What's Up Nation with Jessi Cruickshank

Welcome to the international sensation, the jann Arden Podcast. I'm here with Caitlin and Sarah. I'm in Iceland. jessi Cruickshank, yes, she is here. She's got a lot of stuff going on. You know, our guests from basically everything. I'm just going to tell you that right now, because if you're seeing her, you're going, Oh, I know her from and I know her from television comedy, hilarious, hilarious, smart, intelligent, fucking kick ass comedy that always comes from such a different angle. I love, love, love this woman's comedy. She is topping the charts with her own podcast. Why she's even doing ours is beyond me, but she's here. You are adding DJing to your resume. I want to know about that and touring the evening Club, which I'm going to where do I buy tickets? We're going to find out. We're going to put all of that in the show notes. It's a dance party from seven to 10pm Why hasn't someone thought of this before you can go for a 5pm dinner and then go to a dance party. But this thing is designed for women like you and me, queer folks who want to just go out dance to nostalgic bangers and still be home in time to like function. Put on your hand cream, face cream, foot cream. jessi crookshank, welcome to the jann Arden podcast. We are thrilled to have you. Ah, I

have been wanting to interject the whole time, but then I just felt so honored that Jen Arden was saying such kind things to me. Are you kidding me? It is such a joy

to be here. Tell us everything that's going on right now. And I mean, I should begin at the beginning. You are a person who has embraced comedy, and you were doing it at a time where there weren't a lot of women out there, beautiful women, I will add to that, which adds another element to comedy. You know, being good looking, I'm just gonna, I'm just gonna say it, and I want to get your take on how that started and how it has changed. And Caitlin made a good point. She sent me this note. She goes, you know that that change from being 20 to being 40 like and how it's affected your career? Oh, my God.

Also, hi Caitlin and Sarah, thank you for having me. This is so thrilling. I'm a fan of your show. You did that terrible April Fool's prank. I still did we get I still would like to Yes, I would like an apology from all three of you, because I was like, wait, what? And then you asked me to come on, and I was like, hang on a minute. So yeah, much to discuss, Jan, this is such a good question, and you're involved in my answer, so brace yourself. I started at MTV, and I was always seen as a host, right? And it was interesting, because I always had male co hosts, and they were often referred to as comedians, but I was always just a host, and we were doing the same job and we were writing the same jokes, and yet, I think it was harder for people, especially at that time, to see like a fashionable young lady who was funny as a comedian, right? They're the comedian, She's the host. So, like, there was always that divide. And then when I left MTV, I started hosting Junos galas, and whatever anyone would ask me to do, and that's writing jokes. You're writing jokes for those rooms, right? And eventually, I got asked to host the Canadian Country Music Awards The year after you had hosted

with Rick Mercer.

Yes, I was like, I don't know I. How am I gonna stand in a stadium? Those shows are in literal stadiums in like Hamilton, and do a 10 Minute monolog for 1000s of literal cowboys, like the straightest white men you could put in a room are at the Canadian country music or watch Jan, see. So I sit down, I watch jann and Rick host, and I was like, you know, this woman is too much. Not only was I already, like, a fan of your music and but you're out there.

You're doing stand up. I don't even remember the show. I have no Jesse, oh, my God, I'm telling you. I have no idea what I did. Don't remember the show. I remember being there with Rick. I'm pretty sure I wasn't drinking those days. But, yeah, it was just a blur. But you you do. Wait, don't you remember?

There was like, a full bit you, like, came down from, like a they, like, lowered you in from, like, the sky. There was like, a funny, I swear to God. There was like,

Okay, I was obviously micro dosing something because I have no recollection. But, I mean, yeah, doing those things, and you are thrust into situations that aren't always comfortable, but we talk about this all the time on the show that I think these days, most of us who are in the arts, we don't just do one thing, jessi and you are a walking, talking example of just that, of being whatever the f you want to be.

That's. You too.

That's you too. It's most of the women that I

know, jann Arden, like you, I think, have paved the way for women to do whatever the fuck you want, right? Like, yes, you're an actress, You led your own show. Yes, you're a comedian, you did stunt work at the Country Music Awards that you don't remember. Yes, you're a singer, yes, you're a podcaster. Like you have sort of paved the way for that.

