“Overqualified” (w/ Becca Ramos AKA Producer Becca!)

This is an I Heart Podcast. Guaranteed Human. Look, man. Oh, oh, I see him. Oh, my. Oh, look over there. Is that culture? Yes. Wow. Last culture, he starts. Dig-Dong! Last culture, he starts calling. You know what I just realized? It is for me, and I didn't understand it to be this type of day today, but it is. It's a multiple liquids day. You are... Your water sign classically. Oh, yeah. It's end... The moon is new. Babe, I think the moon might be new right now, but by the time this episode is out, the moon could be old as fuck. But I'm just saying, you are filling yourself up to be dictated by the poll of the lunar poll. Did you know that actually, when we drink water now, it hydrates us. Okay, let me... Let me... Yeah. ...let me be careful about this. So the water that we drink now is the hydration that we have in three weeks. And the... But the piss that we piss tonight is from the water that we drink today. Correct. So when you piss later... I don't understand this at all. When you piss later, it will be water you've had recently. That's often why you'll find that you drink a lot of water and then like a short time later, we'll have to pee. That is that very water. But the hydration station... is... What are you drink from a while back? You know who told me this dug peck? Oh, well, the genius dug peck. The genius dug peck. Who knows about hydration and quite frankly drinking water? Also, room temp is best. Now, what do I do if it burns a little? When you pee? I'm kidding. When was your last STI? Um... Oh god, we're going there. At this point... And we're gonna ask more questions. That's... That's... We're gonna ask more questions. I'm gonna say... The last time... I got on like a doxy thing because someone called... Like a few months ago. Someone called and said, hey girl. Hey girl, I'm so sorry. I regret to inform you. Respectful. Respectful. Oh, so no. And he was... There was shame there and I was like, you truly have no reason to be ashamed. Um... Thank you for letting me know. And like, I'm gonna go get the doxy. So that was a few months ago. But then like, it was just the pill and... I've gotten like the shot in the ass and I'm like, yeah. Oh, this... We're not joking around. What about you? I've never taken doxy pep which... For everyone else. That was... No, for the... What we're gonna call the 99... The 98% which is the women that listen to this. Doxy pep would be... A prophylactic... A prophylactic the day after. For your bacterial things. Exactly. Yeah. Get them eliminated. I've never taken that but never had to. Um, I just had one... N orally, gnarly STI back in the day. Like a lot of people that I... A lot of sexually active people I talk to are like, yes, I have. It's not a big deal. Like I've gotten them a series of them and whatever. I've just had one nasty one. And syphilis. Oh, syph is tough. I was 26. And I got the pirate STI. Oh, I don't like that. I said syphilis is like the pink of STIs. It has always been here. And it will always remain here. It's real a culture number 12. Syphilis is like the pink of STIs. It has always been here. And it will always remain. Love pink. Love pink. I love our guests. You wanna know why? She's family. Truly. And I feel like I love the joy of the Readers Katie's publicist finalists and Kyle's whenever producer Becca joins the fray. And I feel as though this is an auspicious thing. Yeah. Because not only is our beloved producer Becca Ramos joining us, but it is for a terrific reason, which is the launch of her very own podcast right here. And it's called Welcome to El Barrio. It is out on February 3rd. Right here at I Heart. Right here at I Heart. Big money? No. Oh, damn. If only. If only. No, it's on the Michael Tura Network. Okay. It's on the Michael Tura Network. And I would just go ahead and say, can they hit pre-subscribe? I don't know how podcasts work. Yes. When this episode comes out, the trailer will be out so you can save the show and come back next week. Are you getting used to doing this? Like and subscribe. Like and subscribe. You covered your face, I think. Oh, no. No, there you go. I just want to make sure. Like and subscribe. We got to bring her in. This is our beloved producer who has joined us on our benchmark episodes. Chimes in for very important reasons. Oh, yeah. Famously said every 30 seconds, what was, what did she say? Ding and dog. Ding and dog for the iconic part of the day. And then a cheacher occasionally worked. Oh, the mother of cheacher. Mother of Teacher, the amazing dog. She is the host, creator, producer of Welcome to L'Aborio, out there very third as we said. Everyone, please welcome. Back at Rambo! Hey! Hey! Producer Becca, now guest Becca. This is crazy. It's crazy to sit there, usually, and then now be here in the lights and the cameras and the action. Welcome to your public life. I know. It's scary. I posted my first front-facing camera video yesterday in promotion of the show because I was like, oh, we're a little less than a month out. I probably should start posting about it. And it was well received, but it is nerve-racking. Like, now I have to, like, not just hide behind everything. Like, I normally do, making sure everything happens and go smoothly. Now it's like my job to also be the face. You're the face. You were never hiding behind. You were always pulling the levers. Yes, I'm strategically making everything happen. The man behind the curtain says, right, also on any given day, you are the best dressed person. Yeah. You know, you ever you know that? Oh, no, it's always nice to hear, though. Do you identify as someone who has, like, a statorialist? Would you say you identify as someone with good fashion or your own fashion? Both, but I would think good fashion. Yeah. Just finalists behavior. I don't think I'm tacky, you know? No, I wouldn't never. You never would describe you. What are the words that would describe the aesthetic? Colorful. I would say I would describe. I would say brown, which is like not normally, but I have a color. Browns of color. Browns of color. And in your full of the red and the brown and the black, I'm seeing picked up on the boots. I'm normally, I think, a monochrome look or a color block look is kind of my style. And like one print maybe. Prince can be deceiving, because you might see that print and say, that's an interesting print. Yes. And then you find out when you wear the print, that print is not for you. Absolutely. And I do have a couple pieces like that where I was like, oh, you know what? It might be time to get rid of this. Why do we, why do we hedge for so long on certain pieces? I have shit where I'm like, that should have been out years ago. They should have left that on the rack. I think it depends if like you bought it or if it was gifted to you, because sometimes I'll buy something and it was a little more expensive than I probably would have wanted to pay for that. Yes. And then you bring it home and you're like, I don't love it, but now you're like, well, I'm kind of stuck with it. It was at a thrift. I can't return it. You know what those are the things you wear on the podcast. Yeah. Because I feel like now that podcasts are a visual medium for real, don't we know? The prophecy for toll. The prophecy was so foretold, it's not even funny. But like I do find that it's a good place to wear like your bold stuff. Yeah. Absolutely. I mean, I almost wore a really bold pant today. Whoa. But then I decided against it because I wanted to wear the vest. I bought this vest pretty recently. At a thank you at a vintage shopup state. And then I was like, I don't know how to wear this vest. And so like you just expressed, I was like, I will wear this vest on this podcast today. I will wear this vest as you just expressed. I was like, this needs to be worn, but I don't know how to wear it. And I went through so many iterations. And then I ultimately was like, okay, I'm just gonna do a monochrome look, but I don't want it to be boring, so I wear the red. And you gotta, you have an iconic neckerchief. Yes, so I wore a little gorgeous. Specifically the Beyonce Levi's. Is that what we're doing? A vintage? Yes. I bought it for a cabocharter, but also it is the one she wore in the commercial. So this is, this is dovetelling into another question, which is when an artist like Beyonce, who is the icon, like sort of like, we know we're gonna be in the midst of a new era, which is accompanied by a merch drop. How quickly do we buy? Yeah. I know the answer for you immediately. I'm pretty immediate on it. Yeah. Immediately bought the cabocharter jacket. Yep, you wore it to the show. Still have the ass train, my own kit, it's a good jacket. It's a great jacket. And various ribbed t-shirts. So I'm very quick on it, which isn't, it's good, but it's also not great. It's, I am in the form of fast fashion to me. Yes. And also I, I hate to be someone who's like, yeah, I'm wearing the merch, but with Beyonce, I am that part, like no other artist. And I love lots of artists, and I love going to shows, but Beyonce's the only one that I'm like, and I have to buy the merch. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, see that's the thing, is it's like, I'll get militant very quickly about like supporting. Yeah. Like when the rock album is, when the topic is not just like, you know, just something that's floating around. Yeah. I'm very excited to have a rock era. I'm very excited and very intrigued. I can't wait to revisit lemonade to reenter the rock era. Yes. Because as far as we got a, got a first team. Don't hurt yourself. Yeah. Do we think the motif, so if Renaissance was like silver and metallic. Yes. Capacarta was denim. Yes. Do we think rock is going to be leather? I feel like it has to be. So you, you better stuck up on the leather now. All of you, all of you on top of all of you. Yeah, well, she's been hinting, but I will say, actually, Beyonce's first rock moment, this is a performance, this is one of her best live performances. No. Obviously that, obviously that. Right. But I feel like when she explicitly, like in her own individual way was like, I'm going to do a rock song. Do you remember when she performed, if I were a boy and did a medley with you? You ought to know. Wow. Yeah. So she came out and she did, it was if I were a boy, which by the way, it's not a Beyonce's on that everyone talks about. No. But I do think it's one of my favorites. It is. It's one of her number one hits. I would conquer that she also made it in Spanish. Yes, she certainly did. I used to listen to it in Spanish. Yeah. Because my Spanish is really bad. And in college when I was taking Spanish, I would listen to like all these songs that Beyonce would flip. Like the airs, like a Spanish version. Yes. Specifically. When an artist does that, gives you bilingual. Yes. When I doesn't have to be my own thing, there's a gentle whispering Maria. She does English video. She does Russian video sometimes. I always watch the Russian shit first. Yes. I'm like, give me that. But with the Spanish thing, like, I guess like we haven't really, and I think it's okay that we haven't really like zeroed in on that. But it's like, that was a great risky, I guess, quote unquote, not risky, but like, I think she knew her audience because she's from Texas. Yes. So there is like, I think she has an homage to Selena. Yes. I think there's a lot of overlap in the like Tejano community with her, especially because she comes from Houston, the rodeo, the rodeo famously has lots of Tejano artists. That's where Selena also got her big break with the rodeo, weirdly also Bruno Mars and lots of other people. You know, if it was his big break, but I definitely saw him at the rodeo. Grinch in the rodeo. Yes. Lots of roots in the rodeo, a lot of black and brown artists have roots in the Houston life, so I'll show you the rodeo. So I do think if you are from the south and you're like trying to figure out different avenues to break, I did notice a lot of artists will do a couple country or not country. Sorry, excuse me, do a couple Spanish songs. Because Casey Mucksgrave coveredLY. 00. 00. 00. 00. 00. 00. 00. 00. 00. 00. 00. 00. 00. 00. 00. 00. 00. 00. 00. 00. 00. 00. 00. 00. 00. 00. 00. 