RepuTayshia

Blake Moynes from Clare/Tayshia’s season opens up to Ben and Ashley about his true feelings during his time with Clare. Blake reveals if he’s going to Paradise and who in Bachelor Nation has caught his eye!

Plus, Ben and Ashley discuss the one thing Ben S needed to do for Tayshia... but didn’t. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
This is the Ben and Ashley I Almost Famous Podcast
with i R Radio. Hey, guys, welcome to the Almost
Famous Podcast. It is Ashley. Ben will be joining us
later in the podcast. Um, but I wanted to start
with an interview with one of this week's rejects, Blake,
So I'm gonna be doing an interview with Blake, and

(00:22):
then Ben will join us for the Bachelor at recap
and headlines. We have so much of discuss, including the
fact that Ben, the other Ben Ben Smith was eliminated
and what I would say was a shock elimination. This
probably back to my American idle days. I did not
see this coming, but I can't say that I'm really

(00:43):
upset by it, to be quite honest. And I'll let
you know all about that when we get to the recap.
But first off, let's get Blake on the line. Hey Blake,
welcome to the Almost Famous Podcast. We're so happy to
have you here. Thanks for having me. How are you doing.
I'm good now, I'm good now, I'm relaxed. I saw
it all, play it last night and now I can

(01:03):
kind of take a deep breath and so good at
all it? Were you worried about your exit at all,
Like you said, take a deep breath. Um, yeah, I
think I think you know, that was really the first
time I was gonna spend a decent amount of time
with a lead. It came really late, right, So finally
sitting down and having with me conversations for a longer period.
You just never know what it's gonna look like or
what you're gonna look like. For the most part, people

(01:24):
had seen me do some pretty risque type things, and
so yeah, so this is a this is a different
type of episode and one that I've been looking for.
I wanted to happen earlier, just unfortunately did Speaking of risque,
what overcame you to think that you the penis during? Okay? Casey,
Like I knew this was coming, and that's okay, Okay.

(01:45):
First off, I think I was just like, hey, what's
important to me? What's been missing in my life for
a long period of time? And you know since my
wait wait to eight and you know, since my ex girlfriend,
which was about two years ago, Like it has been
a long time since I've had sex and love, and

(02:06):
so you know, I wanted to be bold and talk
about things that, um, people are scared to talk about.
People are scared to talk about the topic of like sex,
and so, um, I want to tell her something that
you know, Um, listen, it's been two years. Something I've
really miss in my life is something meaningful, and sex
is important in relationship, and so I basically just tried

(02:27):
to describe the difference between just having physical sex and
something that I miss, the difference and being I miss
sex and love and like that passion and having that
connection with somebody. And you know, that didn't make it
to air, but it was. It wasn't fully me just hey,
look what I can do. No, it wasn't that. There
was more deeper meaning to it, and um, unfortunately just

(02:48):
didn't play it that way. Okay, I know, but I
love that would get an explanation now. And that's why
it's so great to talk to people when they get
off the show speaking of you know, honestly like sex
and nudity and all that stuff. How did you guys
react to Bend stripping down in that moment? Like, did
that feel odd to you guys the way it did
for us as an audience. We got to know more
about the background as to why that moves. Possibly you know,

(03:10):
was more meaningful than it seemed in the moment, but
for you guys as a group of his peers, like,
how did that feel? Yeah, you know, Ben's a very
deep guy. He's he's got a lot of thoughts going
up in those in that head, and he's very very emotional,
and he felt like that was the best way to
express himself at the time that I see it coming. No,
but it's something that he would do, and um, I

(03:32):
think is when it comes down to it, I don't
know if anyone else in that room would have done that,
maybe aside for me because I have been naked probably
three times by that spot by point, but but no, Like, listen,
when it comes down to it, if you're coming on
this show and you're gonna be surface level, you're not
getting anywhere. Um, you've got to show yourself, not necessarily
in that way all the time, but you've got to
be able to risk things. And that was a risking

(03:52):
thing to do. But she loved it. He did the
right thing. Um, I didn't see it coming, but it
was a great. One of the ski things you did
up front was d m claire about you d M.
Tart checking in on her mom and like how she
was doing during like the real lockdowns of the Spring,
and I think, like most of the audiences just thought

(04:13):
that was the sweetest gesture of you. We really like that.
Did you feel like you were running a risk when
you did that or were you just truly like, this
is more important than my time on the show. If
for some reason they kicked me off, yeah, I know,
you know what. That's the thing. Up to that point,
I had followed Claire for a while, so I listened
to her podcast, I listened to her talk about her mom.

(04:33):
I saw her posts. I knew how meaningful it was
to her. So yeah, it would have been different if
I reached out and was like, hey, you're hot, I
can't wait to see you. Like, no, I wasn't gonna
do that. I knew that it was taking a risk
and sending her something. But I think if it was
genuine and meaningful the way that it was, and seeing
how emotional is she's she's mature, she wasn't going to
take that and throw in my face. Although she made

(04:56):
it seem like that at night one, when she brought
it up, I was like, oh God, is she about
to wrap me out right now? Like this is not happening.
But no, I knew that she would appreciate it, um
and uh, and she did. And I'm glad that I
did that because I've been to that point. I've been like,
not obsessing, but like i convinced myself that Claire was
gonna be the one for me, and I want to
start showing her that in some way and showing her

(05:16):
that genuine I was. And so, UM, I had my
hand over the send button for a long time and
I would I would erase it and be like, no,
I can't do this, and then I bring it back
like and then I was just like send and I'm oh, shoot,
you're just just staring on Instagram. You can't send. I know,
but I know that they she saw it. I'm like,

(05:37):
oh god, yeah, you know, just staring at your phone.
I couldn't sleep all And I'd be like, I don't
know if that was a good idea, but ended up
being a good idea. So so she didn't respond. She
did end up responding. She did to respond and just said, listen, honestly,
I really really appreciate, um, what you did there. And
I'll take genuine, being genuine, uh and being kind over

(05:57):
taking a risk any day or something like that. It's amazing.
I knew that she like that, she was the kind
of personality that would receive that really well. I hear
that you say. You said you did a lot of
research on her. Were you a fan of the Bachelor beforehand?
Or were you just kind of like, UM, I'm gonna
do I'm gonna try to get to know this girl
as best as I can in her interests beforehand. It

(06:18):
would have been, um, such a disservice to her if
I fully knew it was going to be her for
four months and I sat back and just like waited
to get there and just hope for the best. You know,
I wanted to make something that was potentially going to
work in the end, and so in doing that and
knowing that, I wanted to know everything about her because

(06:39):
I wanted to be have the potential to make it
to the end and then take off the way that
Dale and her have, and so I wanted to know
everything about her. It would be a disservice to her.
I wanted to show her that I was invested. She
talked on every Live, every podcast, and you could see
the emotion feel here, the emotion and how she was
ready for this and it's her time, and I wasn't

(07:00):
going to be one to disappoint her, so I dove in,
And um, I don't regret that at all. It's interesting
because the Bachelor, like having one on one dates or
like even time on the Bachelor can be awkward because
there's not a lot of things to spark conversation. So
I love the fact that you did research so that
you had all these different interests of her that you

(07:21):
could discuss with her that was like personal instead of
talking about like, oh my gosh, this bubble, like how
weird of an environment. It is, Like I think like
people use that as like crutch conversations about like what
they're doing in the actual moment. But it's hard to
like get beyond the bubble in these conversations because like
everything you'd ask is so random, right, You're like, oh,
should I ask about how the fact that she loves

