Working With My Best Friend (ft. Laren)

[Music]. What is up, Daddy Gang? It is your. founding father, Alex Cooper, with Call. Her Daddy. Daddy gang, welcome back to another. episode of Call Her Daddy. Today, I am. joined by none other than the producer. of Call Her Daddy, my best friend, Lauren McMullen. Wow. For anyone that didn't watch my. documentary on Hulu, Call Her Alex, one.

of the reveals in the documentary is. that Lauren has been the producer of. Call Her Daddy and has been working with. me for over 4 years. And a lot of you, actually most all of you were shocked. I. have never talked about this publicly. We have kept this a secret and we've. kept it private. And today we are here. to get into why we decided to keep it. private, why we never shared it with the.

world, the reasoning behind it, and also. what it's actually like to work with. your best friend and the process of Call. Her Daddy. We are going to walk you guys. through what we do every single week in. working together. So, I think we should. just get into it. Call Her Daddy is. brought to you by Shopify. I think my favorite part about growing. unwell has been hearing from the Daddy. Gang about what you guys want more of.

Whether it's a new hydration flavor, you. want to have an event or just creating. sweats for us to all be cozy in and lay. and lounge and watch more Color Daddy. episodes. So much of what I do. business-wise is influenced by all of. you. Sometimes starting a new business. idea though, it's not just about. starting with a product, but it's really. about finding what product your. community needs first. And when it comes. time to launch, turn to Shopify, the. commerce platform trusted by millions of. businesses. You can literally set up an.

entire online store in a day. Like right. now, Daddy Gang, you could be setting. yours up. Everything is conveniently. managed in one platform and you can tag. and sell all of your products globally. and across all major social media sites. right from your phone. There's also. Shopify magic and AI tools like an AI. assistant that helps with reports, editing images, and content ideas. Trust. me, the content that you launch. alongside your product could be a huge. game changer for sales. I also love.

using Shopify to track sales and data. and see what products our community. wants more of. And not only can I sell. online, but Shopify helps with sales at. in-person Unwell events and pop-ups, too, making it way easier to see what. products you're all loving. So, Daddy. gang, it is time to build your brand. Head to shopify.com/daddy. to see how easy it is to start your. business today. That's. shopify.com/daddy.

Let's tell them how this came to be. So, I think we have to go all the way back. to 2020 in the pandemic. And first, again, I think everyone knows this is at. this point, but Lauren and I have been. childhood best friends since we were. about 6 years old. Yeah. Second grade. Second grade. So, 6 years old, Lauren. and I have been best friends, and we. have grown up together. We played soccer. together. We made movies together. We. didn't go to the same high school or.

college, but we've been best friends our. whole lives. And in 2020 when I was. producing and editing and hosting Call. Her Daddy on my own, it was the pandemic. and I was by myself living in New York. And it was a pretty dark time. I think I. was really struggling. There was a lot. going on online obviously with Call Her. Daddy and I was pretty isolated in New. York City at the time. And Lauren. happened to be going through a breakup. at this time. And Lauren was trying to. figure out her next move. Am I going to.

have to move home? What am I going to. do? And I remember saying, Lauren, just. move into my apartment with me. Like, this will be beautiful. Let's live. together again. Cuz we had lived with. each other at one point. And so you. moved in. And at this point, explain to. the daddy gang what you're doing. Like. I'm hosting this runchy sex podcast and. you are doing what? So I had just finished Teach for. America. So my undergrad degree is in. neuroscience. I never intended to be a. teacher. I did two years of teacher. America where I taught fifth and eighth.

grade science in Newark, New Jersey. I. did my two years and then I was in grad. school at Colombia getting a master's in. clinical psychology because I wanted to. go on and get a PhD and be a therapist. So, when I moved in with you, fresh off. my breakup, I was in my first year of my. master's program and I was nannying for. a crazy family on the side to make. money. So, then Lauren and I moved to. Los Angeles. We decided we were done.

with New York for a little bit. We. wanted to try something different. Lauren wanted to get away. I wanted to. get away. I knew it would be better for. Caller Daddy. I would get so many more. guests in Los Angeles. So, we got on a. plane and we headed to LA and we moved. into this home together. And then um the. school I was teaching at had reached out. and was like, "Our neuroscience teacher. quit. We can't find anyone who can teach. neuroscience. We'll let you teach. entirely remote. Can you teach. neuroscience to these high schoolers?". And I'm living in California teaching.

children in New Jersey. So, my first. class was every day at 5:00 in the. morning. And then I'd be done work at. 1:00 p.m. So you'd be waking up to like. go record Call Her Daddy at 1 p.m. And. I'd be finishing work for the day. We. knew no one in LA. We I didn't have a. car. It was COVID. It was locked down. There was nothing to do. So I'd be like. done work like, "Hey, Alex, like what. are you doing for Caller Daddy? Like. I'll help. I'll watch you." Like I think. this is when we really started to feel. like, "Oh my god, I missed this part of. our friendship." Lauren and I, as you.

guys will watch in the documentary, as. you watched, we fell in love with two. things at a very young age. Soccer and. making movies and music videos. And that. was our genuine passion. And so you. getting to come back into that world, I. think, was so exciting for both of us. because it also kind of rebirthed a part. of our relationship that we had lost in. a way. And so we both just leaned in and. we started having so much fun. And so. when I signed my deal with Spotify, um. that was six months into us living in.

