Another Surprise Call-In Show!

Summary

StraightioLab: Another Surprise Call-In Show! – April 1, 2025

Hosts: George Civeris and Sam Taggart
Guest Hosts: Rodney Williams and Travis Holloway
Release Date: April 1, 2025
Platform: Big Money Players Network and iHeartPodcasts

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Overview

In the April 1, 2025 episode of StraightioLab, hosts George Civeris and Sam Taggart, alongside guest hosts Rodney Williams and Travis Holloway, delve into a myriad of topics surrounding straight culture with their characteristic blend of humor and intellectual discourse. This episode, titled "Another Surprise Call-In Show!", features listener interactions, candid discussions about personal and professional upheavals, cultural observations, and a passionate exploration of emotions and relationships within the LGBTQ+ community.

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1. Opening Remarks and Upcoming Events [02:00 – 04:00]

George begins the episode with an enthusiastic announcement about his upcoming comedy special taping in New York, highlighting the addition of last-minute tickets and promoting other live events at the Bell House on April 16th.

Notable Quote:

• George [02:28]: "If you are listening to this episode on Tuesday, April 1, that means my comedy special taping in New York is tonight. I repeat, tonight."

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2. Navigating Career Setbacks [04:00 – 07:07]

Rodney and Travis open up about the recent cancellation of Travis's show, "After Midnight" on CBS. They explore the emotional toll of job loss, the uncertainty it brings, and the broader implications for their careers in the comedy industry.

Notable Quotes:

• Rodney [06:12]: "Building wealth doesn't look the same for everyone."
• Travis [06:00]: "It's hard to talk about, but it's a big bummer because I do feel like the show, the group of writers, was so fun."

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3. The Sexless Nature of Los Angeles [07:07 – 15:33]

A significant portion of the episode is dedicated to discussing the perceived "sexlessness" of Los Angeles. Drawing inspiration from Joan Didion's The White Album, Travis and Rodney analyze how LA's gambling-driven culture prioritizes money and success over personal relationships and sexual connections. They debate whether this environment fosters distrust and erodes the natural desire for intimacy.

Notable Quotes:

• Travis [27:14]: "It's a gambling town, where you're always like, gamb on ideas and trying to get rich quick."
• Rodney [28:37]: "You need a baseline of comfort so that you can wake up and be horny."

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4. Listener Call-In: Library School and Sexual Orientation [16:42 – 26:50]

A caller attending library school in Los Angeles, identifying as a queer woman, seeks the hosts' insights on where various librarian roles fall on the gay-to-straight spectrum. Rodney and Travis engage in a humorous yet thoughtful ranking of positions such as rare books librarians, media archivists, and public librarians based on their perceived alignment with LGBTQ+ culture.

Notable Quotes:

• Rodney [20:00]: "Media archivist is literally, you have an Instagram account dedicated to, like, Issey Miyaki. Fashion photo shoots from the '90s."
• Travis [21:37]: "Rare books is the gayest."

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5. Travel Recommendations: Athens, Greece [38:39 – 44:32]

George shares his recent experiences and recommendations from his trip to Athens, Greece. He discusses the city's transformation, highlighting both the renaissance and the challenges posed by gentrification. Key recommendations include dining at Pharaoh for contemporary Greek cuisine, shopping at "It's a Shirt" for unique apparel, and enjoying open-air cinemas with stunning views of the Parthenon.

Notable Quotes:

• Rodney [43:15]: "It's a Shirt and they sell shirts. And it's this really cool gal whose dad worked in the garment industry in Greece."
• George [43:14]: "One of the best things you can do in Athens and in Greece in general over the summer is go to an open air cinema."

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6. Musical Discussion: George Michael and Lizzo's Pass [47:36 – 56:36]

The hosts engage in an in-depth conversation about the concept of "Lizzo's Pass," a pivotal moment for rising artists choosing between maintaining indie credibility or pursuing mainstream commercial success. They analyze Chapel Roan's musical direction, comparing it to George Michael's career choices and debating whether artists like Twigs and Lucy Dacus are navigating their own versions of this critical juncture.

Notable Quotes:

• Travis [48:55]: "She is the guy that sexualizes everything totally. You're the guy that thinks everything's hot."
• Rodney [51:45]: "Pitchfork is for the Pitchfork crowd. Country is for the Target crowd."

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7. Attending a Straight Wedding as a Gay Person [64:04 – 69:53]

In a comedic yet insightful segment, a caller seeks advice on how to navigate attending a conservative straight wedding with minimal LGBTQ+ representation. The hosts offer playful strategies to express one's identity subtly and humorously, emphasizing the importance of authenticity and self-expression even in traditional settings.

Notable Quotes:

• Rodney [65:49]: "Take a little thirst trap with your suit in the bathroom. Unbutton. Literally unbutton your fly."
• Travis [68:03]: "Send nudes."

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8. Final Thoughts and Upcoming Shows [71:05 – 72:27]

As the episode concludes, George and Sam promote upcoming live shows, including Lesbiolab at the Bell House. They encourage listeners to participate in future call-in shows and subscribe to their Patreon for exclusive content. Additionally, they humorously reflect on the episode's topics, blending earnest discussions with their trademark wit.

Notable Quotes:

• Rodney [70:17]: "Whether you're in library school or celibate in Los Angeles or at a straight wedding offending a grandmother by talking about how you got fisted at the big party."
• Travis [71:36]: "We are deploying you. We're deploying you."

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Conclusion

StraightioLab's "Another Surprise Call-In Show!" masterfully balances humor with poignant discussions on personal challenges, cultural observations, and the nuances of sexual politics within straight and LGBTQ+ communities. Through listener interactions and candid conversations, hosts George, Sam, Rodney, and Travis create an engaging and thought-provoking episode that resonates with both long-time fans and newcomers.

Notable Themes:

• Navigating Change: Addressing career setbacks and personal transitions.
• Cultural Critique: Analyzing societal norms and their impact on personal relationships.
• LGBTQ+ Identity: Exploring identity expression within traditional settings.
• Music and Culture: Discussing the intersection of musical careers and cultural expectations.

Listeners are encouraged to attend upcoming live shows, subscribe to Patreon for more content, and engage with the hosts on their various platforms.

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Upcoming Events:

• Lesbiolab Live at the Bell House: April 16th
• George Civeris's Comedy Special: April 1st, New York

Stay Connected:

• Subscribe: Patreon and YouTube for exclusive content
• Follow: Instagram and other social media platforms for updates and announcements

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Advertisements Skipped:

• Dude Wipes
• Morton Buildings
• Ryan Seacrest for Albertsons and Safeway
• Intuit QuickBooks
• Thrivent Financial

Transcript

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[Ryan Seacrest]

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[Rodney Williams]

I'm Rodney Williams. And I'm Travis Holloway. Welcome to the wealthbreak podcast, a real conversation about finance. Let's be honest, building wealth doesn't look.

[Travis Holloway]

The same for everyone.

[Rodney Williams]

I feel like sometimes being broke is.

[George]

A cycle and that we might have.

[Rodney Williams]

To revisit that and we're not stopping at success stories. What happens when it doesn't go right? How do you cope with it? Because wealth isn't just about money, it's about creating a life where you thrive.

[Travis Holloway]

And help Others do the same.

[Rodney Williams]

Listen to the Wealth Break podcast on the iHeartRadio app foreign. Hi everyone, this is George with a very quick message to say that if you are listening to this episode on Tuesday, April 1, that means my comedy special taping in New York is tonight. I repeat tonight. Tonight the early show is sold out, but we just added some last minute $10 tickets for the late show. They are only $10. You can find [e-mail] or at the link in my Instagram bio. This will be the last time I do this hour until the special comes out, so you have been warned. And last but not least, there are still some tickets to Stradiolab Live at the bell House on April 16th. It's our first New York show in a while featuring Sydney Washington, Natalie Rotter Laitman and Andrea Long Chu. Some straighter Lab all star me. And you can find tickets to that on the Bellhouse website or at the link in our Instagram bio. So come to my special taping tonight. Come to strato Lab Live aka Lesbiolab on April 16th and enjoy this amazing call in show. Thank you for your calls. You can always call us at 385 gay guys love ya.

[Travis Holloway]

Podcast starts now. Hello all and welcome to Stratiolab. We are coming at you bicoastally per huge. And it's just me and George today.

[Rodney Williams]

Just us.

[Travis Holloway]

What's up?