(07:42):
hot like hot tubs and saunas like I wouldn't, but
like I wouldn't, How would that come up on the show? Yeah?
You know, yeah, you know I would say that. To
be honest, I think you could probably get that from
her too if you ever talked to her. Is that
I never came in with a surface level conversation. I
knew that everything having meaningful and deep, and you know
that also kind of sucks to and you let go

(08:03):
by two women on National TV after coming out and
giving them everything, like everything you're thinking, the deepest things,
the most vulnerable things, and being let go like that
is so much harder than just dating someone on the street,
where you know it's usually surface level in reality, but
here you can't do that. You have to dive in um.
And we never had really surface level conversation. It's always
always meaningful things, deep things. UM. It's easier for me

(08:27):
to have thom because when you're invested in like passion
or something and really believe in something like here, it
all is like I'm gonna trust you with all this stuff.
And she was really receptive to everything, and we had
some great conversations that just in that's the way I
wanted it to. Well, let's talk about that. So you
seem very invested in Claire. We saw you with I
would say like it was you Dale and Jason that

(08:50):
like we're the only ones that stood out with Claire.
But then when she left, it seems like you had
a pretty easy transition to Titia. Why do you feel
that was so? Um? Because first off, right, I had
convinced myself that I really really was in Declare before
actually meeting her. And although we got along and like
we had connections, we had kissed and these things, like

(09:11):
the energy didn't feel that great. But you know, at
the same time, you're on the show for the first time,
You're like, is this just kind of feel odd because
it's the show? Like what kind of is it? Um?
And then when she came in and basically just caught
us all off at once, and we didn't see it coming,
and she wasn't giving us the time of day in
a way, um, it was easy to just like be like, okay,
well listen, if this is actually how it's gonna go,

(09:32):
this is it's gonna be easy for me to just
be like, Okay, I'm not going to give you kind
of the time of day, or haven't even another thought
in my mind moving forward when I know that there's
another great potential person coming in and I can focus
and transfer that energy and those thoughts in that mental
space to her moving forward. And once you went to
meet Tam, sure you probably spoke to her she's you

(09:53):
just gravitate like you just like it's impossible. Not so,
it's like it gave you like this new like wow, okay,
I'm so glad that this is who it is because
and she did it for everybody. Everyone felt like that
a connection with her. It was wild. Everyone came back
and like oh my god, and I'm like, hey, we're
in trouble here because we didn't we we didn't have
that feeling with Clear because we just it wasn't the

(10:15):
same energy, and she brought something was different and it
was It was nice because the guys really deserved at
that point. Totally understandable. Okay, So you do talk in
your last episode about how you felt like your chemistry,
your relationship with Taitia was building slowly, like you're you're
late to building it, but you did feel like it
was happening. Was there anything that we saw, like a

(10:36):
spark moment that we didn't get to see on TV
or that felt more meaningful than maybe it appeared on TV. Um,
you know, you know what's what's Unfortunately, I think you
didn't like to see a lot of the slow progression
in the conversations throughout, like the group dates at night
and those things where you know, we would leave those
conversations and I would feel so good about making that

(10:58):
small step. It was the little things, and she would
let me know those things. She'd be like, listen, like
I wrote you off as one thing in the beginning,
and every time I speak to you, I get a
whole new layer and like you surprised me every time.
And it's up because I could feel some of the
tension in a way where she would take in this information,
but I still had that red flag over my head,
was like this guy just had a connection with Claire.

(11:21):
How much am I really going to give him? How
much of my time and how much my mental space
am I gonna give him? So you know, it would
have been nice to see a little bit more of
those conversations, I think throughout the way because it would
have made more sense for our one on one and
why God, as emotional as it did. Um, yeah, there
wasn't I think one big moment. I think it was
just a realization for at the end when she realized

(11:43):
that she was letting me go, that she wasn't fully
sure because it was a time thing, and that she
didn't know that she's necessarily making the right decision at
the moment, and maybe she was conflicted. Um it's hard
to say. She was very emotional when you left, so
that wasn't a surprise to you. Um, it was emotional.
It surprised me of the emotional how that she got
as emotional she did, like basically watching it back and

(12:05):
make taking a step back and looking at it from
an outside and instead of being there, remember hugging her
and she started to tear up and she was saying
she was sorry and all those things. And you know, obviously,
as you know, in those moments here, like your mind's
going to a million different places. So watching it back,
like you could really soak things in. Um. It makes
sense to me though, because I feel like she started

(12:27):
to see all those things and the connection came, the
connection that we needed came on the last day, like
the absolute last potential moment, and it was like, this sucks.
Even if this happened like last week, there have been
more time to it. Just I felt like she felt
the same way, and we still kind of got that
mentor m we ran a time. There was a connection
came too late. There's potentially something there. And I'm emotional
because I don't know if I'm making the right decision.

(12:49):
It's the kind of way I felt. So you're you're
saying during the episode that you, Okay, how do I
read this? Okay? But I know this moment and I've
done this so many times on the show where it's
like I feel, I feel like feelings right, but then
I'm kind of being like I'm being asked questions that

(13:12):
had make me feel like I should be more affirmed
in these feelings than I really am, or like that
the other person is feeling stronger than I towards me
than I really think they are they are, And I
feel like you may have done that a little bit
in that final date, because were you really imagining being

(13:32):
in hometowns or were you kind of just like, yeah,
like I'm feeling hopeful, and I'm going to speak out
of the positive side of my mouth instead of like
the more cautious side. Yeah, you know, going into that
one on one she had she had four one on ones,
five one on ones before then four of what she
made strong connections with them. I could feel those like

(13:53):
I could feel that I wasn't on that same level
at that moment. What those guys so going in, I
was like, yeah, but this one on one is like
the time that I could fully be me and have
a day to show me and like, I think I
can turn this around on this day. And I was
fully optimistic. Do you go into that date thinking I'm gone,
You're done from the beginning, right, You're trying to you

(14:14):
want to, you want to enjoy your time. So I
was convincing myself again, I like you had to because
and it made the day so fun. If I went
in there with a different mindset, it would have been weird,
especially on a deep, deep meaningful date like that with
the rieky and stuff. If I came in with a wrong,
wrong attitude, would have been a weird date. So I'm
glad that I came in the way that I did.
Got you, I got you, totally understand um. So, speaking

(14:36):
of that day, kind of kind of awkward, right, Ben
and I were talking on last night's episode about how
like he with his fiancee or and me with my husband,
Like if I had to in front of people, sit
on his lap, stare in his eyes and like breathe
like right into his face, like I don't even know
that we would feel like super comfortable and then you
got you and got a boner. Like was that just
like all was that just so awkward to watch on

(14:59):
TV or there? Okay? Well yeah, I mean like like
we all get it. Like seriously, Jared was watching, He's like,
uh duh, yeah, yeah, I listen, Okay, like she was
on my lap and like we got really intimate in
that moment, and um, it's really hard to explain um

(15:19):
that feeling in that moment. I guess I showed it
a little bit, but no, like, um, yeah, it was
a little it was a little awkward watching that back now. Listen.
I think that the shorts just made it look like that. Okay,
I don't know if I was as charged up as
uh it may have been. There's a black box in everything,

(15:40):
and like we don't even know what could be under
the black box. It could be a nothing, it could
be a big you know. Yes, yeah, well, I mean realistically,
in the time, if it really was really Eiffel powering there,
probably would have covered it up. But yeah, we'll leave
it at that. Okay, Well, before we let you go,
I do want to ask you a couple more like
macro questions about the season so far. Kenny told us

(16:01):
last week that Bennett really never broke character. He was
just like always in Harvard gentleman mode. So can you
confirm or denies that him all the time. Yeah, he
like what you see is what like there is no
there was no change from start to start to end
exactly what you saw. Like I can't really expand on
that too much more. He Um, he is him like

(16:24):
that and he plays a character, but it also it's
a character, but he also is that, like that's what
he is. Maybe plays into a little bit more sure,
but he sees what you get with him. Um, you know,
I think there's a as of like there's a lot
of love hate with him, but people love him, love
him because he is what it is and he'll stand
by that and he knows it, just like Noah does

(16:44):
the same thing. He's very himself, doesn't care what you think.
And so I can see why you're up. You can
be such a flip flop on either side either love
or you hate, or love or hate and it makes
sense supposed to. Um tell us about the quarantining process. Uh,
in the beginning, how many days did you guys have
alone in your hotel rooms? How many days do we
have in our hotels with quarantine? Yeah, like alone before

(17:06):
this show started a long time, a long time, Like
I was like when we when we got out of there,
it was like thank god, Like it was. It was
really really painful to do, and especially with detention, the
anticipation of like never doing this before, and like you know,
we didn't have really anyone really stop by or anything.

