Raygun's Redemption, Alix v Alex & WTF is Musk?

0:00[♪ INTRO MUSIC PLAYING [♪ Hi guys and welcome back to another episode of Life on Cut. I'm Brittany. I'm Laura. I'm in a great mood, everyone. I am. Throughout, like, never been happier. I'm glad you are, because I'm sick as a dog. I don't want to start like that, but oh my god. No, I know. Sorry, I just wanted to rub it in. To be fair though, we've all been battling the sickness this weekend. You know what? Laura and I went to New Zealand last week. Pupipu was very fun. And I came back from that. Everyone over there was saying that there was like a New Zealand bug. I never get bugs. Anyway, I got the New Zealand bug. I also got the New Zealand bug. I fucking loved it. I want to go back. Oh, Queen's town's a time of my life. Queen's town's amazing. We went for work, but like we only had to work a little bits of the day, and then we got to just be free range. Do you think you got sick from going on the lose? Probably because I was going so fast, like so much faster than you, that I probably got sick. Wait, we really need to know this because we've been watching on socials.

1:00The lose race. Who actually won? Who do you think won every? Who do you think? But you also got to remember Brits done it's like 400 times. She's like, we got a lose. Are we going to go up? jealousy doesn't look good on you. It doesn't. Some of us put more effort into training for the lose race. That's true. That's true. I've been to Queen's town a few times, not for seven years. I went, no one cares, but I went seven years ago. And then please talk us to that. I want each year recap. Why don't I recap on what happened in the seven years that's prevented me from going? No, it's the first time I've been in so long and we arrived in seven years. I'm playing landed and I looked out the window and I was like, fuck, this is the most beautiful place. It's like you're on a movie, everywhere you go. It feels a little bit true and showy because everything feels like it's been created for a movie set. You look and there's this beautiful boat. You're like, oh, that's the Titanic set. It's so pretty, it feels fake. Let me tell you my own story, maybe 10 years ago. I went to New Zealand and I had the same overwhelming, otherworldly feeling of beauty and I said, I'm going to move here.

2:04Like, I have to live here. And so I tried to and I did, I applied for a job. Now, do with this what you will. I applied for a job as the rapid bodyboarding instructor. Well, I had to have a bodyboard, like a boogie board. And I would be the instructor that takes tourists down the wrappers. Now, your laughing is going to have fun here. I was the Australian champion bodyboarder out of all of Australia. It'll never not be funny because I knew Brit for six years. She knew even I was a champion. I knew Brit for four years. We'd been friends for four years and then one day out of nowhere, she was like, I was the Australian bodyboarding champion. And both Mitch, Tury and I, Mitch, who we used to do radio with if you can do the pod. We both just burst out laughing because we were like, you shut up, you liar. And then she also said she was a vegetarian. We were like, sorry. I was like 20th in the world. Why are you making up the story? Anyway, turns out she was actually a bodybuilder. I mean, so that's the other thing.

3:04Lora. Body, bodyboarder. Like surfing but laying down. How did you? What, I feel like we need a bit of backstory there. How do you become Australia's best bodyboarder? Because there weren't many women doing it at the time. Lots of dedication. Sophie, long hours in the ocean. Are you the Ray Gunner Bodyboarder? I'm the Ray Gunner Bodyboarder. He me out. Import McCory where I grew up. It was like the bodyboarding capital of the world. It's just what everyone did. And we've spoken about it before, Lora. You know how he said we mold into our boyfriends? Like I was taking this older guy. He was six years older than me and he was a bodyboarder. And so I wanted to do what he didn't hang out with him. So I started surfing. And then I just got really good at it. I'm still, I'm still fixed on the bodyboarding thing. Do you go on a board or you just like face down plank in the water? His bodyboarding is on a board so far. No, I'm so new. I'm New Zealand. No one bodyboards there. New Zealand, if you say you are, I'm thinking body surfing. I can tell. No. Okay, look, let me show you. I'll show you an image. I thought, for it's just blanking on the ocean.

4:06That's how you go down the rapids in New Zealand. Look at this stuff. It's like, oh, okay. Yeah, we'll pop that photo up. Yeah, it's like being flips and stuff in the water. Anyway, so I applied for this rapid instructor, New Zealand job. And I was like, I am a shoeing Australian champion. Did I get the job? No, I didn't. I didn't. And so then I couldn't move to New Zealand. It was the only one job on offer. Wow, that was a journey. I enjoyed that story the first time that you told it to me when I was on the plane. And I really do enjoy your walk down memory lanes that have been happening. If you listen to last Ask Uncut, everyone, that was probably the most arrange and unhinged intro to an episode that we've ever done. And it was just a sequence of revisiting Brits past. The pigeons. It was great. Oh, yeah, grandma's home impugence. That was a real time. Can we just backtrack to New Zealand for one second? It is the most beautiful place I've ever been to. And Brit was like, have you ever been losing? Losing is, I thought it was tobogganing. I didn't know that there was a difference. I thought that toboggan losing interchangeable turns out they're not.

5:07You offended a whole community. So Brit was the loooges that really against me. No, Brit was like, we're not coming to New Zealand and not going on the lose. So we got the little skyline up. We had to buy six rounds tickets. That's tickets. You can't just buy one go and fuck I love the looog. God, I had a great time. It is the most childlike thing for anyone who doesn't know it's basically like you get a little go cart and you drive down the hill. Go round little jumps and tunnels. I don't know if it describes jumps. It's really, there's one jump. I got like three feet of air that time. I got the funny flutters. You know when you get air and you're like, Fanny flutters. Everyone that loooges and goes over a jump knows the flutters I'm talking about. Sorry, I think it's called butterflies in your stomach. I think it flutters. I think if Fanny flutters when you're turned on babe. I think if Fanny flutters when you're... Don't you call it the willies? When you go down a hill and then you go over that thing and your stomach goes, it's the willies. I thought you got the willies when you had like ghosty experience. Ghosty experience and you're like, ooo, spooky like the willy. Okay, Fanny flutters is when you're making out with someone and the giant is pulsating.

