Alex Cooper Is Blowing Up: “I’m a Motherf***er When It Comes to Business”

When the Kamala Harris’ campaign recently announced the candidate was sitting down for a slew of. new interviews, media headlines focused on the usual legacy outlets: 60 Minutes, Stephen Colbert, Howard Stern. Yet it was Harris’ sitdown with Alex Cooper which resulted in a flood of social media clips going viral. Cooper, whose Call Her Daddy podcast has evolved from a salacious sex and relationships show to a celebrity confessional hot spot in a few short years.

Alex Cooper knew she was taking a huge risk, but it was hardly the first time. 

Since launching her megahit podcast, Call Her Daddy, six years ago, Cooper engineered her meteoric rise with a series of strategic moves — jumping ship from Barstool Sports to Spotify in 2019 (for $60 million) and then again to SiriusXM this year (for $125 million), becoming the most popular (and highest-paid) female podcaster in the world. Along the way, she’s evolved from presenting a bubbly character known for her salacious banter about sex and relationships into a media powerhouse who scores buzzy celebrity interviews and leads candid discussions centering on women’s issues.

Then Kamala Harris’ campaign called.

At first, Cooper was reluctant to interview the vice president, long having tried to project neutrality to her loyal young female listeners, known as the “Daddy Gang.” “Politics is something I’ve been very in-between on, and I’m aware people come to my show for reprieve and relief from the day-to-day, and I don’t want to use my platform as a campaign tool,” Cooper says. “[But] her team had reached out multiple times to make it happen, and it finally felt like the time was right. I was looking forward to a conversation surrounding women’s rights.”

For their sit-down in Washington, Cooper wore one of her trademark purple hoodies along with black stiletto heels — a combination of soft and sharp, just like her question list, which stuck to topics she frequently covers on her show (“I’m probably not the one to be having the fracking conversation,” she admits). Still, Cooper threw an occasional fastball (“Why should we trust you?” she asked Harris). The episode received backlash from the MAGA crowd (despite Cooper offering to give equal time to Donald Trump, who declined) and perhaps wasn’t a feet-to-the-fire grilling, but their chat didn’t avoid substance — covering topics like abortion and sexual violence. And suddenly, Call Her Daddy was being name-checked alongside Harris’ other stops at household-name legacy media outlets like 60 Minutes and The View and surged to No. 2 on the podcast charts behind her biggest rival, Joe Rogan. Perhaps coincidentally, Rogan is now in talks for a Harris interview as well.

During our 90-minute Zoom chat, Cooper — the Pennsylvania daughter of a TV sports producer and a psychologist — discussed her podcast rivals, best and worst interviews, that 2020 breakup with her former Call Her Daddy co-host Sofia Franklyn, her Unwell content creator network, torturous sleeping habits and the little-known benefits of being chronically online. “I want to be the biggest creator in the world,” she says.

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Let’s start with your new deal: What made leaving Spotify for SiriusXM the right decision?

I’m a very competitive person. I don’t just want to do one thing. Every year I’m trying to expand Call Her Daddy. Speaking to Sirius, it made a lot of sense because there’s going to be more than just the main show — there are more formats I’m hopefully announcing in a couple of months. Something they pitched is, “We want people to think of Alex Cooper when they think of SiriusXM,” which is exciting. Sirius had the most ability to let me branch out and try new things while still remaining true to my product.

Just once when talking to somebody after signing one of these, I want them to say, “Duh, it was the money.”

Don’t get me wrong, it is life-changing. You want to make money off the product that you’re spending so much time on. But I started making content when I was 5 years old. I wasn’t hoping for a paycheck. I just wanted my friends to feel something from the videos I was showing them. So I think it’s incredible that the money has come, but I chose Sirius because there is a lot of opportunity to go to different places and grow Call Her Daddy into something bigger. To see what they’ve done with Howard Stern is incredible.

Will you be going on Howard’s show now that you’re under the same roof?

Howard and I have to do something. I remember watching Private Parts in college and thinking this is one of the funniest movies I’ve ever watched. Yes, we need to do something.

