Podcast Summary: DisGRACEful with Grace O’Malley

Episode: Joel Kim Booster: KPop Demon Twink

Date: November 6, 2025
Host: Grace O’Malley
Guest: Joel Kim Booster

Episode Overview

This high-energy episode of DisGRACEful features host Grace O’Malley and multi-hyphenate comedian/actor Joel Kim Booster. The two dive into Joel’s comedic journey, his recent projects including the viral hit “KPop Demon Hunters,” the reality of coming up in comedy, and the absurdities of adulthood, all interspersed with games, pop culture hot takes, and plenty of witty banter. From tales of odd jobs to advice on squashing beef, and even a segment analyzing old internet “receipts,” the conversation is equal parts hilarious and revealing.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Housewife Taglines and Joel’s Signature Wit

• Tagline Brainstorm: The episode opens with a riff on Real Housewives taglines, with Joel sharing and inventing new ones.

  • “They say money is the root of all evil and I’m the tallest tree in the forest.”
    — Joel Kim Booster [00:30]

• Oncoming Full Circle: Joel discusses the pressure of coming up with fresh catchphrases, referencing past podcast appearances.

  • “Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang, they both come up with new ones every day...It’s really fantastic of them.”
    — Joel Kim Booster [00:55]

2. Joel’s Southern Roots & Adoption

• Family Accents: Joel, adopted into a white southern family, recounts his inherited southern accent and familial quirks.
  • “I am famously adopted. My entire family is white and my mom’s side...all from Alabama, Tennessee, South Carolina.”
    — Joel Kim Booster [02:13]

3. Game: Joel or Kim?

• Celebrity Quote Guessing: In “Joel or Kim,” Grace quizzes Joel on quotes from him vs. Real Housewife Kim Richards.

  • “You know what a girl’s best friend is? Not diamonds. Her lawyers.”
    — Joel, channeling Southern drama [03:06]
  • “I don’t know why everyone expects me to learn things now. It’s not my brand.”
    — Joel Kim Booster [06:13]

• Joel aces the game, but reflects, “I was like, certainly I’ll remember everything I’ve ever said, and clearly that’s not what I was thinking.” [05:35]

4. On “KPop Demon Hunters” Phenomenon

• Family-Friendly Hit: Joel voices several minor but beloved characters in what’s become a major Netflix success.
  • “It’s the first thing I’ve ever done in my career that is child appropriate.”
    — Joel Kim Booster [07:46]
  • On fans: “There are full fan accounts...devoted specifically to my four-line character, like fanfiction, like, all of this stuff.”
    — [09:55]

5. Comedic Work, Voice Acting, and Villains

• Voiceover Credits: Joel waxes nostalgic about voicing on shows like American Dad and Bob’s Burgers.
• Being the Villain: On being compared to Floop from Spy Kids:
  • “I was right at the age where I was like, that’s for babies. I’m not gonna watch that movie. I’m 13 years old or 14 years old.”
    — Joel [10:50]

6. Upcoming Wedding & New Year’s Eve Anxiety

• Joel is getting married the night before New Year’s Eve. They exchange horror stories about New Year’s Eve pressures.
  • “If you’d rather be getting your back blown in Rio, then fucking go to Rio. I don’t need to spend $150 on a plate of food for you.”
    — Joel Kim Booster [11:45]

7. Roast or Toast Game: Celebrity Lightning Round

• Joel delivers rapid, razor-sharp “roasts/toasts” to images of Madonna, Mariah Carey, Wendy Williams, Lorde, Tom Cruise, Cheryl Hines, and Kim Zolciak.

  • “Say what you want about Madonna and her work. No one in the world looks like Madonna now.” [14:44]
  • On Mariah: “She’s given us so much. To even think about speaking ill of her in this moment in her life is unconscionable.” [16:16]
  • On Tom Cruise: “It’s incredible when a short king does his own stunts, including diving off an airplane and getting something off a high shelf.” [17:33]

• Joel jokes about political savvy: “I think you could run for office the way you handled that.”
  — Grace [18:17]

  • “Now it’s becoming a point where I’m gonna meet some of these people eventually."
    — Joel [18:24]

8. Navigating Beef Online and Off

• Celebrity Spats: Joel recounts a public spat with Drag Race’s Monet X Change.

