September 4, 2025 • 34 mins
A Paradise icon - Wells Adams is giving his honest take on what he thought of this new version of Bachelor in Paradise - from the Goldens, to the location, to the theme song changing, and more!
As the bartender, Wells hears and sees it all. He gives us his perspective on some of the biggest drama from this season, and why it was important for him to give his opinion in the interview chair.
Plus, Wells is pitching a new TV show he thinks should be a part of Bachelor Nation!
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
This is the Ben and Ashley I Almost Famous podcast
with on our radio.
Speaker 2 (00:05):
Welcome to the Almost Famis podcast today.
Speaker 3 (00:07):
Before I get into the Paradise chat, I just want
to give a shout out to our hotel. We're staying
at the Porto Fino Hotel and Marina. At the Portofino
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(00:30):
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(00:51):
the Porto Fino Hotel and Marina. Now let's get back
to our interview. I am sitting with uh somebody who
has been a part of Bachelor in Paradise for how
many years? Eight seasons and there's This was season ten,
so you missed the first two, but you were on
one of those seasons. Yeah, so I was on three,
and then I was the bartender for four, five, six, seven, eight.
Speaker 4 (01:13):
Nine and ten.
Speaker 3 (01:14):
Goodness gracious, uh, I want to just start because eight
eight years, eight seasons of anything is a long time.
When you show up to paradise, does it feel like
home to you? Well, this one didn't because we went
to a new location. We went to Costa Rica. I
mean we did the first nine seasons in Sallylyta, so
(01:35):
that felt like home. I knew that place very well.
What was funny is that the audience knows it really
well too. And in production we had have all these
like code names for things like jungle path or tree
house or hobbit hole or boom Boom room, and then
it became part of like the lore of Bachelor Nation,
like they started picking up on it and using it,
which is very funny. So, but this season felt very
(01:59):
different because it was in a new location. But like
if every season has a theme, the theme of this
one was change. Like everything was different, you know. We
we moved locations, we brought in the Goldens, and then
all of a sudden, we turn it into a game
show with a money element and all these relationship tests,
(02:21):
and it was just completely different. So to answer your question, no,
it felt like doing a completely different show for me.
Speaker 4 (02:27):
Did you need that? Was that exciting for you?
Speaker 5 (02:30):
I think that, you know, the only constant in life
is change, and I think that if you're not changing
and evolving, you're gonna be left behind. The show and
the ip is and the fans are huge, but I
think at some point you need to pivot to trying
different things and seeing what works. And I'll be the
first to admit, like, some things that we did I
(02:50):
think were amazing, and like we need to implement going forward,
and some things I think didn't work as well and
we need to revert back to like what it was originally.
Like a couple examples, like I knew the audience was
going to be upset with the song being different, and
halfway through the season the song came back.
Speaker 3 (03:11):
Hell, I want to know because we were I mean,
I was very vocal about not liking the song being different.
It did feel like Bachelor Nation on at least on
social media, was like we we missed the song and
then it did go back Was that a pivot mid
season by production, do you think or was that always
the plan?
Speaker 4 (03:27):
Don't. I have no idea.
Speaker 5 (03:28):
I could be totally wrong, but I assume that's a
note for ABC being like, bring the song back.
Speaker 4 (03:32):
People are up. I like that they're listening to the audience.
Speaker 5 (03:35):
Absolutely, And that's one thing that I think that a
lot of people in the past have criticized the show
for is that they don't listen to the audience. It's
not the Bachelor we wanted, it's not the Bachelrette we wanted,
And so I think that that was cool. They made
some other tweaks too, Like you know, in the past,
we would always do credit roll, which is kind of
like the silly scenes that happened while the credits are rolling,
(03:57):
and that kind of wasn't there in the beginning, and
then as season went on, that kind of came back,
you know, the intro with like the silly intros kind
of comes back. And then the things that like veterination
loves were still there, like funny lower thirds, like the chirons,
you know, like it says someone's name and then it
says like some funny stat or whatever it, you know,
(04:18):
applies that thing and then I think that you know,
the the challenges, the relationship challenges, albeit like I know
that the cast was annoyed by it and like, this
is not what they signed up for, and that was
kind of like the conversation that was happening during it.
But after going through it and experiencing it and then
seeing how successful the show was, because if the show's
(04:41):
success is a derivative.
Speaker 4 (04:43):
Of who leaves the leaves the beach.
Speaker 5 (04:46):
In a couple, then I think that we had one
of the most successful shows we've had in a very
long time. And I think that the challenges and the
relationship exercises that we did helped. I think it showed
people who people really were, and that's like the most
important thing, you know, because when you're on when you're
(05:09):
on a first date, you're kind of just showing your
best self, right, and if you're on a dating show
that's being filmed, you're probably always trying to show your
best self. Understandable, everyone would do it. But if you
get thrown into like a very competitive situation, like your
true colors are going to come out, Like you know,
the cat learned that Dale's very competitive, but like not
(05:30):
in a bad way. Just like a thing that probably
wouldn't have been broached if we did the show the
way we did.
Speaker 2 (05:35):
So I think that.
Speaker 5 (05:38):
Yes, it pushed couples to the limit, but then it
also like kind of fused them and bonded them more
so than it has in the past, and I like,
I looking back, I think it was a really cool
pivot that we implemented this year, and I hope like
that continues going forward.
Speaker 4 (05:54):
You mentioned that.
Speaker 3 (05:56):
Really, I mean from the production side to a fan side,
for a successful season be done, it's really what couples
come together. The money element this year was a huge
element to be added in. It wasn't something that you
just mentioned there, and the change that were made, I
think from a fans perspective, the concern was, well, then
love isn't the point here, But if that still is
(06:20):
the marker of success for the team putting together the show,
how do you balance those two things where money is
at the end, especially going forward, You got I think
Paradise got lucky this year with two couples that really
like each other, but if that doesn't always happen, then
it's going to become just a complete game show.
Speaker 5 (06:36):
It's never stated, but the truth is the last relationship
challenge is the money. It's what are you going to choose?
And if you chose the money, then you failed that
relationship challenge, right, Yeah, And so.
Speaker 2 (06:52):
That's what happened.
Speaker 5 (06:53):
They both didn't Both couples didn't choose the money. They
chose love. And I'm still winning the money, of course.
Speaker 2 (06:59):
So yeah, like I get it. I understand.
Speaker 5 (07:04):
I understand fans bocking at the whole thing, and it
takes away kind of the the magic of paradise. But
if we're asking these people to effectively the mission statement
is is that we hope you leave together in the
in the best world possible. You get engaged. For asking
these people to go do this, I do think. And
(07:26):
it's not like these people are making a lot of
money going on the show. Just so everyone knows, fair enough,
you guys need to know that, like, it's not a
lot of money.
Speaker 4 (07:33):
You're not retiring, you're.
Speaker 5 (07:35):
Not even close. You're actually probably screwed because you're not
working while you're there. I don't think it's a terrible
thing to be, like, have we got a couple of
dollars if we're gonna get if we're engaged, you know,
we've got a couple of dollars too, you know, used
to buy a place together, or like move in together,
or maybe it goes to a wedding or something like.
I don't think that that's a terrible thing. I can,
(07:56):
you know, hindsight twenty twenty for me, And obviously like
it could have gone tear wrong, but it also would
have been scintillating television if someone chose money over love, right.
Speaker 3 (08:05):
Like heartbreaking television, because I really liked the couples that
ended up together. Yeah, I think the big question now
because the changes were drastic, took it a little bit
to use to and then very enjoyable to watch experience
be a part of. And we were all on the
edge of our seats when it came down to that
finale episode.