I’ve seen stories refer to you as the “female Howard Stern” and wondered if you like or dislike that label.

Whenever you’re compared to someone who is a legend, you’re never going to be like, “Don’t call me that.” I’m honored to be in the same sentence. But I also think that what he’s done and what I have done are very, very different. If you want to compare the early days, where I was talking more about sex and relationships, I understand I was filling a void in the marketplace where there wasn’t another woman in that lane for women like he was for men.

What do you think of the rumors that Stern will finally retire when his current contract ends and that you will be taking his spot in the Sirius family as the candid celebrity interviewer?

I don’t think there’s ever any time that anyone is taking over for Howard.

Did you feel Spotify should have been willing to do more to keep you? They reportedly coughed up $250 million to keep Joe Rogan, so they’re clearly not poor.

I had the best experience at Spotify. Truly. When I signed, I had women in the industry saying, “Damn, thank you, because now we all can see that we can do that.” It was a monumental moment. You see all of the men getting these big deals, and it was like, “Hi, I’m here, and I want to squeeze myself in the middle.” So there’s loyalty, but this is also business — and I’m a motherfucker when it comes to business. I’m going to protect my show and my Daddy Gang.

Will you be doing more episodes? I ask because Rogan does more than you, which has kept you at a mathematical disadvantage when it comes to catching him in the rankings. And when you went to Spotify in 2021, you said, “I want to be the biggest podcast in the world.” Is that still a goal?

It is a goal. I see all of the top shows on the charts, and they’re doing so many episodes, and then my show will be right there with them and I’m only doing one a week. I wanted to maintain some type of exclusivity, a premium-content feel. Spotify offered more money if I would do more episodes. I always said no because I didn’t want to sacrifice the main product. You see creators take on too much, and then they’re like, “Oh, I can’t do this anymore” and burn out. I’ve gotten to the point where I have perfected that product and I can now take on more without losing my mind. The show will also be available on YouTube, which everyone has been begging for. There’s going to be more content and I’m going to be everywhere.

Who has been your favorite guest so far?

That’s my least favorite question; it’s like asking somebody their favorite movie. The first person that really took a chance on me as a celebrity was Miley Cyrus [who in 2020 gave Cooper a confessional interview that’s become one of the hallmarks of her podcast in recent years]. I hadn’t had that gravity of a celebrity on, and she was incredible. I will never forget having Jane Fonda on. I was elated that this woman who is such an icon was giving me the time of day. Christina Aguilera was incredible. Keke Palmer. RuPaul! — I was unwell. Chelsea Handler — someone that I’ve looked up to for so long, and now I’m friends with her.

Well, the next question is going to be who’s your least favorite guest so far.

Least favorite is one that never aired, and I can’t say their name. It was a male actor who just was giving nothing. You could tell he was on a press run. I didn’t want to blow his butt up, but I was like, “Bro, you don’t want to be here. You aren’t answering any of these questions. Someone put you in this chair you didn’t even know.” I think it was a mutual respect thing of, “Let’s not air this because I don’t want my listeners to come at you for not giving anything.”

You’ve said that you’ve turned down potential guests who were also on publicity tours and they wouldn’t want to open up. Who are some of those?

Don’t want to blow up people’s spot. Everyone’s promoting something, and I respect it. I’m promoting Call Her Daddy. But I always say, “I know you are promoting this, but we’ve got to talk about your personal life.” I tell them, “If [listeners] care about you, they’ll care more about your product.” My audience holds me to a certain standard that I need to ask certain questions. How am I not going to ask Gwyneth Paltrow [who’s better in bed], Brad or Ben? This is a fun relationship and sex podcast. We’ve got to go there.

Which question were you most nervous to ask?

Sorry to get dark, but I think any time I’m dealing with sexual trauma, it is very important for me to read the room and know when the person is ready to go there. There have been many interviews where I have my note cards of bullet points of where I want to go, but half the time they’re thrown out because I’m reading the person and they still seem a little nervous, so I’m going to go into a different category.