(17:27):
You're literally fully quarantined and they were overly safe, and
I hated it, but they did a really good job
of making sure that we could do the season the
way that we did it in a safe way. So
when Jared and I went to go visit, we were
quarantined for four days, we like could have what could
we get? Really odd to have like a massed visitors

(17:50):
and like the night of day three or something. You
guys had longer than this, way longer than that. Like
I was going, I was going mental, and like, you know,
I feel bad for the guys that actually came into
eight the season that had to do it even longer
than we did. But um, yeah, it was. It was
way more intense than I thought it was gonna be.
And that's the thing right from up in Canada, like
it wasn't at that point like COVID was. It's a

(18:13):
thing there, but it's not the same intensity as in
this is it in the States. So I can see
why it was taken to seriously as it is in
the States. And um, yeah it was. It was very
nice to get out and see everybody appreciate. See that
was usually the time for us, Like during a regular
season of The Bachelor, you are still quarantine, like you're
still in a hotel room, right and you can't leave

(18:33):
without there being a chaperone bringing you to a photo
shoot or an interview or anything. But it's nice because immediately,
like right off the bat, the first hour that you're there,
you start getting visitors and getting to know the producers
and they're just like so easy to get along with,
and you're making friends and you're feeling you like you belong.
So it must have been like really scary, And yes,
going mental makes a lot of sense. Do you did

(18:55):
you guys get your phones or computers at all during
that time or do they take the phones like normal,
everything's completely gone. It probably would have ran the exact
same way that it did with with your season, except
it was just extended and just like no business or anything.
It was rough. It was it was really rough. We
you know. Again, I was around on that first setting
to go around to see Claire in March, so I

(19:17):
went through that regular prosa, so I understand that it
was and this was not that like we really need
things were different this time around for sure, Okay, okay,
So um, I also wanted to know whether they flew
your family out to be a possible hometown date and
if you know how they did that. If your family

(19:38):
didn't do that, I don't know. I fully don't know.
My family didn't end up going obviously, but I don't
know any of those details. So I couldn't couldn't get
you that, But um, I would assume that they went
through something similar to yourself. Yeah, okay, when you left.
If the show were to end that day, who would
you think Tasia was going to end up? If the

(20:02):
show is to end that day that day? Okay, I
know that you guys have big group guy threads and like,
you know who wins, so I don't want I want
to know who that Okay, Okay, that day, I think
she would have wanted to pick Brendan. I think that's

(20:22):
what who she liked the most at that time. Um,
but I feel like I feel like Zach would have
probably been the best suited. Zach is my front runner
to win as that's that's I feel like he's just
it's more complete there. Okay. I on even like the
question do you want to go on Paradise because I

(20:46):
feel like people who say no are big fat liars. Yeah,
so I'm not. I'm not saying no. What I'll say
to that is so what I'll say to that is
is that you know, I came into this experience fully
invested in looking for something. I'm this place of my life.
I'm not here to play around anymore. I don't want date,
I don't want like. I'm looking for something. And so
if someone comes around that connects all the dots and

(21:08):
checks all the boxes for me, then you won't see
me in Paradise by the time that that comes about
in the summer. If I'm if I'm single by that time,
then there's a probably a good chance to see me there.
But I'm actively looking for my person, So um, I'm
not setting things aside or changing my life. I'm living
normally again and looking for somebody. So um, it's probably

(21:31):
And who in the franchise would you hope to get
a date with if you were there? This is See,
this is difficult because like it's hard to say that.
I feel like there's gonna be multiple seasons to choose
from and we don't really I mean you can and
you can anticipate some right that you might have a feeling,
but um, I think it just in terms of the franchise,
Like really, I'm looking for someone who's like minded, ready

(21:55):
in the same mental spaces me saying, like part of
their life whe they're ready for something. Um, there's some
girls that stand out for sure to me in that way.
Any names, Blake, we need names, I'll give you a couple,
but I really don't know anything really about but I'll
give you some. And these are just, uh no, more
than that, I think, Um, these people are just kind

(22:15):
of stand out because they are more than just good looking.
Like I see, I like that Kenda Long has an
interest in like a lot of like the animals and
like loves that kind of thing because I could connect
them that way. And she's cute any Doorphins just because
she's got her together and like it's any doorphan she's
got it I'll figured out. Um, I don't know. Christina

(22:36):
Shalman is really good looking. I don't know anything about her.
So like there's girls that like I'm definitely have an
eye on it a way, but I don't know if
I'll ever seen in paradise. So who knows? Awesome. I
love your I love your choices. My last question is,
just tell us a little bit about your job. You
are a wildlife manager in Ontario, Canada, and you work
with endangered species. So tell us the coolest animals you

(22:58):
work with, and like how you create these amazing bonds
of the animals. Okay, So the way that it kind
of played out is so I do a lot of
volunteer work with more of the endangered species things. So
um last year I went to Africa and worked with
rhinos Um. This year and going back to Africa and
I UM hoping to set up a little bit more
of an experience. I've been in contact with a couple

(23:20):
of organizations to do more work in the wildlife field
and wildlfe conservation field. So looking to pair up with
an organization that basically has purchased this big piece of
land in Africa hundred fifty acres that's been basically the
wildlife has been decimated by poaching. So we're looking to
put basically plants together anti poaching programs to restore the

(23:40):
wildlife there and then go and visit some other sanctuaries
and things and just lend a hand where people need
it because out in Africa that's a big problem with
poaching crisis out there. So, um, that's more volunteer type
work that I do here. It's actually more just human
wildlife conflict in terms of pest and wildlife management and
urban settings. So if you get something in your at
I could you could call me and I'd be like, like,

(24:02):
here's some thematic be the size of the poops I
hear that this time, and I like, I could walk
you through that type of thing. Um. So it's it's
more pest of wildlife related uh in this setting back home. Um,
But it's a combination of things that I'm slowly starting
to transition more into the while they have conservation space
on a larger scale, hopefully overseason over and AFA. So

(24:25):
basically in school, when I was living in a dorm
and I went to go to the bathroom in the
middle of the night and I saw a bat flying
directly at me through the hallway in a very Dracula
like manner. You would be, I would, yeah, and we
would be saving it. We'd be putting it outside. Good. Yeah. Yeah,
they've got they've got white nose syndrome and they're endangered

(24:48):
right now, really bad. Yeah, we could have a whole
chat on wildlife one days. That's really fun. Okay, Well,
if we ever going to do an in depth with it,
we would love to do that. So Blake, thanks for
Joe winning us. It's been really fun watching you on
the show. And um we hope to see you more
in Paradise. Awesome. Thanks for having me appreciate it. All right, Well,

(25:18):
it looks like Ben is able to join the pod now.
I know he had a conference today. I'm excited to
get him on. Hey Ben, what's up? Ashley? Hey Pump
to be here? What an episode we had to break down? Uh, Ashley,
I think it's always worked best here recently because these
episodes have been so action packed to break down the
episode first and then do bachelor headlines at the very end.

