Putting the “cult” in culture… Do you think SoulCycle is a cult? What about the Royal Family? What about Disney Adults? Or spiritual influencers? Is Instagram itself a cult? We’re Sounds Like A Cult, an iHeart Radio Award-winning podcast that analyzes a different fanatical group every week to try and answer the big question: This ~sounds~ like a cult, but is it really? Created and hosted by New York Times-bestselling author Amanda Montell, co-hosted and produced by Chelsea Charles, Reese Oliver, and Iman Hariri Kia.
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Maybe you hated the kids who went. Maybe you were just mildly annoyed by them. Maybe, you were one of them. No matter your relation, most people have encountered today’s cult in one way or another. Whether you were soaking up the spotlight or cringing from back home, the cult of Theater Camp is always looming just in the wings. Is the world of adolescent summertime theater nothing more than a harmless, whimsical romp, or is there something sinister going on behind all that jazz? Bonafide theater...
Sul sul, culties. Remove the pool ladder and cancel your real-life plans, because this week Reese is joined by guest host Amanda Kohr ( @amandamkohr ) of This Feels Bi to unpack The Cult of The Sims. From trapping Sims in windowless rooms for “science” to meticulously designing dream homes we could never afford, The Sims has had us playing digital god for over two decades. But what is it about this bizarre little universe of WooHoo, grilled cheese obsessions, tragic kitchen fires, and suspicious...
The timer starts now, cultie. This week’s cult is one that some find boring, some find thrilling, and some particularly fell into via a certain Netflix show starring Anya Taylor Joy (guilty). Whichever way you slice it, we can assure you the world of chess is far cultier than the cute little horsies would have you think. Whether you’re a total noob or grandmaster status, this week’s conversation with chess expert and cult survivor Danny Rensch ( @dannyrensch ) will have you on the edge of your s...
When we first aired this episode, the “tradwife” trend felt like a bizarre internet niche. Two years later, tradwife culture has only exploded. This week, we’re revisiting our episode with culture reporter Anne Helen Petersen ( @annehelenpetersen ) , alongside then SLAC intern turned permanent co-host and producer of the show, Reese Oliver, in her debut episode! Together, they unpack the aestheticized world of “traditional womanhood,” where hyper-curated domesticity collides with political extre...
Have the events of recent years made you want to walk off into a grassy meadow, never to return? Does the idea of being in touch with nature, totally separate from the digital rat race of modern life appeal to you? Have you ever wanted to learn how to install a DIY sewer system for greywater? Then you’re a perfect candidate for today’s ever-growing cult. This week, Chelsea and Reese are getting their hands dirty and getting into the nitty gritty of Homesteading. Tradwives and rock climbers alike...
Hear ye, hear ye! These culty wenches doth have-est a new episode for thine ears. Grab your turkey legs and your chainmail because we are galavanting into the culty lair of Renaissance Faires! Amanda and Iman are joined this week by the fair maidens of Morbid ( @morbidpodcast ), Alaina Urquhart ( @alainatothemax ) and Ash Kelley ( @ashkell83 ) to discuss the cult-like rituals, language, and charismatic leaders of the Ren Faire, from ye olde accents to full on immersive experiences. We’re talking...
Cancel your frown lines and lean in… because this week on Sounds Like A Cult, Amanda and Chelsea are getting into the wrinkle relaxing world of Botox. What started as a medical treatment for eye twitching has evolved into a beauty mainstay, one that promises to erase your crows feet... for 3 months. From preventative Botox in your 20s to the normalization of injectables as routine maintenance, we’re unpacking how this once taboo procedure became a beauty baseline. We're trying to answer the ques...
What if the right words could rewire your brain… or at least make you feel like they did? This week, Amanda is joined by journalists and hosts of the podcast Mind Games, Alice Hines ( @alicehines_ ) and Zoë Lescaze ( @zoelescaze ), to unpack the cult of neurolinguistic programming, the self-improvement framework that promises transformation through language, mindset shifts, and a little bit of psychological sleight of hand. They dig into how NLP showed up inside NXIVM and explore why these techn...
What does the Mormon curl, January 6th, and the rapture all have in common? Christian Nationalism! This week Reese and Amanda are joined by Jennie Gage ( @LifeTakeTwoJennie ) of Life Take Two, to unpack what we (spoiler alert) feel is one of the most insidious cults taking over America today: Christian Nationalism. From the 7 Mountains Doctrine to Trump taking over as a charismatic leader (despite never having read the bible lest his hands and eyes burn), our cultie hosties discuss the culty tac...