Well, so many people are doing such similar things. I mean, Tegan and Sarah in the last few years, have written a book, you know, high school, done the television show, you know, started a foundation, doing lots of philanthropic work. But, I mean, I want to talk about you. I appreciate your comments so much, and I'm going to just throw this over to Caitlin, because we have so many questions about the dance party. First and foremost, honestly, the seven to 10 thing, I was like, here. I was like, what I'll be there. What do I wear? Do you need under pants? The answer is no.

I mean, please, no, yes. Okay, so I guess sort of to put a bow on my on my last answer to you is, once I hosted the Country Music Awards, I did it two years in a row, and I thought, okay, if I can make a room full of straight or not men in cowboy hats laugh, you know, on a nationally televised award Show, then surely I can do this for my own people, who, by the way, not not straight men in cowboy hats, my women, my queer fans, like surely I can do that. So I started touring after that, and I've been touring as a stand up, and I have specials ever since. And so on my last tour, I kind of had a moment where I kept getting messages from people, I'm sure you get the same thing, where they were like, I thank you for giving us a reason to go out. They I haven't laughed like that since I had kids like so many of my fans are young moms, new moms, parents with little kids, like they're in the thick of it. And I was like, Oh, I'm giving people a reason to step out of their very busy lives. I want to do that in a different way, and so I created this idea of, it's called evening club. It is a I am touring all across the country of Canada, throwing literal dance parties from seven to 10pm I am DJing, and that is like, strictly so I can control the vibe. Do you know what I mean? Like, I don't want some wick, a wick, a DJ to come in and start playing EDM remixes. I want to hear Whitney Houston as she was meant to be heard. You know what I mean? I'm DJing. It's for women. I wanted to create a safe space where you can come with no underpants, Jan, because you don't there's no judgment. It's a safe space. Give yourself permission, something we do as women so rarely, give yourself permission to go out for one evening just for the sole purpose of letting go and experiencing pure, vulnerable joy.

I'm sold, and I also feel like, Jan, when you said, dinner at five, I know like other friend of the show, Marilyn Dennis, and I will frequently like, only do Burke is with

us now too. On the 5pm the

5pm dinner is the way to go. You get an easier time of a reservation at amazing restaurants, and then you go to the dance party. And then, as you said, Jan, you come home in time to put on your hand cream, which I really, really adore, and you can hear Whitney Houston. My question for you is, because I'm like, I'm the pop culture addict on the show, but also, like in my life, within my group of friends, at every workplace I've ever been in, I'm always the like, sicko who can't stop watching reality TV. I watch every movie. I treat the Oscars, like they're my Super Bowl. But I feel like, because it is a lane that has sort of been, I guess, patronized by girls, gays and maze, I feel like the like people kind of like shrink it a little historically, and now it feels like it's coming into its own. And you were formative in terms of your role for me as a millennial with the hills after show. And I feel like you elevated pop culture, and you made it like, smarter and kind of funny, even though people were like, yes, drinking on the floor at the Masonic Temple. But I think because it was like, smart people talking about pop culture in a funny and engaging way, it felt like there was a little bit more of permission to be the like, pop culture obsessed freaks that me and some of my friends were. So I'm wondering what your experience was like starting out. You know, did you sort of intend to make people take pop a little more seriously in Canada? Did that just sort of happen by accident and like, did you have to overcome a ton of people

