An Unforgettable Season of “The Bright Side”

Hey fam Hey besties.

Today we're celebrating a year of the bright Side. We're looking back at some of the moments that left their mark on us and sharing some lessons we've learned along the way too, and stay tuned for a very special announcement.

It's Friday, March seventh. I'm Danielle Robe.

And I'm Simane Boyce and this is The bright Side from Hello Sunshine. I can't believe it has been a full year of the bright Side.

I know it's hard to believe that one year ago we launched and Relief fostered this amazing community. So we want to thank all of you for listening and being a part of this incredible podcast experience with us.

There's truly nothing that brings me more joy than just hearing how the conversations that we've had on this show have either opened eyes for people, or sparked new thought, or maybe just made you giggle. So this show would not be possible without ourside besties, and we love you so much.

We're going to celebrate some major moments that we've had this year. We're going to share in those laughs, those giggles, and reflect on the conversations that really moved all of us, and it would not be a party without our Emmy winning showrunner and everybody's favorite bright Side bestie at Tim Palazola. Tim, welcome back to the bright Side.

Oh my god, Happy birthday, y'all.

One year we birthed up baby.

It's time. Are we walking?

Are we?

Are we on our feet?

Yes, we're done with baby food.

We're eating whole food, eating solid, sleeping through the night.

We did it.

People crawling around. Yeah, this is this is a big mile line.

This is so incredible.

And as we begin this celebration, do you guys want to go back in time a little bit?

Yes, let's go. Absolutely. I love some reflection.

Okay, all right, here we go.

Here is a clip of your very first intro of your very first.

Show, Hello Sunshine. What's up, Sunny d It's Monday, March twenty fifth. I'm Simone Boyce and I'm Danielle Robe.

Welcome to the very first episode of the bright Side, a brand new daily podcast from Hello Sunshine. We're here to bring you a daily dose of culture, conversation, and inspiration Monday through Friday.

It's so real, this is happening. Danielle.

You know what I've told a few people that I was working on this show, and I can't tell you how many people were like, we need this right now, We need a show like this right now, you.

Day, right, Yes, completely.

I've always been someone who fights for good news, even though I've covered a lot of hard news in my career as a journalist for over a decade now, and you're often meeting folks when they're at their lowest point in their lives, and you're asking for permission to tell their stories. But I mean, listen, the work of truth

Lane, What did each of you remember about that first taping?

I just remember, I mean, we were kind of sitting on this secret for a while, and we had put a lot of time and energy into, you know, rehearsing the show, getting it right, really being intentional about how we wanted to show up, and so I think at that moment, I was just like really eager to get the bright side going and to bring a bright spark a bright moment into people's lives and into their daily routines.

I remember having this weird mix of feelings because I was so excited and pretty nervous for that first episode, if I'm being honest, And when I think about why, it's because I had followed Hello Sunshine for years, Like if there was a media company that I felt connected to,

And so I just was.

Like bursting at the scenes with excitement, like I was like a human bubble of Sunshine.

Well, I think I can say, with that hyperbole, you both have lived up to that expectation and delivered on that in such an incredible, incredible way. And that first episode, Reese Witherspoon was the guest. She was your first guest, and Simone, you were telling me a little something about relating to Reese.

Will you tell us a little bit about that?

Yeah, I think it's it's it's so easy to look at someone like Reese and just think that her journey to where she is now has been easy. But I mean, we forget that she became a mom in her early twenties, and we forget that she faced a lot of doubt when she was trying to convince people in Hollywood to get on board with this idea of telling more representative stories about women. And I just really, I just really related to her openness and honesty around that.

I agree with you, Simone, And you know, when you work for Hello Sunshine, the first question you get is.

Is Reese as kind as she seems? Like? Is she as awesome as she seems?

And I think in that first episode both of us realized that she was, like, She's just the real deal, you know.

Yeah. So, in addition to Reese, we've had some really.

Amazing celebrity guests. Should we take a trip down celebrity memory lane?

Oh? Yes?

Who comes to mind for you?