(25:39):
What do you think Let's do it in that manner again?
So we well, Ashley, we have hometown dates. Uh. This week,
Zach Ivan, Ben, and Brendon are the men left. This
is a big episode. It's never been done this way,
but obviously, um, I want to start talking about it
this way. I really loved how Chris Harrison walks into

(26:01):
the room and tells the men before the dates who's
actually going to be there. Yeah, that was cool because
it was a surprise for them, and I also love
the fact that it was is it weird? I think
he was more personal that they had to do something makeshift.
I think like everything about shooting in one location has

(26:24):
kind of been a positive this season. It's just made
everything more relatable, more real feeling, I would agree, more creative,
and like it makes it seem like they need to
add an extra little bit of effort, in which I
have appreciated. That's an interesting point you bring up. Like,
I really loved how they had to create their dates.

(26:44):
It was more personal. However, I think it's been great
for this season. I think it's going to be great
for that season. However, I don't know if I want
to do it long term. Yeah, you know, it's good
for now. They've done a great job with what they
ad I just don't know that for the next ten
seasons if I want to see it in one place. Yeah,

(27:06):
I don't know. I totally agree with you, all right,
So let's get into it. To Brendan, who had his
brother Daniel and his wife and his niece there. His
niece kind of plays a role throughout the entire you know,
portion of his which was so cute. She was at
the carnival with him. He said that there's a lot
of carnivals in his small town, so they played a

(27:28):
lot of carnival games. It was adorable, very playful. I
think it was great to see Brendan's father lee side
come out, especially since Tatia talks about wanting to have
five kids. One day I was one, I know that
his dad passed away, and he talked about that, and
that's so sad. Did we find anything about his mom
being there or did his mom pass away as well? Yeah, see,

(27:50):
that was a question I had. I don't know that.
So that's a good question for our listeners because they
they find out things sometimes better than anybody can. And
so listeners out there, if you know anything about what
happened to Brendon's mom, uh, it would be fantastic to know, um.
But there actually I want to bring a point to

(28:11):
the top right away, um, because here's the thing with
these guys, and they've been a great group of guys
for the most part, um, and and a really solid
group of gentlemen, like they've treated each other with respect,
especially guys. Towards the end, Uh, they've really focused on Tasia.
But something really cool kind of stood out to me

(28:31):
during Brendan's date and then it kind of led into
every date for the most part since his date during
Hometowns is there's these moments during the date where these
men looked at somebody in their life that they loved
and respected, and they looked him in the eyes and
they said, I just want you to know how much
I care about you and how great you've been to me,
And you saw grown men cry through it. Like it's

(28:54):
one of the things that we talked about on the
show a lot. But I think it's one of those
growing moments that happened when you're on the show, is
you start to miss people that you love and you
also start to realize just how big of a role
they had in your life. And I thought that was
an incredible thing to each date. But it really stood
out to me during Brendan's date and when he talked
to his brother. I agree with you there, but I

(29:15):
also like, I don't know that I can say more
so on his portion of the date than than Ivan
with his brother, or or Zach with Zack's daddy. Was
so cute with his mom too. But we'll talk about
Zack in a second. But Brendan's date went well, but
I'm going to be super honest, it was probably the
most forgettable for me of all four of them. It

(29:38):
could be because it was the first one. Um, but
watching this, it made me feel like Brendan was the
one who had a lesser advantage going into the row
ceremony until we see the ending of Ben's date, which
kind of turns things. But did you feel the same

(30:00):
way with Brendan. I don't know. I cannot disagree with
you more. Really, it wasn't that I didn't love the family.
I love the family, love Brendan. I think he's so emotional,
such a sweetheart. I just didn't feel the chemistry between
Tatia and him. I was just like, um, I feel
like this connection might be the weakest. Now, I don't

(30:20):
disagree with you when it comes to chemistry. Um, I
still think he might be kind of the surprise here,
but right now as we see it, I think Brendan
probably has the weakest connection out of any of them. However, uh,
this day is memorable to me because I feel like
he got a huge advantage. Now, going first is never easy. However,

(30:43):
he brings in the niece, and that niece is incredible.
So anytime you have somebody that wants five kids and
you bring in a niece or a child to hang
out for the day and you see how those two
interact like that is a massive advantage. It is cute
every time. Yeah, no, I mean it was very cute,

(31:04):
but I don't think the cute added up enough for
me to be thinking about Brendan and the end of things.
I actually felt like Ivan was the one who like
stepped up in this episode. We we knew that Zach's
I think, like we know the connection with Zach is strong.
I think that he's just always been a shoe in

(31:25):
for top two, but I thought Ivan who Honestly, as
of last night, I wasn't sure who's going to round
out this Top four, whether it was gonna be Ivan
or Riley. And then Ivan comes in with this with
the cute cooking date, which I can tell you guys
from when we were down there doing the breakfast portion
of the Grown ass Man Challenge. Tasia really stressed that

(31:49):
cooking is a huge part of her life. It's something
that she wants to do with a guy. She wants
a guy with a good cook, who's a good cook,
who's a good cooker. And I'm like, that's so funny
to put on your list of like wishes for a
man good cook. You know, it's like that seems like
a nice bonus, but it's very important for her. And
I thought that he got a little bump up to me.

(32:11):
And then I freaking loved Ivan's dad. He was so
cute And can we get a confirmation on this? Did
he say that he was eighty a couple episodes ago?
Do you remember when they were talking about age difference
and like his dad's age and health and stuff. I
thought he said he was eighty, But I could be
completely making up with making that up. His dad looks fantastic,

(32:33):
such a sweet man. Then his mom is adorable, and
then his brother came in, and you know that was
a very emotional moment. I just I just feel like
that's like a very close knit family, and Tasia loves
to see that. Yeah, So you know, Ivan's story was
hit home with me. You know, I've I've talked about

(32:54):
my dead head cancer. He's had heart heart failure. Um,
I know, I know the emotions that that has, like
when you walk through that with a you know, a parent. Now,
obviously this season we've we have a lot of stories
of these men losing parents, are having a disconnect from
their families, and I really started to feel friving there. Also, though,

(33:18):
starts to all make sense to me on why he
is so wise. He is very mature. Uh, he's very
empathetic because he's walked through some Like I don't think
you can become wise unless you walk through some stuff
in life, and it feels like Ivan's walked through some stuff.
And so this hometown date just really felt like for

(33:40):
me less of a Hey, this is fun and exciting
and more of a wow, we're really getting to know
this man and this is a good dude, Like he's
a solid, solid guy. Um. You know, Ivan's mom is
a little skeptical, which makes actually there's a part of
the episode that I want to ask you about, Chris
Harrison walks in and kind of pumps Ivan up by saying, Hey,

(34:01):
your mom is here, and she's so excited to be here. Yeah,
so cute. I think, like you just could tell Harrison
liked her exactly. But then she's also one of the
most skeptical family members that we see in this episode.
And skepticism. Fine, if you're a parent and you're not
a little skeptical this whole thing, like you know that
it's fair to be skeptical, did you Yeah, definitely, That's

(34:26):
what I want to do. Now. I'm just do you
think do you think that she showed the excitement that
you were expecting based on how Harrison kind of introduced her. Um, Yeah,
actually okay, So in the previews it seemed like she
was going to be tough, and then when I met her,
you know, we met her and she's had down with Asia,

(34:46):
I was like, I love the way she's expressing her skepticism,
because like she's cautious and like worried for her son
and all that, but like not in an angsty way,
like not in a I'm trying to gang up on
the lead type way that I did see a little
bit from Zack's brother, Like zach s brotherer just you know,
came in on the defensive, and I like the way

(35:08):
that um Ivan's mom did it with like a little
bit more of a gentle approach. Well. Uh, Ivan's hometown
date was one that I just really really enjoyed watching
because we've got a whole perspective who Ivan is, what
his family is. Uh. You see his dad and his mom,
and you know the story of his dad as we
just talked about. But his brother comes in kind of

(35:30):
in a shocking twist, right. He didn't know his brother
was going to be there. Um, It's interesting because I'm
gonna say, like, Ivan's brother obviously like has a story
to tell and to see him on the Bachelorette is
not probably something he ever expected. Yet his brother was fantastic.