who were like, no one's gonna watch this or care that's so funny and interesting, I don't think I've ever heard that take on it, and you're clearly an OG fan, because we were in the initial like Laguna Beach after show days, sitting on the floor in the corner of the studio. We were given real alcohol, so we were fully drinking live on Friday nights. I was 22 and I didn't it was my first. Real television job. I didn't really think anyone was watching. I don't think Dan did either, like we just were kind of talking literal shit about this show. The reason we did it was only because of can CON laws, and that was because for every 30 minutes of us programming, we had to air 30 minutes of Canadian programming. No one had ever created a show about a show. The Andy Cohen stuff didn't exist. The reunion shows didn't exist. We were the first to do it, strictly because we had to. Our producers thought, well, I guess after every you know, Laguna Beach episode, Dan and Jesse, we'll just throw them on to talk about it. It'll be like a post sports show. They gave us a literal it was men, okay, who were in charge. They gave us a Telestrator, as they do for like, football games, hockey games, we were drawing on people's faces. It was like no one really expected it to be a hit, and we certainly didn't, you know, try to be intelligent about the way we covered it. But I think because we were Canadian, we felt very removed from what we were watching. We're watching kids in Laguna Beach or, you know, young people in Hollywood with wealth and like getting 10 plastic surgeries. Like we were so far removed from that life that we could speak about it from our unique perspective. And I guess there was some intelligence or irony in how we covered the show, and so it gave you permission as a viewer to be like, Okay, it's not so bad that I'm spending my Friday nights watching this show, because Dan and jessi are doing it too, right? We can all laugh about it. This is irony, right? That's sort of what I think people felt. Is that accurate? Yeah, that's 100% true.

Because it felt like there it was a wink and a nod to the like, elevated camp part of that piece of pop culture. It felt like, you know, the people who were taking it, like, really seriously, that was kind of humorless, and not for me, but the people who were watching it and having fun with it and treating it as, like, high camp entertainment, I was very into that, and that was very new. And I think it was completely groundbreaking, and it's why so many people were watching it, even though you guys were drinking on the floor, like it was really, absolutely, yeah, like, it's an encyclopedic level moment for pop culture, not just in Canada, but like in pop culture, like period, I really think for that show Caitlin,

wow, I'm telling you, she speaks truth here. I take this seriously. Do you think you guys were stolen from Do you think that people riffed on that idea? Because, like Caitlin said, there was so many things that came out of that, a lot of shows now have an after show. Have you and Dan ever talked about that of we were the first to do this, or

we definitely have talked about it. I don't think in a like we were the idea was stolen from us, because we certainly don't have the, you know, the rights to like be the only ones to talk about a show. There were rumors at a certain time that like the Bravo team, the Andy Cohen team, the watch what happens, live team, had come down to see tapings of our shows like they were really sort of taking I

bet they frickin did.

And the thing that I will acknowledge Caitlin, because I'll always be like, oh, what? You know, I'm Canadian. I don't take credit for successes. But this is probably a buried fact in Canadian television history lore. But the hills live after show with Dan and I was the first ever live simulcast television series broadcast from Canada to the US in television history. It's never happened before, and it's never happened since.

That's crazy, that's like, that's and the thing too, that, I think, also being in Canada, because we're always like, oh, us, pay attention to us, please. This show started getting a lot of attention. And you could feel that people who liked Laguna Beach or like the hills in the US were liking you guys here. And it was like our Hometown Heroes, where we were like, Yeah, this is really good. Like, we can be great too after shows are now a public domain, but so few people do it. Well, I feel like that influenced podcasting. I think that's just influenced, like the entertainment industry in general, for so long, whether you guys, like, knew that or intended to do it like, that's kind of like the beauty of it, and it's the magic, but it's just so cool, and it's also cool. Wait, that's so kind are you not doing your Toronto show at what was formerly the Masonic Temple? Yes.

So evening club, the dance party in Toronto is at the concert hall for the Masonic Temple, formerly the home of MTV. I had not been back for 16 years. I went back to see it a couple weeks ago because that's where I'm doing my show. And it was like the memories that came flooding back, like everybody had been on that stage when MTV was there, it was like Kanye West, bad, poor reference, Adele, like anyone you could think of, Amy Winehouse performed on that stage while we were there as MTV. So yes, to go back and be able to throw a party for so many people who have been following me for the past 20 years is like. God, it's such a beautiful, full circle gift and moment, I can't wait for

people to come back and now you can play Natasha Bedingfield unwritten. You better believe I will be playing