00. Casey Musgraves does the pro, what's it called? The prologue? The pro, the forward. The forward. The forward. Yes, Casey Musgraves does the forward. And it's really beautiful. She does like her little modge to coming from such a small town Texas. Cause she is. She's from like central middle and nowhere, Texas. Golden Texas is like, I think don't quote me on this. West Texas, like West, like central West. Like I think West of Waco. And I should know I went to Baylor, but yeah, small town. Yeah, speaking of Texas, what is the biography there for you? Give us, give us the, give us Becker Ramos, diaspora life. So I was born in Los Angeles, California. Believe it or not. Uh, my parents are both Puerto Rican, but from different ways of life. My mom grew up in Puerto Rico. She's born and raised on the island. My mom's mom is New York, she's born in New York, moved to Puerto Rico, had kids in Puerto Rico. So my mom has a more traditional Puerto Rican diaspora experience. And then my dad, he was born here in Brooklyn, but then moved to California when he was very little and he's like a valley kid. He sounds like John Stamos. He has a very strong like LA accent. Uh-huh. And he's probably why I don't have much of a Southern accent between my two parents, but they end up in Texas, both of them when they're like in their early 20s and meet the other families. And they both wear in Texas. In Houston. Oh great. And they bond over their hatred of living there. And so they get married and they move back to California. They're like, fuck this. We don't want to be in Texas. Our families can figure it out without us and they go back. And they have my brother and I in California and then life just got too expensive, too hard. My parents went to college in their 30s. So they didn't have like a traditional like career path or income. And so they're like, well, maybe in Texas, it's cheaper. Our parents are still in Texas. We can figure it out in Texas. So then they move us when I was two to Texas and then I grew up in Texas and I stayed there. I'm in Houston the whole time. I ended up at Baylor. And then I lived in Dallas, first in. I like Dabble and Austin. And then I ultimately when I graduated landed an internship at a big ad agency in Portland, Oregon. But I was like, love Portland. I was like, see ya. Let me see. Yeah, let me see. Because you saw in Portland, yeah. I was like, we're a new world. Yeah, it's where young people go to retire. Totally. So I was like, I'm a young person who wants to like have a chill life. So I moved to Portland. I enjoyed it. It was a cute little stint. I was going to a lot of refer. It was my first time. Yeah. Well, I had smoked a couple times in college, but I was such a goody two shoes. I was, I was definitely afraid. I think that's kind of both of us too. We relate to the game. Well, you have immigrant parents. I have very brown parents. They were like, fear of God in me. Like if you do anything wrong, you're, you're dead. So I was, and then I went to a private Baptist college, which not to say there weren't, there were plenty of drugs. Like the rich kids doing cocaine everywhere. Rich, religious, fine. Yeah. Ways to do drugs. No matter what. Exactly. Exactly. Or yeah, it's, I mean, it's a dry campus. You were technically not allowed to drink. You could get expelled for being drunk on campus, even if you were a bitch. And does that make you want it more and to get out more? Mm, I was in a sorority. I like did the whole thing. I was like, little like Southern girl. Yeah. I was a Zeta. Like I was in a white sorority. And I lived like in a sorority house off campus. And I feel like if you were in the Greek life, you're party tart. Yeah. Right. Like that was just, I was like, typically the DD because I, or not DD, but I was at least the one keeping it. A little because and not to get too dark. But when I went to Baylor, it was kind of like a scary time to be a girl. A Baylor. There was a lot of like rape culture at Baylor. Like a lot of like, what year was this? 20, I was there, 2013 to 2017. Okay. So this is like peak art, briles gets fired because, and this is when Baylor's at their peak for fuck. Right. Got it. So people in the, like in the conversation before I went to Baylor in 2013, it was like the branch to video in like that, like cults that to the mass murder. Yeah. After I started going to Baylor, it was like football. We became a football school. Like we were like this underdog that became a big football school. Football filled the vacuum of branch to video. Yes. That's crazy. Because people would be like, you go to Baylor Raco, where that like cult is. And then it became like, oh, Baylor Bears football. It became a big deal. Yeah. And while I was there though, it was like while Baylor was like scoring high in football, it was also like recovering up all the football players, raping people. So then it became this big thing like by the time I graduated, our briles got fired. They fired our president who was the lawyer against Bill Clinton, Monica Lewinsky. He's the one who convinced like, like whatever was defending Bill Clinton. He was our president at the university. He gets fired for covering up the assaults happening on campus. And then they still let him do our commencement speech, which is crazy. He was disgraced president. They fired him while I was there and then brought him back to do our commencement speech. Crazy. But all that to say, the culture at Baylor was wild at that time. Like you think in Trump got elected. You know, like the assault culture was at its peak. They're like doing, they're teaching us as a sorority girls. They would have us do these seminars. They were like, yeah, just make sure you're like not too drunk and like don't wear short skirts and like be better. And then it's like, what are you telling the guys? That's cool. Right, right, right. So because you think that's an assumption that they just won't change boys will be boys. 100% and they were like definitely taking fraternities off campus because it was like in tandem as these like football players were being covered up. These frats were getting really rowdy and they were getting like flagged by nationals to be like, hey, this chapter, hazing is really bad. This chapter's hazing is really bad. So I was at a time in the Greek culture, especially like what that X movie was out. Whatever, the party movie. Oh, sure. Yeah. So I feel like that's like where the culture was. Like they were, Baylor was like trying to compete with UT to be like the big party school. Yeah, that was like, it almost felt achievement based to be the biggest party or the rowdeus. Yes. And it's like, LOL, you're a private Baptist college in the middle of nowhere, Texas. But they, they were partying. They were partying. It wasn't nothing. It wasn't that small, you know. And so you're making a DD choice. Yeah. So I was like not always like sober by any means, but I definitely was like, keep an eye on my girls. Wow. I was like, especially because ones I can not think of too dark. Being a brown girl at a very white university, I'm undesirable. I didn't know I was hot until I left Texas. That guy. Like I truly was like, I'm ugly. Like no one likes. Oh my God. And I like moved to Portland, Oregon of all places. And then I was like, oh, I was ugly. I was just ugly for like a private Baptist university in the middle of nowhere, Texas. So. Where everyone looks the same. So I was protecting my girls and my girls were white mostly. And so, you know, I would see them. I'm like, swatting them off my best friend because she's like peak, beautiful, like brown, long, luscious, gorgeous hair, like teeny, meany little thing. Love her to death. She's still my best friend. But the men flocked to her, you know. And so I'm just like standing down only two drinks and being like, do not put anything in her drink or I will take you down. Yeah. And so you're seeing attention being given in another in a new way. You're looking at it from the outside and therefore can see it the most clearly. Yes, exactly. So I like fun at my house. Like I live in a house of like five sort of girls. So we party. And it was a community. Yeah. It was. I mean, I had a great like Greek life experience. Even though there was obviously like mean girls pulling like whatever you're going to have that at any school age of 18 to 22 year olds, you know, totally. But I ended up building a really strong community of like girlfriends. I'm still best friends with two of the girls I lived with in college. There's still my girls this day. And I think had I gone to somewhere like UT, it actually would have been worse because the Greek life I think is more toxic at other public universities. I think Baylor, because of the religious aspect, it actually was way more tame for the sororities, not for the fraternities, but for the sororities. So yeah, I it was not the most pleasant experience, but it's a story. Yeah. Which is on an like on an environmental level. Like of course that like starts to be pernicious and you start to like think these you start to live in the system of like the whiteness of it all. Yeah, you're like, I obviously didn't have the language we all have now with like assimilation, like learning what it means to be a person of color. All these things, these are not conversations we're having in 2013, 2017. I didn't find out what Afro Latina meant until 2017. I was like, that's me. I just was like, I'm Puerto Rican and then people were like, you're black and I'd be like, well, no. And then now I'm like, yes, but then I didn't have that language. So at that time, I was just like, well, if I'm just the best at everything, I'll be accepted surely. Sure. I was like on the executive council, my sorority. I was a deansless student. I mean, I went to a private Baptist college. I was like, I, if I just, if I'm good enough, they'll like me. And then I dated this guy in college though. This he was five years older than me, which was already a problem in himself. You know, if you're 20, don't date a 25 year old. Oh, god. So no, certainly no one older than that either. You don't know what's weird until you don't know what's weird until you're on it. You look down after the fact. And so he was my TA. So already bad. Sure. Were you attracted to the fact that it felt like a hierarchy? Like 100%. Yeah. Well, I, because all semester when he was my TA, I thought we were flirting, but I, I took it as like, to he, this is so fun. This is like a fantasy. There's like a rivalry. Like the thing I'm not really supposed to be doing. You watch people do something horny about it. Exactly. Yeah. You watch heated rivalry back in the day. Yeah. Of course. You do what it was. You know what happened. It was fantasy to me, right? Yeah. Yeah. Of course. And I would go back to my girlfriend's and be like, oh my god. No, I think he's flirting with me. And I got really drunk in the summer with one of my friends, because I stayed in Wake-O for that summer, because I was interning or something. And I got really drunk and I added him on Facebook, because that's the time we were living in. Instagram was not like that. But I like found his name, his full name, and I added him on Facebook. And they messaged me asking to take me out because I was no longer his student anymore. And so he was like, well, we can like go on a date. And then we went on a date. And then next day, you know, we dated for like almost three years. Wow. I went on a date with him for like 20 to 23 until I moved to Portland and then like it kind of fizzled out from when I was living in Portland the long distance. Many of the things, but I sailed as a say, as we were dating, my senior year, he is a grad student. He is older. I had to get a fake idea to go out with him, because he was embarrassed to take me out. Like, should have known. The writing was on the walls. There were lots of things that you ignore when you were just simply attracted to someone right. And assuming a lot about that, he's going to take care of me. And so we're out one night. And he was like, oh, well, you know, my family doesn't like love you. And I was like, huh? I was like, wait, wait, wait, wait. I've met your family. I've gone to Virginia to meet them. This is before get out came out, which was he was related. Yes. Very much so he's like East Coast family of lawyers. Dad went to Georgetown like all. And my like probably. I was like, that's the list white. So to me, I was like, this was also exciting. I was like, oh, he's like elite. Like he's like, he's special. You know, I'm just a pumpkin from Houston, Texas. He's like from the East Coast. So he knows culture. And so I created my papers. Yeah. Literally. And so I actually, he was a geology TA, which is like, I had to take one last time. And he brought in the rocks. I know fucking kids. Literally. And so, but we're out. And he's like, just make sure there's no dirt on this one to all the geology. Okay. I'm going to sit in the corner now. We love you geology. We respect you geology. We respect you scientists. Just not for me. No, but. And I was like, what do you mean your family doesn't like music? Well, you're just not like a rich white D1 athlete. And he stuck this to my face. And then he was just like, and it was nagging. Of course, now we have this language. We have to be like, now. No, we have all these words we can overuse. But at that time, I was like, and it was like the first moment that I was like, oh, it doesn't matter how much I tried to assimilate. I will never be enough like for these like I can be the best I got. At that time, I had already landed my job at the ad agency, which is the number one ad agency in the industry. Like I was like, I was the best of the best of the best in every category. And it was not enough for this family because simply I'd not come for money. And I was not white. Do you think it never would have been enough even if they did spend a lot of time with you? Yes. I don't think it would have ever been enough because I remember so distinctly, his mom came into town for something like for work. And my mom had been to also come down. And I was like, oh, we should get dinner. And so our parents are our mom's met. And I remember feeling so at that time uncomfortable with how loud my mom was. And how much of a like Puerto Rican woman she was. And it was because I was like shrinking myself to fit into the space. That was so clearly not meant for me. And now I look back feeling so sad that I even ever felt that way looking at my mom. But I know where it came from because it was just like, it was so clear the writing on the wall that I was just never going to be accepted by this person. And I think if I had wrote it out, we would have gotten married in divorce. Like I do think like had I not moved to Portland, I would be married in divorce. And your whole relationship to what I think we might be getting at like on like the pathway to you starting this podcast is like you probably developed a very wonderful sense of quote unquote, like what the lineage is, right? And like how you had both of your parents are also diaspora Puerto Rican who then went like, you know, who now like and now you go back and like you revisit and you have this beautiful appreciation and this like connection to it. Like you got to root yourself in that. Yes. Like this thing. Crazy to think about my past life in Texas because now I've lived outside of Texas for almost a decade. I moved to Portland in 2017. So I was in Portland for like three years and I've been here for six. So I've been almost out of Texas for a decade. But it's like I kind of put my my Texas life on a shelf sometimes. I feel like after Cowboy Carter came out. It was like the first time I was like, okay, it's okay for me to be Texas. Like I was wondering how connected you are to Texas. Yeah, I was very traumatized I think from my upbringing. And now I've had enough distance and I've lived out of Texas long enough that I can have a deep appreciation for the beautiful parts of my upbringing. But I'm still never going back. Right. You know, it's something I'm trying to get my parents out of there