[Rodney Williams]

You know, we're doing a call in show which we normally do for Patreon. And so in, in my mind I'm ready to spill all the tea. I'm ready to talk to the patronistas like they are my family. I'm ready to be like, do you know what happened the other day? Do you know that girl, she was being so weird to me. But I have to remember that, you know, I have to put up my professional, my profile, put on my professional mask. I have to take off my jester mask that I wear for Patreon, put on my professional mask, my blazer, my tie, my Brooks Brothers crisp non iron white shirt that I got. It's three for, you know, three for 375. And I have to get into the office. I'm on the subway, I'm getting off at Penn Station, I'm crossing the street, almost getting hit by a taxi cab a la opening montage of Devil Wears Prada so I can get into the studio and and report the news.

[Travis Holloway]

Quite frankly, when I'm doing a regular episode, I feel like I'm the president of the United States giving A press conference. I feel like I'm giving a press conference. Everyone's going to be picking apart every single word. There's going to be multiple debates about, like, what I really meant by certain phrases. And the pressure is on in a huge way.

[Rodney Williams]

Whereas when we're recording Patreon, it is Madonna in the Truth or Dare documentary simulating a blowjob with a water bottle. That is what. That is what Patreon episodes are. And listen, if you know, you know.

[Travis Holloway]

If you know, you know. Can we talk about how Madonna's, like, whole thing is like, I'm gonna simulate sex. Like, she found that out one time, and she was like, I'm never gonna stop simulating sex. I'm fucking crazy. I'm Madonna.

[Rodney Williams]

I'm never gonna stop simulating sex. I'm never gonna stop referencing Catholicism.

[Travis Holloway]

Okay.

[Rodney Williams]

All right.

[Travis Holloway]

This is an interesting timing episode.

[Rodney Williams]

Interesting timing. Sam, how are you feeling?

[Travis Holloway]

I'm feeling mixed. So we found out this week that the show I write for After Midnight on CBS is being canceled. So it was a weird week. A very weird week. And it's mostly a bummer. It's hard to talk about, but it's a big bummer because, like, I do feel like the show, the group of writers, was so fun and, like, to get a space to actually do, like, fun, silly, weird, alt comedy and to have it be, like, through the CBS lens was, like, kind of crazy. And I'm, like, feeling a little bit like, damn, is this ever going to happen again? I even feel like, I don't know, like, the. Working for head writer Joe Firestone is the privilege of a lifetime. And it is, like, it's a bummer.

[Rodney Williams]

Yeah.

[Travis Holloway]

Because I'm like, what's. Yeah. No one knows what's next. It's. It's just a bummer. And, like, they're not even, like, they're just getting rid of the time slot now. Like, they're not even gonna put a new show in.

[Rodney Williams]

Like, oh, they aren't. I. I didn't know if that was decided. So does that mean there's gonna be, like, a rerun of something?

[Travis Holloway]

There's gonna be, like, infomercials?

[Rodney Williams]

What?

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah.

[Rodney Williams]

Okay. I'm logging in and buying a treadmill.

[Travis Holloway]

It's, like, fully local affiliates, and they're just getting rid of the 12:30 slot.

[Rodney Williams]

Well, I just want to say everyone involved in that show truly did the impossible, which is take a late night show on network television that is a reboot of a previous show that was very. Of its time.

[Travis Holloway]

Let's Face it very of its time.

[Rodney Williams]

Very of its time. It's very difficult to reboot something like that and make it relevant again. Launched a new show in the midst of, of sort of like an uninspiring late night ecosystem and did it without huge, big name, a list, celebrities without gimmicks, where Sydney Sweeney is lip syncing to Chapel Roan and really in a very kind of throwback way, enlisted real comedians and a mix of up and comers and big names and actually made a funny show that was funny from the beginning.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah, it's such a. There's just like not outlets for comedians to do this type of thing.

[Rodney Williams]

So I was saying before we started recording that this episode, this conversation is giving me such intense deja vu of when we recorded our Patreon app after Gawker shut down. So for anyone, I can't remember how much of this was talked about on a main episode versus Patreon, but from like 2021 to 2023, I guess. I was an editor at the reboot of Gawker that relaunched under new ownership and then it was shut down two years later. And it's occurring to me. Think of the parallels.

[Travis Holloway]

The time frame, the reboot.

[Rodney Williams]

Like the time frame. Exact. Same time frame. Exact. It was a reboot of something that was popular in like the 2000s and early 2010s. It was a job that was unlike any other job that existed in that industry. It's like there's no other late night show that does what the sort of like alt comedy thing that After Midnight did. And there's no other like website that had the like, sort of like funky sensibility that Gawker did.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah.

[Rodney Williams]

It's not like either of us could then be like, okay, great, so I'll just go to this other, you know, similar place. Both, you know, sort of like women boss head writers that we became good friends with.

[Travis Holloway]

Uh huh, uh huh.

[Rodney Williams]

Like very sort of like tight knit group of coworkers.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah, there are a lot of similarities.

[Rodney Williams]

Probably similar sized staff. Like it's. And especially the timeframe too. It's like it was basically like between a year and a half and two years for both of them.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah.

[Rodney Williams]

Industries that are in crisis to say the least. Like this sort of halfway point between, I mean not, not to invoke the word journalism, but I just mean like there's, it's, it's like funny news commentary.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah, it's funny news commentary of the.

[Rodney Williams]

Type that, you know, more and more is, is being replaced by TikTok and by influencers and whatever else. And listen, the world goes on. I'm not saying that I think we should freeze the state of culture in 2013 and not allow people to innovate, but it's just a bygone era.

[Travis Holloway]

It's a bygone era. It even, like, it's so. I don't know, like, even little stuff like. Like, just like, going to the Paramount Law is like, well, this is fun. Kind of totally. Like, what do you mean? I'm not allowed to come here anymore?

[Rodney Williams]

Something people don't talk about is how when a job ends, you stop being a human person in the eyes of the entity that once gave you that job. Like, it's really weird. It just is. Your badge stops working and you no longer. If you actually. And if you, like, you know, open the door and go in, you will be arrested. Like, you are no longer seen as a person in the eyes of the Paramount Law.

[Travis Holloway]

It's so weird, too. This is weird because we know now the show is not coming back, and yet the show is going till mid June. And so it's like, what is the vibe gonna.

[Rodney Williams]

I sort of think that it'll be fun. Like, there's gonna be this sort of. You know, we're all. It's gonna be over soon anyway, so why not, like, take risks? Why not throw stuff at the wall?

[Travis Holloway]

That's the hope. I mean, the classic is the Conan, like, last week or whatever, when he just, like, spent as much money as he possibly could. There's, like, something to go in wild. To go in buck wild. And I'm going to miss the Paramount Lot Gym. It's frozen in 1995 in a way that it literally should be a historic site.

[Rodney Williams]

I didn't know you went to the gym in the Paramount lot.

[Travis Holloway]

Oh, of course. Well, yes, me and Jason Ritter.

[Rodney Williams]

Oh, my God. I mean, we've talked about Jason Ritter, but I once saw him at a bar in Los Angeles at. Where Rachel Peagram hosts her show. What's that place called?

[Travis Holloway]

Oh, Covell he.

[Rodney Williams]

That man. Handsome, handsome, handsome, handsome.

[Travis Holloway]

Handsome and sweet.

[Rodney Williams]

Now that is a cutie right there.

[Travis Holloway]

Cutie pie, sweetie pie.

[Rodney Williams]

Kind eyes. He's got it all perfect. Sorry. Body.

[Travis Holloway]

Boyish face.

[Rodney Williams]

Boyish face. Gorgeous, smart, talented wife.

[Travis Holloway]

Yes.

[Rodney Williams]

A beautiful marriage is able to sort of, like, be publicly romantic in a way that isn't cringy.

[Travis Holloway]

Man of the people goes to the Paramount lot gym.

[Rodney Williams]

Man of the people goes to the Paramount lot gym.

[Travis Holloway]

When he could go to Equinox.

[Rodney Williams]

Oh, I just know his ass voted For Bernie Sanders.

[Travis Holloway]

If you doubted that for even one second.

[Rodney Williams]

Are you kidding me?

[Travis Holloway]

Be a fool. Yeah, no, I'm addicted to him. I'm trying to think. Oh, yeah. The other thing about losing the job now is that, like, the one big difference between the. Where the parallels stop is that I moved to LA for it.

[Rodney Williams]

That's true.

[Travis Holloway]

And I'm sort of like, wait, what? Like, I'm, like, having to, like, reckon with, like, do I stay here? Do I leave? Like, what's. I'm, like, so confused.

[Rodney Williams]

People keep texting me. Or is Sam moving back? And I'm like, I'm giving him three days. And then I'm asking. I very intentionally have not asked you. Like, when you told me that this was happening, I didn't immediately respond like, sorry, you moving back.