Natasha beddingfield unwritten. Thank you for

bringing that up. Yes, I quite like that song. I don't know what the reference is. I'm not gonna sit here and tell you that. I think I know what you didn't watch

every episode of The Hills. Yeah, come on,

Jan, listen, I'm gonna cook shank. I'm gonna be, I'm gonna be straight up right now. Go ahead. I've never seen Laguna Beach, but you know what? Okay, I was with you on a CBC stage downtown Toronto at the goods, and you were one of the hosts. Was Steven, yes, and the the gang. It was, it was such a great show. You guys. You guys kind of went up against the social there for a while in the same time slot. But I remember, I think that's the last time I saw you in person, if I may be so bold,

we have a gorgeous picture together from that, from that day. I don't know you were glowing. I was, it was before I had three kids, so I was really in my prime,

yeah, your vagina was smaller. I think,

well, it's a picture of our vaginas. I should have mentioned that. It's just a selfie. What I thought of our vaginas together, yes, and mine is looking really tight, yeah, yeah, and yours is glowing. Thanks. You.

Sarah, speaking of podcasting, you have a podcast that is consistently Sarah can attest to this. She's our podcast guru. You are on the top of the Canadian podcast charts. What is it? What are you doing? Tell us why. Why is this happening for you?

Honestly, I think Caitlin should be hosting my podcast now that I now that I understand her level of steal

Caitlin from us to come on the podcast and make everyone cry, get out of here.

April Fools wasn't a joke. The podcast is over. Caitlin is mine. My podcast is a comedy pop culture podcast. It's called Phone a friend. It is pop culture through the lens of somebody who doesn't have the time or energy to really follow pop culture. So like i Yes, that's you, Jan, you need to listen to phone a friend, because I will break things down for you. I have a segment called dumb and busy, where anyone who is dumb and busy in you know, can learn what happened on summer house, or why the bachelorette was canceled, like all these little things that you hear about on your feed, but you don't have the time or energy to look into on your own. I'll break that shit down for you. Actually, now that I say it out loud, I kind of do for pop culture what I did for the hills on the after show. It's kind of like an ironic, funny, smart take on all of the silly things that are happening in the world. And when there's something that I don't understand in pop culture, which is, every week, I get to phone a friend. That friend can be a celebrity guest. It can be a celebrity divorce attorney, a paparazzi, a tween. Can explain something in the culture to me, and that's the show,

but the simplicity of it, like you said, it's very much on brand for where you started all those years ago, sitting on the floor of the Masonic Temple, you know, talking shit about things. Why do you think there's still such a profoundly kind of zany interest that goes on around celebrity? I think it's bigger now than it ever has been the interest in celebrity in pop culture. So it doesn't surprise me that your podcast people really do want it broken down. They're like, should I be like, do I need to understand this? Should I be like, more into this?

But I think there's two ways to do it. There are podcasts, there are shows. There are people who break this stuff down like it is real news. Do you know what like we are like they're talking about Iran, you know when they're talking about summer house? I really make a point to not approach it that way, like we all listen to all my phonies, which are my listeners? A phone, a friend? Like we all understand phonies. This is ridiculous. Yes, this is, like, the stuff that we are talking about is so silly. Again, it's kind of, I guess it is sort of on brand for me. Like I want to give people an escape. You're doing the dishes, you're doing the laundry, you're driving to work. Like, listen to me break down ridiculous things happening in the culture. So you don't have to think about the fact that our world is burning as we discuss the bachelorette cancelation.

You know what I mean? How do you stay on top of it? Like, do you have those inside sources? Like I'm so curious about you know, often the information that you get is kind of ahead of the curve. Like you you get tidbits of people that normal people don't have access to.

I don't know that I do. Okay, you. Know What I will say, I did have the cast of Laguna Beach on there on this week's episode, because they have a reunion special coming out, and that I did, obviously pull some strings to see the reunion special early to get them on. So like when I have personal connects, I will definitely use those. But for the most part, I am giving you my take on something that you know, I'm not, I'm definitely not like out here pounding the pavement, breaking celebrity news, but I will take other people's celebrity news and tell you what I think about it, and I'll be really honest. And that's what I always love about you. jann in Canada, I feel like there are so many people who are in entertainment and are not willing to actually have an opinion or absolutely right, absolutely there's a Canadian nest to a lot of our personalities, and I have always tried to make a point to be very honest and really speak my mind and My truth and

and I bet you into trouble too.