But obviously, there was that Hailey Bieber moment — all the insane drama that the internet put on Hailey and Selena Gomez. We had two incredible women being pitted against each other. I had to ask about it. But how do you do that while also respecting the other person who’s not in the room that we’re talking about? I wanted to be cautious about that. There are moments where I just want to be a good person and not just go for the headline.

Are there any interviews you wish you could do over?

I need to interview Miley Cyrus again because I was such a baby. We were both at such different stages of our lives, and I think it will be beautiful when we both come back together because I had no idea what I was doing. I was just happy that I was able to look her in the eyes and get a couple questions out.

You have put a lot out there. What’s something you’ve said that you wish you could take back?

In my early days podcasting, there was so much I was saying that in the moment I truly believed was funny or I was doing to get numbers or clicks. I never put something out with the intention of, “I’m going to hurt someone.” But like any creator, you’re going to say some dumb shit. I don’t know if I’d take anything back. I would just handle things differently. But that’s also all of us. I’ve done episodes where I’m like, “You guys, remember when I used to say that this is how you should react to a man? I actually don’t agree anymore and propose this instead.” However, when I was 23, I would’ve rolled my eyes at 30-year-old Alex telling me that advice. It’s all relative to where you’re at in your life.

You recently hit a new level of mainstream visibility when Peacock partnered with you to provide that Olympics coverage this summer. You also took some flak for your performance. How do you feel you did?

Oh my God, I took flak for it? What happened?

I saw some things on social, including a breathless rant on Reddit with the headline, “Alex Cooper at the Olympics is now an international problem.”

I don’t read Reddit. I don’t think that translated onto my algorithm. But I will say if Reddit is talking about it, that means we’re doing something right. I had the best experience. It was completely different than anything I have done. They were trying to get Gen Z to engage in the Olympics, make it cool again, and I think they had incredible strategies to get it going. I also got great feedback from NBC. I’ve never done live TV, but I grew up watching my dad produce live sports, so it felt full circle, merging my two lives together.

Speaking of merging the two, I saw a TikTok where you referenced the “Gluck Gluck 9000” technique [Cooper’s most infamous and viral early episode; very NSFW] while commenting on Olympian Simone Biles. That had to be a first for NBC Sports.

Everything I was saying was run by them. There were scripts and teleprompters, so they were giving me the green light. I’m not just going, “Let me talk about this crazy thing.” Peacock told me, “We want you to be Alex Cooper. We don’t want you to just transform now into an NBC host.” They were bringing me in to do my thing and bring my audience. [My content was] definitely more brand-safe [than usual], but I really respected them for understanding that.

As a person who normally enjoys end-to-end control over your image and product, having to surrender to somebody else’s process for a big event like that had to have been a little freaky.

It was. The first time I ever did a live tour, last fall, I remember thinking that the minute that I step onto the stage, I don’t have control and that’s about to drive me insane. I had 60-plus people working on a tour, but my name is on the [venue]. So if anything fails, it’s on me. I’ve gotten more accustomed to delegating, but I’m still going to have my hands on everything as much as humanly possible.

There were other podcasts that launched around the same time as Call Her Daddy, which had single women talking about their love lives, but haven’t had its success or longevity. Call Her Daddy is not the same show it was then — was there a fear that deviating from the formula would result in fan rejection?

I listen to my audience — which is taboo for a lot of creators who say, “I don’t listen to them or I’m going to get pulled in 10 different directions.” I have kept them at the forefront. Another thing I see is creators will start off with 14-year-old fans and they end up 30 years old and they’re still talking to 14-year-olds. That’s when creators get burned out and their fans start feeling like it’s disingenuous — and it is. I knew I needed to grow with my audience‚ as scary as that was — to transition from talking about really salacious things to having more intimate conversations about mental health and insecurities and vulnerabilities. Now I have [a wide range of people] listening to my show, and I can go from having Jane Fonda one week and a TikTok star the next. I’ll see young girls now start a podcast where I’m like, “Oh my God, that sounds exactly like original Call Her Daddy.” It’s very cool to see things I’ve thought of transcend past me.

