Why do so many artists peak on their very first album? This week, Shay (TikTok - and her new podcast Critical Condition) joins the show to unpack the curse of the perfect debut - from Lorde's Pure Heroine to SZA's Ctrl to Olivia Rodrigo's Sour. We dig into why hunger, resistance, and being underestimated produce the best art, and what happens when the label takes over, the money rolls in, and the boardroom starts making creative decisions. Plus, we talk about what artists like Taylor Swift, Chappell Roan, and Katy Perry could do to break out of the album yips!

• This year, hit your goals without giving up your favorite bready dishes. Hero Bread is offering 10% off your order. Go to ⁠⁠⁠hero.co⁠⁠⁠ and use code FLUENTLY at checkout.
• Rehydrate with science-backed hydration from Liquid I.V.’s Hydration Multiplier Sugar Free. Go to ⁠liquidiv.com⁠ and get 20% off your first order with code Fluently at checkout
• Visit ⁠OliveandJune.com/fluently⁠ for 20% off your first manicure system!
• Your emotional wellbeing matters. Find support and feel lighter in therapy. Sign up and get 10% off at ⁠BetterHelp.com/fluently⁠  

We have Kelli (Beyond the Blinds and Nostalgia and Now) back to dive into some prrrr-fectly lovely conspiracy theories all about cats! We talk about how they were worshipped in Egypt, demonized throughout many cultures, trained by the CIA, and more!

This year, hit your goals without giving up your favorite bready dishes. Hero Bread is offering 10% off your order. Go to ⁠⁠⁠hero.co⁠⁠⁠ and use code FLUENTLY at checkout.

Rehydrate with science-backed hydration from Liquid I.V.’s Hydration Multiplier Sugar Free. Go to ⁠liquidiv.com⁠ and get 20% off your first order with code Fluently at checkout

Visit ⁠OliveandJune.com/fluently⁠ for 20% off your first manicure system!

Your emotional wellbeing matters. Find support and feel lighter in therapy. Sign up and get 10% off at ⁠BetterHelp.com/fluently⁠  

Today Christy from Snarkbait joins us again to chat all about Hilary Duff! She crashed her rival's movie premiere, hasn't spoken to her sister in seven years, picked a fight with Avril Lavigne for no reason, and may or may not have run a toxic mom group...but she's never had a bad headline stick! This week we talk about why, how Disney built her to be untouchable - and how Selena Gomez seems to be the next Disney generation to use the same playbook.

• This year, hit your goals without giving up your favorite bready dishes. Hero Bread is offering 10% off your order. Go to ⁠⁠⁠hero.co⁠⁠⁠ and use code FLUENTLY at checkout.
• Rehydrate with science-backed hydration from Liquid I.V.’s Hydration Multiplier Sugar Free. Go to ⁠liquidiv.com⁠ and get 20% off your first order with code Fluently at checkout
• Visit ⁠OliveandJune.com/fluently⁠ for 20% off your first manicure system!
• Your emotional wellbeing matters. Find support and feel lighter in therapy. Sign up and get 10% off at ⁠BetterHelp.com/fluently⁠  

We're back with part two of Harry Styles week and this time we're diving deep into the blind items! From his acting career and the roles he almost took (Nosferatu? Wicked? A Seth Rogen space comedy??), to the Rande Gerber throuple allegations that will have you sprinting to Google, to his rumored relationships and what the blind items actually say about all of them.

And buried inside all of these Harry Styles blind items is a decade long one-sided beef (from Matty Healy) that I could not stop going down the rabbit hole on, and I have a lot of feelings about it.

• This year, hit your goals without giving up your favorite bready dishes. Hero Bread is offering 10% off your order. Go to ⁠⁠⁠hero.co⁠⁠⁠ and use code FLUENTLY at checkout.
• Rehydrate with science-backed hydration from Liquid I.V.’s Hydration Multiplier Sugar Free. Go to ⁠liquidiv.com⁠ and get 20% off your first order with code Fluently at checkout
• Visit ⁠OliveandJune.com/fluently⁠ for 20% off your first manicure system!
• Your emotional wellbeing matters. Find support and feel lighter in therapy. Sign up and get 10% off at ⁠BetterHelp.com/fluently⁠  

He's on every magazine cover, his Wikipedia page calls him a culture-shifting icon, and his puke once sold on eBay. But who is Harry Styles, actually? This week we're diving deep into the man behind the flare pants - getting into why the media keeps calling him a trailblazer when he might actually be something more interesting than that, his carefully worded non-answers about politics and sexuality, and why his therapist is literally asking him why he needs everyone to like him so much. Part one of two - Wednesday's episode gets into the blind items. 👀