Yes, of course. Has it gotten

you into trouble? Oh, god yes, Jesse, on a constant basis, I, I actually stopped doing Twitter. It's gonna be 10 months ago, 11 months ago on there. But, but I yeah, I did. I think I said a comment that someone, I told some troll, I think, to go himself in his own eye socket. And it has just, it has been like, just brought up every second week. I mean, I didn't find that all that offensive. I didn't, I didn't, I didn't make disparaging remarks about his looks or no or his intelligence, I literally said, take your wiener and do that with your eye socket. But anyway, okay, I have constantly been in trouble. I mean, I always have a political opinion. I don't think there's any secrets of you know where I stand in that political arena of things, and I've been outspoken about the separatists in Alberta and whatever. I'm not afraid to go, Fuck off with whatever the fuck you're laying down, because I hate it.

Fuck off and go fuck yourself in the eye socket. Okay, that's why now you're gonna be in trouble. No. Said that's gonna be on your gravestone, just that will be your quotation. Go fuck yourself in the eye socket.

Well, it probably will make it somewhere there. But I'm wondering, I mean, you don't seem like a person to me that at all plays it safe, and I think that's from a female perspective as well. Really important for women to express ourselves, politically, environmental issues, family issues, women's health issues, the patriarchy, you know, misogyny, all those things, and you you step out there. A lot I've heard you say incredibly, like, courageous things. I hate to even use that word, but you're you're acerbic and you're edgy. You're not like, just waiting Well, you know, I don't really want to weigh in right now, because I don't know enough about it. I don't need to know shit about anything to have an opinion. Just saying.

And there are so few people in in this great country of Canada who are like that. I'm telling you, I'm telling you, it's important and it's rare. And I will share this with you. I hosted a big event once, and you know who I'm talking about. You know this person? It is a white male who has run giant broadcasting conglomerates for many years, I crushed like I absolutely killed. Felt so good about it. Was leaving after the show, and he saw me getting into my car and stopped me as he was walking out of the building, and he said, Jesse. And I said, Uh huh. I'm so excited that the CEO of the company is talking to me. He says, pretty funny for a mom, and there was something about that.

So that's meant to disparage it's meant to dismiss you. And it did, and it did that is the patriarchy, that's misogyny, full stop. It did. Didn't it? As much as you wanted to shake that off, you walked out of the building and went, what when you're in the bathtub later that night just going over everything, you think of 100 things that you want to say. But that

man was so powerful, and he was in charge of that network that I had just hosted a show for that I couldn't even if I had thought of the best comeback. I couldn't have because he was in such a position of power. And like, the fact that that still bothers me to this day, but I think it's that comment that has actually pushed me to go edgier, because I always have for a mom, now that I have a mother of three kids in the back of my head, and I never want to be pretty funny for a mom. Um, I want to be pretty funny period. So like, if that means that I have to push things a little

further than a shitty thing to say,

yes, yeah, of course, of course. And it is reflective of sort of how people see you when you are, you know, pushing the boundaries a little bit, especially as a woman and especially as a mom. Sarah, I'm going to

throw it over to you, because I know you got questions. Well, I was just thinking

about all the hills and Laguna Beach stuff, and you going back to Masonic Temple, you talked about the celebrities that you remember being in that room, but like, that's a look back at your previous chapter of life. So maybe comment on that a little bit, you know, like the person you were back then and the person you are now. What have you learned along the way? And, you know, what are you carrying into this, like, tour?

That's such a great question. I felt like I actually got quite emotional going back there, which I did not expect. And I think it's because I was there during such a formative time in my life. It was like 22 to 2829 like, all of my 20s were there. I was so drunk, so often in that room, and I'm not gonna say like we they stopped giving us alcohol on television quite early on, there was, like someone, one of one of our guests on the after show said something on live television and got fired from her job, and then they took all of the alcohol away. So I was never drunk on television, but I was drunk all the time because I was on TV, and we could go to the local pub, and people would buy us shots, and, like, we had parties there all the time, and that was just the culture. So like, part of me was standing there being like, oh my gosh, so much debauchery happened in this building, and also so much growth, right? Like, that's who I learned. I think, not just who I am as like a television person, but really who I am as a person. Like I developed in so many ways there, and I made so many incredible friendships, like the producer of my podcast was the producer of the Laguna Beach after show. No way, no, that's so good.