I had such a long list. This was really hard for me to choose. But the first person that came to my mind was Connie Chunk, Yeah, because she was so funny and heartfelt. Not only did she make us all giggle. I remember she made fun of Tim's shirt before we jumped on the zoom, which I'll never forget, but she had so much integrity in her work throughout the years, and you could tell she had really been

Yeah, hearing how much of a boys club it was in network news when she was first starting out, and just the kind of language and mannerisms that she felt like she had to assimilate into just to fight for her place in newsroom. It was so striking to hear that from the horse's mouth, and I walked away thinking, Oh, Anchorman wasn't a Will Ferrell comedy. It was a documentary about the beginning of the news business.

And to hear how she used humor along the way as such a tool to navigate that boys club. I was really inspired by her. Yeah, I also, like, you know, I've wanted to interview Chelsea Handler probably my whole career, so that was super cool.

I'm such a nostalgic girly like I definitely do wax nostalgic for the Y two K era, the early adds the nineties, So for me talking to Jojo and actually getting to hear the truth about why she stepped away from her music career was like, so it was so illuminating for sure.

We both I think it was the first time Tim had seen both of us fangirl over a celebrity interview.

Yeah, I was just about to say that that was the first time I saw both of you. You both started singing along to her songs, so God's so excited. I have to say that was throughout the season seeing the two of you light up so authentically when it came to some of these people, because obviously you're a professional journalists, but you're also real people who grew up

Okay, can we talk about that, so Raven, let's do it. So didn't, didn't.

Sorry, I'm not going to do it, Simon, Oh, go to it.

My soul is going to leave my body. If you start singing, you guys, sing with me, I'll sing it, of course, of course, dn't. Dn't. Didn't.

If you can.

Into the future, future future, my thing life would be a Drees is a.

Yeah.

It's not that easy. Oh no, I try.

Oh my wait, I just need a moment that was so insane.

Tack it off.

You don't understand right now. Maybe you do.

I don't.

I don't. I do get it.

I can't. You guys, I know that whole video by heart because I've watched it literally thousands of times. Like I it just brings me so much joy, And it's so funny because like my friends will be like, oh my gosh, we'ven some moment. They're like, are you Are you like friends with her now? And I'm like, yeah, yeah, we kind of are, Like she's just she's the best we've done we've gone on her podcast, her and her

Danielle Well, I was just about to say, I'm obsessed with her wife. Yeah, I love Miranda may Day so much, and they're both funny and they're both really talented, and I it's actually like weird that, like we connected with them so quickly. Yes, but yeah, I'll never forget that episode.

And that's the power of this medium, this podcast, you know, and the connections and what you all bring.

Because that wasn't planned.

We didn't go in thinking you guys are going to sing the theme song with her, but you're in the moment and it comes to life in such a magical way.

I remember, like you couldn't hear me.

I'm in a control room next to where you're recording, and I'm just shouting and screaming with glee as that all happened.

That was such a magical moment.

It was.

I do have two honorable mentions, Okay, okay. Jada de laurentis. Yes, what a powerhouse woman. I can't even count the number of cookbooks that she's written, but she constantly pushes forward. She has her new platform, Jatzy, which is all things Italian.

I can't even put my finger on it.

I can't articulate why that interview left a mark on me, but it did, and I'm wondering if maybe it's just her authenticity. I just felt like she was who she said she was, and I just really liked her.

And she's also very warm. She was incredibly like the warmth. You can feel her warmth through the screen.

Yeah, I felt like we were part of her extended Italian family when we were talking. And also Juliana Margalie. She is an actress who I think came from a different time. I miss an actor's actor and I think maybe that's why people love Timothy Shallomey right now, because he kind of feels like that old school actor, but

I would be remiss if I did not mention my awkward interview with the Queen of Awkwardness.

Missaa that went viral.

Yeah, it's been really fun.

I shared a couple of clips from the interview on social media, and it's been really fun to hear how other people have felt liberated by what she said to me, which is basically like like I asked her, you know, do you still feel awkward? Do you feel like you'll ever recover from your awkwardness? And she was like, you know what, I'm still awkward and it's just a part

I think at the end of the day, it was all about genuine connections.

We got to have some.

Real conversations with some real women, and that will always be front the center.

And when I think about meaningful connections. One of our first guests, Priya Parker, really set the tone. I mean, she has literally given us a roadmap for magical gatherings and magical questions.