6:09That's the deep, that's a Fanny flutter baby. If you got that in the loooges, good for you. That's an orgasm. No, it's not. It's not a full blow. Just a bit of like, ooo, tingles. Okay, look, we loooged. We went, we loooged. We had a great time. I did do something that made me feel like a superior human as well. I have told everyone that I've come in contact with in the last couple of days. I've been waiting for this episode to drop it on the... I really need everyone to know. So there's this place where we were staying in the hotel. Beautiful, like overlooked the whole lake. It's so pretty. You can see like the ice cap mountains in the background and we had the morning off the morning that we were flying out. And I was like, you know what I'm going to do? I'm going to book in for a little sauna. And I booked in and I like, no kids woke up early, had the whole bed to myself, went down and I did the sauna, then jumped in the lake. And it is so cold, but every time I jumped in the lake, I was like, I am a better human than everyone who is still in bed. And I still feel powerful from that. And now I finally understand the sauna ice bath craze. I would have loved to have done it, but I was losing. I could have had to go do it. I went for one more lose.

7:09I was so committed. Wow, you guys really tackled on a lot. Can I stand? Can I say though, that trip really made me realize that we have well and truly tipped into like the other side of life. Some of the people going out, they were at the casino until 7am, some of our other friends, they literally got in at 7am from a night out. When we were getting out. I was already in the lake swimming at that time. You know, so we were living very alternate lives. And I thought like me 10 years ago, I would have been the casino girl. And now I'm an ice bath girlly. And then we just, I don't know how I arrived at this destination, but I came back refreshed. I feel great and I have been telling everyone. I'm embarrassed to admit that I was never the casino girlly. I have that's fine. I just always mean a bed early and up early. I was desperate for validation. So I was out looking for it in nightclubs. And I was in the dark for the funny flotters. You know, I know that I'm in somewhere. I really was. I really was. Anyway, look, it's been a big weekend. Also, on top of that, the sickness. How are you doing now? I actually am really sick. I just went down to also make myself feel like a superior human. I got it's lemon and ginger and apple juice.

8:12You know, when you have a drink and it gets you quenched up in your jaw, when you have something sour, mouth flush. What's a mouth flush? I got the mouth flush. No, I was very boring. I was, I actually got very, very sick. And I got home. Ben's great. Ben's still here. He looks after me. But I took everything in my bones, not to get so mad. So because I was sick, he's like, you sit down. I'll cook. I'll do whatever. And bless him. He put the washing on, did everything. And I go to get the washing out. And it was a load of whites. And I start pulling them out. And I'm like, why is everything, like everything had these big splotches of pink and purple on them. Every single white thing I own, I started pulling it out, ruined. I get to the bottom and there's like three pairs of undies that are bright colored. No. And I said, Ben, I said, Ben, babe, come here. Talk me through the washing. He's like, what do you mean? I said, talk me through why these colored undies in the whites. He's like, oh, just to save space. Sorry. Oh, I was like, how are you 34 years old?

9:13I was like, you never put colors in with what? That makes me rationally angry. Yes. And the reason for that is, and I'm like, don't want to be like, well, for nice incompetence, but I really am going to go down that path. Because usually the reaction, I'm not going to say that this has been. In my experience, the reaction is always, well, fine, I won't do it then. Do your own washing then. And it's like, no, the punishment, because you did a shit job and ruined stuff that I actually liked, shouldn't be you yelling at me telling me that I'll just do my own washing. Because I managed to do your fucking washing. And I don't fuck up your stuff. I just, this feels very personal. No, it's just actually, it's not mad. This is just so everyone knows. This is I'm pulling memories from a past, traumatic relationship. Like I feel as though that this is a common thing that people experience where one person's like, well, I just did it. But because they've chosen to do a below par job of it, they've offered to be helpful, and it's been deeply unhelpful in them trying. Ben just goes very, he's actually very good with that stuff. He goes very sheepish. And he just goes, yes boss, sorry boss. Like I'll be better boss. And he will. Okay, well while you're a trashing Ben for being...

10:14I am not trashing him. I'm highlighting it and it's public humiliation. So he can be better. Okay, well while you're humulating your husband, I wanted to take a very quick hot second because it was Father's Day, which so shout out to all the dads out there who were doing good parenting, not the shit ones. How's that for a father's day? This is quite a lot of... You know what, you motherfuckership fathers. Because there's going to be so many people who listen to this episode who are like, my dad wasn't around. My dad did a subpar job. That's okay. I know, but like not how sorry, it's not okay for them. I'm sorry that your dad wasn't there. But it's okay. So we don't have to specify the best. Well, what I'm saying is, is I'm not wishing them happy Father's Day. But I am wishing happy Father's Day to all the dads and... Good ones. Yeah, and the ones who step up to the plate and just show that like parenting can have equity. You can be a great dad and like changing the conversation around it. And I say this because as much as I give my husband, stick, he's a fucking exceptional dad. And I'm really like, I feel so grateful that even though he did not have... So Matt didn't really have a great father figure growing up. He's talked about it a little bit, but he's not particularly open about it.