So I think go that says a lot about you, too. That's amazing. Thank you. Yeah, it really is. It says a lot.

I feel very lucky. I just feel so lucky to be able to, like, invite people back there to share that night, this night, with me. I think it's going to be really special. And I actually am DJing like I have learned and slash, am learning to DJ so I have to be like, I can't cry on my turntables, guys. I really have too expensive I have mixes to do, but I'm so excited. They also have kept all of the old stuff up from MTV, like it's now just a concert venue that anybody can go to. But they have our wallpaper, they have our little MTV logos everywhere, like it looks the exact same. Would be awesome, I don't but the building, does

You do look the same for the record?

I have a mini question, just like I have a good jessi history question. I want to know for our listeners. If you could talk a little bit about the role your mom played in getting you into like entertainment and production because your mom was on TV, that's a

great question. It's funny when you say the role my mom played in getting me into it reads Nepo, baby. And I want to be very clear, okay, there did nothing to get me into this business. I wish she did. I So growing up, my mom was a television host on the CBC we were in Vancouver. She had a show about, like, aging. It was like one of the first health shows. It was called Alive, the picture of health, before goop, before everybody was doing it. She was hosting this health show. And she was long out of television when I, you know, sent my audition tape over to MTV. But what she did was give me an example of a person in the world who was doing this for a living, like, you know, growing up in Vancouver, I didn't, there weren't a lot of television personalities, you know, in our community, it was like, literally just my mom. And so that made me it seemed like this was a job that a person could get, which, it's not turned out, when I tried to start getting the job, I was like, Oh, this is really hard. And my mom was like, I think everyone I know has retired or been fired, so I had to go at it on my own. But like, really, she gave me a role model for not just, not just someone on television, but a working mom, a hard working mom who had to, I mean, we could talk about the CBC for an entire other episode, but like, had to raise her own money for the like she was, she worked her ass off to host that show. And she's, she inspires me every day, truly like she is why I'm talking to you guys right now. Is she a good grandma? You. She lives to if she could have breastfed my three babies, she would have my mother. My mother is a better, better parent than I am to my own children.

I used to tell my mom, if you want grandchildren, you and dad are gonna have to start having sex again, because you're gonna have to have your own grandchildren. And that's where that ended. It just it didn't take Yeah, didn't take off. Didn't take off. Parents do play a role. It's not always what we think we want it to be, but it's just, it's there. Just the same kind of, when you get a little bit past that, you're like, Okay, this is what happened there even. I mean, I had such a dysfunctional relationship with my dad, but there's so many markers along the way of things that he did really shitty that turned out to be such gems for me. Like, I'll give you an example. My mom bought me these corduroy pants when I was, like, 12 years old, because we always got new pants and a shirt and shoes for September for school, and the pants didn't quite fit, right? We were gonna take them back. And so I went with my mom to take them back, and because we didn't have the actual paper receipt, we had the bag, but we didn't have the receipt, the woman said, Absolutely not. There's nothing we can do about it. So fucking mom and I went home, because my mom was the same as me. We were kind of like, we're not gonna cause a fuss. I guess we'll figure it out. Well, my dad grabbed my arm, threw me back into his car, put the pants in the bag, because we told him they wouldn't take them back, marches me down to Woodward's and go into the store. I left with a different pair of pants, like I left with the bigger size of pants and things like that. Like, my dad just stood there. And maybe that's misogyny, too. Mind you, the clerk was also female that was denying us, but he was he was scary. Not that I want to be scary, but I also learned that negotiation isn't always pretty, and sometimes you just have to get what you want when you want it, and stand your ground. So things that I didn't think would necessarily serve me in any way have in my life. And he was a tyrant. He really was like, Jesus Christ. I feel bad for the clerk. I'm sure she cried when we left.

