Lauren Goldberger and Jeanette Harris-Courts own a podcast together titled All That and a Bottle of Wine. The podcast discusses pop culture from the 90’s and the early 2000’s. Lauren and Jeannette speak about some of the most iconic movies, shows, and music that came from that era. YEM was able to speak with Lauren and Jeanette about coming up with a name for the podcast, some of their favorite guest stars and their biggest crush of the 90s or early 2000s
Young Entertainment Mag: At what point did you know you wanted to work together on this project? And what motivated you to start it?
Lauren Goldberger and Jeanette Harris-Courts: Our favorite story! I (Lauren) decided I wanted to do a pop culture podcast centered around the early 2000’s because I wanted to be able to talk as much as I wanted to without someone stopping me! But I didn’t have anyone in my life that 1. Could truly keep up with my obsession or 2. Would want to dedicate the time! I met Jeanette out one night with a bunch of mutual friends at a drag bar on the night Aretha Franklin passed away. After a couple drinks, I just asked Jeanette, “Do you want to make a podcast together?”
At the same time, I (Jeanette) had just finished working for a few independent podcasts in STL and left to focus on creating my own content. I spent hours listening to shows like Gilmore Guys, The Read, Keep It!, and Pop Culture Happy Hour knowing I wanted to produce a show with a similar sound. I wanted to create a show that centered around a topic that I knew way too much about, but could not get enough of consuming. As many hours as I spent listening to podcasts, I also spent an equivalent amount of time watching and re-watching 90’s and 2000’s shows. To the point where I even started a blog on my website about my favorite show topics like Arthur, Degrassi, and more. When Lauren asked me if I wanted to make an early 2000’s podcast that night, it felt like the stars were aligning.
We barely knew each other, but became best friends fast!
YEM: How did you come up with the name for the podcast and was it a mutual decision?
Lauren and Jeanette: This was so hard! We brainstormed for so long about it. We wanted something that would be a nod to the era, but also had an adult lens. Honestly, it really came down to just needing to decide so we could start recording and put out the show! We were ready to go.
After brainstorming for some time over wine and snacks while flipping through old copies of J-14, Seventeen, and Bop mags we landed on the 90’s phrase “all that and a bag of chips”. Although Lauren is not a big drinker (can’t say the same for Jeanette lol), replacing the “bag of chips” with “bottle of wine” felt very fitting for what we were trying to create that night. And I think it’s still working for us.
It was definitely a team effort.
YEM: How do you organize the topics you discuss on the show?
Lauren and Jeanette: Organize? What’s that? Haha, Jeanette is really the one that comes prepared with outlines. She’s the responsible one, for sure.
As the show producer as well as co-host, I (Jeanette) have an idea going into our shows of what sound bites I want us to have with the topics we discuss. To make sure we get these clips, I make an outline so we “got the goods” as they say nowhere.
By nature, I (Jeanette) can be a little bit type A… lol growing up, I used to tell people I was a Tamera (from Sister, Sister) or a Hallie (from the Parent Trap) because I thought they were the cooler sister; the sister people wanted to be friends with! The fun sister! But, with age and more self awareness, I’ve realized the responsible sisters also listened to Coolio and played poker like bad bitches! Since that realization, I’ve become proud of my Tia/Annie type A ways! It makes this magic work because Lauren may not come prepared with outlines, but she has a contagious charm and energy that brings life to my boring words on paper.
We do try to spread the topics out a bit so we aren’t covering a smilitar topic three episodes in a row. We like to alternate between tv shows, movies, music, etc. And it’s always good to have a theme when we’re discussing multiple things in one episode because we could talk for hours and hours and hours about certain (*cough* The O.C.) topics.
YEM: How do you keep up your incredible chemistry live on air?
Lauren and Jeanette: That’s so nice! We’re really just ourselves! We’re such good friends so it doesn’t really feel like a performance. It’s more of us just talking about topics we genuinely love and get excited about with someone we really enjoy talking to.