[Travis Holloway]

It's really a confusing thing because there's so much of LA that I feel like one. It was, like, a lot of work to get settled here and to, like, figure everything out.

[Rodney Williams]

Yeah.

[Travis Holloway]

And now I'm like, there is more to glean from this town. But also, like, I love New York, but there's. It's. It's really complicated.

[Rodney Williams]

I mean, there's also something about moving to la. And by the way, for people who don't listen to the patreon, a good 70% of it is New York versus LA. So buckle in, bitch.

[Travis Holloway]

Bitch. I mean, this whole podcast, that's what it's about.

[Rodney Williams]

That's what it's about. So there is something about moving to LA that feels like graduating. Like, New York is college and LA is your first job.

[Travis Holloway]

Totally.

[Rodney Williams]

And so it's a very common story that, you know, someone in our circle moves to LA for a job and then the job inevitably ends and they stay there.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah.

[Rodney Williams]

And so I would understand if you wanted to stay. It's complicated because, I mean, we'll talk about LA a little bit in a bit because there's a question about, you know, the sort of dreamscape of Los Angeles, California, at this particular moment. But it is in such a weird place. The vibes are off in such a way that I can imagine it would be especially not enjoyable to be unemployed there, even if it was for a short amount of time. Like, there's something about being aimless in LA that is less romantic than being aimless in New York.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah. I'm, like, curious to see how that feels, to be honest. I've. Because even when we have hiatuses, I'm like, either flying to New York or doing. It's like, feels busy. So I'm Like, I'm like, I want to know that darkness I felt in New York when I'm like, okay, it's Tuesday and I haven't had a job in three months. Like, what am I doing today? Day. That's what I'm. I'm. I'm, like, wondering if it feels more hopeless or more hopeful here. But I. My lease is till August, I think the end of August, so at least I'll have. Yeah, you'll definitely be there throughout time to reflect.

[Rodney Williams]

Well, pour one out if you're listening to this, Even if it's 9am, pour one out for after midnight. And I just want to say thank you to CBS for giving all comedians opportunities, even if it was limited and even if you couldn't find someone to take over the show out of the various people that could potentially do it. Anyway, should we take our first call?

[Travis Holloway]

Let's take our first call.

[Rodney Williams]

Okay. All right.

[George]

Hi, George and Sam. I'm calling because I am currently attending library school in Los Angeles, California, and I have converted several other members of my cohort into Stradio lab listeners.

[Rodney Williams]

Thank you.

[George]

And we were wondering. We're all queer women. We were wondering where on the range of gay to straight, the different types of librarian, information sciences people lie. So that's public librarians, academic librarians, archivists, media archivists. So it's kind of different. Oh, and rare books people. Yeah. Okay, thanks. Love you guys.

[Rodney Williams]

Okay, literally perfect call. So I'm just going to list them again.

[Travis Holloway]

Thank you.

[Rodney Williams]

Public librarian, academic librarian, archivist, media archivist, rare books people.

[Travis Holloway]

Damn, this is hard. First of all, I want to say it's funny to attend library school. I understand.

[Rodney Williams]

First of all, I love one of my favorite phrases, the information sciences, information sciences, library school.

[Travis Holloway]

That's very doctor Hospital. I go to library school.

[Rodney Williams]

One of the most iconic things you can do is go to library school. I'm always so obsessed with people that have a master's in information science. And the idea that there is a group of queer women all in library school that listen to Stratio Lab and potentially have a group chat about it where they're like, what they said is so rare books coded. It fills my heart with so much joy. And I just want to tell you on this Friday, March 28th, when we're recording this, that you are a star.

[Travis Holloway]

You are a star. We appreciate you. And you fill my mind with wonder. You know, you forget that people can go to library school and be a group of queer women in library school. I feel like when you say that. I feel like I'm like literally reading Harry Potter. Like I'm like there's magic in the world.

[Rodney Williams]

No, it is. I'm so. It's literally. It actually brings me hope that there is, as I'm doing whatever I'm doing here and having my protein bar and a seltzer. You know, there is an alternate universe where there is literally a group of queer women that are learning so much every day about information science, about rare books, about media archiving, and. And at least at the end of the day we have that.

[Travis Holloway]

Damn, I bet their clothing swap goes crazy.

[Rodney Williams]

Oh my God. All right. Public librarian, academic librarian, archivist, media archivist, rare book. Okay, off the bat, media archivist is the gayest one.

[Travis Holloway]

Really?

[Rodney Williams]

No.

[Travis Holloway]

Well, tell me your reasoning. I was thinking public librarian.

[Rodney Williams]

Oh, you're right. Okay, maybe. Well, okay, here's the thing though.

[Travis Holloway]

Because they're lepers in society, public librarian.

[Rodney Williams]

Obviously is the most kind of politically radical. You know, Obviously. However, think about the archetype of the public librarian. It is, you know, kind of like older lady, long skirt, funky wood based jewelry, like a little vest that has an apple with a worm coming out of it.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah.

[Rodney Williams]

And as much as to be clear, I would die for her. She is straight rather than gay.

[Travis Holloway]

That's true. If I were in the library and I were looking for a gay book, I would sort of be like, um, like I would almost be like, well, it's for school.

[Rodney Williams]

Exactly.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah.

[Rodney Williams]

And I think it's like there's also something about the public librarian being the archetypal librarian, AKA the default, which makes it inherently in the framework of gay versus straight that is the norm. Doesn't mean she's bad. She's the norm.

[Travis Holloway]

I'm sure she has amazing center left politics.

[Rodney Williams]

Totally.

[Travis Holloway]

Damn. Okay, I like that. So she's the straightest.

[Rodney Williams]

I almost think she's the straightest. Yeah, I almost think she's the straightest.

[Travis Holloway]

I think the librarian scale is hard because it starts at such a queer place.

[Rodney Williams]

I know, I know. And I'm now actually thinking maybe rare books is the most queer. I mean, come on. Rare?

[Travis Holloway]

Well, it's pretentious.

[Rodney Williams]

Pretentious. It's also like knowing the B sides.

[Travis Holloway]

It's also like putting value in something. Like you're like creating a. You're creating wealth within something that shouldn't have it.

[Rodney Williams]

Totally. Okay, so here's my ranking from gay to straight. Rare books, media archivist, academic librarian, archivist, public. Because I'm like, if there's media archivist Then if you're an archivist, you're being exclusionary. There is the option for media archivist, and you're just an archivist. Are you kidding me?

[Travis Holloway]

So wait, okay, wait.

[Rodney Williams]

Rare books.

[Travis Holloway]

Rare books is gayest.

[Rodney Williams]

Yes. Media archivist.

[Travis Holloway]

Media archivist is next guest.

[Rodney Williams]

Because media archivist is literally. You have an Instagram account. Media archivist is. You have an Instagram account dedicated to, like, Issey Miyaki. Fashion photo shoots from the 90s.

[Travis Holloway]

You're literally showing Julia Roberts and you're like, she tour with this.

[Rodney Williams]

Exactly. Then we have academic librarian. Because to me, it's like, which is right down the middle. And to me, that is so bisexual. An academic librarian. You know, she's into Foucault.

[Travis Holloway]

I'm seeing the frame glasses. I'm seeing the little frames.

[Rodney Williams]

Or even a woman with spiked hair.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah, totally.

[Rodney Williams]

And then I have archivist.

[Travis Holloway]

Archivist is just like, put away your clothes.

[Rodney Williams]

Yeah, it's kind of something about archivist. Yeah, it's very like being interested in history in a really earnest way without wink.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah, I'm an archivist.

[Rodney Williams]

And then I think last and then I think straightest is public librarian. Just. Cause again, that's the archetypal librarian.

[Travis Holloway]

I think. I think that's so genius. I think you really nailed that.

[Rodney Williams]

Thank you.

[Travis Holloway]

And I don't disagree with any of them. And I'm glad we had a discussion because at first I needed some convincing, but you're totally right.

[Rodney Williams]

God, to be a librarian.

[Travis Holloway]

I literally, like, there's so many jobs.

[Rodney Williams]

No, that's team.

[Travis Holloway]

There's so many jobs where you're like, damn. Like, you can really just do that.

[Rodney Williams]

Okay, next call.

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[Rodney Williams]

Hi, this is Debbie, your blinds.com design consultant. Oh, wow, a real person.

[Travis Holloway]

Yep.

[Rodney Williams]

I'm here to help you with everything from selecting the perfect window treatments to I've got a complicated project. No problem. We make the complex simple and I can even help schedule a professional measure and install. I didn't realize you did that.

[George]

Yeah, we can also send you samples fast and free.

[Rodney Williams]

Wow.