11:15But he hasn't spoken to his dad in... I've never met him. So I don't even know. Maybe 17 years he hasn't spoken to his dad. But you know, he got raised by a single mom, his mom. And he has turned out to be the most incredible dad. Because for him, he's always said that he wants to be the version of a dad that he never had growing up. And I feel so grateful that our girls get to grow up with that example of what a dad is. And like that's their only understanding of like a dad being like so plugged into family and caring so much. This was a really special year for him. So a couple of months ago, Matt got this phone call and we were in the kitchen at the time. He answered it and he was like, what? And I could tell he was really confused about whoever was on the other end of it. He's like, he's sure that you've got the mat as in like, but what's it for? And so he received a phone call which was from the administration for the governor general. We call her your excellency. And they wanted to start a meeting with him because he had one father of the year which is like a not-for-profit thing that happens every year. One year, Hamish Blake won it. I don't know who won it last year. And now Matt's won it.

12:16It's all around like changing the conversation of fatherhood and your contributions to opening up and creating networks for other dads to like, you know, be better parents. And it just was a really beautiful, it was a really beautiful Friday which was the ceremony for that. And that off the back of two-dirty dads, the podcast. Yeah, well, I mean, pull out. There's two dads on that podcast. I know that you know what? I feel so proud of him. And I know I take the pissat in him a lot but really being a parent is a thankless job unless you're Matt who's now being thanked by all of Australia. So I'm like, and they're excellent. And you're excellency in the governor general. But it was very sweet. Do you want some money or something? No, you get a trophy and then you get a voucher. You go and, I'm just like a buyer voucher. But Bonnie is a thing. No, you don't. You don't. But anyway, it was a really sweet thing that happened on Friday. So, what doesn't get better than that? It does it. Except if there was a Bonnie special. No, congratulations. Matt and Ash maybe next. And Ash, yeah, there's always and get. Absolutely. There's always. We love you, Ash. This actually, I have something I've been wanting to ask you guys.

13:18And this is kind of on the back of a fight, even because I don't think I've even met your partner. I met Ben recently. Which is funny. You've never met him. I can't even met a cupboard. Matt, yeah. I don't know about that much. I realized over the weekend, there's something I'm really, really bad at. And I think I need your advice and help. I don't know how to greet people. You say, What a way. You say hi. I'm so free. I realized this. I was at a friend that they were having their first baby's first birthday party. And girls, I get. I know how to, I know how to greet you. We have a hug. I love the girls. Love, love, love. When I meet girls partners, boyfriend, husband, whatever. And they go in for the, the side hug and the cheek kiss. I do not know what to do. They put their cheek out. Am I supposed to kiss their cheek? Or do I put, no, this is a series that because I put my cheek to them and then we just touch cheeks. Like I lent against this guy's cheek. And then I pulled away and I was like, was that what I was supposed to do? And I don't know what to do. Yeah, that's what you do. You don't actually kiss their cheek.

14:18You don't make, you make out. Or you lean in. If you do kiss, kiss, you just make the noise. You don't actually kiss them on the cheeks. Because I want to fucking leave. Do you know what? No one teaches this stuff. It's actually better if they make a really strong structure gesture that you can copy. Okay. Because the worst thing is when you're not sure and you go to, you go to like shake their hand but they've lent half ends. So you do that awkward hug and then they put the cheek down and then the cheek goes in and then you're not fist pumping them. That's worse. But if they can make a clear cut. But I just think if you don't know them, I think a handshake is fine. But a handshake, you're at a birthday party with friends like, I've gone and hugged you, right? So we're at, we're at dinner. I'm like, oh my God, it's so good to see you. I then just chucked my hand out to Ben. Is that what you did with Ben? No, again, I didn't know. I think I put one arm out and like, like, just gave him a limb arm. I think you can lean to, she's like, hello. I just really need to reeducation and I don't know if anyone else out there is feeling this but can we just figure out what we do? I am. I really cocked this up with Alex Warren the other week.

15:18I didn't mention it but I should have. I think I saw her. He did the leaning. But I went to just do like an air kiss and I kissed him on the chair. And the guy, the guy had been so sick and you could tell he was a bit like, what? Like it was just, we had a moment where, anyway, should that happen? You didn't have a moment. I can confirm that didn't happen. I did kiss his cheek and then I realized actually, the kissing noise was irrelevant. I didn't need to do that at that point. Oh, you actually doubled down with the noise. What I did. Well, yeah, Luke. I thought I was kissing the air but he gave me too much cheek and so I kissed him. You kissed the air. You kissed the air. You air kissed him go, yeah. Nice to see you. So you air kiss? What do you do? I don't know. I don't want to have this conversation anymore. I feel uncomfortable. I need to know. Do you know what? I'm so glad that you brought up feeling uncomfortable because we are going to get into the whole Reagan documentary very soon. And physical discomfort around someone else's

16:19embarrassing moments is truly, it needs to be unpacked because it's a real phenomena. I think you read the room. I am sometimes I'm a handshakeer and sometimes I'm a hugger but I don't think the hug with a friend's partner needs to come with a kiss. Okay. Like you can just like have a little hug. Hey, nice to meet you. Like if they put their cheek out, I just don't lean against it with my cheek. I just took clarifying. So all right, well look, we're always here to help and to answer your questions. I want to share something with you guys and I came across this week. I could say this for later on. This is probably something that would fit way better into an off-cut episode but I haven't stopped thinking about it since I read it. Do you guys remember? I mean, I haven't had one since I was like, I kid, a musk stick. Remember pink musk sticks that we used to eat? But I have always detested them. I've never eaten them. I hate them. Do you remember the musk stick flavored sigis? They were called fags back in the day and they were- I never had a cigarette either. No, they weren't real sigis. They were lollies. And they were like thin, I'm sure they were called different down in the gong isn't it, lost?

