Driving School + Kenergy

Summary

Podcast Summary: Ride with Benito Skinner and Mary Beth Barone

Episode: Driving School + Kenergy
Release Date: June 18, 2025
Host/Author: Dear Media
Title: Ride with Benito Skinner and Mary Beth Barone

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Introduction

In this engaging episode of "Ride with Benito Skinner and Mary Beth Barone," hosted by Dear Media, Benito and Mary Beth dive into nostalgic tales from their driving school days and explore the concept of "Kenergy" inspired by the recent Barbie movie premiere. The conversation is filled with humor, heartfelt moments, and insightful reflections, making it a captivating listen for both regular followers and newcomers alike.

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Driving School Memories

Shared Experiences and Anecdotes

Benito and Mary Beth kick off the discussion by reminiscing about their driving school experiences. Benito shares a particularly memorable (and somewhat embarrassing) story from his driver's ed days:

Benito Skinner [26:27]: "I threw someone under the bus. I couldn't believe I did this. But I gave her number to this guy because he... [then] I almost set my sister up with a cop."

Mary Beth adds her own light-hearted memories, highlighting the communal and sometimes chaotic nature of learning to drive:

Mary Beth Barone [25:44]: "You're answering the questions, and you're texting on your Motorola razor on the brakes, and you're just getting through it all..."

Lessons Learned

The hosts emphasize the importance of driving school in their lives, not just as a means to obtain a license but as a formative experience that taught them responsibility and coordination:

Mary Beth Barone [24:28]: "Driving school was sort of a confirmation class in that you got to meet kids from other high schools who are around your age."

Benito reflects on the anxiety and growth that came with these lessons:

Benito Skinner [27:55]: "I threw someone under the bus. I couldn't believe I did this. But driver's ed was... it was the beginning of summer when I took it. It was right around this time of year."

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Kenergy: Embracing Inner Strength

Defining Kenergy

The conversation shifts to the intriguing concept of "Kenergy," a blend of Ken's (from Barbie) charisma and energy, especially in the context of the Barbie movie premiere. Benito introduces the term and its significance:

Benito Skinner [31:07]: "Kenergy and the Barbie moment and Barbenheimer brought us there. And the idea of kenergy feels so unbelievably 2014 to me."

Mary Beth delves deeper into the personal and cultural implications of Kenergy:

Mary Beth Barone [32:29]: "Do not think I do. But once you get to know me that you realize that I do."

Experiences at the Barbie Premiere

Benito recounts his experience attending the Barbie premiere, highlighting moments that tested his Kenergy:

Benito Skinner [36:37]: "I go to the carpet. So no photographers are there yet because the carpet, the real carpet doesn't start until 6pm. So I get there with a friend and... it's like, I just thought I'd never have kenergy again."

Mary Beth supports him by emphasizing resilience and finding strength in challenging moments:

Mary Beth Barone [43:01]: "From the ashes he rises."

Emotional Resilience and Self-Empowerment

The hosts discuss how embracing Kenergy helps in overcoming personal setbacks and maintaining confidence:

Mary Beth Barone [44:53]: "We hope that you have some moments this week where you can use the word kenergy."

Benito wraps up this segment by tying back to their driving school memories, underscoring the continuous journey of personal growth:

Benito Skinner [45:25]: "We love you, Terry."

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Memorable Moments and Highlights

• Lesbian Wedding Speech: Mary Beth shares her role as a wingwoman at a lesbian wedding, highlighting the impact of their friendship on others' lives.

  Mary Beth Barone [05:47]: "I had to give a speech at the wedding because I was actually there when the brides met each other."

• Kissing Game: An entertaining segment where Mary Beth introduces a party game that sparks laughter and playful competition among friends.

  Mary Beth Barone [14:48]: "It's such a fun game and I think something that's important to note..."

• Jeremy Renner Story Tease: Both hosts tease a future episode filled with celebrity anecdotes, adding anticipation for listeners.

  Mary Beth Barone [09:56]: "One day, I will tell the listeners of Ride My Jeremy Ren Story, and I think they're gonna love it."

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Notable Quotes

• Benito Skinner [02:27]: "Save the boobies, baby. I loved it. It was, you know, it was great. It was a great cause and I loved the flair of it all."

• Mary Beth Barone [32:48]: "It's an important concept. There's something freeing about just saying, like, I have kenergy."

• Benito Skinner [43:20]: "I am Kenuff, and so are you, and I think we're stronger every day."

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Conclusions

Throughout the episode, Benito and Mary Beth intertwine nostalgic reflections with contemporary cultural discussions, creating a rich tapestry of humor, honesty, and camaraderie. Their exploration of driving school memories serves as a foundation for delving into deeper themes of personal strength and resilience embodied by "Kenergy." The episode not only entertains but also inspires listeners to find their own internal energy sources amidst life's unpredictable moments.

Whether sharing embarrassing driving school tales or embracing the empowering vibes of recent cultural phenomena, Benito and Mary Beth prove once again why they're beloved tastemakers and besties. This episode is a testament to their ability to turn everyday experiences into relatable and uplifting conversations.

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Note: This summary omits advertisements, intros, outros, and non-content sections to focus solely on the substantive discussions between Benito Skinner and Mary Beth Barone.

Transcript

[Mary Beth Barone]

The following podcast is a Dear Media production. Hey, can you come pick me up? Yeah.

[Benito Skinner]

What's wrong?

[Mary Beth Barone]

Nothing.

[Benito Skinner]

Are you sure?

[Mary Beth Barone]

Yeah. No, I just need a ride. Ride, ride. I just want to have fun.

[Benito Skinner]

Start your engines. I'm Benito Skinner.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I'm Mary Beth Barone.

[Benito Skinner]

And this is Ride. Happy pride to Grace Scanlon, everyone. I just want to go all night. I just want to go insane Touching the sound of brain. Other than the Blur flame Other than the Blur flame. Ah.

[Mary Beth Barone]

This season I'm going to ride for Charlie XCX's early work at some point. Not today, but I think there's a lot of educating that needs to happen.

[Benito Skinner]

I agree. People going back into how I'm feeling now, I'm like, well, let's talk about Pop two. Let's talk about Pop two and number one, angel people.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Not true romance.

[Benito Skinner]

Someone said there was almost too much Charlie and I go, not true. She's the God of the show.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Not possible. I know.

[Benito Skinner]

There has to be God in the show or I wouldn't have made it.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Of course. And just to clarify something, people asking, when does it take place? Post 9 11. And that's all you need to know. And we won't get more specific. The towers had fallen at some point before we started the timeline of the Scanlan family.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Happy pride.

[Benito Skinner]

Happy pride to Grace Scanlan. Not Benny Scanlon. Not yet.

[Mary Beth Barone]

He's not ready yet.

[Benito Skinner]

He's not ready yet.

[Mary Beth Barone]

But Grace not gay. It's fun how? Yep, I'm not gay. Yep, I'm not gay. Applies to both Grace and Benny, which I think is cool.

[Benito Skinner]

Well, of course, there's.

[Mary Beth Barone]

It's the circle and blood is thicker than water.

[Benito Skinner]

Well, of course, as they say. Yes. I love saying that.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Should we get into that? Girl woke up in my house.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah. So there is this era that did occur before season three. You just continue to inspire me, dude. Duty.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Duty.

[Benito Skinner]

Dudette. Remember Dudette era?

[Mary Beth Barone]

Yeah.

[Benito Skinner]

And remember save the boobies?

[Mary Beth Barone]

Yeah.

[Benito Skinner]

Just those thick bracelets from Zoomies.

[Mary Beth Barone]

There was a crazy campaign.

[Benito Skinner]

Never wore those.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Remember Lick Cancer? That was like a thing.

