The JTrain Podcast

Host: Jared Freid
Episode: Patriots Coach, Jason Derulo on Being “37 & Single,” and Ryan Seacrest’s Red Flags - POP CULTURE THURSDAY
Date: April 9, 2026

Episode Overview

On this installment of Pop Culture Thursday, Jared Freid dives into a mix of buzzy celebrity and sports headlines, riffing with his usual blend of relatability and sarcasm. Major topics include Jason Derulo’s viral commentary on being 37 and single, spicy rumors around Patriots coach Mike Vrabel and NFL reporter Diana Rossini, and Jared’s exasperation with Ryan Seacrest's supposed "dating red flags." The episode is a blend of thoughtful relationship commentary, sharp media analysis, and classic Jared tangents about fame, money, and the absurdity of celebrity culture.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Jason Derulo on Being 37 and Single

[00:00-06:00]

• Jared introduces a listener-submitted clip from an interview where Jason Derulo laments being 37 and single—a state he never imagined for himself when he was younger.
  • Jason Derulo Quote: “I never in a million years did I think I was gonna be 37, single.” (02:26)
• Derulo attributes his single status to his career and, more pointedly, suggests he's "seen too much" to trust the institution of relationships, referencing wild stories of infidelity and club drama:
  • Jason Derulo Quote: “I’ve seen too much in my life… Married women, women leaving their boyfriends on the spot… I’m giving you the super G version.” (02:38)
• Jared unpacks this, relating to the idea of expecting to be married by a certain age because that’s what you see growing up:
  • “We can’t see a future for ourselves that’s different than what we grew up with.” (03:25)
• He calls out Derulo’s cynicism, pointing to his own book (Walking Red Flag), and the notion that everyone single past their early 30s is “tainted by experience, by memories, by reality.”
  • "You need a little bit of romance in your smoothie… It's a combination of cynical and romantic.” (04:35)
  • Jared reflects that Derulo’s take is a bit of “fronting” and would be more honest if he admitted heartbreak and difficult breakups could make anyone more guarded with age.
• Memorable Jared Quote: “Past performance does not indicate future results, but you have to acknowledge how things have happened in the past to make your decisions going forward.” (05:45)
• Jared mentions how his stand-up special and personal journey echo the same themes of heightened pickiness and losing romantic delusion with age.

2. The Mormon Wives Cast & Reality TV Fame

[12:00-16:00]

• Jared covers a Page Six story about the “Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” cast resuming production after domestic violence allegations against Taylor Frankie Paul.
• He wryly notes how reality stars are addicted to the “glow” of fame, claiming “attention is a drug”—and congratulates the network PR for milking the drama:
  • “Once you feel the glow of that light, that fame, it is hard to let it go.” (13:30)
  • “This is great PR by ABC Hulu. They go, ‘These women… can’t stop pushing us. They want to do it.’” (15:40)
• With tongue firmly in cheek, he guesses the show will continue with new manufactured drama and little real change.

3. Patriots Coach Mike Vrabel & Diana Rossini: Rumor Mill

[17:00-29:00]

• Jared dives into a spicy story about Patriots coach Mike Vrabel and NFL reporter Diana Rossini being photographed holding hands and hugging at a luxury Sedona resort.
• He’s skeptical about their denials, analyzing the details (interlaced fingers, sunset embraces, hot tub hangouts):
  • “There’s only this picture of them interlocking fingers—one that would be difficult to explain to a spouse.” (18:55)
  • “I have never interlocked fingers with a friend… unless we were doing London Bridge is Falling Down.” (19:55)
• He lampoons their alibi, noting eyewitness accounts contradict the claim that each was with their own group of friends, and riffs extensively on how there’s "no explanation" for woven fingers other than intimacy.
  • Memorable Jared Quote: "Give me the explanation to that one weird thing that I can't wrap my head around—tell me about the woven fingers. That's my opener." (28:55)
• In comparing “hugging at sunset” and “dancing together” to finger-weaving, he ranks the latter as most damning:
  • “On the list of things I would be upset with my spouse doing, it goes: fingers woven together, number one. Hugging at sunset and dancing together briefly are like 50 down the list.” (20:50)

4. Ryan Seacrest’s “Dating Red Flags”

[30:00-36:45]

• Jared skewers a new press campaign wherein Ryan Seacrest, now 51 and fabulously wealthy, lists pedestrian “dating red flags” like not being nice to strangers or not saying good morning on a walking path.
  • “I am so tired of hearing about Ryan Seacrest being on Tinder. It's not real.” (30:30)
  • “What's his red flag? If they're mean to my butler, I can't date them…” (31:20)
• He mocks the superficiality and performativity, arguing that Seacrest doesn't need dating advice, Tinder, or to "share" his dating red flags with the public:
  • “Everything’s about money, and Ryan Seacrest has enough to go live on a castle and have women flown in from all over the world to fix his issue immediately.” (32:00)
• Jared ridicules the triviality of Seacrest’s criteria (coffee routines, pleasant alarms), and insists these aren’t genuine red flags:
  • “That is not a dating red flag. That’s the lesson at the end of a Full House episode.” (33:00)
  • “He takes everyone he dates out on an exercise—here, that's why you're single, Ryan. You’re making everyone do an obstacle course.” (33:40)
• He speculates the campaign is just a ploy for attention or extra revenue, highlighting Seacrest’s “addiction to attention.”

5. Penny Lancaster on "Deserving a Medal" for Marrying Rod Stewart

[37:00-40:00]

• Jared closes with a bemused take on a headline about Penny Lancaster (Rod Stewart’s wife) joking that she “deserves a medal” for 26 years with Rod.
  • “If I'm Penny, that's like the one headline I don't want right now… There are soldiers that have been shot down and need to be saved. And she's like, I deserve a medal—I had to date Rod Stewart.” (37:05)
• He gently pokes fun at her (and himself, for being annoyed at rich people), lampooning the melodrama of her “hectic schedule” being anything close to real-life stress.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Jason Derulo (on turning 37 and single): “I never in a million years did I think I was gonna be 37, single.” (02:26)
• Jared on Derulo’s attitude: "You need a little bit of romance in your smoothie… It's a combination of cynical and romantic.” (04:35)
• Jared on Vrabel/Rossini: “There's no explanation I could even think of where you're weaving your fingers together.” (21:50)
• Jared on Seacrest: “What's his red flag? If they're mean to my butler, I can't date them…” (31:20)
• Jared: “That is not a dating red flag. That’s the lesson at the end of a Full House episode.” (33:00)
• Jared on Penny Lancaster: “I had to fly private for 26 years—you know how hard that is?” (37:10)

Timestamps of Important Segments

• Jason Derulo on dating and being tainted by experience: [00:00-06:00]
• Mormon Wives reality cast drama and fame addiction: [12:00-16:00]
• Vrabel & Rossini rumors and analysis: [17:00-29:00]
• Ryan Seacrest’s "dating red flags" rant: [30:00-36:45]
• Penny Lancaster "deserves a medal" riff: [37:00-40:00]

Tone and Style

Jared is conversational, sardonic, and peppered with playful hyperbole. He is both empathetic—especially relating to single-while-older anxieties—and sharply critical of fame-chasing, PR games, and celebrity absurdity. The tone oscillates between genuine insight (often relationship-related) and pure comedic riffing on pop culture oddities.

For Listeners Who Missed the Episode

This episode is packed with entertaining, irreverent commentary—sometimes deeply relatable, sometimes deliciously snarky. Jared picks apart celebrity narratives with both personal vulnerability and comic distance, making this a perfect listen for fans of pop culture, dating real-talk, and sharp humor alike.