[Travis Holloway]

I mean, I always thought I needed.

[Rodney Williams]

A designer to come to my home, but scheduling's always a nightmare.

[George]

Notwithblinds.com, we're on your schedule and there's.

[Rodney Williams]

No haggling, no pressure, no hidden fees either. Hmm.

[Travis Holloway]

I just might have to do more. Oh, okay.

[George]

Whatever you need.

[Rodney Williams]

How about you tell me what you had in mind? Okay then. So the first room we're looking at is for G guests coming over. Blinds.com has covered over 25 million windows, all backed by a 100% satisfaction guarantee. Shop blinds.com now and get up to.

[George]

40% off with minimum purchase.

[Travis Holloway]

Rules and restrictions may apply.

[George]

And I'm calling back. It's the girl who wants to talk about sexless la. Sorry, I'll wrap it up. I just wanted to you guys to expand on that if you found it intriguing to do so on the sexless nature of la. And one, I just find it interesting. And two, I literally have not wanted to have sex since the day I got here five years ago and I was in a relationship when I got Here. So that was a problem. And now I'm newly single and have no. I am not inspired to go out there and pursue. So, yeah, looking to jumpstart and just want to know what your thoughts are overall. Okay, thanks.

[Travis Holloway]

Bye.

[Rodney Williams]

I do just want to say this is the second part of this caller's call, but the first part is there's no way around it three minutes long. So I ended. And so I just. I'm playing this as a tribute to her. And the main gist of it is that she wants us to talk a little bit more about how LA is sexless. And, Sam, you had something you wanted to share.

[Travis Holloway]

I had something I wanted to share, which I'm not sure if I've said. If I have said this before, you're allowed to punch me in the face if you see me.

[Rodney Williams]

Yeah. As if he hasn't been through enough this week, folks. Lose his job. Now listeners are going to be chasing him, trying to punch him in the face.

[Travis Holloway]

In trying to like la. I was reading Joan Didion's the White Album and. And there's an essay in it about LA that was written in, like, the 70s. And she's talking about how one, there's all this stuff that feels very relevant where it's about, like, the town, like, the industry is failing. The industry is failing. The industry as we know it is gone. And it's funny because that's like 1973, that she's saying this, that everyone in town is saying it. So it's just sort of an always that feeling. Always, always there. But then she talks about how it's at its core a gambling town, where you're always like, gamb on ideas and trying to get rich quick. And because like all gambling towns, it is sexless. And it's like, due to its gambling nature, that people are not horny for sex. They're horny for, like, money and success, which I thought was cool. Really put it in perspective for me.

[Rodney Williams]

I wonder if the gambling thing also erodes a sense of trust. Almost like there's just a general suspicion that exists in the air.

[Travis Holloway]

I think there's a suspicion. I think there's like a. You're always sort of plotting. You're like, well, when's my next paycheck? Like, well, how. What. What will this get me in the long run? In a way that's like, you don't. You shouldn't be thinking like that. You should be thinking about people's beautiful bodies.

[Rodney Williams]

Totally. Yeah. You need a baseline of comfort so that you can Wake up and be horny.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah. And I even think you would think that you would. That people would be like, well, I'll sleep my way to the top, or something like that. But it's like, doesn't work. People have learned that it's better to withhold and make people want you than to, like, give it up, which is so disgusting. I find, for me, a big part of the sexlessness also is the car. Because you. In New York, you walk around, you see people, and you just inherently are like. As a person, you're like, that's hot. That person's hot. Or, like, that person's serving, or that, like, there's, like, a sexuality of just seeing people all day. And when you are in a car, you're like, you. You are literally just, like, less turned on. You just, like, aren't seeing people in the same capacity.

[Rodney Williams]

Yeah, no, it's really true. There is also. Okay, I'm trying to say this without misspeaking, but it's like the. The depictions of sex within Hol. Like, the idea of the casting couch. Is there anything less erotic than that? Like, you are literally. Take. Imagine the most kind of, like, dumpy room you've ever seen. It's like a conference room with overhead lighting, basically. And then someone is attempting to infuse sex into that. It's like, there's. In New York, in an appropriate sexual relationship is like, you're in the boardroom and everyone is in blazers, and both people are powerful, and they're just, like, so powerful that they have to fucking.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah. And they're like, what's this gonna do to the firm? And it's like, who Fuck the firm? Yeah. And I feel like, yeah, there is. Sex is so entwined with, like, power here that it's. It's not fun. Because you're always thinking, like, is this. Because even if you're not co workers, you're like, well, I could be. Like, I could be co workers with essentially anyone on the street right now. And so it's like, well, I can't fuck them because then I will have fucked my co worker. It's very weird.

[Rodney Williams]

Yeah, it's also. It's interesting. The. The way sex is by default commodified in Los Angeles and in Hollywood inherently de. Eroticizes it.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah.

[Rodney Williams]

It's like, oh, so you're looking at a naked man or woman or person. That's not sexy. That's a billboard. That's a movie trailer.

[Travis Holloway]

That's a movie trailer. You're looking at Chris Pratt and you're trying to be turned on.

[Rodney Williams]

Yeah. No, that's not what this is about. This is about dollar signs.

[Travis Holloway]

Mauma. I feel. Yeah, I can feel it happening to me.

[Rodney Williams]

Really.

[Travis Holloway]

I can feel myself being less horny. Yeah.

[Rodney Williams]

Yeah.

[Travis Holloway]

And in a way that's like. I almost have to remind myself, like, don't forget who you are. You're the guy that sexualizes everything totally. You're the guy that thinks everything's hot.

[Rodney Williams]

That's like how I. That happened to me after I got married where I only wanted to have sex with my husband and I had to remind myself, you're gay. Get out there and find other men, you stupid bitch.

[Travis Holloway]

All right, next call, Next call.

[Rodney Williams]

Hey, George and Sam, this is aisle in Brooklyn and I'm calling. Someone asked me this question a few months ago and I think about it all the time, so I wanted to see what your take on. It was pretty simple. Question, what is the most expensive emotion and what is the cheapest? All right, bye.

[Travis Holloway]

Love that. Past guest ael.

[Rodney Williams]

Shout out to ael. What do you think?

[Travis Holloway]

So we talked briefly about this. First thing that came to mind is that love is the most expensive. Horny is the cheapest.

[Rodney Williams]

Yeah. I mean, we both independently came up with love as the most expensive. It is potentially an obvious answer. But of course, love makes you act in irrational ways. Love makes you sacrifice things you would not otherwise sacrifice. Love is not transactional. Love can be unconditional. All these things are gonna absolutely rob you of your money, dignity and integrity on a day to day basis. So watch out.

[Travis Holloway]

And I would know. Yeah, okay. Love is the album and Horny is the single. Yeah.

[Rodney Williams]

Here's another expensive emotion.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah.

[Rodney Williams]

I think maybe like resentment gnaws at you so much. You know what resentment is? It's like you think it's fast fashion, you think it's an easy thing, but then it's actually full of microplastics and it's slowly killing you and the environment.

[Travis Holloway]

I actually really like that. I like that you're. I think you're taking this question in a different direction than I did, but in a way that I really enjoy. Like, you're thinking literally like the cost of having this emotion.

[Rodney Williams]

Yeah. Whereas you're thinking love is so I think it's like rich, unreachable, that it would take so much to. To. To get to love. Yeah, I see.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah, exactly.

[Rodney Williams]

Whereas Horny is more simple. Yeah, I think that makes sense. I'm trying to think of other cheap emotions.

[Travis Holloway]

I had a cheap one that I go back and forth On. Okay. Yeah. Okay. Nostalgia.

[Rodney Williams]

I think, like, you're so right.

[Travis Holloway]

You get like a burst of nostalgia. I think that's a cheap, cheap emotion. But okay. When it's nostalgia from smell or taste, I think that's rich. I think that's expensive.

[Rodney Williams]

Oh, interesting.

[Travis Holloway]

When you, like, smell something and you're like, whoa. And you're like, taken back, that's. That can be kind of crazy because that's like time travel. But when you're just like, God, I love the 90s, like, let's watch, you know, the Simpsons. Then it's a little like, okay, stop.

[Rodney Williams]

Yeah. Maybe it's the more personal to you. Yeah, like, the more personal to you it is, the more sophisticated it is and the more relatable words that are like, never forget, 9, 11. It's like, yeah, we know, honey.

[Travis Holloway]

You wouldn't let me forget it if I tried.

[Rodney Williams]

Yeah, I didn't. Yeah, no one's gonna try. Don't worry. We remember.

[Travis Holloway]

We remember.