[Benito Skinner]

We were doing like all kinds of crazy shit to cancer on T shirts. I know cancer can stick it up my butt. It's like, actually, I'd prefer if it.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Didn'T can cancer come over here and kiss me.

[Benito Skinner]

It's like, nope, don't want that. No, absolutely not.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I'm good.

[Benito Skinner]

My grandma had breast cancer twice. And during football there was that month. I think it's breast cancer awareness month. Is that October?

[Mary Beth Barone]

It could be.

[Benito Skinner]

It might Be. I think it's either October or September, but everyone added pink to their uniforms.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I bet you loved that.

[Benito Skinner]

I did.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Went a little crazy with that.

[Benito Skinner]

Save the boobies, baby. I loved it. It was, you know, it was great. It was a great cause and I loved the flair of it all.

[Mary Beth Barone]

And, you know, I'm passionate about boobies. And I think we. They. We do need to save them.

[Benito Skinner]

Absolutely.

[Mary Beth Barone]

So.

[Benito Skinner]

So this chick woke up in my house. This girl woke up in my house. So Mary Beth and I, one morning, she was staying with me, but I actually worked out earlier than you.

[Mary Beth Barone]

You were the hour session before me, which is.

[Benito Skinner]

Has never happened before. You're in there at like six really weird, Which I don't know how you do that because I have to have a coffee and it needs to be a little warmed up because of my bad low back, which is firing crazy right now.

[Mary Beth Barone]

You've heard of mental illness? Yes.

[Benito Skinner]

Yes.

[Mary Beth Barone]

So that's how I get there at 6.

[Benito Skinner]

Of course. Yes. That's what Terry said. He's like, I can't believe you're, like, still working out. And I'm just like, oh, this is it.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Now we have to.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah, it does make me feel a little better.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Good. Well, I mean, that's as good as it gets these days.

[Benito Skinner]

I'm just thinking about how lucky I am because this girl woke up in my house. So Mary Beth enters the gym. At that point, I've been with Junior, I'm warmed up, I'm loose. And, you know, you walk in, it's like, it's me and a bunch of straight guys and we're all talking about my butt.

[Mary Beth Barone]

So.

[Benito Skinner]

So it's like, it's just a cool hour for me.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Absolutely.

[Benito Skinner]

Like, you can't imagine. I mean, if it was all gay guys, we wouldn't say a word about it. But since it's all straight guys, I am literally like, they feel free to.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Say, benny, you're caked up.

[Benito Skinner]

Caked up. They're like. And I show them the arch and they go, whoa. They go crazy. So Mary Beth walks in and it's just sometimes I see you and I have to with you in a way that's animal. It's animalistic. And I just saw you and I thought, that chick woke up in my house.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I think I was wearing your shirt too.

[Benito Skinner]

She slept in my fucking house last night, dude. I loved this character of a straight guy that's just really proud to have had you sleep over and spend the money.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Totally. You know, and I think that straight guys could Take a note.

[Benito Skinner]

I agree.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Be proud. Be proud. When a girl woke up in your house, it's so cool.

[Benito Skinner]

It doesn't happen every day, and I know it doesn't happen every day for me, so I was proud. But J.R. really, he got a kick out of that one. He still says it to me sometimes.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I love that era.

[Benito Skinner]

Did she wake up in your house?

[Mary Beth Barone]

And honestly, most of the time, yeah.

[Benito Skinner]

And yeah, she did with me in your house. Oh, my God. The amount of time you've been in talk therapy, and I've just, like. I've opened the door and I'm about to like, either ultimately fart on you or jump your bones or sing to me. And I say jump your bones in a very specific way.

[Mary Beth Barone]

You walk in, you do your thing, then you walk out. And I say to my therapist, so that's Benny. And she goes, oh, he seems really cool.

[Benito Skinner]

Oh, that's so sweet.

[Mary Beth Barone]

She says that she loves you.

[Benito Skinner]

Well, she should.

[Mary Beth Barone]

She's heard all about it. Hey, she should, you know, because you have to bring the good and the bad to therapy. So there's this time that we spend talking about the good, which is Benny, and then we spend time talking about the bad, which I'm not going to get into right now.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah, we will later at some point.

[Mary Beth Barone]

We will. We will. At some point. I do want to speak on something that's happening in my personal life, but I don't think it's going to be this episode. It's not anything to do with my relationship status, though.

[Benito Skinner]

Okay, cool.

[Mary Beth Barone]

It's about family.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah.

[Mary Beth Barone]

And it's about love.

[Benito Skinner]

I think this is yet another episode. I'd like to bring up that I was asked at the Peabody Awards about your relationship status.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Yes. On that note. Yes, I did want to say. So I'm going to a lesbian wedding.

[Benito Skinner]

Yes.

[Mary Beth Barone]

In two weeks.

[Benito Skinner]

And on that note.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Yeah, I'm going to a lesbian wedding in two weeks.

[Benito Skinner]

These chicks woke up in my house.

[Mary Beth Barone]

So I had to give a speech at the wedding because I was actually there when the brides met each other. I had to play wing woman that night at the Cubby Hole. And the only reason we were at the cubbyhole is because a lesbian that I met through you was being weird to me.

[Benito Skinner]

Oh, yeah. Well, you're welcome.

[Mary Beth Barone]

We went that night, and she ended up meeting the love of her life. And so Benny Drama 7 is technically responsible for this lesbian marriage.

[Benito Skinner]

I couldn't be happier.

[Mary Beth Barone]

It's. And.

[Benito Skinner]

And just for the lesbian character of Grace Scanlan.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Of Grace Scanlon. And she can only hope to one day meet her, the love of her life at the Cubby Hole. So I met a woman through you at club. Club coming. I think it's important to note that you were wearing a leopard print polo shirt that night in a cute way.

[Benito Skinner]

It was supreme.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Oh, for sure. I remember everything that happened that night.

[Benito Skinner]

You were kind of describing it as if it was like Mr. Turk for a second.

[Mary Beth Barone]

No, no, I wasn't.

[Benito Skinner]

It had a bonobo's tone to it and he just cut it.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Have I ever really quick.

[Benito Skinner]

Well, no, I'm just.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I need to tell them like I'm painting a picture.

[Benito Skinner]

Style is forever.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Totally. So you had brought a friend who was holding hands with another woman, so I figured she was in a relationship. I ended up asking after her and you said she was single. So we started dating and then she was being weird to me one weekend. This was right before we stopped seeing each other. But yeah, went to the Cubby Hole and sparks flew. And I just think it's really inspiring to not just gay people and lesbians, but everyone to know that sometimes you can just go to a bar like they did in the olden days and you can meet the woman that you're going to marry. So I think that's really cool.

[Benito Skinner]

I should be at the wedding. I'm a bit. But I should be at that wedding. I would love to be there. I brought these chicks together in my house.

[Mary Beth Barone]

A lot of people don't know and I don't know how much to get into this in my speech at the wedding, but I did did have to decord a lady, a friend of the bride that night just to give them the space to meet and connect.

[Benito Skinner]

That's great.

[Mary Beth Barone]

So wing. I can be a wing woman when called upon. Doesn't happen every day, but yeah, I.

[Benito Skinner]

Wish more straight guys called on me to be a wingman. I. I don't know how much I could do for women. I feel like I, you know, you.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Talking to a friend while he tries to close. What could be better than that?

[Benito Skinner]

Isn't that amazing? And then I immediately make them feel like, safe because it's like gay guy. And I would never spend time with a straight guy who wasn't safe. So there's something about it where they're like, oh, good. And I'm kind of like, he's a good.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Because you're sort of co signing the straight guy in that way.

[Benito Skinner]

Of course.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Yeah.

