Or Joe's.
This is a very very special part of the podcast because I can't tell you the last time that I sat in a car park Elizabeth with John Akem for matts.
I can't even remember.
List.
I can't think of the last time I did it either.
Do you remember, John? Do you know?
It was one of the things I've always wanted to do. It's on my bucket list. I'm sitting here in a car park with a two of you, early in the morning on Friday.
It doesn't get better.
It's what dreams are made of.
Isn't it? Isn't it?
One thing we found out about you this morning is you played cricket for New Zealand.
Yes, in New Zealand A. I played it for about a decade and yeah, I loved it, but ultimately Maps has taken over since then.
It seems like a bit of a strange transition.
Yes, it does.
I'm playing for New Zealand A and playing professional cricket to becoming a relationship expert on Maps.
So how do you get there?
Well, it was kind of a bit of luck, you know. I went into private practice. I was seeing singles and couples after cricket, and then One day in twenty fourteen, I got a email asking for an audition for a crazy show where you marry strangers at first sight. And I remember showing my wife thinking what do you think of this? And she thought, well, this is pretty weird.
It could be.
Fun, so I went for it. And then we're now ten seasons on and the show goes into one hundred and twenty countries, So it's changed my life.
It's an absolute juggernau at this show, isn't it. Do you think people go on to it genuinely wanting to find love or is it a bit tricky? Is it people wanting to get their own OnlyFans account or boost their Instagram following, or get a breakfast radio gig?
What is it?
Yeah?
Well I think it's a combination. Now.
I think all of them capable of coping with cameras on them, and they don't mind the spotlight at all. So there is that sense of, you know, I want some sort of attention, but then you've also got a want for finding love. And what I would say is that what's compelling when you watch these guys on the show is that they aren't good at relationships. They're very
poor at them, but they don't really know why. And so one of the things we're doing is we're matching them, but then holding a mirror up to try and teach them how to do better.
Do you ever get with some of the couples early on? Do you ever go this is shit, Oh, this isn't going to work.
Look, and you're a dick it?
Do you ever have those things?
I wouldn't.
I wouldn't perhaps say that's the exact word that I'm thinking when I'm sitting on the couch. But what I would say is that I get very disappointed when they don't work out. Sometimes I get shocked at how different they are when the cameras roll, because you know you do. It's a two month matching process. You get to meet them, you test them, you really deep dive on them, and
you think a lot about the matches. So when they don't work out, and particularly when they don't work out early, it's really hard to watch.
And all the experts feel that way.
I would want to make relationship work to not disappoint Johnny.
I've met him for one morning and I just want him to be happy with me.
Let me tell you, they don't mind disappointing me at all our participants on the show. And you know, that's one of the things that I think people watch for because it's very compelling on the on the couch. When we have those commitment ceremonies, when they come at us and they don't like what we're saying, it's really interesting TV because you don't often see that with reality shows.
I want to ask about Harrison, I do want I don't because I think I just think he is a self involved narcissist.
Is that an accurate description?
I think I think Jordy's been triggered by this fellow.
Yeah, because I've met some Harrison's in my time.
So you like Harrison.
She can't stop talking about it, that's for sure. Look, Harrison is very unique. He's unapologetic, he's very opinionated. He's an alpha.
You said to me, he's just getting started.
Yeah, Oh look, I tell you what. He is a major player throughout this series. He does things that really polarize the group. Also his partner, and so we have to call him out a lot. And I think also this year, the guys on the show, they're very strong with their bro code. So we have a job to do as experts to really break them down and get them to take some accountability. And frankly, a lot of
them don't want to hear it. So you know, we have to be very direct in the short amount of time that we have on the couch to get through to them.
You guys have been doing this for so long.
Are you finding a shift in generation with how people deal with feedback from the first season to now?
Totally? Totally?
So now, you know, there's almost I can see it in their faces when I'm you know, the angry guy on the couch, you know, giving them a serve. They are looking at me like, you know, no one's spoken to me like this before, no one's held me accountable or held up a mirror to me, And so I think it takes them a while to get used to it. Some of them simply don't. They just resist, they refuse to listen. Others take it on board and they can
change during the experiment. But any bad behavior, we've got a job to make sure that we're calling it out.