[Rodney Williams]

I'm, you know, of course, the. To me, a big open question here is where does hate fit into it? And to expand on that, different forms of hate, like sort of like low level snark or criticism. I mean, criticism is not an emotion, but sort of disgust. Where do those kinds of toxic, negative emotions fit into it? Because on the one hand, they are easy to go to as a default. It's, you know, you see something you don't like, immediately you recoil. On the other hand, of course, if you are filled with hate, that's going to take a toll.

[Travis Holloway]

Well, that's what I thought. Your resentment thing was very smart. Where I do think hate is similar, where it's like, it actually does cost the most. Like, like, I think hate maybe is even more expensive than love because it, like, can ruin you.

[Rodney Williams]

Right. And maybe disgust is more cheap because it's just like. And then, you know, you move on.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah.

[Rodney Williams]

Okay.

[Travis Holloway]

You ever see people that get, like, really lost in resentment and you're like, yeah. Oh, God.

[Rodney Williams]

Well, this is something I've been thinking a lot about because there is. I think the 30s are the resentment decade. Well, I guess what it is is resentment builds in your 30s. Either it solidifies into you just being a miserable person, or you battle it and come out of the other side and you are satisfied and comfortable with who you are.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah. And you put that live Laugh Love poster up and you say, c'est la vie.

[Rodney Williams]

Exactly. And by the way, this has nothing to do with your level of success, your attractiveness. People can be the president of the United States and be filled with resentment. And people can be a random person who does customer service at Cigna, and they can be full of love.

[Travis Holloway]

I loved watching that because I was like, where's. How's he gonna land this? I was like, what is the appropriate random person? And you really. You really nailed that.

[Rodney Williams]

I think I nailed it.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah.

[Rodney Williams]

So. But I do think.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah.

[Rodney Williams]

And maybe it's even like more third, you know, 35 to 45 or something. It's not exactly 30s, but do you know what I mean?

[Travis Holloway]

I do.

[Rodney Williams]

It's the time when you slightly.

[Travis Holloway]

Only because I don't want to poke holes in your theory. I mostly like it. And this podcast is about agreeing, of course. But I'm just from personal experience, I feel like in. I knew people that were so much more resentful in their 20s. Really, maybe because they were like. It was like, stand up. And it was like. Everyone had this idea of, like, trying to make it before 30 or something.

[Rodney Williams]

I see.

[Travis Holloway]

Which is a false premise, obviously, and you kind of have to turn 30 to realize that. But a lot of people, I could feel like in late 20s, people, like, clawing and being so upset and so jealous and so angry. And then in your 30s, it's almost like the last scene in Mean Girls where all the girls are like, actually, we like each other and we don't really care that much. So I think it depends either way.

[Rodney Williams]

Resentment, it's like, you got to move past it. You got to move if you're feeling resentful. This is a wake up call.

[Travis Holloway]

Literally.

[Rodney Williams]

It's not good. It's not sustainable. It will not give you anything you are looking for. You have to move past it.

[Travis Holloway]

You have to move past it, and you can still be critical. Oh, my God. George and I are such haters.

[Rodney Williams]

Oh, my God.

[Travis Holloway]

We hate everything, but we hate everything with love.

[Rodney Williams]

That's right. Okay, next. Cole.

[George]

Hi, Sam and George. It's Heidi. This is actually my second time calling. Fun, exciting. Love it. I have two questions. I'll just do the first one super, super quick because I thought it would be fun, and it's more so for George. So my family and I are going on a super awesome spring break vacation to Greece, which I'm so pumped about. And I was like, oh, that's fun. It's George's old stomping grounds. So I was like, george, do you have any, you know, recommendations, if you will? We're going to Crete and Athens, so pretty touristy, but very exciting. Yeah. So that's the first question. Thanks, George. And second is for both of you. This is the most important one. So me and my two long distance besties love this pod. We talk about it quite frequently and we just really like when you guys are friends and we like when other people are friends, you know, just like cast members of TV shows. You were big into Broadway, so like Broadway cast. Just like we like when other people hang out and we enjoy it and it's fun. So we wanted to know, since you guys are not only podcast co workers but also friends, what do you guys like to do together outside of the pod that feels like different or, you know, when you just hang out, what is, what do you like to do? Yeah, keep doing what you're doing. We love the pod. And by we, I mean me and my friends. Okay. Anyway, love you.

[Travis Holloway]

Bye.

[Rodney Williams]

Shout out.

[Travis Holloway]

Shout out. That was sweet.

[Rodney Williams]

That was very sweet. I'm gonna do a very, very quick round of things off the top of my head that I did in Athens last time I was there. That might be helpful. So Athens is, I think I've talked about this before, but it has been undergoing this, depending on your point of view, renaissance or gentrification nightmare for the last five to six years. There was a moment during the financial collapse when, you know, it was, you know, the prevailing idea was that the city was in crisis and it needed to end. Like new businesses were an opening and the. Obviously the economy wasn't going well, whatever. And then it became sort of like Berlin Ified. Like I've told you about how my grandmother's neighborhood, which was like a middle class neighborhood, she has a one bedroom apartment, has now become like the Bushwick of Athens. And she leaves her apartment and it's literally all like expats, people on their laptops, like people wearing sort of like head to toe, kind of like club clothes. She's just sort of like, okay, like going to the farmer's market. And so it is honestly, people ask me all the time for Athens recommendations and I don't know what to say because it is such a different place than it was when I lived there when I was also like a teenager. So this latest time I really tried to get a bunch of recommendations for people because I wanted to know, like, which of these new businesses are worth it. The answer is not all of them, but I did want to shout out this one restaurant called Pharaoh. Like a. Like an Egyptian Pharaoh I went to. It was so good. It's just like updated Greek classics, but you got to make a reservation ahead of time. Sam, when you Visit. We'll go together. I had the absolute time of my life. Great wine list. Really good, you know, sort of like shareable small plates. I was in absolute heaven. That entire neighborhood, Exarchia, has become very like Williamsburgified in a way that is honestly pretty alarming. Because when I was in high school, that's literally where the anarchists would hang out. And it would be like, that's where all the protests were. That's where a lot of the like, sort of like memorable news stories of protesters clashing with the police happen there. And now you go and it's literally like a record store that's run by like a chill guy with a mohawk. And then the people in it are like Italian tourists. It's very strange.

[Travis Holloway]

Wow.

[Rodney Williams]

But so that restaurant, I have to say, if you want to go somewhere that's not a traditional taverna, which you should also go to, and it's something a little more contemporary, I would recommend another place. I. A store I went to is this store called It's a Shirt and they sell shirts. And it's this like really cool gal whose dad worked in the garment industry in Greece. So then she is like taking sort of like fabrics that. Because she, you know, fabrics that her father would use potentially, and making these like super cool, like Japanese Y cut, like cool shirts.

[Travis Holloway]

Wow.

[Rodney Williams]

And they are much cheaper than the equivalent thing would be if you went to like Copenhagen or something. It's a shirt, It's a shirt. Shout out to. It's a shirt. And the final thing I will say is people don't know this, but one of the best things you can do in Athens and in Greece in general over the summer is go to an open air cinema. So they have these open air cinemas. Imagine like a giant screen with just like, you know, chairs and a little bar and stuff. And the ones in the center of Athens. You can literally look at the Parthenon behind the screen of the movie that you're seeing. So you can go and watch like, they'll do like a Hitchcock retrospective or something and you can go watch like a classic movie. And then the Parthenon is right behind that. And oftentimes people will go to Greece and people I think would be in the know about these kinds of things and they don't know that that's an option. So that is my big recommendation.

[Travis Holloway]

Beautiful recommendations, George.

[Rodney Williams]

Those are my three. Thank you. And the second question was, what do we do as friends?

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah, we party, bitch. Bitch. We party, bitch. We're out on the town. I mean, we, we like, we go.

[Rodney Williams]

To Max Widdert's house.

[Travis Holloway]

We go. We go to people's houses, we go to dinner, and we get drinks, and potentially, if George isn't tired, we go out.

[Rodney Williams]

That's right. Yeah. And you know what? I. You know what I think in my own life has been a change since the Pandemic. I used to do more, like, weekend friend trips.

[Travis Holloway]

Oh, yeah.

[Rodney Williams]

Pre2020, I was getting, like, an Airbnb upstate with four chicas. That was not something that was out of the ordinary for me, really.

[Travis Holloway]

I didn't start really getting into that lifestyle till after Pandemic.

[Rodney Williams]

Interesting. I don't know what it is now. I think it's a mix. Obviously, everyone's busier, but also everyone's taste level has gone up. And suddenly it's not enough to just go to airbnb.com and click the first one and just be like, yeah, we'll figure it out. Everyone suddenly wants to make reservations. Everyone wants to have a specific hype hike planned, which I get. But it is. It makes things more difficult than when you are, you know, 25 years old and are just excited to be out of the city.