Listen to this.

The biggest mistake we make when we gather is we assume that the purpose is obvious and shared. Oh, I know what a podcast is, I know what a wedding is, I know what a funeral is, I know what a staff meeting is. And when we don't actually pause to ask why are we doing this? What is the purpose?

What does the purpose of this podcast?

With all of the million of podcasts in the world, what is it that we are uniquely trying to do? We tend to then replicate forms that may not make sense for this community or for these hosts, and so setting an attention and actually thinking well ahead of the gathering, why am I doing this? What is the need? How

Priya Parker truly is the queen of gathering and she really set the tone for our podcast. And when I think of magical gatherings, I immediately think of being a part of Shinaway and doing our very first live taping. The energy of the audience was so compelling, Like I just felt like that room was so warm, it.

Was truly electric.

People were like throwing those hands up, They had questions, they wanted to ask, They were really engaged in the conversation. I learned a lot from other people who were in the audience, and that for sure is one of my probably top three bright side memories from the past year.

Yeah, that was so fun because you know, obviously we record this show just us, but to see the audience and see that the way that they were reacting to it, to see the way that they were engaging, and you really do see the amazing power of connections.

What are some of the thoughtful moments that stuck out with you guys from this season.

So I remember that conversation with Mary Jane Fahe Danielle, and I know that was an emotional conversation for both of us, the way that she spoke about authenticity and specifically the way that she sees it manifested in the lives of you know, more mature women that she speaks to through her community called Glorious Broad's. It really challenged me to live my life imaginatively and I actually like I made changes to my life after that conversation.

Yeah, that was a really special episode, and that was sort of early on too.

Who else comes to mind for you in terms of thoughtful moments.

Ev Rodsky is always one of my favorite voices, and I felt so lucky that she graced us with her presence on the bright Side and she's part of the

I learned a lot about internal family systems through Gabrielle Bernstein, and specifically this self check in process that I find super helpful. Whenever I'm feeling uneasy and I want to reach for unhealthy coping habits, instead, I just try to pause and get curious with myself and extend compassion to myself in those moments through curiosity.

That's a good one.

I also think of Ozma Khan.

Yes, oh, yes, tim Ozma khn is a revelation.

I'm so glad you said that.

She was so inspiring.

And for those of you who don't remember her story, she is the owner of a restaurant called dar Jaling Express in London, and her entire back of the house as women, and her mission was to give women who would not normally have an opportunity to have a career or to have access to something outside of the house, to come together. And I just remember listening to the way she talked, the way she made sense of things, her grounded nature. It was so incredibly inspirational.

Absolutely, I'm so so glad you said that.

Even thinking recently of our conversation with sc Proro, I was really impacted by her suggestion to observe joy around you and observe joy in the lives of others, and she encourages us to absorb that joy as your own. So that's something that I think about whene her joy is hard to conjure.

It's all around us. We're going to take a quick break, but we'll be right back, and we're back with Tim Pellizola.

Well, another perk of this show is having a front row seat to all of the Reese's book Club picks, and as Simona and I are both readers, and I really feel like I've reveled in the opportunity to immerse myself in all of these women's words and the world that they create.

I could not agree more.

Danielle, and I think of Euleen Kwang talking to her about her book How to End a Love Story. That was just such a fun conversation and learning about the inner workings of what makes a good rom com was so illuminating to me.

Yeah, I think of Eulen Kwang two and her book cover. That pink cover is imprinted in my mind. Also, I think some other authors interviews that stuck out to me were Laureling Brown Society of Lies, Rainbow Rawl, Slow Dance, Rainbow is Just a Rock Star, and Juwhey Kim, who wrote City of Night Birds. I can't remember speaking to somebody who's IQ was that off the charts totally.

He's a true genius.

She's truly a genius. We could have talked to her about anything and she would have been illuminating. But to hear about Russian culture and ballet and feminism, I mean, I'll just I'll never forget that conversation.

Same.

I love talking to those authors. I love when you were able to talk to those authors and you got an opportunity to see how their minds work, how their inspiration comes to life, and to see how they were able to take a moment, a letter and experience and turn it into a beautiful story. That's what I loved so much. We got such an opportunity to learn from some of these people. And I also think that you all had an opportunity to learn from each other this entire season.