Speaker 4 (08:24):
How do you move forward?
Speaker 3 (08:25):
Though the mystery is now revealed true, you're gonna win
money if you stay together, and you're gonna win money
if you break up. So how does the show move
forward and keep this like gripping television that we all
experienced this year?
Speaker 5 (08:38):
Yeah, obviously it'll change. You can't have the same thing again.
And so it's going to be a situation of we're
going to pivot. You got to know we're gonna pivot,
but we're not gonna tell you how it's gonna go, right,
But gotta give you my pitch for my show that
I think would be great. Yeah, okay, and I've by
the way, I've pitched this too. I've pitched this to ABC, Jamie.
(09:01):
I pitched this idea to you. So if you make
this show and I don't get a credit where you're
in trouble.
Speaker 4 (09:05):
Now we're on record, it's good. Uh. I think.
Speaker 5 (09:10):
It would be so fun if we did Camp Paradise
or Camp Bachelor, whatever you want to call it. We
rent out a camp, right, and you do it during
school season, so like there's not kids there. You bring
the most popular Bachelor Nation people to camp and they
have to do camp stuff. So it's like a dragon
(09:32):
boat race and canoe race and underwater basket weaving and
like archery and stuff, and everyone has to go sleep
in different bunks, but you can like sneak out and
go to someone else's bunk and you're doing challenges for money.
But then like with love happens, it's fine. And then
here's where I think it gets great. You can bring
back a bunch of Bachelor Nation favorites who are married
(09:52):
who can't like go and just like canoodle around at
nine o'clock exactly. So like me and you were, we
have counselors and Jesse is like the leader of this
whole thing, and then they'll be like nights where like
the camp counselors are like, we're going into town to
go to the bar, and then someone gets arrested and
Jesse's got to come and bail us out. I can
see it being so fun. And the thing is that
(10:14):
it's hard to convince a bunch of people who are
beautiful and you know, don't have a whole lot of
problems in their lives to come to Paradise to potentially
look bad. But if you told any adult you want
to go to camp, yes I do.
Speaker 2 (10:29):
That sounds amazing. So anyways, Camp Bachelor is my idea,
and I think we should do it.
Speaker 3 (10:33):
I actually love the idea because I just said on
our last episode of the Almost Famous podcast, one of
my favorite scenes this whole season of Paradise is when
they had to camp, and I like this was it
was a great mix. We just got done. You just
hosted the reunion the finale with everybody did a great job.
But one of the things that were said, Kat said,
(10:55):
I went to Paradise because there is air conditioning this year.
Speaker 4 (10:58):
That's great. I don't. I think that's a bad thing.
Speaker 3 (11:01):
However, I want to see beautiful people in very uncomfortable situations.
I miss that. I missed that about Paradise. I think
your idea matches that because that's what was going on
at the camp.
Speaker 4 (11:12):
They were breaking down.
Speaker 3 (11:13):
If you would have left them out there for another hour,
you had pure panic happening at Paradise. Yeah, I liked it.
I would love to watch that. I'd love to be
a part of that. And I know you and I
would be the ones sneaking out to go to the
bar that could get in trouble.
Speaker 5 (11:28):
I can just like imagine it now, like we're wearing
like red shorts that are two shirt like American Summer America,
but for vaccination.
Speaker 2 (11:36):
I'm telling you it's a gold idea.
Speaker 4 (11:39):
It's a great ship.
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Speaker 3 (12:53):
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Speaker 4 (13:35):
I'm always intrigued by you. I love Jesse.
Speaker 3 (13:38):
I think Jesse has done a terrific job filling in
and taking over the franchise. I've always said publicly, and
you don't have to comment on this, that Paradise should
be Wells's show, not for any hit on Jesse. Again,
I just think you are Paradise and you have been
for so long. But even with that being said, you
(13:58):
play still such a crucial role in Paradise. These we
just saw it on stage during the reunion podcast. These
people trust you. You care about them, You get to
know their relationships, who they are as people. You're giving
them advice, you're making them drinks, You're around them a ton.
It isn't just it's not an easy job. And I
(14:18):
think that's something I always like to bring up, is
this is not just like an hour out of your
day every day for a month. This is you're a
bartender legitimately in Paradise. I want to for the listeners
when you enter into a season of Paradise knowing that
you are working for a month straight, digging into love
and also making drinks. What kind of mindset do you
(14:39):
bring into that just as the bartender and not kind
of the host of the show. Yeah, well, thank you
for saying that. You know, I've.
Speaker 4 (14:50):
Eight seasons.
Speaker 5 (14:51):
I've thought about this a lot, and like, don't get
me wrong, Yes, I wanted to host Bachelor in Paradise,
but I recognize that I can do something that Jesse
can't because I'm ingrained in the show, because I'm I'm
there the entire day, I'm experiencing more of it. The
(15:13):
stakes for me are higher because I'm friends with all
these people. I'm making them drinks. They're you know, they're
they're laying their heart out on the line, and it
allows me to do something that I think Jesse can't do,
which is to be what the audience is thinking, like
say what the audience is thinking, which they did a
(15:33):
good bit of that this year, where you know, I
think the audience never wants to feel dumb, and when
it's when it's never vocalized, it gets really frustrating for
Bachelor Nations. So having me there, yes, it's important that
I make them drinks. And I give them advice. But
I also think it's important for me, like be in
the interview chair, like Jesse would never be in the
(15:54):
interview chair, right, but for me to be like, this
is what's happening. This is crazy and I can't believe it,
and like I think I'm making crazy bills. Like I
think that's import for the audience because then they're like, Okay,
he's justifying like what I'm saying now, uh. And I
just don't think that a host can do that. The
host needs to be separated a little bit, you know,
And it sucks. I've seen it every season, and it
(16:16):
happened with Chris and it happens with Jesse. When they
come on the show, the cast knows bad things are
about to happen, right, Like it's oh no, like she's
gonna tell us something that we don't want to do.
Speaker 2 (16:27):
It's but when I come on the show, it's not.
It's oh yeah, all right, we need some shots, we
need drinks, you know.
Speaker 4 (16:32):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (16:33):
So and it's totally two different roles.
Speaker 5 (16:35):
And you know, I think you're right, Like it would
be weird to do Paradise, not not me, but someone
like me doing that thing.
Speaker 3 (16:45):
It would be weird to do Paradise without you, and
you can continue your thought.
Speaker 4 (16:49):
That's my thought.
Speaker 5 (16:50):
Yeah, I think other people could do it, but I
think I think that you can't just do it with
a host. I think you need like someone like me
or Hannah or whatever also being there to like explain
what the hell is going on?
Speaker 1 (17:04):
Now.
Speaker 5 (17:04):
When I go to the show, my outset always is
because I always just want everything to be funny, like
that's like my default is like comedy. So my thing
is like, let's just do this as funny as we
humanly possible, right, Like, how can we make this as
funny as humanly possible? And so my thing is always
(17:25):
like to the cast, I'm like, this is a silly show.
Speaker 4 (17:28):
Be silly.
Speaker 5 (17:28):
It's fine. I think the problem is that we get
bogged down in the drama and the serious and you know,
it's the most dramatic season ever. But my favorite parts
of Paradise are always the funny things, right, And so
that's usually what I'm I'm going in being like, I
hope this is a fun cast. I hope that they
will lean into the comedy because it's you know, it's
supposed to open. It's a comedy it used to, especially
(17:50):
you know, with the silly intros and stuff, and so
that's usually my mindset going in. And I think this
cast did a good job of like embracing it, and
and I think production did a good job of making
it still funny. So yeah, that's my thought when I
come into the show.