the house, I would say. And that. obviously changed my life forever. And. it changed I felt like everyone's lives. around me just because. it definitely put me publicly in a. different stratosphere. Like I felt like. there were there was more attention on. me. There was a bigger conversation. around money. Again, I think people. don't really know this, but like I. didn't have a team. Like I was still. editing my own episodes. It was fully. just you at that point. Yes. Like there was no writers in these. interviews. Like I was writing all of my.

interviews. I was editing all these. things. I was like, you know, I'm I'm. now making enough money where it's dumb. How am I not paying people to help me? And that I think was the beginning of. the start of it all. Do you remember. like the first real conversation post. Spotify? So, we sat down and you were. like, I want to have something more. consistent, something more formal. What. are you interested in? What are your.

next moves? Cuz at that point, I had. graduated from my master's program. Um, and I wanted to go get a PhD, but I. decided I wanted to take one more year. before applying so I could do more. research and get more like get my name. published on more papers. Oh, right. So I was like, "Wait, this. kind of works out really well. You want. to go into your first year of Spotify. having people around you that you trust, feeling comfortable, not starting just. like building a whole team from like. scratch and not knowing anyone." So I'm.

like, "This is perfect. I'll take my gap. year with Caller Daddy.". Why did I forget that's how it started? Yes. You were like. for sure in your head you were going to. go to grad school and there was going to. be one year that you were going to work. with me. I was going to get a freelance rate. Yep. and bill you for like my hours. weekly at a freelance rate and then on. the side I'd also be doing my psychology. research and trying to get published in. more um academic research. To give everyone more context, this. moment of me being like, okay, I'm going. to hire you for a year. It really was us.

being like, let's just do this for one. more year together. It'll be so fun. It was kind of the perfect setup for. both. It made you feel more comfortable. going into your first year of Spotify. and it gave me consistent paid work. while I tried to write and apply to grad. school. But in no way did we think this was long. term. But now that now that I was going. to be like billing you hourly and like. tracking my hours and like having. deliverables to meet and like actual. deadlines to hit,

it did start to become more real at that. point where at this point now you are my. boss and there is. a differential between the two of us. It. feels a little bit different than like. me just sitting in the corner giving you. thumbs up, laughing and saying like, "Oh, tell that funny story. Tell that. joke." Like now I'm like researching the. guests you're having on. I'm pitching. topics I think you should talk about. Like I'm spending. real time doing like actual real work. and it's feeling more real. And at that. point, we kind of had to have a. conversation of like, okay, if we're.

gonna do this one year and do it right. and not leave feeling resentful that you. felt I took advantage of the situation. and was just using you for money or that. I felt I didn't have clear expectations. and I'm not really set up for success. Like, we have to treat this more real. And that's when we had the really hard. conversation of I think I need to leave. LA. I needed more things of my own. I.

was living in your house. I was relying. on you and Matt for plans. I was working. for you. And like I we needed to shake it up. Yeah. And it was beautiful to see you go to. Chicago and still to this day be. thriving. Like that was without a doubt. the best decision I think you could have. ever made for yourself picking that. city. I feel like you have had such. incredible success there. You've had. such a support system. Like it's been. beautiful. So, I'm just so happy that it. actually ended up working out. Um, yeah. I think that's like the best thing.

we ever could have done. And I remember. we podcasted together being like, I'm. moving to Chicago. And we told the Daddy. Gang, we're like, I'm moving to Chicago. for a job opportunity. The job. opportunity was Call Her Daddy. and I. was moving to Chicago so that we could. give it a real chance and we didn't. up by professional each other's. like 247. Oh my god, I forgot that we publicly. said that. I'm sorry you guys. That's. like a little white lie we told. Sorry. But so then we Okay, so now let's. explain in that moment. Why did we not. tell the truth about why you were going.

to Chicago for a job? Because at that. point, we truly thought it was going to. be a one-year thing. Like imagine in my. mind we're really conceptualizing this. is like this is my gap year before I'm. going to get a PhD. and we thought it would just be really. confusing to people if we're like we. work together and now we don't and like. knowing the way that the internet spins. things I think people would immediately. be like oh they're not working together. anymore because. right. is not a girl's girl and she ruined.

Lauren. yeah look Alex did it again kicked. Lauren to the curb. No literally. So I Yes. That's what. people would say. So, it was very easy. We were like, "Okay, great. We'll keep. this under wraps and love you and come. visit all the time." Lauren moves to. Chicago. I'm in LA. And the minute she. leaves, we just hit the ground. running. I think the next big moment was. the year mark. The year mark. We were coming up on the. year mark and I'm sitting in LA being. like.

there was a part of me that felt in my. gut, holy. I have never had more fun in my life. working with someone and I have never. felt at such ease and we just have the. best dynamic. And I think I selfishly. was like, "Oh my god, I actually can see. it. I can see how this could work long. term." But if I put my selfish wants. aside and I also put my work aside, if I.

put on my best friend hat as Alex from. young Alex and you being my best friend, I was like, but what does Lauren want? Because I am living my dream this I am. living everything I could have ever. wanted. I love my job so much, but does. Lauren feel that same way? And is Lauren. going to want to do this full term? And. I started to get worried that I'll be. honest, I remember when I look back, I. was worried that you understandably cuz. we've talked about this on the podcast.

before like you were enjoying. understandably the work, but the money I. think was so so much security for you. I. think you were starting to be like, "Fuck, it's so nice to like. comfortably afford my apartment and get. to do all these things." And so I. started to. because money was a huge stress in my. life growing up. Yes. And I think I started to worry as. your friend like is she feeling. this which is nice but is she forgetting. how much she wanted to go and get this.