and they've even looked at me. I think when I first moved, they're very sad and they were like, of course, like we wish you could just get a job here. But I always knew like even from when I was little like something in me, I was like, I'm not meant to be here. Like I meant for bigger and better things. I want to achieve this big grandiose life. I don't know what that looks like, but I know I can't do it here in Texas. And I think those swish few years, they were like, come home. But when I moved to New York, they were actually like, stay there because they're like, you're happy. You seem like this is where you're meant to be. And they have roots here. Yeah, my mom is, she loves New York. She loves visiting. She grew up in her summers here in New York because my grandmother was born in Spanish Harlem and like grew up in Spanish Harlem and the Bronx, like we have family, the Bronx, we have family in Spanish Harlem. So my mom spent summers in New York because she would go visit her grandmother who still lived in New York. But my dad has no connection to New York. He is very like, he is a California dude. He loves LA. That's so funny. He misses LA. Opposites truly attraction. Yeah, he's like, please take me back if you could pay. If you make enough money, Becca, please retire us in LA. And I'm like, I hope so. I think people with the right idea think of like California as a retirement assistant. My parents are in Florida. And it's tough. Yeah. Because it's like, you're like, oh, it's so warm and sunny in Disney's right there. But then it's like, oh, please, Disney of it all fades right away when you realize that is not the same. It's her sharing. Does it know you love Disney, but does your family, are they Disney? The reason that we love Disney is because we were, we, that was the, at the time, affordable vacation for us. No, because my family's a Disney family too. And that was like the only vacation. It is because of them. Yeah. So now it's, now it's not a four to four. No, no, no, they're very bald about it being about the bottom line. And it's almost better for them to just be honest about it. Yeah. Like a Disney Mickey smile on it and take all the money from the families. But this was not how it was back in the day. The reason why we were going down there so much and I think one of the reasons why my sister went to college in Florida is because we had like an experience going there once a year. And it was of course a warm state. Yeah. It didn't have the political reputation that it has now. It didn't have sort of, we weren't thinking about it like that. No, it wasn't like that. And also we were young and like I was just excited to go on vacation because we couldn't afford like probably similarly to you. Yeah. And we weren't going anywhere fancy. No. And like basically we, because I grew up fairly poor up until like I was in middle school because my mom was a state home mom up until I was like seven. And she finished her degree while I was like while she was a state home mom. And I like went to her college graduation in second grade I think. And it was after that it was a huge change because then my parents became a two income household. And my mom became a teacher. And all of a sudden by the time I got to high school like freshman year we started to like get to go to Disney and like go on vacation. But my dad is, he's a very particular person and he likes only certain things in certain ways. And so the only vacation he's willing to go to is Disney. So then we just became a Disney family because it's like the only place my dad was willing to travel. What are the things the particular is about Disney that we're around? I think it's because it's so Americana. Yeah. You know, my dad and my mom are very different diasporic and Puerto Ricans. Like my dad is like very, he's like, I'm an American. I grew up in California. I love hot dogs and pizza and burgers. He's like, I'm proud to be an American. Whereas like my mom, I think she is more enriched in the culture because she actually grew up on the island. But I say all that to say, when we're at Disney, I think he likes the Americana of it all. He likes it. And it's like, he doesn't have to think. He's a huge part of it. He means to do a say. And he doesn't have to think. You go and you just, you eat the food. You go on the rise. There's no planning. It's just like you just show up and everything's done for you. It's the Disney way, the magic. And I think he likes that. Yes. Or at least it was the way it was. It was the way. And now we went last year and it was like the app and you need, you need like all this. It's so much work. You have to plan for months in order to enjoy the day. And my mom is, shout out if you want a Disney vacation, hire my mom. She does do like, does she really? Yes. Oh, so we could jam out about this. Yes. No, absolutely. She does all the bookings. This is my mom's books, all our trips. And then we had a little Disney vacation planner. Oh, wow. That's a great, great. That's a great, great, great job. That's a great, great job. That's a great, great job. That's a great, great job. That's a great, great job. That's a great, great job. Because it gets discounted to go to Disney. Totally. Like people call up and they're excited about having their vacation. And the fact is it is overwhelming and difficult to navigate. Yeah, navigate. Yeah. And she loves doing that. She loves a plan. Yeah, yeah, yeah. She's very organized, type A kind of woman. So, back to your mom though and about like you feeling embarrassed that, you know, about her volume. Yeah. And so you know this thing someone said, I forget who, but it was like, they were talking about like the way people talk about movies and TV and just culture nowadays where like, I didn't like it because the characters are unlikable. And then it's this thing where it's like, the thing you don't like is usually the point. Yes. And like, right. The thing that we feel shame about with particular parents, because I'm relating to this on some level. Yeah. Like the things that I would be very embarrassed about like, and you would just have this environment, because of white supremacy or whatever, or just living in America. Like, I'd be embarrassed about the food that I bring to school or something like that. Not only realizing that's the reason the food is like, the reasons for being ashamed of like the way our parents behaved or the way like our culture gets brought into these places is the point. Yeah. That's the great thing about that. It's the beauty of where you come from because then you're not like everybody else. And there's, I think it takes like growing up to realize that. It's supposed to be. Yeah. Like, oh my god, I just desperately don't want to be perceived in a way. You're like, I want to fit, especially when you like already look out a place, right? Like, I don't look like any of the other kids. I am also have the experience that many putterians have where your family just all doesn't look the same because we're from an island that's like so mixed. Like my dad is like very white putterian. And my mom is much more dark skin. But like, I am like, I'm for Latina. Like, I don't look like either of my parents. And least when I was growing up, my hair was much curlier. My hair is like jet black. I was always darker. I am shades lighter than I grew up because in Texas, this sun's always out. Yeah, yeah. So I was very dark when I lived in Texas like my whole life because the sun was always out. Right. So I just looked not like my family. So I think that was like already a problem like people used to just so fucked up. My mom used to tell me this as like, aha, and then you think about it. You're like, wow, that's like really messed up. But people used to stop my mom and be like, so is like, beckos dad the same as hurt your son's dad because my brother and I are only a year and a half apart. But he and I look very different. He's got like a light brown hair. He's much more fair than I am. And yeah, people used to ask my mom a lot of time when we were kids if we had the same dad. And mom's like, they're a year and a half apart. You think I'm crazy? I think I'm just stepping out of my husband like that eight months. I post part of the comfort that people had to say. For that. Yeah, that's very telling. Yeah. Yeah. You've seen the selfies? Come on, we'll get the shot. Now see the real hair. There's so much confidence in myself I need to build. Princess Andre is back with the Princess Diaries on ITVX. This is actually dreaming. She's still unfiltered and still figuring it out. I've seen firsthand what heartbreak can look like to people. Bansay, she's an amazing role model and the show is heartfelt and inspiring. I'm so excited for you guys to come along with me. The Princess Diaries series two, stream now on ITVX. You just got back from Puerto Rico recording these first episodes of podcast. What was that like? It was so much fun. It was actually kind of an interesting experience because this year, if you had asked me before 2024, if I would go to Puerto Rico five times in a year, I would have been like, no way. I would never have the privilege to be able to do that. But in 2025, I went four times or three times, three or four, four, three. We're seeing three. This is my fourth time. Maybe the pink one up. Yeah. Because we went for my birthday. Three plus times. We went for my 30th birthday, which is a lot of fun. And then we went for my partner's birthday in July. And then I had a good friend that was like, I'm selling my bad money tickets. Do you want them? Oh, fun. And it was like, but we're literally in Puerto Rico right now. Do we book a trip to be back in three weeks? We did. And we came to this August. It was August. It was the first weekend of the like non-portal local residency. Yes. Because we ended up there the first weekend of the local residency, not because we had tickets because we just wanted to come for my partner's birthday. And then we tried to get tickets and we couldn't get them. And at the same time, my friends like, I can't make my trip. I'm going to sell my tickets. But obviously I wanted to talk to you first. And I was like, yeah, it's a once in a lifetime opportunity. I'm going to buy those tickets. And so I brought my mom for that last trip. So I went three times and then I just went this past week in January, 26. So four times in less than a year, I would have never thought in my lifetime that I'd be able to frequent the island like that. It's been such a beautiful healing experience. So like go to Puerto Rico to network to like build community. I like now have friends on the island that like live there. Yeah. And like I can see and it doesn't feel like I'm like on vacation so much. It feels like it's the professional purpose too. Exactly. And throughout the seasons, even though it's like this attempt at thing all year, but yes. Yes. And this is my first time going in the winter, which was very interesting because it definitely is colder than you think. It's rainy. It's rainy. There are these things called sand fleas, which I experienced when I went in March, many, many moons ago when I was in college, but I didn't experience in them all summer. So I'm thinking, I'm putting my thinking cap on Puerto Ricans. Let me know are the sand fleas worse in the winter because I am like, yeah, it's it's bad. It's, it looks like I have chicken pockets. So did you prepare at all for this or do you? I did not, I did not anticipate that at all. I was like doing a photo shoot on the beach and they literally, I didn't even get in the water or like sit on the sand. They were jumping from the sand to bite me. Fuck. Do identify as someone that and a lot of people do identify as this, someone that mischievous love. Like some people are like, you do? I do identify as someone that mischievous. I see, I've been lucky about this. I have this privilege, which I don't seem to like. I was going to ask you. It's a, oh, oh, I'm oh. That's what you said. That mischievous love you. Is that a thing? That's what I've been told. My mom was always like that. No. Maybe it's an old, wise tail. Yeah. Positive. M.O.N. M.O.N. Baby. M.O.N. M.O.N. Baby. Baby. M.O.N. Baby. M.O.N. Baby. I'm a universal receiver. Yeah, I was gonna say, you're a universal receiver. Any old person can make a deposit. But yes, we're universal donors, but I do think there's some, but the same please are, it doesn't matter who you are. Everyone got sent to the North. Doesn't matter who you are. They will equal. I am. I am. But. But this is beautiful because you're going for work. You're going for personal occasions of like, it's my birthday, it's my partner's birthday. And then before we just ask you the question, like talk about the experience of going to, like these shows because this album, W2RM's Photos is like, Oh my God. Historic, gargantuan, changing album like the best. Well, you know, so I was there in July, which was like the beginning of the tour. And the energy in the island was like electric because it was the beginning of the tour for the residents who live in Puerto Rico. It was before the tours. And a lot of people did ask us, they're like, are you here like snagging tickets from locals? And we're like, no, we came because we were. I wouldn't thought of that. Yes. So this is something that I'm going to tackle in the show. But it is, there's a lot of tension between Puerto Ricans that are from the island who live on the island. And those of us who live here in the States because there are socioeconomic struggles between the two cultural divides. Like it's purposeful the way the government has divided the communities. And I am hoping with the show to kind of bridge that. But I come up on that every time I show up, I am trying to be like, no, look, I might be from the States, but I am like here in Liberation of Puerto Rico to love and care for this island. And I respect you, those who are like here because it is hard to live in Puerto Rico. And they were very excited in the summer. I feel like in the summer, people were like, so jazzed about the tour and about what was going on on the island because that money did have like a lot of stuff for locals