Welcome to the internet, where a kid can lead a cult. From Ryan’s Toys to Piper Rockelle, the world of child influencers is vast, brain-rotted and constantly changing. This week on Sounds Like a Cult, Amanda, Iman, and Reese have journalist and author of the book Like, Follow, Subscribe, Fortesa Latifi ( @hifortesa ) back on the show to get a look behind the curtain at the workings of the kidfluencer ecosystem. We reminisce on the kid and teen influencers of yore (hello Tana), discuss the parent...
What does it mean for a color to be official? This week, Amanda is joined by lexicographer and writer Kory Stamper ( @harmless_drudge ) to dive into the oddly powerful world of Pantone, the company that turned color into a global authority system complete with sacred swatches, cryptic numbers, and an annual prophecy known as Color of the Year. They unpack how Pantone became the high priest of hue, shaping everything from fashion runways to corporate branding. Why does the word cognac feel more c...
This week, Amanda and Chelsea dive into the cult of OneTaste, the controversial wellness company that built an empire around “orgasmic meditation.” To help break this one down, they’re joined by journalist Ellen Huet ( @ehuet ), whose reporting pulled back the curtain on the organization’s rise from buzzy Silicon Valley sex startup to full blown scandal that involved allegations of coercion, manipulation, and high control group dynamics. They unpack how OneTaste marketed intimacy as enlightenmen...
Long before publishing executives "discovered" the internet, a very dedicated group of fans had already built their own literary universe complete with sacred terminology, power hierarchies, and enough drama to make the actual source material blush. This week, Reese and Iman sit down with the iconic Christina Lauren duo, Christina Hobbs and Lauren Billings ( @christinalauren ), to dissect fanfiction's glow-up from AO3 comment sections to genuine big business. We're getting into the culty dialect...
Have you been an unlucky ear victim of the phrase, “male loneliness epidemic”? Have you had the misfortune of interacting with a black-pilled, looksmaxxing sigma at the peak grindset mentality? Does all of this sound like terrible, confusing babble, that reels your attention in the way a car crash makes you rubberneck? Put your hazmat suits on, culties. It’s about to get scary. This week, Amanda and Reese are daring to visit one of the slimiest, murkiest, cultiest cults we’ve covered to date. Th...
This week, we’re revisiting one of our most illuminating conversations: The Cult of Conservative Youth Activism, featuring journalist and author Tina Nguyen, whose book The MAGA Diaries takes us deep inside the movement that shaped a generation of young conservatives. From TPUSA to Tucker Carlson to the campus outreach, we unpack how MAGA youth culture became more than politics, it became identity, community, and in some cases, full-blown devotion. This is a rerun of that timely conversation and...
Clear your schedule and roll out your mat… because this week Chelsea & Amanda and special guest Dr. Adam McAtee ( @adammcateepilates ) are diving into the meticulously controlled universe of Pilates. Originally developed by Joseph Pilates as a method to restore strength and vitality, the practice has since expanded into a worldwide fitness powerhouse known for its unmistakable studio culture. Why does Pilates inspire such fierce loyalty? And at what point does commitment start to resemble be...
This week, Amanda, Reese, and Chelsea are joined by writer and comedian Akilah Hughes ( @akilahh ) to unpack The Cult of Joe Rogan, the podcast empire that’s convinced millions it’s the last bastion of free thought while quietly shaping how they see science, politics, masculinity, and truth itself. From “I’m just asking questions” rhetoric to the anti-establishment cosplay, we dig into how Rogan became less of a host and more of a cult leader. Is this curiosity culture… or a pipeline dressed up ...
Clutch your pearls and cancel your plans, because this week Sounds Like A Cult is getting spicy. We’re welcoming our brand new co-host Iman Hariri-Kia ( @imanharirikia ) , romance author, cultural critic, and certified defender of the genre, to break down The Cult of Romance Novels. We're joined by romance author Alexa Martin ( @alexambooks ) to talk about romance novels as sex education for women, the intense sense of community among readers, and why the genre is so often dismissed despite bein...
This week, Chelsea is joined by culture critic and internet oracle Tefi Pessoa ( @hellotefi ) to take on The Cult of Bad Bunny… a global superstar whose fandom blurs the line between pop icon, political symbol, and cultural lightning rod. We’re unpacking why Bad Bunny inspires a level of devotion that feels almost religious, how his gender expression and fluid masculinity have become a flashpoint in our current hyper-conservative moment, and why his very existence seems to short-circuit traditio...
We know them. We giggle at them, occasionally. These days, more and more of us admire their simple, tech-free lives. The Amish are often held up as the ultimate model of intentional community, living by principles that seem radically disconnected from our chaotic modern world. But behind the horse-drawn buggies and picturesque farmlands lies a tightly controlled society with its own strict bishops, its own rules for shunning, and its own definition of what it means to be “in the world, but not o...