Speaker 4 (18:05):
You think the Goldens helped?
Speaker 3 (18:06):
I mean, that's obviously a big changes season is we
entered Goldens into the mix. It was teased by you
and Jesse once that was announced that who knows what's
going to happen with the Goldens, and everybody's speculating, like
you know, Youngins and Golden's intermingling and having relationships that
really never happened. But the Goldens did come to the
beach this season. It was a change. What were your thoughts.
Speaker 5 (18:30):
I was skeptical coming in one. I'm like, I don't know,
I'm not sure how safe it is to have a
bunch of elderly people in like three hundred degree heat
and I'm serving them my ties kill somebody. But I
gotta be honest with you, they brought so much energy.
I said it during the finale reunion show that we
(18:52):
just did like, thank God, they were there. They injected
that place with so much energy, and it's because they
don't give a like they've lived their life like they're
not trying to impress anyone on TV. Their parents are
gone and you know grandparents. No one's judging what they
do on the show. So it gave them this ability
to be very, very free, which I think a lot
of the cast wished they could be more like the Goldens,
(19:15):
you know, and I wish they could be too, because
they just came in there being like, this is the
greatest thing in the world.
Speaker 4 (19:21):
I'm on vacation. Drinks are free, you know.
Speaker 5 (19:25):
Like they weren't like, oh I'm gonna look bad or
like the drama. They were just having the best time.
And so they raised the vibes of that place so
many decibels that was. It was insane. And now I
can't imagine doing the show without them. I wonder if
they should get their own show. I don't hate that
we run into a problem with like logistics of like
how many things can we shoot in one year? But
(19:49):
I think it would be fun to do the show
and then for all the audiences. I was like, this,
we gross if like an old a Golden Dates a
young or whatever. If this whole thing is supposed to
be a microcos of the real world, this is basically
a singles retreat. I don't think that there are rules
for how old you have to be to go to
a singles retreat and it happens every day. Of course,
(20:09):
it wasn't going to happen on TV, but like we
had to tease it that way, right, like we're out
here making a TV show.
Speaker 3 (20:18):
Uh yeah, I have a thought it could be completely
irrelevant and not true. One of the other things I
liked about the Goldens being there was when the money
was announced. In my mind, I'm thinking most of these
people at this point are retired, and they're retired for
a reason because they've you know, secured their egg. I
(20:38):
don't know if five hundred thousand as good as that
would be to be handed five hundred thousand dollars at
seventy five years old, I don't know if that's that
intriguing to them. They've kind of already kind of counted
what they're going to spend for the rest of their life,
so it did take that out of it too. In
my mind, Like, I don't know if Keith is up there, like, goodness, gracious,
I need that five hundred thousand, and he knows what
his situation is in Yeah, but I'm expecting that he's
(21:01):
he's not really counting on it.
Speaker 2 (21:04):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (21:05):
They also worked in a romantic relationship Keith and Cathy, So,
you know, I think I wonder what would would have
happened if there was a really really strong connection with
Golden's at the end, Because if the barometer was like
who's really here for love and who isn't, which is
kind of what everyone was kind of getting at, then
(21:26):
you couldn't say that they don't deserve it just because
they're retired and they have a nest egg and they've
you know, got Medicare and Medicaid and everything. They've also
got kids too that probably, you know, could use a
couple extra dollars.
Speaker 4 (21:39):
I don't know. I think you could make the argument.
Speaker 5 (21:41):
I think it'd also be cool if you get all
the way to the end and then you don't take it,
or you give it to another company. There's a million
ways that it could be a cool ending. So I
don't know, we'll see, we'll see what happens. I think
it would be cool. The problem that we ran into
is there isn't enough pool of Golden yet to really
(22:02):
get a lot of people there for it to work.
A lot of people were like, why are they coming
in later? Wise the lesson there's just not a lot
of them the show. That show's only going on for
a couple of seasons. I think as that show continues
to grow and that part of Bachelor Nation grows, then
it'll be much easier for us to pair people up
and for there to be like really good lasting relationships there.
Speaker 3 (22:24):
I think Nancy would come back to the show for
the next ten years if she was asked, yes, she
would love to be in Paradise.
Speaker 6 (22:29):
Sude.
Speaker 2 (22:29):
Nancy was awesome.
Speaker 5 (22:30):
I know, you guys are both from Warsaw so, like
we talked a lot about Indiana. Kathy also, Kathy's great,
Like she needed you need a good narrator every season,
and she's fantastic. You know, Faith was fantastic, Leslie is
super sweet. And then all the guys like, I mean,
I've said it. I said it the open of the
(22:53):
of the finale reunion show. I think Keith should be
the Golden Batch. I mean, and it's like I love
that guy. I love being around him and the other
thing I was saying I was saying it to a producer.
I was like, if my mom met him, yeah, I'd
be so pumped.
Speaker 4 (23:11):
Yeah, he's just like he is that guy.
Speaker 5 (23:12):
Yeah, like the most lovely dude in the world. And like,
as kids, all you want is for like your parents
to find someone that's like awesome and fun pun to
be around. So anyways, that's my pitch for Keith. I
think that he would be the best Golden Bachelor in
the world.
Speaker 3 (23:27):
It's actually kind of shocking he isn't the Golden Bachelor
coming up.
Speaker 4 (23:31):
I think it's going to be talked about.
Speaker 3 (23:33):
I think actually we're going to see people as this
next season airs and Keith kind of has his moment,
especially with who he was even during this reunion show
with you, and they're gonna.
Speaker 4 (23:43):
Go, that's that's my guy.
Speaker 5 (23:45):
Well, to be fair, though, it was an impossibility they
had to cast that show before we even did Paradise,
so like you can't say, like sure, but it still.
Speaker 4 (23:54):
Was a wish that I think all of us. I
do too. But also, there's always next season. There's always
next season.
Speaker 3 (24:06):
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(24:50):
A couple of the situation that happened that you did
speak truth into. We'll start with the Jeremy Brian Parisa
Bailey situation. You have a moment where you come on
and you say, I feel like I've been taking crazy
pills because everybody's mad at Brian, and I'm seeing this.
Speaker 4 (25:13):
Situation as.
Speaker 3 (25:16):
Not that clear, Like I think maybe Jeremy could have
been more in the wrong than what people are leading on.
How did you get that read? How close were you
to the situation? And then how do you formulate your
thoughts without being like ingrained in because it felt like
the whole cast was on one side and you are
the person speaking into the viewership being like if you're
thinking this way, You're not wrong.
Speaker 5 (25:37):
A lot of people that moment like resonated with a
lot of Bache Nation fans and for the most part
overwhelmingly agreed with what I had to say. And one
of the big like kind of hits on me was like,
why didn't you tell the cast this is how you felt?
And if for being fair I did, I told, And
(25:57):
I won't name cast names, but I I was like,
this is gonna look so bad, it's gonna look really
messed up. And if I'm hearing about this, I can't
say anything because that would be I would be overstepping
my bounds. But like, if I've heard about this, that
means everyone knows about it except for the one person
that it's about. Like, that's messed up. You need to
do something. You're gonna look like the girls like not
(26:20):
girls girls, And for the guys, you're gonna look like
guys who are defending someone who did.
Speaker 4 (26:25):
Something kind of shady. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (26:27):
So yeah, I stand by what I said.
Speaker 5 (26:29):
And for me, like at the end of the day,
like I'm just out there trying to call balls and strikes, right,
and like that was.