to be able to do. Like he was not only like surging the economy, but he did like have all these events. Like he did like an art gallery at the museum of fine art like of like this Adidas collection that he did of all these shoes he's designed for Adidas. Like archival ones that have never seen the light of day. He like did this exhibit. He did like in the Plaza at, El Choli is like the concert hall in Puerto Rico that he performed at. But in the Plaza, you didn't have to have tickets to go and experience stuff outside. So there was like food and drink and like gift bags and like photo ops. And so like you could enjoy the show if you couldn't get tickets to the show. And then they would give away tickets every night. Like if you waited in line, like there were like a handful of tickets for those who were unable to get them to get tickets. So he was doing a lot for the people of Puerto Rico, which is like, I don't think we will realize like yes, it's capitalism yes, it looks good for him to be so for Puerto Rico. But I'm like, he really is doing that. Like he is like for the culture and he's outside. Like one thing I've learned coming back and forth between Puerto Rico, what's the expression? Can you tell me my partners in the room? And Puerto Rico is a Swiss ice cream. I've heard behind the scenes Spanish. Oh, Puerto Rico's not coming to me. Puerto Rico's not coming to me. Which means everybody is, everybody's in there. Everybody. Oh, I have like, and I'm not. It's bad bunny vibes. Exactly. I've not been in bed because I am loyal and monogamous. But so what did you say you said that bad bunny is is out? He's outside. Like everybody knows each other. Like what I've learned going back and forth between Puerto Rico so many times this year is like, every like it is a small island. Like it's a powerful. There's like, brewery or something happening that like we're able to like a mass such of following and like have community in so many places and like be such a loud voice in such a small place. Yeah. But everybody does know everybody. Like it truly, I am like one degree separation from bad bunny on like multiple accounts like my designer for the show art, which hopefully I'll be able to release this coming week. Well, obviously by the time this episode comes out, the show art will be out. But I am working with the net who did the Choli residency art for bad bunny. My good friend is going to be the first episode of the show, Doral Melinda's Barrio and his wife Aurora Sandeal Ortiz. They worked with bad bunny to do the visualizers for his album. And their academics. Their academics. So I am good friends with somebody whose cousin is like one of bad bunny's main directors and now we're in contact. We're chatting. So it's like it's crazy. Like he really is for the people. And I say, oh, is it say he's outside? He's outside in the community networking with real Puerto Rican's and he is really doing the work. Like, well, the residency was like, oh, yes, to bring it back to that. But I'm saying like it was like it was practical in the sense that it was like there's fucking and there's there's a violent assault on brown people in the mainland of America. Yes. I'm not touring there and putting those people in danger. Absolutely. Come to me. Yes. Like that. And it's I feel like Puerto Rico is a safe haven for a lot of like migrants in the United States who can't go home. Yeah. Because it is a US territory. So they can legally travel to Puerto Rico and experience like a Latin culture. And they can't go back to their home countries because of their citizenship status or whatever. So I find that very beautiful that because it is like Puerto Rico, yes, they speak English there. But all the signs are going to be in Spanish and Puerto Rico. The locals do not want to talk to English. They will look at you with full disdain that you're not speaking to them in Spanish. And yeah, they are like it is a span, a fully Spanish speaking country. I don't think a lot of people understand that. I think they think, well, it's like Hawaii. And it's like, well, that's why he had the song about Hawaii because he's like, we don't want to be like Hawaii. We don't want to be a state and then end up with our culture being like American washed, you know. But to talk about the shows, you guys know I'm Bayhaggedown. You guys know. Of course, but you're about to say something. You have to say something crazy. It was better. It was better than a comic book. And you all know I had pit seats for Cowboy Carter. Of course. No, I remember the lead up. I was in the nosebleeds of De Bittirara, Másofo and had a ball. It was the best concert I've seen in my life. It was so much fun. It was like the whole energy in the room. It was like a true party. And honestly, what was really beautiful about the show, everything was really cheap. Like the food and drink and everything. He did not mark up. They did not mark up for the locals. They really kept it very affordable. And I was like, we go, what do we went to? Madison Square Garden in Cisabrino. We saw Sabrina on Halloween. Yeah, I got two drinks. Oh, it was crazy. Yeah, I got two drinks, 50 bucks. Terrible. I was able to get drinks for everybody. It was 50 all year. Yeah, we were at Anna and Fraser. And I think it was like, it was truly like between the four of us. Yeah, it was like, it was three figures for drinks. It was crazy. Whereas like, we were able to feed me. My mom, I also brought Anna to Puerto Rico for the show. I remember that. Because we're our producing team. Yeah, I love that you guys have become such friends. Oh, yeah, that's my messy. Yes, your girl. That's my girl. But no, I took her with. And we had such a ball. It was, I did get COVID. I did fully, I will say. No, fine. I got COVID like the concert. Absolutely. Like I was totally fine. It's nice to get it somewhere memorable. It was like, I got it in Mexico City. Yeah, it was, it was bad. For New York City. Because I was like, there's no way this is the flu. It was like, because I had no, because you were, you were out there. I was down. 100 plus fever. Like I was down. Down with the bed. Yeah, like we were at a restaurant and I was like, I don't think anybody believed me. I was like, I'm heading south right now. They're like, you have an eating all day and I was like, because I am sick. I can feel my body is like actively shutting down. I was, my fever was so bad. I was like, because a lot of Puerto Rican homes are like concrete or tile. Uh-huh. I was laying on the tile because I was so hot. Like I could feel myself sweating and like nothing could break my fever. But it was worth it. It was, that money was worth it. It was worth it. For you to sit in the nosebleeds and because his show is so like, it's, it's the tone of it is so warm and inviting and it's like a bath. He's like, yeah, the fact that he can convey that to you like up in the nosebleeds and bring you in. Yeah. That is, I mean, that he's such a perfect show. Oh, it's such a cool venue because it reminds me a lot of Barclays Center. Not that it's easy to get him. I don't like going to Barclays Center. I do enjoy a show at Barclays Center because I do feel like there's not a bad seat at Barclays Center. And similarly, I'll show you it was like, there was not really a bad seat, but it was very cool because he had two stages, right, which I'm sure everybody knows this by now. But it was cool because where we sat, we were able to see both stages very well. So I didn't feel like I was like missing out on anything from being in the nosebleeds. Like we were able to see like the main like stage that looked like El Yonke and then the house stage was the one that was like kind of in front of us. So we couldn't see the front of the house, but the cameras were facing. So like you could see it on the prompter, the house. So you weren't missing out on the house. Sure, sure. We were there the day, what's the movie he was in with? Happy Gilmore too? No, no. The other one, the, the, cuts, when we were there when the cuts stealing people were there. Oh, fun. It's like Austin Butler, it's like, I'm not sure. Awesome, but, oh, fun. Oh, like he was, obviously he did all those interviews after being like, I was high on shit out of the editable. Right. And I was like, when you were actively watching it, you're like, oh my God, he's trying to be so hard to be cool. Like he looked like he was like, yeah, I'm like cool. He was just a song. But instead he was a song. And probably like into it, he didn't speak any Spanish because like when the perreo started, it was great. Yeah. The way people were grinding in every aisle to the point, my mom was like, y'all grind. I was like, Carol D. Absolutely not. Yeah. You are my mother. I am not like gonna perreo. And in front of you, this is not what I was taught growing up at the end of day. You raised me in the South. We didn't raise in Puerto Rico. All of a sudden her body got came out and I was like, love. Or later on, I were like, and you're like, okay, now you see your parent as they have been as they were all along. I was like, oh, this is who you were. I was like, when you're with them, I don't have this. This is crazy. That's fun. But yeah, it was damn. It was a time of my life. It truly was like such a like eye opening and heartwarming trip because that trip also we went to La Salad Libre, which was like this project done by Mikey Codero, who's one of the first interviews I do for the show. But he is part of this project called Asperico, which is bringing or not bringing by highlighting the stories of diasporicans, like those porines in the diaspora that are making a pilgrimage back to the Puerto Rico and building a life in Puerto Rico and kind of highlighting like the struggles, but also the beauty of like reclaiming the island and how difficult it can be because you can feel very rejected. I am definitely felt very rejected. It's the tension between people who live there and people who don't. But you have to like kind of build a thick skin and kind of get over it and know you are building something for the greater good of Puerto Rico. I think when I had visited Puerto Rico younger, I was very intimidated by that. I felt very hurt. But now that I have more knowledge about why the people of Puerto Rico feel that way and like what I can do to be, it's almost like gentrification, right? It's like, how can I be of service to this community instead of like actively gentrifying it? So I think you have to like with gentrification and people being upset with you about being in these neighborhoods, you have to like take it on the chin and then also be like, how can I actually help you know? Like I have to live here or I have to be here or I want to be here. So how do I not be a parasite to this community? How do I be a part of the good in this community? And so I think I become more comfortable in my skin and being Puerto Rican. I think if I ever nail down my Spanish, I'll no longer feel like an outsider, but my Spanish is still my way. I think I know. Well, languages so interesting because I've gone through stages of this with the Mandarin of it all and like, do your parents speak English? They do. Yeah. They are trying to like, like get me back on the path of like, let's just keep it to Mandarin between us exclusively. Yeah. And I got to say going to China this past summer, I was like, ooh, like this is, this is like just the way this is the means of communication literally. Yeah. Of course that is the most important thing to reserve. It is also something that like is completely on your own pace because your brain is your brain. Yeah. Well, you know what I found out as an adult, I'm super dyslexic. Really? Yes. And I have severe ADHD, which I'm sure maybe you guys knew. I didn't find this out until this year. You've never represented yourself as being a, thank you. Out of control with your attention. Well, thank you so much because all my friends were like, girl, you didn't know. And I was like, no, I was never diagnosed until this year. Not the friends being, I brunch being like, funny, I would never think of that. Yeah. I would never think of that. Quite literally everyone of my friends was like, we thought you knew. And I was like, wait a minute. Yeah. Yeah. But I'm also severely dyslexic and I found out there is a correlation between like struggle with learning language and dyslexia because I've always struggled trying to learn Spanish. I have been taking Spanish classes since I was in seventh grade. I even during COVID went out of my way to pay for like a really expensive program, Spanish and Bena. I guess it's not that expensive. But it is like, I spent my own harder money to pay for a class as an adult to try to learn Spanish. And I still like, I understand it a lot more. Like I feel like if people are speaking to me, I can pretty much pick up what you're saying. But I totally freeze like communicating back. This is what I did before this China trip was, there's not an ad preply where it's just like one-on-one video lessons where these tutors are so good. At least the Mandarin ones, but I'm sure this applies to all the languages. It's like they will very gently guide you back to being like, so you just said this. You actually meant to say this. And then let me write that down in a document for you. Okay, no. I will be on the side. Because the language is hard enough when you are speaking your own. And then I can't even spell it. Right, right, right. I often say my words wrong. I didn't even figure out I was just like, I was dating my partner. We were dating probably like a year or so. And I was like looking up somewhere we were going and I was like reading a street sign. He's like, that's not what that said at all. And I was like, what? And he's like, are you just like, and I was like, and then I got tested and I was like, oh my god. And I am. Which honestly makes so much sense. I always struggled with like different things in academia. I was like always a really hard achieving student. But I think that was just like my own familial traumas and expectations. That was a different kind of pressure. Exactly. It was survival. Exactly. So it was like I succeeded out of survival, but