The wine helps too!
YEM: Has this podcast strengthened your friendship?
Lauren and Jeanette: Absolutely! We started as strangers and now we’re best friends. We really discovered so many shared interests through the show. It’s to the point now if something from the 90’s or early 2000’s happens, we will immediately message each other about it. This is truly a weekly thing for us haha!
Plus, we’ve become friends outside of the show now so we call and catch up as often as we can, especially with us living in separate states now.
YEM: Who has been some of your favorite guest stars and why?
Lauren and Jeanette: We haven’t had a ton of guest stars, but I would say both Davida Williams (Lizzie McGuire) and Courtney Gilberto (Parent Trap) were so awesome and fun in their own ways!
It honestly still feels like a dream come true that they were willing to come on our show in the first place. Both women were so down to earth and kind and willing to talk about such a vulnerable, but incredible time in their lives.
We’d love to get more guests on the show. Lauren’s got a list and has no shame in DM-ing former child stars to join our show. We shall see what’s to come!
YEM: How do you stay motivated to continue the series?
Lauren and Jeanette: When we started the show, we started it for fun and we always say that was and still is our goal.
We stay motivated because we love creating something together! We both have such busy lives (Lauren works and is a University of Missouri-Saint Louis graduate student and Jeanette works as a Podcast Producer for House of Pod Denver) and this show gives us a chance to geek out about something we love for a few minutes without thinking about our to-do lists. It also gives us time to spend a few hours with each other and catch up each month!
YEM: What has the following for the series been like over the years, have you seen the growth you wanted?
Lauren and Jeanette: We always joke that we assume we’re just talking to each other, but we get messages from people from all over the country telling us they found the show from a friend and love it. We have been so lucky to have this show grow from just our friends and family listening to season 1 to having such great followers around the globe!
It’s always so exciting for us to get a message from a listener!
YEM: What about these specific decades are important to you?
Lauren and Jeanette: For me (Lauren), it’s nostalgia. I loved that era of my life so much and I don’t want it to be just a forgotten memory. I want to really remember it all and keep it alive!
To add to what Lauren said, I’ll (Jeanette) say that these decades were the last before the digital era. We were consuming pop culture in this very new way that feels so foriegn to us now because it’s so commonplace. Seeing shows like The Simple Life,The Real World, Queer As Folk, and Daria for the first time are electric experiences younger generations unfortunately (or fortunately depending on who you ask) will never experience because they’ve grown up with shows like these. There is something very romantic about this era because of that.
YEM: What’s one thing you would change about the world today to make it more like the 90’s or early 2000s?
Lauren and Jeanette: Mary Kate and Ashley would still be the center of pop culture and Aaliyah would still be making club bangers with Missy Elliot. But there’s something important about how front and center diversity is in today’s media landscape that makes me (Jeanette) not want to change too much.
YEM: Who was your biggest crush of the 90s or 2000s?
Lauren and Jeanette: For Lauren, Justin Timberlake and Ashton Kutcher. For Jeanette, Chad Micahel Murray and Sophia Bush. Yes, she did cry when they got a divorce.
YEM: How do you feel about being on your 3rd season? Did you picture your series going on for this long?
Lauren and Jeanette: It’s crazy that we’re already on season 3! It felt unreal to see that number when we started recording this year, but that’s how you know you’re having fun! We’ll keep doing it forever, if we can!
YEM: What are you hoping listeners take away from this podcast?
Lauren and Jeanette: To remember the innocence of the time that raised us! Also, to just have fun listening to us gab because we have a lot of fun recording together.
Rapid Fire:
Hilary or Lindsay? Hilary (Lauren + Jeanette)
Nsync or Backstreet Boys? Nsync (Lauren + Jeanette)
The OC or One Tree Hill? OC (Lauren) One Tree Hill (Jeanette)
Twilight or The Hunger Games (book)? Hunger Games (Lauren) Twilight (Jeanette)