PhD and is she going to choose this life. because of the money not because she. genuinely wants it and I started to feel. a little bit of guilt where I was like. am I pulling Lauren away from her dream. cuz I'm living mine. and you said that to me we had like a. really real and honest conversation at. like that year mark and you were like at. this point I really can't imagine doing. this without you because you were trying. other people like we were kind of. planning for my departure. So like you. were trying other people, you were. interviewing other people. You were. having other people come and freelance. with you and it just wasn't the same.

because I know you so well. So like I. have this insanely unfair advantage and. like I can look at something immediately. and be like Alex would never say that. Alex doesn't agree with that. Oh my. gosh, Alex would doesn't. I would hate that. Yeah. you just can't teach that because. it's just you've been my sister my whole. life. Like so it's like. so finally we had a really honest. conversation where I voiced all this to. Lauren and I remember just going back. and forth being like as selfish as I. want to be that I want you to know I.

value you more than you know and I would. love you to do this literally until the. end of time with me. I need you to be. honest with yourself and take time to. really think. what do you want? Yeah. You were like, "I could never live with myself if we. look back in 5 years and I feel like I. tore you away from your dream.". Yeah. So, I went and I talked to my therapist. about it for a while. Yeah. A while. We were kind of talking about why did I. want to be a therapist. I.

wanted to be a therapist because what. you'll see in the documentary, um, my. dad passed away from suicide when I was. in college. He suffered from bipolar. disorder for my whole life. And. so that's what drew me to that. But more. than that, I just wanted to have deep, impactful conversations and I wanted to. help people. And I was talking to my. therapist and I was like,

well, if I stay on this show, I will. have deep, impactful conversations and I. think I'm going to impact and help more. people than I would if I was just a. therapist. Like Alex is reaching. millions of people. a week. Yeah, that was like I will never forget. I almost wanted to start crying where. Lauren came to me and was like it just. clicked for me like there's so much we. can do with this show and there's so. much work to be done and especially you.

had said like the direction I already. feel you pulling it in. The show was changing. Yeah. And it just felt like holy. let's do this. Yeah. like it was kind of all like the. stars were kind of like aligning in like. a weird beautiful way. and in that moment we weren't like let's. do this for the next 10 years. It really. again was kind of like let's see how. this goes because again you were so. young we were like Lauren if in 2 years. you decide you don't want to do this. anymore you can still go get your PhD. like so. I was I think I was at 27 at this point.

Yes. So there was time and again just. for context unwell the company hadn't. been started. It was still just me at. Spotify. And so we started and I. remember offering you. Where were we when I offered you your. salary? Um I remember exactly where I was. I was sitting at my kitchen table and I. almost fell out of the chair. I literally remember being like, "Okay, so I'm going to give her like a. full-time salary. You were my only.

employee basically." So I was like, "Uh." and I went in and I like pitched. you and you were like, "Yeah, I'll take it.". Yeah, for sure, Alex. And we just. started. And let's talk about how you first. started cuz I think now being able to. say like you are the head lead producer. of this show. I did not start there. She No, she did not. So, when Lauren. came in, you really took on the research. role. So, a lot of what Lauren was. coming in and helping me do was there's.

so much information obviously about the. guests that I will be interviewing. And. Lauren was a beast with research because. that literally was. like my master's degree for clinical. psych. I was just cranking out research. and cranking out papers. So, like I can. research and I can write. And so, then talk to people a little bit. about like what your first position was. and like what you did. So, if you had a. guest on and the guest had an. autobiography, I would read the. autobiography, essentially turn it into. a book report and present to you and. like brief you on the person's life. And.

then I started getting like more. systematized and like I made you like a. research system where like I made like a. memo where it like breaks out like fast. facts about them, put their life into a. timeline, put in angles I think you'd be. interested in, put in things I think you. should avoid talking to them about, and. I would kind of like talk to you about. the person and like get you. I would just brief you on the person and. kind of pitch to you like what I think. would be interesting for you to talk to. them about. And that was kind of the start of it. Slowly it has completely changed in a.

beautiful way. Um, as my Spotify. career continued, we then started. unwell. And once we Matt and I started unwell. and our company started to grow, Lauren. and I recognized that there were so many. more tentacles of the business that I. was being involved in. And so I was. like, I need you to take on a bigger. role for Call her Her Daddy. And so what. that looked like was Lauren started now.

to in researching, she would write the. full first draft of the interviews. instead of me now. And so she was doing. the research and she was writing these. episodes. And then she was also helping. me with all of the social media. organization. So I would have a vision. of how I wanted to roll. I'm very. specific about how I want to roll out, who the guest is, what I want the. teasers to be, what I want the promo to. be. And so Lauren would start working. with our editors on crafting the promo,

writing a script. This is what this this. is what the promo should say. This is at. the time that this needs to get. uploaded. Like. at that point, I started like kind of. touching everything. Yes. And finally, I think once we. realized we needed more people on our. team is really when you took your ne the. next jump of your career, which was we. found truly one of the most talented. writers I think we've both ever worked. with. From CNN, from the news world. Shout out Chase.

