We’d like to give a big shout-out to Nichols Hills aristocrats Jennifer Welch and Angie Sullivan – who I think is nicknamed either Toots or Pumps – for finally achieving national C-list fame!
A few years after their reality show “Sweet Home Oklahoma” was canceled following two disappointing seasons, the pair have emerged as rising social media video influencers thanks to their popular podcast “I’ve Had It,”
Generating millions of streams, views, and downloads, the show and its viral clips primarily feature the moms riffing on topics that really "grind their gears."
Here’s a viral clip making the rounds:
Enthralling stuff, huh?
I’ve tried listening and have watched some clips of the show.
For the most part, "I've Had It" mimics what it's like to eavesdrop on mean Nichols Hills housewives who are high on Xanax at Flip’s, only without the Italian Nachos.
The show is boring an not in any way original, groundbreaking, or thought-provoking, and some of their one-liners are clearly contrived and rehearsed, but… it works pretty well in short-form scroll video form, and with most Americans being dumb and easily entertained, it's a bonafide hit.
In fact, “I’ve Had It” is so popular that the duo is wading back into the place that drowned them – American television!
Earlier this week, Jennifer and Toots were featured on The Today Show with Hoda and someone else as part of a “Podcast You Should Watch?!” series.
Check this out:
That’s awesome! There’s just something in Oklahoma's red dirt water that grows successful social media influencers, brand personalities, reality stars, and viral video sensations.
From Joe Exotic to The Pioneer Women to Sweet Brown – whatever happened to her? – our state produces more reality celebutants than Miss Americas and Porn Stars combined.
Hell, even the woman from one of the world’s most popular memes is a reality star from Oklahoma.
There’s a saying that once something appears on The Today Show, it’s no longer cool.
As a testament to that, Jennifer and Toot’s appearance set off Mayor McSelfie’s “OKC Celebrity Alert” radar. He gleefully shared the news with his cheery followers:
According to Chartable, “I’ve Had It” is the 11th most popular podcast in the US, just ahead of a bunch of other shows I haven’t heard of or listened to. They’ve also launched a national tour.
Now that they’re successful, other celebrities are giving the ladies the respect and attention they deserve and crave.
For example, they recently welcomed to their studio the one Oklahoma influencer who tops them all – The Pioneer Woman:
Wow. It still seems like yesterday that The Pioneer Woman beat us out for Best Blog in the 2008 Oklahoma Blog Awards. It’s funny to see where our careers have gone from there. She’s an international celebrity and household brand name with her own TV show and Mercantile, all while I’m writing and article about her in my mom's basement while eating Taki’s, hoping someone will actually pay me $5.00 to read it.
Anyway, where were we again? Oh yeah, talking about people more successful than me.
Jennifer and Toots aren’t the only Sweet Home alums to become popular podcast stars.
Alex Bennett – the smokin' daughter-in-law of Thunder owner Lord Clayton Bennett of House Dorchester von Gaylord (at least for now) – worked for Jennifer’s interior design service and also appeared on Sweet Home Oklahoma.
She’s now the host of a popular BarStool podcast called Mean Girls.
Alex is hot, relatable, talkative, and loves attention, so, naturally, the podcast is a hit. I went to a Thunder game last winter that she attended, and my friend was more excited to see her than the actual players.
I think Alex has had a hand in the rise of "I’ve Had It."
I first learned of the show when BarStool randomly RTed a clip of it back in March:
Suspiciously, the random account from New Zealand that shared the video has gone private. It makes you wonder if it’s a bot account, and the show’s producer A) used it to make the video look organic, and B) then use her connections with Alex to get a Barstool RT.
Then again, that’s just me sharing a baseless hypothesis that’s supported by the obvious coincidence that Alex went on the show two weeks later.
Even if "I’ve Had It" resorted to producing fake organic hype to make their rise look authentic, that’s fine. It wouldn’t be the first time a podcast has done that, and since I’ll probably end up doing the same thing within the next year or so, it won’t be the last.
Seriously, at least they’re not trying to benefit or rig the virality of a mega-tip fairy tale...
Yep, what a coincidence, huh? The same week they’re doing a big national publicity tour, some single mom Uber driver named Yolanda Fister gives them a lift. They tip her $5,000, and then a Tweet about it goes viral. Either I’m a cynical asshole, or that seems totally staged.
Update: Well, it was staged! The pic was originally shared by the duo's publicist. Also, Yolanda Fister isn't some burner bot Twitter account posing as an Uber driver. They're a "fan of the show" who was simply posting a "satirical joke" that I assume "duped" a lot of people.
Wocka wocka – I guess the joke is on me for believing the tweet was fake and, well, being right.
But, once again, who cares?
In today’s day and age, it doesn’t matter how someone makes it, but rather or not they have.
"I've Had It's" success shows that dreams of fame and riches can and do come true, and with a little bit of luck, hard work, minor celebrity status, connections within the content production industry, and the money and resources needed to produce and aggregate your content through the use of social media bots, anyone can become a podcast star if they just set their mind to it.
So, once again, congrats to Jennifer and Toots for finally achieving national C-list fame.! If you want to share the eyeball-wealth and tell people who you've had it with rude local bloggers from Oklahoma, I’d appreciate it.
Stay with The Lost Ogle. We’ll keep you advised.