(35:53):
Just the way Ivan and his brother communicated with each other. Again,
for Ivan to look his brother in the eyes and say,
you know how much you mean to me? Like, those
are moments on this show that just like pull my
heart out and like throw it to the heavens, like
it is absolutely beautiful. I agree, I loved it. He there,

(36:16):
there's such sweeties. They're definitely an odd couple, you know
what I mean, They're very different, but there's that family
bond there. You can tell how close they are. I
also loved as part of Ivan's dates that um, his
dad sat downtation and was like, you know what, I
was divorced as well, and like they had that little
moment he was like I was very young, how old

(36:38):
were you? And then he talked about just you know,
maturing in order to find that right person. And I
just I like the way that they were like having
their own sort of bond. Yeah. There there's just something
like I don't know if I could think of a
better word, but like spirit warm, but like spiritual about

(36:58):
those moments, like you know, in the sense of it
transcended TV, transcended conversation. When I watched this, I felt
something different than I what I usually feel watching this show.
And that's what I look for in seasons, right, Like
that's what I want is to feel like I am invested.
I mean I would be lying to you if I

(37:20):
said that, like multiple times are in this episode. Not
that I wept, but like that my eyes didn't get
teary because to c two people sitting next to each
other at this stage in their lives and say I
love you, I respect you. And then to have his
dad sit down Withtation and say, hey, I get it,
like you've been divorced. But once I found that right person,
I know it was the best thing for me, especially

(37:43):
knowing that, like as his dad says this, he also
like has had to deal with some health issues and
know that, like, hey, life's not easy. So I don't know. Actually,
like Ivan's hometown date, yeah, I'll just call it spiritual
and people hopefully will know what I'm talking about, like
it transcended these Yeah, this whole this whole episode proved

(38:04):
to me that it's like probably one of the most
emotional seasons we've ever watched, and Tasia's has been an abbreviate,
abbreviated season two. So it's it's been good. I've really
really enjoyed myself. Should we go back to Zach which
was probably the date that like I felt the most
butterflies on behalf of the couple, and that I felt

(38:27):
I didn't cry, but I did like feel like a swelling,
a welling, a welling during this date. And I think
it's just because this family was so cute, Like how
sweet were the parents? Just like so real and authentic,
and um, Zach's Zach is just being so happy and

(38:49):
just talking about how his family has never seen him
like this and then telling Tasia like wow, like this
is a whole this is like the best of Zach, right,
and you bring it out in him. So I don't
know what I loved this, states his brother. Yeah, was
hard on her, but you know, whatever that happens, like

(39:10):
you get that where that happens, there is there's a
lot of skepticism that comes into this whole experience, and
I understand why, especially when you have a brother who
knows Zack's past. Right, he doesn't know the conversations that
Tatian Zach have had. He doesn't know how open Zack
has been with her, and so he's coming and going, hey,
I know where Zach has been. I know that he's
had moments in his life that have been really hard
for him. And I'm hesitant to just like jump into

(39:35):
this being like Okay, this is all good, knowing that
like his brother's fragile in a lot of ways, like
he's he's been through some stuff. Again, that's where wisdom
comes from. Um, I guess I've never had this experience,
and I want to hear from you on what your
take is. I've I've had low moments in my life,
and I've had friends who've had low moments. I've had
a friend with me, lived with me for seven months

(39:56):
after his divorce, and to have the whole family go hey,
I've never seen Zack smile like this is beautiful? Yet?
Is it also a little bit like would it be
weird as you as a family member to go, hey,
like what was happening with Zack before this show? Because

(40:16):
he's obviously had time to heal. He's obviously, you know,
done great things when it comes to rehab and in
his involvement with the rehabilitation clinic. But like the fact
that Zack hasn't smiled like this before, Uh, is either
a really beautiful thing or it's like why not? Like
was it really he's just waiting for his Tasia. I

(40:38):
think that there's like a sliver of me that that
question cross my mind while watching this. I guess like
you can sort of say, like, is this the kind
of person who needs somebody in their life to like
they're dependent on for happiness? Or and like this is
the kind of person that can't be happy on their own.

(40:58):
Like you can sort of question at I'm going to
say in this case, like I don't believe. I don't
think that this is something to be concerned about. I
think that, Like I'm just really excited because it's like
the cherry on top of his Sunday, Like he's feeling
complete and like I know that like a lot of
people say, and I agree to a certain extent, like
you should be complete on your own and you should
be happy on your own. But I also, you know,

(41:20):
I love a good old Jerry Maguire line, you complete me,
Like I just don't think that that's like a bad
thing to say. You know, you enhance me, you know uh,
And I think that, Like Zach is definitely enhanced by Tasha.
And one of the things that like was so big
here was that he said, I'm fine on my own.

(41:40):
I don't need to get married and I don't need
to have a family, like I'm cool with being an uncle.
But then he tells his mom that he's ready, like
he actually was lying to himself and he was lying
to everybody else when he said that, because with Tasha
he's able to openly say that that is what he
does crave in life. That was so huge, huge, actually,

(42:04):
like it's not under estimate just how big that is.
So um, I don't know if I've ever shared this
with you. My mom listens to the podcast, she should
know this moment, but probably four years ago, not three
years ago. I looked at her and I said, Mom,
I want you to know that I'm okay that being

(42:24):
single feels like something that maybe is meant for me,
and I would love one day to find a partner,
but I don't know if it's the thing that I'm
meant to do, and and I just want you to
know that and be okay with that, so that like
you're not questioning where I'm at in life. And that
was a really hard thing for me to say to
my mom because I'm an only child. My mom and

(42:46):
dad want grandchildren, and I wanted to bring them grandchildren.
But it was something that I needed to say to
her because I was at that place mentally, and I
was also at that place over a lot, like through
many seasons of prayer. And but then I also know
the reverse side of that is when you finally look
at your parents again, you say I'm in love with
this woman. She's an incredible partner. She enhances my life,

(43:09):
and I'm ready to do this now. Like in a sense,
I don't know if it's true or not, but like
in a sense, you have to hit I don't want
to call it rock bottom, because being singles not rock bottom,
but you have to come to a moment of clarity
within yourself and then once like you do find that
partner that matches everything that you didn't think you're gonna find.
Maybe that does bring the smile to Zack's face that

(43:30):
we're talking about, Like maybe that is just like this
internal thing inside of him. He's going, Holy God, I
didn't know this existed, and now I feel something I've
never felt before, totally down. Do you think that you
are lying to yourself and your mom when you said
that three years ago? I don't. I think I think
I was. I think I was prepared to always be single.
I think I was okay with that. But preparing yourself

(43:53):
because like you wanted, like you wanted to be okay
if that happened, Like you're kind of reassuring yourself that
you'd be okay. Sorry not to go to no, you know, exactly. No.
I think it's fair because I think there's a lot
of probably like parallels between what Zach was communicating to
his mom and what I was communicating communicating to mine.