We love you. and she came on and changed. your life because. like I was talking about this like with. Chase recently cuz she was like I cannot. fathom because like now we have like a. we have more researchers too which is. really helpful because with my. background I make us take the research. so seriously. Yes. Um and they were like how the hell were. Were you doing this alone? We Well, we. don't know, but we got. I would start I would start work at 6:00. a.m.

and probably work until 9:00 p.m. And we we wouldn't stop. Like, we were. obsessed. But again, we loved it so much. that it. I never would wake up and be like, "Fuck. my life. Like, I have so much work. Alex." I was like, "This is so exciting. We have three interviews this week. I. have three books to read this week. I. have three interviews to write this. week." And so finally once Unwell was up. and running, I think it was ve it was. very clear now that we needed to yet. again reconfigure and systematize. because we now do have an editor on call. her daddy. And although there are some. weeks that I'm like I will be personally.

editing this. Like for example the Kla. Harris interview I was like no one can. touch this. I have to edit this on my. own. Those are moments. I'm still doing. final edits or whatever but we now have. someone who's helping with edit. Shout. out Alex T. Love you. Um, what I will. say is I think there's a lot of people. on the internet, which makes me laugh. Understandably, I get why people would. think that though again, is because when. I signed with Spotify, when I signed. with SiriusXM, I think there's this.

idea that there's these corporate big. wigs who are like handing me the cards. and saying, "Say all of this." And I'm. just like this host. And meanwhile, it's. like when you're for literally my entire. Spotify time, when you're reading these. questions, it's us. It's us. Like, it's us putting this. together. And now, as we ventured on, it's Yes. It's literally me, Lauren, and. one to two other young women in their. 20s and we're all doing basically a.

round table. We're talking about what we. want the interview to be and then we've. got a re someone's going to do the. research. Someone's starting the prelim. on like what the interview flow will be. We're doing multiple drafts. We're. having Zoom meetings every week. We're. going through, oh, I don't like this. Let's change this. Let's move this up. here. This topic should hit harder. Let's move this to the front. Like, and. then I go and I do the job. And so, it's. so collaborative. It's so rewarding. and. the interview process has become such a. welloiled machine, but it's taken a lot.

of work to get there. So, why don't you. talk a little bit about what you do. every week with having unwell now and. you doing so many things beyond call her. daddy? I handle anything logistic. related to call her daddy. So, anyone on. the call her daddy team reports to me. and I manage the entire team and I'm. essentially the person who makes sure. from booking to the editor to the social.

media team to the research team to the. interview being written to communicating. with PR reps to. making sure that episode makes it on. uploaded on time that I'm handling like. everything making sure everything is. happening and everyone is doing what. they're supposed to be doing so that now. you are purely thinking about nothing. besides the creative. and it's so nice the way that you are. able to keep the ship running. and sometimes you'll have three. interviews in a week. Yes. And it's insane.

Chaos, but it's amazing and we love it. Yeah. I was going to say like. I've never felt so fulfilled. I've never. felt so stimulated. I've never felt. like I've done something that's had this. much of an impact before. Like we're. saying how like we work insane hours, but like I never wake up dreading my. job. I sometimes like wonder like ooh. like how did I like clock like a 14-hour. day yesterday and like not think twice.

and like I don't feel burnt out. It's. because like I legitimately like love. this job so much and I care so much. about this job. And I think like one of. the coolest things is how much autonomy. I feel like I have. I feel like that's. like a big factor in like loving my job. Like I can have a therapy session where. I'm like, I just had the best talk of my. entire life. And I can be like, Alex, like I think we need to talk about this. You're like, okay, go write an episode. Or I'll read something and I'll be like, this is important. Like go write an. episode. It's such a rewarding process.

that I think looking back on the days. that I obviously took such pride in. doing it all on my own, I think I now. take so much more pride on not doing it. all on my own because I think getting to. share. the joy of what this show does every. week with other people who get to be a. part of the behind the scenes. It is. indescribable the feeling. Like I know. it sounds sappy, Daddy Gang, but like.

getting to give you guys interesting, fun, engaging content every week and it. all is coming from the hearts of us and. a few more other young women in their. 20s. Like it's so cool that we. are creating these conversations. Um, and it's coming from this like just. genuine place of like we're literally. saying some of these ideas are because. we were at a dinner and then it turns. into an episode that's getting millions. of views. I'm like, this is an. advertisement from BetterHelp. I don't.

know about you guys, but I definitely. have been overworking myself this year, and I decided that this summer I really, really need to try and relax a bit and. focus on just enjoying everything I'm. working so hard for. So, taking some. time to prioritize my wellness is truly. the only way that I'm able to go back to. work and actually give it my all. Workplace stress is now one of the top. causes of declining mental health with. 61% of the global workforce experiencing. higher than normal stress levels. Work. is stressful, but we can all start small.

with a focus on wellness to help make it. more manageable. Daddy gang, therapy can. help you navigate whatever challenges. the workday or any day might bring. So, with over 30,000 therapists worldwide, BetterHelp is the world's largest online. therapy platform. They have served over. five million people globally and the. results truly speak for themselves. The. app is rated a 4.9 out of five on the. app store based on 1.7 million client. reviews. It's also super convenient. You.