[Travis Holloway]

I. That was such a scary. There's so many moments in one's life when you realize, like, there's been grown, growing up, and I always, always am, like, the last one to know. And that was a real one. When people were like, well, no, I want the. I want a nice house.

[Rodney Williams]

Yeah.

[Travis Holloway]

Like, I want a chic house. And I was like, but we're just, like, sleeping there and listening to music and having drinks. Why does it matter?

[Rodney Williams]

Yeah, but you know that if you. If something was below your standards, you would also speak out.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah. My standards were pretty low, though. But.

[Rodney Williams]

But don't you think they're higher now? Yeah, I think they're higher now.

[Travis Holloway]

They are. I'm learning, but I feel like I'm. I'm, like, sad that I'm learning totally. Where I'm like, of course. Like, there was a freedom of not caring about.

[Rodney Williams]

I mean, the threshold to be satisfied is higher. That sucks.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah.

[Rodney Williams]

You wake up every day and the default is you're like, okay, someone better impress me today.

[Travis Holloway]

Even, like, caring about one's apartment, like, no. As soon as there was, like, a moment when it was like, suddenly we care about our apartments, and I was like, fuck.

[Rodney Williams]

I know.

[Travis Holloway]

Like, it happened all of a sudden, and it used to just be like, no, it's amazing. I can pay rent. And now it's like, no, you have to have A place that's nice.

[Rodney Williams]

I know. And then you wake up one day and you're like, wait, so you've been collecting artisanal knickknacks from your travels since you were 22?

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah.

[Rodney Williams]

You're not just sort of going to West Elm? That's interesting.

[Travis Holloway]

It's. It's interesting. And I'm like, it's fun. I think there's a certain level of, like, competition can and can be helpful and motivating, but it's also a little scary. It was. The moment was scary when I was like, oh, fuck, I have to catch up.

[Rodney Williams]

I know. It's interesting to grow up consuming media about the urban petite bourgeoisie a la Woody Allen, et cetera, and have it be so foreign. And then suddenly, whether you like it or not, and honestly, no matter your income level, you sort of just age into having those values.

[Travis Holloway]

You best start believing in la petite bourgeoisie. You're in it.

[Rodney Williams]

Okay, next call.

[George]

Hey, they're calling in for the second.

[Travis Holloway]

Time from my northern New Jersey number.

[Rodney Williams]

Shout out.

[Travis Holloway]

I have a really important question. Do you think that with Chapel and.

[Rodney Williams]

All of us knowing what her personality.

[Travis Holloway]

Is now, I wanted to see what.

[Rodney Williams]

Your thoughts are and the revisitation of the Lizzo's past of it all. Like, is she cool?

[George]

Is she not?

[Rodney Williams]

How do we feel?

[Dude Wipes Advertiser]

Thanks.

[Travis Holloway]

First of all, shout out to northern New Jersey phone number. I don't know why, but I love.

[Rodney Williams]

That because it's the same. I commented that this caller has the same area code that my house did in New Jersey.

[Travis Holloway]

Okay. Fun. I want to say thank you for bringing back Lizzo's Pass. I've been thinking about it a lot. It was recently mentioned on an episode of Keep it, which I was really.

[Rodney Williams]

Excited about by Louis Vertel.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah. So for those who don't know, Lizzo's Pass is the moment when a rising pop star gets so big and has to decide which way to go. In Lizzo's Pass, do you go towards Pitchfork and stay cool forever, or do you go towards Target and make songs for commercials and. But I find. I think Chapel is still at Lizzo's Pass. I think she is delaying her decision by releasing singles only. I think we won't know because I think good luck, babe was very. Okay. She's gonna be Pitchfork. She's like, cool.

[Rodney Williams]

Yeah.

[Travis Holloway]

Like, this is cool. And then the new one, the Giver, is like, good. I like it. But I'm like. But it could go either way. And I'm like, a little bit. And it's like, I think it's cool. It's like, about, like, you know, giving an orgasm. That's, like, fun, but it's still like, like, I don't know. So I think the album is really gonna. We can't call it. It's too early to call. We need a full album before we can say.

[Rodney Williams]

Do you think going country is a way to delay Lizzo's Pass a hundred percent?

[Travis Holloway]

Because you can't both say anything about it. Yeah.

[Rodney Williams]

Country is for the Pitchfork crowd. Country is alternative in its own way. And then for the target crowd, country is like. It's for the target crowd. Country is, like, comforting. But also to be country and alt is scary.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah.

[Rodney Williams]

You can. You basically are having your cake and eating it too. It's called the Casey Musgraves effect.

[Travis Holloway]

I'm like. I'm very curious because at this point, she's, like, trying on all these new sounds and styles where I'm sort of like, okay, what is your sound and style like? It's. It almost feels like, look over here, look over here, look over here. And I'm like, wait, I'm. I'm like, I'm. I'm surrounded by smoke. I can't tell where you are or what your deal is.

[Rodney Williams]

Yeah. Do you think Pink was ever at Lizzo's Pass or she just started out Target?

[Travis Holloway]

I think she started out Target.

[Rodney Williams]

So you think even her early R and B hip hop phase was just destined for Target?

[Travis Holloway]

It was still on the radio and it was still in the commercials. Yeah. I mean, one thing that is. I think one thing that's happening to Chapel is that she's at Lizzo's Pass, but the wind is blowing really hard and it's like snowing. And it's like, forcing her to put like. It's trying to make her go towards Target.

[Rodney Williams]

Really.

[Travis Holloway]

Because I really believe. Because every song, I'm like, more passionate about this than I've ever been about anything in my whole life. Because she. Every song is in a commercial now. And I know it's because the brands are like, she's cool enough but popular enough that we can look cool and in on it. But it's. Every commercial has a Chapel song. So the wind and the snow, she's going, I want to go towards Pitchfork. And she's like, but the snow is too high. I have to go towards Target. I think the odds are against her, but I hope that she can survive Lizzo's Pass.

[Rodney Williams]

Yeah. She also hasn't been claimed by either party because I think at this point, the Pitchforkistas are skeptical of her, and certainly the target moms, candle buyers are skeptical of her. And so she is. It's like she's on top of the charts, but while balancing on a tiny needle. Like, if one thing goes wrong, she could be done forever.

[Travis Holloway]

And I also think that's why she's doing the singles thing, to be, like, sort of soft, change the narrative and let people be like, okay, I'm calm about her now. Now she can release the album she was on.

[Rodney Williams]

Call Her Daddy. Another way that you can delay Lizzo's Pass.

[Travis Holloway]

What is Call Her Daddy's, like, space in the culture right now.

[Rodney Williams]

No one knows.

[Travis Holloway]

I'm so deeply confused. And I'm, like, trying to figure out, even watching the clips of that. I was like, am I insane? Like, it's so bizarre. So that's how I feel about it all. Okay, how do you feel about Chapel at this stage?

[Rodney Williams]

No, I. I think you are absolutely right that she's delaying Lizzo's pass. I have to say, I'm pro Chapel. I'm just sort of like. But it took me longer than you to get there in the beginning, I think, because the first song of hers I heard, I pressed Play on the album, and the first song was Phenomenomenomenon. And honestly, I was like, get this off my screen. I was so upset. People had been telling me to check out Chapel Roan for so long. I pressed Play on that song and I. And I was wrong. I just want to admit I was wrong. But there was something about it that felt so RuPaul that then I had to come back to it a few months later and realize, actually, this is an incredible album, which everyone agrees with. And since then, I've loved her performances. I think she's fun. I think she's a fun figure. I like that she's provocative and controversial. I like that sometimes she's a little embarrassing. She's young. I like that she's speaking her mind. Everyone is so, you know, poll tested these days that I say go off.

[Travis Holloway]

I say go off. I say go off.

[Rodney Williams]

I'm trying to think of other people who are at Lizzo's Pass right now. I mean, do you think Twigs has. I do think Twigs chose Pitchfork, and that's Twigs chose Pitchforks. Twigs chose Pitchfork.

[Travis Holloway]

I think Sabrina Carpenter is all started. Is Target.

[Rodney Williams]

Is Target. Yeah. Yeah.

[Travis Holloway]

She's targeting Tate McCrae is sort of at Lizzo's past, but she's Target.

[Rodney Williams]

She was never Pitchfork to begin with. No, Pitchfork person was on her side.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah.

[Rodney Williams]

You know what? I noticed, actually?

[Travis Holloway]

What?