When you describe growing with your audience, I can’t help thinking of another artist who did that — Taylor Swift, who you’re obviously a huge fan of.

I have looked up to her for forever. I was going through old hard drives, and I found the most embarrassing music videos that I would make, singing to Taylor Swift. I look up to her so much because of the way she’s evolved and also the way she basically said, “I’m not comparing myself to anyone. I’m creating a lane for myself and I’m competing with myself.” There’s no point in comparing myself to Joe Rogan or Howard Stern. I don’t want to be them. Any day I sit down at my desk, I’m not thinking about any of these men.

Taylor has to be your most desired potential guest — or do you have another No. 1 you consider the ultimate get?

She’s always going to be in that top tier of dream guests. But when listening to my audience, there are weeks when my DMs will blow up and everybody is suddenly begging me to have somebody on. So I’ll get a person from Love Island and the [podcast episode numbers] are similar to Hailey Bieber, and you’re like, “How is this possible?” It’s because social media has completely changed the landscape in terms of the relevancy factor, and that conversation can be relevant for just 24 hours and then it’s gone. Whoever is getting that person in the chair is winning the game. Another example is Ariana Madix [from Vanderpump Rules] for that exclusive I had with her talking about Tom Sandoval. So yes, there are celebrity guests I’m always interested in. But then there’s the relevant zeitgeist conversation that I feel I’m very good at jumping on. I’m chronically online — that’s all I’m doing all day. I’m just scribbling, scrolling, taking notes.

I associate “chronically online” with people who are miserable, anxious and comparing themselves to everybody else, but you come across happy and productive. That’s kind of clashing in my brain a bit.

It is clashing. But I think there’s a difference in being chronically online to the point where your entire self-worth is immersed in this world. I’m choosing to engage in an algorithm that is actually productive to my creative skills rather than engaging in the negative stuff.

I’ll ask you a question you asked Megan Fox: “What’s the craziest rumor that you’ve read about yourself?” Which, by the way, is a clever way to get a celebrity to talk about something that you wouldn’t want to directly ask them about.

That I had facial plastic surgery — I haven’t, but I love Botox. The craziest rumor is that I screwed someone over to get to where I am today. That’s not the truth. If that’s the narrative, OK. But I sleep good at night knowing the truth.

Yeah, you did an episode breaking down your side to the breakup with your former co-host Sofia Franklyn [when Call Her Daddy was at Barstool Sports and they were locked in a protracted standoff negotiation for more money]. But when signing this big multiyear SiriusXM deal, you must have thought of Sofia at least once during that process. I’m wondering what that thought is.

I think less about the specific person. The thought is: I’m so happy that I trusted myself and fought for this IP [the Call Her Daddy brand and show archive]. Because I will never forget the day [Barstool founder] Dave Portnoy offered us that IP on a rooftop and I was so elated and being like, “I will stay another year. I’ll do whatever it takes. I want that IP.” Because I had put so much sweat equity into this — marketing, editing, writing, all of it. On [Sofia’s] side, she was like, “I think we could start a show called ‘Girls in the Bathroom,’ ” or whatever, “and it will be just as good.” And I was like, “That may be true. But in my personal opinion, I’m not giving up this IP. I don’t want to start over.” Thank God I saw the worth of the IP and the trademarks and the catalog. That’s what comes to my mind. The minute I sign a new deal, every time, I text Dave Portnoy a little thank-you.

I’m sure he loves that.

He does!

What did you say to convince him to give you Call Her Daddy so that you could eventually shop it elsewhere?

He was in a difficult position. We were making him so much money, and the show had blown up so heavily. We wanted to renegotiate because we were making pennies compared to what the show was making for Barstool. I went in there with my partner to ask for more money. If we broke contract, what could the company do? He recognized there was no other way than to appease us and get one more year out of the show.

Why didn’t he just recast?