can join a session with a click of a. button or switch therapist anytime you. need. As the largest online therapy. provider in the world, BetterHelp can. provide access to mental health. professionals with a diverse variety of. expertise. Our listeners get 10% off. their first month at. betterhelp.com/daddy. That's betterhelp.com/daddy. Let's talk also now about I think one of. the biggest questions that we have.

gotten online since announcing that. Lauren and I work together is how the. hell do you guys have a work friendship. balance? because that just seems like it. is a disaster waiting to happen. And I. completely understand why you would. think that. So let us tell you about it. Um, I think that like we kind of. described in the beginning days when it. was just us, we are extremely we've. always been very communicative. And I.

think although this may sound weird, once we kind of got our rhythm of how we. wanted to work together, like literally. of just like are you getting paid? Are. you quitting your job? Okay, now you are. getting paid. Now you have a salary. What is my job role? What are my like. day-to-day responsibilities? Yes. Once that happened, when we're just. working, it is the easiest thing in the. world. And I will say it is easier than. when we were kids. Like when Lauren and.

I were. children, we you we had such a passion. for filming and writing scripts and and. creating these worlds together. And the. two of us, like my mom says in the. documentary, when the two of us were in. a room, it was almost too much. We both. were so creative and passionate and so. we. you were saying up until like 3:00 a.m. like in your dad's closet editing like. as children. and taking it so serious. And so when. one of us had a vision and the other.

disagreed we would butt heads more back. then being like no Lauren like that. won't keep the viewer engaged. And. you're like but Alex it looks better if. it's like this. We were so much more combative when we. were younger. Now it's like it's just. seamless. I think something that m that. may sound counterintuitive. is I think it's actually easier that. there's a hierarchy and in theory and we. can get into this more in a minute. In. theory you are my boss and I think that. does make it easier cuz at the end of.

the day it's your call and I'll defer to. you. It's not like we're like co-hosts. like arguing back and forth of like what. we're going to talk about and at the end. of the day. you're the one saying this Like. I'm not going to force words out of your. mouth. It's your voice and it's your. show and like I'm here. to help push us forward and make us. better and guide you and help you, but. I'm not going to tell you your views and. beliefs on something. That's a good point. Like I feel like. you've always been so respectful of as. invested.

as you are, you know, when it's like, okay, but it is your call. And but. again, like we're so insatical with. almost everything. And I never want to. get in front of the camera if we haven't. talked through something where I'm like, "But what do you think about it?" And. then even if I if I hear your piece and. I disagree with you, I'm going to speak. it out to you. And if you disagree with. me, I don't think I've ever gotten on camera. with us being in disagreement and being. like, "Well, I'm going to say it.

anyways." Ever in my career. And there. is I feel like rarely moments, but there. have been moments where the team will. say something to me and I'll be like, "Guys, I totally hear what you're. saying, but I'm gonna disagree with you. guys on this one, and I'm going to just. go for it." Um, and that is the beauty. of it's my show. I can do that. But I do. think it's very rare that I go against. the grain of the team. And I it's just. when I'm having a feeling, most of it is. when it's like comes to marketing and. social media. I feel like I have this. pulse on it that sometimes I just have.

this feeling and I've got to go with my. gut. Yeah. I think another thing is like how we. maintain a friendship and a working. relationship is. during like the work week. We are very. professional. Like if we get on a Zoom. like we're not shooting the on a. Zoom. Oh no. Someone if someone like not in our. company got on the Zoom they would have. no idea that we're best friends. Like we. are very No one would know. Yeah. We really save our like catchups. because our current um situation is I.

come to LA for a full week every month. So that becomes more where we merge the. two. Yes. I stay in your house. We have dinner. every night together. We. jacuzzi hang. Yeah. And we are like the minute we'll be like. okay it's like 6:30. Should we stop. working? And they'll be like immediately. we close our laptops. We go in we watch. a show. We drink wine and we can turn on. friend mode immediately. But that is. just because I think of the years of.

repetition. Again, when Lauren moved to. Chicago, we kind of had also in her. sendoff a conversation of like our. friendship is so solid. We have been. friends for basically our whole lives. Neither of us are worried about our. friendship. Let's really pour into this. Figuring out what is our working dynamic. and what is our working relationship. And to do that is really confusing if. we're working together during the. daytime and you're trying to have the. strength or not even strength but you're.

trying to feel comfortable enough to. tell me I don't like that or that's not. good enough and then a few hours later. we're shooting the about like do. you like this outfit? Like. that was. confusing in the beginning where we. needed to just figure out how do we get. comfortable of having working. conversations. and having them side by side with friend. conversations was difficult but now. we're like experts. I know. We're so good at it now. Like we can if there it's 5 minutes. before and I'm like wait are you on a.

Zoom? And Lauren will be like no I just. got off my last Zoom. like wait get on. the Zoom link before everyone gets on. cuz I want to hear about the date last. night and we'll like quickly talk for 5. minutes and then all everyone else on. the team gets on and we're like hello. everyone and we pretend we didn't talk. for 5 minutes and it's like we can shut. it on shut it off. I think it's also. been really important to us because I. recognize that as the, you know, owner. of the company and as the host of the. show, like I can make all these calls. and I think I have such a respect for.

you and awareness for you that I don't. want our dynamic to ever impact the way. other people on the team or at the. company feel about you. And I think. obviously it was easy when it was just. the two of us, but now I never wanted. you to feel like, "Oh, fuck." I can feel. that other employees are like, "Oh, Lauren just gets special treatment or. Lauren gets to do this cuz she's Alex's. best friend." I think if you asked. anyone at our company, they would say, "One, without a doubt, Laura McMullen is.

the hardest working person at this. company. She will do anything and. everything to get the job done. You are. so brilliant. Everyone respects you. And. so I think if there is a moment, yes, of. course, where they're like, "Where does. Lauren stay when she comes to LA?" Well, of course you're staying in my house. But it doesn't rub anyone the wrong way. because I don't think one when we're in. the office, we don't speak like we're. friends. You are the producer of Call. Her Daddy. Like people will hear me on. Zooms being like, "Len, that doesn't. look good enough. Can you please like re.

circle back with the team? I need like. three. go fix this and like make it better and. come back.". Yeah. I think I can say the reason you. and I have had such a successful outcome. in working together is because this. isn't a friendship. It's you are my. sister. Like truly like again in the. documentary you see like. the ties that our families have the. relationship basically from. diapers together. like this isn't. something that if we get in a fight then.

you're just out of my life or I'm out of. your life. Like we are together forever. And I think it has allowed us to lean. into the professional aspect in a way. that we have such unwavering respect for. each other. that nothing could come between that. because when it has and when we've had. issues, it is immediate. We're on the. phone or we're in person, we're like, "Let's work through this." And it has. been pretty seamless. Yeah. And I can. imagine a lot of people on the internet. being like,

how how I mean, of course, I have like. the looming cloud of the one really. public fallout with a woman. And I feel. like that has obviously. tainted a lot of people's opinion of me. Um, as a friend. Yeah. as a friend, even though that's. the only friendship people saw of yours. um of mine that they thought they knew. the whole story, understandably because. we did a incredible job of what our job.

was and it was marketing this. friendship. Um but I think it was just it's just. hard cuz I can understand people would. try to compare the two almost in like. Alex, how did you not learn your lesson. of working with friends? And I'm like. it's just so different. I think that's. difficult for me to sit back and watch. and read. Um, and I'm assuming there'll. probably be those type of comments when. this comes out like, "Oh, how'd you not. learn your lesson? It's going to happen. again." And like one, like we were. saying, like, "I've known you for 25.

years.". I think people forget that you knew her. for a year and a half in total. It's. just a very different situation. And um. I'm really proud of our friendship. And. I think every friendship in my life, I. almost always look at us as like the. model friendship because I think the way. that we communicate, the way that we. respect each other, the way that we are. honest with each other and loyal to each. other has allowed us to put ourselves.

into what maybe some people would. understandably think would be a. difficult situation to put a a. friendship under that kind of pressure. And the fact that we've thrived Mhm. And has been, I think, a testament to. how hard we work at. being with each other through it all. I agree. In our hectic, fast-paced lives, we. could use some slowing down. Hogand is. made to be savored and enjoyed slowly. Introducing new Hogand Belgian waffle.

cones. A completely new experience. that's worth slowing down for. Daddy. gang, you've never had cones like this. before. Okay. They'll take crunch to a. whole new level. Each crispy waffle cone. is filled with the velvety smooth ice. cream that Hogen is known and loved for. Then it's finished with delicious. toppings and a decadent bite of sauce. waiting for you at the bottom of the. cone. Okay. Hogandaw's Belgian waffle.

cones come in four delicious flavors. Vanilla salted caramel, summer berry, triple chocolate fudge, and toasted. almond fudge. Boom. Sign me up. You guys. know that I have the most hectic days at. the office. So, when I get home, I love. to grab a little treat, toss my phone. away, and take a minute to myself. These. cones are a must-have in my freezer. I'm. obsessed with the summer berry flavor. It's fruity and it's sweet. And. seriously, it always hits the spot. It's. the perfect way to end a long, long,

long stressful day. Ice cream just. always hits the spot for me. And these. hogen cones are truly the perfect treat. Savor your moment of slow with new. Hogandawas Belgian waffle cones. available at retailers nationwide. We asked the internet if you guys have. any questions for Lauren and I about. working together and so we are going to. answer them today. Lauren, do you want. to read them? What is the coolest. experience the two of you have gotten to.

have together since working together? Ooh, the Olympics was obviously. very fun. The Olympics was insane. Like I think. especially with our sports background, I. think the two of us getting to go and. produce a show for Peacock and. it was so much work. It was so much work, but it was so. rewarding. And we won a Emmy for it. Oh, wait. We won an Emmy. Wait, I forgot. Did we never tell anyone. that? No, you guys, we won an Emmy. Lauren and I. are both going to have Emmys in our.

offices. Yeah, I forgot that. So, it made all of the blood, sweat, and. tears worth it. It was so much work, but. it was really rewarding. And I think I'm. really proud of us because trying a new. format, doing live, it was Yeah, Olympics was pretty cool. Okay. What is Alex's best and worst. quality as a boss? Oh, okay. And then you can do it about me. What is. my best and worst quality as an. employee? Okay, you go first. Um, okay. your best quality is how much.

you care because I think it's really. palpable and the expectations are high. and the standards high. Obviously, that's what makes the show one of the. best in the world, but I think how much. you care and how hard you work inspires. everyone on the team and I think the. whole company is inspired. So, you're. inspiring so many people on a daily. basis and also the whole daddy gang. Oh my god. Love you. I love you, too. That's really sweet. Okay, now you're. about to hit me with the worst. Um, your. worst quality is your typing.

skills. I knew you were going to say. that. I like I don't know if you like skipped. typing class all of elementary school, Lorie Cooper, like what were you doing. to your daughter, but she cannot type. No, I purposely change the settings on. Google Docs so that she can't get in and. access them because she'll them up. I'll make like a chart or a diagram. You. like put caps lock on in the middle of a. sentence. You have like punctuation in. the middle of a sentence like It's It's. I need to like.