[Benito Skinner]

I'm like, I vetted him. He takes a long time to shop with. But Other than that, he's a total dream.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I know that's right.

[Benito Skinner]

He loves our legacy out there.

[Mary Beth Barone]

He plays the music a little too loud.

[Benito Skinner]

A little too loud while we're at a dinner. Turn down the vinyl, baby. I can't hear a single fucking word.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I actually can't hear, so I can't hear.

[Benito Skinner]

I think about you saying DJs. I think we need to turn the music down. Every time I'm at anything, I would.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Say I almost posted on my Instagram story, but I didn't want to feel targeted because it was right after I'd been to an event. It's just too loud. And if you're going to hand me a microphone to do content for social media and there's music blasting, I'm screaming into that thing so I can hear myself. And then the video, it's not postable.

[Benito Skinner]

Did you see me at the Armani event?

[Mary Beth Barone]

Did you see me at the Tory Burch event?

[Benito Skinner]

Oh, my God. Literally. And all the comments are like, whoa, why are they yelling? I'm like, I can't stress enough. I could not hear a single thing. And I feel so bad. And then you have the little mic up to your nasty little lips, and you do have to shout because I'm like, I know that the interviewer can't hear me. And, yeah, it's these. Are these just really hard things? We have to go.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Really difficult things.

[Benito Skinner]

I'm always in the back of a suburban. I forgot to tell everyone that.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Yeah.

[Benito Skinner]

I looked through my phone recently. I was like, oh, I should do a dump. It's the same image 300 times. It's like, I think about Jeremy Renner one time came to Georgetown and wait, I love this. Yeah. And we had a guest speaker in the film and media studies program. About 10 of us.

[Mary Beth Barone]

What year was this?

[Benito Skinner]

This would have been like, 2015, I think. Okay. I'm not 19, everybody. I really thought I got away with it. Spooky. Yeah. It was, I think, 2015, I think. And someone's like, what's acting like? And he's like, hotel room for one. But in a funny way, I mean, he had charm, but it was kind of, like, to him. And I kind of thought about that recently.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Jeremy Renner does have charm.

[Benito Skinner]

He does.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Your media can clip that.

[Benito Skinner]

They'd be crazy not to.

[Mary Beth Barone]

They'd be crazy not to. One day, I will tell the listeners of Ride My Jeremy Ren Story, and I think they're gonna love it.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah.

[Mary Beth Barone]

There's all I can say. Class act season six is like, Season six is where we let it all hang out. Yeah, we're gonna have fun.

[Benito Skinner]

That might be when I finally get my toboggan cover art.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Yeah, I think so.

[Benito Skinner]

Imagine we had taken the COVID art that we have right now. Yo. Oh, take it from here, girl. No, no. Go, go. No.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I would never interrupt a woman.

[Benito Skinner]

I'd never interrupt you during Pride.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I'm not gonna tell it.

[Benito Skinner]

And happy pride to you as well. I know a lot of gay men don't wish that to bisexual women, but they should.

[Mary Beth Barone]

And you're setting an example. And I think others will follow in steps as a taste maker.

[Benito Skinner]

Thank you. Oh, that should be my bio.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Tastemaker.

[Benito Skinner]

Tastemaker.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I want you to tell the toboggan story. So I. I'm a man on the edge.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah. This always happens to me, though. Right before or right after I do something, I get the next idea, so. It was so crazy. It was the last day of shooting for season one. I was being driven home in my car. Obviously I was not driving to set. You guys know I wouldn't have made it to set.

[Mary Beth Barone]

No one does. It's not safe.

[Benito Skinner]

So I was in. I was in the car. And I just immediately knew what season two was. It was so weird. I was like. I just had my headphones in. I was listening to need you'd love remix, Japanese Breakfast, Japanese Wallpaper, Japanese Wallpaper, Japanese wallpaper Remix Charlie xcx. God, it's confusing.

[Mary Beth Barone]

We've got Japanese House, Japanese Breakfast, and Japanese wallpaper.

[Benito Skinner]

And I love them all.

[Mary Beth Barone]

It's full. That's a. What's it called? Still life painting.

[Benito Skinner]

Exactly. If you give me a hundred choices of what you're going to say, still life wouldn't have been on the list.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Wouldn't have been on the list.

[Benito Skinner]

God, you're incredible. I love your mind.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Talk about it in the next episode.

[Benito Skinner]

The Taylor Swift.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Oh, what a mind. I do this all the time.

[Benito Skinner]

I do this all the time. Fuck, I do do that all the time. So, yeah, after we had shot the full ride cover, which we had done kind of in between press things, me, you, and Terry, I. I've never been that tired before in my entire life. I would say we shot it at 11pm around the corner. The day after Coachella. Around the corner. So our. Our tans had faded. Someone said we were in between spray tans. You couldn been more correct, but I think it worked. But for some reason, all the photos look like we're in Miami.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Exactly. And that was the prompt. Amazing what we wanted.

[Benito Skinner]

Thank you, Leah. Garn. For letting us use your car and for being there and for quite literally being there in a huge way physically. And, yeah, we were in the car, and I loved the photos, but I was like, right after I got this idea where I was like, oh, we should have been in a toboggan with huskies. And I thought, maybe we should do it and reshoot it.

[Mary Beth Barone]

You wanted to create an image where there was snow, skis, ski suits. You're sending me erl ski outfits.

[Benito Skinner]

I'm a visionary.

[Mary Beth Barone]

And you're like, do you think we could get six huskies? I literally said to myself, I'm gonna let him move through this idea, and I'm gonna let him just feel what he needs to feel.

[Benito Skinner]

You are such a wife in that way.

[Mary Beth Barone]

And then I. I said, yeah, totally. I said, let me know what you want to do. And. And in that. In giving you the space to. To move through it, we didn't do it.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah.

[Mary Beth Barone]

And I loved the. I love the images. I love the COVID art. It for a winter season. Totally.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah.

[Mary Beth Barone]

But I thought the idea of trying to plan an entire shoot with six huskies between when that date was and when season three came out, I was just thinking, with all the stuff you.

[Benito Skinner]

Have going on, I could have done it. I just want you to know.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I know, I know.

[Benito Skinner]

And I hit up the photographer. I wanted to do it, and he was like, this is crazy, man. But I think, you know, he's like, this might be a little insane, but, like, let's see what can. Yeah. And I told him, we'll see you next time.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Should we talk about the kitty and then get into what we ride for?

[Benito Skinner]

So I was talking to my mom about overcompensating, and it was really sweet. And she was like, obviously, it was a very emotional journey for her. We had a really lovely chat about it.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Did she say anything about my boobs?

[Benito Skinner]

She. What A rack. That was it.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Okay. Did she say Racktober?

[Benito Skinner]

Well, she said. I didn't. She said, shit, I know Ms. Racktober was gonna be in the show. What the. And I said, mom, that girl woke up in my house. She got goosebumps.

[Mary Beth Barone]

What did I say?

[Benito Skinner]

She said, I know. That's my fucking son. So I'm talking to her, and I was like, oh, did any of it make you, you know, uncomfortable? Like, did you close your eyes? And she's like, nope, just the one in episode six where you're with the girl when you're with Emily. That one. And I'm like, the gay sex didn't do anything to her.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I'm like, she didn't register.

[Benito Skinner]

We have trained this woman so beautifully. She just like, it didn't. But me being straight, she was like, oh, I draw the line.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Someone. I would imagine someone saying, lick the kitty to my son. If I were to have a son, I would be like, okay, yeah, that's fucker.

[Benito Skinner]

Doesn't stand out also. Fucker. God, what a perfect line read.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I just think, like, the kitty is so jarring and so crass.