17:21And they'll musk flavoured and you'd pretend like you're having a durry with them when you were about 10. I know the ones but they weren't cigarette lollies. They were just lollies that you used to pretend were smoked. No, they looked like sigis and they were called fags. Hold on, let me find. Let me pull it up properly. Fags. Oh my god, they were called fads, not fags. They were tied out. Oh my god. No, they were though. Back to the musk stick. Do you know what the flavour musk is? The flavour of musk. It's kind of like a bit floral, a bit like perfume-y. I hate it so much that I can't even recall the flavour in my head. I don't even think I've ever put musk in my mouth. Like it's only something I've sniffed. Pink musk sticks, you've never eaten one. I didn't know. I didn't know it was a taste. I thought it was a smell. No musk is also a smell and it's also a taste. I couldn't even guess what it is. Musk, okay, hold on to your panes. The original musk stick and the smell of a musk stick comes from the gland found in a male musk deer. When it is dried and diluted, it turns into a sweet, warm, earthy and floral smell that is long lasting and potent. So your senses, your teeth,

18:21are a deer gland. Glance. Oh, no. I don't believe that. 100. Taste.com would not lie to us. So you're saying that's what goes into the edible food. We're eating a gland of a deer. I don't know the actual gland goes through. But it's the smell that it gives off. That's where it comes from. So it is, it's your algorithm. But to someone smell what that is, the glandy deer thing. Imagine it putting it in. All I'm thinking is Buster and his anal glands. No one. That smells like fish. Oh, my God. Let me read this to you. This is from the taste.com article. It might sound off-putting, but musk was ones are very highly prized, particularly for its strong fragrance. For centuries, it was traded as a luxury ingredient and used in perfumes, incense and traditional medicines across Asia and the Middle East, before it made its way to Europe. In Britain, must found its way into modern medicine and food and lollies. So yes, the original ones used to have deer gland in them. But now we've made a substitute for the flavor, but that's where it comes from, everyone. And the next time you're eating a nice 90s must stick, I hope you're thinking of the megal deer.

19:22I can see that it's been milked for that essence. I can see why you weren't sure with the segment fit. Well, there are two cultural moments that we wanted to touch on this week. Two, there were some uncontrollably overwhelming and took up our whole weekends. One, ray gun. We will have to have so many thoughts and feelings. None of them are solidified. I don't know how I think or feel about it. If you haven't watched it, go watch it, but we aren't going to talk about it. It's on Netflix and it's called Breaking Badly, which it really does summarise in the name. That is very funny, though. Did you watch Breaking Bad? Do you get that pun? Yeah, I get the pun. You sometimes miss the puns. I didn't know. I didn't know if I did it. It's like, spell it out. Before we get into ray gun, though, we want to talk about Alex Earl. Oh, we don't. I don't, you do. I think we have to. As podcasts, this is our duty because it's between podcasts and podcasts and we are podcasts. Thank you. Thank you.

20:22And it's Girl on Girl Beef, which we love. We love adding to Girl on Girl Beef. We hate Girl on Girl Beef. Alex Earl versus Alex Cooper. That's the chat. Alex Earl, you don't know who she is. She's a massive, massive TikTok artist. Got nine million followers. She's like the OG, get ready with me, beauty influencer. She has a massive, massive skin care brand now that I think had a million dollar opening launch on the first day. So she has released Earl meets world, which is a reality TV series, very Kardashian-esque, where it's her whole entire family. It's like, I don't want to say a T-moor Kardashian, but it's sort of what it feels like. You're following their world and their drama and their family life, but it didn't quite have the same hook as the Kardashians have. This is also a Netflix. It's a nine-part series. It is the fucking most boring thing I've ever watched in my entire life. I was like, we must watch this to talk about it the first episode. I thought I was about to scoop my own eyeballs out with a spoon. It was so fucking boring. So I watched the whole thing.

21:24It was horrible. I think if you were a fan of Alex Earl, you would probably enjoy it because it's just another peak behind the curtain and an insight into the life. If you're not actually a fan and you don't know that much about them, like I know who she is, I was still interested. Like I hated every second. It's not for me. But you watched all of it. Better than I watched it together. Yeah, because so the reason we watched it, the reason we're talking about it is there's this really ongoing drama between Alex Earl and Alex Cooper. Alex Cooper is the very successful podcast host behind Cool Hordatti. It's the number one female podcast in the United States. They have everyone on. They have Michelle Obama on. Anyone who is anyone goes on Cool Hordatti. Yes, that is why people wanted to watch this series. That's what people are waiting for. It's nine episodes and there is a tiny mention of it at the start and then they finally get to the beef in the last episode. Just to set it up, the drama's been going on back since like 2022, 2023. When Alex Cooper has positioned herself as one of the most successful podcasters, Alex Earl was coming out of college at 22 years old. She was very successful on TikTok.

22:25A lot of people loved her and then Alex Cooper brought her in to start her own podcast. It lasted about two years and had a few little problems and all of a sudden, Alex Earl disappeared from the Cool Hordatti network. No explanation, nothing. Then there's this ongoing back and forward beef and it's all very passive aggressive. So the last thing that happened about, I don't know, maybe a year ago, Alex Cooper on her socials saying, there is no NDA, say what you want to say. Alex Earl said on it and then silence until now. Now is the tea quote unquote. The audience has waited, I don't know, somewhat of a year to get this rebuttal. One thing that I think we can relate to as female podcasters and one particular part of the whole series that stuck out for me that I didn't like is this next grab I'm gonna play you. So Alex Cooper asked Alex a young impressionable Alex Earl to come onto her podcast at only 22 years old. She said that she got her drunk and then asked some very sexual questions. You can see from the footage, she's uncomfortable. It's written all over her face.