He couldn’t. When I first signed with Barstool, every single show had emoji characters on their album cover — they were creating IP where they could always put new people into the chairs. But I fought really hard to get our faces on that artwork. I was trying to force their hand so that when you thought of Call Her Daddy, you thought of us. So when he offered the IP along with not much money for one more year, I didn’t give a shit about the money. I was like, “This IP is a gold mine. I’m going to be a multimillionaire and will be set for life if I just stay one year.” I will never judge my ex co-host and former partner for making the decision she did. She really saw the lane of not wanting to work another year for Barstool, and I didn’t, and that’s business.

You’re now mentoring and producing other young content creators as part of your Unwell network [which includes Gen Z TikTok stars turned podcasters Alix Earle and Madeline Argy]. Is there anything about your experience at Barstool that impacted how you handle people that you sign?

Because I’m so hands-on with Call Her Daddy — I was writing, editing and producing at Barstool — I want to give every single talent at our company the ability to have a sliding scale with regards to support. So when we’re signing these talents, I say, “We can provide you everything or you can do it on your own.” My goal is to help them be the best they can be and never force them to do anything. It’s also fun because this is a lonely business when you’re doing it on your own, and now we have a community and everyone has become friends and is helping and promoting each other.

What do you do with your money? Are you an investment person? Does it go into lifestyle?

My money goes back into my company and is being saved and invested. My friends make fun of me because of how reserved I am with money. But I’m also the friend who’s like, “None of my friends are ever paying for dinner.” I like to be spontaneously generous with money, but smart with it. However, [Cooper’s husband, producer Matt Kaplan] just surprised me with a birthday gift. I thought he was getting me earrings, and I walked outside and he got me a car. So I’m like, “Oh, you spend your money on me? Great!” That said, I just actually was cleaning out part of my closet because when I signed my Sirius deal, I ordered a bunch of new hoodies and sweatpants. I love to be comfortable.

What about mental comfort — like, are you able to turn it off? Can you relax and not have that wheel spinning so fast, figuring out all these various parts of your business?

No, James (Laughs.) And I was just waiting for you to finish your sentence. At 3 a.m., Matt will turn over in bed and be like, “What are you doing?” I’ll say, “I had an idea for my next episode.” Without sounding corny, this is my passion and I feel so fortunate to be one of the people in this world that figured out how to turn their passion into a career. So if I’m feeling drained, sure, I’ll take a couple hours to close my eyes so I don’t get a migraine. But I’m never like, “I hate this.” I’ve never said, “I want to quit.” It’s also nice to be in a supportive relationship. Matt and I are a team, and it’s so refreshing to have a partner that’s like, “Oh, you’re editing? Got you. I’m going to go finish calls over here.”

Are you one of those sleep five-hours-a-night people?

Yeah. And sometimes I like to dabble — it’s legal here — with an edible because I find my brain goes to really interesting places, and then I’ll be writing all these ideas down. So it’s sleep for a couple hours, wake up, write things down, sleep, wake up, lay in bed scrolling, write notes …

That sounds hard.

It’s fun. Maybe it would be someone’s nightmare. I’m having fun.

What’s the ultimate goal for you? There’s nothing wrong with saying you’ve already achieved it.

To build this company. It is crazy how much we’ve done in just a year from a tour that sold out seven cities to doing micro events that have brought thousands of women together and creating Unwell as a brand where we can throw a party and I don’t even have to go. I want to be the biggest content creator in the world.

Finally, since you ask questions of guests to generate buzzy headlines, what’s an Alex Cooper quote I could put in this headline that will get everybody to read your interview?

Oh, that’s good. Let me think. What’s a banger of a headline? I do this all the time for my episodes. I’m like, “What will people click on?” I’m trying to rack my brain for anything lightly juicy that I was talking about that you could spin it for a headline and, like, screw myself over.

Yeah, I’m obsessive about headlines. You said something good earlier, “I’m a motherfucker when it comes to business.” My brain flagged it. Maybe that along with something else.

That’s great. I guess it could be like: “I’m a motherfucker when it comes to my business and I’m not stopping.” Is that clicky enough?