I mean Danielle.

I think I think you got a little bit of a vocab boost from Simone, like you might be ready to take your SATs now.

Huh.

I was just going to say I was in an SAT prep course doing the bright side. I learned so many words. Who needs toilet paper of the day? When you have Simone on the podcast.

Oh my god, and you've actually been keeping track of all the words that you've learned.

I have an entire list. Would you like me to alphabetize them?

Well, do you want to see how how much you remember of the words?

Or am I quizzing Simone?

No? I think Simone probably knows. Let's just try it.

I called it.

Call it like Simone's glossy glossary. Okay, here are the words that you tracked from Simone.

Oh my god, No, I'm nervous. I don't study for that.

You can remember what they mean?

Wait, I actually think over under, I probably know. I probably know what two of these eleven words mean.

So not true, Bestie's I just feel like I have to say this on the record. Danielle has an incredible vocabulary, and I don't know what this whole I don't know what this whole shtick is about where like Simone uses big words, because so does Danielle.

Okay, I just had to get that out there.

I honestly, I'm sorry.

I've never used anthropomorph morphized. I can't even pronounce it anthropomorphized.

What does this mean when you imbue an inanimate object with human like qualities?

In beu?

Yeah, well, and I think that's sort of the playful nature of what this is because both of you are so incredibly smart. I just thought it was such a funny thing throughout the season to hear Danielle pick at some of these words. They included, like, uh, bucolic, verdant.

Wait, I think I know what bucolic means now, didn't Simone? It was sort of bucolic, you said, I think was a synonym for pastoral and verdant, which all meant greenery, right.

Yeah, it's like, yeah, like rolling hills, like Bucolic countries. I'd like, you know, think of like you know, the Cotswolds in England or something.

Like that, boguarding, which I know probably from college.

When an.

Animus bona fides acerbic, what's animis?

Animis is like.

It's like when you have like animosity like a hatred or like a vitriol. Sapphic sapphig That one's such a fun word to say.

Is a great word, right, I love it? And enigmatic. Yeah, now there's no mystery to these words anymore.

I love it. What is sapphix sort of sounds like phallic? Saffiic sounds like salad.

It's the female Sapphik means like a lesbian like, uh yeah, a love between two women.

Oh so it is sort of sexual in nature.

Yes, it's a little bit of a of a contrast.

It sounds like I'm playing like the homonym game. What's the what's the sounds like?

Sounds like welcome to schoolhouse?

Everyone.

Well, we didn't just gain a new lexicon, besties. We gained a ton of insightful knowledge from our incredible experts.

And it was such a joy to see how much all of our bright Side besties loved our Wellness Wednesday episodes. We loved all of your comments, all of your reposts, and all the times you shared those episodes with your friends and family.

One person that comes to mind is doctor j Ashton and a conversation that we had with her about side effects that come with menopause like vaginal dryness, and she said that the solution might just be on a grocery store shelf near you.

The vaginal dryness we can cure and we can address, whether it's with estrogen, whether it's with vaginal estrogen. I always recommend literally pure from the grocery store aisle cooking oils as lubes because.

Way everything else like cooking, yes.

Vegetable oil, canola oil, coconut oil, olive oil, you better believe it.

The only thing is be careful of your sheets because obviously it can stain your sheets, but it is safe. And all the other lubricants, literally all of them, with any chemical ingredient is like putting ice on a crapped driveway. It will dry out your vagina ultimately, even if it makes that initial encounter more comfortable, and it doesn't treat the root cause, which is low estrogen, which makes the vagina very sensitive and nonpliable.

Also important to mention that you definitely cannot use any of these oils with condoms. You want to make sure that it aligns with your birth control method and also just check with your doctor to make sure that your body can handle those ingredients.

You know, That's what I love about you.

Always a little public service announcement, always a little disclaimer for the folks at.

Home, Hey, I'm a public servant. Yes.

Wellness Wednesdays is something that often comes up whenever I meet people who listen to our show. I mean I think of I let phishback and the episode about motivation. That's something that really changed the way that I approach goals now.