Speaker 4 (26:36):
A huge, huge ball.
Speaker 5 (26:39):
Yeah, and listen, I like Jeremy a lot. I can't
believe that that man thought it was a good idea
in an interview on camera to call her like, that's
wild to me. But listen, it was early the girl
he was dating on a date with, not someone else, Like,
there's a lot of things that like, there's context to it,
(27:01):
but that was a wild situation.
Speaker 3 (27:04):
It was wells again, you made Paradise better this year.
You always have you and I can and I believe
that you always will.
Speaker 4 (27:13):
Again.
Speaker 3 (27:13):
No hit on Jesse, I just I don't want to
watch Paradise without you being there. I think you bring
so much depth and comedy and humor and wisdom to
the show, switching gears completely here in the last couple
of minutes I have with you, obviously we did just
get done. You just finished the reunion episode that will
be airing on Bachelor Happy Hour, a friendly podcast to
(27:36):
us here at the Almost Famous Podcast. You did a
great job, so tune in to get all the drama.
We're gonna be breaking down kind of getting into more
details with each couple here at the Almost Famous Podcast
in just a few minutes. But I wanted to grab
you to talk about a few things that you have
going on. You have a new podcast, in addition to
the Vanity Index podcast, which I'm a subscriber and listener
(27:59):
to thank you, You have a new podcast with iHeart
called by Order of the Faithfuls. Yep, so rewatch and
break down podcasts of the Traders. You were on the
Traders for not as long as we wanted to see
you on the Traders, but you got a podcast out
of this, so goodness, gracious, you're winning wells tell us
about it.
Speaker 5 (28:19):
Yeah, So basically we're watching the first couple seasons. It's
myself and Dolores, who was the winner of season three
of Traders, and Tamra who was on season two of Traders.
So it's two housewives and then this idiot and it's
us watching the first three seasons of Traders back with
(28:42):
the audience breaking it down, having people who are on
the show on the show talking about.
Speaker 2 (28:48):
You know, everyone's.
Speaker 5 (28:52):
How they're going about doing the show and whether or
not they're doing a good job as being a Faithful
or a Trader and all that kind of stuff, and
then you know, obviously a vent truly. I think early
next year season four will be airing, and then we'll
be watching it in real time with the audience, having
cast members on the show and continuing that. So, yeah,
(29:12):
if you're a fan of The Traders, which it seems
like the entire world is, it's a huge show on
Peacock and NBC, that you should listen.
Speaker 4 (29:21):
To that show.
Speaker 3 (29:23):
It's obviously a massive show. And I just wish you
would have been there longer because I was watching it
for I was prepared to watch it for a full season.
I watched it for I think one episode. Another thing
you have going on is it was just announced that
The Bachelor is hosting a crazy cool event that you're
going to be hosting or co hosting. It's called the
(29:46):
Bachelor Nation Vacation. At C it was announcing the finale.
There's going to be some great Bacheloration alum there, Why
would a listener to the podcast, a fan of Bacheloration
want to.
Speaker 4 (29:58):
Come on this ship? What are you going to be
do doing there? Tell us more?
Speaker 5 (30:01):
Well, I just gotta say I'm impressed that ABC or
Warner or whoever's putting this on was able to get
all these names, because like the fact that Jesse's come
on a cruise ship is blowing my mind. So I mean,
it's all the big thing.
Speaker 2 (30:16):
He is a week freeze. I know that man needs
to chill out.
Speaker 5 (30:20):
Yeah, No, I love Jesse so much, so yeah, you know,
Jesse's going to be there. I'm going to be there,
Hannah's going to be there, and then like Tyler Cameron
and like a lot Joey and Kelsey and Kelsey and yeah,
like it's amazing how many people they've got to come
on this boat. And then I think more names are
(30:42):
going to be released later. So if you're a fan
of veter Nation, like this is gonna be your opportunity
to like literally be stuck on a boat with all
these people.
Speaker 4 (30:50):
So you're gonna get sick.
Speaker 5 (30:53):
Yeah, So I assume my job is they're going to
make me bartend one night. I don't know, but I'll
sling some drinks on a cruise of Alito deck and
hang out with all the bachel Nation stands.
Speaker 4 (31:07):
Again, It's Bachelor Nation vacation.
Speaker 3 (31:09):
At c dot com, we have a podcast out with
a representative from the cruise ship talking about all the details,
all the fun activities, all the things going to be
going on that you can listen on the almost famous
thread too well as in closing. It's been a big week,
a week and a half for you. That's almost famous podcasts.
You want to say congratulations not only to another successful
(31:30):
season of Paradise. You crushed it and it's just such
a pleasure to be a fan of you and watch that,
but also congratulations to you and Sarah on three years together.
You celebrated your three year anniversary. I'll give you the mic.
We just had two very successful couples come out of Paradise,
Spencer and Jess and Alex and Andrew. Any advice for
(31:55):
them after being married for three years?
Speaker 5 (31:57):
Oh, Elope, I loved your wedding. I know my accountant
didn't love that. Yeah, go to France with ten of
your best friends. Save all that money you're going to
use for the wedding and put it towards the house.
My father in law gave me the best piece of advice,
and all you need for a successful marriage is to
(32:19):
remember two words, and that's yes, dear, so yes, dear.
Speaker 2 (32:28):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (32:29):
And I will say that a little behind the scenes.
I'm not there at the end of Paradise and the
reason why I'm not well, I am, but here's the
behind the scenes. I had to leave early because I
went on a golf trip with Ben Higgins and I
really hard to tell production, Hey, I gotta leave early
go play golf. So I left a day early, so
(32:50):
I wasn't there for like the end of the show.
Speaker 4 (32:53):
But I'm appreciative of that.
Speaker 5 (32:55):
Yeah, yeah, And I was nervous that I was I
get paid episodically, and I was nervous I wasn't even
get paid for that episode.
Speaker 4 (33:02):
But it was worth it.
Speaker 5 (33:03):
But then lo and behold, I'm watching the last episode
and if you watch, the cast is at the bar,
and then it'll show like clips of me. I am
not there, but they wanted to make it seem like
I was there, you know. So then all of a
sudden you'll see like a background shot and it's like
the other guy who's like been barred to I felt.
Speaker 3 (33:20):
Guilty about this for about four months that I but
we're good.
Speaker 2 (33:24):
Were totally good. I want I'm in this show on
the front end.
Speaker 5 (33:28):
But at the end I think they were like, it'd
be weird if Welles isn't there anymore for like this
last thing. So like they just had shots with me,
like cleaning a glass.
Speaker 4 (33:36):
There we go. We made it. Yeah, Wells was nice
enough to be a good friend. Oh that was the.
Speaker 3 (33:40):
Best trip, and we got a we got one coming up.
We got a good trip in two weeks coming up.
Wasn't I play a lot of golf together? Wells, thanks
for joining us today, Thanks for sitting down. I know
it's been a big day for you. You just literally
herded sixteen cats and pocket on a podcast, and you
did a successful I was sitting in the back with
(34:02):
some of the bosses and they were just like beaming.
You crushed it. You did it. It's worth to listen again.
It's going to be coming out there on the Bachelor
Happy Hour podcast, but don't listen to it too long
because we have all the couple sitting down with us
here at the Almost Famous podcast coming up. So until
next time, I've Been Been, I've Been Ashley.
Speaker 1 (34:24):
Follow the Ben and Ashley I Almost Famous podcast on
iHeartRadio or subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts.
This is the Ben and Ashley I Almost Famous podcast
with on our radio.