not without intense challenges. And I definitely had remembered flagging to many people being like, I am struggling. Like I always struggle with critical reads, even though English was my favorite class. And I like always was an amazing writer, but a reader I was always struggling. And so many doctors though as a woman, as a woman of color, I think as a child, they just like dismiss you. So they're like, yeah, yeah, but like you'll figure it out. You have good grades. So like there's nothing to worry about. But then in reality, it's like it's now I'm looking back. I'm like, oh, yeah, it was so prevalent. My issues. There's like a fundamental thing. The other thing about languages, it's this like raw opening you sorry for people to like assess how much of the culture you are part of. And it's so interesting because you understand it on some level, but it is the thing of like, I don't know. Like I think a lot of people hold on to the language because it is so attached to your culture. And so to look at you and you don't speak it, it's like almost to be like the privilege you have to not have not learn our language because you are in these other spaces. And you're able to navigate these other spaces. And I think the not knowing English is like also attached to like not just your assimilation, but like your socioeconomic status, like your ability to blend into these different circles that they do not have the same privilege. So it's like I have much more empathy now to those who have given me a hard time. But I will say for many years it was a deep rooted like pain of mine that I did not know. And something I like held against my parents for many, many, many years. But now with enough therapy and age, I'm like, they were doing their best. Like I can't fault them for the choices they made to hopefully give me a better life. It was a conscious choice they made to not teach me Spanish. And it wasn't like out of malice, you know, and I have to remember that. Totally. It's like being a beneficiary of a system where a circumstance that you had no control over. Yeah. And that you did not design. And you all you can do is just have an understanding of like where it all comes from. And the fact that you're doing this podcast going there seeking out people who will not will be able to like fill in a shade of knowledge for you is like. I mean, this podcast, it's been, I've had this idea for many years. Like I actually got my job at I heart because of this podcast, you know, in a little like circumvent way, I hurt did this fellowship that our producer Anna created called next up about four years ago. I had seen it because I was a listener of the Daily's Ike guys and heard an ad for it. And at that time, I was an advertising still. And I want to get out advertising. It was COVID. I had these big dreams. I was like, I can't, I mean, it was radicalized by COVID. I was like, I cannot be selling ads. There's my life. This cannot be. This isn't it for me. Yeah. But I had worked on this podcast at the agency I worked at in Portland called onchigos. And it was a woman of color travel platform podcast. And it was really fun. We had one and I heard a word at an independent show, which was really cool. But I just was like looking back during COVID, all the things I enjoyed doing. And I was like, I liked doing that. I liked curating events in Portland. None of the things I enjoyed doing had to do with advertising. So I was like, how do I get to do those things? And I knew I had to be a producer of sorts. But then before all that, I hear the ad. And I'm like, okay, I think I'll just pitch a podcast idea. And so I had two ideas. One of them, I'm like, oh, well, that was such a stupid idea. But one of them was this Puerto Rico podcast. It didn't look the way it looks now. But it was like, oh, a podcast about the history of Puerto Rico. That was like my soft pitch because the application didn't require you to do like a crazy pitch. It was like getting people who were not in the industry to be in the industry. And so I had applied and I didn't get it. And I was so sad. You didn't get the up next. Don't worry. Because what she had said, because I was talking to you about her. I'm pointing to, I don't know. But I had talked to you about Becca, probably like a six or seven months ago, just about how amazing you are. And she was saying that you were in the fellowship, but it became so clear that you were overqualified almost immediately. So then you became our producer. Yes, because basically I had bullied Anna and tired me because I was like, this is going to change my life. This is what happened. I'm a thing now. I was like, this is this is going to change my life. I was like, I know in my heart and hearts like, this is going to change my life. I need to like figure this out. So I had applied it and get it. I email Anna and I'm like, hey, like, why didn't I get it? There was some mistake. Yeah, I was like, I was like, please, I'll do anything. And then she was like, you're overqualified. Oh, that's why. But they don't tell you that when you don't get it. No, it would be nice to know. I don't have too many people. She had so many people to notify because then I helped out the next year. I was like, I see. Gotcha. I was like, okay, well, if there's any way I can like work here, like this is what I dream. And so Anna and I just stayed in conversation for months. And finally she was like, I actually am hiring a part-time producer. Like that was the offer. They were like, I've been begging for help. They finally greenlit me to hire a part-time producer. And so I had submitted something to like be in contract. And they were like, you know what? Let's just hire you full-time. And then I became your own producer. And were we the first and only show you what we're saying? It was you and the DailyZite guys. Because I feel like a lot of people, when you're hired on the LA team, you end up on the DailyZite guys. Because it's a well-oiled machine. It's Jack's show, you know, the head of development. And it's I think a great intro show for anybody because it's daily. So you really are just like from the beginning having to like be on it, work it, figure out what's going. There's all these moving pieces. So it was you guys, it was DailyZite guys. And then I had hopped on on a couple shows that like, you know, had one to two seasons. I did Blair Salky show, which was a lot of fun. We love Blair. I did. Was it 2020? 2021. Yeah, December 2021, I just saw it in my brain. December 2021, we met you on Zoom. We met on Zoom? We met on Zoom. We met on Zoom. Do you remember your first episode of Lost Coach? I don't remember the exact first episode, but one of was a virtual huliotaurus. Oh, fat. Yes. That time his little, what's it called? A location scout was scouting my apartment for Polymeast. Oh my God. Yeah. That's wonderful. Yes. Because I remember going downstairs one day and I see this little crumbled up note in like the center block that we used up prop the door open. It's already very huliotaurus. And I was like, and I clearly nobody else in my building gave a fuck about this like note, but I was so curious that I was like, what is this? And so I pull it out and it's like this typed out letter that's like, hello, I am working in a project for huliotaurus. We would love to use the second floor unit of this building. And I have this note will now weep and fl- and crumple away. And so it was like, please contact whatever, whatever. And mind you, I had like a really kind of like interesting landlord at that time. He was this older man who was like an ex-cop and like, it was a small building. It was like only four units. And he definitely like operated like a cop, you know, he was very much- Where were neighborhoods in? What? What neighborhood was this? Bedside. Bedside, yes, okay, yes. And so it was like a black home building. It was like all black tenants. And so I think he like thought like, well, like I'm helping you guys out. You helped me, but it was like very like con like between the two of us. It's really a trip that I was like, why do I feel like I'm like talking to my dad every time I talk to you that I'm like, gonna disappoint you and that you're mad at me all the time. And I can't ask you for anything. Oh, God. It was very strange. And so I knew that he would not bite like doing this. But I texted the second floor because it wasn't my unit. I was in the third floor. I texted the second floor guys because they're these two young guys who I think work in tech and they were smoking so much weed our apartment. Small like weed off. But I texted them, I was like, yo, like they're gonna pay you to like run this unit. You was like, you should do it. Like this is cool. And they never reach down. They never go. Yeah. But I could tell that that that scene where like what my unit was supposed to be filmed for in the scene based on watching the movie. I was like, oh, this scene isn't Bedside and definitely this scene was meant to be my apartment. Like what like where like he goes back to the apartment like all of his roommates. No, no, that is the scene with the guy who tries to hire Julio. Oh, yes, yes, yes, yes, to clean his house. Yeah, to clean his house. Yeah. Yeah. To clean his house. So, yeah. But you're also a little suspicious, like you're a Julio fan. I'm a Julio fan. I was like, so I was like so excited when I saw that but I was like, I, it's not my unit. I can't really do it. And I was like, and my landlord is definitely not gonna bite about this. So I was like, I'm not even, I'm not touching this with a temple pole. But I was like, in theory, this is very cool. It's a cool thing to happen to me. But for that to be one of your first episodes of Los Colts. Yeah. And then I was like, oh my god, I'm in the Julio because I've been a fan of Julio for years. And before that, I just think he's such a fun and interesting. I love like the weird Latino community. I think he represents like the weirdos in the Latino community, which I love. Yeah. Because I was like, I think when you are a misfit and wherever you grow up, you end up leaning in this emo world, which I was like a full emo, like warp tour going. Hot topic, like black eyeliner, tumbler, girl, straight bangs, like emo. I want to meet that Becca. I want to email Becca. I want to meet sorority Becca. I want to meet Portland Becca. You did it, man. I got an error. You had errors, you had errors, tour. Speaking of errors, we haven't even asked, we were shooting the fucking breeze. I know. We got to ask you the question. Becca, what was the culture that made you say culture is for you? Oh my God. Okay. I have two kind of leaning into the emo. They're both leaning into the emo. And I kind of just mentioned one of them. The first one is Twilight. Ah. Do you mean the books, the movies, everything? I mean, everything. The new Stephanie Meyer was a queen for you. We're waiting for you. Yes. Because I was never a Harry Potter. My brother was big Harry Potter. Even my parents read all the Harry Potter books. It might be a slight generational thing. Yes. But my brother and I are only a year and a half apart. I think though he was an early reader, my brother is kind of, he's very, very smart. My brother is like stupid smart. Like, like, massive, like double major in engineering and math. Like, he is like, we're like this. Like, like, no Venn diagram, oil water in terms of how our brains work. And so he was like an early, early reader and he loved Harry Potter. And my parents started to read Harry Potter because they wanted to make sure that like, the books were like, okay, for children. So they read them before and then they fell in love with them. But I was like, I tried, I read the first book like three times. I was like, I can't get into it. Love the movies because it's cinema. But you know, I couldn't get into the books. And now it doesn't even matter because she's just crazy. So I feel we don't need her anymore. I feel vindicated. Not the 70 Myers any better. But you know, well, she's just like, deeply Mormon. I think there's, you know, it's not as black and white. I think, yeah, you know, but what was it about Twilight? I think it is inherently pretty horny for a young girl. I got it. They're reading it. And because I actually, okay, do you, do y'all know that she wrote another book during COVID? I think I heard this and it was not real. It was, it was called Minite Sun and it is a, it's our Larsen. Wow. It's a mirror. It's a mirror of the first book Twilight, but from Edwards perspective. And I during COVID, because we were in lockdown and shambles, like conspiracy theories are happening on TikTok. We were like, why does Stephanie Meyer has a website up and account down and sure enough, she was selling the book during COVID. And I pre ordered it on Amazon just for shits and giggles. And then one day three months later, it showed up at my door and I was like, I didn't order anything. I forgot how to order the book. So I read it during COVID because I had all this time on my hands. And then I was transported to like eight or 10, 12 year old Becca. And I was like, I should not have been reading this because it is like the powered dynamics that played. It is like as an adult with like a fully formed brain, you're like, no, it's like weird that this hundred year old vampires into like 17 year old, you know, Chris and Sue are Bella Swan. Right. Like you can manipulate it by men. Yeah. Yeah. So you're like, oh, and but like as a child who is like, this time in my life, I'm so like, I'm boy crazy, right? Hormones are crazy, but also no one likes me. So I'm like, I'm home. I'm crazy. I know when likes me. So I'm like reading this book and it's like this deep love story where it's like you, you're convinced this control is love, right? So you're reading this like codependency and you're like, it's so romantic. He's so enamored by her. Like he's just like his, her smell is so intoxicating. Like she can't be with anybody else. You know, as a child, you're like, oh my god, that's romance. And as a child, you're like, that's fear. You're gonna be consumed. Actually, sounds kind of good. Yes. And so I was like, and I think I also just like