But isn't that funny, Jan, how that's what you remember as a kid, like I'm I'm hyper aware of that as a parent, that it doesn't matter what I do on a daily basis in our daily routine. It's like those moments. It's how do I treat the clerk when I go to return the pants? Those are the things that make that impression on your kids. You know what

I mean? Yeah, it really is true, and it sometimes it takes so many years to unravel what makes us us.

As far as guests on your podcast and you like you said you had some extraordinary people and called

up friends. Yes, I would like you to come on. Yes, I would love for you to come on.

That's not what I was gonna say, but I will accept that and get the lawyer. We need to draw the papers for the cash appearance. Do I have to

pay in cash? Just briefcase full?

I don't even need anything. I don't need anything. Who would be like a dream person that you could have. It doesn't even have to be a funny conversation, a candid conversation, a heartfelt conversation, you know, someone that you've looked up to. Is there people that you would like to go after?

Yeah, it's anyone from any boy band. And listen, if you thought I was gonna say Michelle Obama boy, were you wrong? No, that's gotta be doable. Well, so I've done I've done like, I've started the lower tier. I've had Chris Kirkpatrick of instinct, who was, like, potentially the least healing member.

You are not second tier. Buddy. Don't listen

to her. Wait, wait, let me tell you, Jan, I asked Chris. So the joy of getting these guys on my podcast, in my mind, is that I can ask them all the questions that I would have wanted to have asked them when I was a pre confessed and horny. Did you choose the stickers? Yes. So yes. So I asked Chris if he had seen me, if I had walked onto his tour bus at the peak of his fame as a adult like or, I mean, as an of age person, would he have hooked up with me and he looked me up and down, and he said, No, medium with full hair and makeup, I'm trying to look my Best for this man. He said, No. And his loss, I appreciated the honesty. I thank you his loss, and that gives me permission to call him to third to fourth tier.

Okay, we're going fifth, sixth tier. I think he's below Donny Osmond and at this point, yeah.

Well, I also had Joey McIntyre of New Kids on the Block on my. Podcast recently, and he told me about the plastic surgery procedures he's had, and it wants to get so that was thrilling. Any like man who's willing to share openly about what he's doing or thinking about is it's refreshing. But yeah, I'm looking for Backstreet Boys, Jan, I'm looking for no.

I mean, that's gotta be that's gotta be doable. They're all still alive. None of them have drowned in bathtubs yet, or anything. These guys are. It would

be super hard if they were not. So I am glad that they are alive. And, trust me, I am sliding in all the all the dams I have to I've been Yes, doing what I can.

Who's been the most unexpected fun guest that you thought this person's gonna be an absolute dud, but they have risen into like, second tier material.

Great question. So many people. Surprise me, we had Alyssa master Monaco, who was the Barack Obama's White House Chief of Staff, and that's sort of like a unique guest for a pop culture podcast. But this was in sort of the height of the trump the election, everything the dumpster fire that was happening in America. And so I phoned a friend. I phoned her to explain it all to me, and she was absolutely incredible. She told me, like, things about being on Air Force One with Burke and, like, hilarious behind the scenes stories about him. Like she blew my mind. And I just want to be friends with her. Do you know what I mean? Like, I just want to, like, have her at a dinner party, a 5pm dinner, if we could, and ask for more, because she was amazing. Yeah, she got tampon machines installed in the White House. That is her claim to fame. We're not sure if they're still in there, in the Trump White House, but shit, they are. It was because of Alyssa

Caitlin had a really good ask, and I'm gonna let her do it. The business

is so different, like, obviously, now than it was when you were like, so I'm just wondering what advice you would have to, like, a 2026, version of, like, jessi Cruickshank, if someone wants to go into, like, you know, comedy or hosting, or, like, building something online. Where would you say they should, like, start now?