Speaker 2 (00:05):
Welcome to the Almost Famis podcast today.
Speaker 3 (00:07):
Before I get into the Paradise chat, I just want
to give a shout out to our hotel. We're staying
at the Porto Fino Hotel and Marina. At the Portofino
Hotel and Marina and Redondo Beach, every moment comes with
a view from your elegant guest room. Gaze across the
Pacific and watch the boats drift by at Beleen Kitchen,
dying steps from the marina, and savor coastal inspired socaw
(00:30):
cuisine For a touch of adventure. Dockside Adventure Center offers kayaks,
paddleboards and complimentary bikes for a scenic coastal ride. Then
return to the hotel's living room, where the Portofino poor
self served tapwall invites you to unwine and soak in
a breath taking coastal sunset. Discover your seaside escape at
(00:51):
the Porto Fino Hotel and Marina. Now let's get back
to our interview. I am sitting with uh somebody who
has been a part of Bachelor in Paradise for how
many years? Eight seasons and there's This was season ten,
so you missed the first two, but you were on
one of those seasons. Yeah, so I was on three,
and then I was the bartender for four, five, six, seven, eight.
Speaker 4 (01:13):
Nine and ten.
Speaker 3 (01:14):
Goodness gracious, uh, I want to just start because eight
eight years, eight seasons of anything is a long time.
When you show up to paradise, does it feel like
home to you? Well, this one didn't because we went
to a new location. We went to Costa Rica. I
mean we did the first nine seasons in Sallylyta, so
(01:35):
that felt like home. I knew that place very well.
What was funny is that the audience knows it really
well too. And in production we had have all these
like code names for things like jungle path or tree
house or hobbit hole or boom Boom room, and then
it became part of like the lore of Bachelor Nation,
like they started picking up on it and using it,
which is very funny. So, but this season felt very
(01:59):
different because it was in a new location. But like
if every season has a theme, the theme of this
one was change. Like everything was different, you know. We
we moved locations, we brought in the Goldens, and then
all of a sudden, we turn it into a game
show with a money element and all these relationship tests,
(02:21):
and it was just completely different. So to answer your question, no,
it felt like doing a completely different show for me.
Speaker 4 (02:27):
Did you need that? Was that exciting for you?
Speaker 5 (02:30):
I think that, you know, the only constant in life
is change, and I think that if you're not changing
and evolving, you're gonna be left behind. The show and
the ip is and the fans are huge, but I
think at some point you need to pivot to trying
different things and seeing what works. And I'll be the
first to admit, like, some things that we did I
(02:50):
think were amazing, and like we need to implement going forward,
and some things I think didn't work as well and
we need to revert back to like what it was originally.
Like a couple examples, like I knew the audience was
going to be upset with the song being different, and
halfway through the season the song came back.
Speaker 3 (03:11):
Hell, I want to know because we were I mean,
I was very vocal about not liking the song being different.
It did feel like Bachelor Nation on at least on
social media, was like we we missed the song and
then it did go back Was that a pivot mid
season by production, do you think or was that always
the plan?
Speaker 4 (03:27):
Don't. I have no idea.
Speaker 5 (03:28):
I could be totally wrong, but I assume that's a
note for ABC being like, bring the song back.
Speaker 4 (03:32):
People are up. I like that they're listening to the audience.
Speaker 5 (03:35):
Absolutely, And that's one thing that I think that a
lot of people in the past have criticized the show
for is that they don't listen to the audience. It's
not the Bachelor we wanted, it's not the Bachelrette we wanted,
And so I think that that was cool. They made
some other tweaks too, Like you know, in the past,
we would always do credit roll, which is kind of
like the silly scenes that happened while the credits are rolling,
(03:57):
and that kind of wasn't there in the beginning, and
then as season went on, that kind of came back,
you know, the intro with like the silly intros kind
of comes back. And then the things that like veterination
loves were still there, like funny lower thirds, like the chirons,
you know, like it says someone's name and then it
says like some funny stat or whatever it, you know,
(04:18):
applies that thing and then I think that you know,
the the challenges, the relationship challenges, albeit like I know
that the cast was annoyed by it and like, this
is not what they signed up for, and that was
kind of like the conversation that was happening during it.
But after going through it and experiencing it and then
seeing how successful the show was, because if the show's
(04:41):
success is a derivative.
Speaker 4 (04:43):
Of who leaves the leaves the beach.
Speaker 5 (04:46):
In a couple, then I think that we had one
of the most successful shows we've had in a very
long time. And I think that the challenges and the
relationship exercises that we did helped. I think it showed
people who people really were, and that's like the most
important thing, you know, because when you're on when you're
(05:09):
on a first date, you're kind of just showing your
best self, right, and if you're on a dating show
that's being filmed, you're probably always trying to show your
best self. Understandable, everyone would do it. But if you
get thrown into like a very competitive situation, like your
true colors are going to come out, Like you know,
the cat learned that Dale's very competitive, but like not
(05:30):
in a bad way. Just like a thing that probably
wouldn't have been broached if we did the show the
way we did.
Speaker 2 (05:35):
So I think that.
Speaker 5 (05:38):
Yes, it pushed couples to the limit, but then it
also like kind of fused them and bonded them more
so than it has in the past, and I like,
I looking back, I think it was a really cool
pivot that we implemented this year, and I hope like
that continues going forward.
Speaker 4 (05:54):
You mentioned that.
Speaker 3 (05:56):
Really, I mean from the production side to a fan side,
for a successful season be done, it's really what couples
come together. The money element this year was a huge
element to be added in. It wasn't something that you
just mentioned there, and the change that were made, I
think from a fans perspective, the concern was, well, then
love isn't the point here, But if that still is
(06:20):
the marker of success for the team putting together the show,
how do you balance those two things where money is
at the end, especially going forward, You got I think
Paradise got lucky this year with two couples that really
like each other, but if that doesn't always happen, then
it's going to become just a complete game show.
Speaker 5 (06:36):
It's never stated, but the truth is the last relationship
challenge is the money. It's what are you going to choose?
And if you chose the money, then you failed that
relationship challenge, right, Yeah, And so.
Speaker 2 (06:52):
That's what happened.
Speaker 5 (06:53):
They both didn't Both couples didn't choose the money. They
chose love. And I'm still winning the money, of course.
Speaker 2 (06:59):
So yeah, like I get it. I understand.
Speaker 5 (07:04):
I understand fans bocking at the whole thing, and it
takes away kind of the the magic of paradise. But
if we're asking these people to effectively the mission statement
is is that we hope you leave together in the
in the best world possible. You get engaged. For asking
these people to go do this, I do think. And
(07:26):
it's not like these people are making a lot of
money going on the show. Just so everyone knows, fair enough,
you guys need to know that, like, it's not a
lot of money.
Speaker 4 (07:33):
You're not retiring, you're.
Speaker 5 (07:35):
Not even close. You're actually probably screwed because you're not
working while you're there. I don't think it's a terrible
thing to be, like, have we got a couple of
dollars if we're gonna get if we're engaged, you know,
we've got a couple of dollars too, you know, used
to buy a place together, or like move in together,
or maybe it goes to a wedding or something like.
I don't think that that's a terrible thing. I can,
(07:56):
you know, hindsight twenty twenty for me, And obviously like
it could have gone tear wrong, but it also would
have been scintillating television if someone chose money over love, right.
Speaker 3 (08:05):
Like heartbreaking television, because I really liked the couples that
ended up together. Yeah, I think the big question now
because the changes were drastic, took it a little bit
to use to and then very enjoyable to watch experience
be a part of. And we were all on the
edge of our seats when it came down to that
finale episode.