(44:14):
Is Yeah, you have to get to a place where
you're okay with it now knowing that like you never
dreamed of that. However, you know there's value in being single. Uh,
there's nothing wrong with being single. And I think I
had to get to a place to say, if this
is what my life's gonna look like, I'm okay with
it um now Again to go back to Zack, I'm

(44:39):
answering my own question earlier. But like when you finally
find that partner that you feel like fits what it
is you're looking for and that looks back at you
and says I. And I don't think Tasia has done
this quite yet, but like if she looks back at
Zach and says, hey, I love you too, that moment
is is magical. It changes the heart, it changes the mind,

(45:02):
and it does bring a different kind of smile in
peace to your life. That maybe that is what Zack's
feeling right now. I get it because you don't think
it exists. Yeah, it's so good. It's so good. And
just before we wrap up, Zach state, I think it's
also important you or you're talking about how each of
the guys seem to like, like love their family even

(45:23):
more after going through this experience. I want to mention
that he says to his mom that, like the impact
that he that she's had on his life is like
so huge that he wouldn't be alive if it weren't
for her strength. And and for me, you guys know, like,
I don't think I've been hiding it, Like Zach is

(45:44):
on who I want her to end up with. I
think that Ivan and Brendan are so sweet. I think
they're going to make the most fantastic husbands, Like they're
like some of the most quality guys we've seen on
the show. But I think, like with Zach and watching
that fifteen minutes segment with him, like that feels like love,
Like that just feels like where Tasia is meant to be.

(46:05):
I think the other two with you know, Ivan and Brendan,
I feel like there's a lot of potential in those
situations and in those families, But I just didn't feel
like it was like as strong as a like I
just felt like she was at home with Zach, it's uh,
and she she almost has this giddiness around Zach that
I don't know if I see around these other guys,

(46:28):
Like it's almost like she's a little nervous um and
there's like a serious passion. And it's not just cute,
you know, like the other two it's cute Cie, but
with him it's like sexy. It's like heavier. Does that
make a sense. Also, like the Jersey girl and Me
has like a sweet spot for Zack too when they
go through all the New York things. The whole hailing

(46:48):
a cab was very cute, the pizza and the bagel,
Like I was all in so good. Now can we
pause here, though, Ash, because there's one thing about this
episode and I've kind of like just like pounded it
now to the ground. But the one thing that stands
out this episode is I don't remember today a more authentic,

(47:12):
a more heartfelt hometown episode than this one. Like again,
for Zach to say that to his mom, those are
life changing moments for his mother, Like his mom will
never forget those words that she said to him on
that date, Like Brendan's brother won't forget it Ivan's brother
won't forget it, Like, these moments are things like I

(47:35):
know from my experience, and I'm sure you can say
the same about you. These moments are ones that I
still keep with me to this day, knowing that when
I was at my like most like lonely place during
the time on the show, I just recognized again the
people in my life that had always had my back,
and I just wanted to tell them, like I just
wanted to shout out from the rooftop to these are

(47:56):
good people. I love you, You've got me here. And
for Zach to say that to his mom in this
moment is like, it's just so powerful and it's just
so good about this show that the show does that
in these moments. I completely agree. I loved it so much.
We've just broken down three days here, Ivan, Brendan in
Zack's and they were all powerful in their own way. Um.

(48:18):
The one obviously that turns a little bit at the
end is Bens. But before we get into ben'smith stake,
let's take a break. Uh, And when we come back,
we're gonna break down the final Hey, if we're still
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we're back. And I'm glad that we separated this date

(51:09):
from the other three. The other three really feel cohesive
together with me and then with Ben. I'm gonna have
a really challenging time describing what I was going through.
I was feeling detached, I feel like, and I feel
like I felt detached a lot from Ben. And I
know that when I asked people, you know, when I'm
out and about and anybody comes up to me. When

(51:31):
I read our message boards, I see that a lot
of people love Ben. They're really rooting for him to
go all the way. And I felt like very held
back and saying that like that I've been rooting for
him because because I don't know that I have UM.
I feel like he's had like a lot of powerful
stories and he's been a strong character. I think he's

(51:52):
very cute. I think that he's a sweet guy. But
there's been like something holding me back from from feeling them.
And maybe it's because he is so guarded, and you
see that his family friend and his sister both talk
about how guarded he is. And perhaps it's because you know,
the depression that he's gone through, or like past experiences

(52:13):
with girls. But there's been something about him for me
that just like radiates and like, I'm so sorry if
I get this wrong. This is just what my gut's
been saying. But he just seems like the guy to
me that takes you on a few great dates you're
totally swooned by, and then you don't hear from him.
And maybe and maybe it's because he's scared, and he's

(52:34):
like the guy that she's scared to jump into a
relationship if he starts feeling feelings, or maybe he's just
not ready. I don't know. I've and then and then
we get to this day and I just feel like
there was like something lingering in the air that just
didn't feel it made me feel like I just don't
want her to end up with him. There's something about

(52:55):
this like I'm worried for her, her if she picks
him in the end. So that's why I was a
little bit relieved seeing him go home, as hard as
that is to I about someone well. And like you know, Forbiden,
he's guarded. Yeah, he has opened up with some very
heavy things throughout this whole season, and you know he's

(53:15):
talked to Tasha about these things. There is one thing left,
There's one thing left forbid to do that kind of
kind of wrapped the bow on top of their story,
and that is to tell Tasia exactly how he feels
um And so we're kind of waiting for that pinnacle moment, right.
But also noticed that normally in the hometown dates, there's
I'd say, there's like some expectation to say I love you, Right,

(53:39):
that's when you start saying I'm falling in love with
you or I love you. And that's like kind of
the way that they closed the card door at the
end of the night and drive off this I felt
like there wasn't that sort of pressure here. Maybe it's
because you know that she's had less weeks with them
at this point. Um. But but there was pressure for

(54:00):
for Ben to say it. And maybe it's just because
Ben has been quieter about revealing his feelings. Yeah, well,
you know the truth. This whole thing is, we're waiting
for this and it just didn't happen, and it felt
like the whole date fell short because the whole story

(54:21):
wasn't being told right. Ben is convinced by uh, the
ladies in his life during the state that he is
in love, and he goes, I am in love now
being convinced that you're in love. I think he already
knew it, um, but he had to be told it.
And so then the response is, well, is he ready
to tell Tasia this? Because it's getting down to the wire.