23:26And then afterwards, Alex Earl says she goes to Alex Cooper and says like, I'm not comfortable with some of those conversations and I don't want that to live on the internet. And it appears that Alex Cooper didn't want to take them out and left that information in even though the guest requested it to be removed. Have a listen to this. Like take someone in college who's young and pressable. You know, looks up to you and then ask them these like wrong tea questions, which I was like definitely a little uncomfortable with. We are gonna play truth or drink. Okay. Get ready to get fucked up. Okay. Here we go. How many guys did you fuck your freshman year of college? Okay, are you an Edel Virgin? Part of that was stuff I had to ask to be taken out after the interview. And she was like, oh, like I think it's so funny and it's stuff that like I didn't necessarily want to live on the internet forever. I think this specific example is definitely something, especially in the world of podcasting. There has never been a time where Britain I, where we have interviewed someone

24:27and we have not taken out what they've requested for us to take out. Like I think even though you sit down and you do an interview, sometimes in the moment when you're sharing something, you have like a vulnerability hangover and you realize actually I wish I hadn't said the things that I said or there's parts of that context where I felt really comfortable in the room, but when I actually think about that going out to a wider audience, I don't feel comfortable about it. I would not, I mean, I don't know how other people run their podcasts, but when it comes to us, there has never been a time where we have not removed something that's been asked of us. And I think you have a responsibility to do so when you have guests and you are sharing their story. We were probably six years into this podcast when I went on another, another Australian podcast and interview podcast that asked me to go and do it. And it was probably one of the first podcasts I had been on outside of my own. Once I finished, there were things that I didn't like or on second thought, I thought, oh, I'd like that edited or taken out. And I wrote to them and asked for some edits and they basically said no. They were like once you record with us, like that's ours.

25:29And I had a pretty strong back and forth with them and I eventually got my way maybe because I also have such a big platform here. But I was shocked that they would not make edits. We have never and would never ever, every guess it comes on, we offer it to them. I mean, the fact that you experienced it yourself for it where you wanted something to be edited out and you were told no, it makes you question who owns the content. Like if you sit down to do a podcast interview or any interview, whether it's on a, I'm thinking like a 60 minutes or a current affair, once you've sat down and you've given your version of a story who owns that story. And when you're someone like Alex Cooper or Alex Earl who use everything about their lives for content and for engagement, firstly, I think it's really wrong. I think everyone should be allowed to edit or change their mind on something, especially when it's not live on air. But the fact that like Alex Cooper knows that someone like Alex Earl who has nine million TikTok followers, that the second she says something that's controversial,

26:29it's every single part of that game was cut for socials. So when Alex Earl turns around and says, hey, I actually don't feel comfortable by that segment, can you take it out? I understand why Alex Cooper has turned around and said, no, because it was for them the most viral part of what that episode was gonna be. I don't. I do not get it. I don't agree. I think it's disgusting, but I know why she fought her on it and tried to make her think it was a good idea. Yeah, hey, have some morals and some respect. That's what I would say to her. Not that long ago, we had a superstar come on. And there was a part of their interview that they wanted to be taken out. As a team, we were like, oh my God, that was gonna be so good online. Like how can we keep this? And we asked them, is there any way to keep any of it? They said, absolutely not. We said, gotcha, we'll take it out. Because we respect the people we work with and we respect our guests on the podcast. But you've got to remember in this instance, Alex Cooper being Alex Earl's boss, there's a totally different power dynamic there, right? If you go to your boss and you say, hey, I've shared something that I'm embarrassed by. And your boss says, don't be ridiculous,

27:29it's so funny, we're gonna put it online. There is this crossover where it's like, not only your boss, but it's someone who it's difficult to say no to because it's your idol. Alex Cooper knows that Alex Earl was a huge fan that looked up to her that she was her inspiration. Alex Cooper also said, I'm going to guide you in the podcasting world. When Alex Earl comes to her and says, I don't want this online, I don't think it's going to be good. And her inspiration and her boss and someone that's so successful in an industry that she wants to be in says, no, that content's going to be really good. Knowing that that person said they're going to guide you and to trust them, there's a part of you then as a 22 year old who's gonna say, well, I guess she knows what she's doing. Like, I've floated my reservations and she's still shutting them down saying, this is gonna be great. Do you know what I think is probably quite an interesting question is when your idol becomes your boss, are you ever able to actually say no? And this is by all accounts what Alex Earl has described. She was in such admiration of Alex Cooper. She wanted to be friends with her.

28:29She wanted her to like her, but also she was her boss. And so when your boss asks something of you and you have such admiration from them because they're famous and you just want to be in the orbit of the sunshine that they fucking expel, it's so hard to have boundaries and to have agency and to say no. So I'm sure that there were instances where Alex Earl wishes she pushed back more firmly but felt as though she couldn't because she didn't want to disappoint. No, it's such a blurred line. I actually think it's really dangerous. I know it's so far. Such idols to you. I was about to say, I'm about to see in real time if I can say no to my idols. But it's way out my god. No, I know about it. But I mean this, I mean, I think it would be incredibly hard. Think about the power that like actors and celebrities have over people that work for them. This goes back to even what you guys were talking about a couple of weeks ago with Ariana Grande and you think how many people in her team maybe wanted to say something about like, hey, let's step away from tour for a bit. Or all of the crap posts you see from celebrities. There are people in the team who are far too scared to say anything or to say no because you're right, it's a power imbalance.

29:30And I think that's the brunt of this is that there is such a power difference from her celebrity that it makes it scary anything you're doing in that world for her. Yeah, totally agree. I hate that there's women on fighting women. Like I hate that that is the trope because it's such. It's been like slum donas for years, right? That two women can't work together and they can't be both these hot blondes because they're going to end up in a beach fight and that's exactly what has happened. We have absolutely fit the mold in this situation and I hate it, but it has been fascinating to watch from the sight lines. While Brit was powering through every episode of Earl Meets World and I was not in protest, I did watch the new Reagan Dockyote Dockyote. Dockyote. It's a dockyote. Let me tell you, that's what a bigger would call it. It did feel like a dockyote. Reagan. The untold story, Reagan breaking badly. I did also get the pun, so thanks for that. I and I mean this. I fucking don't know how I feel about it guys. Reagan, obviously she's the break dancer, Australian break dancer, went to the Olympics. Olympian. Olympian.