Speaker 4 (08:24):
How do you move forward?
Speaker 3 (08:25):
Though the mystery is now revealed true, you're gonna win
money if you stay together, and you're gonna win money
if you break up. So how does the show move
forward and keep this like gripping television that we all
experienced this year?
Speaker 5 (08:38):
Yeah, obviously it'll change. You can't have the same thing again.
And so it's going to be a situation of we're
going to pivot. You got to know we're gonna pivot,
but we're not gonna tell you how it's gonna go, right,
But gotta give you my pitch for my show that
I think would be great. Yeah, okay, and I've by
the way, I've pitched this too. I've pitched this to ABC, Jamie.
(09:01):
I pitched this idea to you. So if you make
this show and I don't get a credit where you're
in trouble.
Speaker 4 (09:05):
Now we're on record, it's good. Uh. I think.
Speaker 5 (09:10):
It would be so fun if we did Camp Paradise
or Camp Bachelor, whatever you want to call it. We
rent out a camp, right, and you do it during
school season, so like there's not kids there. You bring
the most popular Bachelor Nation people to camp and they
have to do camp stuff. So it's like a dragon
(09:32):
boat race and canoe race and underwater basket weaving and
like archery and stuff, and everyone has to go sleep
in different bunks, but you can like sneak out and
go to someone else's bunk and you're doing challenges for money.
But then like with love happens, it's fine. And then
here's where I think it gets great. You can bring
back a bunch of Bachelor Nation favorites who are married
(09:52):
who can't like go and just like canoodle around at
nine o'clock exactly. So like me and you were, we
have counselors and Jesse is like the leader of this
whole thing, and then they'll be like nights where like
the camp counselors are like, we're going into town to
go to the bar, and then someone gets arrested and
Jesse's got to come and bail us out. I can
see it being so fun. And the thing is that
(10:14):
it's hard to convince a bunch of people who are
beautiful and you know, don't have a whole lot of
problems in their lives to come to Paradise to potentially
look bad. But if you told any adult you want
to go to camp, yes I do.
Speaker 2 (10:29):
That sounds amazing. So anyways, Camp Bachelor is my idea,
and I think we should do it.
Speaker 3 (10:33):
I actually love the idea because I just said on
our last episode of the Almost Famous podcast, one of
my favorite scenes this whole season of Paradise is when
they had to camp, and I like this was it
was a great mix. We just got done. You just
hosted the reunion the finale with everybody did a great job.
But one of the things that were said, Kat said,
(10:55):
I went to Paradise because there is air conditioning this year.
Speaker 4 (10:58):
That's great. I don't. I think that's a bad thing.
Speaker 3 (11:01):
However, I want to see beautiful people in very uncomfortable situations.
I miss that. I missed that about Paradise. I think
your idea matches that because that's what was going on
at the camp.
Speaker 4 (11:12):
They were breaking down.
Speaker 3 (11:13):
If you would have left them out there for another hour,
you had pure panic happening at Paradise. Yeah, I liked it.
I would love to watch that. I'd love to be
a part of that. And I know you and I
would be the ones sneaking out to go to the
bar that could get in trouble.
Speaker 5 (11:28):
I can just like imagine it now, like we're wearing
like red shorts that are two shirt like American Summer America,
but for vaccination.
Speaker 2 (11:36):
I'm telling you it's a gold idea.
Speaker 4 (11:39):
It's a great ship.
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Speaker 3 (12:53):
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Speaker 4 (13:35):
I'm always intrigued by you. I love Jesse.
Speaker 3 (13:38):
I think Jesse has done a terrific job filling in
and taking over the franchise. I've always said publicly, and
you don't have to comment on this, that Paradise should
be Wells's show, not for any hit on Jesse. Again,
I just think you are Paradise and you have been
for so long. But even with that being said, you
(13:58):
play still such a crucial role in Paradise. These we
just saw it on stage during the reunion podcast. These
people trust you. You care about them, You get to
know their relationships, who they are as people. You're giving
them advice, you're making them drinks, You're around them a ton.
It isn't just it's not an easy job. And I
(14:18):
think that's something I always like to bring up, is
this is not just like an hour out of your
day every day for a month. This is you're a
bartender legitimately in Paradise. I want to for the listeners
when you enter into a season of Paradise knowing that
you are working for a month straight, digging into love
and also making drinks. What kind of mindset do you
(14:39):
bring into that just as the bartender and not kind
of the host of the show. Yeah, well, thank you
for saying that. You know, I've.
Speaker 4 (14:50):
Eight seasons.
Speaker 5 (14:51):
I've thought about this a lot, and like, don't get
me wrong, Yes, I wanted to host Bachelor in Paradise,
but I recognize that I can do something that Jesse
can't because I'm ingrained in the show, because I'm I'm
there the entire day, I'm experiencing more of it. The
(15:13):
stakes for me are higher because I'm friends with all
these people. I'm making them drinks. They're you know, they're
they're laying their heart out on the line, and it
allows me to do something that I think Jesse can't do,
which is to be what the audience is thinking, like
say what the audience is thinking, which they did a
(15:33):
good bit of that this year, where you know, I
think the audience never wants to feel dumb, and when
it's when it's never vocalized, it gets really frustrating for
Bachelor Nations. So having me there, yes, it's important that
I make them drinks. And I give them advice. But
I also think it's important for me, like be in
the interview chair, like Jesse would never be in the
(15:54):
interview chair, right, but for me to be like, this
is what's happening. This is crazy and I can't believe it,
and like I think I'm making crazy bills. Like I
think that's import for the audience because then they're like, Okay,
he's justifying like what I'm saying now, uh. And I
just don't think that a host can do that. The
host needs to be separated a little bit, you know,
And it sucks. I've seen it every season, and it
(16:16):
happened with Chris and it happens with Jesse. When they
come on the show, the cast knows bad things are
about to happen, right, Like it's oh no, like she's
gonna tell us something that we don't want to do.
Speaker 2 (16:27):
It's but when I come on the show, it's not.
It's oh yeah, all right, we need some shots, we
need drinks, you know.
Speaker 4 (16:32):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (16:33):
So and it's totally two different roles.
Speaker 5 (16:35):
And you know, I think you're right, Like it would
be weird to do Paradise, not not me, but someone
like me doing that thing.
Speaker 3 (16:45):
It would be weird to do Paradise without you, and
you can continue your thought.
Speaker 4 (16:49):
That's my thought.
Speaker 5 (16:50):
Yeah, I think other people could do it, but I
think I think that you can't just do it with
a host. I think you need like someone like me
or Hannah or whatever also being there to like explain
what the hell is going on?
Speaker 1 (17:04):
Now.
Speaker 5 (17:04):
When I go to the show, my outset always is
because I always just want everything to be funny, like
that's like my default is like comedy. So my thing
is like, let's just do this as funny as we
humanly possible, right, Like, how can we make this as
funny as humanly possible? And so my thing is always
(17:25):
like to the cast, I'm like, this is a silly show.
Speaker 4 (17:28):
Be silly.
Speaker 5 (17:28):
It's fine. I think the problem is that we get
bogged down in the drama and the serious and you know,
it's the most dramatic season ever. But my favorite parts
of Paradise are always the funny things, right, And so
that's usually what I'm I'm going in being like, I
hope this is a fun cast. I hope that they
will lean into the comedy because it's you know, it's
supposed to open. It's a comedy it used to, especially
(17:50):
you know, with the silly intros and stuff, and so
that's usually my mindset going in. And I think this
cast did a good job of like embracing it, and
and I think production did a good job of making
it still funny. So yeah, that's my thought when I
come into the show.