  • “Most beefs are about nothing in my opinion. If you can take a step back...the beef cannot be that important.”
    — Joel Kim Booster [19:23-19:51]

• The Value in Reconciliation:

  • "Weigh how much you need this person in your life to begin with." [20:00]

• Internet Negativity:

  • “You didn’t think I was a human being on the other side of that message... That’s so telling.”
    — Joel [21:06]
  • On Internet disengagement: “It’s so much easier to be an asshole when you can disengage by saying, oh, this is just a bot.” [22:52]

9. On “Groomers,” Glam Squads, and Shout-Outs

• Clarifying “Groomer”: Joel jokes about the double-meaning, affirming he does not travel with a “groomer,” but has a team for professional styling.

  • “Shout out to every person who has done my makeup because adult acne is real.”
    — Joel [24:40]

• Rapidfire Shout-Outs:

  • “Shout out to bullies… it’s character building.”
    — Joel [25:18]

10. Loot on Apple TV, TV Talk, and Cancellation Grievances

• Apple TV Praise:

  • “They make TV shows like movies. There’s so much less to choose from, it’s so much more manageable.”
    — Joel [26:39-27:09]

• Canceled Shows: Both mourn the axing of “The OA.”

  • “I watched the OA finally, and I was like, no, they were right. I’d be out there doing my little dances on the street, too.”
    — Joel [27:57]

11. Kesha and Set Tales

• Kesha on Set: Joel sets the record straight: Kesha was professional, punctual, and “sounded incredible live.”

  • “That isn’t the Kesha I asked for. You’re being nice and responsible. Who are you?”
    — Joel [31:10]

• Rap Party Policy: “If Kesha had the time to do that, that would really shatter my image of Kesha’s life.”
  — Joel [31:42]

12. Coming Up: Odd Jobs, Chicago Roots, Comedy Advice

• Early Gigs: Quiznos, Subway, Cold Stone, Dippin’ Dots, and early grind at Groupon (“It’s a mom aphrodisiac for sure.” [34:16])

• Imposter Syndrome: Only creeps in for creative pursuits, not day jobs. [35:28]

  • “The stakes weren’t high enough for me to ever care that much to feel impostor syndrome.”
    — Joel [35:28]

• Chicago vs. New York Comedy:

  • “Chicago is the perfect place to start comedy. There’s not very many eyes on you…. New York, the stakes feel a little higher.”
    — Joel [38:05–39:43]

• Advice for Aspiring Comics: Move before you think you’re ready; credits don’t transfer between cities. [40:21]

13. Roommates, Manhattan Life, and City Swap

• Classic NYC Disasters: From bodega cats in heat (“All the neighborhood male bodega cats would come to the window desperately trying to get to her.” [43:03]) to rats that trip you and bedbug-infested lofts.

• Transition to LA:

  • “New York requires energy but is rewarding. LA is dangerous because you can get complacent.”
    — Joel [45:51–46:15]

• Roommate Horror: “Boy would he take a bath. Boy would he call his mom and grandma in the bath. And boy did I pee in many pots and dump them out my window into the Chase parking lot.”
  — Joel [46:53]

14. Reality TV Obsessions

• Bravo Completist: Joel is up to date on all Housewives, with Salt Lake City as the current favorite.

  • “Salt Lake is probably the crown jewel right now…women really understand the assignment.”
    — Joel [48:02]

• Love for Project Runway and Peacock:

  • “If you have a show you need to put on while cleaning...let it be Project Runway. You’ll not be disappointed.”
    — Joel [49:28-49:34]

15. Money, Debt, and Financial Independence

• Student Loans & Debt: Joel didn’t reach “stable” until age 32:

  • “I haven’t taken a dime of my parents’ money since I was 17...I think right around then, 2019, is when I paid off all my student loans.”
    — Joel [53:06-53:44]
  • “For you to come in having done that work...and being bitter because someone else might not have to go through that—it's so insane to me.“
    — Joel [54:26]

• Gap Year Reflection: “I wish gap years were more accessible...you’re supposed to make this huge investment in yourself at the age of 18…” [56:00]

16. Discount Superlatives & Being “Unremarkable”

• “I was completely unremarkable, I think, to most the people...No one saw this coming.”
  — Joel [57:11]