Well, obviously, like, the empowering thing that I didn't have, I had to, like, drop off a resume at the Much Music Building, right? Like, physical copies of my like, picture, so cute. I just want so cute. They never write back, never heard from them, not not a once like that. Was like, that was that. Was it so obviously. Now you get to do your own thing. You get to create content, literally on Tiktok, Instagram, on YouTube, whatever it is for you. I think my advice is like, and this is so obvious, obviously, be yourself. That was something that I did not understand. Early in my career, I submitted a demo tape where I wait for it pointed with two fingers to the camera, and I said, What's up? Nation that was in with the demo tape with finger could have caught on it. Well, I think I was stealing it from, like, a much music vj that I had seen, like I thought that that was cool, and the rest of the tape, I think was was better. But when they brought me in, the VP of MTV was interviewing me, and he said, we loved your tape, but the part where you pointed with your fingers to camera and said, What's up? Nation was bullshit. And I remember sitting there, like, bullshit, and, like, 20 years later, I understood what he meant. Like, yeah, it was so I'm trying to, trying to be something that I was not. I was it was very much bullshit. I was, like, pretending to be a thing that I thought I should be on television. And so I learned very quickly to not be that. And I would say that to anybody, like, who be you? Be the person that you are with your friends. Be the person that you are when you're like, shooting the shit with Caitlin and Sarah and Jan. Like, who is that? And how can you be that in anything that you put out into the world. Oh, good. Then, like my and I want to know, actually, sorry, guys, do I get a chance to ask a question? Yes group, please.

Yes, we've got, we've got 19 seconds. Go ahead.

Jesse, my question is like, Jen, you brought up how I have continued to, like pivot and do different things and find different spaces in the industry in which to exist. You have done the same thing for me. I don't have a vision board, I don't have a master plan, I don't have a five year plan. I don't have a next year plan. I just follow my gut and my creative spirit. If I get an idea one day that I want to throw a dance party, I'm going to do it and I'm going to learn how to DJ in two months. That's how, if I get an idea for a podcast, I'm going to make it happen and I'm going to do it. I just sort of follow what brings me joy. And that has worked for me. Is that what you do?

Too? Yeah. Yes, absolutely, I have no plan. Like, grade three was the best four years of my life. You know what I'm saying? Like, academically, I'm very challenged. You know, spell check. You want to write a book. It's called spell check. You just, you can, and then you get an editor, and things like that. But no, just do things you like and just build on that and build on that. But I don't, I don't, I don't really plan anything. I don't even if I did plan something, life is going to stand in front of me and going, No, we're not going that way. We're going to go that way. And I think you've probably failed a lot of times in your life. And I yeah, I failed probably three hours ago. But I don't mind I don't mind it. I'm just like, Huh, okay, it's just got to be part of how you go forward. I know Sarah has failed at things. I know Caitlin has failed at things. We've talked about that. We've talked about being fired from jobs. We've talked about, you know, just kind of standing outside a door that you used to be able to walk through for 10 years and and kind of being denied, and you're going, Okay, well, what, what does that make me and who am I? But that's just a moving target constantly. But, man, it is so fun just to be yourself, and it's fun to to just try different things and not have to be good at them.

So episode takeaways, no finger pointing and be yourself.

Yeah, no finger pointing to camera yourself. Follow your heart. What brings you joy? Do that, but

Sarah, we are going to start doing what's nation like as a goodbye. Are we broadcast? Right? Yeah. Oh, he's okay.

Well, what's up? Nation was the title of this episode. Now, no

matter what the What's up, nation, if that is the title of this episode, I feel the need to share what's up. Nation. Demo tape was edited by a boy who was introduced to me via my dad in New York City, in 2005 who is now my husband and father of my three. Shut the hell up. Swear to God. He saw what's up nation, and he said she's gonna be the mother of my children one day. And a star, the finger pointing, worked on someone the story

of what's up nation, leading to your children,

we're gonna leave it there. I am. Janet, we have been visiting with jessi Cruickshank and among a million other things that we've talked about today, we especially want to leave you with the evening club tour that is coming up. You can find dates. We're going to put all the information in our show notes. Ladies, gay people, queers everywhere. Do you want to dance from seven till 10pm a crook shank is going to DJ. You can go out for dinner at 430 of five. You can you can split meals. You can even split soup. That that's what people do when they go out for dinner that early. Thank you for being with us. Jesse, you are fantastic. You're inspirational. And keep kicking ass and on three. What's up? Nation, totally. Do you.