The Friend Zone Podcast

Episode: "Pastors In Stem - The 2025 Wrap-Up"

Hosts: Dustin Ross, Hey Fran Hey (Francesca), Assanté
Release Date: December 17, 2025

Episode Overview

This special year-end episode of The Friend Zone sees the hosts—Dustin, Fran, and Assanté—reflecting on the major themes, conversations, social issues, and memorable moments from their 2025 slate of episodes. In line with the show’s core ethos—mental health, mental wealth, and mental hygiene—the team does a deep-dive into everything from religious scams, extreme weather events, gun culture, political frustrations, and the rise of AI, to pop culture highlights and the evolution of Black entertainment. With their signature blend of humor, candor, community, and vulnerability, The Friend Zone crew offers both a critical recap and a celebration of the show's tenth year running.

Key Discussions & Insights

1. Viral "Pastor Scams" and Church Ethics

• Highlight: The episode opens with a viral story about a pastor asking for $10,000.90 in 90 seconds, promising multi-millionaire status as a reward—all with a life-sized QR code projected behind him.

  • Dustin: "He stood up there talking about... write the check! If you got it, get on up and write the check." (06:45)
  • The hosts lambast these exploitative, performative displays of faith and discuss the importance of ethical giving in church.
  • Fran: Contrasts predatory behavior with her local church’s nonjudgmental giving structures, emphasizing dignity and lack of pressure.

• Memorable Quote:

  • Dustin: "That's predatory, not pastoral. And I ain't giving you shit. I feel like Vera Walker in Harlem Nights... 'me and my girls, we ain't giving them shit.'" (05:40)

2. Year-End Reflection: Social Crisis, Political Apathy & Community Resilience

• Discussion of major 2025 events:

  • West Coast Flooding: Oregon, Washington, and Montana devastated without adequate federal aid; impact on farmlands and workers.
  • Dustin: "These dumb motherfuckers in DC... they’re so goddamn stupid they’re not even thinking about how crucial these offices are to our natural resources." (14:12)
  • ICE Raids & Labor Anxiety: Chilling accounts of ICE’s aggressive presence in agricultural communities, including stories of citizens and legal residents being detained.
  • Gun Violence: Mass shooting at Brown University and lack of substantive gun control measures; the ease of obtaining guns as a point of anxiety for Fran and listeners.
    • Fran: "Something about that... my mind was kind of like, what the fuck?... I could go pick it up the next day. It’s scary." (23:12)

• Community & Resource Sharing: The hosts repeatedly note the importance of grassroots mutual aid, the increasing need for mental health and legal aid links in their show descriptions, and shout out listeners and listeners’ personal stories.

• Memorable Quote:

  • Francesca: "It’s really been a 'we got us' ass year because don’t seem like anyone else does." (19:19)

3. The Friend Zone’s 2025 By the Numbers

• Show Stats:

  • 49 episodes released despite a mid-year break.
  • Listeners in 97 countries; U.S., U.K., Canada, South Africa, and France are top regions.
  • Over 500% increase in shares.

• Celebrating Their Longevity:

  • Ten years in podcasting, unique for their focus on original, guest-free conversation.

• Memorable Quote:

  • Fran: "We don’t lean on guests, we don’t lean on salaciousness. We really come and bring conversation, which I think is really hard to do. 10 years in..." (154:11)

4. Notable Episodes and Recurring Segments

• Deep Dives:

  • Fatphobia & Healthcare: "Heavy Conversation" (coinciding with a viral lawsuit of weight discrimination in rideshares).
  • Death & Adulting: With guests Jaden & XD—handling loss, obituaries, and the unspoken labor of being the “new adult” in families.
  • AI & Tech Anxiety: Main character syndrome, AI relationships, autonomous robots ("Mouth and Height"), scam concerns, and the ethical quandaries of chatbots and AI in daily life.
  • True Crime & Bible Study Mashups: “Three Hots and a God,” “Briefcase of Spaghetti,” and the impact of stories like Natalia Grace on their signature “crime zone” episodes.
  • Pop Culture & Black Entertainment: A look back on Black TV/film from "Insecure" to "Queen & Slim" (“10 Years Black”).
  • Financial Literacy & Ethical Investing: Lessons learned after car accidents, navigating insurance, gap coverage, and responsible investing.
  • Church & Giving: The complex relationship between faith, community, and predatory religious practices.
  • Community-Based Knowledge: Continued praise for community-sourced insights—financial advice, mental health tips, practical adulting.