No, Lauren like gets angry with me. She'll be like, "Stop typing." Cuz I'll. have a thought or or when I'm talking so. fast and you can only type so fast. So. then I pick it up and I try to add on. what I'm saying and then you're like, "Alex, stop it. Get out of my. documents." Cuz Lauren's very specific. about her formatting in her documents. and I come in and I just crush your. soul. I don't also know why. I. never learned I for some reason always. use caps lock not shift. So then I'll be. in caps lock and I'll look up. I'm like, "Oh, fuck." No, it's bad. And even like. in your work slacks like. Oh,

even in your work slacks? Well, we don't. slack each other. Like our company has a. strict policy for work life balance. We. talk on slack, but we we will text. That's the one thing that like we go. around. We're inappropriate. Yeah. We we tax we don't slack with each. other. But when you slack, you're so. like I guess it's good blunt, but like. you just always seem so angry on Slack. where I'm like. and then you'll you always sometimes. will call me and be like, "Wait, you. good?" Oh, no. Yeah, I'm bad. I'm a bad. um text. You're bad with your fingers and words.

You're Leave the words to your mouth. Well, truly, you're not one for the. I will say it's an abomination when I. get it in those documents. It's bad. I. just feel like Yeah. It's not my strong. suit. No. Okay. My favorite thing of working with. you, two things, but only because I have. to say it even though I'm kind of taking. yours, but it's a different version, which is. when I started Call Her Daddy, I. genuinely never believed someone would.

care about the product as much as I do. And I know it is unrealistic for anyone. to care that much, but you are second to. none. Like, I know if there is something. going on and it's 3:00 a.m. and I call. you and I'm freaking out about something. with Call Her Daddy, you will do. anything. No matter where you are in the. world, no matter what's happening, you. will drop everything. And you put Call. Her Daddy first always. And it makes me. just feel so supportive because in it.

being my show, I understand someone. wouldn't love it as much as I do. And it. and it really does feel like you care as. much as I do. So that's number one. Number two, I think. it has been. such an incredible. process. watching you become a boss. And from. starting in research and now growing to. people reporting to you and reporting.

structures and how much they respect you. as a boss. I know something Matt and I. had wanted you to work on the past like. 2 years was being more direct and being. not confrontational but just being able. to have these hard conversations whether. it's a layoff like you've had to Lauren. has had to lay people off. Lauren has. had to have honest conversation if work. isn't up to par. Lauren has had to. you've just had a lot of growing I feel. like in the past two years since unwell. has started that I do think has allowed.

you to step into this. executive role in a way that has. changed the way I think people see you. in this space again as you're not my. best friend you are one of the best. highest people at this company and you. are there for a reason it has. nothing to do with you being my best. friend? It's cuz you're really. talented. Okay, we're going to get. emotional. Um, okay. Your worst thing, if we're going to be nitpicky, ever.

since someone bought you your headphones. that you edit with or you're like doing. your notes with, what do you think I'm. going to say? Every time I call you on. the phone, you're like, get me. You sound like you're underwater and. you're going in and out your spotty and. I can't hear a word you're. saying. So, I'm calling Lauren after. like a debrief of a interview. and I every time I finish my interview, I get into my car. We have this ritual. I call Lauren immediately and I and I. cuz I zoom into the interviews and I. listen to the interviews live. and then I call her and as when it's on.

the top of my head, we go through every. single question that I asked and Lauren. is at her computer and I debrief every. question. Oh, that wasn't interesting. We're going to cut that one. Oh, we're. going to have to cut this down. That. their answer wasn't that interesting. Oh, I want to move that to the front. And I give Lauren all these notes and. Lauren sounds like this. And I'm like, Lauren and she's like, "Sorry, sorry. Turning off my AirPods.". I Sorry, Apple. I don't know what the. is going on, but it is. I think it's an issue with my phone, too, maybe. Yeah, something's going on. It I'm. literally like Lauren, you're like, "Sorry, sorry. Disconnecting.

Disconnecting." Um, that's my biggest. pet peeve of you. Oh, great. It's like literally so minimal. You're a bad typer and I wear headphones. during conversations. Yeah, it's fine. Okay. What else? What is the most awkward conversation. you've had to have at work? Oh, I know this. The most awkward conversation the two of. us have had to have at work. Yeah, I know this. Okay, go ahead. So, back like we were saying when it was. just the two of us, um I asked you for a. performance review. Why did I forget about this? Cuz I. blacked it out.