[Rodney Williams]

And it pains me to say this, because my dream is for Lucy Dacus to be the special guest at lesbiolab.

[Travis Holloway]

Oh, my God.

[Rodney Williams]

I haven't even told you this. I don't have a contact or anything, but I just have this dream that we'll do lesbiolab. And then at the end, she comes out and performs. I kissed a girl.

[Travis Holloway]

Lucy, if you hear this. Bell House on April16.

[Rodney Williams]

April 16.

[Travis Holloway]

April 16.

[Rodney Williams]

And I just want to let you know, Lucy, I got. And this is a true story, I got my husband concert tickets to your show for his birthday. He's a huge fan. We can't wait to see you at Radio City. And hopefully we'll see you at the Bell House. But what I wanted to say is that Lucy Dacus and the Boy Genius girls were definitely at Lizzo's Pass.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah.

[Rodney Williams]

And I think Phoebe Bridgers. It's sort of like the jury's out. But something I noticed today is that Pitchfork herself gave Lucy Dacus a 6.1 on her new album, which in a.

[Travis Holloway]

Sense is choosing to go Pitchfork. There's something about that where it's like, okay, you're staying small.

[Rodney Williams]

On the other hand. So Lindsay and Bobby pointed this out. On who Weekly, there was literally a People magazine exclusive about Lucy Dacus. And I'm like, hold on. A few years ago, we weren't getting People magazine exclusives about members of Boy Genius. So Lucy, I think at any point, and her tour tickets, I gotta say, shout out to Live Nation, much more expensive than I thought they would be.

[Travis Holloway]

Really.

[Rodney Williams]

I thought I could potentially add a few more elements to my birthday gift. So I do think that there's been a breakthrough with. With Boy Genius. And I think they're much more mainstream than we think that album did really, really well.

[Travis Holloway]

That's true. That's true.

[Rodney Williams]

So I think if Lucy.

[Travis Holloway]

So are you saying.

[Rodney Williams]

I'm saying Lucy, I definitely think she's still at the pass, but I think she could snap her damn fingers and go target at any point.

[Travis Holloway]

Interesting, interesting, interesting.

[Rodney Williams]

Because she is relatable in this way. She's fun on video. She's very millennial. She's very, like, you know, does a video for Conde Nast Digital and talks about going to therapy.

[Travis Holloway]

What do you think about Chaim?

[Rodney Williams]

I. Oh, God, that is a really good question.

[Travis Holloway]

I kind of think tastefully. As tastefully as, like, very successfully. They've still chosen Pitchfork.

[Rodney Williams]

I agree. They've definitely still chosen Pitchfork.

[Travis Holloway]

And that's cool.

[Rodney Williams]

They're almost they're a 24.

[Travis Holloway]

Basically, they're 824. That's literally what they are.

[Rodney Williams]

Okay, okay. All right.

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[Morton Buildings Advertiser]

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[Rodney Williams]

In 2020, a group of young women in a tidy suburb of New York City found themselves in an AI fueled nightmare.

[George]

Someone was posting photos.

[Rodney Williams]

It was just me naked.

[Travis Holloway]

Well, not me, but me with someone.

[George]

Else'S body parts on my body parts.

[Travis Holloway]

That looked exactly like my own.

[George]

I wanted to throw up.

[Travis Holloway]

I wanted to scream.

[Rodney Williams]

It happened in Levittown, New York. But reporting the series took us through.

[Travis Holloway]

The darkest corners of The Internet, and.

[Rodney Williams]

To the front lines of a global.

[Travis Holloway]

Battle against deepfake pornography.

[George]

This should be illegal, but what is this?

[Travis Holloway]

This is a story about a technology.

[George]

That'S moving faster than the law and.

[Travis Holloway]

About vigilantes trying to stem the tide.

[George]

I'm Margie Murphy.

[Rodney Williams]

And I'm Olivia Carville. This is Levittown, a new podcast from.

[Travis Holloway]

Iheart podcasts Bloomberg and Kaleidoscope.

[Rodney Williams]

Listen to Levittown on Bloomberg's Big Take podcast. Find it on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[George]

Hi, Sam and George Random, but I'm on a big George Michael kick, so that's huge for me right now. And I just had to know, for you, George, as a gay man of Greek experience, and for you, Sam, as a gay man of not Greek experience, what does George Michael mean to you? What are your fave songs? Yeah, anything George Michael related? Love.

[Rodney Williams]

Yeah, he means everything to me.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah, he's to die for. George, you go first. I mean, he was your post nuptial song in a fun way. In an amazing way.

[Rodney Williams]

I had this idea that I wanted the song. When we walked down the aisle, the song was gonna be earnest. But then at the end, when we kissed, the song was gonna be, like, fun and poppy. And my initial idea, of course, was Madonna's Ray of Light, which would be iconic, which would have been iconic. But we ended up going with. With George Michael's Freedom. Not the most original choice, but it was, like, so fun. Everyone got into it.

[Travis Holloway]

I would say it's pretty original, to be honest.

[Rodney Williams]

I mean, it's just like. I just mean in terms of his. In terms of his oeuvre. It's like one of his. Oh, sure, you know, top three songs. But that. And I'll tell you why. And I think I've maybe even said the story on the podcast. I was at this big pride party last summer. It was all, you know, electronic sort of house music. Okay. And no lyrics, no references to any pop music. And then at some point at like 2am, the beat breaks into the chorus of Freedom. And it was this incredible moment where everyone was so. It was as though we had all taken mushrooms at the same time or something. It was almost like the results of an election had just come in and they were positive. I cannot. And that really inspired me. I was just like, this song has a power that is unlike other pop music.

[Travis Holloway]

Wow, that's amazing.

[Rodney Williams]

Of course, it means a lot to me that he's gay and Greek. He's so hot. He's such a sex symbol. It is important to remember that in terms of our sexual politics and in terms of queer stuff, we're not moving in a straight line. To me, George Michael was so much more cool and fun than so many of the things that are happening now.

[Travis Holloway]

I think about the thing all the time. When he was arrested for cruising.

[Rodney Williams]

Yeah.

[Travis Holloway]

And he was like, not ashamed at all. And he's like, what? It's my culture is like the quote he said. And I was like, that's true. Like, I'm actually. It's so funny the way that I like, when I was younger, I did not understand that. And now I'm like, no, it should be illegal for guys to get arrested for cruising. That's literally what we do. That's like, it's a time honored tradition. That's sort of our Thanksgiving, if you will.

[Rodney Williams]

I will say, I, as much as I love George Michael, I really only know the hits. I'm not a sort of completist. I'm not listening to albums top to bottom like everyone else. I rediscovered Father Figure because of Baby Girl. I love adding some George Michael to a party playlist, but I'm not, you know, I'm not listening to the B sides. Do you have favorite songs that are sort of out of the off the beaten path?

[Travis Holloway]

Not really. I mean, the hits are hits for a reason. I have listened to. Like, what is the one with Father Figure on it? What's it called? Faith.

[Rodney Williams]

That one's Faith, which also has the.

[Travis Holloway]

Famous song Faith, but it has Faith on it. I have that one on vinyl and I've listened to it a good amount. And it's. I mean, there's a lot of like weird shit on there, like, which is a fun thing about listening to an album like that. But it's like, it's fun. But yeah, the hits are the hits are the hits. Like, you just. You feel it.

[Rodney Williams]

Yeah. I mean, he has. He has it.

[Travis Holloway]

He has it.

[Rodney Williams]

I was George Michael for Halloween. Some may recall.

[Travis Holloway]

Many are.

[Rodney Williams]

Many are talking about that. So that's our relationship with George Michael.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah.

[Rodney Williams]

Okay. All right. Final call.

[Travis Holloway]

Oh, and what perfect timing. Such a well timed episode. Meanwhile, I've never received more texts in my life. Everyone needs to calm down.

[Rodney Williams]

Hi, Sam and George.

[George]

I'm calling in with an advice question. I'm going to a straight wedding in.

[Rodney Williams]

A couple of months. There are going to be very few gay people there, maybe in the single digits. And it's a pretty conservative religious wedding and it's going to be in the Wedding party. So my question is, what are the gayest things I should do without getting.

[George]

Myself kicked out of the family?

[Rodney Williams]

All right, love y'all. Thanks.

[George]

Bye.

[Travis Holloway]

Well, this is a perfect call. Of course, of course. I think this is such a, you know, time honored tradition of being the gay guy at a traditional straight wedding. And it's sort of like traveling to, like, a small town where, you know, yes, you are literally not going to see as many gay people. But it's like, with. But it's also kind of fun because you get to, like, open up any app you want and see the most random guys on earth. I think I have no greater pleasure than, like, being in, like, you know, random parts of Minnesota and opening up the apps because it's sort of like a time machine. Like, you see people that are like, I'm literally married to a woman. And you're like, that is really amazing.