[Benito Skinner]

It's a real story.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I know.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah.

[Mary Beth Barone]

And I hope.

[Benito Skinner]

I know that she said snatch, though. I don't know if she said kitty.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I have had that woman's photo on my phone for the kissing game. And so my heart goes out to her and I hope she's well.

[Benito Skinner]

Have we talked about the kissing game?

[Mary Beth Barone]

I don't think we've talked about the kissing game.

[Benito Skinner]

So Mary Beth has this game that is so fun to play at a party. I think the rules of the game to me are everyone sends Mary Beth.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Yes. I'm the moderator.

[Benito Skinner]

You can't play unless Mary Beth's in the room. But everyone sends Mary Beth someone that they've hooked up with a photo of.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Someone that they've made out with. Because sex is like too, you know, we just want to makeouts really opens it up.

[Benito Skinner]

Oh, that's great. Yeah.

[Mary Beth Barone]

In a huge way.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah.

[Mary Beth Barone]

So not had sex with, but made out with, you know, or anything above making out, basically. So you send me a photo. I randomize the images. I show the group the photos one by one, and in their notes app, they're writing down who they think in the group made out with that person.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah.

[Mary Beth Barone]

It's such a fun game.

[Benito Skinner]

It's so fun. And it's fun. If you bet in the closet, let me tell you, you can really.

[Mary Beth Barone]

You can throw some people off.

[Benito Skinner]

You can throw some off the thing.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Because they think they know, but they have no idea.

[Benito Skinner]

Some of the girls that woke up in your house.

[Mary Beth Barone]

It's a really fun game and I think something that's important to note and I hope you won't mind me saying this, when we played it in Canada, in Toronto with the cast, Rich sent me a photo of his girlfriend.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah. He's like, I thought it was disrespectful to.

[Mary Beth Barone]

To send anyone else. I go, rich. But we're all going to know that that' get that.

[Benito Skinner]

So immediately you've lost the game.

[Mary Beth Barone]

It's kind of a dead giveaway.

[Benito Skinner]

That's a gentleman. That's these UK lads. I know, I don't know. The true gentlemen. They're out there. My God.

[Mary Beth Barone]

And I encourage you to play that game with your friends. It is really fun and it's just like, low stakes.

[Benito Skinner]

But we had gotten to a point in the game where it was just so unbelievably confusing. I grabbed you and I said, I think maybe what we're doing is wrong.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Wrong. Yeah. Because the numbers did not make any sense with, like, who had been shown and some people were showing photos of someone that multiple people in the group have made out with. So it just got really confusing. And you did. This was. This was probably at 5 in the morning.

[Benito Skinner]

Well, I finally clutched my pearls and I realized, like, this is just disgusting.

[Mary Beth Barone]

You said, I think what we're doing is wrong. That was the night that we recorded the ride live intro headlines with everyone. So that was such an iconic night. I'm not going to talk about such an iconic night.

[Benito Skinner]

How you accidentally did.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I'm not. So I'm actually not going to talk about that right now.

[Benito Skinner]

We can bleep.

[Mary Beth Barone]

We will bleep.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah.

[Mary Beth Barone]

One day. Season six will talk all about that.

[Benito Skinner]

Oh, yes.

[Mary Beth Barone]

But I think we should get into what we ride for.

[Benito Skinner]

So today I will be riding for. Of course, it's Pride Kenergy, and I'm.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Going to be riding for driving school. Happy Pride. Before we get into ads today, I just wanted to remind all of our girls that live in New York City that the mayoral primary is coming up on June 24th. And it's super important. If you've been frustrated and feel like your vote doesn't count on a national level, this is a great way to make a huge impact. I am ranking Zahran Mamdani first and I have a ranked choice voting cheat sheet on my Instagram. So head there. If you want to know who progressive leadership advises that you rank, you have five slots. And it's just really important to remember, do not rank Andrew Cuomo. And I made a funny little cutesy little educational video with Alana Glaser about why we're not ranking Andrew Cuomo and who we are ranking. So those are both on my Instagram. Happy voting. Go with a friend. I'm going with Jake, my gay best friend. We're going to get coffee before. And I just can't wait to cast my vote. It's just like American Idol.

[Benito Skinner]

Hindu. Yeah. Pimping all over the world, fancy cars, the women in the carrier. But you'll never know where we are because ExpressVPN. I love ExpressVPN. It's like the best. And going online without ExpressVPN is like leaving your laptop unattended at the coffee shop while you run the shitter. Most of the time you're probably fine, but what if one day you come out of the bathroom and your laptop is gone? Oh my God. This is so me at a party talking to someone. Ready? Every time you connect to an unencrypted network in cafes, hotels, airports, airports, etc. Your online data is not secure. Any hacker on the same network can gain access and steal your personal data, passwords, photos of Mary Beth, credit card details, etc.

[Mary Beth Barone]

It doesn't take much technical knowledge to hack someone. Just some cheap hardware is needed. A smart 12 year old could do it. So people at our level.

[Benito Skinner]

Whoa. Now I'm looking at kids in a different way.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Whoa. Your data is valuable. Hackers can make up to $1,000 per person selling personal info on the dark web. Holy shit. So ExpressVPN is super secure and it stops hackers from stealing your data by creating an encrypted tunnel between your device and the Internet. It would take a hacker with a supercomputer over a billion years to get past ExpressVPN's encryption. So honey, they're not close.

[Benito Skinner]

Good luck. You'll write the entire works of William Shakespeare before you crack into Benny Drama's MacBook Pro. So it's really easy to use too. You just fired up the app and click one button to get protected. And if I can do it, you can do it.

[Mary Beth Barone]

You can do it. I use ExpressVPN, as you know, to stream shows that are not available in the country that I'm in. I also one time had to buy AirPods as a gift and ship them to England. And I could only get on the Apple store in America, so I had to get on ExpressVPN VPN on my phone, change the UK and then I could ship it there. So to secure your online data today by visiting ExpressVPN.com Ride that's E-P-R-E-S-S-V-P N.com Ride to find out how you can get up to four extra months free.

[Benito Skinner]

ExpressVPN.com RidePod Summer is full of big moments, weddings, vacations and endless photos of Beni Drama. But if you're dealing with hair thinning or shedding, showing up and being present in those moments might be feel tough. Neutrful takes a whole body approach to hair growth, working from the inside out. So the sooner you start, the sooner you'll be feeling confident and focusing on what matters most to you. It's so nice to just take something, you're doing it, you know, you don't have to like worry about it.

[Mary Beth Barone]

It's part of the routine.

[Benito Skinner]

You're doing this and you know it's going to be for you and you're going to feel great. I'm, I'm excited about it.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Everyone's root causes of hair thinning are different. So one size fits all approach to hair growth doesn't cut it. Neutropol has multiple formulas designed to give your body what it needs. Means to grow and support your hair's unique needs. Whether you're navigating postpartum menopause, a plant based lifestyle, or simply looking to see less hair, shedding Nutrafol has you covered.

[Benito Skinner]

Adding Nutrafol to your routine is easy and no prescription is needed. I could be your doctor for Christ's sake. Order online with free shipping and automated deliveries. Subscribe to save up to 20 and enjoy perks like one on one. Is it naturopathic?

[Mary Beth Barone]

I think so.

[Benito Skinner]

And keep all this because it's like sometimes that can be so tricky. Yeah. Naturopathic consults and a free Headspace membership to support your hair growth journey.

[Mary Beth Barone]

You may have heard of Nutriful's hair growth supplements and wonder, do they actually work? It's a fair question. Many hair supplements over promise and under deliver. But Nutrafol is different. As the number one dermatologist recommended hair growth supplement brand is trusted by over 1.5 million people and is clinically tested to deliver real results in three to.