This week, Amanda, Reese, and Chelsea are back from hiatus and joined by tech journalist Amanda Silberling ( @amandasilberling ) to take on The Cult of ChatGPT, the fast growing congregation of users who’ve turned an AI tool into a trusted authority, therapist, oracle, and romantic partner. We’re diving into why ChatGPT feels so intimate, how people are outsourcing thinking and decision making to a machine, and when convenience starts to look a little culty. We also break down the growing legal ...
Drawing from an exclusive excerpt of "The Age of Magical Overthinking," this episode examines the intense phenomenon of Swiftie culture. It analyzes the "halo effect" and how it leads to cycles of worship and dethronement, detailing specific fan scandals and the psychological consequences of extreme parasocial relationships, often connected to a yearning for maternal figures. The discussion highlights how social media amplifies these dynamics, questioning the sustainability of celebrity deification.
You asked. We panicked. Then we hit record. This week, Sounds Like A Cult turns the microscope inward for The Cult of Podcast Hosts, a very unserious, extremely revealing Q&A episode where your cultie hosties, Amanda, Reese, and Chelsea, answer listener questions about everything from conspiracy theories they lowkey believe to cult verdicts they absolutely regret handing out. We’re talking parasocial projection, hot takes we wish we could un-say, behind-the-scenes mess, and what it’s actuall...
What happens when a church treats teenage hormones like a moral emergency… and then appoints its own therapists to fix it? This week, Amanda and Reese are joined by John Dehlin ( @johndehlin ) of the Mormon Stories podcast ( @mormstories ) to unpack the deeply culty world of Mormon Therapy, where normal human behavior gets pathologized and sexual shame is framed as “treatment.” Join us as we unpack how Mormon teachings around sex, purity, and control have led to widespread sexual dysfunction, gu...
It looked like feel-good weight loss… until Netflix told us the truth. This week, Amanda and Reese are joined by former contestant Tracey Yukich Lane ( @traceyyuckichlane ) to unpack how The Biggest Loser went from “inspirational reality show” to one of the most culty franchises in TV history. From weigh-in rituals and trainer worship to isolation, fear tactics, and nationwide public shaming, we’re diving into the behind the scenes world that had millions of viewers cheering for transformation w...
He gives away islands, cures blindness, builds chocolate empires, and commands an online following bigger than some nations... but is he just a YouTuber, or the leader of a full blown digital devotion movement? This week, Reese is joined by Rolling Stone journalist Steven Asarch ( @capmiserable ) to break down The Cult of Mr. Beast, the hyper optimized, hyper "philanthropic", hyper everything empire that has millions of fans ready to click, defend, and worship at the altar of virality. We’re ana...
This week, Sounds Like A Cult is revisiting one of the most ritualistic, emotionally charged, and absurdly expensive cults of them all: The Cult of Weddings. We’re sharing (and offering a culty update) to Amanda’s Magical Overthinkers conversation with writer Allison Raskin, ( @allisonraskin ) author of I Do (I Think), about how weddings have transformed into a cult of consumerism, misogyny (comparing women with opinions to oversized mythical lizards???), and the illusion of perfection. From ind...
Lace up your cleats, because we’re about to tackle one of the most competitive, emotionally charged, and cult-ish communities in modern sports culture: The Cult of Fantasy Football. This week, Chelsea is joined by NFL host and analyst Kimmi Chex ( @kimmichex ) to break down how a simple hobby turned millions of casual fans into full-blown believers. From office leagues to dynasty drafts, Fantasy Football isn’t just a game… It's a belief system built on stats, superstitions, and Sunday rituals. W...
This week, Amanda and Reese are being initiated into the high-drama, low-stakes universe of the Bravoholics. Joined by Steve, certified Bravoholic and owner of @facesbybravo , we’re breaking down the sacred texts (from Real Housewives reunions to Vanderpump Rules scandals), the high priests (Andy Cohen), and the ritualistic weekly watch parties that lead only the most devoted viewers to the mecca of BravoCon. Whether you’re a casual Summer House viewer or have a housewives franchise for every ni...
What is the definition of the word "cult" anyway, according to Sounds Like A Cult??? This week, for the first time ever, host Amanda Montell takes the mic to read from her New York Times bestseller Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism , the book that inspired this entire pod. It’s a behind-the-scenes listen into the language of persuasion, belonging, and belief infiltrates everything from religious movements to self-help brands to our favorite podcasts. So relax and take a listen to the source ma...