(54:42):
There's some great men left. He knows that, and he
doesn't say it now. Actually, I want to ask you
this because I don't remember past seasons very well, but
at this point in time, usually during a season like
there is some some more he did conversation amongst the
families and amongst the contestants on hey, like, where are

(55:04):
you at? Uh? If if he were to propose to you,
would you say yes? Like we only see it was
Zack's brother, where he's really the only one that fully
confronts the situation where it's like, hey, tell me where
you're out with these other guys, because that's gonna help
me understand. Now, with Ben, it almost feels like it
would have helped out if he would have been pushed

(55:25):
even harder to say, Hey, Ben, if you feel this
way about Tasia, you need to tell her. If you don't,
then stay quiet. Well he stayed quiet, and it left
a lot to be desired at the end of this
date because I went into the final Rows ceremony on

(55:45):
this show almost expecting Ben to go home because it
felt like there was so much confusion yet with Tasia,
and he had already so like if we go back
in their story, and I know we're houning this, but like,
you go back in their story. Tasia had to directly
tell him Ben, I need you to show up. And

(56:07):
when I say show up, like I just need you
to show up and be authentic and honest with me.
And he did it in parts right. He shared a
lot about his story. It made sense to all of
us as viewers, but in the moment that she needs
him to show up the most, which is to say, hey,
I've obviously like I've heard your story, I care about
your story. I'm falling for you. He stays quiet, and

(56:30):
I just wonder, and I'm assuming here, I wonder if
in Tatia's mind she said, hey, like I needed somebody
show up. These other guys did show up. I've had
to tell Ben to show up to his face he didn't.
And now now it needs to be done because I
can't keep begging for something that I know exists yet

(56:50):
he won't confront it. Yeah. No, I guess I agree
with you. I just felt like it was like a
dramatic turn. We he seems super happy with the family,
and then that they walk outside have that conversation on
the bench and she was like it's over, or like
she got she didn't say it's over. She showed obvious irritation,

(57:15):
and maybe, yeah, maybe it's just because she's like, Okay,
I've told you to open up a zillion times, and
why do I have to tell you before you do
each time? Now? Yeah, and I think that would get frustrating,
like in a relationship, that would get tiring. Now, Bachelor
Nation is going to freak out right like they love
all these guys. I think Ben obviously has a lot
of support behind him, as he should, so this is

(57:37):
gonna be a very controversial exit. However, I do think
that the viewers will understand it if we do look
at it from that perspective of, Hey, I've asked you
to show up, you didn't. Why do I always have
to ask you to show up? And because you didn't
this time, it's time for us to separate and go
our different ways. Yeah, I mean, let us know. Maybe

(57:59):
she had this hi sensus I had. I don't know.
I'm a little bit out of I'm not really like
at a loss for it. I feel like I need
to watch it again. I need to watch that transition
from like leaving the family to going on the bench
and then her walking away from him all irritated. Well,
there's a lot left unsaid. I think that's the best

(58:20):
way to summarize that. Now. Obviously, we see the end
of the episode where Ben does go home, he does
not receive a rose. It is a very heartfelt exit.
We see Tatian been sitting on the bench together, um
and it hurts and I think it hurts them both.
I think there's frustration probably between them both you. Hear
Ben say, uh, once again, I messed up. Um he

(58:45):
it's hard now to backtrack and try to fix it.
So we see been going home and we're left with
three great guys, Ivan, Zack, and Brendan walking into Fantasy
Suite week. Uh, which will be a huge week for
them and their relationship ships. Ashley, We're gonna pause again here,
what an episode it was. I think this was. I mean,
I think the best way to summarize the hometowns this

(59:06):
season are authentic, heartfelt, um and heart pulling. Uh. But
let's take a break and we come back. We're gonna
break down bachelor headlines from this week. Uh and uh man,
what an episode it was. We're back with almost in
this podcast, our guys, We're back with Bachelor Headlines, brought

(59:34):
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a firm dot com slash famous or download the free
affirm app for eligible customers. First bachelor headline for Ashley
I Cannet you to break down is Claire Crawley suggests
she wasn't allowed to attend bachelorettes men tell all Dale
Moss slams Joseph obviously, which we won't talk about a
lot during this EPISO, but this according to us Weekly. Yeah,

(01:01:03):
so Claire is always trying to hint things at us
for from based on what she likes on social media.
She did tweet herself, I wish they would have let
me be in attendance to let these men know in
person how much their words and support have meant to me.
Thank you, gentlemen. Sounds kind of sassy. Sounds like she

(01:01:24):
was a little annoyed that she didn't have her own
tell all or wasn't part of this uh. She also
she also said she also liked a series of tweets
on Monday night, including one that suggested that they shouldn't
have had the villain Joseph come back again, Like, let's

(01:01:46):
not give this guy more screen time. This is what
he obviously craves. I totally agree Joseph probably, you know,
shouldn't have gotten more screen time. But you know this,
this is reality t V show and they need entertainment.
And of course, as gross as he came across, it
was still entertaining to see somebody who's so like beyond

(01:02:08):
conception to you know what I mean, Like you just
can't believe that like somebody like him exists anyway, Then
you tweeted something great last night. It's perfectly worded. You said,
if everyone around you feels like you are not behaving correctly,
or that you are causing damage with your actions, you
should humble yourself to listen, and your opinion alone is

(01:02:32):
not always the truth. Beneficial right and loving accountability is
actually an incredible thing. So Well said there, and Dale
had to, you know, get this off his chest as well.
He said, he sounds more like me, he goes. This
fool had enough pride and arrogance to sit on TV
and believe that's how a man should act towards a woman,

(01:02:54):
even condoning that type of act towards his daughter, even
condoning that act towards his own daughter. How people ever,
actually defended someone like this and his actions is mind numbing. Yeah. So,
I mean, obviously, as we said, like, no need to
give yourself anymore screen time. But obviously Claire in Dale

(01:03:16):
and myself and many others were upset that this has
happened and the way it did in the language used
around it. But we're gonna move on to Matt James's
season now. We'll have one of our most popular episodes
here coming up in just a few weeks after tacious
seasons over when we break down each and every cast member,
knowing nothing about them other than their picture, their hometown,

(01:03:38):
their name, of their profession. And at that point in time,
we're gonna pick um some of our favorites and who
we think you should look out for. We're never right, um,
In fact, most of the time, I'm super wrong on everything. However,
it's a lot of fun to do. It's always a
good practice. Um. But if we skip kind of the

(01:03:58):
cast member breakdown, which again we'll have a whole episode
about here in just a few weeks, make sure you're
tune in for it. There is an interesting headline that
talks about uh some mystery Bachelor lum joining Matt James's cast.
This is a big deal, now, Ashley, you are in
the know when it comes to Bachelor Nation. What tell
us about the story? And then who do you think

(01:04:20):
it is so interesting? Right? Well, a lot of people
are thinking it's Hannah because Hannah of course created a
great friendship with Matt during the quarantine crew when they
were all down in Florida quarantining with Tyler. Well, you
know what we're gonna I think we're gonna need the
detectives out there to see who was possibly off social

(01:04:41):
media throughout a couple of weeks during the fall or
I guess in the instance that this person doesn't stick
around very long, maybe just a week. Does anybody even
notice if somebody has been off Instagram for a week.
I don't know. If it was a major character in
the franchise, I would say that that would be obvious.
But if it was, you know, somebody that maybe hasn't

(01:05:05):
made a huge splash, then I think they can get
away with not having their phone for a while and
people people wouldn't catch up, catch on, catch onto it. So, UM,
I don't know. You guys send in your theories. Um,
I don't think it's going to be Hannah. I don't
think it's hand it's an at all. I think that
if there is any spark there, it would have already,

(01:05:29):
you know, um been experimented with. I also think that
she and Matt have a very strong friendship. Those are
the vibes that we've gotten through their social media. So
I'm gonna throw out a gas for fun. Jen Saviano
uh interesting from the twentie season of the Bachelor, which
which I was able to take part in that would

(01:05:52):
be interesting. Um yeah, I'm thinking it's somebody like from
like my season. Like, I'm thinking somebody that has been
in the franchise a bit hasn't found love. Uh saw
Matt James and like this is my dude, and went
on to give it a shot, And that would be awesome, right,
I mean, that would be a cool thing to have happened.
Who knows who it is now Matt James wild ride

(01:06:14):
is continuing. Chris Harrison is speaking out a lot right
now about this season. There's obviously a lot of press
around it. But there's a funny story that goes on
where Chris Harrison admits that Matt James had no idea
what a roast ceremony was. Uh. This according to US Weekly,
which means that he never watched Tyler's season with Hannah.
I don't know, I guess. Yeah. So Harrison said that