Yeah, I mean, I hate nassism, But let's talk about me for a second.
That's a classic segue, isn't it.
I want to ask you breakfast radio. When you've got a duo, it's like a marriage.
It's basically like an early morning marriage, probably seeing this person more than you see your own partner. We've just started out, we have a we've started with a great basis, great friendship. We really genuinely respect each other wise and let me just.
Carry off there. There's a few little cracks. Is that what you're going to say?
A little concern just starting to grow between the time.
It's going to ask what's the key to longevity in a breakfast radio relationship?
Do you think, well, we're tired a lot.
Yes, I do think you've got to kind of be friends going in or at least.
Develop that friendship pretty quickly.
And that's not different to like an intimate relationship either. You know, you've got to do little things that build the chemistry.
You know, so.
You know, catching up outside of work, you know, to debrief, or when one of you texts the other person, you immediately get back to them, or you actually start sharing about your personal life outside of just what you're doing on the radio.
So all those things.
Sort of act like a little bit of a glue that sticks you together as opposed to two people that just literally come in with their own egos, they do their part, and then they leave.
You're not about the egos, you too, You're all about the love.
And you said that since day.
We'd be quite seriously and we're in a pretty good spot because we probably know too much about each other.
And I think I think one of the biggest challenges is when you know, because obviously you can see your growing in terms of your success and it's going up, and that's when things, I think become really challenging. Whenever you have success, that's when the egos start coming into it. And being able to stay grounded and friends is a key part of not letting that get away.
Forgot to tell you how accurate everything you've just said is.
Because you're doing this for free.
I mean we're on the same money, right.
I don't know if I want to be around for this conversation.
Personally, Jonas Well, I've got a brother in law who is in the Wild Maths fraternity.
Michael Goonan. First of all, do you remember.
Oh, I love Mickey g I mean he bought the Thunder in series seven. I mean he called people out, he was authentic, he was funny, and you know, he was a breath of fresh air and look, I haven't seen him for a while, but he made an impact and I loved watching him in that experiment.
Well, I mean lucky it went both ways because I've spoken Michael about he said that I love the experts, so thank god it went both ways.
If John was about to go, I couldn't stand him.
Is it glad he went on that?
He?
I think so, Like he hasn't he hasn't spoken badly of it, Like he has put it down as a really really fun and unusual.
But a positive experience.
It didn't work, Yeah it did. It didn't work, but it does change their lives.
I mean that's the thing that I watch now, you know, because some of them go on to such huge notoriety, you know, from podcasts only fans to you know, doing TV or radio. It is it's a complete overhaul of their life for some of them, and it's interesting to watch where they go after that.
Yeah.
I think he enjoyed as well, because he didn't have intentions of getting to the media or starting a podcast or anything. He has his own business and that's all he's known and that's all he wants to do. This was like, oh, I'll just have a crack of this and see how it goes. And it was a different experience which I'll remember forever.
I mean, I think one of the challenges when we're matching people is there's such big personalities now and because they don't really have a lot of insight into, you know, where they're going wrong with relationships. When they come on the show, it can be very confronting and they may not learn during the show.
If it doesn't work out.
But we're hoping that maybe down the track they think about it and think, well, maybe I'm going to do this differently.
Yeah, I'm just trying to work out your pathway.
Because you managed to get a breakfast radio gig without going on MAVs. Big brother brother Johnathan, I could talk to you all day.
Thank you so much for joining us.
It's a pleasure and I wish you all the best. Guys. This is a great chemistry that you've got together.
From the expert.
Yeah, yeah, it's just bigger and better things for you too, But just the good actors.
Remember, don't let him get too big on I know where he's here.
Yeah, I've told you keeping grounded.
This will only mess up. If he starts being a dickhead, look I.
Tell you what. If he starts talking in the third person, bring me on.
It's the biggest warning sign of all the time referring to self the third person, John, thank you so much, man, it's so good to have you. Adelaide, it's a pleasure. Guys, thanks for having me.