Afleveringen
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Maybe you hated the kids who went. Maybe you were just mildly annoyed by them. Maybe, you were one of them. No matter your relation, most people have encountered today’s cult in one way or another. Whether you were soaking up the spotlight or cringing from back home, the cult of Theater Camp is always looming just in the wings. Is the world of adolescent summertime theater nothing more than a harmless, whimsical romp, or is there something sinister going on behind all that jazz? Bonafide theater nerds Amanda, Reese and Chelsea are joined by none other than Anna Camp (@therealannacamp) and Dara Sussman (@daralaine) in this week’s stage-fright inducing episode to get to the bottom of it.
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Sul sul, culties. Remove the pool ladder and cancel your real-life plans, because this week Reese is joined by guest host Amanda Kohr (@amandamkohr) of This Feels Bi to unpack The Cult of The Sims. From trapping Sims in windowless rooms for “science” to meticulously designing dream homes we could never afford, The Sims has had us playing digital god for over two decades. But what is it about this bizarre little universe of WooHoo, grilled cheese obsessions, tragic kitchen fires, and suspiciously autonomous free will that keeps us coming back? Reese and Amanda K. dig into the chaos, control, queer awakenings, elaborate lore, and deeply unhinged player behavior that turned a life simulation game into a full blown personality trait. Is this harmless escapism, the ultimate creative sandbox, or a benevolent dictatorship in Build Mode? Dag dag.
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Zijn er afleveringen die ontbreken?
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The timer starts now, cultie. This week’s cult is one that some find boring, some find thrilling, and some particularly fell into via a certain Netflix show starring Anya Taylor Joy (guilty). Whichever way you slice it, we can assure you the world of chess is far cultier than the cute little horsies would have you think. Whether you’re a total noob or grandmaster status, this week’s conversation with chess expert and cult survivor Danny Rensch (@dannyrensch) will have you on the edge of your seat. Come along with Reese as she looks beyond the cute academia aesthetic and into the strategic and not-so-black-and-white cult of chess.
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When we first aired this episode, the “tradwife” trend felt like a bizarre internet niche. Two years later, tradwife culture has only exploded. This week, we’re revisiting our episode with culture reporter Anne Helen Petersen (@annehelenpetersen) , alongside then SLAC intern turned permanent co-host and producer of the show, Reese Oliver, in her debut episode! Together, they unpack the aestheticized world of “traditional womanhood,” where hyper-curated domesticity collides with political extremism, anti-feminism, and the growing influence of manosphere ideology online. What once looked ironic or fringe now feels deeply embedded in the zeitgeist. So while the Sounds Like A Cult team takes a much deserved break, we’re falling back down the tradwife rabbit hole.
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Have the events of recent years made you want to walk off into a grassy meadow, never to return? Does the idea of being in touch with nature, totally separate from the digital rat race of modern life appeal to you? Have you ever wanted to learn how to install a DIY sewer system for greywater? Then you’re a perfect candidate for today’s ever-growing cult. This week, Chelsea and Reese are getting their hands dirty and getting into the nitty gritty of Homesteading. Tradwives and rock climbers alike romanticize the nomadic lifestyle, touting freedom, survival skills, and an inner peace unachievable from civilization. But is the self-sustaining choice all it's cracked up to be, or does shoveling manure eventually become a little too culty for comfort? Come along with us as we learn from ex-homesteader Kirsten Lie-Nielsen (@kirstenlienielsen) just what homesteading is actually all about.
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Hear ye, hear ye! These culty wenches doth have-est a new episode for thine ears. Grab your turkey legs and your chainmail because we are galavanting into the culty lair of Renaissance Faires! Amanda and Iman are joined this week by the fair maidens of Morbid (@morbidpodcast), Alaina Urquhart (@alainatothemax) and Ash Kelley (@ashkell83) to discuss the cult-like rituals, language, and charismatic leaders of the Ren Faire, from ye olde accents to full on immersive experiences. We’re talking the tight knit communities, the rules of the realm, and asking the real questions like: when does cosplay become identity? How many “huzzahs” does it take before you’re fully indoctrinated? And why is Mark Hamill here? Is this a Live Thine Life, Mind Thy Back, or Get Thee to a Nunnery?
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Cancel your frown lines and lean in… because this week on Sounds Like A Cult, Amanda and Chelsea are getting into the wrinkle relaxing world of Botox. What started as a medical treatment for eye twitching has evolved into a beauty mainstay, one that promises to erase your crows feet... for 3 months. From preventative Botox in your 20s to the normalization of injectables as routine maintenance, we’re unpacking how this once taboo procedure became a beauty baseline. We're trying to answer the question a lot of people are asking but not always saying out loud: are we doing this for ourselves, or because everyone else is? Is Botox just modern self-care, or is it giving cult?