(01:06:37):
sometimes the producers would just be like explaining how a
day was gonna go. He's like, we'd all be talking
like a thousand miles an hour, just like assuming that
he knew the ropes, and then Matt would stop them
and be like, hey, guys, I don't know what they're saying.
He even said, I don't know what a rose ceremony is,
and he's like and then like the producers are like, wow, um,

(01:06:57):
oh my gosh, Okay, we've gotta teach this guy a
thing or two. Harrison also recently said that there were
times throughout the season where he and Matt had words
with each other. He also said that there were moments
where they hugged and loved each other. He said, he's
a He's a terrific man. H he loved going through
this with them, But he said, like, if you don't

(01:07:20):
go through those like highs and lows, you're probably not
doing it right. So maybe there's not anything to like
really worry about. What like we had words with each other,
but like you didn't have words of Harrison while filming
your season. I feel like a lot of bachelors don't
get heated with Harrison. Do you think this is just
like some good click bait for us, like a nice
a nice quote or is there really going to be

(01:07:42):
some friction there? I think there's friction, uh, And I
think they have a lot of respect for each other
from everything I understand about how this season is, and
I don't know a lot about the outcome. But I
do know, uh, you know who Matt is. I've been
talking a few times. I think he stands strong and
the things he believes, and I think Harrison stands strong

(01:08:03):
and thing he thinks he believes, which is a fair
thing to do, right. Nobody's asking the Bachelor bachel arette
just to uh, you know. It's one of the cool
parts about being the lead. There's no rules, and so
if you want to stand up for something, stand up
for it. And I'm sure there is moments during this
whole thing where Matt said no, I'm not doing that
or I don't agree with this, and that's a terrific

(01:08:25):
thing to do. Everybody always wants to blame editing and
producers for everything, but I've preached it since the time
I got the show. You have every ability to say no,
like and like everybody's gonna agree, Like, nobody's gonna fight
you on that. If you put your foot down and
say I'm not doing that or I'm not gonna I'm
not gonna behave this way or whatever, the producer will say, Okay,

(01:08:46):
that's your call. And so I hope Matt did that
because I think he's a good dude. I think when
he does that, it's going to be for the right reasons,
even if it's not the best decision. I think he's
gonna have the best intentions when he puts his foot down. Yeah,
all right, it's gonna be good. It's gonna be super good.
Now here's a little going back to Claire for a
secondnother headline that just came up this week. It's just

(01:09:07):
super interesting. Uh. Yeah, you know, we've we've not doubted
that Claire was very excited about dating Dale. In fact,
if you remember right, she left this season a few
weeks into date Dale. Uh, and then on the kind
of sit down with them, she told Dale that she
was like ready start having babies, and like that was

(01:09:27):
a moment that we all kind of went, oh no,
because he kind of reacted hesitantly. Well, Claire Crawley clarifies
this week she has to clarify her relationships at US
with Dale Moss after calling him her husband. This according
to US Weekly, on Thursday night, they were around New York,
I believe, and she says, nothing makes me happier. Maybe

(01:09:47):
it was South Dakota, I don't know. It looked cold
outside and it was dark, and she said nothing makes
me happier than grocery shopping with my husband. And I
was like okay. So then of course she post another
Instagram story slide and says slip of the tongue. We
aren't married. It's like slip of the tongue. You've recorded
yourself saying it, then you pressed send, you know, you

(01:10:11):
pressed upload that was on a slip of the tongue.
That was like, no, that was something to get people talking.
What do you think? I don't you know what, Like,
if it was meant to get people talking, then that
was a very strategic move. However, I see it more

(01:10:34):
being like a slip of the tongue. Yeah, I feel
like she's just overly excited. Not overly, I mean, she's
engaged in love with this dude, so I don't know
if you can be overly excited about the future. I
think she's just so excited that she said it, posted it,
and then realized, oh no, I got a backcheck. However,
I never thought about it. It It could definitely be a

(01:10:55):
strategic move to get people talking. It would feel weird,
like that's you, that's just exactly you telling Jess that
she's I can't I love going grocery shopping with my wife.
You wouldn't do that, no, because yeah, exactly. Like if anything,
I still like at times like call her my girlfriend.
Yeah yeah, like I'm always one step behind. Like you know,

(01:11:18):
I'm super excited about marrying the girl, but like I
still like, for whatever reason, and more likely to refer
to her as my girlfriend. I'm getting better at fiance.
We're getting used to it were a few months into that,
see my Like, I think that girlfriend and fiance are
way more aligned than fiance and wife. So maybe it's
just personal preference or like the way that we think
of marriage, because I was like, all about official, official, official, official,

(01:11:42):
Like with Jared, I would like, I need to make
sure that that marriage certificate was like signed in scent
and all of that. The day that we got married,
Like I was like, I wanted to be official before
I call you husband, Like I don't want to just
have the ceremony, And I was like, I want it
in in spirituality sense and in we goes sense. Until

(01:12:06):
I say this, man, I don't know. Well, it's definitely
a headline interesting to read. Well, another headline on the
final headline when we are all celebrating, uh, Emily Ferguson,
who you know from the twenty season of The Bachelor
with their on there with their sister Haley Um Bachelor's

(01:12:26):
star Emily Ferguson engaged to William Carlson. The quote is
I get to marry the man of my dreams. As
according to people, this was so exciting, so very funny
story on my I Don't get a podcast. This week
we had Emily come on. We were talking a little Bachelor.
But you know, my other podcast is called I Don't

(01:12:46):
Get It, So you come with an I don't get
it in mind before we talk about whatever topic you're
going to talk about. And she said, my biggest I
don't get it is why will hasn't proposed to me.
It just makes no sense. We've been together for three years. Lull.
She's like, you know, in her classic Emily fashion, just
venting so honestly and hilariously about how he had yet

(01:13:11):
to pop the question. She's like, I think Haley might
get engaged before me. I'm like, so over, it's exhausting waiting.
And then I pull up my Instagram a couple of
days ago and I see that ring on her finger
and like that very engaging looking posts and I was like,
no way, that's so awesome, that's so so awesome. So yes,

(01:13:33):
they got engaged on Sunday. Uh. You know, he's a
professional hockey player. He plays for the Vegas Nights. They've
been together for three years and you can see the
video on her Instagram. The way he did it was
so funny because we all know that Emily and Haley
like love to be done up, their hair done, their
makeup done like a cute outfit that you know, that's

(01:13:56):
just them. They don't really show themselves off like without
being really done up. And he decided to propose to
her when they were on a hike. She was wearing
a sweatshirt, sweatpants, she had her hair in a bun.
She had just gotten a fresh spray tan, so she
may have been like a little bit orange. And she
says in the video, she goes, are you you're doing

(01:14:18):
this now? Like? Why are you doing this now? It
was so on brand for her. I loved it. It
was great. Well, hey, we'll celebrate Emily uh and William
her fiance. What a thing to have. Love exists everywhere. Well, hey,
Tasha's story of love is going to continue, obviously, next
week with the Fantasy Sweets. Will be here to break

(01:14:39):
down the Fantasy Sweets episode. It's going to be one
that is very tolling to I imagine these guys are
so in love. It's so in love, so emotional, so real,
so authentic. What a great season so far. We'll be
back next week with the Almost Famous podcast. Thanks for
listening with that I've Been Been, I've Been. Ashley followed

(01:15:04):
the Benn and Ashley I Almost Famous podcasts on I
Heart Radio or subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts.