Call Her Daddy

Call Her Daddy is an advice and comedy podcast created by Sofia Franklyn and Alexandra Cooper in 2018. The podcast was formerly owned and distributed by Barstool Sports until June 2021, when it was announced that Cooper had signed an exclusive deal with Spotify worth $60 million.[1] Barstool is still involved in the podcast's merchandising.[2] In the late spring of 2020, Cooper and Franklyn were engaged in a publicized dispute with Barstool founder David Portnoy, which resulted in Franklyn leaving the show. Cooper reached an agreement with Barstool and continued hosting the podcast on her own.

Call Her Daddy
Presentation
Hosted by
Genre
Created by
  • Alex Cooper
LanguageEnglish
Production
No. of episodes254 (as of March 31, 2023)
Publication
Original releaseOctober 3, 2018 (2018-10-03)
ProviderSpotify, YouTube
Related
WebsiteOfficial website

Content

In November 2018, the Case Western Reserve student newspaper described the show as "both a new and established concept in the world of podcasts," stating:

The content of the podcast is a blend of advice, whether you are in a relationship or not, hilarious stories and content from their listeners. Much of their content is not simply advice but sometimes just outright hysterical stories. Most of the advice the women lay out for their audience is about sex. The majority of the embarrassing moments detailed in their episodes talk about what some might consider taboo, but all the stories are framed in a hilarious context that makes them more approachable.[3]

After securing a $60-million exclusivity deal with Spotify, Cooper decided to take a new direction with the podcast. Originally focusing on relationships, sex, and her own personal stories, Cooper decided to focus more on women's rights, mental health, and the importance of therapy.[4] Via interviews with celebrities, doctors, and therapists, Cooper and her guests dive deeper into their own struggles and advice that they have been given and are now sharing to help others. Cooper hopes to inspire people and share advice to help other girls and women who are listening. She also hopes to shift into video podcasts to make her viewers have a more personable feeling when listening to her interviews.[4]

Cooper spearheads The Unwell Network, a venture collaborating with content creators like Alix Earle and Madeline Argy, the initial affiliates of the company.

The Unwell Network, an emerging offshoot of Trending, the Gen Z media enterprise founded by Cooper and her fiancé, XO Kitty producer Matt Kaplan of ACE Entertainment, is set to engage budding creators in crafting projects spanning diverse mediums. The network's primary focus will encompass genres like pop-culture, beauty, fashion, and lifestyle. The reins will be in the capable hands of Moorea Mongelli, a former executive from Studio71.

History

Alexandra Cooper started the podcast in 2018 with co-host and roommate Sofia Franklyn. The podcast rapidly increased in popularity, with downloads rising from 12,000 to 2 million in two months.[5]

According to Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy, the company signed a three-year contract with the co-hosts in 2018. This contract provided a base salary of $75,000 that was to be supplemented with bonuses by podcast performance and a portion of merchandise sales. The contract ceded all intellectual property to Barstool Sports.[6]

2020 break and dispute with Barstool Sports

Following an episode titled "Kesha... The End" released April 8, 2020, new episodes stopped being released. Explanations for the break were not communicated to fans, with the co-hosts releasing a statement on Instagram noting that they "legally can't speak out yet."[5] Amidst the lack of communication, significant gossip developed among tabloids and fan forums. On May 17, an episode was released to the podcast feed featuring Portnoy discussing the hiatus from the perspective of Barstool. The 30-minute episode described financial and contractual details. Portnoy claimed that Barstool had offered a base salary of $500,000 to the co-hosts and noted that Barstool was losing $100,000 per missed episode of the podcast.[5] He said that Cooper had settled on new terms, but that Franklyn remained unwilling to agree to a new contract, which ultimately led to her exit from the show.[5]

At the time, Franklyn was involved in a relationship with Peter Nelson (dubbed "Suit Man" in previous episodes of Call Her Daddy), who was working as an executive for HBO Sports. Portnoy accused Nelson of advising Franklyn to refuse Barstool's contract offer.[5] Nelson also allegedly shopped the program around to other podcast distributors, further fraying the relationship between Franklyn and Barstool.[7]

Return

Alexandra Cooper began releasing the podcast alone following the break, stating in late May 2020 that she would be pushing forward without Franklyn for the future. She told listeners that a new co-host would be chosen soon.[8] Miley Cyrus joined Cooper on the re-launched podcast in August 2020, discussing her breakup from Liam Hemsworth.[9] Franklyn eventually began her own individual podcast titled Sofia with an F.[10]

Acquisition by Spotify

In June 2021, Cooper signed a deal worth $60 million to exclusively present the podcast on Spotify.[1] However, Barstool still handles the show's merchandising.[2]

Popularity and reception

In 2020, Call Her Daddy was the fifth most popular podcast on Spotify.[11][12] In 2021 and 2022, Call Her Daddy was ranked as the second most popular podcast on Spotify, finishing behind The Joe Rogan Experience in both years.[13][14]

References
  1. Spangler, Todd (June 15, 2021). "Spotify Clinches $60M-Plus Deal With Alex Cooper for 'Call Her Daddy' Podcast, Yanking It Away From Barstool". Variety. Archived from the original on June 18, 2021. Retrieved June 18, 2021.
  2. Dockterman, Eliana (July 21, 2021). "Call Her Daddy's Alexandra Cooper on Her Evolution and Plans for Spotify". Time. Archived from the original on July 27, 2021. Retrieved July 27, 2021.
  3. Rossy, Aura (November 30, 2018). "How "Call Her Daddy" Is Empowering Women". The Observer. Archived from the original on September 28, 2020. Retrieved October 15, 2020.
  4. "Alex Cooper's 'Call Her Daddy' Shifts Focus Away From Raunch, And Finds A Bigger Audience". InsideRadio. May 23, 2022. Retrieved December 19, 2022.
  5. Lorenz, Taylor (May 19, 2020). "The 'Call Her Daddy' Feud: What Happened?". The New York Times. Archived from the original on October 18, 2020. Retrieved October 15, 2020.
  6. Dylan, Krasinski (May 29, 2020). "Barstool, "Call Her Daddy", and "Suit Man": A Legal Analysis on The Feud Heard 'round the World". Khan Media Law. Retrieved July 10, 2023.
  7. "'Call Her Daddy': "Suit Man" Is Reportedly at the Center of Drama in Ongoing Feud". Distractify. May 19, 2020. Archived from the original on March 6, 2021. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
  8. Belfiore, Emily (May 27, 2020). "Call Her Daddy's Alexandra Cooper reveals where she stands With Former Co-Host Sofia Franklyn". E! Online. Archived from the original on October 16, 2020. Retrieved October 15, 2020.
  9. Petter, Olivia (August 14, 2020). "Miley Cyrus says she was 'villainised' after split from Liam Hemsworth". The Independent. Archived from the original on October 17, 2020. Retrieved October 15, 2020.
  10. Roundtree, Cheyenne (May 26, 2021). "Podcaster Sofia Franklyn Loses Advertisers After Foul-Mouthed Attack on Disney Star Who Didn't Answer Her DM". The Daily Beast. Archived from the original on May 27, 2022. Retrieved May 28, 2022.
  11. Pesce, Nicole Lyn (December 3, 2020). "These were the Spotify playlists and podcasts that got us through 2020". MarketWatch. Archived from the original on July 19, 2022.
  12. Garvey, Marianne (December 2, 2020). "Bad Bunny tops Spotify's most-streamed list of 2020". CNN. Archived from the original on July 19, 2022. Retrieved December 8, 2020.
  13. Spangler, Todd (December 1, 2021). "Joe Rogan Had the No. 1 Podcast in 2021 on Spotify (Podcast News Roundup)". Variety. Retrieved December 19, 2022.
  14. Spangler, Todd (November 30, 2022). "Joe Rogan Had the Most Popular Podcast on Spotify in 2022". Variety. Retrieved December 19, 2022.

Further reading

* Marchese, David (May 20, 2022). "Alex Cooper Is Coming for Joe Rogan's Spot". The New York Times Magazine. Retrieved May 23, 2022.

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