Speaker 4 (18:05):
You think the Goldens helped?
Speaker 3 (18:06):
I mean, that's obviously a big changes season is we
entered Goldens into the mix. It was teased by you
and Jesse once that was announced that who knows what's
going to happen with the Goldens, and everybody's speculating, like
you know, Youngins and Golden's intermingling and having relationships that
really never happened. But the Goldens did come to the
beach this season. It was a change. What were your thoughts.
Speaker 5 (18:30):
I was skeptical coming in one. I'm like, I don't know,
I'm not sure how safe it is to have a
bunch of elderly people in like three hundred degree heat
and I'm serving them my ties kill somebody. But I
gotta be honest with you, they brought so much energy.
I said it during the finale reunion show that we
(18:52):
just did like, thank God, they were there. They injected
that place with so much energy, and it's because they
don't give a like they've lived their life like they're
not trying to impress anyone on TV. Their parents are
gone and you know grandparents. No one's judging what they
do on the show. So it gave them this ability
to be very, very free, which I think a lot
of the cast wished they could be more like the Goldens,
(19:15):
you know, and I wish they could be too, because
they just came in there being like, this is the
greatest thing in the world.
Speaker 4 (19:21):
I'm on vacation. Drinks are free, you know.
Speaker 5 (19:25):
Like they weren't like, oh I'm gonna look bad or
like the drama. They were just having the best time.
And so they raised the vibes of that place so
many decibels that was. It was insane. And now I
can't imagine doing the show without them. I wonder if
they should get their own show. I don't hate that
we run into a problem with like logistics of like
how many things can we shoot in one year? But
(19:49):
I think it would be fun to do the show
and then for all the audiences. I was like, this,
we gross if like an old a Golden Dates a
young or whatever. If this whole thing is supposed to
be a microcos of the real world, this is basically
a singles retreat. I don't think that there are rules
for how old you have to be to go to
a singles retreat and it happens every day. Of course,
(20:09):
it wasn't going to happen on TV, but like we
had to tease it that way, right, like we're out
here making a TV show.
Speaker 3 (20:18):
Uh yeah, I have a thought it could be completely
irrelevant and not true. One of the other things I
liked about the Goldens being there was when the money
was announced. In my mind, I'm thinking most of these
people at this point are retired, and they're retired for
a reason because they've you know, secured their egg. I
(20:38):
don't know if five hundred thousand as good as that
would be to be handed five hundred thousand dollars at
seventy five years old, I don't know if that's that
intriguing to them. They've kind of already kind of counted
what they're going to spend for the rest of their life,
so it did take that out of it too. In
my mind, Like, I don't know if Keith is up there, like, goodness, gracious,
I need that five hundred thousand, and he knows what
his situation is in Yeah, but I'm expecting that he's
(21:01):
he's not really counting on it.
Speaker 2 (21:04):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (21:05):
They also worked in a romantic relationship Keith and Cathy, So,
you know, I think I wonder what would would have
happened if there was a really really strong connection with
Golden's at the end, Because if the barometer was like
who's really here for love and who isn't, which is
kind of what everyone was kind of getting at, then
(21:26):
you couldn't say that they don't deserve it just because
they're retired and they have a nest egg and they've
you know, got Medicare and Medicaid and everything. They've also
got kids too that probably, you know, could use a
couple extra dollars.
Speaker 4 (21:39):
I don't know. I think you could make the argument.
Speaker 5 (21:41):
I think it'd also be cool if you get all
the way to the end and then you don't take it,
or you give it to another company. There's a million
ways that it could be a cool ending. So I
don't know, we'll see, we'll see what happens. I think
it would be cool. The problem that we ran into
is there isn't enough pool of Golden yet to really
(22:02):
get a lot of people there for it to work.
A lot of people were like, why are they coming
in later? Wise the lesson there's just not a lot
of them the show. That show's only going on for
a couple of seasons. I think as that show continues
to grow and that part of Bachelor Nation grows, then
it'll be much easier for us to pair people up
and for there to be like really good lasting relationships there.
Speaker 3 (22:24):
I think Nancy would come back to the show for
the next ten years if she was asked, yes, she
would love to be in Paradise.
Speaker 6 (22:29):
Sude.
Speaker 2 (22:29):
Nancy was awesome.
Speaker 5 (22:30):
I know, you guys are both from Warsaw so, like
we talked a lot about Indiana. Kathy also, Kathy's great,
Like she needed you need a good narrator every season,
and she's fantastic. You know, Faith was fantastic, Leslie is
super sweet. And then all the guys like, I mean,
I've said it. I said it the open of the
(22:53):
of the finale reunion show. I think Keith should be
the Golden Batch. I mean, and it's like I love
that guy. I love being around him and the other
thing I was saying I was saying it to a producer.
I was like, if my mom met him, yeah, I'd
be so pumped.
Speaker 4 (23:11):
Yeah, he's just like he is that guy.
Speaker 5 (23:12):
Yeah, like the most lovely dude in the world. And like,
as kids, all you want is for like your parents
to find someone that's like awesome and fun pun to
be around. So anyways, that's my pitch for Keith. I
think that he would be the best Golden Bachelor in
the world.
Speaker 3 (23:27):
It's actually kind of shocking he isn't the Golden Bachelor
coming up.
Speaker 4 (23:31):
I think it's going to be talked about.
Speaker 3 (23:33):
I think actually we're going to see people as this
next season airs and Keith kind of has his moment,
especially with who he was even during this reunion show
with you, and they're gonna.
Speaker 4 (23:43):
Go, that's that's my guy.
Speaker 5 (23:45):
Well, to be fair, though, it was an impossibility they
had to cast that show before we even did Paradise,
so like you can't say, like sure, but it still.
Speaker 4 (23:54):
Was a wish that I think all of us. I
do too. But also, there's always next season. There's always
next season.
Speaker 3 (24:06):
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(24:29):
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(24:50):
A couple of the situation that happened that you did
speak truth into. We'll start with the Jeremy Brian Parisa
Bailey situation. You have a moment where you come on
and you say, I feel like I've been taking crazy
pills because everybody's mad at Brian, and I'm seeing this.
Speaker 4 (25:13):
Situation as.
Speaker 3 (25:16):
Not that clear, Like I think maybe Jeremy could have
been more in the wrong than what people are leading on.
How did you get that read? How close were you
to the situation? And then how do you formulate your
thoughts without being like ingrained in because it felt like
the whole cast was on one side and you are
the person speaking into the viewership being like if you're
thinking this way, You're not wrong.
Speaker 5 (25:37):
A lot of people that moment like resonated with a
lot of Bache Nation fans and for the most part
overwhelmingly agreed with what I had to say. And one
of the big like kind of hits on me was like,
why didn't you tell the cast this is how you felt?
And if for being fair I did, I told, And
(25:57):
I won't name cast names, but I I was like,
this is gonna look so bad, it's gonna look really
messed up. And if I'm hearing about this, I can't
say anything because that would be I would be overstepping
my bounds. But like, if I've heard about this, that
means everyone knows about it except for the one person
that it's about. Like, that's messed up. You need to
do something. You're gonna look like the girls like not
(26:20):
girls girls, And for the guys, you're gonna look like
guys who are defending someone who did.
Speaker 4 (26:25):
Something kind of shady. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (26:27):
So yeah, I stand by what I said.
Speaker 5 (26:29):
And for me, like at the end of the day,
like I'm just out there trying to call balls and strikes, right,
and like that was.