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What if the right words could rewire your brain… or at least make you feel like they did? This week, Amanda is joined by journalists and hosts of the podcast Mind Games, Alice Hines (@alicehines_) and Zoë Lescaze (@zoelescaze), to unpack the cult of neurolinguistic programming, the self-improvement framework that promises transformation through language, mindset shifts, and a little bit of psychological sleight of hand. They dig into how NLP showed up inside NXIVM and explore why these techniques can feel genuinely helpful in everyday life, and how the line between self-help and manipulation often comes down to who’s in charge. Amanda even tries an NLP session herself, which is equal parts intriguing and slightly unsettling and begs the question: is NLP a useful set of tools… or a very persuasive vibe?
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What does the Mormon curl, January 6th, and the rapture all have in common? Christian Nationalism! This week Reese and Amanda are joined by Jennie Gage (@LifeTakeTwoJennie) of Life Take Two, to unpack what we (spoiler alert) feel is one of the most insidious cults taking over America today: Christian Nationalism. From the 7 Mountains Doctrine to Trump taking over as a charismatic leader (despite never having read the bible lest his hands and eyes burn), our cultie hosties discuss the culty tactics that kept Jennie in, the lesbians who got her out, and and the behaviors that make this 'divine and patriotic calling' sound like a cult.
Trigger Warning: This episode includes discussion of suicide and mental health so please take care when listening.
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Thanks to Article for sponsoring this podcast! Article is offering our listeners $50 off your first purchase of $100 or more. To claim, visit https://www.article.com/discount/cult and the discount will be automatically applied at checkout.
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Welcome to the internet, where a kid can lead a cult. From Ryan’s Toys to Piper Rockelle, the world of child influencers is vast, brain-rotted and constantly changing. This week on Sounds Like a Cult, Amanda, Iman, and Reese have journalist and author of the book Like, Follow, Subscribe, Fortesa Latifi (@hifortesa) back on the show to get a look behind the curtain at the workings of the kidfluencer ecosystem. We reminisce on the kid and teen influencers of yore (hello Tana), discuss the parents at the helm of family vlogging operations, and unpack just how much we hope the kids will be alright.
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What does it mean for a color to be official? This week, Amanda is joined by lexicographer and writer Kory Stamper (@harmless_drudge) to dive into the oddly powerful world of Pantone, the company that turned color into a global authority system complete with sacred swatches, cryptic numbers, and an annual prophecy known as Color of the Year. They unpack how Pantone became the high priest of hue, shaping everything from fashion runways to corporate branding. Why does the word cognac feel more chic than brown? And how did a company convince the world that a very specific white or millennial pink can define an entire cultural moment? Is Pantone simply helping us speak the same visual language… or are we all just obedient followers of the color industrial complex? Either way, pass the swatch book.
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This week, Amanda and Chelsea dive into the cult of OneTaste, the controversial wellness company that built an empire around “orgasmic meditation.” To help break this one down, they’re joined by journalist Ellen Huet (@ehuet), whose reporting pulled back the curtain on the organization’s rise from buzzy Silicon Valley sex startup to full blown scandal that involved allegations of coercion, manipulation, and high control group dynamics. They unpack how OneTaste marketed intimacy as enlightenment and why so many got pulled into its orgasmic orbit. Is this a groundbreaking sexual wellness movement… or a textbook case of culty self help?
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Long before publishing executives "discovered" the internet, a very dedicated group of fans had already built their own literary universe complete with sacred terminology, power hierarchies, and enough drama to make the actual source material blush. This week, Reese and Iman sit down with the iconic Christina Lauren duo, Christina Hobbs and Lauren Billings (@christinalauren), to dissect fanfiction's glow-up from AO3 comment sections to genuine big business. We're getting into the culty dialect (slash, ship AU, canon, OTP), the plagiarism scandals, the parasocial power trips, and the Fifty Shades pipeline that proved E.L. James wasn't the only one who could monetize her Twilight feelings. Press play, culties, your kudos await.