30:31We're going to use that term loosely. She turned into... No, you don't use it loosely. She went to the Olympics. Whatever way you want to look at the woman is an Olympian and you're not going to take that from her. She is an Olympian. Oh God. She is an Olympian. She didn't score a point, but she went there. Anyway, she's also a meme. She turned into the world's biggest meme. You guys know, it was the kangaroo dance. It was the sprinkler on the world stage. This docko was fascinating to me. There were so many things about it. Like firstly, it felt like a comedy and I don't think it was meant to be, but I found myself pissing myself laughing through the whole thing. It felt as though I was watching... What's his name? We were talking about it earlier. Chris Silly? Yeah, it felt like I was watching Chris Lillie and Chris Lillie doing like a parody being like, I'm a great dancer, but it was meant to be a joke, but it wasn't a joke. And I kept waiting for the satire to stop. And I was like, oh, this is not... None of this is meant to be a joke. This is all legitimate. I had a bit of whiplash with my feelings. So as much as you thought, the whole thing was hysterical. I probably had two or three moments where I laughed

31:32and the rest of the time I felt so deeply viscerally uncomfortable. I had goosebumps. I was cringing. I couldn't watch. I wanted it to end for her and for myself. I found it anxiety-inducing almost. But I think your reaction to this is the reaction that most people had. Like, there's a visceral feeling of discomfort at somebody else's experience. There were moments I had to look away. Do you know this is a real psychological phenomenon and they call it vicarious embarrassment? What do you think is the protection mechanism of this? Like, the fact that someone else is embarrassing themselves and you feel physically internally sick for them? I don't know what it is, but your brain fires the same neurons as if when you see someone embarrassing themselves, it's the same neurons as if you see someone hurting themselves and it reflects in what you would experience if you were in that situation. So they did this whole test in the study and it showed people's physiological responses such as heart rate spikes, skin conductance, blood flow pletions, all of them shifted as if they were the person experiencing the embarrassment.

32:34It has to be a self-preservation, biological caveman times. It's like, oh god, I've witnessed what that person did. I am never gonna do that for the god that I die of shame. When we were watching it, Ben is like, look at my full body. He had goosebumps on his whole body. He said, I'm actually reacting to it. He's like, I can't watch it and I have goosebumps for her. But that's because Ben's an Olympian and he actually is an Olympian, he actually knows. He's like, I've been there. But it begs the question, what was the purpose of Reagan participating in this documentary? Was it a redemption arc? Was she trying to tell her story? Did she think that this was gonna sweep it all under the rug again? Because by all accounts, all it is done is bring something that pretty much died down. It just gave it a bunch more oxygen. And now we're all talking about it again. And that is the exact reason why I say, I don't know how I feel about it. Because it would be different if it was a redemption story where you watched it and you go, you know what? The internet was really incredibly cruel and I actually do feel super differently about everything that happened.

33:34I think two truths can exist. I think the internet was cruel, but I actually feel no different about the dance. And I feel no different about the performance. And the reason for that is, is because I think that there is a very interesting thing that happened whilst watching that documentary where self-belief actually crossed over into delusion a little bit. And I don't say this to be mean. And I'm not saying this to add on to a pile on when you got to the end of the documentary. What I took away from it was almost this feeling as though we as the viewer just didn't understand the art form of break. This is Reagan's perception that we as the viewer didn't understand the art form of breaking and that actually everybody just interpreted it incorrectly. That's her perception of it. It was this like, you know what? I might not have had the power moves, but I'm so creative and you guys just didn't understand. And that's on you, not on me. And so now I've gone to perform somewhere where they understand my creativity because actually you all were the problem and not me. It was a weird, it was a weird unpack. I got to the end of it and I was like, oh, no more self-awareness, none, zero.

34:36OK, it did have an effect for me when you say was the purpose that she came on to change our view of her dance at the end or how we thought of her. And it absolutely did change things for me massively because now I realize she wasn't the problem. Her husband was the problem. 100%. And I'm not saying that lightly. Her husband, Sam, who is also her trainer, hands down had an opportunity to, I don't know the right word, it's had an opportunity to placate this situation, to maybe fix some soft love that I love your dance. It's amazing. I don't think it's a limbic level. And I say this with love to Ray Gun. Like I send me to Fenderder last year when it came out and I think that she was given an opportunity. She never thought would come. She was handed a ticket to the Olympics. In this documentary, it does show, and this is what Ben said, as an Olympian, he said, do you know what? I have to give hats off to her. She worked so hard. The second she got given that ticket

35:36and she knew she was going to be at Olympics, she was hardcore training in the Olympic gym all day, lifting weights, doing the craziest stuff, getting really strong. Then she would dance late into the night and she really put the effort in. Did the effort equate to talent? No, it didn't, but she did her best. And she turned up and she did her best on the day. I don't think she should have ever been there. I think somebody sometimes need to say, I support you in anything that you do. But I also need to let you know that you are not at the level of the Olympics and I don't want you to go there and be disappointed. Like I do think sometimes there needs to be some tough love and it should have been given in this situation. I just agree with you. I want my husband to blindly support me in everything I do. No, you don't. I want to be loved and supported in the same way that Reagan's happened. No, I said to Ben, never. No, I mean, I was like, never that. I was like, everything I do live with the level of delusion that that man has for his beautiful wife. Because, so if you're not a cross-set and please go and watch the documentary because I'm fascinated to know what you guys think about it. Samuel Freer is her husband.

