The “Call Her Daddy” podcast launched in October 2018 and continues with new episodes released weekly. Alex Cooper and Sofia Franklyn share sex tips and give advice on what to do and what not to do in a hookup, relationship and life in general. Students at The University of Alabama share their feedback.

It is not possible to read minds, but relationships would be much easier if it were. Luckily, the self-acclaimed “fathers” of the “daddy gang,” Alex Cooper and Sofia Franklyn, are here to help.  A compass for young adults navigating a terrain of tribulation, the “Call Her Daddy” personalities use their platform to boost listeners’ confidence in solving relationship struggles and more.

While taking a road trip home or while working out in the gym, Marissa Schubert, a senior majoring in communicative disorders, lets her mind slip away from reality as she presses play on this week’s episode of the increasingly popular “Call Her Daddy” podcast.  

Schubert commends hosts Cooper and Franklyn because they talk about topics that many others don’t have the courage to speak about publicly.

“I just really want people to not see the podcast as something that is disgusting and ‘Oh, that’s so annoying,’ and ‘Oh, they’re sluts and only want to talk about sex.’” Schubert said. “Like no, it’s about their relationships. It’s about life. It’s about how you handle your relationships. They even talk about going to therapy and how they deal with that and just day-to-day things, because they do share about their personal lives.”

The “Call Her Daddy” podcast launched in October 2018 and now has 72 episodes, with new ones being released to the “daddy gang” every Wednesday. In each one, Cooper and Franklyn comedically take listeners on a dive into their personal lives by explicitly sharing their experiences, dating advice and sex tips to listeners.

Morgan Meszaros, a senior majoring in public relations, said by listening to the podcast, the challenge of telling a partner what one desires is at ease. She said she may not know what she wants half of the time, but when taking the time to hear what they say, it allows her to reflect and come to a conclusion.

“I think something females have a problem with – and I know I’m one of them – is expressing what you want from a boy or in a relationship,” said Meszaros. “Girls just have a problem voicing it. They usually are wanting boys to read their mind.”

But the “Call Her Daddy” crew doesn’t pigeonhole themselves by advising only women. They provide advice for all in the “daddy gang.” Anyone who needs advice on how to send nudes, sliding into DMs, escaping the friend zone and open relationships is welcome to tune in. Carly D’Alto, a senior majoring in creative advertising, said she loves how inclusive Cooper and Franklyn are when it comes to giving advice.

“With thinking psychologically about boys sometimes, girls tend to overthink, but [the hosts] are kind of there to be like, ‘It’s OK, we do it, too,’” D’Alto said.

Meszaros said it is refreshing to hear the vulnerability of the podcast as Cooper and Franklyn talk about sexual experiences many others would be uncomfortable with sharing. Other podcasts that are relationship- and sex-driven control how they are showing themselves at that moment and are careful with words, but Cooper and Franklyn are carefree, said Meszaros. 

“They’re so confident in what they’re doing that it kind of inspires people to be confident in what they’re doing, especially in a romantic situation or with the person they are interested in romantically, and just being confident,” Meszaros said. “And just saying what you want, they say that that’s a good thing, and they’re honest about saying what, and so it kind of pushes girls to be honest about what they want in a relationship and not to settle for being treated badly.”  

When talking with friends about sex on a regular basis, one should not feel they have to hide something, Schubert said. She said this podcast helps girls and guys be open when it comes to talking about sex.

“Everybody knows that, in college, sex is going on, but nobody ever wants to talk about it,” Schubert said. “And you don’t even want to tell people sometimes that you listen to what’s considered a sex podcast, but it should be more normalized. It’s not a bad thing, so I think in this day and age, they’re really breaking the barriers of that and they are making it more normalized, which I think should have happened a long time ago.”

Cooper and Franklyn are relatable to their audience based on the connection they have built with their listeners, D’Alto said.

“I’m kind of impressed with them in a way because they built such a relationship with their listeners, and they’re constantly talking about their listeners, and that kind of made me want to hear about, like, what happened to Alex and what’s happening with Sofia and her new kinda boyfriend thing,” D’Alton said. “Which is funny, because at first I wouldn’t care at all because the things that they were saying just seemed so insane to me, and like I couldn’t relate, but now I feel like they’re super relatable because the connection they brought with their viewers.”

This connection allows the two to empower their listeners to be authentic to themselves.

“They are inspiring people to be themselves and to be comfortable in their own skin and not act like something you aren’t,” Schubert said. “They act 100% themselves no matter what, for the public, in private or whatever.”