[Benito Skinner]

Six months this summer, stop worrying about your hair and start making memories that will last a goddamn lifetime. For a limited time, Neutropol is offering our listeners $10 off your first month subscription and free shipping. When you go to neutrful.com and enter the promo code ride, find out why.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Neutropol is the best selling hair growth supplement [e-mail] spelled n u t r a f o l.com promo code ride that's nutriful.com promo code ride as temperatures start rising, I know Quince the magical.

[Benito Skinner]

Fruit the more you eat. Sorry. As temperatures start, they're already rising. Sis.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Feel that familiar urge.

[Benito Skinner]

Oh, I need to refresh my closets. But I'm not wasting money on pieces I'll only wear once or just one season. Quince changes that their clothes are timeless, lightweight and far more elevated than anything else. At this price, it finally feels like My wardrobe matches my standards. I am crashing out.

[Mary Beth Barone]

My standards are on the floor. So what does that say about me?

[Benito Skinner]

Well, get to quince.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Like 100% European linen shorts and dresses from $30 Luxe Swimwear. Oh, my God. If I have to spend $500 on a bathing suit this summer, why do.

[Benito Skinner]

People keep doing that? Wait, I just thought about my quince.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Polo and the bodysuit. I mean, my God, I have bathing suits on the way. Good, because I'm not spending $500. And maybe, who knows, I'll even throw in a pair of Italian leather platform sandals. And so much more. The best part, everything with Quinn's is half the cost of similar brands.

[Benito Skinner]

By working directly with top artisans and cutting out the middlemen, Quince gives you luxury without the markup.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I can't wait to wear my quince bikinis to the beach. Holy.

[Benito Skinner]

With heels.

[Mary Beth Barone]

With heels.

[Benito Skinner]

And maybe a wedge Tiffany bracelet on your ankle.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Give your summer closet and upgrade with quince. Go to quince.com ride for free shipping on your order and 365 day returns. That's Q-U-I-N-C-E.com ride to get free shipping and 365 day returns. Quince.com/ride. Wait, where are we going?

[Benito Skinner]

Who cares? Ride. I love that we've decided this is Pride.

[Mary Beth Barone]

This is Pride month.

[Benito Skinner]

It's like so the Pride episode.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Welcome to Pride month.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah. Okay, hit me.

[Mary Beth Barone]

A lot of people don't know that I am a car girl. I think cars are really cool.

[Benito Skinner]

One girl, if you is really in the zeitgeist right now.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I actually. I don't know about F1. It's a cultural blind spot, but I'm going to get there.

[Benito Skinner]

You would love it.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I'm going to figure it out.

[Benito Skinner]

Because you love wearing a hat with a tank top.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I really do. And I think I could get into it. I'm just waiting. I'm waiting till I have some more downtime. So you all know that I did back into a car the day I got into college, et cetera, et cetera. I just love getting behind the wheel and cruising and I love blasting music and singing along to it. But I couldn't have gotten to where I am today as a driver without driving school. Of course, I went to High Ridge Driving School in Stanford, Connecticut. And my family, we all went to driving school. You could go to driving school and get your license like three months earlier, or you could not go to driving school and then you needed more road hours or whatever, and you just had to study yourself.

[Benito Skinner]

I thought everyone went to driving school. It's not mandatory.

[Mary Beth Barone]

It's optional.

[Benito Skinner]

Oh, and in Idaho. I mean, I did it when I was like, 14, by the way, I was in eighth grade when I started taking.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I love that.

[Benito Skinner]

Isn't that cool?

[Mary Beth Barone]

Oh, my God. Little Benny.

[Benito Skinner]

It was fun. Yeah. I mean, I was never good at it, but. But they could tell that I had a passion for everything. I lust for life.

[Mary Beth Barone]

What did I say? Your driving has gotten better.

[Benito Skinner]

Thank you. You said that you go sometimes when I'm in the car with you. I feel your intrusive thoughts less while.

[Mary Beth Barone]

We'Re driving these days, for sure.

[Benito Skinner]

Well, the show's out.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I think things have shifted, which is.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah.

[Mary Beth Barone]

So I went to High Ridge Driving School in Stanford, which was kind of like a legendary driving school because the instructor there was named Ron, and he had so much personality and verve, and he made it fun. Like, we were all in this together. We were a community of believers, and we all just wanted the freedom of being on the road.

[Benito Skinner]

Some people, life is a highway.

[Mary Beth Barone]

And what is the open road? We're still not sure.

[Benito Skinner]

Oh, my God. These are these big questions that we ask and we never want answer.

[Mary Beth Barone]

We don't want answers. It's just how you came to the answer that we want to hear exactly of what is the open road? So driving school is fun because all the classes were numbered and you had to, like, complete the every single class before you took your driving.

[Benito Skinner]

Huge for you.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Huge for me. I loved it. I love planning out my little schedule. And driving school was sort of like confirmation class in that you got to meet kids from other high schools who are around your age.

[Benito Skinner]

How titillating is that, by the way? I mean, we. We used to have this thing where it would be all the Catholic schools got together for a big mass one year, and I was like, stop. I hope everyone here is ready to see my new Nike dunks, motherfuckers. And my Abercrombie chin nose, which I've come back to. It's crazy. Oh, my God. That's so fun to see. Like, other schools. You're, like, whispering and you have gel in your hair.

[Mary Beth Barone]

You're answering the questions, and you're texting on your Motorola razor on the brakes, and you're just getting through it all, and you're studying and you're learning, and I learned a lot of really valuable stuff in driving school.

[Benito Skinner]

How do I drive with these big tits? That's you in the driving school.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I asked that a few times.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah, I learned a lot of really scary things in driving school, of course, because in Idaho, I feel like everything's fear based a little bit. So. I remember a cop came in. Oh, my God. This is actually.

[Mary Beth Barone]

So did you do the drunk driving demo where they flipped a car over and the dummies flew out?

[Benito Skinner]

No, they did that in front of you?

[Mary Beth Barone]

That was in my high school. Yeah, they just had cars. The car was on a rig.

[Benito Skinner]

Stunt class.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Yes, the car was on a rig. It was like, before prom, and it was like, don't drink and drive. So they had a car on a rig and they would flip it, and then the dummies in there would fly out, and it'd be like, this is what happens when this is your brain on drugs sort of vibe.

[Benito Skinner]

This is. I mean, I don't. We didn't have the budget for that.

[Mary Beth Barone]

We had Theatrics pirate.

[Benito Skinner]

We didn't have. We didn't have the set from Universal Studios, but we did, in fact, have. From Speed. We did have this cop come in and he said that he's never unbuckled a dead body. And I just sat there in eighth grade, and I was like, did you guys just hear that click at her ticket? That's the click at her ticket. And then the teacher was like, a family friend of ours, which I think is why I passed. And Nepo, baby.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Totally.

[Benito Skinner]

And. And the cop was, like, kind of my sister's age. My sister Laura. And I don't know why. I just, like, I really wanted to get a good grade. Unfortunately, I. I don't know.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Threw someone under the bus.

[Benito Skinner]

I threw someone under the bus. I couldn't believe I did this. But I gave her number to this guy because he. But the teacher kind of pressed me to do it. He's like, isn't your sister single? Like, she teaches at a school nearby. And I was like, I gotta pass driver's ed. I want that wake up in my house. She can be in the cop car with me. So I almost set my sister up with a copy and, you know, acab. And he left a message on her phone that was so bone chilling. And she was like, are you serious? And so, Laura, I'm so sorry. She's like. She never answered the call, but I did what I had to do to get my license. And I'm not proud of it.

[Mary Beth Barone]

No.