• This year, hit your goals without giving up your favorite bready dishes. Hero Bread is offering 10% off your order. Go to ⁠⁠hero.co⁠⁠ and use code FLUENTLY at checkout.
• Rehydrate with science-backed hydration from Liquid I.V.’s Hydration Multiplier Sugar Free. Go to liquidiv.com and get 20% off your first order with code Fluently at checkout
• Visit OliveandJune.com/fluently for 20% off your first manicure system!
• Your emotional wellbeing matters. Find support and feel lighter in therapy. Sign up and get 10% off at BetterHelp.com/fluently  

Check out this week's Fluently Fixed episode, and drop in your own questions in the Google form!⁠⁠

⁠⁠https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdd69udAJ9kDUwJKJJwWjX54et2Mo75io9BPRrNJSnNEz4t9Q/viewform⁠

• This year, hit your goals without giving up your favorite bready dishes. Hero Bread is offering 10% off your order. Go to ⁠⁠⁠hero.co⁠⁠⁠ and use code FLUENTLY at checkout.
• Rehydrate with science-backed hydration from Liquid I.V.’s Hydration Multiplier Sugar Free. Go to ⁠liquidiv.com⁠ and get 20% off your first order with code Fluently at checkout
• Visit ⁠OliveandJune.com/fluently⁠ for 20% off your first manicure system!
• Your emotional wellbeing matters. Find support and feel lighter in therapy. Sign up and get 10% off at ⁠BetterHelp.com/fluently⁠  

With the new Love Story TV series bringing renewed attention to Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy, this episode takes a closer look at the IT woman of the 1990s. Who was Carolyn beyond the minimalist fashion, paparazzi frenzy, and “ice queen” media narrative? We break down what the show gets right - and what it fictionalizes - and dive into the influence of The Rules and whether Carolyn consciously embodied its philosophy, the role of the Kennedy Curse in shaping public perception, and the unexpected Sex and the City drama tied to her image and reputation. 

• This year, hit your goals without giving up your favorite bready dishes. Hero Bread is offering 10% off your order. Go to ⁠⁠hero.co⁠⁠ and use code FLUENTLY at checkout.
• Rehydrate with science-backed hydration from Liquid I.V.’s Hydration Multiplier Sugar Free. Go to liquidiv.com and get 20% off your first order with code Fluently at checkout
• Visit OliveandJune.com/fluently for 20% off your first manicure system!
• Your emotional wellbeing matters. Find support and feel lighter in therapy. Sign up and get 10% off at BetterHelp.com/fluently  

Jenny from Red Room (podcast and patreon) returns to Fluently Forward for a deep dive into the latest conversations surrounding the Epstein files. Together we break down the newest theories and online discussions, including why references to “jerky” keep appearing in the documents, what those coded mentions could mean, and how the internet is going nuts trying to understand the files. We also discuss ongoing speculation about whether Jeffrey Epstein could still be alive, the conspiracy theories surrounding Ghislaine Maxwell’s imprisonment, and why these cases continue to fuel so many unanswered questions years later.

Visit ⁠OliveandJune.com/fluently⁠ for 20% off your first manicure system!

This year, hit your goals without giving up your favorite bready dishes. Hero Bread is offering 10% off your order. Go to ⁠⁠hero.co⁠⁠ and use code FLUENTLY at checkout.

Check out this week's Fluently Fixed episode, and drop in your own questions in the Google form!⁠

⁠https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdd69udAJ9kDUwJKJJwWjX54et2Mo75io9BPRrNJSnNEz4t9Q/viewform⁠

This year, hit your goals without giving up your favorite bready dishes. Hero Bread is offering 10% off your order. Go to ⁠⁠hero.co⁠⁠ and use code FLUENTLY at checkout.

Visit OliveandJune.com/fluently for 20% off your first manicure system!

Time stamps:

00:19 Engagement Pressure: Why Everyone’s Always Asking

08:20 Messy Breakup Cycle: What ‘Intermittent Reinforcement’ Is

11:31 The Breakup Cleanse: No-Contact, No-Checking, New Routines

17:22 Shame About Your Sexual Past: Identify the Story You’re Telling

In this week’s deep dive, we’re unpacking the global phenomenon that is Bad Bunny. From his rise to superstardom to his high-profile relationships, we'll talk about his dating history, his gender-bending fashion, blind items, and what might be next for him!

Visit ⁠OliveandJune.com/fluently⁠ for 20% off your first manicure system!

This year, hit your goals without giving up your favorite bready dishes. Hero Bread is offering 10% off your order. Go to ⁠⁠hero.co⁠⁠ and use code FLUENTLY at checkout.

We all know the latest Epstein files are disturbing. But buried inside the documents and surrounding commentary are threads and emails that feel almost supernatural. Time travel references. Human cloning funding. Telepathy conversations. And more! In today's episode we take a look at the supernatural side of these Epstein files and ponder it all.

This year, hit your goals without giving up your favorite bready dishes. Hero Bread is offering 10% off your order. Go to ⁠⁠hero.co⁠⁠ and use code FLUENTLY at checkout.