really love that fantasy realm. Like I've never been into like sci-fi, but like true fantasy, like the vampires, which like that was my, I liked that type of stuff. Super natural. Super natural. Yes. I think super natural. Your girl. But yes, I loved all the supernatural stuff. And then the movies come out, right? Yeah. And they're cool classic. I was at the premieres. Like I was midnight girl. Team Edward. Wow. Like aggressive team Edward. Maybe I just had a crush on Robert Pattinson. People look back fondly on those movies now. Like even Robert Pattinson recently said he'd do a sequel. I take a re-ruch every fall. Wow. Of all of them. Of all of them, because it's fun. Especially Twilight's specifically, because Twilight was an indie production. And it is a lot of fun. It's a lot of fun to watch. Remember those soundtracks? Alex Bitsavis, music supervisor from the OC Grey's Anatomy. Incredible soundtracks. American mouth. Absolutely underrated. So good. Underrated soundtrack. And like, my dude, and this is also then connected with Hot Topic. Every flood's Hot Topic. Because you know, there are more than the soundtrack. Of course. Do you know the Hot Topic, your second culture? Well, no. Hot Topic was just where Twilight lived. You were talking about to the mall. Yes, you were talking about the mall, the culture, being emo. You know, I think if you were like in the, if you were Twilight heavy, you were also very emo. It was just kind of, and then my second culture, Tumblr. And you were deep on the Tumblr edits. You were deep on the shirtless. Wow. And word. Oh, yeah. This is the Skimmeroon. I remember an image of him like walking out into daylight. Oh, yes. That broke the internet. Yes. It was one of the first examples I remember of the internet breaking. It was like a leaked image of Robert Pattinson with no shirt walking out of, I believe like some sort of cathedral or church into the sunlight. And everyone was like, can we, can we breathe? Yes. I don't think anyone can breathe. I can breathe. You love Tim. You were Tim at work. I was Tim, I did not give a fuck about Taylor Launtner. I was like, my friends were, I think, Team Jacob, but I was like, I'm Team Adam, because like the romance was between Edward and Bella. Like, if you're reading the books, right, the actual love story, love, love story is between the two of them. So I think I was a very romance by the love. It would be like being like, I like gale in the Hunger Games. It's like, we all know Katniss and Peter are going to be like having PSB together when they're all, exactly. But when you're spoiling our culture, do you agree with the following statement? Tumblr had monoculture or do you agree with this statement, which is Tumblr was different lanes and we were all in our different, like, was that the beginning of like the algorithm where it's like, we all have our special corners of the internet. Okay. What do you think it was all streamlined in one? That is a hard question because I do think it's a little bit about. Yeah. I think as Tumblr became more mainstream, it did become like, there was a idea of what Tumblr culture is and it's more aesthetic. But I think at the beginning, if you were on in like 2010, like I was, then it was very silo, which it's almost like why I think gravitated TikTok when TikTok kind of took off. Because it was kind of feeding your algorithm and saying the thing with Tumblr was like, I was following these blogs that like, were like these different fandoms that I enjoyed and I was reposting. Yeah. I was re-blogging those things. But I also was like writing on Tumblr. Like I was never Tumblr famous, but I, it was like a true outlet for me as a young kid. I am left handed, so I'm not very good at writing. I was never top-propleterized. So, and I think my undiagnosed ADHD, I had a hard time pen to paper. My brain was moving faster than my hand could. So I would type, I would like write intense stories on Tumblr. And more like biographical memoir, like journal entries, but like I was a journaler on Tumblr. I was writing, writing, writing, a heartbreak. Like all these different things going on. I was still in access to it. Oh yeah. You do. Oh yeah. Only I think I've shared with one or two people my whole life, my Tumblr. Of course. Like I'm like, do you know it? You've seen it? Okay. He's special enough. But it took years and a stating for me to give it to him. Like years. Beautiful. I told him I was like, you can open it in your heart. Yeah. What are you opening your heart? That's real close to your number of 30. When you open your Tumblr, you open your heart. No, it was because like it is like 14 year old me sobbing on the keyboard about like my first love, you know, like it is like intense the things I would write on there. But yeah, but like, but in fanfiction on Tumblr. And fanfiction on Tumblr. But reposting is like the key thing on Tumblr that I think are re-sharing. What was it called? Re-blocking. Re-blocking. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I mean, it's all the same shit. Made the same term. They are re re. They're re re re. They're re re re. They're re re. They're re re. But re-blocking was interesting. Because what's said Tumblr apart from, I want to say like blogger. Or like, like my space. Or let's throw it all the way back to fucking Zanga. like, oh, there's a rate of like proliferate what one person puts out there, whether it's an image, meme, video, anything. Yeah. Like Tumblr kind of like gave the right, like delivery system for like what would come in like TikTok and then regressively somehow Instagram, how Instagram became like Snapchat and TikTok. Yeah, cause now also, but Instagram now, you have the carousels and like doing the screenshots which are basically the re-blogs. Literally some of the most screenshots of re-blogs on Tumblr because on Tumblr, I think the beauty of it other than like other forums was like when you re-blogged, you could like add your own little clip to it and then that goes viral and it's all the notes. All the notes is like, oh my God, you got 80,000 notes. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. She's crazy, but never me. Now, I was never friends. How hard did you pop off? Honestly, I was like, I kept that shit to myself. I liked Tumblr, I think in the way that I enjoyed TikTok for a while, that it was very like, I could hide behind it. Sure. Like people didn't know my Tumblr, it was like my Tumblr wasn't your profile, it wasn't your face. It was like, you know, whatever my Tumblr URL was and like whatever I wanted, I could be whoever I wanted in this blog space. So I liked the anonymity of it and that's how I viewed TikTok for me because I wasn't following people back or anything. I was just reposting whatever in my own feed and I liked the anonymity of like I could have content without following anybody. I could just like be fed things that I enjoyed and like no one needs to know that I'm on TikTok. Yeah. Similar to the way I was on Tumblr. But I guess me asking those two separate questions earlier is like, I'm still, my thought is like, oh yes, would Tumblr feel so romantic because it's like TikTok is purely, I mean a mess. It's a mess and it's cool, but it's also like completely individualized in the algorithm and sometimes there's moments of like, oh, there's not a lot of community on TikTok where there is community or was on Tumblr, but I think with Tumblr that was also really interesting is yeah, you have these monocultures where it's like the Lana Del Rey, the skinny, like the red pill skinny-ness of Tumblr where you were like being fed to be like die-cap culture and like all these days, if you were a girl on Tumblr, it was like depending on what side of Tumblr you were on, really rough. Like the die-cap started on Tumblr. Oh yeah. Yeah. And I was like luckily, I mean now I am a very curvaceous woman and I am proud of that. And I, but I wasn't growing up and I was naturally very like tiny, like I was very skinny. So I didn't fall susceptible into the skinny culture, but because I was already luckily a beneficiary of it. And I do think if I was the size that I am now, then I would have been wrecked. Sure. But that was Tumblr culture, like the dancing, the skinny girl, the ballet, like the goal was to be as like slender and emo and like cigarette, like I wanted to smoke a cigarette so back as a Tumblr, but I like to have my deep anxieties. I was like I can never pick one up. Being the kind of person that you were in high school, you know, because your parents could never have found out you's not the cigarette. No, I'd be murdered. That would be the worst thing in the world. Yeah, but I wanted to, I wanted to be cool. I wanted to be like a Lana Del Rey cigarette smoking girl. Are you a Lana girlie? Oh yeah. I was a Lana girlie, absolutely like that. And I, but I feel like I was a Lana a little bit after the mark because I was so emo for so long on Tumblr, like I was like deep pair more. I was like in these bands that like were touring, warp tour, like made a parade and like I don't even know other like black parade, my chemical romance, panic at the disco, like K, like that was my world tour. Were you aware of Katy Perry when she was on warp tour? I went to warp tour and Katy Perry's I worked for her. That was a lot of fun. Yeah. And then she like, I mean, she was a 303. 303. She was. Her whole first album, not first album. Because the first album was the Christian one under Katy Huts. But then the first album is like one of the boys. I was there. What's the other ones? A co-star ship. A co-star ship. Is that good girl's got that? With late and me. I was like, late me sir. Wow. No, that was me for a long time. And then I probably hit the Lana streak when I got to college. So what is that like ultraviolence? Yeah. Yeah. Like a ultraviolence. What is it? Cherry Cola. Yeah. Yeah. I was eating a slice of cherry cola. I was like, my eyes are wide like cherry pie. I love that. I was in, I saw her at an awesome city limits. Awesome city limits. Yeah. Awesome city limits. Yeah. Because I was an ACL girl for all of college. Because like if you're in college, I think it's a right of passage. If you are a college student in Texas, you have to go to ACL. So when we discovered Lana Del Rey on this podcast, you probably were in the corner like Jesus fucking Christ. I was like, I was on some random dude shoulder because my boyfriend at the time abandoned me to go to a Texas Baylor football game, different boyfriend by the way. But I literally we bought to go to the ACL. Took out there as a unit, me, him and his roommate. And they were like, we gotta go to the close football game. And I was like, uh, we're here for ACL. And they're like, well, we're just gonna go to the game and then we'll meet you later. Of course there's no service. It's like a different era of loans. Yeah, yeah, totally. I phone dead couldn't access anybody. Didn't know how I was gonna end up where I was gonna end up. And so I was just like, well, I can't have anxiety about this now. I'm just gonna go to Lana Del Rey. I run there some man who flew into ACL because he had like, he was like a festival junkie at all these festival resbands. He saw me standing there in my little five to ask, couldn't see shit. He was like, do you want to get my shoulders? And I was like, yeah. So I saw a lot of Del Rey on some random, I think British man shoulders. And who's kind enough to let me see the show? And that man was Robert Patton. And if only it was Robert Patton said, a dream, a broken dream. You wouldn't have made it. I bet you that this fucking guy and all of his friends couldn't tell you a single thing not about what that fucking game was. No, no. Like, absolutely. You're not gonna don't ditch ACL for a game. Yeah. So the podcast comes out February 3rd. Podcast comes out like February 3rd is today. And so like, how many episodes do you have? Like, like, like, where are you at with it? And this is a big, it's a big deal. It's a big deal. It's a big deal. I mean, like I had said, this idea came in fruition in December 2021. And I had put it away for a long time. And then as I became a better producer and I felt really confident in like my skills, I was like, okay, I think it's time for me to like, redevelop this idea. And I did and I pitched for a long time and now we're here. And obviously now four years in the making is incredible. But February 3rd, I already have four episodes. It's done. The first episode is gonna be narrative. It's gonna be very vulnerable. It's gonna be me telling my story. Why am I making the show? Biographical. But from there, it's gonna be talk show. So I have three talk show episodes recorded in Puerto Rico. It was very important to me to come back all the way to that question to record the first few episodes in Puerto Rico because I want the listeners to understand this is a diasporic experience. And that I think as a New Yorker, as someone who is Puerto Rican, lives in New York, it's very easy when you say you're doing a show about Puerto Rico that people assume it's about New Yorkians and New York Puerto Rican culture because New York is such an important piece of Puerto Rico. But I wanted this to be a bridging of the diaspora. So I wanted it to be intentional, to be shot partially in Puerto Rico to show that like, I am coming there. I want to bridge this gap. I want people to know that this is what it's about. And I interviewed Jorrell Melinda's Barrio and Santiago Ortiz, they're both professors, authors, incredible folk to talk to. We talk about a little bit about the history, the connection of the states and of the island. And then also we get a little bit into the connection between Puerto Rico and Venezuela. I know that's hot topic right now. We're not gonna get into that on this podcast. But we've been doing this for a long time. But I do think it's gonna be great. It's just what I wanted to start talking about it. No, but it's even outside of the current events of it all. There is historically a strong connection between Venezuela and Puerto. And Jorrell is a historian. I wanted him to talk about that because I was like, it's so relevant right now, people need to know. I