[Benito Skinner]

But driver's ed was. It was kind of a fun time. It was the beginning of summer when I took it. It was right around this time of year. So you know something about it. Felt new. And I loved getting my hours in with my mom. It was fun driving her around and having her clutch the side the whole time.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Seeing that white knuckling. Yeah.

[Benito Skinner]

Seeing the panic in someone you love like that who has just little to no faith in you. Doing what you're doing is amazing.

[Mary Beth Barone]

And you have their life in your hands.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah, but we weren't really going on big roads. I was very much Cher and clueless. Like, we weren't heading the freeway.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Oops, sorry.

[Benito Skinner]

Sorry. I totally paused. Tell me she's not me. What, do you have buyer's remorse or something? No, nothing like that.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Like that. God, I just love. I hope that people are still doing, like, I hope driving school is still happening. I think it is part of the culture.

[Benito Skinner]

I think it is.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I feel like teens aren't getting their licenses anymore. I don't know. That's just something I've, like, picked up on, I guess.

[Benito Skinner]

They're not even, like, communicating with each other, like, in person at all. Like, no one's having sex. No one's, like, going to anything. They're just, like.

[Mary Beth Barone]

They're just doing snap streaks. They just want streaks on Snapchat or something.

[Benito Skinner]

Tick Tock keeps telling me that you and I have a streak and that.

[Mary Beth Barone]

If I see you send each other all fan cams.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah, they go, we'll blow up in your pocket. If you don't, like, you have to send. Well, yeah, if I see a fan cam of you, like, I have to send it. Sorry. Did you buy the shirt of me?

[Mary Beth Barone]

I haven't bought it yet.

[Benito Skinner]

That's crazy.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I know.

[Benito Skinner]

Maybe I'll do it for you.

[Mary Beth Barone]

No, I think I should buy it today.

[Benito Skinner]

Picked great shots.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Happy pride.

[Benito Skinner]

Happy pride. And it's Flamer. I mean, it's like, really? Yeah, I think you might need it.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Oh, we did want to say that if you know how to do any of these things, like rating the show on, like, IMDb, we could never know.

[Benito Skinner]

How to do that.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Like, that do that.

[Benito Skinner]

That would be amazing. It really would be amazing. We would love to continue making the show. And also, sometimes it's like people who are more critical are the loudest ones who, like, like, you know, kind of have the time to review things all day. And I know a lot of you don't, but I would carve out some time.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Put the car in park. You don't have to open that little phone. Yes, you do.

[Benito Skinner]

Pass it to the person next to you and say, do this. Please pass it to your kids in the backseat.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Oh, something That I really don't like. And there is still a culture of this in high school, straight guys that didn't wear their seat belt because they, like, thought it was, like, cooler Tonight.

[Benito Skinner]

Imagine, remember when, like, that was just, like, such a thing for us? You know what I mean?

[Mary Beth Barone]

I don't know if it's still happening, but to me, there's nothing. Well, actually, vaping and not wearing a seatbelt to me are, like, two of the most disgusting things a straight man can do.

[Benito Skinner]

It's crazy, though. Sometimes when someone's vaping, I'm kind of like, that's funny that that's coming from you. So I find it kind of, like, endearing. I. I don't know how to describe it. It's kind of like you've just kind of made a fool of yourself in front of me. And, like.

[Mary Beth Barone]

What was that?

[Benito Skinner]

No, what was that? Someone asked what my, like, shift of those lyrics are. I haven't done a huge shift of that yet.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Making it crass, you mean?

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah, just kind of ruining it. That song. It might be too precious to ruin for me. As of now, I'm not saying one, you know, cheaper cut of dust took me, what, eight years since it came out? So, you know, I. Who knows when it'll happen?

[Mary Beth Barone]

But honestly, there's no timeline on it. So you just take, like, all the space that you need.

[Benito Skinner]

Thank you. I swear to God, Terry, if he could, in our car, would have the brake on his side, too, and a.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Steering wheel maybe, but I want the.

[Benito Skinner]

Brake, like, on my side with him.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Yeah. I think you guys could invest in that and it would be good for the relationship.

[Benito Skinner]

Yes.

[Mary Beth Barone]

We love you, Terry.

[Benito Skinner]

We love you, Terry.

[Mary Beth Barone]

We love you, Grandpa Terry.

[Benito Skinner]

I'm ready to talk about kenergy, and.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I'm ready to listen.

[Benito Skinner]

Thank you, sweetie. I think what's fun about overcompensating is you think back to this time when Obama was president and Pitch Perfect was top of the box office, and Frozen was taking us all by storm, Hamilton was stomping its way through Broadway, and we were all thinking, hell fucking yes, culture is here. And it was just amazing. You know what I mean? Booties were on nars, Laguna was unblended on the jaw, and we were ready to take on the Earth. We knew that there was some things left to say. I think that kenergy and the Barbie moment and Barbenheimer brought us there. And the idea of kenergy feels so unbelievably 2014 to me. Me, in a way that I feel nostalgic for it Already, dare I say.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Born in reaction to.

[Benito Skinner]

Born in reaction to a lack of culture.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Kenergy.

[Benito Skinner]

Enter kenergy. I wanted to write for it today because I came up with this idea where on a panel, I think, for season two, if we get to do it, I keep on having to say that, let's renew it. I want all of us to have to say kenergy at least once during the panel. And, like, the way that I think Kyle McLaughlin has this, like, kenergy when he enters a scene. Like, I just want to do that.

[Mary Beth Barone]

And so, no, everyone at one point in their answers has to say, you.

[Benito Skinner]

Have to say kenergy no matter what. And the audience would totally get it. I think they would lock in. But I was recently at an airport, and a guy eating a jersey mites with his wife was wearing a Kenergy shirt. And I just. I had to think about the process of, like, when he bought that, was he with her? Did they both get.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Did she buy it for him?

[Benito Skinner]

Did she buy it for him? Because she's like, my hubby's got some energy. He's got to wear this. Say it loud, say it proud, say it early, say it often.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Kenner G. This is sort of out of the norm for us to talk about something so soon after it happened.

[Benito Skinner]

No, I know.

[Mary Beth Barone]

But I do feel it's appropriate given the current, like, times that we're in. And I just think it's really powerful to be talking about this right now.

[Benito Skinner]

It's even more powerful for me because, you know that this is me kind of owning my trauma. I did audition for the Barbie movie four times.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I know.

[Benito Skinner]

And thank God it was a bomb, right? Hey. And no one saw it.

[Mary Beth Barone]

You could see it.

[Benito Skinner]

So I feel good. Yeah. No, I was literally, it really the.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Biggest movie, like, ever, I guess.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah. It's. I mean, it's totally fabulous. Like, I have nothing but love for everyone involved and Kenergy especially. But I think it's about time to talk about the night where I thought I didn't have kenergy, but actually I might have the greatest kenergy of all.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I think to have kenergy when everything's working against you is actually when, like, the true heroes reveal themselves.

[Benito Skinner]

Shiroes, even Shiros.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Here's the thing.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah.

[Mary Beth Barone]

This podcast is brought to you by Squarespace.

[Benito Skinner]

And aren't they all?

[Mary Beth Barone]

Aren't they all? It's the all in one website platform for entrepreneurs to stand out and succeed online. Whether you're just starting out or managing a growing brand, Squarespace makes it easy to create a beautiful website, engage with your audience and sell anything from products to content to time all in one place on your terms. I mean, it's the consistency with Squarespace, really.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah. So can I talk to you about some priorities, features of that school? You mind?

[Mary Beth Barone]

You may.