[Rodney Williams]

Yeah, that is so cool.

[Travis Holloway]

And I'm like, I didn't know we still had you.

[Rodney Williams]

I also am like, take a little thirst trap with your suit in the bathroom. Unbutton. Literally unbutton your fly. Get a little pube in there.

[Travis Holloway]

Get a little pube in there.

[Rodney Williams]

Take a photo. We're talking directly to close friends. Maybe a little comment that's like at a religious wedding. Lol.

[Travis Holloway]

Send nudes.

[Rodney Williams]

The fire emojis are gonna start coming at you fast. There is something about being actually far away from the people you are courting or making horny or flirting with that makes it so much more erotic than actually having the opportunity to meet them in person.

[Travis Holloway]

This is so true. What a smart thing to say. Because literally, there's no risk. It can just be flirty without any follow through. That's genius.

[Rodney Williams]

Actually, one of the worst things that could happen to someone is when you think that's what's happening and then the other person's like, like, want to come over? And it's like, no.

[Travis Holloway]

I know.

[Rodney Williams]

I am doing something very specific here. And if you can't tell, like, that's on you.

[Travis Holloway]

But I am such a. I'm such a I'll be right there type bitch.

[Rodney Williams]

Oh, really?

[Travis Holloway]

I am like. I'm like, I'm ordering the car right now. It is.

[Rodney Williams]

It takes a lot to get me out of the house if I don't think that's what's happening with that night.

[Travis Holloway]

Well, no, Horniness is a disease.

[Rodney Williams]

No, it is a disease. I will say, on the other side of things, if I'm out, it's very easy for someone to convince me to stay out. Like, I had an experience recently where I was like, I'm leaving, and ended up going to three other locations on a weekday.

[Travis Holloway]

Wow, that's awesome. I think also, I mean, I think you may be surprised, and I think if there are any other gay people there, I think it could be really, really fun to flirt and even have something happen because it'll feel so secretive, it'll feel so illegal. And even if they're, like, not your normal type or whatever, it's like, like, this is awesome. There's something evil about it.

[Rodney Williams]

And also, here's one of the gayest things you can do at this wedding. Show up looking absolutely snatched as hell. Get a martini, sit in a corner by yourself, watching everyone kind of judgmentally drinking the martini. If I like, you are gonna be the talk of the town. People are gonna be like, is that Truman Capote?

[Travis Holloway]

Literally? And complain about the food.

[Rodney Williams]

Oh, yeah, definitely complain about the food, first of all. So when I say order a martini, send it back immediately.

[Travis Holloway]

Say, I asked for a dry.

[Rodney Williams]

I asked for a dry. And this glass is not cold. Can you please chill the glass? This is my number. Text me when it's ready. That I would say, more so than hooking up with someone. While, of course, that also sounds like a lovely thing to do, I would say that is the gayest thing you can do at a really straight religious space.

[Travis Holloway]

I have to agree. I have to, have to, have to agree. I'm trying to think if there's anything else that's like, you know, it's it. Like, if you can, like, squeeze in, like, sort of a half sex story to, like, someone's grandma, that could be huge, too.

[Rodney Williams]

Ooh, that's good. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Travis Holloway]

Like, even, like, some innuendo. Like, if you can be like, no bottoming. Not. That's not innuendo. If you can fully be, like, no bottoming for me tonight to someone's grandma. Like, guess what?

[Rodney Williams]

No bottoming for me tonight because of this dry ass salmon that was served at this stupid ass wedding. The hell? Where was this shipped from? Some landlocked country that doesn't grow its own salmon.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah, that's a great idea.

[Rodney Williams]

Kill two birds with one stone. You. You tell you're horny, you alienate grandma and you. And you insult the food.

[Travis Holloway]

That's what being LGBTQ+ is all about.

[Rodney Williams]

Oh, yeah, No, I think you're gonna. And also, I just want to say, you know, there's a temptation when you're in a straight space to be like, I'm not gonna care about my appearance. I'm just gonna show up and fit in. Resist that temptation.

[Travis Holloway]

Resist that temptation.

[Rodney Williams]

This is when you want to turn a look. You want to show these people what their lives are missing.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah. And really. Yeah, really. You need to serve.

[Rodney Williams]

You need to serve, folks. I'm deploying you. We're deploying you.

[Travis Holloway]

Yeah. Well, that's pretty fun.

[Rodney Williams]

Yeah. Those were some fun calls.

[Travis Holloway]

Those were some fun calls. Thanks everyone for calling. Sorry if we didn't get to your call.

[Rodney Williams]

You can always call us at 385, gay guy. We should mention this is in fact the second part of a two part call in show. The first part was on Patreon only. It's already happened. And honestly, there was a very juicy call on it that I think I would personally pay $5 a month to listen to.

[Travis Holloway]

And I think we're going to. We're sort of doing call in shows intermittently and at random.

[Rodney Williams]

Yeah. Whenever we feel like it.

[Travis Holloway]

Which I think is so cool.

[Rodney Williams]

I agree.

[Travis Holloway]

I'm glad we're not scheduled.

[Rodney Williams]

I'm also like, are we officially breaking the earnestness, non earnestness binary?

[Travis Holloway]

I think so.

[Rodney Williams]

We're being half earnest, half not earnest at any given point. I could sling a joke that would be worthy of Anthony Jeselnik, but I could also retreat into a more kind of introverted, vulnerable state and talk about my mother.

[Travis Holloway]

I think get you a podcast host who can do both. We contain multitudes now.

[Rodney Williams]

That's right.

[Travis Holloway]

Outwardly and inwardly. Now more than ever, what with everything going on.

[Rodney Williams]

So whether you're in library school or celibate in Los Angeles or at a straight wedding offending a grandmother by talking about how you got fisted at the big party.

[Travis Holloway]

We love you.

[Rodney Williams]

You are always welcome in the lab and come to lesbio lab on April 16th at the Bell House.

[Travis Holloway]

Come to Lesbiolab on April 16th and rip after midnight. That's right. Bye bye. Podcast ends now.

[Rodney Williams]

Want more? Subscribe to our Patreon for two extra episodes a month, Discord Access and more by heading to patreon.com Stradiolab and for.

[Travis Holloway]

All our visual learners. Free full length video episodes are available on our YouTube.

[Rodney Williams]

Now get back to work.

[Travis Holloway]

Stradiolab is a production by Will Ferrell's Big Money players network and iHeart podcasts.

[Rodney Williams]

Created and hosted by George Severis and.

[Travis Holloway]

Sam Taggart, executive produced by Will Ferrell, Hansani and Olivia Agassi, co produced by Bay Wang, edited and engineered by Adam.

[Rodney Williams]

Avalos, artwork by Michael Fails and Matt Grubb.

[Travis Holloway]

Theme music by Ben Kling.

[Rodney Williams]

Do you.

[Travis Holloway]

Own a business that's ready to thrive? It's time to let Intuit QuickBooks take things like unpaid invoices and tracking expenses off your plate so you can take things to the next level. Intuit QuickBooks is an all in one business platform that can help with those day to day tasks like invoicing and expenses. Manage and grow your business all in one place. Intuit QuickBooks your way to Money Money.

[Rodney Williams]

Movement services are provided by Intuit Payments, Inc. Licensed as a money Transmitter by the New York State Department of Financial Services.

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[Morton Buildings Advertiser]

People choose Morton Buildings to build a variety of buildings for their property any time of year because they know Morton Buildings are built stronger, last longer and look better. If you need a garage, a stall barn or a storage building for an rv, boat or other vehicles, a shop for your farm hobbies or car restoration projects or anything in between, Morton can create a building for you that's attractive, easy to maintain and dependable enough to stand the test of time. Just visit MortonBuildings.com today to find out more. They use quality materials and expert craftsmen with an industry leading warranty to ensure your structure is enjoyed by generations to come. Morton buildings is 100% employee owned with thousands of satisfied customers. That means they're the industry leader you can trust. To get started on your next building project, visit MortonBuildings.com don't delay. Construction schedules are filling up fast, so now's the time to start planning your building project with Morton. That's MortonBuildings.com for some of us, personal.

[Rodney Williams]

Finances aren't just personal. They include a lot more people than ourselves, loved ones, neighbors, the communities we call home, and the causes we hold in our hearts. At Thrivent, we help plan your financial picture with the bigger picture in mind. Because even though our business is helping guide your finances, our ambition is to make it mean so much more. Thrivent Where Money means More Connect with [e-mail].