didn't know. And then the second episode is with Ali Marie Fuera and she is a writer, like a culture writer, she has lived in the diaspora between she went to grad school here at NYU and I think somewhere in Boston or not at NYU, but she went to grad school in New York, I think upstate and then also in Boston. And now lives in Puerto Rico. She's doing a boozy book club in Puerto Rico where she's trying to like build community on the island. And she's also just so smart. She's so funny. She taught me about the socialist college in Puerto Rico. No idea existed. It's like one of the only publicly funded universities or schools because I think she went there from like middle school through college. It's one of the only publicly funded schools in Puerto Rico and it's also the only socialist school. So it's like one of the only schools that talks about liberation of Puerto Rico. It's amazing. Like history Puerto Rico, a lot of the schools stateside and in Puerto Rico do not talk about Puerto Rican history. And that's purposeful because the less we know, the less angry we are for the freedom and liberation of Puerto Rico. So Alanry was great. And then I talked to Mikey Cordero, which I already talked to you guys about. And all the amazing and incredible activism work he's been doing, but he's also from Bushwick originally. So he's like kind of like slowly throughout his life, rebuilt this connection with the island. Like he grew up spending summers in Puerto Rico and then eventually he like became a part of this giant activist artist group in college and then just stayed in Puerto Rico and like well, solely was I think spending more time split between New York and Puerto Rico. Now he lives fully in Puerto Rico. But yeah, that's amazing. I mean, these are also, these are all such like 360 narratives on diasporic experiences within the Puerto Rican community where it's like, it just, it comes just radially from all angles and it just converges back very beautifully like on the island where you got to talk to them. Yes. And what I really wanted to do with the show, I wanted to show that like kind of filled a gap I needed growing up where I felt very, even though I was fully Puerto Rican, I never had a question about being Puerto Rican because I had two Puerto Rican parents, but I think just being someone where there is no Puerto Rican culture, I did feel very removed. I felt almost like I think a lot of mixed race kids feel where you're like, I'm neither this nor this. Yes. Like I'm living here, but like I'm clearly othered by everyone around me, but I also don't feel like Puerto Rican enough. And so selfishly, I like built this podcast to meet really dope Puerto Ricans doing really incredible shit for the island, for the community, for the liberation of Puerto Rico and just like highlighting what they're doing and like the incredible art they're making. And yeah, and then I get into like their body of stories, which are like moments that they felt like they really connected with their identity. Like the first time they recognized their really Puerto Rican, I feel like mine, one of the examples I have is like, I was asked to be in this quince when I was 15 by this person who was Dominican. We were not friends. Like she was a classmate of mine and we both knew we were like Latino, but we weren't really friends. This is in Texas. This is in Texas. And so she was like, I want you to be my quince because you didn't have enough people for a quince, but then like in joining her quince, I got increasingly bullied for not being Puerto Rican enough. And I'm like, you asked me to be here because you needed more bodies and now your whole family is going to bully me for not being put in enough. So then we're in the hair salon getting our hair done for these quince photos, which mind you being a part of quince is like being in a wedding. And I did not know that because this is my first quince. And so then I was like, okay, now all of a sudden my parents are mad that we're spending all this money to be in this woman's quince that we don't really know, this family that we don't know. And I'm texting my mom because these women are ferociously bullying me 14. And in Spanish also, and I recognized it because my mom also chose to speak in Spanish when she didn't want me to know something. So I was like, the tone I'm hearing is making fun of Paca. So I'm texting my mom like holding back tears like everyone's being one of me and I know because I don't speak Spanish. And then she comes, she's like, where are you? And so she comes barreling in and she's like, nobody will make fun of my child. They're not being Puerto Rican enough for not speaking Spanish and she's yelling at everybody in Spanish. Or I think she started yelling at everybody in English and she's like, and I can yell at everybody in Spanish because I speak both languages. And so then she started yelling at everybody in Spanish and then she pulled my little ass out of there. And then she looked at me later and was like, you don't have to do this. If you don't want to be in this quince, you don't have to be in this quince. And so then I didn't know I went to work to her. And saw Miss Kate and in a pro. We did see Katy Perry. Katy Perry. But yeah, that was like a moment where it was like, okay, being a being Puerto Rican was like very important for this story. And so I wanted to hear more stories from other Puerto Rican's other diaspora that were like, what was the moment that was whether it was silly or serious or whatever that really rooted you in your identity and made you like the bodhiku you are today. And then, yeah, and then they give me recommendations of other art and cool shit that Puerto Rican's are doing. Ask at the end of every episode. I like want to hear from them like, who do you think is really cool? Like give me a recommendation of like a book you're reading and artists you're listening to an exhibit you're going to so that the listeners can also like find this other stuff. And also I guess before that there's a cheese made corner called gay boingene where I just asked him to bring in a little bit of like, cheese made whether it's serious or not. That's how we kind of talked about Venezuela because when we recorded that, I had just landed right after they had closed the airways of Puerto Rico. They had closed for 24 hours, you know, because of everything that happened. And so I was like, well, the perfect person to have on it kind of talk about this. And so we talked about it a little bit. One of the guests we had talked about her cheese made was actually like her piece. She was like, I'm not in the cheese made and that's actually my cheese made, which was like a really interesting take. And then we on one of the episodes talked about Romero Santos and the New York Times podcast. I won't get into it here because I get into it plenty over there. Yeah. So it can be as like serious as Venezuela or as silly as like, you're protecting your piece and you're like, I'm not going to be in the mix because at the end of the day, Puerto Ricans is so inside his bed. So you gotta be careful. There's enough drama. There's enough drama. I'm going to come a twin. That's how you, that's, yeah, I love it. No, it's like I started like when I found out that expression. I started asking everybody I saw that week and they're like, oh yeah. And you're like, so who have you and they're like, they really is. Wow. So proud of you back. This is so cool. Thank you. This is awesome. I mean, it's so validating to like hear that from you guys, King's a podcasting. We love you. And also to be here to be given this seat to talk to you guys is like, I couldn't be more grateful. Honestly, like, I big-brained it was like, I can only do this when I feel as the perfectionist I am, I was like, I must wait till the perfect time to release this podcast. And I do feel like now more than ever, even though this podcast has been in my mind for four years, the bad bunny really did like put Puerto Rico on the map in this way that kind of gave a lot of opportunity to the people I'm interviewing to be the platforms they are. Because a lot of the people I interviewed have been doing this work. Yes. Because of bad bunny, they now have a new platform to like, high-tail their work to the world. And I'm so excited to be a part of that movement, to be a part of those conversations. And so I'm like, just really grateful to be making, you know, a lot of new friends. And like, meeting Puerto Ricans, they're making me feel at home, they're making me feel like I have this extended family because I didn't grow up with a huge extended family. We are pretty removed from extended family. So it's been like really beautiful to build this like new kind of family. Yeah. That is beautiful. Congrats on like, doing this thing that it's also like, you're going to enjoy every second of it because it is your interest, it's your culture, it's like, it's just perfect. Yeah, I'm very excited. I'm very excited. You guys listen. I know you can't wait to listen. It's happening. It's coming February 3rd. Right there, baby. But you can watch the trailer and listen to it out now. Listen to you. You're already doing this. Like you're ready. Well, you know, it's funny. It's almost like you've been producing. It's almost like I've been behind the scenes for years. But no. You can ask my partner who produced, helped produce the episodes we did in Puerto Rico because we couldn't book a studio space because everyone was on vacation because if you know anything about Puerto Rican Christmas is the longest Christmas of any country. It's like a month long. And I did not take that into account when I went to Puerto Rico to try to capture some content because I had never visited Puerto Rico during the winter. And I was like, no, everyone's truly like, check the fuck out. They are like not doing anything. So my gracious partner who is a video editor and producer by trade set up our whole set up in like two different Airbnb's who are to record these episodes and make them happen. They're not going to be fully on YouTube, but they are going to be clips and all this up. But that first episode was so nervous. You know, you're going to be a lot of editing at that first episode because I was like, but we all do it. We all edit. We got to edit. Listen. But I feel much better now. Now I'm here. Now you're here. But the heart parts over you. The heart parts are good at it. I started it. I started it for you. Yeah. You're listening and she'll still be here. I will still be producer Becca of Los Coltries says I'm not letting that go. No. One of the things characteristic of of Los Coltries this episode is of course, I don't think so honey. This would be your first. I don't think so. This would be my first. I don't think so honey. So let's just like if you forgot for some reason, we'll have to wait. Of course, of course. 60 second segment in which I don't think so honey gets said and it gets meant. Yes. About something in culture. And I got something because you know, we got to get into it. We got to get into it. This is Matt Rodgers. I don't think so many times starts now. I don't think so honey that the tallest and fastest roller coaster in the world is at six flags. Kadea city in Saudi Arabia. So I'm not going there. Kadea city. I'm not going there to go do that. And that's a shame because I am interested in it. It is over. It is over 600 feet tall. It is 155 miles per hour. Oh my god. The layout of the roller coaster actually goes into the natural cliff. Yes. In the region. You have to go online and just low key incognito mode if you really don't want to start seconds. But just take the POV of it and watch people doing it. It's fucking insane. And it's in Saudi Arabia. So I'm not one of those people that's going to be like, shoulder shrug. Let's go. I ain't going. But I will say it looks like quite the ride. But I don't think they're going to be able to one up it because I don't think it is a bespoke coaster built into the landscape. So I guess, you know, if that's for you, go off. It's not for me. I'm watching from home and I'm disappointed about it because I would like to rocket ship off blast off warp tour into a cliff. That's one minute. Have you seen it? I've seen it. I don't want to get his book of world records. It doesn't even. It's clear away. It's far away. It looks crazy. I have to look this up now. It's completely absurd. And just a fight of heights to go that far. Of course. This is my thing with coasters, though. It's like we're plateauing. Once you hit a certain threshold of like speed, heights, drops, whatever, it's like, it's basically the same as velocity coaster. So then what happens is what you need to do is you need like your bespoke elements in order to make these things extra special. In this case, it is a bespoke element in the landscape in Saudi Arabia. So we can't be going there. Yeah, yeah. But I would say like, I don't know. I guess I looked to like the Alps now. Yes. They must build a coaster. You take the right at Disney. You sure are. Yeah. Yeah. That's the right thing. Everest. It is just a faint whisper. Still, still never understand fear of horror movies. Love of roller coasters. It is clearly what I don't know. I think sometimes it's just the idea that I'd be trapped in a room watching something. So I can't move. What about the idea that you were on a speeding vehicle that people sometimes die on? But I think what I think is what's scarier would be being in that country. I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about people are afraid of roller coasters understanding because something is happening to them. Yeah, like I can't say something more likely to die right here right now than on a roller coaster from from anything because I am protected on a roller coaster. I am it has actually been battle tested. These things are like they you know that are in an order for a roller coaster to run. It has to do something like a thousand continuous hours without incident. And so it's like when you're on a plane, you're actually safer than you are in a car because this is something that has been proven tested. Over and over and over and over and over and over and over. To be safe. Otherwise it would it would be crazy to let it in or put it into action. So you are safer on the Velocicoaster than you are walking the streets. But it's not like new regulations because I feel like growing up being in Astor world and water world. Sure. They were definitely not safe. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Astor world got tired. Oh yes, I think that what was it? Welcome to it was it there was there was a there was an HBO Max documentary a couple years ago about their particular water park which was like known for like. Oh you want to get a good. Yes, yes, I know you're talking about. Yeah, I don't remember where it is, but yeah, action park. Action park. Action park. Thank you. So basically it's action park and it's it's kind of an interesting documentary because it's just like bodily injury was almost a surety. Yeah, it was a day today. But that's not how it is at these at these big ones. I bring this up to sort of synthesize all of this and say I don't know if people who have died for watching a horror movie. And I think you're safe watching a horror movie that you are right. You know, for sure. So it's a big deal. It'll be okay. It's so important. Yes, because you got me there. Yeah, but I will say I do feel like I'm going to die more when I'm watching. Welcome to Dary. Okay. Welcome to Dary. Yeah. Welcome to Dary. Welcome to Dary. Yeah. Welcome to Dary. Yeah. Welcome to Dary. Yeah. So all my friends decided to watch put to put on it. Welcome to Dary the other day. And I was like, okay, well, you want to do this more than hang out with me that because I am leaving and they were like, okay, see you. Yeah, we do. All right, fair. It was Steven Dave and Jared and I was just like, you guys really picked a show over me. They were like, yeah, we want to watch it. I was like, okay, I guess I'm abnormal here because I will have a heart attack watching this. I will see myself out. And I think I went home and watched like, I don't know, could maybe I tried to watch Beverly Hills this season and was like, this is boring. It's rough. Every, every, every opportunity like this is an invitation to enjoy the genre. Weapons doing well at awards. Weapons is really great. I did it. I did it. I did it. I did it. I did it. I did it. I did it. I did it. I did it. I did it. I did it. I did it. I did it. I did it. The sounds are like, no, the sound, the soundtrack was released. The sound track is, no, it's, there's just one moment where, one moment where the sounds are terrible. Yeah, what is it? The face, that, yeah, yeah, yeah, not not not not even a face stabbing, not not even Whitmer Thomas. I see, I know that I think you're something else, right? I just can't, I mean, who are you serious? So, Hans, me, little diva head come off, little diva head come off, fucking love that movie. You actually can get your little diva head come off merch on the store. It is an evergreen item. And until 824 or soos. Yeah, right. Winch. At this point. Why not? Um, um, are you ready? I'm ready. This is going to upset people in this room. Oh, yeah. People in this room. This is Bowen. Yeah, they're all, they're all a little, they're all validated. Oh, God. Can I only go on our two ways? Yeah. This is Bowen Yang's, I don't think so, honey. His time starts now. I don't think so, honey, toxins. How can you be so cute and so damn loud? So damn loud at the same time. It's such a fucking raw deal, isn't it, that the cutest dog breed there is in my opinion is also so easily angered, so damn cute. And yet so fucking loud that I would go crazy and go into psychosis. 30 seconds. There was a beautiful docks of names, nut that I knew in college. Oh, no. She nut so cute and then I realized, oh, he's crazy. She just, she's the most beautiful dog I've ever met. She just a legend and more like, I don't find she to be that. She's bad. She just very well behaved. And yeah, you guys as the owner, you know, something besides me. Everyone in the room, this is the, this is the, this is the five seconds. She's a bad legend. Torturous tension of docks and says that they're so adorable, but fuck are they loud and so, so, so tough. There's the screen just really hits you primally. You're like, I need to stop. No, okay, I'm not upset with you because you're not wrong. Yeah. I made the mistake of getting a donks and now it's become my personality. But if you ask my partner, he doesn't forget to remind me every day that we made a bad choice with love. I'm sorry, you guys. We, we, we love Chicha. She is our tyrant. She is our overlord. Yeah. She runs the house and she has a lot of rules. What did you do today? What are the rules? She doesn't like it when one of us is traveling or if we travel at all and we drop her off a daycare, she hates daycare. And she makes everyone a daycare hold her the entire time because she doesn't like to play with the other dogs because they're beneath her. And oh my god. She also just like think is sad and she's like, I need someone to cuddle with me 24-7. If I'm doing my makeup for too long like today, she will start circling me and then barking at me because I'm not sitting, she can't sit in my lap. She's like, you're already beautiful. And you're taking up my time, which is for my lap. So she, she doesn't like it when I'm spending too much time doing, getting ready. She doesn't like it when it's too loud. So like at daycare, they sent me a video of her barking at all the other dogs for playing too loud. Like they're doing too much. She doesn't like it when either of us travels. She'll be like a real like bad dog when we're one of us is gone. Like she'll just start acting out like barking like crazy, being very reactive. She's a bad legend. Yeah, she's a bad legend. And then famously lately, the crazy thing, because now I have two docks ends. One of them is good for the most part. He's a full-size, standard wire hair. His name's Jack and we adopted him. I don't. His name was Chico. I know. We only kept his name because it seemed like he really like responded to his name. Yeah, I'm not sure. Because we got him as a puppy. Like he was like eight months when we found him. You can't change the name on the day. Yeah, I was like, they, it seems like he really learned Jack. So I was like, okay, we have Jack and we have Chica. But I will say behaviorally, the full size are much better than the minis. The minis are the bad dog hoes. The minis are so cute. But they're so cute. But Jack is a little bit more dense than Chica. Chica's so smart. I don't need it to be smart. Well, I was going to say they fight over this one bone often. And Chica's now gotten so smart. We'll show like a royal jack up and act like someone's at the door and start like barking. Like, oh my God, someone's at the door. And so then Jack will be like, oh my God, someone's at the door and he'll start running to the door. And then Chica will turn around. Like she'll like run with him to act like, oh yeah, we're chasing the door. And then she'll turn around and swoop the bone. She'd different traders season five. No, she would be a perfect addition to traders because she would be jamming out with Lisa Rina and Candace right now. She would have big plans. She's so manipulative because Jack, he just wants to do good. He just wants to be loved. He just wants to be pet and he's a little demanding for sure. Doesn't seem like a German dog. Right? Just so like. And Chica's particularly loud. You're not wrong. Like, specifically, I've been told by many people like four doxin, Chica is loud. And people think she, because her bark isn't just loud, but she has like a big, girl bark. Like behind the door, people open up and they'll be like, what the fuck? Like that's what was barking? Yeah. We thought a big dog was there and it's just like a little, a great thing. A great thing. Three inches off the ground, big pod little thing. She's Sabrina Carpenter. She's Ariana Grande, a little package big. Yes, exactly. So you're not wrong, though. And I respect your choice. Thank you. Well, we know that Chica is, I don't think so, honey, and all the time. She absolutely. She's never letting me know what's going on. It's time for you to, I don't think so, honey. Oh, man. This is a moment in time. Are you ready? I'm ready. I'm nervous. I don't know why, but I'm ready. It's not your time, so it's now. I don't think so, New York City apartment hunting, okay? I have lived in the city for six years, and I don't know if the landlords are scared among dummy and they're making it harder for you to get an apartment, but I have never in my life had such a hard time finding an apartment that I am this year in 2026. I've already applied for two apartments and been declined. One of them said, my guarantor didn't make a hundred times the rent, but it was crazy. Yeah, that's not crazy. And then the second one, they were like, you have two dogs, absolutely not. After I had put a deposit down, which meant they should not have shown that apartment. Yes, that's beautiful. To anybody else, they considered other people and let it go. And they told me, I was a perfect candidate. One apartment told me that I was approved and then declined. Like it is insane out here. It's also crazy that like, it's expected that in one month, you're supposed to find an apartment, move, pack your shit and like whatever. It's crazy because other place, they know, the landlords know three months in advance that you are leaving that place. So they should put the market three months in advance. That's one man. And that's one man. You're overqualified. That's why. I'm overqualified. I can imagine. I took a deposit and then two places have taken a deposit for me and the kindly apartment. They did to give the deposit back. I was just saying. The second one, they're being a little shady about it. But luckily I put on my credit card so I can like cancel the payment. That's a real. Yeah. And they all these landlords are trying to be, or maybe not landlords with the realtors are trying to be like, yeah, this is no fees and that great. And I'm like, no, this is a law now. That's the law. I think she feels like you're doing a favor that it's no, like it was insane. It was inhumane beforehand that I had to have three times a rent just to put down on this apartment. Don't actually you're doing me a favor now that I don't have to do that. But then you're also not giving me apartments. Yeah. It's crazy. It's absolutely fucking hell. Yeah. I'm so sorry. This is a really good room. I will find a place. But. Yes, you will. It's insane because I have lived in Texas in an apartment and I've lived in Portland, an orient in an apartment. And obviously, I'm not even talking about the price point. Those are different cities. We live in New York. We live in a New York price point. I don't even care about that. It's like, I could find an apartment like sign at least three months before my lease was over, you know, because it's like, you have to tell the landlord, hey, I'm moving 90 day in advance. And they're like, okay, cool. It's assuming that they would, they do with that information is put on the market. No, they won't put them are, they know which apartments are going to be available in three months. And yet they will not release them until the month before. And it's crazy. Crazy. Because it's like, how is it expected that I am supposed to hopefully find an apartment by January 1st to move in on February 1st? Like in that month, you have to then pack your stuff, get rid of stuff, move. Yeah. It's insane. But you know what? As a result of this, I don't think so, honey. You're getting a, you're getting a mansion. Someone give me an apartment, please, in Brooklyn. We're moving you in on, on, on, we're moving you into Gracie, mansion. That'd be gourd. I just need someone to let my two docksins in. Oh, one loud, one guy. I know they're loud, but they're cute and they are good and they will love you fiercely. Just let me let them in. As we love you fiercely. And we have, so love to this episode. I mean, just like, I know that this is going to make the readers tickled pink. And February 3rd. February 3rd. Welcome to a body of stream on all platforms. And right now you can tune in on IG. You can find us at Welcome to a body of on TikTok. And you can find me at Bex Ramos, wherever you can find me. And the Tumblr is out there somewhere. Yeah. If you find it, honestly, congrats. If you find it, you deserve to read it. Yeah, you deserve to read it. Yeah. If you can find it, because it's not under my name, so I'd be shocked. I have Google myself and many times hasn't come up, so. Okay. Don't keep Googleing yourself. And I can, can I give you a, can I give you a rest of the first disaster? Because I was what featured on Daily Zeke guys years ago, like when I first joined podcasting. And I had the audacity to look myself up on Reddit. And I made one comment about a pop star that I'm sure everyone can assume. And it wasn't even that bad. I apologize immediately. It was like, don't come for me. And then it was like, she hates women. So I know better. I will not be Googleing myself after this venture. Now that I am a public personality. I will never Google myself again. Well, I'm just in time. Just in time. We end every episode with a song. My buzzing days like Pepsi Cola. My eyes are wide like cherry pie. For more of that, listen a lot of Del Rey. You should have already. I shouldn't already. We've been, we've been day ones. We've been day ones for Lana. Bye, hi. Yeah. Last culture thesis is a production by Will Ferrell's big money players in a heart radio podcast. Created and hosted by Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang, executive produced by Anna Hosniay and produced by Becca Ramos. Edited and mixed by Doug Bane. And our music is by Henry Kversky. That Friday feeling when the road stops being a commute and starts feeling like an escape route. With the dynamic civic hybrid, you get that choice that just feels right. All the thrill you want with the efficiency you actually need. Because every journey matters. Book a test drive at Braille Honda today. Honda, the power of dreams. This is an I Heart Podcast. Guaranteed Human.