• Listener Engagement:

  • Recurring 'Gated Community' and SoundCloud comments, amplifying everyday stories and connecting show themes to real-world listener experiences.
  • Notable: Multiple listeners wrote in about their own gun ownership journeys, struggles with car insurance, security, and the realities of immigrant and farming families.

5. Signature Quotes & Standout Interactions

• On the Predatory Pastor Scam:
  • Francesca: “What they do is, they had a carpenter build these really beautiful houses... if you’re able, you just put the money inside the little house and that's it.” (07:02)
• On Administrative Negligence:
  • Dustin: "That ain't got shit to do with politics... that’s just keeping people alive, human shit." (18:36)
• On Political Exhaustion:
  • Dustin: “I definitely made some changes in my consumption of certain things... I use the show as an outlet. In my day to day life, I create a bubble...” (52:16)
• On AI & Surveillance:
  • Francesca: “It should be a full fucking stop for everybody, right? It should be something that's so shocking...” (66:55)
• On Entering a New Decade:
  • Asante: "I'm proud of every one of our episodes—but what are you most proud of?" (159:38)
• On Utility Over Virality:
  • Fran: “Although I am... fighting for your attention, I just want to be useful, you know? And I think that's what I feel is going to be a huge turning point for the next coming years of content creation, because people are tired." (159:38)

Important Timestamps by Segment

| MM:SS | Segment | |------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------| | 03:10-07:32| Pastor $10k QR code scam and church giving practices | | 13:10-19:52| Flooding in the PNW, ICE, farmworkers, government neglect | | 21:29-23:37| Mass shootings, Brown Univ. incident, US gun culture | | 45:16-47:25| Show stats: 49 episodes, top countries, growth celebration | | 53:10-56:55| Listener emails: guns, politics, safety, Dex Mitchell shoutout | | 61:55-64:59| Bible study moments, justice orgs, ICE escalation | | 89:15-91:18| “Heavy Conversation” on fatphobia, vulnerability, and medical bias | | 124:01-125:33| Renaissance World Tour, fan encounters, and drag queens | | 147:16-148:56| “Midnight Library”/Parallel lives, the book club highlight | | 154:11-157:02| Reflections on what the show’s meant—utility, longevity, pivoting |

Notable Quotes (with Speaker & Timestamp)

• Dustin Ross (05:40): "That's predatory, not pastoral. And I ain't giving you shit. I feel like Vera Walker in Harlem Nights..."
• Francesca (19:19): "It’s really been a 'we got us' ass year because don’t seem like anyone else does."
• Asante (23:12): "I just had to get a little background check and I could go pick it up the next day. Just that easy. Wow. Yeah, it's scary."
• Francesca (154:11): "We don’t lean on guests... 10 years in and still have all this increase."
• Dustin Ross (159:38): "To me, being able to have that sort of impact with our audience is why we do this shit in the first place."
• Francesca (159:38): “I just want to be useful... people are tired of the over consumption, the hyper consumerism, the constant selling... I just want to continue to bring information that you’re like, yo, I needed that.”

Overall Tone & Recurring Themes

• Balance of Levity & Heaviness: Hosts manage to blend humor and gravitas naturally, using laughter as relief from the grind of adulting, political frustration, and trauma.
• Listening & Community: Deep respect for listener experiences, vulnerability, diversity of opinion, and practical wisdom.
• Social Awareness: Relentless focus on the intersection of race, policy, mental health, and daily survival, especially in Black and immigrant communities.
• Introspection & Evolution: Commitment to ethical growth, mental hygiene, and the power of reflection zones—10 years strong, still shaping new goals.

Final Thoughts

The 2025 wrap-up episode of The Friend Zone is quintessentially itself: insightful, honest, funny as hell, blazingly relevant, and deeply committed to moving listeners into a new year both informed and uplifted. As always, it’s a masterclass in community-building, radical vulnerability, and Black cultural commentary—making space for both the hard truths and the real joy that got listeners through another year.

Closing Reminder:
“Be kind. Happy holidays. Stay black and protect your magic.”
(Francesca, 165:01)