[Benito Skinner]

Squarespace Payments is the easiest way to manage your payments in one place. With Squarespace, onboarding is fast and simple. Get started in just a few clicks and start receiving payments right away. Plus, give your customers more ways to pay with popular payment methods like Klarna, Ach Direct Debit, Apple Pay afterpay, and Clear Pay.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Connect major social and multimedia accounts to your website in a few clicks. As you know, I have the bands in town plugin on my website where you can see my tour dates. All the shows are sold out as of this recording, but I'm adding shows. I'm adding shows, so check it out. You can also embed YouTube links so I actually have my special. You can stream that right on my website. Build visitor trust while updating content only where you need it. Extending your brand's footprint. My God. And SEO tools get discovered fast with integrated SEO tools. Every Squarespace website is optimized to be indexed with meta descriptions, an auto generated site map, and more. So you show up more often to more people in global search engine results.

[Benito Skinner]

Go to squarespace.com for a free trial and when you're ready to launch squarespace.com ride, you can save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Okay. I mean, I could talk about ZocDoc all day.

[Benito Skinner]

Oh, it's a Zoc doc world and I'm happy to live in it as.

[Mary Beth Barone]

It relates to just doing the thing, which is from season one. When was the last time you needed to go to a doctor? But. But you pushed it off and you made an excuse. Like how many of you guys are. It's time to go in for your cleaning, your dental cleaning. And you're just making excuses.

[Benito Skinner]

I can smell the cavities, love.

[Mary Beth Barone]

We can. You might think you're too busy. It'll heal on its own. You don't need help or you don't know which doctor to go to. I think we've all been there. I mean, I personally haven't because I always go to ZOC talk and I book an appointment as soon as I need one. I know it feels daunting, but like, once you do it, you'll feel so good.

[Benito Skinner]

Oh God, you'll feel so sexy. And you can like book them to get like, like flu shots or just do like a physical like, oh, I got a physical recently and when they hit that little thing to my knee, my leg kicked up in a way you couldn't even imagine.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Can I say two words?

[Benito Skinner]

What?

[Mary Beth Barone]

General practitioner.

[Benito Skinner]

Do not.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Good luck.

[Benito Skinner]

Can I say one word? Cough.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Zoc Talk is a free app and website where you can search and compare high quality in network doctors and click instantly to book an appointment. We're talking about booking in network appointments with more than 100,000 doctors across every specialty, from mental health to dental health, primary care to urgent care, and more.

[Benito Skinner]

This is how I found my dermatologist. It's how I found my allergist. I used it to find someone who could do an MRI of my back. So stop putting off those doctor appointments and go to Zocdoc.com ride to find it until we book a top rated doctor today. I know.

[Mary Beth Barone]

That's zdoc.comride.com Love you, Zoc. Doc, let's talk about the Barbie premiere.

[Benito Skinner]

I get invited to the Barbie premiere and I'm like, oh, my God, this is amazing. And there was this jackamous look that I wanted to wear specifically. I was like, this red suit with this pink Shaw thing. I was like, oh, I love it. And this is going to give energy. So I, I get invited and people think that these things are, I think, maybe a little bit more glamorous or kind of swanky. And, and it's not that some things aren't, but. But my experience that night. Yeah, I just thought I'd never have kenergy again. So I go to the Barbie premiere and they say your call time is 2:00pm I thought, whoa, is this like a. This a matinee? Yeah, which feels crazy. I'm like, so Margot's been in makeup since like 8:00am like, it's crazy, but.

[Mary Beth Barone]

It'S not unheard of.

[Benito Skinner]

It's not unheard of. It just seemed strange.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Totally.

[Benito Skinner]

So I was like, all right. Yeah, like, full beat on. Like, let's go. Like, I have to, you know, I have to turn out. Because also I wanted to look like a full Ken doll at it. Energy, you know, just in case. They were like, Barbie too.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Barbie too is what we do.

[Benito Skinner]

So I go to the carpet. So no photographers are there yet because the carpet, the real carpet doesn't start until 6pm So I, I get there with a friend and it was me and a lot of influencers and makeup influencers and, and content creators. We go in and I'm like, oh, cool. Is there like a photographer? And they're like, no, you can take your own pictures. I was like, thank you so much.

[Mary Beth Barone]

On the pink carpet.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah. I was like, totally. And just to be clear, it's like, I don't think that I deserve to be like, standing there with Margot or anything. I just like, you know, would have loved like one photog.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I was like, it's just not here.

[Benito Skinner]

I came there to support the movie.

[Mary Beth Barone]

This, this season also. I'm gonna ride for like setting expectations 100%. I just think you went thinking it was gonna be one thing and it was not that I thought it would.

[Benito Skinner]

Be like, so many people would be there, but it would be like, photographers and like, you get your photo and then of course, like, they take one photo of me and then we' I mean, I'm like, I'm not expecting to like, do the press line or anything, but I'm like, yeah, I would love a cute photo. Like, I. I paid for glam and styling, you know, I'm like, I. I would like my photo taken, sir. So I get there and. And in the end, one image of me was taken and I'm like, cool. And then they're like, oh, and don't walk on the carpet. Cuz like, we have the like actual people coming later. They said that to me and I was like, for sure. No, for sure. So kenergy levels are dropping.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Dropping by the second at an alarming rate.

[Benito Skinner]

At an alarming rate. I was with. I know a. She's like, do you want me to take your photo? And I was like, just hearing you say that out loud does make me want to end it all. So let's just kind of nod and like, maybe we'll take it in outside my garage later.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Let's just see what else they have in store for us.

[Benito Skinner]

Exactly. Like, there's so much more for us to explore. So at that point, then someone on a megaphone said, it's time for all the influencers to get in the van. And I was like, okay, for sure. I wonder maybe this wasn't.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Where are they taking us?

[Benito Skinner]

Where are they taking us? So they took us to a bar nearby. It was like, down by usc. And they took us to a bar where a lot of college students are. And they kind of wrangled us all in there. And so we were supposed to sit and wait until. Sorry. It's like, actually my least favorite night I've experienced.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Can I say one, Owning your history.

[Benito Skinner]

Two.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Very humble. Three, it's important to talk about these things.

[Benito Skinner]

It was so. So we go there and then. And we're Kind of like all, like, you know, huddled into this bar.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Bring me your huddled masses.

[Benito Skinner]

Literally.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Yeah.

[Benito Skinner]

Do not. It was so much like Ellis Island. And so then we're inside, and all these college students start gathering around because they're seeing, like, some content creators and, like, influencers or whatever. And this girl comes up, and I'm like, oh. You know, I think she's, like, trying to talk to me. She's like, hey. And I was like, oh, yeah. Like, what's up? So I'm like, oh, my God, this. You know, she's so sweet. And then she is that. And I was like, yes, it is. And she was like, take a photo of us. And I went, yeah. No, for sure. So I'm just at this point, I'm like, taking photos.

[Mary Beth Barone]

You're an event photographer?

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah, I'm. I. And I happy to be that. I was kind of like, you know, I'm like, I don't think this is what Jacques Moose had in mind for this outfit. But I'm. I'm glad, you know, I'm glad I.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Had to wear couture.

[Benito Skinner]

Well, of course. And so then about two hours later of just kind of sitting there and eating up to five sliders, I think I took down in the corner, they were like, all right, we'll let you guys go back to the premiere. This person, like, the way that they framed everything, it was so like.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Yeah, knife to the heart.

[Benito Skinner]

Oh, you couldn't imagine, am I wrong.

[Mary Beth Barone]

That they didn't let you watch the movie?

[Benito Skinner]

Oh, just wait. So then in the end, they did standing. So Terry. Terry. Terry texts me at this time. He goes, where are you? I'm with Chaim right now. We're at the carpet. Where are you? And I go, well, we kind of.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Did a pre carpet thing. Pre carpet thing.