I mean, our recent conversation about microplastics comes to my mind. I think about that a lot in my life. The Alcohol Warnings was really interesting because of so much of the research that has come out this last year, and so to hear from an expert about what was real and what we really needed to be worried about was interesting. And doctor Jennifer Haith, who talked about heart disease, I thought she was really really informative.

Yeah, I love.

That truly life saving information, and I feel so lucky and grateful that we get to share this information with people who you know, desperately needed. It can be so hard to find truth these days, and so hard to know which sources to trust, and we've really gotten some rock star voices on this show to clarify it.

All for us.

Yeah, the way you said that was so incredibly perfect, Simone. You know, we hear so many reports, we get we get bombarded with so many feeds and hysteria around things. So be able to show up and provide people with, you know, real quality information that helps us all feel empowered about the choices that we get to make is truly phenomenal.

It's time for another short break, but we'll be right back with Tim Palazola.

And we're back with Tim Pallazola.

As we wrap and come to a close on this celebration, I thought it'd be fun to play a little game of superlatives.

Do you want to do that?

Yeah, let's do it, all right, So I'm going to throw out a couple most likely twos, and we'll all guess who it belongs to between the two of you, all right, First one who's most likely to fan girl.

Over a guest?

Probably me?

I say, Simone, what do you think?

I think? Simone?

You think? Simone? Okay? Yeah, definitely, yeah.

I can't. I can't hide it.

You can't hide it.

And I will say, also, it was so fun to see you do that. You mentioned like Issa, we mentioned Jojo, we mentioned Raven.

That was super fun.

Okay during interviews? Who's most likely to veer off topic?

That's a good one.

What do you think I would say? Maybe me?

I think it could be a toss up. I feel like I ramble too. Yeah. Depends on the.

Day, I think, I think, depending on the day. Yeah, depending on the day. Who's most likely to be late for a meeting?

Simone? You think so, okay, I'll take it.

Oh my god. Okay.

Who's most likely to be cagey about past dating life?

Oh?

I'm not cage I tell you, guys everything.

Probably the person who's married and has to go home and talk about it to their husband.

And lastly, who's most likely to plan a prank? For sure?

Simone?

Definitely me, Simone. That was super fun.

Well, this season would not have been possible without all of you. We are so grateful for you for your ears, your open hearts, and thank you so much to all of our bright Side besties who have just inspired us to create the best show that we possibly can every single day.

Absolutely, and I also really want to thank everybody who makes this show possible, who brings it to life every day. There are so many full hearted people behind the scenes here. We have great producers at Arkana, We've had amazing partners at iHeart. We love everyone at Hello Sunshine, and we can't thank you enough for all of the hard work you do and all of the dedication that goes into making this show possible and joyful.

And with that, we have an exciting announcement. We are coming back for season two, besties. As we prep for this new season, we're going to be taking a little spring break so we can just bring you the very best that The bright Side has to offer. So don't worry, we will be back shortly. It's not goodbye, it's just for a short little while. And in the meantime, stay tuned to Hello Sunshine across your favorite social media platforms for all of your Sunshine news and updates.

That's it for today's show. We love you and we'll see you soon and until we return, go and check out some of the episodes that you may have missed from season one. Listen and follow The bright Side on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The bright Side is a production of Hello Sunshine and iHeart Podcasts and is executive produced by Reese Witherspoon.

Production by Arcana Audio. Our producers are Jessica wenk Amy Padula and Laura Newcomb. Our senior producers It's e Hin Taniya. Our engineer is PJ. Shahamat additional mixing help from Zach Schmidt.

Arcana's executive producers are Francis Harlowe and Abby Ruzka.

Arcana's head of production is Matt Schultz.

Natalie Tulluck and Maureen Polo are the executive producers for Hello Sunshine.

Julia Weaver is the supervising producer, and Ali Perry is the executive producer for iHeart Podcasts. Jim Palazola is our showrunner. This week's episodes were recorded by Graham Gibson.

Our theme song is by Anna Stump and Hamilton Lighthouser.

Special thanks to Connell Byrne and Will Pearson.

I'm Simone Boyce.

You can find me at Simone Boyce on Instagram and TikTok.

And I'm Danielle Robe on Instagram and TikTok. That's R O B A Y.

Until next time, keep looking on the bright side.