think you. We can do it. Oh, isn't that insane? Like, I'm like, what were you thinking?

[Avery Woods]

He's such a nice guy.

[Laura Lee]

He is. He. He's good to me. Because I would have definitely been like, are you serious right now? Can you please not do this right now? Can you not blow everything up? But he had Seen how hard I had work and like given up everything. I even co signed with him on a MacBook so I could start editing because I was having to drive to my mom's house. Yes. Cuz I had no CR. Girl, you know, my was busted. So I was like, he co sign of my car with me too. Before his parents knew. Because I didn't have a car and I didn't have anyone in the world to co sign with me. I couldn't get along. I got my tax return so I could put a payment on a Honda Accord. And they're like still for the rest of the payments, you still need a co signer. Girl, you're a wreck. And I was like, I got a boyfriend that we met in high school. I was like, I'm gonna see what we can do. You're like, hey babe. Yeah, I need your signature once more not tell your parents how crazy we've been together for 15 years. But yeah, I was like, don't tell you. So he, this man had come out of my car and laptop and we were just dating. Honey, I'm the scam. I'm the scammer. But he had graduated high school and he got a job at Frito Lay in Macon, Georgia. And we went and toured making Georgia. And I was like, I just can't do this here. I was like, I can't do this here. This career. I was like, tyler, I'll be nothing in making Georgia. And he was like, already accepted the job. But he was like, I got an interview with Amazon in Tennessee. Or I think it was. Oh, is it Illinois? Actually, they flew them to Illinois to do it. And I was. But he's like, if I. If I were to get that, we could live anywhere in the United States. And I was like, I was like, you gotta get the job. Like, you gotta get the job. My life depends on it.

[Avery Woods]

Like my famous YouTube career.

[Laura Lee]

And I have 10000 subscribers. Okay. Which is fine. And I'm getting like a hundred, a thousand views on my best day making $0 off of this.

[Avery Woods]

So sweet though.

[Laura Lee]

So he's like, well, I can't turn my back on Frito Lay. And I'm like, like Frito Lay over my dreams. So he, I told him to lie to Frito Lay and tell him he's getting his masters. I was like, say watching respect. I know. They're literally like that.

[Avery Woods]

Like that from 14 years ago that.

[Laura Lee]

I was like, oh my God. I was like, just tell him that because that's respectable. Like I'm Gonna have to turn down the position because I'm gonna go back to school and finish. Actually, like no job would be that got the job from Amazon. I have the craziest story we don't have time for today about how I flew him to the. Got him to the airport. His first flight out of Alabama ever. We don't leave to go to Illinois. Got the job. We got to pick our top three places. We said Riverside, California. It was like up in the Bay Area and then somewhere down below, like San Diego area. We're like, california, California, California. And I remember I was driving down the road to go see him in college and he called me and told me we got Riverside, which was the closest one to Los Angeles. Y and I was like, this is it for me. Yeah.

[Avery Woods]

So when. So you guys moved there? When were you like, holy, I'm blowing up. When was that moment for you?

[Laura Lee]

I was able to. I went back to work at Dick Sporting Goods when we moved here because we still needed more money. We had like a one bedroom was 900amonth. We were like in shock. Cuz it was like in Riverside, which by the way, I loved Riverside. It was like paradise to me. I thought it was the nicest city in the world and people like on it all the time in la. And I'm like, not too much on Riverside because I'm not from Montgomery, Alabama. Riverside's like really nice. Okay, it's nice. So I was like, I loved Riverside, but we had this really shitty one bedroom little studio apartment for 900amonth, you know, in Alabama. 900amonth. That's like. You're like, yes. Yeah. I'm like, oh my God. But with him starting at Amazon. And then I went back to work at Dick Sporting Goods because I was like, should I be a medical assistant again? But I feel like I want to do YouTube. Like, I don't want to put myself back in that career job. Like, I want to do YouTube. So I was like, I'm gonna go back to Dick's, ring people up as a cashier sucks. Have to do the scorecard. Everybody's got to get a scorecard. What the is the score points? And they rate each store on their percentage of like, how many points cards. You know you get points, you get like a coupon in the mail.

[Avery Woods]

Oh.

[Laura Lee]

So they are sticklers about that with their cashiers. Oh, so you gotta hassle people for the scorecard and no one wants one?

[Avery Woods]

No.

[Laura Lee]

So I'm all day bitching at people to get a scorecard.

[Avery Woods]

Okay.

[Laura Lee]

It's the wor. That was the worst thing at that job. Other than that, cool job.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah.

[Laura Lee]

Also, it's so glowy. Your forehead looks like a mirror. Like glass. It's. Thank you.

[Avery Woods]

I got a new tinted serum. Everyone has complimented my skin. Today I literally walked upstairs. That bother Alex in her office. She goes, what the. On your skin.

[Laura Lee]

I can't quit looking at you.

[Avery Woods]

It's SPF 50. I'll show you the brand. Whitney Simmons sent it to me. She goes, you would love this because I don't use foundation.

[Laura Lee]

I'm gonna have to get it.

[Avery Woods]

I literally rubbed in with my finger years.

[Laura Lee]

That's all I did. So pretty.

[Avery Woods]

You need it. Thank you.

[Laura Lee]

Gorgeous. But then. Okay. So at this apartment, I'm seriously uploading five days a week. And I started to get analytical. I think once you do something so long, you eventually go, what the is not working? Yeah, like what is not working? So I started to get analytical. I started researching and understanding the math behind thumbnails, titles, tags. And I got really smart with my content. So it went from me uploading five days a week to whatever, first throw it at the wall, whatever sticks to like getting really intentional with them uploading. And I blew up. Blew the up. And then a couple girls. I would drive into la, which is like a two and a half hour drive all by myself. Never been to la. I'd been out here one time, but went to Pasadena to the IMATS convention back then. And that was my first flight I'd ever gone on in my whole life. I was 25 years old. Wow. Went to imats for 2 days. Barely had enough money with me and my sister to get back to Alabama. Got back home and I was like, I gotta live there. And I had never even been in la. I was like, in Pasadena. But anyways, yeah.

[Avery Woods]

What was your first viral video, do you remember?

[Laura Lee]

My first mega viral video. And the gag of the century is it's still my most viewed video on my YouTube channel.

[Avery Woods]

Kidding.

[Laura Lee]

Crazy was my second year in California. I had seen a bunch of girls do heatless hairstyles for Back to School. So that's a huge trigger in the algorithm. You have heatless hairstyles, you're gonna hit hairstyles, you're gonna hit heatless hairstyles. So that's two genres. And Back to School is the biggest genre. So you've genres in one title banger. So then I'm like, what if I do 15 hairstyles? But they're all quick, boom, whip, you know, it's like Heatless. So we're not curling each style. It's like pin it back this way or this ponytail. But now when it comes down to the thumbnail, we put every single hairstyle in the thumbnail. Like I had mapped this genius. What I thought concocted a genius video.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah.

[Laura Lee]

And I put it out there and it blew. And I knew it was going to blow up like because the science behind it. There is a code Mr. Beast talks about all the time. There is a code to YouTube. It's titles, thumbnails and tags. You can make the best piece of content on this earth. And if your thumbnail sucks, you're not going to get the views.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah.

[Laura Lee]

Point blank, period. YouTube runs off an analytical system. All the social media apps do. And sometimes, you know, if you don't just get viral off cloud off someone else or like a viral sensation thing that happened, which that didn't happen the back in day for YouTube that happens with Tick Tock, you know, like go on Love island, you'll be viral. Well, YouTube was different.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah.

[Laura Lee]

So I basically after that video, it confirmed for me what I thought I knew about the algorithm. And that video got like 15 million views. And like that was unheard of on YouTube. And my channel just little by little kept exploding from there.

[Avery Woods]

Wow, that's amazing.

[Laura Lee]

Fifteen heatless hairstyles.

[Avery Woods]

So you obviously started with that and then you grew. But now you're in so many different business ventures. You have your brand.

[Laura Lee]

Yeah. Yep.

[Avery Woods]

Talk about your.

[Laura Lee]

I'm in la. It started actually as Nudie Batuti. It started as a clothing boutique in 2020 because I wanted to venture outside of makeup because I had shifted my content so much, so far from makeup. Makeup started to not feel, I feel like when you're coming out with stuff, it should be so genuine, you know what I mean? Like, and attached to you in a way. And I wasn't doing many as much makeup anymore. By the time it was 2019, I'd started, you know, Tik Tok has come around and like things had started to shift and I had done beauty for so long. I had started doing lifestyle about in a lot of fashion. So I started Nudie Patootie because I already own the trademarking for it for my cosmetics plan. So I just had to add on clothing too. It was an easy thing to do with the naming of the company and it made sense because it attached it to me without using my name on it as well. I started a clothing brand and then because I didn't have an investor, I really talked to More people who do big clothing, like, revolve stuff, and they're explain how that works. And I was like, oh, I never have those. The. The power or the will or to make this blow up. But I was like, I always had the intention of doing more with nudie patootie. And I always want to do a bath line and have it fall under just a lot of different categories, which I talked to Chris Shell Lim, who owns Fleur, and she was like, I actually don't recommend doing that. She was like, I recommend narrowing down your company. She was like, I love following her. Oh, she is.

[Avery Woods]

When they got acquired, I was like.

[Laura Lee]

From the Screaming Hilltop. She deserves it. She works so hard. She is such a genius. But also, she's very generous with her advice. And. And I like to ask women who have done things that I want to do for advice. Like, yeah, I take advice from people and criticism from people that do things better than me or what I would aspire to do, not from people. I mean, no offense, but, like, if you've never owned a business, I'm probably not going to take your critiques on, like, my business. Yeah. Like, I went to Krishan. I asked her. I was like. And so she was like, you should narrow it down to just a body line. She was like, that's gonna make so much more sense. And then we got hit with a trademarking, like, almost lawsuit. They, like, threatened us. They were like. Like, they're like, we own one of the words in nudie patootie. So they're like. And they're a much bigger company. And my lawyer was like, we can battle this because it's not black and white. Like, it's like, we can go to court, but they're like, you're gonna go broke, like, going to court with these people. They have, like, lawyers on retainers. Like, this is like a drop in the bucket for this. Yeah. He was like, change your name. And so I had to shut it down for six months, rebranded it to minimal A, which we had to create a word that really didn't exist because everything is taken and clothing body and anything we wanted to expand it under, we had a trademark. So that was kind of a nightmare. But now we're minimal way. We have a body care line. We have body scrubs, body washes, body cream, our viral body glow all just sold out.

[Avery Woods]

So I need to get some.

[Laura Lee]

I know.

[Avery Woods]

I'll get you some because I'm telling you something. No, I will support your business and order it, but I. I'm not gonna Lie. I'm like, new to the body glow situation.

[Laura Lee]

Oh. I like, I'm a lather.

[Avery Woods]

And now that I've discovered it, it, unfortunately, I do go through it.

[Laura Lee]

Like, I literally want someone to pick me up by my hair and dip my body. I'm obsessed with it.

[Avery Woods]

I literally look back and I said, how the did I take a picture with that?

[Laura Lee]

It becomes addicting because it enhances your body just so. Just like having that greasy, delicious skin.

[Avery Woods]

It just makes me feel so much sexier.

[Laura Lee]

It is. It's like a level up.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah. I really love it.

[Laura Lee]

Okay.

[Avery Woods]

And then obviously, you and Manny are having best friends for a decade and you have full coverage.

[Laura Lee]

Crazy. Our managers were like, you guys started podcast. And what's crazy is me and him were very against it because we were like, we are busy. Okay. We're like, you're like, we're busy being YouTube stars. Exactly. They were like, first of all, you're both idiots. I'm just kidding. No, they were like, seriously? They're like, your friendship is very rare. They're like, not a lot of people are that close for that many years. And you guys got a lot of.

[Avery Woods]

Lore and you have the same job.

[Laura Lee]

Same job. So they're like, figure out a way. And they also told us they predicted their, like, podcasts are about to be big. And they were like, you should do it. And we were just like, what the. So we were like, we'll give it a shot because, you know, you're contracted and like, it's not a one toe in, one toe out. It's like you owe a certain amount of efforts every year. So, like, this is a full time thing. So we agreed to it and it did so well and blew up. And we were like, what? The people want to hear us talk. We just never really thought. But I do watch our episodes and we're funny as you guys are, so thank you. That's the only thing I'll pass myself on the back about. I. I think we're also delusional, but I think we're very funny.

[Avery Woods]

No, it was so. It was so fun to be on.

[Laura Lee]

And we just had Avery on. You guys have to watch her episode. It's so good.

[Avery Woods]

That was so fun. Except everyone's giving me for that clip.

[Laura Lee]

I was. I deleted comment.

[Avery Woods]

Oh, I don't care.

[Laura Lee]

Do you know what makes me laugh.

[Avery Woods]

Is I was just trying to give an example of, like, how, you know, Selena is such a big celebrity and she's so humble, but of course, people can't. I'm Like, I'm not hanging out with Selena Gomez every day, guys.

[Laura Lee]

Well, in the beginning of that clip, you got a ton of love. Because I checked. Because we posted it about 24 hours later. I went and just checked the comments. They were all, like, glowing about you. They were like, I'm about to start watching Avery. Because they were like, I found her through your podcast or I've seen this go around, and I saw her, and I loved her on your podcast. Like, just glowing about you. And then I saw that the clip had kind of blown up a little bit more. And then I went to the comments. I was like. Like, you guys are.

[Avery Woods]

No, it's. You get to the point where you're just like, you're damned if you do, damn if you don't.

[Laura Lee]

You are damned if you do, damned if you don't. And I want you to know that. And me, Jacqueline and Manny, we're damned if we do. Damn, we don't. Any brand page, any person, any collab, any. Any. Anything that had us in it. The top comments were always just taking a fat on us. And it was like that for, like, five years.

[Avery Woods]

That does make me feel a little bit better.

[Laura Lee]

I hope it genuinely does. It did not matter if it was me giving $10,000 to the pet saving lives of animals. They were like, still a.

[Avery Woods]

Okay, so speaking on that, because you. We were very open on your podcast about hate cancellation. You and I have both gone through massive cancellations before. How was that for you? Because for me, it was terrible.

[Laura Lee]

How do you say it? I'm just kidding. Oh. I was like, damn, if my mental health didn't suck then, it sucks now. Oh, that was like. That was the worst and best thing that ever happened to me. I really was the worst and best thing that ever happened to me. I feel the same, and I wish I could. I would pay a million dollars right now if I me today could just go whisper in my ear and be like, hey, you're going to be okay. You know, but you just got to tr. You just got to believe and get yourself out of it the moment you.

[Avery Woods]

Don'T feel that way.

[Laura Lee]

I was like, you know what? I'm going to go away. I was like, I'm going to go away.

[Avery Woods]

How long did you go away after?

[Laura Lee]

Three months. Months.

[Avery Woods]

So you post the apology video and you logged off for three months?

[Laura Lee]

Yep. And I deleted every app on my phone except for Pinterest because that's. I mean, imagine I'm scrolling on Pinterest and they're like, laura Lee, I'd be like, that is it.

[Avery Woods]

That's still the only app I scroll. Because it's like, just hear your following.

[Laura Lee]

Yeah, I got offline for three solid months. And it was at that time, it was so good that I did that, because I went from I can't believe this is happening to me, like, to really understanding it and understanding industry and understanding how I built my career in ways incorrectly. Because I feel like when I got so excited and so obsessed with something, I was a girl from Alabama. This is all I ever wanted to happen to me. Of course I was obsessed with it, and of course I made it my whole entire life. And of course, I couldn't believe it was happening, but I had no life outside of it. So when the rug got pulled out from underneath me, I had nothing. I had no hobby, no friends outside of social media, no nothing. And I learned very quick. Oh, my God, this thing is so. I always forget the word, but it's so ebb and flow. Yeah. Like, it can be here today, gone tomorrow. Like, this is not a sure thing. And I built a whole life around it. And I also got really into self development, which took me a long way, like, learning tools and understanding why we feel the way that we do and while we act the way we would do and what we do. So that helped me, too. And I got into that because I got canceled. But how.

[Avery Woods]

What was your first video about?

[Laura Lee]

I literally addressed everything in a video. And then I was like, this is, like, the last time. Not addressing it in the way, like, we can talk about it today, but, like, addressing it. Yeah, you know what I mean? I was like, this is the last time I'm addressing it, and I'm gonna start uploading YouTube videos again. And I didn't just say that in the video. You know, I apologize. I apologize for my apology video. I took accountability. I explained what was real, what was photoshopped. I. And said, I want to do better, and I will do better. And luckily, I did better for these past eight years. Yeah, I've done better, but. And I was like, I'm gonna start uploading videos. So I was like, so I had to upload the video back. And then I think they thought I was gonna go away for another week. No. Like, two days later, I was like, another video. YouTube video makeup. Two days later, another video. And I was getting derailed with hate. Another video. Oh, don't like it. Another video.

[Avery Woods]

And you do just have to.

[Laura Lee]

To push through, push through, because the people that want to be there will be there. And I'm like, if you don't like me, I will accept that and I will respect that totally. And you don't have to be here. And if you want to leave and unsubscribed, I will respect that 100%. But I'm going to be here. And for the people who want to be here with me, they'll be here.

[Avery Woods]

No, I love that perspective. And I also think, like you said, as hard as it is in the moment, like, I. I wouldn't take it back just because there were so many lessons learned.

[Laura Lee]

And I'm. I, like, still have learned things from it, too. And you also look back, you're like, holy. Like, the whole world came down on my ass. And I survived that, you know? And so I'm like, I'm tougher than I thought it was.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah. Okay. I want to talk about your niece, because I feel like it's kind of like two different. It's two different things, but also kind of the same and that. That, you know, you and I have raised kids that we didn't birth.

[Laura Lee]

Yeah.

[Avery Woods]

Mine are my step kids, and yours is your niece. And I feel like people don't really know a lot of that story, maybe understand. So kind of explain how you came to being a guardian to your niece.

[Laura Lee]

I had been living. Oh, I don't even remember. I've been living in California. Oh, my God. It was the year I got canceled that the bottom fell out. I was like, my niece is like, what's going on? I'm like, nothing is fine. Just a little blip. You know, I'm always in drama. Yeah. She was like everyone in my high school, so I'm like, don't worry about it.

[Avery Woods]

Oh, my God.

[Laura Lee]

Yeah. But anyways, my sister, God love her, she has a really cool story. I think she should write a book or have a TV show. Total Story Story is insane. But she's always had addiction issues. We were raised around addiction issues. My dad had addiction issues, and I think my dad and her connected, and me and my mom connected more. And my sister was always a little more rebellious like my dad, and always into trouble. And so she always had addiction issues on and off in her life, and she had gotten really, really bad off. And my mom had Aaron at this time, and my mom was getting older, So I have always had my eye on Aaron because my sister had her as a teenager. So me and my sister only two years apart. So Aaron's always been like a little sister or like, I've always felt like a little. You Know, we're a little closer than a regular, I think, aunt and niece situation.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah.

[Laura Lee]

Because we've pretty much always been in the same household. I mean, there were occasional times we weren't. Whenever she was living with my sister, but so I've always had my eye on her. And I noticed my sister getting worse off and worse off and worse off and Aaron slipping, slipping, slipping. And I was like, I'm going to have to take Aaron, mom. Like, I'm going to have to take her. Like, you can't raise her. And my mom was struggling, raising her because I'm like, mama, she's got to go to school.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah.

[Laura Lee]

She wouldn't like make her go to school and stuff like that. But my mom's so country. She did the same thing for me. Like I didn't have to go to school if I was like, I think I'm going to drop out, mom. I got a good job. She'd be like, cool. So she was kind of like that with Aaron. I'm like, mama, you can't do that. It's 20, 2018. Like we gotta. She has to go to school. And she had all Fs, all of her grades. I could tell how depressed she was and low. I was like, this is getting bad. So I was like, but so I tried to get my sister to sign her over to me. My sister was so bad off at this time, me and her were in such bad terms that she wouldn't. And I ended up going back to Alabama and fighting for her in court. Court. And I won her.

[Avery Woods]

And I didn't know you went to court.

[Laura Lee]

I battled for her and then. Sorry, it's a touchy side.

[Avery Woods]

Oh, no, it's okay.

[Laura Lee]

No, it's good. I love talking about it because a lot of people have to do this shit.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah. And you know what? I just want to say too imagine where she would be if you didn't do that 100%, you know, and the fact that you were raised the same way that your mom was trying to raise Aaron.

[Laura Lee]

Yeah.

[Avery Woods]

But you wanted to break that cycle.

[Laura Lee]

And you did that for her. Yeah.

[Avery Woods]

You know, and we always talk about that too off camera. Cuz I'm always asking about her and want to know what she's doing.

[Laura Lee]

You are. You ask me about her every single time.

[Avery Woods]

Well, because I remember when you, when she moved in with you guys. I remember that YouTube video.

[Laura Lee]

Oh, do you?

[Avery Woods]

Yeah, I remember you guys like sitting down and I was like, holy.

[Laura Lee]

Like, my manager was like, you should tell people why you have a Child living with you.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah.

[Laura Lee]

And I was like, I'm so burned. I don't want to do that. And she was like, no. She was like, you should. She was like, you're not going to get hate. I was like, I've given so much, you know, and I've been cooked online.

[Avery Woods]

Well, and you also didn't want to talk about it to get clout. You did this behind the scenes to help your needs.

[Laura Lee]

It was exactly.

[Avery Woods]

Wasn't to get praise.

[Laura Lee]

Oh my God, no. And I was like, I wouldn't do it without my sister's approval either. And so just cuz I would have had to tell a lot of her story in order to tell why I have Aaron total. So I wanted to talk to her. And she had gotten incarcerated. So she was sober. And so our relationship, believe it or not, started to kind of heal while ever she was incarcerated. And so which by the way, I didn't know was going to happen whenever I took Aaron. So I was gonna have to take Aaron anyways. But me and her, my sister, you know, we talk on the phone all the time. My sister even called in on that video and talked a little bit, you know, and she's fully responsible for her mistakes and so we have a really good relationship now. My sister's doing incredible. I wish she would go work with like, like an addiction center because she's so incredible and inspiring. She like, she totally turned her life around this really cool story. But anyways, Aaron had moved with me cuz things had gotten bad this summer. She was 14 but she had to go back to school. And that's whenever I was trying to get my sister to sign her over and she wouldn't. So it sucked so bad I had to send her back to Alabama for six months until my court case. And then I had my court case in the middle of her ninth grade school year. I was able to get her back here and then I've had her ever since then. So. So yeah, yeah, it's been really lovely. But that was the year I got canceled. I had to go to court. So I was like, oh my God, if they even google my name.

[Avery Woods]

Oh, that's terrible.

[Laura Lee]

I'm.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah.

[Laura Lee]

And I was so mad at myself because I was like, I got myself in this situation where now I could lose Aaron.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah.

[Laura Lee]

Yeah. So.

[Avery Woods]

But she graduated high school.

[Laura Lee]

Yep.

[Avery Woods]

Incredible.

[Laura Lee]

Yep.

[Avery Woods]

And she's working.

[Laura Lee]

Yep, she's working.

[Avery Woods]

And she like has a social, like a pretty good social media following.

[Laura Lee]

She does. I think she's like the prettiest person I've ever seen. She's gorgeous and she is like the funniest girl in the world. Like, she is such a. I wonder.

[Avery Woods]

Where she gets that from.

[Laura Lee]

I'm telling you guys, if you met my sister, I'm the calmest one in my family. Between me, my mom and sister, like, I'm the one with the smallest personality. Okay.

[Avery Woods]

I want to be in a room.

[Laura Lee]

I know. Yeah. Manny's my message. He's like, I get it. Yep. He's like, yep. I know. I know what's going on. I know what's going on here. My sister's so funny, but my mom had a huge sense of humor too. We were all just complete nuts.

[Avery Woods]

But does Aaron want to do social media for her job?

[Laura Lee]

Yes, Aaron, she wants to do social media. That's what she's going for.

[Avery Woods]

Okay.

[Laura Lee]

And I encourage it because it worked for me. So who am I to be like.

[Avery Woods]

It'S a business now. People can on it all they want, but it is a huge, huge business.

[Laura Lee]

And so she's going for it. She's doing a really good job with it. I'm really proud of her. I'm like, like, you know, if you don't want to do it, you do have to figure your out. But I think you should do it. I think you should go for it. She lives in a house right now with like seven girls and she's single now and she's. Oh my gosh, she is living the LA 21 year old fantasy. Yeah.

[Avery Woods]

You know what I love about the way that you guys have helped raise her though, is that you guys obviously are well off and have access to everything in life that you never did.

[Laura Lee]

Yeah.

[Avery Woods]

And you help her in every way that you can, but you also make her work.

[Laura Lee]

Yeah.

[Avery Woods]

She has a normal job. She has to pay her bills. Like, she has learned hard lessons that we've talked about. Like you have helped mold her to be a responsible adult instead of coddling her.

[Laura Lee]

Right.

[Avery Woods]

Which I think is very important, especially nowadays.

[Laura Lee]

It's hard to do too because like, I didn't grow up with anything. So it's hard to like restrict somebody from all the abundance that I have because it feels so cold. But I wouldn't have amount to anything. Honestly. I probably wouldn't have if, like I got everything handed to me. I probably would have been totally, totally. I'm not gonna lie.

[Avery Woods]

I think that's. I actually, I know that's why I have such high work ethic was because my parents like, oh, you're of legal age to Work. You will work.

[Laura Lee]

Yep.

[Avery Woods]

You will pay your bills.

[Laura Lee]

100. I wouldn't be half the person I am today if it wasn't for that adversity. So I'm like, you have to create adversity in a child's life. But it's so hard to do when you have resources and you have money and you can just make all their problems go away. I'm like, no, I can't do this. You know, I'm gonna ruin her. Her, so. And I also noticed it because she would jump on YouTube videos with me all the time whenever she moved here. She loved it. I loved it. But she would get paid. I would pay her for it. And, like, I would also did a makeup collab with her. She got a huge amount of money for that. We didn't give her that amount of money. We put it in a savings till after she graduated high school. Or, like, something comes up, like, you want to buy a car or something. You need it. You can touch it. But I. I saw, like, packages coming in every day and orders and just heard this, being careless, and I was like, what the am I doing? I was like, okay, okay, I'm taking all the money. Yeah, I'm taking all the money. We're rewiring this whole thing because I saw how quickly. Quickly that slippery slope becomes and how rotten people become. You know, they're so young. She's so young for that much money, so. But I was like, she still deserves to be paid for coming on my channel. So we put the money away from her, started taking away, and we still have some of the money. And she, you know, because she works, she taps into it occasionally, but it's. It's not like a safety net, but. Because it eventually will run out. But, you know, it's something that she earned from working with me and that, like, if she needs it for car tears up or an emergence, needs a new phone, even though I just had a buyer a new phone, because I ran her phone over with the car.

[Avery Woods]

You told me that story at Jack.

[Laura Lee]

I was so fucking pissed. I was like, now I'm gonna have to buy you a new phone because you threw your phone under my car. And then when you told me you.

[Avery Woods]

Went to the store to buy her another one, you, like, give her the.

[Laura Lee]

Fucking, like, the oldest, cheap, cheapest piece of you got in this store. Okay? I was like, what was their response? We only had the new promax in stock. Like the 16. Like the new new and the biggest one. You want one terabyte, right?

[Avery Woods]

I'm like, they said, maximum storage. Esme, $3,000. We got.

[Laura Lee]

I was like, aaron, you're gonna use the Birkin screen. No. Paula's like, mother, of course. I'm like, here's your new 16 Pro Nat Pro Max. I got a 15. Here's your new 16 Pro Max, man.

[Avery Woods]

Oh, my God.

[Laura Lee]

Enjoy.

[Avery Woods]

You should have bought it for yourself.

[Laura Lee]

But think of that. It's too much.

[Avery Woods]

Too much.

[Laura Lee]

Swapping an iPhone is like, oh.

[Avery Woods]

The fact that a new phone's coming out automatically gives me anxiety because I'm like, I'm gonna have to sit and try.

[Laura Lee]

I have a really sinister story I shouldn't say. And here's people judge the out me, but I don't even care. You guys do it.

[Avery Woods]

Tell me.

[Laura Lee]

I bought a new. I bought this new iPhone and I kept it in the box for three months because I didn't want to re log in on my app.

[Avery Woods]

I don't blame you.

[Laura Lee]

That's a rotten person.

[Avery Woods]

That. And then the worst part is, you're like, I haven't typed in my password since iPhone.

[Laura Lee]

So then you got to reset app. Like, you might as well delete my whole Tik Tok account. Like, honestly, like, the photos and all. I'm like, oh, my God. Okay.

[Avery Woods]

My, like, 72,000 photos. Okay. So I actually don't even know the answer to this question, but did you guys ever want to have kids of your own?

[Laura Lee]

We played with the idea. Played around a little bit. We played around with the idea. We're like, I kind of have never really wanted kids specifically, like, had, like, I. Because some young girls know that they want to be a mother. And I think that's a really beautiful thing. But I didn't really. I think a lot of it honestly has to do with, like, my mother's experience didn't seem pleasurable, nor did my sister's experience seem pleasurable being a mother. So I think there's probably some subconscious beliefs floating around in there. But it's not 100. No. For me. But it's still not 100. Yes. But I'm getting older and older, and I'm like, oopsies. But if it doesn't happen, I kind of of don't care.

[Avery Woods]

Okay.

[Laura Lee]

In a way. But if it does happen, I wouldn't be upset because I'm older and more settled down. I just rolled off a plane from la flu. So I'm like, I'm very mature and settled down.

[Avery Woods]

Like, I was just watching DJs all night party, literally all night. But I will say now, with advanced medicine, age is nothing but a number, baby.

[Laura Lee]

That's what everybody tells me.

[Avery Woods]

Like, advanced maternal age is going up and up. And I. I'm telling you a lot of my friends that live in New York York, I had this conversation with them and they were saying how in New York City, everyone's very successful business, fashion, and they don't start to have kids until they're well into their 40s because they feel established, they have money. And you know what? I think that's the selfless thing to do. I make sure agree you're set up to raise them.

[Laura Lee]

Yeah.

[Avery Woods]

The way that you want to raise them.

[Laura Lee]

And like, if I would have had kids in my 20s, you guys, I. I was so not mentally okay to be a mother. Like, I mean, you know, things happen and you mature and you learn and grow with age. But, like, I know I would be so much of a better. This Laura would be so much of a better mother now or in the future versus a young Laura. They said the average age in America, women having children are now 27 to 35, which used to be like 22, 25. And it's 27 to 35. And I was at my gyno office and I was like, I'm probably going to wait too late. And she was like. Like, I don't have any patients in their 20s. She was like, they're all in their 30s or 40s.

[Avery Woods]

Yep.

[Laura Lee]

She was like, it's a different time now. So she was like, just live your life.

[Avery Woods]

Me, 23, knocked up.

[Laura Lee]

He got you.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah, well, we tried.

[Laura Lee]

Did you?

[Avery Woods]

I got married at 21. I wanted to be a kid. I wanted to be a kid. I was a kid. Jesus. I wanted a kid. I like, I was that.

[Laura Lee]

I was that instinct that just felt it.

[Avery Woods]

I had like 100 baby dolls at age 6 and I named every single one Sarah.

[Laura Lee]

Beautiful thing. I genuinely think it's a beautif thing.

[Avery Woods]

They were all named Sarah with an.

[Laura Lee]

H. Why you have a kid with name Sarah right now?

[Avery Woods]

Because, listen, as I got older and I worked in the picu, I got to see all the kids names that were constantly repeated. And I said, I'm gonna go Ziggy, because no one's ever gonna name their kid that.

[Laura Lee]

I. Okay, listen, someone asked me, they're like, what do you think of Trisha Paytas baby name? And I said, I have no comment because my kid's not gonna have a normal name. Yeah, I'm not. It's not gonna be a Tyler Laura. Okay, We're Getting some weird in there. So let me just go ahead and put a cork in it, because y' all are go kids.

[Avery Woods]

Can I just say she had a son and she decided to name him John. Then people would also give her that.

[Laura Lee]

It's. They would. And also that kid. All three of those kids are gonna be so iconic. They're mother ish. Trisha Hayden.

[Avery Woods]

You see her post part of making.

[Laura Lee]

That music video be so iconic. Those children are gonna be. Yeah, like, they need those names. I'm sorry. My favorite is Molly Barbie. And I'm gonna be very honest with you. You little jealous.

[Avery Woods]

Me too. 100%.

[Laura Lee]

That's a sick ass name.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah.

[Laura Lee]

Malibu Barbie.

[Avery Woods]

I know Stevie's gonna be watching her on YouTube. Like, did you watch Malibu Barbie's newest, newest YouTube video?

[Laura Lee]

Yeah. She's definitely gonna be a star. So jealous of her name.

[Avery Woods]

Okay. I want to end with some rapid fire.

[Laura Lee]

Yes.

[Avery Woods]

I love these Holy girl beauty product. You'll never retire.

[Laura Lee]

Nars soft matte complete concealer. If you have. You have dark circles, you'll know.

[Avery Woods]

Is that the pot? I just bought that.

[Laura Lee]

Your world's about to be rocked. It's matte, though. You're a glowy girl. But, oh, my God, it covers. Yes, yes.

[Avery Woods]

Okay.

[Laura Lee]

Yes, yes, yes.

[Avery Woods]

What's the worst makeup trend you ever fell for?

[Laura Lee]

Which one didn't I fall for? I would say, and y' all are gonna on me because I'm OG and I made half of y' all do do this too. But you know how we would do, like, I mean, just a streak of white highlighter. I mean, just pounded in there.

[Avery Woods]

I loved that fenty silver disco ball.

[Laura Lee]

Yeah. Like, you had a. And like, you turn sideways and you're gray. You're literally gray. Looks like you get punched in the.

[Avery Woods]

Face and the nose don't even get when you put it down the bridge.

[Laura Lee]

Milk mustache. And then you see people, like, in daylight, and you're like, jesus.

[Avery Woods]

He said, who needs a disco ball? We can reflect some light.

[Laura Lee]

What are we doing? Gosh, what are we doing? Someone should have called it earlier. That era. Jacqueline made a lot of money off that.

[Avery Woods]

She did.

[Laura Lee]

What was her highlighter, honey?

[Avery Woods]

Champagne pop.

[Laura Lee]

Mostly responsible.

[Avery Woods]

And you know what? That was sold out everywhere.

[Laura Lee]

Everywhere.

[Avery Woods]

I bought it, and I use it till it was like, three years. Two.

[Laura Lee]

I think I might still have my.

[Avery Woods]

I literally use that.

[Laura Lee]

Don't tell Jacqueline I'm that much of a fan, though.

[Avery Woods]

No, I think I literally bought it with my Starbucks income of like, $8 an hour and like, three years later, I'm like, I'm finally hitting pan. But I feel like I have had this, like, my entire high school.

[Laura Lee]

You know what? It was Jacqueline's makeup tutorials. There was no more perfect makeup tutorial.

[Avery Woods]

No.

[Laura Lee]

But the kicker was she looked like that in real life.

[Avery Woods]

I know.

[Laura Lee]

Still does.

[Avery Woods]

She looks airbrushed hair. It looks fresh. My girl from Dolce does my spray tans. Like, going over her face like a perfect.

[Laura Lee]

I don't get it.

[Avery Woods]

She's perfect.

[Laura Lee]

She's perfect.

[Avery Woods]

I know.

[Laura Lee]

That's why everybody bought the damn highlighter bodies tea.

[Avery Woods]

Don't even get me started. All right, Guilty Pleasure TV show. Right now.

[Laura Lee]

I'm watching the summer I turn pretty that shows like guys.

[Avery Woods]

It's just so cheesy.

[Laura Lee]

It is.

[Avery Woods]

I couldn't get started in the first season.

[Laura Lee]

It's corn, corn, corn. But they give me the soap opera.

[Avery Woods]

Action, so I need to watch it.

[Laura Lee]

Yeah.

[Avery Woods]

Have you watched Hunting Wives or hunting?

[Laura Lee]

Nope, But I've. I've seen little tidbits about there's lots of lesbian. What's it about?

[Avery Woods]

I'm pretty sure it's like, wives of hunters that start scissoring or something.

[Laura Lee]

They live in Alabama. I think they do. Do they live in Alabama?

[Avery Woods]

Oh, my God. They definitely live somewhere in the South. Yeah. I mean, people aren't hunting in la.

[Laura Lee]

So I'm going to watch that.

[Avery Woods]

I'll never pass up a good scissor opportunity.

[Laura Lee]

Oh, my God. Never. You can't. You simply can't.

[Avery Woods]

What's your. Oh, Texas. All right. Oh, the Texas people are gonna be so mad right now. What's your favorite way to unwind after a long day?

[Laura Lee]

Okay, one thing I do do, which you may be surprised, and this sounds corny, but I listen to a lot of podcasts and they talk about ways I have a gratitude journal, and I have to write five things every day that I'm grateful for. But they can't be like, the sun, the moon, the earth, the air, the wind. They have to be like, a specific to that day.

[Avery Woods]

I just bought a gratitude journal with special rainbow pens.

[Laura Lee]

Okay. So there is, like, this. By the way, that's exactly what you should do, because you should make this habit, a fun habit, so you're more enticed to do it more often. That's from Atomic Habits. That book's incredible. So you did the right thing. If you want to start a habit, you make it fun. You make it enticing in any way for yourself. You make it a pleasure so you come back to it. But that so basically I can't remember the guy's name, but he was on Mel Robbins podcast and he was talking about summarizing each day helps you remember, reflect better on what you've done, what the mistakes are. Oftentimes we go to bed and you don't even remember the day or anything that happened because the day is done, you know. But if you journal and write down and kind of summarize your day and I do it through gratitude. So I'll be like, I'm grateful that I had a really good workout and I'll describe why and what the teacher did and like things he said that inspired me. But if you're able to summarize good and bad in every day, like you can basically be a better person and kind of analyze your moves and be honest with yourself. And it's like a really good way to release all your emotions and thoughts. So I gratitude journal every night no matter what. But that's why it's only five things, not like 20, because that's not realistic for me. No, you always, when you want to set a goal, you have to make it a realistic goal. So five things every night that I'm grateful for.

[Avery Woods]

Do you remember like recently some things that you've been writing down?

[Laura Lee]

Well, I've been writing about Lollapalooza, unfortunately, has kind of been at a rave the past four days.

[Avery Woods]

She's busy, guys.

[Laura Lee]

I was really, really busy. But I will write tonight. Let me tell you what I'm gonna write tonight. I'm gonna kick Manny's ass because last night he doesn't like to go to bed till 3am oh, he's there.

[Avery Woods]

Maybe I can't be.

[Laura Lee]

I'm like, we have to get up at 5:30 LA. Time to catch this flight home. So I said, I need you set your alarm. And he goes like this, I'mma said it. And I said, hey, said it. He goes, I'mma said it. I'm like, said it. Don't with me. He's like, just kidding. I' ma set it. And so we go to bed. I wake up in the morning, Manny's the most punctual person I've ever met my entire life. I text him, it's we're supposed to meet downstairs at 7:30, which is 5:30 LA time this morning, and you're here today.

[Avery Woods]

Thank you so much.

[Laura Lee]

I'm a shell of a human. Okay. No, I'm just kidding. I love it. I love being on podcasts and doing podcasts and stuff. I love talking and hear Myself talks. But I said, said a. So it was 6:15. The Uber driver's 15 minutes early. I text him, I said, hey, do you want to go ahead and go downstairs? He's here early. May text me back. So that's already a thing for me. I'm like, okay. He told me he was taking a shower in the morning. Or like a. I don't know, we're weird. I'm like, he told me he was taking a shower. Okay, 100. Like, you know, honey, we're one brain cell demon.

[Avery Woods]

Yep.

[Laura Lee]

So I was like, he told me taking a shower. Maybe he's in the shower. I it's 7:25 now. I haven't heard back, which that's only like a couple minutes later. So I was like, I'm gonna go downstairs and get the car and get this guy to wait. And so whenever. About time I got from the 23rd floor down all the way to the car, it was 7:30. I hadn't heard a word. I said, that motherfucker's asleep. So I said, sir, my best friend is asleep right now. I have to go get him. Do not leave. Do not leave. I go all the way back up. Thank God I kept my key card because you can't get up to those top floors without that special key card. And I knew better. And I kicked the out of his door. I was like, boom, boom, boom. And he opens his door in his chonies and he's literally like. I said, you didn't set your alarm. Get your clothes on, we gotta go. And I'm talking about running around his room in his underwear. He said, I thought you were my neighbor. I'm like, why would your neighbor knock on your door at 7:30 in the morning?

[Avery Woods]

You guys don't share a room.

[Laura Lee]

They nine times out of ten they put us in the same room. But occasionally they'll split us up.

[Avery Woods]

Oh yeah, Scott's gonna be dreaming about him running around his chonies later.

[Laura Lee]

Honestly, it's great. But oh my God.

[Avery Woods]

Favorite overnight lip moisturizer?

[Laura Lee]

My expired Shay Lip mask.

[Avery Woods]

Oh, really?

[Laura Lee]

Give me a new one.

[Avery Woods]

Okay.

[Laura Lee]

If they don't even sell it anymore, it's definitely not good for me to put on.

[Avery Woods]

What's the most random thing in your bag right right now?

[Laura Lee]

Oh, you guys can see every single item. A clear bag.

[Avery Woods]

You on your way to.

[Laura Lee]

She would swap her.

[Avery Woods]

I said, you on your way to a concert tonight?

[Laura Lee]

It still has beach sand in it from Florida. I swear I'm successful, you guys. I love this damn thing. Okay, so let Me tell you what the. Although you guys, everything. 30 years. Years.

[Avery Woods]

30 years.

[Laura Lee]

It's Katie. She's an influencer. She created this brand. And I think this is my favorite thing.

[Avery Woods]

I thought you were saying, like, 30 years ago, like, you bought it look.

[Laura Lee]

Which makes more sense. You're like, yeah, it looks like it.

[Avery Woods]

Does it say it's vintage?

[Laura Lee]

It looks like it's been. It has been all clear.

[Avery Woods]

Bags are ugly as. But that's really cute.

[Laura Lee]

Except for this. And I was like, are you kidding me? Like, I carry this on my own will. Granted, I did just get out of festival, so I'm a very lightweight bag carrier. Like, I don't put in my bag. Also don't have kids. You know, you got to carry more luggage.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah, I do have a tote bag.

[Laura Lee]

I'm like, give me a piece of gum, a lip liner, and a sunglass, and we can go anywhere. But I would say the most random item is my face on my backup battery. Wait, I'm obsessed with that face on it.

[Avery Woods]

How'd you get that?

[Laura Lee]

If ever tries to steal this clocked. I was on a brand trip.

[Avery Woods]

That's sick.

[Laura Lee]

You know, and this is the best one. It just, like, pops on photos.

[Avery Woods]

Very Laural.

[Laura Lee]

Is that not core me?

[Avery Woods]

Yeah, that is you. And I can hear you screaming.

[Laura Lee]

You can hear this phone. Like, when you say that, you're like, that's her. Yep, that's Laura's.

[Avery Woods]

Hey, anyone knows who found this? Oh, it's Laura.

[Laura Lee]

Oh, yeah. Yep, that one's hers.

[Avery Woods]

Dream vacation destination I want to go to.

[Laura Lee]

You know, I've already been to the south of France as a spoiled Ron. Privileged influencer. But I want to take my husband really bad. Essential Tropez.

[Avery Woods]

Ooh.

[Laura Lee]

I've been there once, so I know the tea going on there, and it is some good. Okay, so that's my next spot. But we've gone to Italy the past three summers, and it's kind of like we're beating a dead horse.

[Avery Woods]

It's so relatable.

[Laura Lee]

I know everybody will really relate to that. They're gonna be like, yeah, that's our girl.

[Avery Woods]

You know what else we bond on is Destin.

[Laura Lee]

Oh, my God. We did.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah. Laura and I were talking because I was like, yeah, we've gone to Destin, like, the last four years. We just booked our trip for next summer. She's like, bitch, I'm fucking. I have a house.

[Laura Lee]

Like, stay at my house, which I.

[Avery Woods]

Need to take you up on. But I did just already book my.

[Laura Lee]

Fucking house if you Ever want to. It's incredible. It's like the secret hot spot in the South.

[Avery Woods]

The best.

[Laura Lee]

You know, it is really the best. It looks like I could literally do a video and be like, I'm in Bora Bora.

[Avery Woods]

No one would know.

[Laura Lee]

No one would know. It's the same. It's the most beautiful warm in the panhandle there.

[Avery Woods]

Do you ever drink a bushwhack whacker on the beach?

[Laura Lee]

Yes, I have.

[Avery Woods]

Oh, my God.

[Laura Lee]

And you can drink on their beaches in California. You can't.

[Avery Woods]

I'll order a bushwhacker and play mermaids all day.

[Laura Lee]

Oh, my God. You're my person.

[Avery Woods]

What do you want people to take away from this next era of Laura Lee?

[Laura Lee]

I feel like I'm diving deeper into the self development world. I've wanted to keep one toe out of it because I feel like everybody in self development gets put on a pedestal. Pedestal. And it's like, if they're not drinking their own Kool Aid and they make a mistake, then it's like, why would you drink their Kool Aid? But I think that's relatable, right?

[Avery Woods]

Like, no one's perfect. Everyone learns. And like, I love Mel Robin.

[Laura Lee]

I love her.

[Avery Woods]

I love her so much. But she's very open. Like, well, I'm still learning every day. Like, yeah, we're all human and living this life for the first time. But I feel like we need someone that's very real like that. Because sometimes you can look at those people and be like, damn, I'm a up. Because she's perfect.

[Laura Lee]

Yeah.

[Avery Woods]

But I feel like you would be incredible at that.

[Laura Lee]

That's so nice of you to say.

[Avery Woods]

Really.

[Laura Lee]

It'd be a really genre, but I've read so many books. Like, that's what I enjoy reading.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah, you're a big reader.

[Laura Lee]

I'm a huge reader. And I feel like you can literally unlock parts of your brain and thoughts and the way you do things. I mean, even the book Atomic Habits, it teaches you what colors and marketing and why you like things and why you do things for so long and why. This is a dopamine hit. And it has, like. I feel like I've been controlled by the world until I got into self development. And it helped me control myself. I'm like, oh, my God. God, this is why I do things. It's all for, like, dopamine or serotonin or this and that or jealousy. And it, like, teaches you and to understand your emotions and it's like a superpower. So. And it's also helped me through really hard. So I'm like, I would love because of what it's done for me, I would love for it to do that for other people. And if that I can be that. What that flows through. Great.

[Avery Woods]

Even if you did like your own.

[Laura Lee]

Gratitude journal, oh, my gosh. I even thought about where you could.

[Avery Woods]

Like, make it really aesthetically pleasing and part of your brand and.

[Laura Lee]

Yeah.

[Avery Woods]

Color code it and, like, I'm sure there's times where you're like, I wish my gratitude journal had this. Or this is what I learned from it. Like, you can kind of add to that. And I feel like that would be really, really cool.

[Laura Lee]

Love that. But I would love to just tap. Tap into that world. I have to figure out what makes sense because I'm no Tony Robbins. I actually went to his seminars and walked on hot coals once. No, you didn't join the full cult, girl. That's what getting me canceled. I said, lord have mercy. I got canceled. And now I'm walking on barefoot hot coals in New York. New York. And I joined a cult. It was crazy, but sure didn't. Tony said I wouldn't, and I didn't.

[Avery Woods]

Yeah, we listened to him.

[Laura Lee]

He's really good. They. They line you up and you have to walk through the hot coals with your bare feet after you walk through the streets of New York with your bare feet, which is more dangerous than the hot coals alone. So I lined up the reason for that. I can't remember.

[Avery Woods]

Learned a lot there. Learned a lot.

[Laura Lee]

I remember doing it. Don't remember the point. There was something I do remember, whenever it came to me, the coals were so stuffed out because so many people had. Had walked on them. So I was like, I see. Like, this is going to be easy. They hold the line. They're like, hold on. They bring a wheelbarrow of hot coals and they redo the whole path. Right before I went, I'm like, are you kidding? Like, this is a comedy skit.

[Avery Woods]

Said, it's piping hot for you, Laura.

[Laura Lee]

Your is wrecked. They're like, have you seen you online? I'm like, that's why I'm here. They're like, you gotta.

[Avery Woods]

Like, we did some research on you, and you need the. The hot coals, the hot ass.

[Laura Lee]

I walked through the brimstone of Tony Robbins, and it was like, basically what you believe is real. I think if I'm not mistaken, that's one of his isms. And Tony Robbins has changed my life. Like, he a lot of controversy there, but I don't care. He's changed my life, so I love that. Yeah.

[Avery Woods]

Well, thank you so much for being here. This was one of my most favorite apple scenes you've ever done. My stomach hurts from laughing, and I didn't have to talk a lot, which is incredible.

[Laura Lee]

Honey, give me a mic.

[Avery Woods]

You are so funny and so real and such a good person.

[Laura Lee]

I feel very lucky to have you as a friend. Likewise.

[Avery Woods]

Where can everyone find you?

[Laura Lee]

You can find me Lar Lee on Instagram full coverage podcast. Minimal A is my brand. Check it out.

[Avery Woods]

Check them out. All right, cheer.