[Benito Skinner]

We kind of did, like, an early pre carpet thing. So then they take us back. I couldn't find Terry. And then they tell us that there are too many people that have been, like, brought in. I mean, everyone said, yeah, because this was, like. It was, you know, the biggest movie ever, of course. And so I'm like, yeah, no, great. So in the end, we got, like, two seats. Fifteen minutes into the movie, they were like, oh, two people left. So, like, you can sit now. And I was like, no, for sure. So I sat there and watched it, and I love the movie. And I think that that while I was in the seat, I was like, I'm lucky to be here. And I'm lucky to be wearing this cute little look. And sometimes it can just be like, if you're in a cute look, that's enough. And to me, that's kenergy. You find kenergy in. In spaces where you're like, wow. I felt like an absolute total loser this entire night. But I think that's what's kind of cool. Just like the kid who wore fairy ears to Collins book release. He did it with flair.

[Mary Beth Barone]

He did it with flare.

[Benito Skinner]

He did it with flare. And Alex Earl, that night, told me I looked like Ken. I told her she looked like Barbie. And I don't think she said anything back. I think she then got pulled to another conversation. Yeah.

[Mary Beth Barone]

What?

[Benito Skinner]

What?

[Mary Beth Barone]

Oh, okay.

[Benito Skinner]

I wish she called me a. That would have been amazing. I'm sure a few people did that night. I didn't hear it. What I can say is that in your darkest times, find the kenergy within. Sometimes all it takes is calling your best friend after and tearing up and being like, am I a loser? Which I did that night on the way home, I believe I called you. Yeah, Yeah, I remember you said, you glam looks so pretty.

[Mary Beth Barone]

And it did. And the thing is, like, it's not obviously, going to events. That's a privilege. And we feel lucky to be included in these things, that people want us and stuff. But, you know, there is that element of, like, there are still those humbling moments, and it's like, how do you bounce back from that and just say, like, I am Kenuff? And I think that you did that, and you did it with flair.

[Benito Skinner]

I forgot about Kenuff. Yeah, well, I had had Kenuff at that point, but then I still, you know, I managed to really pick myself from the ashes.

[Mary Beth Barone]

From the ashes he rises.

[Benito Skinner]

Exactly. Well, it's kindergenetic. It's like, you have to just, like, soar. Yeah. So now when I see those. Those shirts in airports, God, I forgot about I am Canuff, because I see that one too.

[Mary Beth Barone]

We saw it at the farmer's market a few weeks ago.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah, a girl that was in kind of that rainbow, like, poncho. What is that called?

[Mary Beth Barone]

It's like a. I'm not sure exactly. I'm just gonna say it. I'm not sure.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah, it's like a spirit jersey of sorts, but with, like, a hood. I don't know. But I am Knuff, and so are you, and I think we're stronger every day. That whole era was so funny for me because I was also in a limbo of this show. Like, I didn't know if you were making it. I Didn't know what was going on. So really, anything could get me really down quickly. But it's about calling your girls and. Yeah.

[Mary Beth Barone]

And letting them build you back up.

[Benito Skinner]

Happy to support Barbie. I know they needed that support.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Of course. And I think it's just.

[Benito Skinner]

And can I just say thank you for inviting me.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Of course. And we're never gonna, like, sugarcoat it. Like, some experiences are kind of negative.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah. This was, like, definitely a top 10 most embarrassing night I've had in a long time. Yeah.

[Mary Beth Barone]

But it's worth it because then you can talk about it on the pod. And that's really cool. Like my fight over the Fendi bag with Edward.

[Benito Skinner]

Exactly. And I used it for a joke in my Mr. Hollywood bit, which I think people maybe don't know that about 80 of that is. Is actual information.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Yeah.

[Benito Skinner]

So. Yeah.

[Mary Beth Barone]

You know what you are, Benny? Hmm?

[Benito Skinner]

A.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Your word's not mine, babe. You're my ride or die.

[Benito Skinner]

Ride or die.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Well, I ride for kenergy. I think it's important you have it, by the way.

[Benito Skinner]

You have, like, crazy people.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Don't think I do. But it's once you get to know me that you realize that I do. I think at face value, people are like, that's far from kenergy. But then you meet me, and I can maybe charm you a little bit.

[Benito Skinner]

Cause you're not Barbiecore to me.

[Mary Beth Barone]

No, I think it's more on the kennergy.

[Benito Skinner]

I'm Barbiecore, for sure.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Yeah. But I just think it's an important concep. I don't know. There's something freeing about just saying, like, I have kenergy. Whatever it. Yeah. Hell, yeah.

[Benito Skinner]

Is this kenergy too much for you? Would you like me to dull down my energy?

[Mary Beth Barone]

Should I dull my shine?

[Benito Skinner]

I don't think so, because I am knuff. This girl woke up in my house. Yeah. I really ride for driving school. I mean, I, I. I'm so glad it got me to where I am now. A bad driver.

[Mary Beth Barone]

An okay driver. I wouldn't say bad.

[Benito Skinner]

Thank you so much.

[Mary Beth Barone]

You're not speeding, so that's.

[Benito Skinner]

I'm not in it for speed, as you said.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Of course.

[Benito Skinner]

But I think there is a level of kenergy to the way. I wonder how many times we've said kenergy in this.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Not enough.

[Benito Skinner]

Not enough.

[Mary Beth Barone]

We need to get it five more times.

[Benito Skinner]

Not kenuff. But yeah. Oh, my God, I would have loved to have done it with you. I would have definitely cheated off of you. And we would have had a fun time.

[Mary Beth Barone]

And I would have outed you. And.

[Benito Skinner]

Well, it's a good place to be outed. Driving school.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Overcompensating would have been a different story. Maybe.

[Benito Skinner]

How do I drive when my body's so t. Sir. I want to wonder that neither drama would have had fun at the Barbie premiere.

[Mary Beth Barone]

She should teach at driving school. I would love.

[Benito Skinner]

You know, I almost went to the Barbie premiere as Deliverance Richards. Could you imagine if I would have been tucked and had a wig on that whole day?

[Mary Beth Barone]

And you went to a USC bar. Tucked.

[Benito Skinner]

Shout out to drag queens everywhere. I have so much respect for you. The level of sweat that I would be dripping in is so astronomical. You have my respect beyond.

[Mary Beth Barone]

I am the first woman to wear Joker glam with the Roberto Cavalli dress at Cipriani. Wall street history isn't done.

[Benito Skinner]

It's not even close to being done.

[Mary Beth Barone]

It's not done.

[Benito Skinner]

I'm not. I'm sure other people have worn a robin costume there, so I'm sure that. But I'm just a part of a long line of. Of kings before me who have done something like that.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Who. Bring the kenergy.

[Benito Skinner]

Whoa. I was so kenergy at that. I know now that I'm, like, sitting with it.

[Mary Beth Barone]

One word. Kenergy.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Well, we hope that you have some moments this week where you can use the word kenergy.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah. I hope not sporadically use it in a sentence. I would say if you have any presentations at work. Let it rip.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Let it rip. Just see. See? Because I think that'll get people to wake up and pay attention.

[Benito Skinner]

Yeah. And remember a time when it all felt a little bit safer and good. Even if you're having one of your worst nights in Hollywood. I love you so much. And you are all. One, two, three.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Enough.

[Benito Skinner]

Oh, my. Exit.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Benny, babe. Eyes on the road. Benny.

[Benito Skinner]

We go. Ride. Ride.

[Mary Beth Barone]

Please note that this episode may contain.

[Benito Skinner]

Paid endorsements and advertisements for products and services. Individuals on the show may have a direct or indirect financial interest in products or services referred to in this episode.