Sounds Like A Cult

• The Cult of Purity Culture

  RERUN! We took a cute little break to have a very culty wedding weekend but couldn’t leave the culties high and dry on content! This week we give you one of our favorite episodes from last season! Anyone who grew up evangelical Christian and/or plugged into teen celebrity news circa 2008 will be familiar with today’s cult: Purity Rings. You know, the dainty piece of jewelry placed ritualistically on a teen girl’s wedding finger to signify her vow of chastity until marriage, or else?? Purity rings are not just an accessory-they’re a bonafide industry, complete with rules, ceremonies, secrets, veiled threats, and religious trauma up the wazoo... but are they a cult? This week, a very special (ex-evangelical) guest, @normalgossip’s @mckinneykelsey, is joining host Amanda to unpack just that! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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• NYC Mayoral Candidate Zohran Mamdani: Right or Wrong? Listen to the full interview with Isa Medina and Zohran below!

  Check out the full episode of I'm Right You're Wrong Podcast on Apple Podcasts  or  Spotify  o r wherever you get your podcasts!  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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• The Cult of Bachelorette Parties (New!)

  Matching satin robes. Bedazzled cowboy hats. A mysterious urgency to fly to Nashville and scream “Woooo!” from a pedal pub. This week, Amanda returns to one of the most glitter-drenched, mimosa-fueled cults in the modern social landscape: bachelorette parties, but this time, with Sociologist Beth Montemurro and journalist Annie Atherton to help us dissect how these pre-wedding rituals evolved from quaint luncheons to weekend-long rites of passage that often feel more obligatory than fun. Why do so many people feel spiritually compelled to wear matching t-shirts and cry in a hot tub? What does this highly curated “last hurrah” say about gender, capitalism, and the mythology of marriage itself? Grab your sashes and your emotional baggage—we’re diving deep into the psychological groupthink, identity performance, and pastel-colored chaos of this culty little tradition.  Listen to OVERTHINKING ABOUT WEDDINGS. Subscribe to Sounds Like A Cult on Youtube!Follow us on IG @soundslikeacultpod, @amanda_montell, @reesaronii, @chelseaxcharles. Thank you to our sponsors! Go to https://LIQUIDIV.COM and get 20% off your first order with code CULT at checkout. Get your summer savings and shop premium wireless plans at https://MINTMOBILE.com/cult  Start earning points on rent you’re already paying by going to https://joinbilt.com/CULT Head to https://www.squarespace.com/CULT to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain using code CULT Please consider donating to those affected by the Los Angeles Fires. Some organizations that Team SLAC are donating to are:  https://mutualaidla.org/ https://give.pasadenahumane.org/give/654134/#!/donation/checkout https://shorturl.at/SGW9w Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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• The Cult of Erewhon

  Erewhon: the only place where the quest to enlightenment involves dropping $25 on a celebrity smoothie. This week, Amanda and Chelsea dive into the culty glow of Southern California's bougiest grocery store with oh-so special guests Raven-Symoné and Miranda Pearman-Maday (check out their podcast Tea Time with Raven and Miranda)! From raw milk acolytes and mushroom dust disciples to influencer pilgrammages and ragebait-y marketing, this episode features takes spicier than the hot bar's $17 buffalo cauliflower. It all serves to answer the big question: is Erewhon a wellness wonderland, or a greenwashed Gwynethian cult? We drank the activated charcoal to find out... Subscribe to Sounds Like A Cult on Youtube!Follow us on IG @soundslikeacultpod, @amanda_montell, @reesaronii, @chelseaxcharles. Thank you to our sponsors! Go to https://Quince.com/slac for free shipping on your order and three hundred and sixty-five -day returns.  Start paying rent through Bilt and take advantage of your Neighborhood Benefits™ by going to ⁠https://joinbilt.com/CULT⁠ For the bookings you’ve dreamed of, list your property on ⁠Booking.com⁠! Please consider donating to those affected by the Los Angeles Fires. Some organizations that Team SLAC are donating to are:  https://mutualaidla.org/ https://give.pasadenahumane.org/give/654134/#!/donation/checkout https://shorturl.at/SGW9w SOURCES:  The Guardian: ‘Playing Russian roulette with your health’: my encounter with LA’s raw-milk, powdered-meat smoothie by Lois Beckett:  https://www.theguardian.com/food/article/2024/jun/09/raw-milk-powdered-meat-smoothie-erewhon Eater: Roaches Like Erewhon Smoothies, Too by Rebecca Roland: https://la.eater.com/2025/4/10/24405640/erewhon-cockroach-bug-infestation-santa-monica-health-department-shutdown Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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• The Cult of Incels

  Buckle up, because this week we’re spiraling into one of the internet’s darkest (and most tragically cringey) cults: Incels, a.k.a. self-proclaimed “involuntary celibates” who believe they’ve been cursed by the universe (read: women) to live a life without love, sex, or accountability. Joining Amanda and Reese for this delightfully horrifying deep-dive are cult comedy kings Henry Zebrowski (@drfantasty) and Ed Larson (@eddietunes) of Last Podcast on the Left (@lpontheleft), here to help us unpack how this chronically online community evolved from obscure message boards into a full-blown belief system complete with its own language, martyrs, and very questionable ethos. We’re talking “Chads,” “Stacys,” color-coded pills, doomer memes, and a whole lot of weaponized loneliness. Is this a support group gone wrong? A sad-boy doomsday cult? Or just a bunch of dudes who desperately need therapy and a hobby? Tune in for a wild ride through the cultiest corners of the manosphere—tinfoil hats optional, but encouraged.  Correction: The Toronto Van Attack happened in 2018 and claimed 11 lives.  Subscribe to Sounds Like A Cult on Youtube!Follow us on IG @soundslikeacultpod, @amanda_montell, @reesaronii, @chelseaxcharles. Thank you to our sponsors! Start paying rent through Bilt and take advantage of your Neighborhood Benefits™ by going to https://joinbilt.com/CULT Head to https://www.squarespace.com/CULT to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain using code CULT For the bookings you’ve dreamed of, list your property on Booking.com! Check out https://Adamandeve.com/ and select any one item. Be sure to use this code SLAC to get your discount, 100% Free Shipping and get it fast with Rush Processing - Code SLAC! Please consider donating to those affected by the Los Angeles Fires. Some organizations that Team SLAC are donating to are:  https://mutualaidla.org/ https://give.pasadenahumane.org/give/654134/#!/donation/checkout https://shorturl.at/SGW9w Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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