36:38He's also her coach. He's her mentor. He's her dance advisor and he's clearly her biggest believer. It's kind of like a love story documentary at the same time. It is a love story. He loves her. She loves him. She loves his style of creative dance and they have this like quirky creative dance thing going on together. Does that translate into sport? Does that translate into a limpian level? Absolutely not. Do the other Australian breakers think that it was even indicative of like the level of sport within the country? No, by all accounts. It seems like the Australian breaking community also were a bit fucking confused. They were offended. But as there's this wonderful montage in the middle of the documentary. No, the black and white head spin. Oh my God, there is a wonderful montage with the kangaroo is it's playing out and at the same time, her coach, her husband, Samuel, is talking about how he thinks. It is the most beautiful, incredible performance he has ever seen. He is moved by Ray Gunn's performance at the Olympics. And I think it's that juxtaposition for me that made me go, oh, okay, wow.

37:40This is why. This was the problem. There was no self awareness. But the self awareness wasn't so much just Ray Gunn's. It was like you said, it was her coach. It was everyone around her reinforcing that she was doing a great job. No, I feel for her. I really do because there were moments that she was self aware. There were moments where she said, what am I doing? I'm not strong enough. I can't do the power moves. She went and competed against other people around the world in her training and she realized the level that she was at was so far below other levels. She knew that. And whenever she voiced that, it was sort of squashed. Like her husband and coach was like, you're amazing. You can do this. Let's make it unique. And I think that she should have listened to that gut instinct. I do not think the punishment fits the crime here. No, I agree. I think the laughing stock of the world and that's not exaggerating. She was the most meamed, tweetable, laughed at person. And I really, really felt for her. She tried to subdue it. She came onto a live and said, like, please stop. It made it worse. And my heart goes out to her for sure.

38:41On that, though. And yeah, it was horrific. Well, why then have a Netflix docko? At some point, she's gone. Actually, I can make a ton of money from this. I've made my career from this. She's no longer does her university lecturing. She is a public speaker because of what happened. So as much as we feel sorry for her, it also made her career. And she has now made a Netflix show. I have a no. I think the Netflix show wasn't necessarily for fame. I think it really was created because she wanted to take control of the conversation. And I think she wanted to share what happened and kind of the flow and effect from becoming a meme. I just think that there is very little self-awareness. I actually genuinely think that the Netflix docko didn't do what maybe she set out to achieve. The only other thing I wanted to really touch on because I don't agree with it. And maybe some of you guys will feel differently. But there was a comment that was made around the standard for which we hold women. And so she was saying that as a woman who was participating and the fact that her performance

39:42wasn't up to scratch, the vitriol she received was way worse because she was a woman. And it wouldn't have been the same had she been a man. And I am the first person to scream feminism about 99.9% of things. But I felt like in this moment, it was almost weaponizing gender a little bit because I don't think that that's necessarily the case. I think if a guy got up there, did the sprinkler, there would have been just as much conversation around it. And I say this because not everyone was hating on Raygun. When that dance happened, not everyone was like, you're an embarrassment, this is horrific. Yes, that happened. But there were also people calling her a queen and icon saying it was still mocking her. No one, whenever I was like, yes, queen, it was because it's like, yes, queen, because you obviously give no fucks what anyone thinks about you. It was still in a mockery. Yeah, but people would have done that if it was a guy as well. I don't know. I think that it takes away from the gender conversation when something is not about the gender. I think it does it to serve us to women when we say, oh, that sexism or its misogyny, if it's not, for me, it didn't have a clear and definitive, yes,

40:43this has happened to her because she's a woman. And that is how women are treated in sports. It was, it didn't scream of that. But maybe I'm wrong and I'm very happy to be told that that's not the case. I think that it kind of had a real element of this. I think it's both. I agree that if it was a man, the memes would have been the same. People would have laughed as much, but I think it would have looked different. I don't think it would have lasted as long. I think it has everything to do with the fact that when you think of what a B boy is or a B girl is, they are super cool. Reagan rocked up in a cricket outfit. Oh, she did. She did. She was so far from center, from what people envision a B girl to be. And I do think it would have looked different if it was a man. Maybe people would have laughed and mocked for a little while and that it probably would have died down. Yeah, but what if it was a nerdy academic man that came in and he was like, no, Swagger and was like, woo, like I'm talking like a red-haired, super-unco-ordinated, I think we'd laugh the same. No, I don't. Ron Lee'sly gets on the back foot. Do you know what? I would still be laughing. Like, it would be different.

41:43I guarantee it, it would end up like a locky the geek from Beauty and the Geek that ended up being such a lovable, adored character on the K-J show for years. Yeah, potentially. We look at them differently, we do. And I think what she's saying is, which I agree with, at the end of the day, when the world has realized that it wasn't just a few people laughing anymore, that you were the most laughed at and trolled person in the world at that time, it would sting so much more to be like, okay, cool, you guys know that this is just fucking bullying now. Where are my women at to at least pull back? That's what I think she felt. So I don't think she felt it from the start. I think she probably laughed at the start. And when it took on legs of its own, because this thing took on a whole new world. Yeah, it did. That's where I think she took in. They're like, okay, enough's enough. Like can some women support me now? Because I am being, this is a slaughterhouse. Yeah, and I do agree with that. I think that that's a really good point. Look, overarchingly, did the documentary achieve what it set out to achieve? No. And so I've been under the boss. It really did. But I love that they love each other and they support each other so much. But so if you made one point,