Cuz I blacked it out. You were like, I don't really like we. don't need to do I'm like, "No, no, no. Like, I need to like know like what are. like my next steps to grow and how I'm. doing and like we need to have an honest. conversation about things I need to grow. on and how you feel about me and the. company." And for context, when she says. company, this is before. unwell. Unwell has started before we have 70 80. people working at this company. So, it's. me and Lauren. And Lauren's like, "Let's. sit down for a review." And I'm like, "Sure, let me pour myself a coffee even.

though we talk every minute of the day.". And I was like, "Lauren, I don't know if. I can do a performance review." And she. was like, "Just try." You guys, I wish. we would have recorded this. Zoom. I we both show up with notes that. we both wrote and. yours are probably disgusting. No, you. And you can tell we're. both reading off of our script cuz. Lauren's like, I'm going to advocate for. myself now and and pitch as to why I. deserve a raise. And I'm literally. sitting there and be like, "Okay, go. ahead." And you can tell Lauren's like. reading off of her computer and then I. here's my gross. Here are my strings.

And we're both dying laughing. You're. like, "No, stop. We need to be serious.". Call Her Daddy is brought to you by. Tinder. Daddy gang. You know that. feeling of finding an amazing. hole-in-the-wall restaurant when you're. traveling to a foreign city? There is. truly nothing better than having the. best meal of your life surrounded by. locals where nobody knows you're a. tourist. Well, with Tinder's help, you. can have more moments like that and get. a true taste of the local life. Tinder's. Passport Mode can be the best travel.

companion when you're looking for a. local tour guide in any city in the. world. Try Tinder Passport globally to. connect locally during your travels or. even before you start packing. All while. making traveling to a new place feel. easier. With Tinder's help, add more. plans to your itinerary by matching with. a local and setting a date to see the. city through their eyes. Passport mode. is also a great way to help immerse. yourself deeper into the culture and. have more authentic experiences while.

traveling. With passport mode, there is. so much to discover. Explore all of the. possibilities for yourself. Tinder, it. starts with a swipe. Download Tinder. today. Okay. One of the questions is, is her. name Lauren or Lauren? Her name is. Lauren, but her nickname is Len cuz my mom was. so southern. She'd be like, "Len.". Um, what's one thing you didn't know. about each other until working together? That's hard. Go ahead. Mine's like kind.

of deep. When you're good friends with. someone, like obviously you celebrate. their successes and you know their. accomplishments and. like you are like I did this at work. today and I accomplished that. But like. when you get to like see it and witness. it on a day-to-day level, it's like a. whole different experience. And like I. obviously knew you were creative and I. knew you were smart, but like. you're like brilliant and you're like a. genius and like I am constantly in all. of you and I'm just like damn, how'd she.

think of that? Lauren, you're literally. going to make me cry. Thank you. No, I. feel the same way about you. So I think. working with you, I always knew you were. so smart and obviously like we. in living together when you were more in. the academic field, I was always just so. inspired, but it's hard tangibly to be. like, I'm not in that field. I don't. know what a research paper is supposed. to sound like or look like. And I always knew you were so brilliant. And we always talked about that, like.

how you just took after your dad in that. way. Like he was so bright. It. was like inspiring to be in rooms with. him and I feel that way about you like. and now getting to work with you. The. way that you are so good at. multitasking and yet giving somehow 100%. to every multitask at the same time. like you juggle so many things at once. and you're so eloquent and calm and I.

don't know, it's just really fun to. watch something that wasn't like your. natural. thing that you wanted to do in your life. become something that you are beyond. talented in. It is really cool to see. you take it on and conquer it and make. it look like you went to school. for this So, I don't know. It's. just really cool to watch each other. grow and like I think that was a moment. where so when the premiere of the. documentary happened.

um I think Lauren and I were just so. both you were both just so emotional. because again this is a documentary yes. about the rise of caller daddy in my. life and then you are a huge part of it. but I think a lot of that documentary. was so full circle for us because of how. long we've been doing this together and. so there was so emotion tied into it and. our best friend Kristen who is like the. third in our dynamic from childhood who. was in our childhood videos. The three.

of us getting to come together I think. was such a beautiful moment for me. because I. when you are having a lot of. accomplishments sometimes you forget to. pause and really stop and be like wait. we if you knew this at 18. you wouldn't even believe it and so I. think being around you has also allowed. me to stop and really be more present. because you remind me of childhood you. remind me of home so it's like I and.

pull out of being I'm like executives. around me and all these people from. Spotify or Sirius or whoever it be and. when I look at you it brings me back to. childhood and it makes this job still. feel like a mom and pop thing that like. hasn't gotten too big and out of my. control and it still is my baby and it. still is something that is all that's. coming from the heart and I think that's. what I'm excited about that people know. now that you are working with me it I. hope it gives people more clarity. Whether you hate the interviews or love.

the interviews, like it's us and it's. not some big corporation that's writing. these things and I'm just regurgitating. like. it's us and like it or hate it, I'm really proud that we haven't strayed. from the basement to now. Like it is. always going to be us. Look at that ending. That was. I think that's where we have to end it, you guys. I am so so happy we finally.

got to get this off our chest. Now no. one's going to think Lauren just like. doesn't have a job and just like is. randomly in LA. I know for like the longest time all the. comments were always like how is Lauren. always with you? Like how does she like. travel around? Like does she even have a. job? Right. I have a job. Lauren works at Call Her Daddy and. Unwell. And um it's just now I guess the. beginning of you guys knowing this next. chapter of our life and. I don't think we're slowing down anytime. soon. I think we're just ramping up. Oh, there's so much coming. Get. ready, Love you guys. Thank you.

so much for tuning in. I will see you. next Wednesday. Goodbye. [Music].