Speaker 4 (26:36):
A huge, huge ball.
Speaker 5 (26:39):
Yeah, and listen, I like Jeremy a lot. I can't
believe that that man thought it was a good idea
in an interview on camera to call her like, that's
wild to me. But listen, it was early the girl
he was dating on a date with, not someone else, Like,
there's a lot of things that like, there's context to it,
(27:01):
but that was a wild situation.
Speaker 3 (27:04):
It was wells again, you made Paradise better this year.
You always have you and I can and I believe
that you always will.
Speaker 4 (27:13):
Again.
Speaker 3 (27:13):
No hit on Jesse, I just I don't want to
watch Paradise without you being there. I think you bring
so much depth and comedy and humor and wisdom to
the show, switching gears completely here in the last couple
of minutes I have with you, obviously we did just
get done. You just finished the reunion episode that will
be airing on Bachelor Happy Hour, a friendly podcast to
(27:36):
us here at the Almost Famous Podcast. You did a
great job, so tune in to get all the drama.
We're gonna be breaking down kind of getting into more
details with each couple here at the Almost Famous Podcast
in just a few minutes. But I wanted to grab
you to talk about a few things that you have
going on. You have a new podcast, in addition to
the Vanity Index podcast, which I'm a subscriber and listener
(27:59):
to thank you, You have a new podcast with iHeart
called by Order of the Faithfuls. Yep, so rewatch and
break down podcasts of the Traders. You were on the
Traders for not as long as we wanted to see
you on the Traders, but you got a podcast out
of this, so goodness, gracious, you're winning wells tell us
about it.
Speaker 5 (28:19):
Yeah, So basically we're watching the first couple seasons. It's
myself and Dolores, who was the winner of season three
of Traders, and Tamra who was on season two of Traders.
So it's two housewives and then this idiot and it's
us watching the first three seasons of Traders back with
(28:42):
the audience breaking it down, having people who are on
the show on the show talking about.
Speaker 2 (28:48):
You know, everyone's.
Speaker 5 (28:52):
How they're going about doing the show and whether or
not they're doing a good job as being a Faithful
or a Trader and all that kind of stuff, and
then you know, obviously a vent truly. I think early
next year season four will be airing, and then we'll
be watching it in real time with the audience, having
cast members on the show and continuing that. So, yeah,
(29:12):
if you're a fan of The Traders, which it seems
like the entire world is, it's a huge show on
Peacock and NBC, that you should listen.
Speaker 4 (29:21):
To that show.
Speaker 3 (29:23):
It's obviously a massive show. And I just wish you
would have been there longer because I was watching it
for I was prepared to watch it for a full season.
I watched it for I think one episode. Another thing
you have going on is it was just announced that
The Bachelor is hosting a crazy cool event that you're
going to be hosting or co hosting. It's called the
(29:46):
Bachelor Nation Vacation. At C it was announcing the finale.
There's going to be some great Bacheloration alum there, Why
would a listener to the podcast, a fan of Bacheloration
want to.
Speaker 4 (29:58):
Come on this ship? What are you going to be
do doing there? Tell us more?
Speaker 5 (30:01):
Well, I just gotta say I'm impressed that ABC or
Warner or whoever's putting this on was able to get
all these names, because like the fact that Jesse's come
on a cruise ship is blowing my mind. So I mean,
it's all the big thing.
Speaker 2 (30:16):
He is a week freeze. I know that man needs
to chill out.
Speaker 5 (30:20):
Yeah, No, I love Jesse so much, so yeah, you know,
Jesse's going to be there. I'm going to be there,
Hannah's going to be there, and then like Tyler Cameron
and like a lot Joey and Kelsey and Kelsey and yeah,
like it's amazing how many people they've got to come
on this boat. And then I think more names are
(30:42):
going to be released later. So if you're a fan
of veter Nation, like this is gonna be your opportunity
to like literally be stuck on a boat with all
these people.
Speaker 4 (30:50):
So you're gonna get sick.
Speaker 5 (30:53):
Yeah, So I assume my job is they're going to
make me bartend one night. I don't know, but I'll
sling some drinks on a cruise of Alito deck and
hang out with all the bachel Nation stands.
Speaker 4 (31:07):
Again, It's Bachelor Nation vacation.
Speaker 3 (31:09):
At c dot com, we have a podcast out with
a representative from the cruise ship talking about all the details,
all the fun activities, all the things going to be
going on that you can listen on the almost famous
thread too well as in closing. It's been a big week,
a week and a half for you. That's almost famous podcasts.
You want to say congratulations not only to another successful
(31:30):
season of Paradise. You crushed it and it's just such
a pleasure to be a fan of you and watch that,
but also congratulations to you and Sarah on three years together.
You celebrated your three year anniversary. I'll give you the mic.
We just had two very successful couples come out of Paradise,
Spencer and Jess and Alex and Andrew. Any advice for
(31:55):
them after being married for three years?
Speaker 5 (31:57):
Oh, Elope, I loved your wedding. I know my accountant
didn't love that. Yeah, go to France with ten of
your best friends. Save all that money you're going to
use for the wedding and put it towards the house.
My father in law gave me the best piece of advice,
and all you need for a successful marriage is to
(32:19):
remember two words, and that's yes, dear, so yes, dear.
Speaker 2 (32:28):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (32:29):
And I will say that a little behind the scenes.
I'm not there at the end of Paradise and the
reason why I'm not well, I am, but here's the
behind the scenes. I had to leave early because I
went on a golf trip with Ben Higgins and I
really hard to tell production, Hey, I gotta leave early
go play golf. So I left a day early, so
(32:50):
I wasn't there for like the end of the show.
Speaker 4 (32:53):
But I'm appreciative of that.
Speaker 5 (32:55):
Yeah, yeah, And I was nervous that I was I
get paid episodically, and I was nervous I wasn't even
get paid for that episode.
Speaker 4 (33:02):
But it was worth it.
Speaker 5 (33:03):
But then lo and behold, I'm watching the last episode
and if you watch, the cast is at the bar,
and then it'll show like clips of me. I am
not there, but they wanted to make it seem like
I was there, you know. So then all of a
sudden you'll see like a background shot and it's like
the other guy who's like been barred to I felt.
Speaker 3 (33:20):
Guilty about this for about four months that I but
we're good.
Speaker 2 (33:24):
Were totally good. I want I'm in this show on
the front end.
Speaker 5 (33:28):
But at the end I think they were like, it'd
be weird if Welles isn't there anymore for like this
last thing. So like they just had shots with me,
like cleaning a glass.
Speaker 4 (33:36):
There we go. We made it. Yeah, Wells was nice
enough to be a good friend. Oh that was the.
Speaker 3 (33:40):
Best trip, and we got a we got one coming up.
We got a good trip in two weeks coming up.
Wasn't I play a lot of golf together? Wells, thanks
for joining us today, Thanks for sitting down. I know
it's been a big day for you. You just literally
herded sixteen cats and pocket on a podcast, and you
did a successful I was sitting in the back with
(34:02):
some of the bosses and they were just like beaming.
You crushed it. You did it. It's worth to listen again.
It's going to be coming out there on the Bachelor
Happy Hour podcast, but don't listen to it too long
because we have all the couple sitting down with us
here at the Almost Famous podcast coming up. So until
next time, I've Been Been, I've Been Ashley.
Speaker 1 (34:24):
Follow the Ben and Ashley I Almost Famous podcast on
iHeartRadio or subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts.
Hosts And Creators
Lauren Zima
Chris Harrison
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