42:44which I think is like definitely something we should touch on, it's the crossover between art and sport. And I think that the conversation around breaking is that it's an art form. So how do you judge an art form in a sporting capacity? But when we look at it from an Olympic level, in this instance, it is a judgeable sport. A ray gun, unfortunately, no matter how conceptual the dance was or how artistic her interpretation of the Australian sprinkler is, it simply wasn't at professional sporting level. And that's what I find really hard about. Almost giving her the grace is even coming off the back of this documentary, like you said earlier, Laura, she's gone, you know what, guys? You just don't understand my creator. You don't understand my art. And I go, no, you know what? I do get your art. I get that dance as an art. But in this scenario, and in this case, the Olympics is not an art form. It is the most competitive sporting arena in the world. And the other sports in people that have gotten there have to adhere to a certain set of rules, standards, regulations in their sports. And unfortunately, break dancing also has those rules

43:47and regulations in that arena. And you can't admit it. Well, devil's advocate. That's why it's no longer at the Olympics because so many breakers came out saying, breaking is an art form. And you cannot put labels on it like other sports to track. You can't go and put those judging levels on that you would in any other Olympic sport. How fast you can run, how high you can jump. How much you can lift. Like the criteria for the Olympics is truly measurable. And when you put something subjective, like a dance that somebody, the core of breaking is supposed to be expressing yourself. Sorry. Ray Gunn. Sorry. Ray Gunn grew in the spring cloud. Like the level of subjectivity doesn't exist. No, but listen, spectrum. Listen, what I took from this documentary is that when they say breaking is about expressing yourself, you can see that Ray Gunn and her husband expressed it truly from their core, believed what they were doing was the best, most beautifully expressive thing. Like Sam felt that in his core. And so part of me is like, I agree.

44:48But to that, I say, you can believe something. It doesn't make it true. But no one told them. I know, but I could believe. And this is what I mean by the crossover. The very first thing I said, the crossover between self-belief and delusion. I could believe that I am the best breaker in the entire fucking world that no one's ever break like I break. And I could do the chicken dance. That doesn't make it good. But because I believe it, you can't believe something into existence. And that's what they did here. They tried to believe it into existence and everyone is trying to tell them it's not real. I don't think they did. She knew. She knew what she was going in. But he didn't. He still says it's the most beautiful thing. He's ever said, I know, but that's what I'm saying. I truly think where she was let down is, were there signs? Yes. She lost every event that she ever went to. But she won the event that got her to the Olympics. There was no one there, other than her husband, supporting her, helping her train. So like the head of the breaking Australia said he didn't even watch her routine until she walked out that day. And then he was like, oh, fuck. He even said like, oh, don't put the camera on my face.

45:50They let her down. Someone let her down by not being honest. Yes, by not just being like, fucking love you, babe. This isn't it. Oh, I reckon. Go and watch the docko. I have feelings and I need to talk to people about it. Slide on into the dams. Anyway, guys, it is time for our second, our sweet, our highlight and our low light of each and every week. Brick, what's your suck? Look, mine just has to be how sick I am. I cannot breathe. I don't know how I sound audio wise. I have struggles for free. You sound good. Yeah, because I'm like this. I have to lean away and go. I just feel good. Do you know, when you say that, I'm so thrilled that we're sitting in a three by three room with air conditioning circulating. I can't do it without me. So step up to the plate. I'm sick or anything from this. I don't think I'm contagious still, so it's good. I think I'm on the tail end. You are a woman of science, but I would dare say that if you still have symptoms, just sick, babe. I'm good, babe. I'm good. Anyway, what was your sweet? My sweet was just having the wind blow through my hair on that loose down the mountain with Laura. Well, as I looked back at her because she was 100 meters behind me.

46:51I was. I also had a wickety wheel on one of them and I came off and I was like, Brick, I couldn't go fast out of wickety wheel. She was like, fuck off with your excuses. I was like, I'm here in a lot of excuses. I saw the man check your loose before you went down. Can I say though how nice it is? Because we obviously we spend so much time together working. We rarely get to spend time together outside of work. Like we never just like hang out with our kids and everything else. So nice. It's so awesome. You and my sweet hanging out with you. We have dinner days. We have dinner days. We do everything. We start a spa bar. We start the spa together. In the rain or so, Brick. We went for walks. It was just lovely. We did like a 10 kilometer walk. That is also my, that is my sweet. Spending some quality time with you, Brittany, is my sweet. My sock is kids are sick. Kids are so sick. I say that I'm in a really good mood, which is weird. Because since coming back from New Zealand, each night I've only had four to five hours sleep. Because between poppy being wiped out with influenza B and both Lola and poppy having ear infections off the back of it, it has been a flock and time in my life. So yeah, sickness is also my sock.

47:53But my actual sweet, you and also Matt, Father of the Year, please say, sorry Matt. Bless him. I'm so proud of him. He's a good dad. We should get more good dads. Yeah, that's it for me. But I'm good dads. Son of a petition, more good dads. Anyway, guys, that is it from us. If you have any questions, question your own A's for Ask Uncut, slide on to the DMs, join us in our discussion group because it's fucking spicy in there. More lifers of join the crew. If you are joining the Facebook group, make sure you answer the question because we will only let you when if you answer the question. It's not a hard question. Yeah, it's because some people don't know who the fuck we are. And so we're not letting you in. We're not letting you solve your own troubles. What is that? We don't let the end of the game. No, it's a good community. And that's the thing, that's the only gate to get in as you answer one very very simple question and that's how we keep all the bots out and keep all the lovelies in. Yeah. So if you are coming to sell triangles to the crew, if you're triangle salesmen, we won't let you in. They are you to mess that is it from us.

48:56And you know the drill. So mom, tell your dad tell your dog, tell your friends and your shadow love because We love them!