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Have you been an unlucky ear victim of the phrase, “male loneliness epidemic”? Have you had the misfortune of interacting with a black-pilled, looksmaxxing sigma at the peak grindset mentality? Does all of this sound like terrible, confusing babble, that reels your attention in the way a car crash makes you rubberneck? Put your hazmat suits on, culties. It’s about to get scary. This week, Amanda and Reese are daring to visit one of the slimiest, murkiest, cultiest cults we’ve covered to date. The festering societal wound that is the Manosphere is a cult that has heretofore creeped us out enough to keep us at bay, but where and when cultish duty calls, we simply must answer and get the 411 for ourselves. Luckily, we aren’t alone; joining Amanda and Reese in this treacherous trek are the sensational congressional candidate for IL-9, Kat Abughazaleh (@kabughazaleh), and the effervescent author of “For the Love of Men” and host of Boy Problems, Liz Plank (@feministabulous). Come along as we try to figure out wtf and why tf the manosphere is, who’s at the helm of it, and what we stand to lose by engaging with this rapidly growing force of cultish nature.
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This week, we’re revisiting one of our most illuminating conversations: The Cult of Conservative Youth Activism, featuring journalist and author Tina Nguyen, whose book The MAGA Diaries takes us deep inside the movement that shaped a generation of young conservatives. From TPUSA to Tucker Carlson to the campus outreach, we unpack how MAGA youth culture became more than politics, it became identity, community, and in some cases, full-blown devotion. This is a rerun of that timely conversation and a primer for next week, when we dive into another corner of the internet where masculinity, grievance, and algorithmic influence collide. Buckle up.
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Clear your schedule and roll out your mat… because this week Chelsea & Amanda and special guest Dr. Adam McAtee (@adammcateepilates) are diving into the meticulously controlled universe of Pilates. Originally developed by Joseph Pilates as a method to restore strength and vitality, the practice has since expanded into a worldwide fitness powerhouse known for its unmistakable studio culture. Why does Pilates inspire such fierce loyalty? And at what point does commitment start to resemble belief?
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This week, Amanda, Reese, and Chelsea are joined by writer and comedian Akilah Hughes (@akilahh) to unpack The Cult of Joe Rogan, the podcast empire that’s convinced millions it’s the last bastion of free thought while quietly shaping how they see science, politics, masculinity, and truth itself. From “I’m just asking questions” rhetoric to the anti-establishment cosplay, we dig into how Rogan became less of a host and more of a cult leader. Is this curiosity culture… or a pipeline dressed up as open mindedness? Grab your protein powder and your critical thinking skills. We’re talking about influence, vibes, and why this very chill podcast sounds a lot like a cult.
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Thank you to our sponsors!
Get 20% off your first order with code CULT at https://LIQUIDIV.COM
Visit https://functionhealth.com/CULT and use gift code CULT25 for a $25 credit toward your membership.
Head to https://acorns.com/CULT or download the Acorns app to get started.
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Clutch your pearls and cancel your plans, because this week Sounds Like A Cult is getting spicy. We’re welcoming our brand new co-host Iman Hariri-Kia (@imanharirikia), romance author, cultural critic, and certified defender of the genre, to break down The Cult of Romance Novels. We're joined by romance author Alexa Martin (@alexambooks) to talk about romance novels as sex education for women, the intense sense of community among readers, and why the genre is so often dismissed despite being wildly popular. Plus, we get into beloved tropes, Heated Rivalry, and how Alexa might have accidentally predicted the Travis Kelce/Taylor Swift era. Is romance harmless hopecore, or a full-blown belief system? Plus, what that snake tongue do?
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We're back and more culty than ever! Sounds Like A Cult, your favorite comedy-cult podcast about the modern-day “cults” we all follow, is relaunching on a weekly basis thanks to our new partnership with All Things Comedy. This time around, we're bringing you even more of the zeitgeisty cults you want to hear about, including Trader Joe’s, diet culture, Instagram Therapists, and more. If you’re interested in exploring the everyday groups and gurus that have made our culture so zealous and divided, but also want to laugh and hang out and not feel so bummed out all the time, then this is the show for you! Make sure to follow us wherever you get your pods so you know as soon as new episodes drop; we'll be back sooner than you might think ;)
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This week, Chelsea is joined by culture critic and internet oracle Tefi Pessoa (@hellotefi) to take on The Cult of Bad Bunny… a global superstar whose fandom blurs the line between pop icon, political symbol, and cultural lightning rod. We’re unpacking why Bad Bunny inspires a level of devotion that feels almost religious, how his gender expression and fluid masculinity have become a flashpoint in our current hyper-conservative moment, and why his very existence seems to short-circuit traditional ideas of power, patriotism, and Latinidad. From parasocial fan entitlement to moral panics disguised as “concern,” we explore how fandom, identity, and backlash collide.
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