• Encouraging message: “It really just goes to show...none of this matters.”
  — Joel [57:48]

17. Disgraceful Receipts: The “Explain This Photo” Game [60:23–70:19]

• Run through of Joel’s old photos:

  • Fire Island baby-in-a-flowerpot: “It’s adorable.”
  • Disaster-era Zooey Deschanel-inspired headshot: “So 2012.”
  • Eating Doritos on the toilet: “Guess I saved myself a trip. That’s comedy.”
  • Watch What Happens Live with Luann: "An object lesson in [ass-kissing]."
  • Family photo-memes: “I brutalized my family in the first three or four years I did stand up.”
  • Scruff convo: “Into having sex in cam with guys watching." Joel: “What channel?”
  • Earliest drag experience as "Mulana Del Rey": “I won.” And suffered nerve damage from heels!
  • Money clip made from a binder clip: “My wallet got pickpocketed on the dance floor.”
  • Old “lesbian shift manager at the Starbucks” haircut headshot.
  • “Best gays in NY” also being a college Republican (with George W. Bush).

• Joel’s bonus: Photo rolling on Molly while hugging Joe Biden at a friend’s wedding: “It would take a lot of Molly for me to embrace any president...It would take a lot of serotonin.” [70:47]

18. Touring and The Ridiculousness of Riders [71:49]

• Green Room Demands: Early rider accidentally required two full-length mirrors (“so you can see front and back”).
  • “I must have looked like a lunatic for God knows how long.”
    — Joel [72:41]
• Now, he keeps his requests simple: “Sugar free Red Bull and Diet Coke and maybe...candy if you got it.” [72:49]

19. Best (Worst) Date Ever

• “Worst” Date:
  • Hookup thwarted: “My husband is home, so we have to hook up in the living room because he’s, like, pretty racist.”
    — Joel [76:47]
  • “Unfortunately...if that’s the person you’ve chosen...you’re complicit in his racism.” [77:02]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “We put too much pressure on New Year’s to be a thing. It’s just another fudgeing night.”
  — Joel Kim Booster [12:30]
• “Shout out to bullies in high school. You're putting in the work. You're. It’s character building.”
  — Joel [25:10]
• “Chicago is the perfect place to start comedy—you can take some big swings and fail hard.”
  — Joel [38:05]
• “It’s so much easier to be an asshole when you can disengage by saying, oh, this is just a bot.”
  — Joel [22:52]
• “Look at this house you’re in. It’s because I was most funny and most likely to succeed even if these bitches didn’t see it.”
  — Joel [58:06]

Important Timestamps

• 00:30: Joel’s Real Housewives tagline riff
• 05:03–07:20: Joel or Kim game
• 07:46–09:55: KPop Demon Hunters discussion
• 14:24–18:16: Roast or Toast game
• 19:21–22:19: On “squashing beef” and public feuds
• 24:40–25:45: Shout-out segment (makeup artists, bullies, Grindr stories)
• 26:39–27:56: Apple TV+ & streamer woes
• 30:06–31:57: Kesha on set stories
• 38:05–41:17: Chicago vs. NY comedy wisdom
• 48:02–49:49: Reality TV obsessions
• 53:06–54:26: Financial independence and student debt
• 60:23–70:19: Disgraceful Receipts/Explaining old photos
• 71:49–74:31: Standup touring and rider confusion
• 76:16–77:54: Worst date (“My husband is home and he’s pretty racist…”)

Tone & Style

The tone is comedic, sharp, and self-aware, blending pop culture snark with personal vulnerability in classic Joel Kim Booster fashion. Grace fosters an upbeat, riff-heavy environment, encouraging both self-roast and earnest reflection.

For Listeners Who Missed the Episode

This episode offers a revealing and hilarious portrait of Joel Kim Booster—a performer as incisive in self-deprecation as he is in his comic observations. The episode delivers not just giggles, but also genuine reflection on career, community, and the realities of adulthood and “making it” in entertainment. Even non-comedy fans will find plenty to love in the pop culture riffs, tales from the comedy trenches, and the irresistible warmth between Grace and Joel.

Summary written in the speakers’ lively, irreverent tones, with careful attention to accuracy and detail.